New-York tribune., 1907-11-07
MUSIC. .
MANHATTAN OPERA HOUSE.
LA Damnation de Faust"

| At his third representation at the Manhattan
! Opera House last night Mr.. Hammerstein brought
forward the second addition to what may be called
his standard list. 1t was the operatc arrangement
OF BerlioZ's "Damnation de Faust" which was one
Of Mr.. Conrieds novelties last year. This season.
II would appear is 10 so on the record pre-
| eminently a Faust season. We are TO have
Goethe's master poem done into music in three
ways by as many composers at the opera. and the
Faust symphony of Lszt at the New York
| Symphony Soeiety's concerts There has been
announcement as vet OF Gounod's opera at either
of the houses devoted to opera in foreign tongues
but whoever heard OF a seaSon without IT? Who
wants TO hear of one? Who will ever put on
his love for the real Faust opera in
favor o. the BerliOz- z-Gunsb bourg pasticciO
the disjointed operatic skeleton Of Boito with
all its ingenious musicf The Germans long ago
tried 10 work up a feeling OF indignation against
what they considered sacrilege perpetrated by
conscienceless French lbrettsts against the mas
terpiece Of their master poet but at the last it
only bit of petuancy, which received its
quietus when somebody suggested that Gounods
opera be called 'Margaretha." Under this thin
disguise Faust is almost welcome to the Ger
1t is to the Parisians who having heard it
over thousand times since Il out in 1853. lis
ten to it between twenty and thirty times every
year in the Grand Opera House alone And no
blame to them. either. OF course we shall have
the real Faust after Mr.. Conried. as we'll as MI
Hammerstein, has accomplished his Damnation
and the former has revived" Boto's "Mehstofele'
| Only miracle will keep Wagner's "Faust over
ture" Off the programme OF at least one or-the
hundred of orchestral concerts, and under the
circumstances il will be felt almost as a grievance
/ that of our choral societies has put Sehu-
| manns Scenes from Goethe's Faust IN its list
| for the
! For such a proceeding, however. there would
have to be different motive than that which We
| fancy is at the bottom OF the production made by
/ Mr.. Hammerstein last night and the which Is
scheduled by Mr. Conried- year ago, while the
managing director of the Metropolitan Opera
/ WAS m tic
of Berlioz's Dramatic Legend Of the feat
ures which brilliantly to sisnalize his season.
/ Mr Hammersten directing the attention Of
! the newspaper reporters who to him day
after day to learn how the merry war was coming
on to a huge box which contained the music,
prompt books and other things needed for the pro-
duction Of the work at his house. while
stored away in warehouse was all the scenery
painted after the same models that had served for
Mr.. Conricds artistic workmen He did not bring
the work forward but 1t not because he did
all the material. down to the singers. Most
I admirable material it was. too. as last nights
/ representation disclosed. This then, IS accounted
for.
Another reason Is associated with bit OF per-
sonaI equation which is characteristic OF the par
lous which the making OF operatic reper-
tories has fallen. A basso is coming to the Metro
politan Opera House-SL Chaliapin-who has made
speciality out Of the Goethe-BoitO devil, whom he
presents in particularly picturesque manner
Hence 'Mehstofele." which such admired singers
failed to make popular in than a quarter Of a
century OF effort. NJ Renaud. who with Mr.
! Hammerstein last season and is with him again
this season. has equal amount OF pratle
for his imDersonation Of the Goethe Guns
bourg devil There were, therefore. two rea-
| sons why Mr Hammerstein should produce
| La Damnation" both Of them persuasive and
the latter, it has out. Of splendid pithi
ness and force. With due respect to NJ Plancon,
who took part in Mr. Conried's performances last
year, Mephstophees never had adequate presenta-
tion here until last night NJ Renauds appearance
was as startling as the orchestral explosion TO
/ which he entered. A new conception OF a figure
which had long been thought to have become hope
lessly cOnventionalized-a lean cadaveTous hollow
eyed, long -taloned devil; spirit that seemed to
have all but consumed its feshIy tenement; one
could easily imagine that grisly bones only were
shrouded by the garments which cIung tightly TO
him; mournful. contemplative devil. wistful only
for his victim. OF course. the actors eonceit IS
world away from the poets conception, for
! Goethes devil could wander among the popu-
lace and take thsm by the collar without
| fear of discovery, but nevertheless product OF
high imaginativeness, and more In its intellec-
tual than Its physical manifestation. There was
a wonderful revelation in the Song of the Flea
not only in the marvellous dctlon but in bodily
pose and every suggestive movement OF that claw
| like right hand-an impeTsonaton which would
make Mr.. Hammerstein's production notable even
II It lacked the fine impersonation which NJ Dali
gives in song and action to the character of
Faust. the scenery were not fully beautiful as
that belonging 10 the rival establishment, and the
entire musical element infused with finer nteIli
gence than that which accustomed
by last years representations There defects,
especially mechanical crudities of the kind which
/ II we are bound to expect at the house in
/ West 34th street-too much garlshnesS and too
much ratting of apparatus in the aerial flights OF
the sylphs, too much vigor and too little refine
! ment in the singing Of the chorus and on-but
| on the whole the performance admirable. and
If the work is TO be justified at all in its dramatic
form last nights representation did to Justify
1t than all the representations the Metropolitan
| Opera House last year. And here, again, high
praise belongs to Signor CampaninL Nine. Jo-
NELL, who figured in a few performances at the
Metropolitan Opera House three years ago. |
| III