Evening star., 1902-02-22
A COtORED COMPOSER
s. Coleridge Taylor at the
Leeds Festival.
HEARS HIS OWN WORK
i'THE BLIND GIRL" INTERPRETED
BY CHORUS AND ORCHESTRA.
An American in Scotland Writes Of the
Leeds Choral Society and
Mr.. Taylor.

| The remarkable rise and success OF 8.
| Coieridge Taylor, the young colored con-
| ductor and composer who has recently at
| tafned great prominence in England have
| been entertainingly set forth in letter adj
dressed to colored friends in this country
| by F. J. Loudin, conductor OF the Fiske
| Jubilee Singers now making a tour of Eu-
rope. The subject matter of Mr.. Loudin's
| letter is of marked interest to the colored
men OF the entire country. but it Is espe-
| cially so to those of Washington, in view
| of the establishment and successful main-
| tenance here of the S. Coleridge Taylor
| Choral Society. Mr. Loudin's letter has
| been printed in full in the Cleveland Ga
| zette
| He first indicates the great demand for
| tickets to production in Leeds, Scotland,
| of Mr.. Taylor's work for chorus and or
| chestra entitled The Blind Girl" The
demand was so great, says Mr.. Loudin. that
he and his jubilee singers were unable to
| obtain tickets three days in advance, and
were only admitted to the public rehearsal.
prior to the production. through the per-
| sonal kindness of the composer. The let
| ter then continues follows:
And now word about this festival,
| which occurs once in three years. The So
| ciety is one OF the oldest in Great Britain.
| 1t is also the wealthiest and most eXclu-
| sive society of its kind in the kingdom, if
| not IN the world. There are other, and ft
| may be larger, societies. but none OF q
| higher order. We have sung In this fine
hall many times, but it is peculiarly adapt
ed for these vast choral productions.
with seats for chorus of n thousand.
which on this night We're all filled They
do not all belong to Leeds. but come from
| nearby cities and towns well. There is
also most magnificent pipe organ.
A Great Musical Organization
| 1.-The orchestra on this occasion consisted
! Of 40 of the finest musicians to be found
| in Great Britain, some local men. some
| from London (the leading Instruments
nearly all came from London), some from
| Liverpool and Birmingham, others from
various parts of the kingdom.
| $50 great are these occasions and of such
/ importance that anywhere from 300 TO 500
composers offer their works I'm competition
| for place on the program, which fact will
greatly assist one in forming estimate
| of the esteem in which our great composer
| is held when you remember that he was
| asked to write work for the society to
occupy first place on their program of three
days and nights. The rehearsal of the Ma
| tional Anthem was finally finished.
DIR. Stanford retired from the conduct
| or's stand and all was silent for a time
save for the tuning of instruments Per-
haps five minutes elapsed, and there was
seen approaching the conductors stand a
| gentleman. negro, rather under than over
medium size; in complexion between the
/
! John p. Green with hair worn rather in
| the Frederick Douglass style. The chorus
and orchestra Were the first to recognize
their great conductor and arose to their
| feet with shouts of applause, which were
Immediately taken up by the vast assem-
bly, and kept up for some minutes.
A Business-Like Conductor.
| '.He bowed again and again with become
| Ing modesty and dignity. and finally put an
end to the tumult by raising his baton and
! tapping loudly on his music rest as the call
| to attention; then scanning them with his
| keen eyes to that all was right the
| baton he holds begins it's graceful swing
| with the regularity and exactness of a PEN
dulum, once. twice. thrice. and thousand
voices and 40 instruments are pouring
| forth strains which will ring In my ears
till time with shall end the product of
the brain of this giant youth not yet past
his twenty sixth birthday.
| He had heard the chorus sing ii before
| he had conducted the rehearsals of the or
| chestral parts. but this was the first time
that he or any one else had ever heard
the combination of orchestra and chorus OF
/ the work. for the orchestra had rehearsed
/ In London and the chorus In Leeds 1SB
miles apart, and this is to be their only
combined rehearsal At the proper time
| that great cantatrice Albani, entered and
| was given cordial greeting.
| Music Of the Highest Order.
"Can you imagine the delight the emo-
| tions 1 felt as L sat there and saw that
which three years ago had never dared to
hope, to behold black man standing be.
| fore me conducting one of the very first
musical organizations in the world, and
| that organization performing the work Of
| that same negro, not 'levee songs" or rag
| time ditties. but classical work of the
| first and highest order.
He is a most sensitive man. and again
| and again did he stop those great musi-
| clans to go over page after page which
| they had not rendered to please him: nor
| did q single one demur. The rehearsal
| ended all too quickly for and people
| focked around him to congratulate him,
i and 1 hardly need tell you that our trio was
among the number.
He invited us to supper at the Queens
Hotel. where he staying. There
| three-uriarters Of an hour was spent most
| pleasantly He then accompanied to
| the train and at IL o'clock we were on our
way back to Edinburgh, which We reached
| five hours later, having travelled $40 miles
| to witness this great event. l felt repaid
| hundredfold, for had the trip Peen as far
! as from Edinburgh to New York i: would
| have been more than worth 1t to me.
For weeks after this event l was singing
| ''Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory of the
| Coming Of the Lord"