New-York tribune., 1910-12-29

pay 1or more than twelve years and three
o. It's principal numbers have been on our
concert lists the same length of time They
are the overture and the two pieces OF be-
tWeen-acts music. The overture seems 10
nave been curtaiiec, which might also have
peeh zone with profit 10 the prelude to the
iase act; but essentially we have the old
music before Us. The play came to US in
1sse' with Incidental music accompanying
many OF the scenes, well as the rests be-
tween them We saw II then In German at
really interesting production by Mr. Con-
rieo. In which Agnes Sorrna and Rudolf
CHRISTIANS carried of the principal parts
II came pack e couple OF years later in an
thshsn version at the Herald Square Thea
ire pct neither in the German nor the
hnshsn performance was * vouchsafed us
10 reatize what had been the purpose of the
aurhor OF the play and the composer of the
iiluslc- Inc author, who calls herself Ernst
hosmer, is woman, daughter Of Heinrich
Fcrses, Tor many years q factoturn az the
bsSfeuth festivals II was her fathers de-
soiion To Wagner which gave her the name
Oh LISA She married q lawyer and littera-
teuT IN Munich named Bernstein, and mas
written number OF plays besides ''Konigs-
KINDER, which she published in 1885 and
atterWard asked Herr Humperdinck mot
Yet g royal Prussien professor, but e sim
pie musician, who had made essays in criti-
clsmS and tried to make g composer out OF
Siesfried WagneD to provide with inciden-
tai music Mr.. Humperdinck took his task
seriously The play. with some Incidental
music, was two years old before Mr. Hum
peroinck had his overture ready. He had
tried q new experiment, which proved a
fsliure- The second and third acts had
their preludes. and the songs Of the min
strel had their melodies and accompani-
Tnents, and all the principal scenes had
been provided with illustrative music in the
HaSnerian manner, with this difference,
that the dialogue had been pointed as
church musician would say-that is the
rhythm was indicated with exactness, and
even the variations Of pitch, though Il was
understood that the purpose was not 10
achieve song. but an intensified utterance
half way between speech and song. This
was nlelodrama- as Herr Humperdfnck
conceived il and as II had no doubt ex-
listed for ages-ever since the primitive
Greek drama IN fact It is easy TO under
stand how Herr Humperdinck came to be-
lieve in the possibility of an art-forr
which, though accepted. for temporary ef
feet by Beethoven and Che-ubtni, and used
for ballads with greater or less success by
Schuulann. had been harshIy rejected by
his great model and master Wagner
Humperdinck lives In Germany, where in
nearly every theatre there is more or less
OF an arnalgamation Of the spoken drama
and the opera-where choristers play small
parts and actors. though not professional
singers, sing when not too much is required
OF them. And yet Herr Humperdinck found
out that he had asked too much OF his
actors with his pointed" and at times in
toned defamation, and -'Kouigskinder'' did
not have TO come to America to learn that
the compromise was & failure. No doubt
Herr Humperdinck thought Of turning so
beautiful q play into opera then, but 1t
seems TO have required the stimulus which
finally came from New York TO persuade
him to carry out the operate idea which is
more than suggested in the score as it lies
before in its original shape, into a thor
ough lyric drama. Mr.. Dippel is to be cred
tied with the notion that il ought first TO
be done here in English. but the present
administration announced that the scheme
was impracticable, and so We must hear
the opera in German
a German opera can generally stand Sc
guage. because there is a more strict ap-
pIication Of principles in Germany when it
comes 70 writing lyric drama than in any
other country. So in the present instance
there is no need 20 conceal the fact that
there are outbreaks of eroticisrn and Of
fences against the German language which
are none the less fragrant and censurabIe
because they are, TO some extent, concealed
under the thin veneer OF the allegory and
symbolism which every reader must have
recognized as running through the play.
This is, in manner. Wagnerian. as so
much OF the music is Acknowledgements
l. that Of the second act, which because 1t
calls up scenes from the ''Meistersinger'
must also necessarily call UP music from
the same comedy But there is little cause
here for quarrel with Professor Humper-
dinck- He has applied the poetical princi-
pie Of Wagner TO the fairy tale which is SO
closely related to the myth, and he has
with equal consistency applied Wagner
constructive methods nusically and dra-
natically. It is 20 MS great honor that, of
all OF Wagner's successors. he has been the
only one to do so successfully.
The story Of ''Konigskinder," though it
has been spoken Of here as # it belonged
to the class OF fairy tales OF which "Han-
SCI und GreteT' is SO striking and beauti-
fuI an example, Is not to be found as the
author presents II IN the literature OF
German Mahrchen- Nine. Bernstein has
drawn its elements From many sources
and blended them with the utmost free
dom. To avoid a misunderstanding Ger
mans viii insist that the title be used
without the article, for Die Konigskin-
der or 'Zwet konigskinder" both suggest
the simple German form OF the old tale
Of Hero and Leander, with which story. OF
course, Il has nothing whatever to.do. But
il literary criticism forbids association
between Professor Humperdinck' TWO
operas, musical criticism compels il.
Many Of the characters in the operas are
close relations, dramatically as well as
musicaIIy-the royal children themselves,
the witches, OF course, and the broom
makers The rest OF the characters have
been taken from Wagner's -Meistersinger"
picture book-the citizens Of Hiuabrurn
are NureZlbergs burghers, the city's
councillors. the old master singers. The
its method OF employment is Wagner's. |
But here lies its charm: Though the
composer heWs 10 q theoretical line he
does il freely, naturally. easily and al |
ways with the principle Of musical beauty
as we'll as that Of dramatic truthfulness
and propriety in view His peoples voices |
float on a symphonic stream. but the voices !