The San Francisco call., 1907-01-21
Schunann-Heink Continues
to Charm Lovers Of Music
By James Crawford

That train wreck some time yester-
day morning somewhere between o.
den and Sacramento was misfortune
unusually far-reaching. 1t prevented
Schumann- Heink arriving here in time
to give the matinee song recital at the
American Theater for which she was
scheduled, and thereby it conveyed dis
appointment to many of the persons
who had bought every seat and all the
obtainable standing room and were
unable to repeat their visit in the
evening, when, it was announced, the
great woman would surely appear. So a
great deal of money trickled out of the
box office, but throughout the afternoon
other dollars steadily flowed in and
gradually dispelled the managerial
gloom until another sell out" was re-
ported And at Sis o'clock, when the
singer who is unquestionably first in
San Franciscos admiration stepped
into view, she was confronted by a
houseful of wildly enthusiastic people.
Their greeting lasted fully three min
utes. She is the same buXom, smiling
Schumann- Heink who bade us adieu
two years ago. If she were neo-
phyte in her art, instead of one of the
foremost practitioners, her fine, whole
some personality would be all-conquer-
ence than it's good will is won by her
convincing air of honesty. No artist
was ever less burdened with affectation
than is this genial mother of eight
or is it nine? Her merry, all-embrac-
ing smile is sincerity Illuminated. She
charms the heart rather than the eye.
for she has outlived the age of mere
physical grace, and she is great enough
to safely eschew alluring personal
adornment. Her attire last evening
was a gray afternoon gown. modestly
ornamented, and a white picture hat.
But it was the beaming visage twixt
gown and hat that cast the spell over
old and new acquaintances alike.
Her voice is the same marvellous
blending of graces, methods and
styles, combining with the big
ness and breadth of the German the
bel canto of the Italian and the brill
liancy and verve of the French. Son
orous and deeply poetic or .lightsome
as a feather, f1awless in sustaining
swell or diminuendo, its control seem
ingly careless, yet ever accurate, with
a facile technique pervading the entire
range, there is no contemporary voice
to compare with it. And last evening,
despite her evident travel-tiredness, she
created the usual sensation among the
erudte, edited the scholars in higher
music and delighted the lovers of beau
tiful singing.
Everything on the programme was
exquisitely classic. Mozart, Schubert,
Schumann, Franz. List, Brahms and
her mostly beloved Wagner were drawn
upon, and she was generous with en-
cores. The Mozart aria, "Vitellia,
sufficed to show that time has impaired
neither her magnificent vocal organ
nor her ability to use it with unrivaled
effectiveness, for 1t was exercised to
the fullest extent of power and express
sion and produced only most seductive
melody throughout. the range. from
chest tones of almost sepulchral reso-
nance to upper notes limpid as a larks
The dramatic fire that made her
great Wagnerian singer found first full
play in her Interpretation of Schuberts
Die Allmacht." as also did the tender.
appealing quality that makes her such
complete artist. Schumann bit
brought out the natural soul jollity
that her countenance reflects, and then
by quick transition to Franzs Cute
Nacht," sung with her eyes closed, the
woman's sympathetic soul was dis
closed! Then abruptly to another Franz
number, I'm Herbst," and the house
rang with the trumpet-like outpour-
ings of her dramatic intensity. Then a
dainty lyric trippingly sung. then a
most plaintive air of Liszt's. then
Brahms gypsy songs, alternating mer
riment with sorrow, anger with caress-
ing. Then the tremendous -recitative
and aria from WaSner's "Rienzi." sung
as only Schumann-H -Heink ever could
sing it.
Her encores were. lightsome bits, the
drinking song from "Lucrezia Borgia"
being the best liked of them, for her
brilliant colorature won two thunder
ing recalls, and a repetition would