Year: 1879

With the opening concert of the New-York
Symphony Society this evening the srrlous
work of the musical season Will be fairly begun.
II is an encouraging sign of "A growing pubic
interest III the higher kinds OF music that Df.
Damrosch's enterprise receives this year I'D
eral support lie has pursued worthy OBJ
iect with dignity and intelligence, and he has
earned the respect and regard of the sincere
friends of art The first concert of the New
York Philharmonic Society Will soon follow.
The demand for seats and boxes is under
stood to have been enormous, far SURPRISING
the expectations of the managers, and there
are istakable indications that with The
odore Thomas at the head of the orchestra
the Society Is about entering upon very act
i've revival. Thomas has been absent from
New-York long enough to be missed and not
long enough to be forgotten, and his reap
pearance in the place which he never should
have been allowed to leave will be an occa-
sion for general rejoicing. We risk little IN
predicting for the Philharmonic Society
season of uncommon brilliancy and vlgor
pecuniary success is already secured Oy the
large subscription list.


If the opera season has not felt the impulse
of prosperous times III the same degree as the
best concert enterprises, that Is certainly not
the fault of the public. There was every dis
position in New-York to sustain opera with
the greatest liberaity people are eager to be
amused; money is plenty and the success OF
certain favorite artists last year had opened
an opportunity which judicious management
would not have failed to improve. com
parison. however, of the prospectus with the
ehn "a ron
trast between promise aud performance chat
dissatisfaction is almost universal. The charm
ing prima donna who made the success oi the
last season. and whose name headed the list
of advertised stars, remains on the other side
of the Atlantic; n third of the subscription
has elapsed no satisfactory explanation is Of
forcd to the public, and contradictory state
ments on the subject issue from the Opera
House.


The company, apart from the missing pima
donua, though notably deficient in some
respects, Is as good that OF last season.
Campanin GalassI. Del Puente and (b'st oi
alD Ardti, are here again Nile. Valrria bal
ances Miss Hank Miss Cary and Aramburo
certainly are an excellent exchange for Pisani
and Flapolh Mile. Ambre is better than
Parodi and Behrens, whom we shall hear
next week. will console Us tor the loss of Fob.
Yet it ia undeniable that the audiences are
cold and cruss and the prospect for the sec
ond subscription Is not brilliant If the public
had been hidden To a series of entertainments
in which careful ensemble was to make
amends Tor the absence OF an eminent prIma
donna, they would not have had much reason
to be displeascd with representations ike those
of LINDA " this week and of "Faustn on the
second night of the season. Although the one
was marred by poor McphistOphelcs and the
other by an imperfectly trained chorus, both
were distinguished by IA certain sentiment aud
elrgance which we do not often find III the
performances at our Academy OF Music. But
the snbscrihers were invited To entertainments
on much grandcr scalo and as they do not
get what they had been led Ia expect, they
are not in "a humOr for enthusiasm even nt
what is good. Some of the other performances
would have taxed the good nature of the most
indugent audience IN tho world. Every
where, we presume, the public Is more or less
impressed 10y bOunce-ior little while. But
in this country all men soon find their proper
level.