New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-05-21

Parker Is not easy to reproduce. as Th'
Tribune renorter who visited him last week
at lis home in New Haven soon came 70
realize One thing however can he stated
/ definitely at the outset-Dr. Parker, thougn
- professor at Yale. Is anything but AGA
dcmic As he sat in mis- beautiful workroom
/ talking to the reporter In his quiet eA'
quistely modulated voice, the impression
was of man who knew the wor'h ana
who had lived In it; who had witndra"'
from il a little because he knew IT. ths' II
might react upon him the better ana '"s
more truly.
! Professor Parker is OF medium height
! well built with hair that Is beginning "
gray. brushed back from high. full lore
head. slightly dropping mustache anu
"A manner that is easy without ever W.
coming ELUSIVE The reporters hrst qucs-
ton was. of course. about Mona.
Mona Is the first opera that ever
really began" replied Professor Parker
because il is the first for which hdu
found A suitable libretto. had previously
tried to write others. but gave them up as
soon as began them because found the
librettos impossible Mr.. Hooker ! nad
politan announced It's contest ] asked him
10 collaborate with me. He has produced
work that is exceedingly beautiful. one
that is not "A librettO but poem. In set
ting it 10 music I have striven to give inc
story it's emotional significance In the way
I understood it. I have not tried to copy
Wagner or Debussy, or any other com
poser. but simply TO express what was IN
myself
"A French epigrammatist once character
lied plagiarism as "a lack Of skill IN effac-
ing condolences or course. many ccinci-
donces must occur to every composer. some
r. will cnace and some he will not II Is
true that there are composers who ha &c
created practically A new idiom. Deoussy,
for instance and d Indy. yet it Is to be
doubted whether other Of these men win
he widely known two hundred years from
now.
Mona is not laid in America, nor is
there any Indian music in il. In fact, |
have never heard any Indian music, though
| have been told that there is such. Amer
lea has little folk music and what there
is is proba bly, derived from England so It
would he difficult for composer to base
an American opera on folk tunes. Yet,
after all there is a great gulf between art
music and folk music. even If in the dim
distance they may have been the same.
II may be urged that IL is difficult 10 write
an American opera because America has
no national music yet national music has
never been the greatest. German and Ital-
ian music is the world music. and 1t Is not
national Russian and Scandinavian music
that is based upon the folk songs has never
Lad thu universal appeal possessed by the
music Of Germany and Italy
Professor Parker docs not believe in the
possibility of writing operas on modern
themes
There always seems something incon-
rruous.' he said lin setting 10 music the
familiar Things TO me at least must be
softened by age to possess the possibility
Of musical setting. New York life. for
instance. is too hard, too glaring for such
a setting. | know that Charpentier has
tried il with Louise. and Louise I like
perhaps more than 7 respect it,
Then the composer turned to the subject
of English as a Language for song.
II believe that il is perfectly possible 10
sing English as well as any other Ian
guage. OF course. there are certain words
that must he avoided. but in the main