Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-04-28
NJ u SIC
81 4e..
BY HELEN FETTER.
NEW YORK, April 26.

NE "a tAAc ulooI 1Slld1kdU!e
4 events of the 1929 music
\ season in New York was
the combination program
presented Thursday night by the
League Of Composers for the
benefit of the National Music
League at the Metropolitan Opera
House, when two truly unique
works had their premieres in the
metropolis. Both were the works
of pioneers who have given def
nitely to the cause of musical
progress. One was the New York
first time" of Monteverdi'S 300
year-old opera, III Combattimento
eli Tancredi e Clorinda."
The other was the American
premiere in stage version of LES
Noces," by Igor StravinSki
Whereas the Monteverdi work
showed the foundation for what
is still accepted as operate style,
real recitativo and bel canto sing
ing, with the motives of the diff
ferent characters clearly an
nounced orcheStrally and the
story told coincidentally by or
chestra, singers and actors, the
StravinSki work showed the effects
of modern day industrial ideas of
mass production and reducing of
even the human voice to a me-
chanical plane so that the choir
CT voices located in the orchestra
pit assumed the quality of an
added choir of human violins in
the effect as whole. There was
a distinctly Chauve-Souris quail
ity to the settings and costumes
as designed by Serge Soudeikine.
The auditor received aurally and
usually the effect that the COM
poser was rather laughing up his
sleeve at the intricacieS of this
Russian peasant wedding even
when he pretended to be most in
earnest. Certainly it is a lively
thing and was fascinatingly done
on this occasion. It well merits
a permanent place in American
ballet repertoire. The four COM
posers placed at the different
pianos-Marc Blitzstein, Aaron
COPELAND, Louis Gutenberg and
Frederick Jacobi-had their work
patterned most Skillfully into the
whole. The singers of solo parts
Nina KoShetz, soprano; Sophie
BraSlau, contralto; Gabriel Leon
eff, tenor, and Moshe Rudinov,
baritone, also deserved the ova-
tions they received for singing
this difficult music so intelligently.
It is filled with Russian folk melo-
dies, 1t is true, but given almost
diaoolical StravinSkian treatment.
Yet the ballet on the stage, and
the orchestra and chorus in the
pit under Stokowski'S direction,
proved completely fascinating and
held the audience spellbound.
The Monteverdi work was anus
ing and entertaining, but to a
much milder degree. AS Aaron
Copeland remarked at its conclu-
sion: You see how radical
sounds 800 years later" It was
interesting to have the three SOLO
lists in costume on the "side-lines,
as it were, in triple-storied
pulpit like structure, while the
two principals in the action OF
the opera commended in mimic |
battle silently in center stage with |
the sedate, rather Indifferent |
walls Of Jerusalem as their back
ground. The costumes for this |
work were designed by the clever |
young Washingtonian, Natalie |
Hays Hammond.
Among those interested in the |
music world who were noted in |
the audience were Mrs. Otto
Kahn, who gave a party for all |
the participants at her home fol- |
lowing the performance; Nikolai |
Sokolov, conductor of the Clevc- |
land Symphony Orchestra, who |
conducted special performances of |
Richard Strauss Elm Helden-
leben," Charles Critics white |
Peacock" and Georges Enesco's |
"Rumanian Rhapsody, No. l." with |
interpretive dances, Friday and |
last night Ito be reviewed here |
next week)s Irene Lewisohn, di- |
rector of the Neighborhood Play |
house group that presented the |
dances in these programs; Eva |
Gauthier, Eorman-Be Geddes, |
Marion Bauer, Vladimir Rosing, |
Lucine Lawrence, Carlos Salzedo |
and Maxim Karolik-the last |
mentioned well known as Rus |
sian tenor in Washington.
u
THE story of the very old opera |
l. by the Father of opera COM |
posers" -Monteverdi-tells of the |
love of Tancred, a Christian war
rior, for the beautiful Paynim,
Clorinda, and how unwittingly he |
Stays her in battle, believing her |
TO be a male adversary, her face |
being concealed by her visor and |
her figure incased in the heavy |
armor Of the day. The episode Is |
described in the twelfth canto of |
Torquato Tasso's, Jerusalem De- |
livered" (strophes So to So, omit |
ting 63).
It seems that toward the end of |
the First Crusade, Tancred, lead |
ing a troop of horse, had come |
upon Clorinda, the pagan warrior |
maid Of mysterious birth, who was |
drinking at a spring. The knight |
loved her at first sight and, after |
she had disappeared. her vision |
obsessed him though he continued |
in his campaign.
At the first attack on the walls |
of Jerusalem, Tancred found her,
unhelmed her, offered her him
self or his life AS she listened, |
astonished, and moved against |
herself by his words, Clorinda was |
struck from behind. The aSsailant |
fed, pursued by Tancred; but Clo- |
rinda. fearing treachery, eluded |
him and fought her way back to |
the city. In a later attack, seeing |
her upon the walls. Tancred was |
distracted and could not continue |