The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-05-08
SOCIAL CHATTERA AND AFFAIR
 OF INTEREST IN BIRMINGHAM
Notes of Musical Happenings Here and AbroadBox Parties Luncheons and Cards--Prospective Events-Younger Women Organize Branch of w. c. T. U.-Prom- sng Plans of Chautauqua Board-Per-
 sonal Notes-Announcements
By MYRTLE MILES

By MFR
 Those whose interest in music is at it's
 highest pitch just now through personal
 contact with the opera singers over in
 Atlanta last week or because of later
 enjoyment of our own festival. will read
 with especial enjoyment the following let
 ter from Paris;
 "The opening of the opera season at the Champs Elysees theatre by combined
 Anglo-American opera companies is re-
 garded by Parisians as pleasing novelty
 Henry Russell, of the Boston Opera com
 pany, and Mir. Higgins. of the Covent Garden Opera, are jointly responsible for the venture, and, as the Gaulois pictur- esquely says, shower of operatic me teors is to fall on Paris.
 "Figurately speaking, according to the Gaulois, the 'pluie d etoiles' was brought over in the folds of the star-spangled banner of the Champs Elysees playhouse. Although they come from Covent Garden and Boston, but few of these stars have American or English names. We recog- nize Mime. Melba and Miss Maggie Teyte quite readily. however, and the latter is well known to Parisians from her debut some six or seven years ago at the Opera Comique She was, in fact, the favorte pupil of one of the leading singing teach CTS here, great tenor himself in his palmy days. and he predicted the most extra ordinary career for her the first time he heard her sing.
 Posters are decorating the walls of Paris, and the suburbs and in them Pa risians are told that they will shortly hear Mesdames Barrientos, Blanca Bell cioni. Emmy Destinn, Clara Dux, Louise Edvina, Frieda Hempel. Lucille Marcel, Nellie Melba, Maggie Teyte. Van der os- ten and Margarete Matzenauer, as also Messrs. Peter Cornelius Ferrari Fona- tana, Martinelli, Johannes Sembach. Pas quale Amato, Cigada, Paul Knupfer, Van nj Marcoux, Antonio, Scotti and Paul Bender. The, leading German and Italian operas to be given will consist of Par sifal,' Tristan and Isolde, The Meister- singer Francesca da Rimini' and Mir Isidore de Laras fine dramatic opera Les Trois Masques,' which was running at the Shamps Elysees theatre at the time when it's first lessee resigned the management"
 Also apropos of musical topics is the chatter which appeared in a recent issue of spur about Mr. otto Kahn. whom a number of Birmingham people have met in Atlanta during the spring season Of opera. He was the honoree at one of the largest and most distinguished parties of the grand opera week and is every year the most feteu of the visitors Spur says of him.
 Few millonaires, 1 fancy are so versa tile In their hobbies as Mir. Otto II. Kahn, who has purchased the Botteelli portrait F's,eS- eht.lliano de Medici. father of Pope Clement VII. This hitherto unknown painting which until a few months ago was in the possession of Count Procolo lsolani at Bologna and had been in his family Tor century further enriches a notably fine collection of canvases in- l cluding an especially choice Frans Hals. | Then MT. Kahn goes in for horses: of | these he has owned not few good ones 1 He drives black four-in-hand road team and park team which has won many blue ribbons at the national and other Important horse shows. As for saddle horses, his Lee Roger was regarded as one of the best of it's day, taking the reserve championship at Madison Square. This fondness for horses is inherited in no small measure by his young daughter, Miss Maud E. Kahn. With Golden Rod | and Bouton dor, she carried off several | ribbons last autumn at the horse show in l MT. Kahns country | house. Cedar Court. Is an excellent ex- pression of the Italian renaissance style and is especially noted for It's beautiful | and consistently laid out gardens.
 should be nearer the truth if I were to say that with MT. Kahn music Is a passion rather than hobby. Of opera he is the patron in the broad sense of the word which has come down through the centuries. In the affairs of the 1 hat ifon he Is the most active member of the group of men who stand behind this great institu- 1 tion with the money power and personal interest that, working hand in hand, &C., complish more than any state subsidy in continental Europe More often than not he is the spokesman of the group. MT. Kahn is one of the closest observers of the performances, which he is likely to be found viewing from an orchestra stall. When the nearly related New theatre started out on it's inauspicious venture into the sea of drama, MT. Kahn was philosopher and friend the while he made an honest effort to be a guide also when the ship was trying the stunt of sailing in three different directions at once under the authority of as many captains. And now, after none too glorious commer- 1 cial Invasion of the most magnificent theatre in the United States the great banker has for the past six months been l putting heart and soul into the endeavor Ito establish English opera on perma- | nent basis under the same roof Here | again the ship has sailed over tempestu- ous seas while at times it has been diffi- | cult to tell whether the steering was to- | ward Buenos Aires or Hong Kong; but | always MT. Kahn has stood ready with l the sort of counsel which brings order l out of chaos. If English opera ever does l become a success at the Century the | public will owe more ito MT. Kahn than | it will ever realize.
 MIR. AND MRS. MUNGER