The San Francisco call., 1905-01-08

"Tettra ZZini coming? VIII appear nrSt
night? Put me down for sixteen seats
for the opening!" This is the kind of
thing. mostly in a liquid Italian Eng
lish. that has kept the Tivof phone
hot the last week. For this week comes
grand opera. It is the first, barring
three odd performances of Lucia for
more than year. 1t promises to be
the most remarkable ever given by the
Tivoli management-that has done
things before. Be that as it may, Jona-
than, Hans and Giulio-chiefly Giulio.
with his privilege of large ardors-has
been thus welcoming the event.
Last year in San Francisco was re-
markable in that it was the first for
very many years with only single
grand opera presented. 1t is remark
able in that it was so remarkable. The
year Will probably be labeled in history
as 1.-The one in which we had no grand
opera" For year after year, as New
York, Boston and Philadelphia, thus
far San Francisco has had its grand
opera seasons. Diamonds, it is true,
have been as few in front as behind the
footlights at most Of them. A little
was all the audiences bothered with;
and throats the singers
e. Yet with these we have made records.
In general appreciation and familiar
knowledge of opera San Francisco
yields place TO no city in the United
States. More sensitive, doubtless, is the
judgment in the aforementioned cities.
They have had the best upon which to
form judgment. and plenty of 1t. But
opera is there rather an exotic than
native necessity; the love of the few
rather than the joy of the many. Here
every one has been free of it, and
"Trovatore'' here is as common whist
ling as the Fifth Symphony In a Ger
man beer garden.
The history of how this came about
is the history of the Tivoli, as every
good San Franciscan knows-the pres
ent point, however, his naive surprise
and injury in being denied his opera
for a season. Possibly the fates thought
themselves sufficiently kind in giving
us last year the handsome new Tivoli.
This new year they promise an opera
season that will be worthy of the house.
Three conductors, a chorus of fifty,
an orchestra of fifty, a soprano that be-
gins next season a three-year contract
to sing the Sembrich roles with Con-
ried, at least three new operas and a
few other such triffes are among the
assets of the company to appear at the
Tivoli this week.
To begin with Signor Pollacca. La
Scala and Milan know Signor Pollacca.
Doc" Leahy knows the conductor just
as we'll and more interestingly. In Milan
Pollacca is known as an operate con-
ductor of first distinction, as director
of the leading symphony orchestra
and as a stage manager of genius and
brilliant energy Besides Shis Mr..
Leahy knows him as the extraordinary
person that would ask him. say at 1O:3O
o'clock in the morning, What opera
should you like to hear tonight"
La Tosca,'" Mr.. Leahy might say,
and did.
All right. Tonight you have him.
Pollacca, would say. And at night Mr..
Leahy would have him"
The public? Oh they did not mind,
This was down in lazy, ardent, unbusi-
ness-like Mexico. But by noon every
one in the city knows what opera will
be given in the evening, and if a new
one the opera-house will be sold out
1t was for "Zaza," given for the first
time there this season. Berlendi, by
the way, who sings the title role, Gre
ated' it at La Scala. On Saturday