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Musical Courier 1894-02-14: Vol 28 Iss 727, 1894
60 lines. Read by computer on 20 September 2026, twice; the two readings disagreed in places. Printed page 8. See the scan on archive.org.
1and wearisome than this work, which will soon disappear from the boards of the Opéra Comique.
3At the Sunday concerts the programs have little that is new. It was only at the concert Colonne that a selection from "Parsifal" was given with immense success. At the Conservatoire Beethoven's ninth symphony, with chorus, has been played three times in succession, and this greatest of works of that Titan of music has produced, as it always does, a profound impression.
5At the Conservatoire there has also been, not a début but a sensational revelation of the great talent of a pianist, Raoul Pugno, who is known as a professor, and who has played in public a concerto by Grieg with extraordinary success. He is a great pianist, and is destined to have great success everywhere.
7CHRISTIAN SINDING.
9THE head of Christian Sinding, which will be found elsewhere and in company with a critical consideration of his D minor symphony, suggests intellectual and emotional power. The glance is deep, the brow forceful rather than spiritual. The new man is a Norwegian and from Christiania. His piano concerto was rehearsed here last summer by Mr. Franz Rummel with Mr. Seidl and his orchestra, but never played in public. His piano quintet has been heard and admired.
11Sinding, who is a fiery little fellow in private life, is said to be socialistic in his ideals. His brother is quite a well-known sculptor and contributed some works to the Chicago Exposition which were more notable for power than finesse. Ruggedness, a certain grandeur and largeness of utterance, and an absolute control of the technical material of his art distinguish the work of Christian Sinding. He has a distinctive voice and a lusty one. We shall hear it again.
13OPERATIC RUMORS.
15THERE never was an operatic season without its penumbra of scandal, petty intrigue, backbitings, heartburns and jealousies. This season has not been an exception to the rule, and the air in the neighborhood of the Metropolitan Opera House is darkling with rumors of all sorts. One thing we can assure several of our contemporaries of the daily press: Messrs. Abbey, Schoeffel & Grau will come out of the opera season with a handsome profit to the good. Their ventures this season have been unexceptionally heavy, and while they have made money on the Irving venture, "America" was a costly experiment in New York, although it coined money in Chicago, and the Coquelin-Hading Company have not come up to expectations so far. Still, there is every reason to believe that this enterprising firm will come out at the end of the season ahead of the game, which no doubt will prove a disappointment to at least one prophet who has persistently predicted all sorts of dire things about the operatic and dramatic ventures of Abbey, Schoeffel & Grau.
17Tamagno has not been actually engaged; that is to say, no contracts have yet been signed. If he comes Jean De Reszké declares he will not return to us next season, which will be a genuine loss, as he is a very great artist and not easy to replace. Then, too, Tamagno would demand more money than De. Reszké, and this the Polish tenor resents, for he knows that he is a drawing card. If he does not return, neither will his brother Edouard, and it is a stretch of the imagination to suppose that Mr. Plançon, excellent artist that he is, will be able to fill the Polish basso's boots. Lassalle will not return if Maurel comes, and so the company may be denuded of three of its most valuable people. It behooves Mr. Grau to be careful, as the De. Reszké's are tremendous favorites here.
19Calvé has been the drawing card of the season, and has literally overworked herself so that she will not be able to appear this week. Calvé's success has been phenomenal, and she has even broken the Patti record at the Metropolitan Opera House. Her "Carmen" is a delight to the eye and ear; but after all man cannot live by "Carmen" alone. Surely Mr. Grau should exercise next season the judgment born of this season's experience. We do not yearn for stars but ensembles, and even such an accomplished vocalist as Melba cannot galvanize "Lucia" and "Semiramide." These works are dead as the proverbial door nail. The truth of the matter is that the tide is again setting in toward opera in German, as high priced ensembles in Italian and French are incompatible with lower prices of admission.
21Incontestably the prices have been too high this season. Couldn't we get decent opera in German at $3 per stall in the orchestra? Another thing—and this fact has forced itself on the management most sharply this season—Mr. Anton Seidl is the most popular conductor in the country and draws whenever he appears. Whether Mancinelli returns or not Mr. Seidl should be engaged for next season. Mancinelli has proved himself a capable man, but he is not for Wagner's music. We have our Seidl for Wagner, and it seems absurd with such a resident conductor to engage a stranger. A stronger head than Mancinelli's has been needed at the helm this season. Seidl should have been the man.
23There is little use trying to fight the public, and this Mr. Grau is beginning to discover. Good opera, well sung throughout, without any startling song birds, would command patronage if the repertory was modern and prices not exorbitant. It having been demonstrated that the German residents of New York do not contribute materially toward the sustenance of opera, it is needless to count upon them. Americans love the opera, love Wagnerian opera, love good opera well sung. Give it to them, Mr. Grau, and drop your exotic importations. They do not pay. As for the question raised in last Sunday's "Sun" about the nationality of choristers and the difficulty in getting a chorus that is easily disposed of. Native born Americans will never make good chorus singers, for the simple reason that when one of our countrymen or countrywomen is able to sing do, re, mi, fa, he or she instantly applies for the position of prima donna or primo tenore.
25We are all born to wear the Presidential purple in America, and this potentiality so disturbs our equilibrium that we never build from the foundation up, but usually begin at the eaves. Hence few Americans ever become valuable artists. Else, wherefore the pother when Miss Bauermeister was sick some weeks ago and the management had to scour the highways and byways for a "Maddelena" in "Meistersinger," and without success. Doubtless there were any quantity of young American "Evas," but no "Maddelenas," and such is the rule. We all want to be rich without work, happy without deserving it, and talented without pains. The humble and, we may add, homely chorus of the Italian opera have a repertory of twenty-five or thirty works, but then they are only—the chorus. Let us hope for brighter things next season.
27A DE KOVEN LIBEL.
29THE Providence "Sunday Telegram," in its issue of February 4, contained an article entitled, "A Talented Trio." And who, gentle reader, do you suppose made up this trinity of musical talent? Why, Antonin Dvorák, Victor Herbert and Reginald De Koven! Mr. DeKoven, it is said, moves in the best society, but we doubt if he ever got into such good company as this. Worse follows, for his is the only picture of the trio that is published. The article goes on to say that Mr. DeKoven has made lots of money and "he has almost nothing in common with the other two mentioned above, excepting the musical and literary talent. He is the associate of those who are members of the social aristocracy of New York. He is received with something of the distinction which used to characterize the appearance of the distinguished pianist, Chopin, in the salons of the French aristocracy. He is, in the best sense of the word, a man of the world, and would be taken by those who saw him, not knowing what his achievements were, for a young professional man, perhaps lawyer, whose career already gave promise of great success."
31Isn't that Chopin allusion exquisite? Mr. De Koven has certainly nothing musically in common with Dvorák and Herbert, and certainly is not taken for a musician "by those who saw him" conduct. But the value of the article may be estimated at its full worth when we read further on that "a few years ago Victor Herbert sang in concerts. Then he devoted himself to the violoncello." Fancy Victor Herbert singing "Celeste Aida." Well, well!
33Change in the Symphony Program.—As the St. Petersburg publishers of Tchaikowsky's sixth symphony, announced for performance at the Symphony concerts next Friday and Saturday, were unable to ship the score and orchestral parts in time, Saint-Saëns' third symphony, for orchestra, organ and piano, will be performed instead. The Tchaikowsky work will positively be produced at the Symphony concerts in March.
35The Philharmonic Concert.
37THE fourth concert of the Philharmonic Society took place last Saturday night in Carnegie Music Hall, the usual public rehearsal being given on Friday afternoon. Mr. Anton Seidl conducted and M. Pol. Plançon was the singer. The program offered was this one:
39Symphony, D minor, op. 21 (first time)………….Christian Sinding
40Allegro. Andante. Vivace. Maestoso.
41Recitative and a-ria, "Rolling in Foaming Billows," from "The Creation." Haydn one of two readings
42Recitative and a-ria, "Rolling in Foaming Billows," from "The Creation."……..Haydn one of two readings
43Mr. Plançon.
44"Siegfried Idyll"……………………….Wagner one of two readings
45"Siegfried Idyll"………………………………………Wagner one of two readings
46"Wotan's Farewell" and Magic Fire Scene from "Die Walküre."
47"Wotan," Mr. Plançon.
49The novelty proved a genuinely satisfactory one. Sinding is a man who belongs to the strong ones of this earth. He is primarily masculine and cares but little for the feminine subtleties which often occupy the attention of his contemporaries. The first movement, with its first compact, crisp and pregnant theme, far outweighs in musical meaning and workmanship the remaining three movements. There are, to be sure, strong traces of Wagner throughout the entire work, but that does not seriously lessen its individuality nor yet its freshness. The color is variously Scandinavian and Wagnerian.
51The first subject, with its melancholy minor seventh, gives the movement at once a peculiar cachet. It is rugged, forceful and virile. Just such music the Norseman delights in. The counter theme in F, more feminine in character, has the Norwegian "tang," which we know so well in Grieg. Large, almost epical in breadth, this allegro stamps Sinding as a strong musical personality, one who has at his finger ends all the machinery of his art, but one who never juggles with tone to produce merely pleasurable results. He is tremendously in earnest, and this symphony, full of storm and stress, argues well for his future.
53The andante in G minor bears a curious resemblance to the drone-like melody sung by the Anabaptists in "Prophete;" it also suggests, though not in rhythmical structure, the theme of the slow movement in Brahms' symphony in D. It is not very interesting, and in the working out section, especially ingenious, there is much "palaver" among three violins, the undulating character of the passages reminding one of the "Rhine Daughters" music. This movement works up to a climax which redeems it from tediousness. The scherzo ranks after the first movement in musical value. It is clever, full of rude, jocose merriment, and sounds like one of those muscular "Hallengens" danced by lusty Norwegian sailors. It contains toward the close a stirring passage for the contrabass, which Mr. Seidl did not fail to emphasize. Of course you exclaim, "The trio of Beethoven's C minor," but the resemblance is evanescent.
55The last movement, which follows the scherzo without pause, is the least satisfactory of the four. It is brilliant, but lacks sustained thought: is too episodical, in a word. Preceding themes are heard, but the movement as a whole lacks coherence and the close knitted thoughts revealed in the first allegro.
57The symphony was very well played on Saturday night, the horn behaving itself in the andante better than at the rehearsal. It takes just such a leader as Mr. Seidl to develop the numerous climacteric effects, and he directed the work with great swing and vigor. Full of characteristic color and interesting even during harmonic experiments, this Scandinavian symphony should be a prime favorite with music lovers.
59The "Siegfried Idyll" was charmingly played, except that the first horn was naughty in intonation. Mr. Plancon sang with his usual smoothness and graceful delivery the Haydn number. His is a beautiful vocal organ, like unto some mellow wood instrument. Mr. Seidl made him work
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