New-York tribune., 1908-07-26
Chapters Of Opera
pec,,,ec.;ocs and Records of q Quarter Century
FIRST OF ITALIAN OPERA AT
OF
aNcFs-suppEN DAMRosct
CHAPTER ".

slightest impairment. Within the time singers "ho
had won the worlds admiration had been born,
educated and lifted to the inches prepared for
them by popular appreciation. but all far below |
the place where Patti sat enthroned. Stars OF great
briIancy had flashed across the armament and
gone out in darkness but the refulgence Of PATHS
art remained undimmed, having only grown mel
lower and deeper and richer with time. Truth Is
Mme Patti then. and is STILL twenty-five years
later a musical miracle: and the fact that she was
in New York 10 sing in the very spot IN WhlCh
she began her career twenty-five years oeIore
should have been celebrated one of the proudest
incidents in the citys musical annals For the gen
Grafton of operagoers who grew up in the perlod
which ought to be referred to for all time IN the
annals Of music The Reign Of Patti. she set a
standard by which all aspirants for puoic favor
were Judged except those whose activities were IN
& widely divergent field. Not only did she snow
them what the old art of singing was, but she
demonstrated the possibility of its revival. ana
did this while admring enthusiastically the
best results of the dramatic spirit which pervades
musical composition to-day. Her talent was so
manysded and so astonishing. no matter from
which side il viewed that rhapsody seems TO
be the only language left one who attempts analy-
SIS or description Of II. Her voice, OF unequalled
beauty was no mere a gift of nature than the
ability assirnilate without effort the things when
cost ordinary mortals years of labor and veXatlon
of soul. II perpetually amazing how her sing
ing made the best efforts of the best OF her con-
temporaries pale especially those who depended on
vocal agility for their triumpbs. Each performance
Of hers made il palmer than it had been before
that her genius penetrated the mere outward sht-
ter of the music and looked upon the ornament as
much means to the attainment OF an END; thaI
en- / beautiful Interpretation of the composers
thought; No artist Of her time was so perfect an
exponent she Of the quality of repose. 80 lar
appearances went it was as easy for her 10
burden the air with trills and roulades as it was
10 talk She sang as the lark sings: the outpour-
ing Of an ecstasy of of almost infinite num-
ber and beauty seemed in her TO be ha'uldi
means of expression Her ideas of art were the
highest and it was singular testimony Of her
earnestness that while educated in the old ltallan
school of vocalization and holding her most exalted
supremacy a singer Of Rosstnis music her
warmest love. by her own confession, waS gwen
not 70 its glitterng cOnfections but TO the serious
efforts of the most dramatic writer's. This must
be remembered now in the LIST OF her astonishing
merits when her voice can longer call up more
than the tender grace of day that Is oedu
mine was the proud privilege and great happlheSo
of having heard her often in her prime but
must get down the real business OF TINS chaptel
The first German performance at the MetropoH-
tan took place November II, 1884. Inc opera
was .Tannhauser'' and the distribution OF parts
as follows: Elizabeth Nine. Krauss; Venus FRAU
lein slach: a Young Shepherd Fraulein Stern; Inc
Iandgrave Josef Koegel Tannhauser, ANTON
Schott: Wolfram Adolf Robinson; Walther Won
der Vogelweide, Emil Tiffero Biterolf JOSEF Mlier'
Heinrich der Schreiber Otto kemletz; teinnar'
Ludwig wolf The performance made no claiiil
significance consisted in the publication whlch II
made with reference 10 the ideals in operate
representation which came in with the ne" HloN0-
ment No doubt TO large portion or the auulence'
still Judging by old standards. much OF II must
have heen fnexplica bic. much of II especlalIy the
sf,qtrP of Herr SchotD little short of monstrous
To a smaller portion familiar with the opera, the
language Of its book and the spirit OF the play
as we'll as the music, it came as vlVlo reahzs-
,iCn of the purposes of the poet-composer 10 al
ale audience
era itself was practically novelty. Tannhauser
had net been incorporated in the Italian reperory
as .'Iohengrfn'' had. and only those knew II VINO
had attended the sporadic German performances Oh
earlier decades conducted by such men as Berg
mann, Anschutz and Neuendorf. The first New
York performance took place August p, 1883. at
| which the Mannergesangverein Arien supplied the
choruses.
Wagner once described his Tannhauser as "a
! German from head foot and il was doubtless
! bAceuse DR. Damrosch saw in it a representative
o1,ality that he chose it for his opening. There
was patriotism as well lovely artistic Devotion
TOO in the choice of ''Fideio for the second per-
| formance on November 10 Beethoven's opera had
almost as little association with Italian opera AS
| ..TapnhBuser'' and it noteworthy that the
! only portion of the audience room which was not
filled was that occupied by the stockholders poAeS
| II was an English company that IN Septeihper,
| 1879 had introduced 'Fideno" to New York ana
with il made such successful competition with the
/ Italian company of the day that it was performed
! fourteen times in succession Mr. Mapleson mace
a nitfful essay with in March. 1852, at the Acad-
e,n,- bpt 70 recall as vivid and vital a perform
ance as that under discussion one had TO go back
n +ba davs of Nine Johannsen and her associates.
who gave German opera in 1856. In Dr. Damrosch S
/ performance Marianne Brandt effected her en-
trance on the American stage. and the memory Of
ba trnersonation of the heroine is still of the
liyoliest and most fragrant memories OF those
/ roen,ora aI,le DAYS. The dramatic framework OF
/ ..tidelio" is weak. construction faulty. only
one ethical idea is presented in il with real vivid
,aes l,nt II is an idea which is peculiarly dear 10
! tbe German heart-the saving power of woman 5
1--we ..Fridelio' Is tale of wifely devotion, and
! beethoven bent all his energies TO eIoflncatoh
/ of his herone's love and devotion. 10 represent
tbe character faithfully has been the highest am
/ bition Of German singers for a century. In that
time not many more than dozen have achieved
I bfsb distinction in it and Marianne Brandt is
! among the number. on its musical side her per
J fornance was thrngly effective, but on its MS
trtonic il rose to grandeur Every word Of her few
! sneecbes every note Of her songs. every lcok Of
her ewes and expression of her face was an eX-
/ position OF that world of tenderness which hlleu
the heart of Ieonore- Nine-tenths OF the acuoh
which falls to the part Of Lconore is play, and
bv-pIay Of the kind which is made particularly dn-
T! ncult by the time consumed by the music. which
g not wisely adjusted with reference to the pro-
motion Of the action. all these waits while
I Ieonore is in view filed by Fraulein Brandt
/ with little actions which tended to develop the
character so sadly left in the background by the
/ PLAYWRIGHT but so lovingly treated by the COM
t roser II was down TO its smallest detail q pict-
ure of a woman impeled by one idea, in which her