The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-11-14
~ W. J. son

TOR the man in the street, the
woman in the salons, the gem
tleman In the club window or
the chap in the omnibus the
one mighty event OF The musical year
will come tomorrow night, when the
Metropolitan Opera House will begin
it's season of grand opera. Every
one rejoices In that once more the
sound Of the tenor will be heard in
the land. When Mr.. Gatti-Casazza.
after . much troubled summer in Italy,
seized Enrico Caruso by the arm and
steamship Dante Alighieri he heaved
a profound sigh and paused at a tele-
graph Office long enough to cable to
Otto Kahn: "The success Of the COM
ing season In assured"
Those are not the exact words, but
they convey the precise meaning Of the
sstute impresario's message to the
chairman OF the executive committee.
Caruso had not been mObillzed. He
had o volunteered To go to the snow
clad slopes OF the Alps. He had packed
his trunks and by the side Of his man
ager advanced firmly toward the Medl-
terranean, his back turned toward
Austria and his priceless throat in
prime condition. The success Of the
opera eason was assured.
For singers may come ana singers
may go. What is more. they do. Some
come from Italy. as Ida Cajatti, who
will be heard for the first time this
Some come from Spain. like
Maria Barrientos. who has long been
heralded but who only now arrives.
Some come from this capacious old
town. as does Julia Heinrich. VINO is
the daughter Of the only Max Heinrich
and who has been heard here in re-
citals.
some go Il Chicago and some to the
fying column which wears the title OF
Boston. Some ven go to pieces. but
they do not admit II. However. 1t
makes no difference 10 the operagocr.
He walks right up to tho captains
office year after ear and puts down
his money to buy something. sight
unseen" as the boys say. and when it
is finally made known that the one
great idol OF the company--whoever
that chances to be-is coming back he
smiles triumphantly and pats himself
on the pocket. as who should say. Il
am a prophet and the son Of "a
prophet"
So Caruso is here. And he is going
TO impersonate SdmsOH in the famous
oratorio opera of Camille Saint-Saens.
At first blush it is hard 10 conceive
caruso as "A Samson. one recalls him
in the halcyon days of Julien" or il
his lyric zenith rs NcmorinO ana can
believe that he might in those days
have got vocal honey out of the car
case of a Hon, but some one else would
Fave had to prepare the lion for the
operation. The great Gatti-Casazza
solves many problems and he has
solved this one II will he perfectly
easy to see Caruso as samson. for you
also see Matzenauer as DnIih. And
all this Is going To b. bestowed upon
us tomorrow evening.
Who recalls the early days of Sam
son ct Dalila' al the Metropolitan?
Or III the o:atorio Held? The first
performance of the opera anywhere
was under Liszt at the Grand Ducal
Theatre of Wcimar in 1877. Walter
Damrosch and the Oratorio Society.
OF which he was then the conductor.
gave it in concert form at Carnegie
Hall IN March 20. 1897. Maurice
Grau produced it at the metropolitan
Opera House on February S, 1895. The
east was as follows:
IIGr.h.a I,i.., Mine: Mlnteili
nisn friest ,'ainpanarI
Tn'','n '''''''''''''' pl.,,.,
IN olu iicbTeN. ......,....., f'"HV'h
First Philis-ine. $50. 49,. Dinoidini
Sesonn Fhiistine' ''...'.....D- Naschetti
Conductor ancielli.'
Oscar IIammerstein brought the
work u at the Manhattan Opera
House IN November 10. 1908. with
Mime. Gerville- Reachc as Dalila and
Dalmores as samson. Campanini CON
Quoting. All these productions were
in certain respects good. but only that
at 6he Metropolitan had its bit Of farce.
The destruction of the temple IN the
last scene WAS In its way a naive piece
Of sta&ecraft. and when Tamagno
''bowed himself the tall painted pill