New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-12-06
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IlOuN VOICE lOi klN INiNAA NNAANA WV
received excellent positions and earned
fame and money enough TO be certain
OF an assured future. His acting,
warmth and effective expression, as
we'll as his beautiful voice, were praised
i'm the criticisms of the day Drinking
and gambling began their destructive
work. and engagements were short.
Both parents deemed it best, for the
sake Of the children. TO separate. Marie
Loew Lehman became harpist IN the
Prague National Theatre orchestra, and
this wonderful mother taught, played
i'm the orchestra, educated her daugh-
ters and launched them on their ca
reers. She appears constantly in these
pages. until her death, in 1888, with
beautiful tributes az 20 ner character
and talents
Was il any wonder that Lilli Leh-
mann became. great Wagnerian sing
er? Her mother had known Wagner
in Leipsic and in K0nigsberg. In fact,
in after years he referred 10 Marie
Loew as his first flame" He used to
bring her his difficult. unslngable'
youthful compositions 10 read. In 1868,
when Wagner met his old friend IN
Prague, ne was so charmed with her
daughter that he wanted to adopt her.
Wagner made an extraordinary impress
SION upon LII. HIS - NV " bt
wondered at" says Lilh. People did
not go about in Prague wearing yell
low damask dressing gown. red or
pink cravat, and a big circular black
velvet coat lined with pink satin (which
he wore at rehearsals). So ! stared and
marvelled But what he seemed 10 me
.hen as a man he remained TO me al
ways. OF course, | was taken to all the
rehearsals, and so every note, every
rhythm. every tempo sounds IN my ears
to-day as il did then
Lilli Lehman was born in Wurz-
burg in 1S4S. Her first instructor was
her mother, who also taught her Sis.
ter Marie Lilli gives US an idea Of
her capacity:
"She sang under Weber. Spohr,
Marschner, Richard Wagner and Helm
rich Dorm; she likewise knew Spon-
TIM. who wrote for her. even in later
years, an excellent testimonial as
teacher of singing. As colleagues she
had Schroder-Devrient, Malibran. Pls-
tor and Sontag. Her voice was beau
tiful, full soprano. In spite of IA
tigue, emotional crises and the blows
of destiny she kept her voice in all
its clarity Of tone, its volume and ITS
youthful brilliancy. until her seventy
seventh year, that is, until shortly be
fore her death. Her technique OF
breathing, her trills and colorature
we're most perfect, and she sang her
colorature not only with verve but
often with actual classical grandezza,
which proves that, by proper treat
ment. our organs may laugh at years"
Lehmann's first engagement at the
Prague National Theatre lasted fiji
teen years Here she was guided by
the fine artistic sense of her mother,
and here she was associated with ad-
mirable artists. Dantzlc followed,
then Leipsic, then Berlin, where she
learned on one occasion the role OF
Irma in Auber's lie Macon" in four
hours "to save the performance" Al
this period 1S70-'75) the singer made
her first visit to Wsgner's home IN
Bavreuth. Lovers of Wagner will be
interested in the letters written from
Wagner 10 her in 1875. before the first
great festival, and still more so IN
Lehmann's account of the preparations
for that great musical event, IN which
Iilli and Marie sang two of the Rhine
maidens. The account of the horror
of these Rhine maidens when they
first saw their swimming machines
G,ebmann's was directed by Anton
SeidD is merrily told "At all events
She adds. 81 have never since seen or
heard the Rhine maidens so happy,
serene, laughing and serious, so much
in their element Whh what emotions
did we 90 to our work. We did what
We could out of love for Wagner ex-
pended all our ability. all our talents
and brought 20 it complete understand
ing Of his gigantic creation In the
"Walkure" at this festival Marie and
Iili took the parts of Ortllnde and
Helmwiege.
engagements in Stockholm, London,
Dresden, Prague again and vienna
bring the artist TO the year 1eS2. An
engagement in Berlin preceded her irst
appearance in New York in 1850. Nine:
Lehmann's arrival and description OF
the city and the opera at this period
were quoted in The Tribune when the
German edition Of this book appeared.
Her Berlin troubles were also eN-
pounded upon. The reader will be IN
terested in Lehmann's account OF
the Bayreuth festival Of 1896, where
/ she appeared as Brunnhilde IN the
three dramas. Her comparisons OF the
details of stage setting ana genera
management with the traditions estao-
lished twenty years before by Wagner
arc valuable TO all who love wagner.
II will also interest the reader to see
/ that Wagner seems 10 have had Len
mann in mind for the part OF kundry.
| In a letter from Bayreuth 70 the best
! Of All Lillis" Wagner tells her that the
composition Of "Parsifal" IS finished,
/ hut that he is still rejecting upon II,
/ adding: But my conductor, LIN, must
! first see what she will have to DO mere
/ All kinds Of nonsense comes INTO my
mind. because her spirit was always
present. Without Lilli klingsors
magic work cannot be executed. On,
and there is singing TO be done! II
[ she would come she could look at II
and put the whole matter IN accord LOT
che must stand by me IN everything,
Lehman does not say why she dld
not sing this role. My Path through
Life" is not only delightfully."- written
hut the translation has been well done.
l. might be appropriately mentioned
here that a second revised, EXTENDED
and improved edition of Nine. Leh-
mann's "How To Sing" translated by
Richard Aldrich, has been published by
the Macmillan Company. II IS full OF
valuable suggestions to students OF
vocalization, although at times some
what obscure in its utterances.
A Treatise on Notation and Termi-
nOlogy.
Karl ". Gehrkens, associate profess
sor Of school music in the Oberlin
Conservatory, has written, and the
8 Barnes Company has published,
hook entitled "Music Notation and
Teruinolo9y." The novel thing about
this book is that IL is in eject die
I .ionary Of terms turned into text
book. There is something admirable