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Musical Courier 1894-11-21: Vol 29 Iss 767, 1894
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1geration stated the outward success of a composition which would under any circumstances have claimed attention on account of its author, I can spare myself the trouble of a detailed analysis of the work, as I gave the outlines of it to the readers of THE MUSICAL COURIER some three months ago. In fact, I was the first one to write anything definite about the "Song to Aegir," as none of my German colleagues had had a chance to see the Imperial manuscript. A copy of it, with Prof. Max Mueller's excellent English translation, and in Messrs. Bote & Bock's finest and most tasteful getting up, I have also mailed over, and it only remains for me to repeat that after a living hearing of the work I find it a splendid specimen of popular folkslied—popular in the best sense of that much abused term. If "Die Wacht am Rhein" is a good folks-song—and it must be, for it has been sung by the entire nation and millions of non-Germans innumerable times ever since 1870—71—then the "Song to Aegir" must also be a good one. For besides being more inspired melodically, more noble in musical sentiment, it also lies better for the human voice, and does not demand the extraordinary range of vocal organ which the "Wacht am Rhein" calls for if properly sung. Moreover, the Emperor's poem, if not quite as popular in sentiment or verbiage as the "Wacht am Rhein," is infinitely more chevaleresque, more elevated and more rousing. I have no doubt that the "Song to Aegir" will soon be heard in all parts of Germany, and not only there, but "so weit die deutsche Zunge klingt."
3The performance, under Prof. Albert Becker's direction, by the Berlin Cathedral Choir, and with the assistance of the Royal Orchestra, was a most inspired and inspiring one. Professor Becker, popularly called Messenbecker (but by no means Beckmesser), because he is the composer of several masses and, in order to distinguish him from the many other musical Beckers, arranged the Imperial composition for male chorus and orchestra, in which arrangement it was performed on this occasion.
5Besides the "Song to Aegir," the program contained as as opening numbers two choral numbers with orchestra by Becker, and as closing numbers three arrangements of Adrianus Valerius' (1626) Old Netherland songs, likewise for chorus and orchestra, which latter were very effective. Mr. Becker is to my mind a much better arranger than he is a composer, as the fountain of his inspiration is but dry, while his musicianship is beyond question.
7Four old Netherland songs of Valerius and the male quartet, "Ständchen" (melody found on an old Rembrandt picture), all by Kremser, were likewise on the program, but all of them I have heard more finely sung by the New York Arion under Van der Stucken than on this occasion. The quaint little "Ständchen," however, was redemanded most enthusiastically, just as it was on the Arion concert trip through Germany whenever that little gem had appeared on the program.
9Four a capella madrigals, by Donati, John Bennett, Hasler and Gastoldi, were splendidly sung by the Cathedral Choir, especially the tender Bennett madrigal, "Flieset dahin ihr Thränen." The "Crusaders' March," from Liszt's "St. Elizabeth," also came in for a good share of the applause.
11The only soloist was P. Bulss, of the Royal Opera, who was in excellent voice. He is a fine baritone and a great artist, and he showed both qualities to the very best advantage on this extra occasion when he sang Loewe's stirring ballad, "Emperor Henry IV.'s Dedication of Weapons" and Martin Plüddemann's no less martial "Ode to the Prussian Army." The latter is a most musically and really inspiring setting of Kleist's patriotic poem, in which the "Hohenfriedberg March" is used by the composer in a most ingenious manner as a background for his finely worked out national musical poem.
13Bulss sang both works with verve and an 'élan which were simply irresistible. He carried the whole audience with him, and the one most hearty to join in the applause and causing a triple recall of the artist was His Majesty the Emperor.
15I now approach the end of my allotted weekly task with yesterday's double event, and a day of which every American ought to feel proud. At the Philharmonie, the second concert of the Strauss Philharmonic subscription series took place before a much larger audience than had been present at the first concert of this really most interesting cycle of orchestral concerts.
17The program was a well selected one, and opened with Berlioz's most powerful, but also most uneven overture, the one to "King Lear," which he wrote in 1831. It was most forcefully and authoritatively read under Richard Strauss' baton.
19Then came the soloist of the occasion, Mrs. Fannie Bloomfield-Zeisler, who again was heard in the Rubinstein D minor piano concerto, with which she had scored such a tremendous triumph at a concert of her own here last season. I cannot truthfully state that our gifted countrywoman duplicated her former success on this occasion, but still she won the praise of the connoisseurs and a most hearty triple recall from the large audience. She played perhaps a trifle more finished even than last season, but on the whole she created less of an impression, which may have been and probably was due to the largeness and the acoustic defects of the hall, in which a piano, be it ever so good a one, does not sound as well as at the Singakademie.
21The program contained two novelties, the first one of which was Felix Mottl's excellent orchestration of Schubert's well-known and exquisitely beautiful F minor fantasia, op. 103, originally written for piano for four hands. Mottl has gone to his self imposed task with that fine taste and intimate knowledge of orchestration for which he is justly famous, and he has enriched the concert literature with one of the most entrancing pearls of German music.
23The second novelty, a "Perpetuum mobile," op. 257, by Johann Strauss, is designated by the Viennese jubilee composer as a "musical joke."
25It is thoroughly Straussian in spirit and is treated with a skill and daintiness, especially in orchestration, which show the composer of the "Fledermaus" from his most advantageous side. The performance of this scherzo was so frisky and finished that the little novelty was most enthusiastically redemanded.
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29I left Richard Strauss and the Philharmonic Orchestra to finish their program with Haydn's E flat symphony No. 3, and without me, and rushed down to the Royal Opera House, where "Lohengrin" was being enacted with Lillian Nordica as "Elsa," the Emperor and Empress in attendance, and, despite the raising of the prices of admission, before one of the largest audiences the Opera House ever held.
31The impression which our beautiful, winsome and most sympathetic American prima donna created in the part of "Elsa" at Bayreuth last summer I described at the time. I can to-day only state that the Berlin impression was a duplicate, and in so far even more pronounced, as here it was permitted to show Mme. Nordica the individual appreciation, and shower upon her personally the honors that were her due, while at Bayreuth only the single unfolding of the curtain after the final scene of the third act is granted. In order not to have to repeat myself I shall to-day give you, instead of my own opinion of Mme. Nordica's "Elsa," a translation of what Mr. Georg Davidsohn, the expert operatic critic of the "Boersen-Courier," has to say about last night's performance:
33"The appearance of Mme. Nordica 'as guest' gave us an opportunity to renew the acquaintance which we had made with her 'Elsa' at this year's Bayreuth festival performances; it offered to our public the possibility to acquaint itself with this interesting and important artistic achievement. The admiration which this 'Elsa' found in the cycle of the Bayreuth performances was likewise accorded her at our opera house; her success was a complete one. About her impersonation of the part, we can only repeat what we have detailed in our Bayreuth report. The mastery in the vocal treatment; the admirable musical reproduction; the beauty and sweetness of the voice; the poetic appearance—all this is joined to a perfect art of histrionic representation, which gives eloquent expression to each emotion of the soul, to each shade of the music. In this harmony between the musical and dramatic qualities, in this embodiment of 'Elsa's' character and its musical formation, the devotion with which Mme. Nordica has studied the part at Bayreuth can easily be recognized. Such devotion, however, can only achieve like successful results if it is coupled with such equally high intelligence and such rich artistic endowments. Above all other things, it is also remarkable with what mastery Mme. Nordica controls the German language. We know of no German singer who, with regard to clearness and correctness of text pronunciation (these important necessities for the Wagnerian art products), could be said to equal her, and not in a single instance did a foreign accent make itself disturbingly felt. I mention the latter circumstance prominently just for the benefit of those who could not find words enough to so bitterly resent the choice of foreign artists for the participation in the Bayreuth festivals. If foreign born artists offer performances such as this 'Elsa,' if they enter so thoroughly into the spirit and the essence of a German art work and of our language, we should be glad of this gain for the German stage, and should feel proud of such a conquest.
35"The public, which filled our opera house to the last place—the Emperor and the Empress were also present—overwhelmed Mme. Nordica with applause, and did not get tired recalling her after each act. At the close a great wreath with ribbons in the colors of her native country, the United States of North America, was presented to her."
37So much for George Davidsohn, and so much also for Buckingham!—Buckingham in this instance stands for Tappert, who is the only one who in the "Kleine Journal," just as he did last summer from Bayreuth, has ought unfavorable to say again: Mme. Nordica's ideal representation.
39The surroundings of Mme. Nordica in this "Lohengrin" performance were up to our best Berlin standard. Gudehus had a good evening, and was heard to advantage in the title rôle. Mrs. Ritter-Goetze was a fine "Ortrud;" Bulss overacted "Telramund" a trifle, and did too much of the parlano business, but otherwise he also was superb. Stammer was a sonorous "King Henry," and Fränkel is always good as the "Herald."
41Above all, the chorus and orchestra, under Dr. Muck's direction, were all that could be desired, and the stage management seems to have gained through last summer's exceptionally fine Bayreuth experiences, as was especially noticeable in the moving of the masses.
43On the whole, as I said before, it was a most memorable evening, and one that our American colony may justly be proud of.
45***
47From here Mme. Nordica goes to-day to Leipsic to sing at a Gewandhaus concert.
49***
51The Stern Conservatory of Music, which since the death of Miss Jennie Meyer was without a director, has become the property of Prof. Gustavus Hollaender. The contract of the sale contains a clause by which the new director binds himself to maintain the same old and efficient staff of teachers that were hitherto engaged at the institute. Professor Hollaender is the well-known violin virtuoso, professor at the Cologne Conservatory, conductor of the Guerzenich popular concerts and founder of the Hollaender String Quartet.
53***
55Mrs. Gisela Staudigl, well remembered in New York as the first and best "Brangane" in the Metropolitan Opera House "Tristan performances, has just been decorated by the Prince Regent of Bavaria with the golden Ludwig's medal for art and science in recognition of her artistic representations during the recent Munich Wagner model performances.
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59Franz Rummel is in Berlin fresh from his recent triumphs in England. The pianist played last night at Dessau the Beethoven G major concerto and scored a most pronounced success.
61O. F.
63Fannie Bloomfield-Zeisler's Triumph.
65BELOW we give a few criticisms from the more important papers of the appearance of Mrs. Fannie Bloomfield-Zeisler at the second Philharmonic concert, at Berlin, October 29, from which it will be seen that this gifted American pianist is carrying everything before her:
67"Berliner Boersen-Courier," October 30, 1894.
69We hardly think that the D minor concerto, by Rubinstein, was ever—often though it is heard in our concert halls—played better, grander in conception, with clearer or more beautiful tone, with more precision in its runs than last night by Mrs. Fannie Bloomfield-Zeisler in the Philharmonic concert. Mrs. Zeisler, who already last year was recognized as a pianist of the first rank, gave us a truly stupendous master performance in the rendition of this concerto. It was above criticism. That the audience rewarded the artist with enthusiastic applause goes without saying.
71"Vossische Zeitung," Berlin, October 31, 1894.
73In the second Philharmonic concert, which was given last Monday under the leadership of Court Conductor Herr Richard Strauss, appeared Mrs. Bloomfield-Zeisler, who played Rubinstein's D minor concerto, the same composition with which she introduced herself at her début in Berlin last winter. Still more intense than then was the impression which her remarkable genius created. Virile decision manifested itself in conception, touch and rhythm, womanly grace in the sweet softness of her tone production and dynamic shading, while as regards technic the artist showed herself infallible and brilliant and full of grace and temperament. A beautiful Bechstein piano assisted Mrs. Zeisler in the production of tone effects of noble strength, as well as delicate poetry. She was rewarded with stormy applause.
75"Berliner Lokalanzeiger," October 30, 1894.
77The soloist of the evening was Mrs. Fannie Bloomfield-Zeisler, that grand American pianist. It was a genuine pleasure, during the present perfect flood of mediocre piano playing, to once again hear such an extraordinary artist. Rubinstein's D minor concerto gave Mrs. Zeisler full opportunity to show all the great virtues of her playing, which on her appearances here last winter won for her the recognition as a pianist who has few peers. The simplest melody and the most complicated passages, the most powerful force and the most delicate softness, all show the great master hand. Her interpretation is withal imbued with such deep feeling as one rarely finds in piano playing. A truly splendid masterpiece of interpretation was the second movement, while in the third she showed her almost incomparable technic. Her triumph was such as one rarely witnessed in these concerts. The applause was so stormy that she was compelled to appear five times on the stage to receive the thanks of the perfectly enthused audience.
79An Ohio Orchestra.—The Symphony Orchestra, of Hartwell, Ohio, under the direction of Mr. Wm. Ross, gave its first concert this season November 8, with much success.
81Mobile, Ala.—The first public rehearsal of the Gesang Verein Frohsinn, of Mobile, Ala., was given November 12. The program was an ambitious one, and was effectively given. A small orchestra gave the accompaniments.
83Suicide of a Singer—Thomas W. R. Williams, an opera singer, committed suicide with morphine at his rooms in Spokane, Wash., on November 8. It is said that the cause was a disappointment in love, the young woman being an amateur actress of local note.
85The deceased was born in England and educated for the stage. In 1886 he emigrated to Canada, and for some time sang with the Toronto Opera Company. He afterward appeared with the Emma Abbott Opera Company. He was a member of the Mozart Club, of Spokane, and had assisted that organization in presenting the operas "The Pirates of Penzance" and "The Chimes of Normandy."
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