Evening star., 1936-07-20
ORCHESTRA OPENS
WATERGATESER|ES
10000 Throng Riverside to
Hear WalIenStein Lead
30 Musicians.

nner symphony concerts he's not
dimmed was demonstrated beyond
any doubt last night, when the second
season Of symphonies on the Poto-
mac" was inaugurated.
When the young guest conductor.
Alfred Wallenstein, walked on the
stage Of the Water Gate Amphitheater
to direct the orchestra OF 30 Wash
ington musicians he was greeted by
an audience estimated ct between
5000 and 10000 persons.
Thousands sat along the parkway
and on the terrace. Hundreds OF
others stood several deep in the lin
coin Memorial Plaza, on the Arlins-
ton Memorial Bridge and along the
Memorial CauSeWay.
The musicians, CARRIED in Summer
attire, played on q stage built partly
on the roadway and partly over the
| waters edge, instead of the barge
used last year. The huge sounding
| board shell used last year also was
absent. The sky was the musicians
roof as well as the audiences. A
high sounding board provided white
background.
First Of 70 Concerts.
The concert was the first in series
OF % TO be presented by the Wash
| ington Summer Concerts Association,
which was formed by musicians Of
the National Symphony Orchestra
early this Summer after the National
| Symphony Orchestra Association
abandoned its plans for Summer con-
certs.
| There we're only Two things missing
| from the near-perfect setting last
night-the moon and amplifying
| equipment The musicians were un-
able to explain the absence OF the
moon from perfect sky, but Violin
ist Paul Brightenburg informed tina
audience after intermiSsion that there
had been an unexpected delay in the
arrival of the sound equipment. He
added that it would be installed in
time for Wednesdays concert.
| Everybody seemed satisfied with tna
new orchestral stage except the nom
paying customers in the yachts and
canoes They told their friends on
shore that it was nice out there on the
river, but they couldn't hear the music.
The marine element took heart,
however, upon hearing the amplifers
are to be installed.
The audience was amused when thev
saw a policeman on the stage. During
a short intermiSSion between numbers,
Wallenstein turned around on his plat
form TO find himself face to face with
| the law. The officer handed the con-
ductor a telegram, about-faced and
walked off
The telegram, Wallenstein felt,
could have waited, but somebody told
the officer TO take it 70 the stage ard
deliver it in person. The officer obeyed
and the crowd wondered.
Audience Misses Dog.
One of the audience was heard ia
remark on the absence OF that friendly
little dog, who, at last years first con-
cert, walked up the gangplank TO the
stage 10 look the orchestra over.
Two airplanes obligingly waited un-
/ ril intermission to fly over the amphi-
theater.
Despite the absence Of simplifying
equipment, the acoustics of the amphi-
theater made possible appreciation BY
the audience for some distance beyond
the fartheSt paid seat During the
playing of certain parts, however, il
was difficult for those on the extreme
sides to hear the music. This is eX-
pected TO be corrected by the Ampli-
fiers.
After the concert, wallenstsin, who
will direct the wednesday and Friday
concerts, said that all the credit for
these presentations must be given the
musicians themselves "and not the
conductor" He declared the mu-
sicians are to be commended for going
ahead and arranging a second season
Of these popular concerts.
The plans Of the concert association
comprise three concerts each week, on
Sunday, wednesday and Friday,
through Sunday, September 6.
Wallenstein returned to New York
this morning because Of business en-
gagements in connection with the
program of the Mutual Broadcasting
system for which he is general musical
director of station WOR. He will
return tomorrow night, accompanied
by Miss EurMce Norton. who will ap-
pear as Soloist Wednesday night at
the second Water Gate concert.
Miss Norton, American pianist, hs.
appeared a. soloist with the New Zo-s.
Philharmonic Symphony, tns pn..s
dslunia Orchestra, Boston Sympnonv
Orchestra, and the Minneapolis, CHI
cago and London Symphonies. A
native Of Minneapolis, she was sent
after graduation from the University
Of Michigan, by music patrons Of
Minneapolis, to study with Arthur
Schnable in Berlin and Tobias
Mattay in London She made her
debut in New York In 1882 and then
was presented in concerts on Nation
wide tour.
The orchestra on Wednesday night
will play compositions by Won Weber,
Liszt, Johann Straus, RoSsini and
William Grant Still, whose excerpts