The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-04-26
WITH MUSICIANS
AND MUSICAL PEOPLE.

Tuesday night the general public
Wi be given an opportunity for the
first time of hearing the Music Club
Orchestra under the conductorsE p of
MIR. a. c. Meyer. The reputation tnat
this orchestra has gained is wide
spread. and there have been hundreds
of people in the city who have been
anxious TO hear it who have not been
fortunate enough to have invitations
for the two concerts of the Music Club
when it has appeared. At each of these
the Lawton Memorial has been crowd
ed. and with the popular price of tick
cts for Tuesday nights performance,
50 cents there is no doubt of a ire
mendous attendance. At this appear
ance the celebrated Sixth Symphony
CT Haydn, which met with such ire
merious ovation when it was given in
March. will be repeated, and the or
chestra will appear three other times
on the programme, giving the Lust
spieI' overture of Keller Bella and the
"Nabucodonozor" overture of Verdi
Nj. Louis Muller will again be heard
in the cornet solo in Die Post I'm
Valid" of Schaffer. and Mr.. Arthur
Riley in the trombone solo in Schu-
bert's Am Nicer" On account of the
numerous requests for a violin solo
from him Mr.. Meyer will play proba-
bly, the Bach &c String Air" and the
"Elfentanz" of Pepper. The quartette
composed of Mrs. S. F. Smith, Mrs j.
]. G1udry, Mr.. ]. T. German and Mr..
j. NJ. Black will repeat the Rigolet-
TO Quartette. so eXcellently given at
the last meeting of the Music Club,
and there will be other vocal numbers
on the programme Thus the general
public will be afforded an opportunity
of hearing one of the most finished
concerts ever given in this city.
Mrs. L. w Mehrtens will make her
first appearance before the Music Club
at the May concert. This announce
ment will be gratifying news to the
many lovers of music who are anxious
to hear her play. Though one of the
most accomplished pianists that the
South has ever known, Mrs. Mehrtens
has been heard but by few people here.
She has played at numbers of her pri-
vate musicales when only a limited
number of invited guests have been
present, and has but twice played at
public performances in Savannah. Her
appearance on this occasion will I'M
doubtedly be an attractive feature of
the May concert.
In reviewing past grand opera sea-
sons at the Metropolitan Opera House
in New York, it is interesting to note
the different casts who have given the
various operas there. Prominent among
these stand two performances of Mo-
Zart's masterpiece. Don Giovanni. ;"
Two of the most famous casts ever
brought together at the Metropolitan
have given this opera. one in Novem-
Der, 1858, and the other in March, 1899.
Those appearing in the former were
Zerlina, Nine. Sembrich; Donna An
ma, Nine. Fursch- Madi; Donna Elvira,
Nine. Christine Nilsson; Don Giovanni
Herr Kaschmann; Leporello Sig. MI
rabella. In the latter Nine. Sembrich
was again the Zerlina, Nine. Lini Len-
man was Donna Anna, Nine. Lillian
Nordica was Donna Elvira, Mons Maui
rel was Don Giovanni, and Mons
Edouard deReszke was Leporello. At
the time of the former performance
Nine. Sembrich was but rs years OF
age. She was born in Wisnewczyk
Hungary, Feb. IS, 1858, and commenced
TO study singing when she was It. Her
debut was made in II Puritani," on
the Italian stage at Athens. Greece,
when she was 10, and her first Ameri-
can appearance was made during the
season of 1SS3-1SS4. In addition to be-
ing the celebrated singer that Nine,
Marcella Sembrich is to-day, she is an
accomplished pianist and a good vio-
linist.
Nine. Adelina Patti. born in Madrid
Feb. 10, 1S43, now past sixty years of
age, is probably the oldest singer on
the stage at the present time. Her de-
but performance was made in New
York in the role of Lucia di Hammer
moor, in the fall of 1859, when she was
but little past 16 years of age. She
had, however, appeared in opera on one
occasion before that which would
properly constitute her debut In the
spring of 1859 she sang in La Som
nalnbula" in Savannah. Maurice
Strakosch, the husband of her sister,
Amelia, was at the time in this city
with an opera company which he was
managing, and young Adelina- Patti
was travelling with him whilst he train
ed her voice. 1t so happened that the
soprano of Strakoschs company was
suddenly taken i'll here, and the man
ager put his young pupil on to fill the
role. Thus her first appearance in on
era was made in this city, and on the
stage of the Savannah Theater Nine.
Patti is still accorded the honor of be-
ing the greatest soprano who has ever
lived.
The rehearsals of the chorus of the
Music Club under the direction of Miss
Emma K. Coburn for the presentation
of Mendelssohn's "AthaIie' at the an
nual May concert to be given on
May are progressing rapidly. This
Will be the most finished exhibition of
chorus work ever given in Savannah,
and too much praise cannot be accord
ed Miss Coburn for the manner in
which she is drilling those under her
direction. The chorus will number
abboNe fifty voices. The soloists in
A
nI0tEI V0lI CkHF