The sun., 1919-04-13

vision Of Wagner. but like contem-
poraneous peacemakers he found It
convenient to shut his eyes to the i'm
practicabiity of his alluring league.
Weber was less extra VACANT in his
hopes and quite as artistic in his pur-
poses.
Both were prosaically German in
their blind search after efficiency. In
their theoretical conceptions both
failed to discern the certain domina-
ton of music in a drama substituting
song for speech as the medium OF ut
terance. Wagner's music to-day exer-
cises its spell in the concert room, even
upon those hearers who possess but
hazy knowledge of it's dramatic mean
ing. 1t exercises this spell more
powerfully than the music Of any other
operate composer, thus suggesting to
us the complete breakdown Of wag-
ner's scheme of artistic efficiency. In
the ultimate resolution of dramatic
forces the music survives as the mas
ter element.
And this in itself has a specifically
Teutonic character, for the Germans
have always excelled in the compost
tion OF instrumental music. In the
field of vocal art they have put for
ward their own particular product, the
lied" but in other forms of vocal
music they have had powerful rivals
in the Italians and no small challenge
from the French and the Russians
Even in the domain OF instrumental
music they have been intensely ma
tional, and the universally OF their
style, SO much vaunted, may be seri-
ously questioned. But that Is too large
a theme for discussion now.
A Weber opera written with an Eng
lish text was one Of the glories Of this
season. 1t revealed its scenic splen-
doris and its vocal entrancements last
night for the final time till next win
ter. 1t has interested the public far
more than the present writer believed
1t would. AS an opera it is a twin sis
ter of Mozart's die Zauberfioete."
The story Us quite as silly, devoid Of
dramatic or artistic purpose and
clumsy in construction.
The music, like that of THE Magic
Flute" is string OF disconnected airs,
wholly without dramatic relationship
and not infrequently trivial and SPINE
less in themselves. It's best numbers,
however. are among the immortal in
SEPARATIONS Of genius. but they have
nothing whatever to do with the play.
| To the core the whole thing Is Ger
, man. To the heart It is Wagnerian.
Its machinery is Wagnerian, it's inter-
fering, protecting and platitudinous
immortals are Wagnerian, its horn, al
though it is the counterpart Of Ia
mino's magic flute, is Wagnerian as
much as it Is Mozartean.
| When Erndni blew a blast upon his
bugle horn it was something like the
blast Of Roderick Dhu. But the horn
In "Ooeron" resembles that OF Eie0-
tried In that 1t has a magic charm and
furnishes musical materials for further
development But without seeking to
carry the parallel too far, we may con-
tent ourselves with the indisputable
conviction that there was never a mols
thoroughly Teutonio composer than
Weber. and that his "Oberon" is both
German and Wagnerian.
Yet at the Metropolitan the amiable
public regards 1t as sanctified because
the text is English. Last season
LISTS "St Elizabeth" was introduced
into the repertory and accepted with
respect for precisely the same reason.
II could not have been offered with
German text. Yet the whole work
reeked with German sentimentalism
copious cant and domestic hypocrisy.
We are an easy going people and We
gather to our bosoms any lyric crea-
ton Of which the words are (although
only temporarily English.
Mr.. Gattt-Casazza is confronted
with serious problems in the forma-
ton Of a repertory. It will be seen
later. when the figures are printed.
that the works at the head of the
list in number Of performances were
aida" and Anne. Butterfly" Each
had eight representations. Each might
easily have had several more. In the
era of Maurice Grau there was one
season In which Carmen" was given
thirteen times and Faust" had a sim
liar season. The present impresarto
doubtless fears the untimely decease
OF the goose that lays the golden egg
and for that reason does not follow
the example of Mr.. Grau.
. But II is as certain as anything hu i
man can be that he could give mime.
Butterfly" and Aida" as often as
: Grau gave Faust" and Carmen
without robbing either work of its
, power Of recuperation for the next
season. The apparently formidable
difficulties in the formation of an &C.
D ccptable list are doubtless causes lead