Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1914-04-09
ORIGIN OF THE
BOHEMIAN GIRL"
TO TRACE 1T LEADS ONE FAR BACK
INTO THE LITERARY HISTORY
OF EUROPE-BALFES INVENT
I'VE GENIUS.
FRENCH BALLET THEME
Is DECLARED TO HAVE BEEN TAX
EN- FROM LA GYPSY" PRODUCED
IN PARIS on 1s39-BALFE'S CAME
OUT IN 1913.

I'm telling the history Of Balfc's opera.
The Bohemian Girl" which is To he pro.
duccd in Brownsville next Monday night
April Il. the music publishers say:
There seems To bc a hopeless disagree
mcnt between the critics and the public
as To 10 Bohemian Girl" Few operas
have been SO generally faulted. both by
the reviewers for the press ut the time
of its production. and by more dclibcr-
ate critical writers since: Vet not many
English operas have had a greater meas
urc of success, as success is measured
by popularity. After the lane of nearly
sixty years Balfc's works il still u Of
the Indispensable resources Of the man
agcr who wishes To give Englih opera.
and lis title Is one To c%onjure with. Ii
may not live to reach the span Of a cen
tury-to which. as has been truly o~l,Serv-
cd. only a few mastcrworks of the great
est gcniuscs have ever attained-and. in
deed. il has long been a stranger 10 the
aristocratic opera houses Of the worlds
capitals. But hat il has survived near
ly two generations of opera gocrs. and
still keeps its place in the hearts Of a
great section Of the public. are facts
tudti ih~ w ltfkbiltu WIN ~ 'i'iibtiu- a.
vitality not given To many works of its
class. Ralfc was no great musician: he
had not even the instinct for dramatic
music: nor much artistic conscience. but
he had n remarkable FUND of invention of
a certain sort. the practical knowledge Of
writing flucntlv fer the voice. and the
power Of producing melodies Of the kind
that fasten themselves deep in the popu-
lar heart.
To trace the origin Of The bohemian
Girl leads rs far back into the literary
history Of Europe. Balfc's libretto was
devised by Alfred Bum. the %crratic Lon
don operate manager. who learned hv
his venture with English and Italian
opera more WAYS of spelling ruin than
il falls 10 the lot of most. even of his
profession. To learn. lie was the author
of n number of librcttoS for English
operas. produced IN London during the
period Of his activity there. deriving his
inspiration almost altogether from
French models. This was the case with
The Bohemian Girl" Its theme was TAX
en- directly from the French ballet LA
Gypsy produced in Paris in 1879. and
constructed by the Marquis dc Saint
Georges. first of French librcttistS after
Scribe. and collaboration IF MANY Of the
French composers of the day-in this in.
Stancc with three. BconiSt. Ambrose
Thomas and Marliani. According 10 Mr..
Sutherland Edwards. however. The Bo-
hcmian Girl" il not only Identical i'm sub
iect with La GYPSY" hut l. a transla-
ton Of IN unpublished opera founded on
that ballet. and written also by the Mar
quiS dc Saint Georges.
Tie English version j. evidently called
The Bohemian Girl" because the Mar
quis dc Saint Georges entitled his la
Rohcmicnnc." which means THE Gypsy
Girl and has nothing to do with Bohcm-
ia. either the country or that strange see
tion Of society that has appropriated its
name.