Scan 12
Musical Courier 1895-10-16: Vol 31 Iss 815, 1895
105 lines. Read by computer on 22 September 2026. Printed page 13. See the scan on archive.org.
1Hänsel and Gretel.
3Engelbert Humperdinck's fairy opera Hänsel and Gretel was produced in this city Tuesday of last week at Daly's Theatre. Anton Seidl conducted. This was the cast:
5Peter, a broom maker ……………………………………… Mr. Jacques Bars
6Gertrude, his wife ………………………………………….. Miss Alice Gordon
7Hänsel ……………………………………………………….. Miss Marie Elba
8Gretel ……………………………………………………….. Miss Jeanne Douste
9The Witch, who eats children …………………………… Miss Louise Meisslinger
10Sandman, the Sleep Fairy ………………………………. Miss Cecile Brani
11Dewman, the Dawn Fairy ………………………………. Miss Edith Johnston
12Choir, Angels, Children, &c.
14The libretto, founded on one of Grimm's fairy tales, by Adelheid Witte; rendered into English by Constance Bache.
16The work was hailed in Germany as one of the most important operas since Parsifal, which is absurd, for has not Verdi written Falstaff? But, listened to amiable and from Humperdinck's point of view, Hänsel and Gretel is the product of a man of fancy and admirable musical skill. Far, very far, from being a work of genius, it is nevertheless a genial, artistic composition. Written originally as a sort of musical joke for the little ones, there is no reason why it should not be regarded in that light. Indeed, at times it is perilously near becoming a travesty of the Wagnerian music drama.
18Invention in the thematic sense Humperdinck has not, or at least he shows no evidences of the faculty in this pretty childish spectacle. He has more humor than dramatic aptitude and he burlesques Wagnerian methods in capital style. For what else is the Witches' Song in the last act but a burlesque on the Walkuirenritt? The forest scene with its Siegfried echoes—you must have heard the horn calls—indeed the whole scheme is laid on the lines of a cleverly calculated parody.
20It is, however, a parody at times that becomes very interesting, despite some of the gimmick themes and melodramatic orchestration. The cuckoo episode, the songs of the Dewman and Sandman are wholly charming, naive, tender. The mighty mask of Wagner stares at us, but peeping, merry childish eyes are back of it. We listen to the grandiloquence of the orchestra and then are regaled with the chuckling laughter of ragged urchins as O du lieber Augustin is contrapuntally treated.
22A curious mélange, a daring experiment, is Hänsel and Gretel. Schumann wrote marvelous things of childhood in his Kinderscenen. Humperdinck makes a bid for infantile simplicity, and having captured it he frames it massively, gorgeously, and you feel at once that the picture is crushed, overweighted and altogether out of proportion in its luxuriant surroundings.
24Atmosphere he catches very wonderfully at times. The first act is full of rollicking spirits. The unquenchable bustle of youth is in the score, the Woodcutters' Song is lusty and happy, and the hints at the witch are done in a mock way that is very diverting.
26Of course there are serious notes struck. The prayer, which is ingeniously employed in the prelude, is stamped with feeling, and the pantomime music at the close of act second is quite effective. So is the orchestral interlude, the Hexenritt. The complex richness of the score, its bold, and at times luscious instrumentation, and the straight face which the composer preserves throughout are for the student of music and human nature quite interesting.
28"You have taken my musical joke seriously," says Herr Humperdinck, "and of course I meant it seriously."
30Hänsel and Gretel cannot be taken seriously, and we wonder slightly the cause of its vogue, unless the pendulum has swung from decadence and its pallid morbidities to the naïf, to childishness, to a mere pleasuring in slightly ridiculous spectacles.
32Much of the work will be a sealed book to Americans, because we are too young, too self conscious, too hard-headed a nation to interest ourselves in Old World fairy stories. Yet there is much wholesome mock heroic marionette music and feeling in the opera—far more healthy is it than the forced artificial and absurdly overpraised Cavalleria Rusticana, with its coarse themes and brutal story.
34As an art production Hänsel and Gretel of course must not be compared to the last marvelous score of that marvelous old man Verdi. In fact, despite his clever musical characterization, it remains an open question whether Humperdinck has genuine dramatic blood in his veins. His enormous facility of utterance, his eloquent orchestra, should not blind one to the fact that, thematically, he has little that is original to disclose.
36The spoor of Richard Wagner is upon his music; in fact there has never been written an opera since Wagner which so strongly shows the influence of the master.
38What he set out to do Humperdinck has done. Hänsel and Gretel is a fairy opera; it is worth hearing, and for those whose forbears were Teutonic it will revive memories of careless, happy childhood, when all the world was mystery, and witches, kobolds, angels walked abroad by night and made the blood of humans—especially the blood of naughty little boys and girls—run chilly.
40The Performance.
42The performance by Sir Augustus Harris' especially imported company was bad—very bad. The delicate atmosphere of the score was wholly lacking, the singing, with the exception of the baritone, mediocre and at times worse, and the entire evening a bore and a disappointment. Harris made a speech, which is referred to elsewhere. Suffice to say it capped the climax of a ridiculous affair. Even Mr. Seidl's band was not in good form. The tone was blurred and often offensively noisy. The prelude was played indifferently, while the Witches' Ride was drowned by a vulgar buzzing and gabbling on the part of the audience. Even the production was garish.
44Daly's is no place for music. The acoustics are fatal to tone production. The theatre is depressing and close. Altogether Hänsel and Gretel deserved a better fate. An enterprising American manager could give a far better performance at a week's notice than did this much vaunted English company.
46Second Popular Concert.
48The second popular concert took place on Sunday evening last at Carnegie Hall, under the direction of Mr. Adolph Neuenendorff, who did not always manage to control a very obstreperous band. The soloists were Mme. Camilla Urso, violin, her first appearance here in two years, and Mrs. Julie L. Wyman, mezzo soprano.
50Camilla Urso, soulful and finished artist that she is, early justified her enthusiastic welcome. She played Ernst's Otello Fantasie, a verbose tissue, but in the diffuseness of its trimmings well calculated to show off the brilliant virtuosity of the artist. Her technic is as bold and accurate as of old and her command of tone color something of a marvel. She played also (first time) a posthumous capriccio by Gade, calling for more serious attention, and which was given with a superb breadth and volume, infinite delicacy in its place, and a tone which at times rivaled a 'cello. For encores she gave Wieniawski's Valse Caprice and Vieuxtemps' Revery, the former with an élan which brought down the house. Victor Harris was the accompanist. Camilla Urso returns to remind us of much that we have missed. The applause which she well earned was given lavishly.
52Mrs. Wyman was heard in a new and rather theatric, as well as piecemeal offertorium (new) of Anger Hamerik, and in songs of Goring Thomas and Chaminade. She has lost some of her abandon, the bloom has gone from her upper register, which was hard and unvibrant, and the voice further discloses a bad break. Mrs. Wyman should rally her forces.
54The orchestra played noisily a fantasia on themes from Hänsel and Gretel, Liszt's E major polonaise, our old overture friend, Oberon, and some of Delibes' Sylvia ballet music, the latter of which had some exaggerated delicacy expended on it which might have been divided profitably elsewhere. Bad weather reduced the audience considerably. The artist of the night was Urso; who atoned for many things lacking.
56Preliminary Notice.
58The dedication exercises of the Carnegie Music Hall, Pittsburgh, are settled upon the following plan, which constitutes a rough outline of the ceremonies:
60Tuesday Evening, November 5.
61Dedication proper. Speeches, &c., by Mr. Andrew Carnegie, President Cleveland and others.
62Singing by Mozart Club, J. P. MacCollum conductor.
64Wednesday Evening, November 6.
65Organ recital by Frederic Archer. New Farrand & Votey organ.
67Thursday Evening, November 7.
68Concert by Mozart Club.
69New York Symphony Orchestra. Program: Dedication March, for orchestra, composed for the dedication of Carnegie Music Hall, by Ad. M. Foerster. Conducted by Walter Damrosch.
70The Messiah. Conductor, J. P. MacCollum; soloists, Mrs. E. B. Eaton, Mrs. Carl Alves, Mr. L. C. Auty, Mr. E. F. Bushnell.
72Friday Evening, November 8.
73Symphony concert, New York Symphony Orchestra; conductor, Walter Damrosch.
75Saturday Afternoon, November 9.
76Wagner Concert, New York Symphony Orchestra; Walter Damrosch conductor.
78Saturday Evening, November 9.
79Organ recital, Frederic Archer.
81Cagliari.—The Sardinian city where Mario was born has a musical club, the Mario, which will produce an opera by Nino Alberti, Alle porte del Convento, in advance of its performance at the theatre.
83Maria Sanz.—The fiasco of this work was colossal. The action is slow, unmeaning and devoid of all dramatic instinct. The music consists of a mass of notes without cohesion, style or expression, a compilation of bits of operas old and new, operettas, popular songs, arranged and deranged to the great annoyance of the ears of the audience. The conductor of the theatre, Pomé, refused to conduct the piece, and the baritone Terzi refused to sing in it.
85Alboni's Will.—The Daily News says that the will of Mme. Alboni, the famous contralto, has been proved in England, where she left some small personal estate. After numerous bequests to her family, the will continues: "As a woman and as an artist the French have always treated me with the greatest consideration. I wish therefore to show them my gratitude. For this purpose I bequeath to the city of Paris 10,000 frs. of 8 per cent. rente in the French State, which will go to form forty savings' bank books of 250 frs. each. These books shall be inscribed and distributed annually by way of encouragement to work to pupils of both sexes who attend the classes of the public and gratuitous schools maintained by the city of Paris, at the rate of two books for each district, one for boys and one for girls. I bequeath to the charity department of the city of Paris a sum of 100,000 frs. in order to found and maintain in perpetuity in my name, Alboni, in one of the hospitals of the city of Paris, two beds, or more, if that sum should so permit, which shall be set apart exclusively for persons of Italian nationality, without distinction of occupation or religion."
87G. Waring Stebbins,
88CONCERT ORGANIST.
89Pupil of ALEX. GUILMANT. Organist of Emmanuel Baptist Church, corner Lafayette Avenue and St. James Place, Brooklyn.
90Organ Concerts, Recitals and Openings.
91Lessons given on a large three manual organ. Address
9219 Verona Place, Brooklyn, N. Y.
94THE NEW YORK LADIES' TRIO,
95DORA V. BECKER, Violin,
96FLAVIE VAN DEN HENDE, 'Cello,
97CARRIE HIRSCHMAN, Piano,
98Assisted by ALBERT GERARD THIES, Tenor, will give a concert in Steinway Hall, TUESDAY EVENING, October 22, 1895.
100ELEMENTARY SCHOOL FOR PIANO.
101BY JEAN MANNS.
102The copyright of the above book has been renewed and transferred to the author, JEAN MANNS.
103A. R. SPOFFORD, Librarian of Congress.
104WASHINGTON, October 11, 1895.
The computer misreads some letters and numbers. Where a name matters to you, read the scan.