New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-04-22


The musical career OF the late Theodore
Thomas is oommemorated in these volumes after
a rather curious fashion. Shortly before his
death he composed brief autobiography. This
which is naturally placed in the forefront OF
the present work is interesting far as it
goes but Il does not go very far Added 20 il
II a note on his last days written by Mrs.
Thomas. and then follow number OF chapters
~ "Reminiscence and Appreciation" by Mr.
Upton In an appendix TO the first volume a
couple Of papers by Mr.. Thomas musical sub
jects are given. with few other documents.
The second volume is filed with programmes
selected from the collection OF nearly ten thou
sand placed before the public by the celebrated
conductor. and prefxed 10 these is a short essay
by him on programme making Both volumes
are freely illustrated with portraits. They form
= useful but not conclusive memorial The bio
graphical material is thin and scrappy, leaving
the reader instructed. in a measure. but wishful
FOR q book that would present Thomas at full
length. painted with greater fulness and with
more balance. Mr. Upton is a sympathetic but
not a particularly sdful editor. He gives US
the study for portrait rather than the portrait
itself
Theodore Thomas was born with the blood Of
a musician IN his veins. His father had an
oBcisl relation as a violinist 70 the town OF
first saw the light on October IL. 1885. and the
child took 20 the paternal profession soon
that. when he came 10 write HIS autobiography.
he could not remember just when he began TO
play he was scarcely than nine years
old when he came with his family 10 this coun-
tTy. playing the fiddle and blowing the fog
horn by turns" aboard the merchant vessel IN
which the voyage was made The New-York in
which he landed was then. as he says. "a pro-
vinc3sl town OF two story houses. and the pigs
ran through Broadway and ate the refuse" It
was hardly the town TO make the fortune of
musician The Philharmonic Society had been
organized some three years before Thomas ar
rived, and he notes an odd circumstance IN the
musical life, such as Il was. OF the metropolis
At that time Better music was played in the
theatres then. he says. than is played there to-
day. 1T was IN theatre orchestra" he adds
that I first made the acquaintance Of Bee
fhoven'a -Coriolanus Overture which was played
before the curtain rose for Shakespeares trag-
edy" Yet 81 was hard for the young violinist
10 make living. He played at theatres and at
dancing school but this did not answer. so in
1913 we find him playing second horn 10 his
fathers first in the Naval Band at Portsmouth.
Va. BY and by he went of alone into the
South and gave what he hunorously calls con-
oerts. AZ hotels. with without pianist TO
help him. as circumstances decided. Il remem-
her one place IN Mississippi" he says. where.
after had announced q concert. was ordered
by the authorities TO leave town. because they
believed the devil was in the fiddle" The story
Of these earliest American years Of his is in
fact. story Of the piainest kind Of living and
the hardest kind Of work. We wish he had told
more Of it.
In his fifteenth year he returned 10 New
York. and thenceforth had palmer sailing. The
hardships continued il IS true. 10 certain ex-
tent Sometimes when he short Of funds.
he would persuade his friend Dodworth the
dancing master. 10 let him play at balls in
order 70 earn board money. once he took his
fiddle 10 a hotel barroom and played until he
had received money enough to keep him going
But the musical education Of New orl1ers was
going steadily forward. and in 1858 Thomas
secured desk among the first violnists in the
orchestra with which Julien gave his famous
Castle Garden concerts. There were some drOll
episodes in the programmes Of those days. In
the middle Of the "Fireman's Quadrile," which
Julien was wont 10 give AN alarm Of fire was
regularly sounded. and a brigade Of fremen
appeared IN the haIli" II was in this epoch
that Thomas shared in the musical enterprises
introducing Jenny Lind. Sontag. Patti and other
renowned singers TO the American public. He
heard Nitrate. whom he always considered the
greatest tenor TO whom he had ever listened
OF Karl Eckert, a conductor from whom he
learned much. OF Eckert and Of other must
clans in the Sos like Theodore Eisfeld and Carl
Bergman, he has something TO say. but not
as much as would have been glad TO read.
The truth is that over the formative part Of
his career. which would seem 10 have been Pc
culiaTly interesting. he passes only TOO lightly.
We learn that musical affairs were in a rather
crude state He tells Of the difficulty of ac-
cumulating anything like satisfactory library
for an operate season. for example. and he
has an amusing anecdote illustrating the sort
Of thing that was liable TO happen when he
was giving his Terrace Garden concerts in the
late SOS. These concerts were held in the open
air.
on one occasion. for instance while playing the
i ~ 3,111. the T~ees befc-e M 49, ~
When they commenced playing from their exalted
member another funny incident which happened
about this time; In the Carnival OF Venice the
back Of the audience into the shrubbery. When he
80 iolsY 6o s 3jst,rI he I1iisi o d ~ 9rs5
70 arrest him 1 shall never forget the coTnical
sued by the irate policeman and trying 10 get in a
note here ana there as be ran.
From Terrace Garden he passed to many an
other scene Of musical activity. always follow
ing an upward path. He brought TO his work. in
addition 10 the knowledge of a practical musi-
clan. fine instinct and a firm resolution TO play
good music wherever he went Beethoven was
his chosen master. but he was quick TO appre-
ciate the later men. notably Wagner and Ber-
loz, and the programmes which we have men
toned above offer abundant proof OF the judg-
rnent and the cathoicity with which he arranged
his concerts. The record OF his association with
the Philharmonic Society and with the divers
undertakings which finally eliminated I'm his