Omaha daily bee., 1909-08-15

az SANaNAAAE 49, - @N@T AN
gives a rapid summary OF his other COM
positions, which include Noel" which Is
shortly to be produced at the Opera Conf.
que, Paris; 'Iuez Mendo." produced at
Covent Garden in 1896; a planoforte quintet
and a violin concerto. which was played
Hast winter in America and elsewhere by
Mischa Elman, and in England by Fritz
Kreisler at a Philharmonic concert.
Tess" says the composer. was first
produced at San Carlos, Naples, on April
10. 1906, under the direction Of Mr.. Panizza,
wha has conducted It here and is one Of
our regular staff. This first appearance
was interrupted by the last great eruption
Of Vesuvius. and with falling buildings.
clouds Of lava dust and the noise and terror
Of panic stricken people, It is not remark
able that It dropped out Of light and hear.
ing for a while, to be revived last autumn
in Milan.
The libretto is by Luigi Illica and is
based on Thomas Hardy's wessex novel,
Tess of the D'Urbervilles.' The English
version of the libretto is made by Claude
Aveling.
Although we broke the record OF at
tendance on the opening night and in the
royal box were Queen Alexandra, Princess
Victoria and Prince Christopher of Greece.
who were most enthusiastic, ! was more
delighted with the interest and satisfac-
ton Of Thomas Hardy himself than with
anything else or than l can express. Mr..
Hardy came from his home In Dorchester
to be present at several rehearsals and
the premiere. He expressed unqualified
praise of the music and considered the
dramatization Of the novel very effective.
1T is not usual that an author can wit
ness the necessary eliminations and
changes that have to be made to fit a
story for the operate stage without
some sentiment of regret, and If Mr.. Hardy
experienced any it was surely not visible.
His commentator was most appreciative
and his comprehension of the difficulties
more kindly expressed than that of some
Of the critics who do not seem to realize
tile in incident. would require the COM
position Of a trilogy at least.
The story of the opera ends in the bril-
dial chamber of Tess, where the confession
to Angel Glare is made, and after his re-
rusal to forgive in the song My Soul Re
bells, 1t Cannot Pardon Tess goes out
% commit suicide
E, cry one agrees that the setting Of the
various scenes is admirable. The archaic
settings of some of the Royal opera house
produ ,tions are curlously inefficient to
American eyes trained to expect the best
But no criticism other than commendatory
can be written Of the scenic pictures Of
Tess"
The first view is Of Blackmoor in the
early hours of a bright May day. There
are the Durbeyfield farm, the hayloft, the
tumble down wagon, the stumbling old
horse which looks out patiently from its
shed. 1t is 4:90 and the clock from the
village steeple announces the fact. Be-
yond the foreground is an exquisite per-
spective of the Wessex downs fading away
into soft distances.
THE first scene is spoiled to me In a
way said the composer from the pres
ence Of the old horse, which is really ono
Of the standbys of the Covent Garden
equipment. Although perhaps not quite so
celebrated as Frau Vogl's. which knew his
Wagner operas SO well that It is said that
when 1t heard the motif in" Gotterdam-
merung' it made haste for the funeral pyre
with its beautiful burden, still our quad
ruped can boast that when 1t once gets on
the stage-as for example when it leads
the warrior crowd in Faust'-it is loath
to depart and goes round and round and
round until you would think it would be-
come dizzy and drop from vertigo.
'once in its long ago salad days there is
a story, absolutely disbelieved by the old
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attempted to break its thrall and bolted
down Bow street among the larksuprs and
lilies, overturning rose stalls and cabbage
heaps, until it was captured and brought
back. II It should have a return Of this
demonic cheerfulness today 1 should not
weep, for, Notwithstanding my affection
for 1t, ! have always believed that the ap-
pearance of any animal on the dramatic
or operate stage is a great mistake.
mo matter how hard we try to produce
the appearance OF realism we cannot sue
coed perfectly. There must always be
some artificiality. a degree of illusion
Human beings have to make up for the
footlights no matter how crudely natural
the stage settings may be and the action
of the plot must conform to the rules Of
exits and entrances.
But you can do nothing with an animal
1t comes On without makeup, without
illusion and never fits admirably into the
picture. II holds the eye to the exclu.
sion of everything else, and If not fear
on the part of the audience thai it may
escape and cause damage, there is GER
tainly curiosity as to its movements, and
It's all detracts from the force of the play
or opera
Even In the subordinate matter of scenic
arrangements the old time subscriber tc
the Covent Garden opera company loves
to see best Of all the stage settings with
which he is familiar. Conservative in every
thing, conservatism In opera seems to be
part OF the Londoners' creed, so have
been especially gratified that this season
we have been able to put on several nov.
elites and to have them received SO ad.
mirably. Tess among them.
There is certainly a change in pubHc
sentiment here. In America 1 understand
that the situation is quite different; tina
a new operate work is always received
with interest and an impresario can Away,
count on an audience who il they hav,
no other motive than curiosity will attend
urged by that impelling force. Quite q
contrary state Of affairs prevails here.
People will not come to a new work
If it is advertised they stay away, a: