The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1924-10-20
LURE
IN SEASONS
MUSIC
Our Friend Frank Baer Sees
VERY, Very Foreign"
influence

received daily from press agent
who type their return addresses d
the upper left-hand corner, / an
impressed with the activity tn
artists Of the land prom
ise.
The New York and Chicago open
companies are In the throas o
work; concert plaAfsts, by the hun
dreds, are rehearsing new programs
and vocalfsts, both men and women
are arranging recitals, long, sl1or
and indifferent.
But one thing, above all others
stands, out as distinctly as trai
fic policeman any time after mid
night. That Is
The very foreign tone Of thes
musical tests!
Boston has a new Russian con-
ductor for its far-famed SYM
pIiony--a fact about as interest
ing to, me las a wire flash that
an oppressed Polynesian husband
has elected his mother.in-law
from the family menage for
teaching the baby NAH jongg.
And the other foreign novelties
Serge Koussevltzhy is in honest
truth nothing more than a.novel-
ty, who brings a Russian point
of.view to American music are,
] In the main, quite az thrill-pro-
.vOking as this rare and much
heralded announcement.
Such an attitude may not
please some American music
lovers, but ] am positive Amer
lean composers and American
artists will agree with me that
this foreign invasion is the rea-
son extraordinary why American
music, American musicians and
American composers are, here in
the land Of the free and the
home Of the bootlegger and demi.
mordaine, fighting q hard battle
for recognition.
How the foreign touch lures!
How the chap with the long
name vamps his way to the
heart!
And how America misses a
golden opportunity of developing
musical culture, life and idiom
Of its own!
Here. in brief, Ii q most engag-
ing state of affairs. Take-just
for the taking-the aspiring com.
poser. who creates something fine
In an operate way; something
that expresses the complexity 0f
American life and manners with
beauty intensified and national
characteristics dominant In both
book and score.
What is his fate?
What Happens-ReaIly!
Let us see: II the opera is pre-.
tentious, he takes it naturally
to either the Metropolitan or
Chicago Opera Company, only to
have 1t passed upon by d foreign
expert who measures 1t by for
eign standards. Then; what? In
fifty-nile cases out OF sixty, the
work is rejected.
II, on the other hand, the work
is light and Herbertesque in style,
the aspiring composer finds that
the manager to whom he offers
his product has just purchased
the American rights to Madame
Pampadour," by Leo Fall (Herr
Fall lives in Berlin half the year;
in Vienna for three, months; the
rest of the time he is in Paris
spending American royalties). Or,
by chance, the American rights to
"Clo-Clo," the newest Of Franz
Lehar's output. ''Sorry, but I
must do so many foreign things
this season, adds the sympa.
thetic manager, that the Ameri-
can productions must wait. !"
Somehow he never gets around
to American productions, though.
The world awaits in expect
ancy the new Puccini opera,
''Turandot." Late advices from
Italy state that the maestro Is
hard put for a third act. New
York would like to have the
premiere honor bestowed upon
the Metropolitan, which may or
may not have a bearing on this
foreign" situation.
True, the theme and atmos-
phere Of the book and score
are Oriental
So are the theme and back.
ground of "Sinbad, the Sailor"
by Percy MacKaye and Fred
erick Converse.
The latter work was In ex-
istence six years ago. To date
no opera company has made q
bid for production rights.
So, you see, even when Amer.
leans select foreign themes and
settings and treat them from
a fresh angle, cards still are
stacked against them.
r ] am thankful for one bless
ing at that
Serge Prokofieff probably will
never do the score to the ''Mu-
sic Box Revue!'
Here and There.
The Alice Eversman vocal
scholarship goes to Francis Swan,
local tenor. Two.part scholarships
go to Mrs. Claro Recto, Manila, P.
l., and ESSa Smith, District so.
prano. :. Nine. Ludmila Vase.
lief has begun her classes at
the Elena de Sayn School. The
madam is an, exponent Of Rus
sian balletism. Now
that Louis Hirsch is dead, lift.
ers' have started to steal his.
tunes. Recently in Moon
light" I heard do It for Me-"
from "Going Up" Con Conrad
called 1t Say 1t Again"
FRANK BAER.