Scan 5
Musical Courier 1898-10-17: Vol 37 Iss 971, 1898
161 lines. Read by computer on 21 September 2026. Printed page 6. See the scan on archive.org.
A town on its own line is one of the directory's headings. That is where the town on a maker's page comes from.
1SOME CHICAGO ADVERTISEMENTS.
3J. H. KOWALSKI,
4CELEBRATED VOCAL STUDIO.
5Suite 54 and 55, Kimball Hall.
6CHICAGO, ILL.
8A. J. GOODRICH,
9THEORIST.
10Lock Box 976, Chicago.
11Author of "Goodrich's Analytical Harmony,"
12"Complex Musical Analysis,"
13"Music as a Language," &c.
14Personal or correspondence lessons in Harmony,
15Composition, Orchestration, Analysis and Theory
16of Interpretation.
18FRANK T. BAIRD,
19THE ART OF SINGING.
2034 Monroe Street, Chicago, III.
22Frederick W. Carberry,
23TENOR.
24Steinway Hall, Chicago, III.
26SHERWOOD PIANO SCHOOL.
27WILLIAM H. SHERWOOD, Director, Steinway Hall, Chicago.
28Special inducements are offered to beginners who will be admitted when commencing their
29studies here that they will never have to retract their steps, but that their progress will be steady
30and certain. Mr. Sherwood's methods of piano touch, phrasing, interpretation, etc., which have
31produced wonderful results, are exclusively used. Send for prospectus.
32WALTON PERKINS, Secretary and Manager.
34SIXTEENTH YEAR.
351896-1897.
36MRS. REGINA WATSON'S
37SCHOOL
38FOR THE
39HIGHER ART OF PIANO PLAYING.
40297 Indiana Street,
41CHICAGO, ILL.
43HARRY J. FELLOWS,
44TENOR.
45Oratorio, Concert and Song Recitals.
46Address, 81 Fifth Avenue, New York.
47On tour to Coast with Mme. Bishop Concert Company till January, 1898.
49Mme. JOHANNA HESS-BURR,
50Voice Coaching—Repertoire.
51FRANK S. HANNAH,
52Business Manager.
53Suite 1015-1016 Steinway Hall, Chicago.
55HARRISON M.
56Studio 6,
57241 Wabash Ave.,
58CHICAGO.
59WILD
60CONCERT
61ORGANIST.
62Piano and Organ instruction.
64KATHARINE SPEAR CORNELL,
65CONTRALTO.
66Hyde Park Hotel,
67Chicago, III.
69AMERICAN CONSERVATORY,
70JOHN J. HATTSTAEDT, Director.
71ALL BRANCHES OF MUSIC. DRAMATIC ART. TEACHERS TRAINING DEPARTMENT.
72Catalogue mailed free.
73JOHN J. HATTSTAEDT, ALLEN H. SPENCER,
74GERTRUDE MURDOUGH, Piano; KARLETON HACKETT, NOYES B. MINER, RAGNA LINNE; WILHELM MIDDELSCHULTE, Organ; JOSEF VILIM, Violin; I.
75243 Wabash Avenue, care of American Conservatory.
77HERMAN L. WALKER,
78Pupil of Shakespere and Sbriglia.
79Tenor—Concert, Oratorio, Song Recitals.
80Auditorium Building, Chicago, III.
82THOMAS TAYLOR DRILL,
83Basso. Oratorio, Concerts, Song Recitals.
84Vocal Instructor.
85Studio: No. 57 Kimball Hall, Chicago, III.
87GOTTSCHALK LYRIC SCHOOL,
88Incorporated.
89Musical and Dramatic Art.
90L. GASTON GOTTSCHALK, Director.
91Kimball Hall, Chicago.
93MR. AND MRS. BICKNELL YOUNG,
94Lecture recitals on Opera, Its Origin and Development; illustrated by vocal examples from the earliest epoch.
9567 Kimball Hall, Chicago, III.
97D. A. CLIPPINGER,
98Voice Production and the Art of Singing.
99Room 40 Kimball Hall, Chicago, III.
101WALTER SPRY,
102Director of Conservatory of Music,
103QUINCY, ILL.
104Piano and Organ Recitals.
106ESTABLISHED 1867.
107CHICAGO MUSICAL COLLEGE,
108Dr. F. ZIEGFELD, President.
109DR. F. ZIEGFELD, LOUIS FALK, HANS VON SCHILLER, WILLIAM CASTLE, BERNHARD LISTEMANN, Musical Directors.
110Catalogue giving full information mailed free upon application.
111College Building, 202 Michigan Boulevard, CHICAGO, ILL.
113the lack of style in which the "Strike of the Blacksmiths" is written it suffices if I state that in the Vorspiel, right after a true neo-Italian verismo opening, the composer brings an episode in old-fashioned fugato writing. And so it goes throughout the entire work. In spite of all of these drawbacks Max Joseph Beer is by no means without talent, and I expect that when he once has found his own style and stops experimenting with the ideas of others, he will some day be the composer of a great opera. He is not lacking in dramatic instinct, nor yet in the knowledge of what is musically effective on the operatic stage.
115About the libretto I need not say much. You all know François Coppée's poem, "La Grève des Forgerons," which was the first to constitute the French poet's renown. The contents of this stirring story are pretty closely followed in Victor Leon's stage adaptation, which is intensely dramatic, and in the case of the sledge-hammer duel behind the scene really exciting. As this episode bears a slight resemblance to the final scene from "Cavalleria Rusticana," it is well to state that Coppée's poem was written before the Mascagni opera was in existence.
117The principal praise to be bestowed upon the performance belongs to Herr Felix Ehrl, the stage manager, who does wonders with his newly gathered personnel. His grouping and moving of the masses is always effective and in good taste. Next to him Luria, the representative of the part of the old blacksmith Mathieu Brumon, is worthy of the most eulogy. He sang the high baritone part with rare beauty and endurance of voice, and he acted with utmost intelligence and a true dignity and verve. I have not for a long time witnessed a more vivid and natural stage impersonation, and yet this same Juan Luria made very little of an impression when he sang in New York some eight or nine seasons ago. He must have developed and grown considerably since that time.
119Mathieu Brumon is the principal role in the opera. Of the others, Franz Battisti represented the part of the agitator and blacksmith journeyman Colbert with great cynicism and a big, luscious tenor voice.
121Nora Nolden was quite sympathetic, but not sufficiently dramatic, in the role of Christine, and Herr Richard Fried conducted the novelty with conscientious circumspection and generally satisfactory results.
123He told me that he would remain at the Theater des Westens only a few weeks longer and would then return to the United States under an engagement with Manager Ellis, as assistant conductor to Walter Damrosch.
125* * *
126The first in the field among the greatest of Berlin's concert organizations was the Royal Orchestra, which excellent body of musicians gave the first of their ten subscription symphony evenings at the Royal Opera House last night.
128There seems to be no abatement of public interest in these concerts, for both at the last rehearsal (in the forenoon) and at the concert proper the spacious building was comfortably filled with a very attentive as well as quite enthusiastic audience. I say "quite" enthusiastic, for indeed it seemed to me that the same old furore that was manifest during some of the previous, and notably during the last season, had more than a trifle diminished. Weingartner, when he entered and stepped upon the podium, was well received, but nothing like in former years, and also after the performance of each work on the program the applause was neither as fervent nor as lasting as it had been during the days when Weingartner was still a resident of Berlin and had not wilfully tampered with the good will of the Berlin concert and opera going public.
130A noticeable change in his manner of conducting was pleasantly apparent in the great kapellmeister. He is more quiet in his general behavior and seems less jerky and vehement in the movements of his arms and body. The example of Nikisch and Dr. Muck has not been lost upon so clever a man as Herr Weingartner. The change is very agreeable to behold, and his conducting is just as telling and effective as far as the musicians are concerned, while the absence of violent signs, gestures and movements of the body can only be regretted by the groundlings, to whom these outward emotions meant visible temperament. Weingartner this season is perfectly smooth shaven, even his mustache having dropped under the barber's unmerciful razor. To my idea this does not improve his looks, which thus assume a somewhat Jesuitic, not to say false and insincere expression. With his beard he looks more manly and handsome, but as "handsome is what handsome does," let me hasten to say that Weingartner has lost none of his old-time cunning and his baton none of its former power over his troupe.
132The program was not exactly a test of these qualities, for it seemed to be composed of works which needed little or no rehearsing, probably because with the journey from Munich the stay here in Berlin was necessarily shorter and gave not as ample time for rehearsals as was the case when Herr Weingartner was still a resident of Berlin.
134It was a strictly classical program, for surely nobody will gainsay me if I maintain that Weber's "Oberon" overture has become a classic. The Weber overtures have of late years been made the battle horses of most of the Pultvirtuosen (virtuosi of the stand), as somebody has wittily called the modern concert conductors of the Weingartner type. By means of lengthening out the slow tempo to exaggerated breadth and hastening the fast ones to breath-taking speed these works have been made to do service as virtuoso pieces for orchestra, and in some sense they have increased by this treatment in effectiveness and brilliancy. Whether, however, they are now interpreted according to the intentions of the composer seems rather doubtful. But who cares about such trifles as that as long as applause can be gained through the display of virtuoso qualities.
136The horns, however, and some of the woodwind, were not as good and reliable as heretofore in this overture, as well as in the slow movement of the Beethoven B flat symphony, which formed the second portion of the program.
138Between these works was placed the charmingly given Händel concerto in D for string orchestra, in a newly revised edition by that clever musician and fine conductor, Gustav F. Kogel, of Frankfort, and Mozart's ever youthful, fresh and spontaneous E flat symphony. Truly this program was classic with a vengeance! In the Händel concerto, which was heard for the first time on this occasion, Concertmaster Halir and the newly engaged second concertmaster Dessau, the latter with a beautiful round tone, as well as chamber musician Luebeck, 'cellist, distinguished themselves in considerable obligato solos, which lent particular charm and variety to this concerto. The Largo in B minor and the Minuet by which it is succeeded attacca are among the gems of Händel's orchestral music.
140The program for the next and second concert consists of only two works—"Manfred" symphony by Tschai-kowsky and Schubert's C major symphony.
142* * *
143Beginning with to-day there will not be many evenings during the entire musical season in Berlin on which we shall not have from two to three or more concerts per night.
145* * *
146Prof. Eduard Rappoldi, first concertmaster of the Dresden Royal Orchestra, to which excellent body of artists he has belonged for a period of now more than twenty years, will soon retire on a pension. Rappoldi was born at Vienna in 1839, and is therefore in his sixtieth year.
148The place of Rappoldi in the Dresden Orchestra is to be taken by Concertmaster Lewinger, of Leipsic.
150* * *
151Madame Bergliot Ibsen, the celebrated poet's daughter and the daughter-in-law of Björnson, will appear as concert singer in Berlin during the present month. She is to sing also in Hamburg, Dresden, Vienna, Prague and Budapest before she goes to Rome, where she will join her father-in-law.
153* * *
154It has been announced already in The Musical Courier that the flourishing musical paper, Berliner Signale, founded by the late Philip Roth, has gone into the hands of Herr Julius Steinbach and will henceforth be edited by that able musician and musical littérateur, Herr Max Loewengard. The first number under the new régime appeared on October 1, and contains, among other interesting reading matter, a portion of a characterization of his new opera, "Don Quixote" (soon to be performed at the Berlin Royal Opera House), by Wilhelm Kienzl, and an appeal in behalf of a fifth string for the fiddle as well for the viola by Prof. Hermann Ritter, of Wuerzburg, the inventor of the viola alta. American music students in Germany capable of reading German should subscribe to this promising new publication.
156* * *
157The former basso of the Weimar Court Opera, Robert Blass, a German-American, who is now singing at Bremen, has been engaged for the Dresden Court Opera from the year 1900.
159* * *
160Arthur Nikisch has lately had a very flattering offer for the remunerative position as director of the Royal Opera at Budapest. Having signed a contract for life with the Leipsic Gewandhaus people Nikisch has had to decline this
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