The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-09-11


some time ago most warmly-indeed, /
told him it was the only music drama
OF recent date worth performing. He
had, however, without my knowing
anything about it (Bulow was at that
time conductor at the Hamburg OPP
eral, bought lSmetana's Dalibor,
which will therefore naturally be pro-
daced first. 1t is to be hoped that this
will prove merely a postponement of
your work. do not dare to conduct
'Dalibor' because of the new row the
German Schulverein at Prague would
raise in consequence. For the sake Of
your .Dimitri,' however, which deem
much greater work of art, I would
face that danger calmly
1t will be remembered that one of
the main reasons why the pope ordered
reform of church music was that
oLeratic tunes form so large a part of
it. There is, however, another side
to this question which was brought
forward as long ago as last October by
a writer in the Westminster Review,
but did not at that time receive the
attention it deserved. He points out
that in some operas the spirit of genu-
Inc sacred music is reflected much
more truly than in many church serv-
ices, especially where the vicar is I'M
The cathedral scene in Faust is a
good instance, with its contrapuntal
interludes and solemn music accom-
panying the Dies Irae. The opening
scene in Wagner's "Meistersinger,"
with the superb choral sung by the
congregation, is another. The writer
might have added, as a third, the two
Grail scenes in "Parsifal," the music
of which moves the feelings of both
hn1 ,,,10 daAY 1xy
than any work ever written specially
for the church.
Considerable interest is being mani
tested in England of late in indigenous
folk music. Miss Lucy Broadwood
has been elected secretary of the Folk
Song society, which has just issued its
fifth volume, consisting of twenty-five
songs collected from the wayside by
Mr.. Frank Kidson, of Leeds, one of the
leading authorities on the songs of the
people. At the Kendall annual festi-
walls prizes have been offered of late
for the best traditional songs of the
Westmoreland dales, and like COM
petition was started at the mid-Som-
erset festival at Prone last spring. The
composers of these folk songs can sell
dom be discovered, but the songs are
of Interest, not only as music. but be-
cause they will recall many beliefs, in
cidents and events that made up coun-
try life before the day of newspapers,
when news Travelled chiefly by verbal
rumor and minstrel song.
In London they are already talking
about the 'spost-Richard Strauss
school," But Strauss is still in vogue.
The Musical Courier hears that he gets
5000 for every song he writes, and con-
firms the rumor that he received $4,000
for his "Sinfonia Domestica,'' which
New York had the first chance to laugh
at Yet our own great Sousa beats
Strauss all hollow. Has he not made
$4,000 with a single march? AS for
songs, Schubert got 20 cents apiece for
his. 1t is frequently said that money
talks; but in art it often talks nom
sense.
The Allegemeine Zeitung declares
that by the death of Victor Kloepfer
the German stage has lost it's best bass.
He was only thirty-three years old. His
birthplace was Zurich. His regular
engagement at the Munich opera be-
gan in 1896, but his merits were not
fully recognized until after he had been
praised I'm London and New York, His
repeftory was not extensive; his best
roles were Tafner, Hunding, Marke,
Daland. Pogner, Sarastro and Kom-
thur. In other words he was pre- emf
nently Wagner and Mozart singer.
like Lilli lehman.