Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1921-01-27
THE FIRST AMERICAN "IMPREsARIA.''

Mary Gardens debut big boss" of the Chi
cago Grand Opera company probably will force
writers musical subjects to coin word for
her; namely "impresara," the feminine form of the
Italian word already so familiar to us.
In an interesting interview given to The Assoc
ciated Press, and published in Wednesdays issue of
The Morning journal, this versatile outlined
her ideas for the development of opera in America.
The soundness of these views augurs we'll for Miss
Gardens career as impresaria.
Herself an artist Miss Garden understands the
temperament of her fcllow-worlers "They are
simply children" she says in effect, land when
treats them humanity one has no trouble getting
along with them"
She does not inclined to extravaganza in
matters of salary, although she believes that the
singer, like the laborer, should be paid in pro-
portion to his or her services Fabulous salaries in
the past have done much to put opera above the
reach of the masses who need this spiritual tonic
more than their wealthy brethren, with other
means of recreation open to them.
Miss Garden favors repertoire of modern Ital-
ian and French works, with at least one American
opera every Such a repertoire be so
built up as to combine artistic merit with popular
appeal repertoire made up, for example, of the
fiery "Pagacci" and "Cavaeria Rustcana;" the
whimsical pathetic "Boheme;" the spirited Car
men," the wistful tragic Madame Butterfly" the
almost melodramtic "Tosca;' the sumptuous
"Thas;" and VerdIs later works, "Ote,lo" or
tonal old-Itaan school. There is no need here
to dwell on the possibilities of such a selection,
for Leoncayao, Mascagni Puccini BiZet, Massenet
and the grand old man" of Italian opera are now
fairly Well known in workaday America.
And that brings the other part of the
Garden prospectus if one may so call her plan of
campaign. She believes that American opera should
form part of each years offering This question, in
turn, brings to anotherIs there such thing as
American grand opera?
The skeptcism of slavish followers of the Euro
pean school of music cannot survive in the light of
the works of Cadman, the greatest American COM
poser since Mcdowell This gifted American
who lived for several years in Albuquerque by the |
way--has developed a school of music distincively
American, although in some of his phrases can
detect trace of the Grieg influence
In encouraging and developing American opera |
Miss Garden will be doing invaluable pioneer work |
for it is the fashion nowadays to affirm that
america has no school of opera" Musical snob-
berry, however, will have place in the Garden |
policies The impresaria apparently is looking for
the best available material-both in art and in ar
lists. The European fetish is not likely to obsess
her.
Students of opera will agree with Miss Garden |
in her dislike for TRANSACTIONS. This dislike is es-
pecially well founded when effort is made to /
render libretto from Romance language into Il
our Anglo-Saxon tongue. The two linguistic fam Il
lilies do not mix, no more than do the tempera- |
ments Of the two races. Can one conceive of an Il
adequate English version of Canio's aria or Turid-
dus "Sciliana? No more than could imagine |
a faithful translation of "Hiawatha" or THE |
Courtship of Miles Standsh'! The meaning can be .
approxmated, but the are bruised by the
transator's bludgeon. And in art the nuance is !
the thing.
All in all, it is safe to predict that the cause
both of opera in America as we'll as of American |
opera will not suffer from the feminine touch Of |
Mary Garden. /