Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-11-17
DIR. DAMROSCH
TOPLAY in CITY
Famous Musical. Organization
Will Open Season of
Keystone Course

The keystone Concert Course in
Harrisburg will be opened this sea-
son with the playing of THE Star
Spangled Banner" by one of the lar
gest and most perfect musical organ
izations in existence. This is the
symphony Society of New York,
which, under Walter Damrosch as
conductor, and with Ethel Legiuska,
the famous pianist, as soloist, will
give the first number on the Key
stone Course when it appears in n
concert at the Chestnut Street Audi
torium on Saturday afternoon, No
Vember "a.
Walter Damrosch, the famous con-
ductor of this organization, stands in
q unique position among his col
leagues of the baton in America now
that the country is at war. There is
no question about his playing "The
Star Spangled Banner" at his war
time concerts, for. although he did
not come to this country until he was
nine years of age, he is an American
of Americans. He rose to fame
here and has in every way been
identified with American lille. Ills
wife is daughter of James G..
Blaine.
He was recently drawn into the
controversy over the playing of the
national anthem by the Boston Sym
phony Orchestra. His final dictum
on this subject was: There seems to
me to be every reason why the Bos-
ton Symphony Orchestra, as an
American institution, should play
our national anthem, but that DR..
Muck, after his extraordinary state
ment, should not be permitted to
conduct it." DR.. Damrosch, before
the Muck incident had brought the
question into controversy, had played
THE Star Spangled Banner" at the
outset of his concerts in New York,
and he has played it on his tours as
q matter of course. He will, in line
with this, play it at the Harrisburg
concert on November "a.
Interesting Program
The program which DIR. Damrosch
has arranged for his concert here is
a very interesting one, and will no
doubt attract the music lovers who
found his concert here last season
Sc. enthralling.
The addition of Nine. Ethel
Leginska, the most electric and tenn
peramental of woman pianists, to the
program as soloiSt was specially ar
ranged for Harrisburg, since she ap-
peared here last year in a r-cital of
her own and was immensely sue
cessful. When Fred c. Hand, the
director of the Keystone Concert
Course, learned that she would be
available for this concert as soloist,
he Immediately took the steps nee
essary to engage her. realizing that
hel great popularity in musical CEN
ters of the world was duplicated here
in Harrisburg and she would be con-
sidered by the public as a decided
addition to the numbers provided by
the orchestra.
The concert of DIR. Damrosch and
his orchestra will be the opening one
in the course; the second, which will
occur on December 2S, a lecture and
demonstration on trench warfare by
Sergt. Arthur Guy Empey, author
of "Over the Top" The third con-
cert will be given on March IL by
Reginald Werrenrath and Wynne
Pyle. while Alma Gluck will wind up
the series on April 2. Tickets for the
full course, by the purchase of which
subscribers secure not only reduced
rate but the guarantee that they will
have good seats for all the numbers,
are now on sa and can be secured
at the Orpheum Theater.
Under Mr. Hands direction there
will also be a special concert on Mon
day evening, January 7, by Efrem
Zimbalist, the famous Russion violin
ist, and Mary Warfel, harpist