Los Angeles herald., 1905-09-24
Salaries of Opera Stars

1t seems to be taken for ganted that
ir America be two, three or four
times as large as they are in Europe,
but it has nevert been satisfactorily
explained why this should be so. Many
years ago when the disproportion was
first esta blished, it was comprehensive
OF the ground of the risks attendant
on collecting any salary at all. Sell
dom was an opera season carried
through without disaster here, and the
only way to induce people to come to
America at all was to promise them
vastly increased emoluments and even
then they accepted engagements re-
luctantly, for America was long way
off and the sea voyage was uncom-
fcrtable and tedious, not to say risky
But that is all changed. Salaries
are as certain as government bond
and travel is both luxurious and speedy
Yet the disproportion of pay remains
as great as ever. even greater.
Take, for instnce, the salary of Herr
Knote, the new member of the Metro
politan Opera company. To induce
him to come here Mr.. Conried must
give him $1,000 a performance for
thirty-two performances occupying
four months, and this will be increased
yearly until it reaches $1,000 a perform
ance But Herr Knote was content
To. sing at Munich for $500 for eight
months, that is to say, during sixty
four performances or more, because
there two performances a week are by
no means the limit. Say that he sang
seventy times, his emolument would
have been $50 a performance. But
they have a cachet system over there.
You devote your services for so long
for a certain stated sum, and then
get an honorarium each time you sing.
Ir Knote's case it was $50, so that he
actually got $130 performance, as
compared with $1,000 to $1,000 here, the
latter sum being Just ten times his
German salary. No doubt he reckons
that to get this he must give up a life
OF position, but that would be consid .
ereu IL SlIldll tlillS uSlS, loi ollCl IWSil-
ty wars of service his pension would
only be 5000 marks, or about $4,000 a
year.
The highest salary Jean de Reszke
ever received in London was 5000 a
night, or something less than $1,000.
The only two other artists who ever
received as much there were Melba,
who also got e2OO and Patti, who
received e400.
Caruso's pay last season here was
$500. 1t goes higher for the season
to come. His pay in London is about
half that.
The question comes again, why these
enormous differences in this country? +?
The readiest and most usual answer to
this is that the singers could not be
is this true? Probably not.
Under the new conditions, now that
opera in this country is on an abso-
lutely sound financial basis, the season
here is the longest of any in what may
be called the nomad cities. that is to
say, where it is not continuous. like
Paris or Vienna. We have five
months of it, including the tour. The
American season comes at a time that
does not seriously conflict with en-
fragments elsewhere. This season is
a matter of prime necessity to most of
the great artists They would find it
a difficult job to fill in that particular
time anywhere else, and even If they
succeeded they would earn little more
than quarter as much money as they
do here under existing conditions.
But there is really no sound reason
why these existing conditions should
continue. Mr.. Conried is at present
master Of the field. The artists need
him more than he needs them. He could
afford to pay some Of them great deal