The San Francisco call., 1910-12-25

PoNSN WHEN II Amply ana cOulplelSly
reveals ones self. This is what Tet-
razzini did last night to 100000 listen
ers.
ECLIPSES OTHER SINGERS
Beside the vibrating, glowing meas
ures Of the simple song, appropriately
chosen, I think. in view of time and
place and audience, the bell like, clear
and coldly limpid stream of q Melba's
tone seemed, in thought, chilly and dis
tant,. and even Sembrich could hardly
endure the contrast. glorious and pure
as her voice was, and could be airier,
more ethereal than Tetrazzini playing
with arpeggios. And they came trip
pingly over a hushed mass of humanity
to me IN perilous seat high above
them and 100 yards away.
Still another wonder Of Tetrazzints
voice, which imagine she herself was
unacquainted with until last night. It
was the inexhaustible fund of power
behind those top notes OF hers, over
which no living man with ears and a
heart could fail to exult. Her top note
in the Gounod waltz song was D. 1t is
arrived at according to the Tetrazzini
manner. with the brilliant upward
sweep OF a rocket, and there 1t hung
and glowed and pulsated, a luminous
thing, irreproachably perfect. Then it
rocketed downward to the high G,
which seemed abysmal in comparison.
That closed the program as far as
Tetrazzini was concerned.
ORCHESTRA HELD DOWN
But there were other notable things
about the concert last night. One was
Steindorff's orchestra, which supplied
the drum major, music which was to
usher IN the great artist Of colorature
and played her accompaniments with
delicate appreciation of the difficulties
the singer labored under. If any fault
could be found with Steindorff-and il
were gratuitous to do so-it was that
he held his instrumentalists down with
too great repression-a most delight
full and rare fault, by the way. Stein
dorff nor nobody else on that platform
could have guessed with what ease the
singers tones were soaring over the
orchestral volume.
CHoIRS ARE HEARD
The vested choir from the Good Sa-
maritan mission and from the Church
Of st. John the Baptist sang appropri-
ate yuletide selections, such as "Oh,
Come. All Ye Faithful" ("Adeste FL
deles'). God Rest You. Merry Gentle
men," and others under the direction
The orchestral numbers were Won
Blon's Festival March," Won Suppe's
overture, Light Cavalry" and the
march from '-Tannhauser."
Tetrazzini has given more artistic"
concerts. She has never given one so
popular Indeed. no soprano ever has.
She has sung before the crowned
heads of Europe" as the publicity state
ment goes, but she has never has had
an audience like that last night, which
apprehended If it did not altogether ap-
preciate the wonder Of her work, and
which enjoyed with widest enthusiasm
an art which perhaps the singer herself
does not entirely comprehend.
SINGS WELL UNDER STARS
Great harm IS done by singing when
any reluctance of the vocal apparatus
is manifest" says the pedagogus.
Tetrazzini seems not to know what ire
sistance" is. She sings as freely under
the stars as within the decorated walls
of a metropolitan opera house, and the
crowd last night, silent around Lotta's
fountain, drew from her a measure of
perfection and beauty of tone that
Hammerstein's Manhattan opera house
in New York, Covent Garden in London
or the opera house of st. Petersburg,
Warsaw, Moscow or Rome never
echoed TO. She gave the last vibration
of her glorious throat to the people of
San Francisco, and smiled serenly
and gaily as she did it, and as though
behind her were still deep wells of
power and beauty untouched.
If that isn't singing. I'd like def
milton.