Books › Musical Courier 1907-03-20: Vol 54 Iss 12, 1907 › scan 34
Scan 34
Musical Courier 1907-03-20: Vol 54 Iss 12, 1907
68 lines. Read by computer on 26 September 2026, twice; the two readings disagreed in places. Printed page 35. 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.
1Swickard. There was a large gathering, as usual at the Carden affairs.
3The graduating exercises of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and Empire Theater Dramatic School took place yesterday afternoon, March 19, too late for detailed mention in this issue.
5A song recital by Harriet Foster, mezzo-contralto, assisted by Carl Bruchhausen, pianist, took place at Carnegie Chamber Music Hall, March 18. A further review will appear in our issue of March 27.
7FRITZ SCHEEL DEAD.
9From Philadelphia comes the calamitous news that Fritz Scheel, the noted conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, died in that city at a private hospital, after a month's illness, due to a nervous breakdown which developed very suddenly not long ago. He was taken to Atlantic City, where, for a short time, it looked as though he might recover, but on his return to Philadelphia pneumonia attacked the unfortunate leader, and in his weakened mental and physical condition he was unable to resist the ravages of the dread disease.
11Fritz Scheel was born November 7, 1852, in Lübeck, Germany, and came of a musical family. In his native city he studied the piano and violin (the latter with Lauterbach), and at ten years of age played with the first violins in the Lübeck Orchestra. He also made himself proficient on the horn, trumpet, trombone and tuba before he was twelve years old. At that age he went to Leipsic and studied violin under David for five years. When seventeen he was appointed concertmaster and conductor at Bremerhaven. "While there," writes one of Scheel's biographers, "one of the earliest feats of this boy of seventeen in his new post was to conduct an entire act of 'Robert le Diable' from memory, the score having been lost or mislaid. After that he was no longer required to play in the orchestra, but was retained solely as conductor."
13After four years in Bremerhaven, the young conductor was made solo violinist of the Schwerin Opera and leader of the city's summer concerts. He remained there nine years, when, in 1884, in competition against thirty-five other aspirants, he won the appointment as conductor of the Chemnitz Orchestra and succeeded Hans Sitt in that position. Here he stayed another nine years, making occasional trips with his orchestra to other large German cities, and founding a splendid choral organization, of which he was director, of course. In 1890 Scheel alternated with Hans von Bülow as conductor of the Hamburg Orchestra. Scheel ever afterward felt the influence of his association with the great von Bülow, and in fact often referred to him seriously as his real "teacher" in the baton art.
15In 1893 Scheel came to the United States, and after conducting a few concerts in New York went to Chicago, where he conducted the Trocadero Orchestra at the World's Fair. In the following year San Francisco established a symphony organization under Scheel's direction, after he had led some special concerts there and made a profound musical impression. The San Francisco enterprise was not a financial success, however, and Scheel returned East, where he found nothing to do for the time being except to conduct some popular concerts at Woodside Park, a suburban resort near Philadelphia.
17"Here he attracted the notice of Philadelphia music lovers," says the biographical account from which a passage was quoted heretofore, "and he was asked to direct two concerts given early in 1900 for the benefit of the soldiers and sailors in the Philippines. The effect produced by the eighty musicians under Mr. Scheel's leadership was such as to lead to the determination to establish a permanent local orchestra. The necessary subscriptions were secured, and thus was started, in the fall of 1900, the Philadelphia Orchestra, with Fritz Scheel as conductor.
19"Five concerts were given the first season, fourteen the next, with as many 'public rehearsals,' or twenty-eight in all. Thirty performances were given the third season; thirty-six the year following; this season the number had increased to forty, and the engagements for next year are forty-four in Philadelphia, besides a large number in other cities."
21In 1905 Scheel was elected leader of the Orpheus Club and the Eurydice Chorus, singing societies of Philadelphia, and thus, together with his orchestral concerts, the strain of rehearsal, and the selection and preparation of programs for the three bodies of which he was the conductor, Scheel's health gave out, and he suffered several temporary physical collapses before the final one conquered him last month and now has stilled his active and useful career forever. He leaves a widow and several grown up children, who have been living in Munich. His daughter Margaret had been his constant companion in America.
23German Conservatory and College of Music.
25The New York German Conservatory of Music and the New York College of Music, of which institutions Carl Hein and August Fraemcke are contemporaneously the directors, both gave concerts last week, the former taking the form of a pupils' concert, when piano, violin, vocal and orchestral numbers were played and sung by Frieda Weber, Charlotte Moore, Henrietta Kahler, Harry Kauffmann, Edna Wuestenhofer, Guido Hocke, Esther Woolsey, Gertrude Sulzbach, Grace Schad and Otto F. Stahl. There are some very talented young people in the foregoing list, and they all did themselves and their respective teachers credit. At the College of Music there was a piano recital and lecture by Mr. Fique, Franz Liszt being under consideration. He played six of the best known piano pieces of this composer, and talked of him most interestingly. March 27 there is to be a chamber music concert, also at College Hall, by members of the faculty.
27Alice Sovereign Will Go to Europe.
29Alice Sovereign, the contralto, after singing at the Syracuse Music Festival, will go direct to Europe, where she will study with some of the leading teachers. Beginning with the time when she first attracted attention by her singing at a Maine festival, under William R. Chapman, many people have watched her career, and believe that the future has yet greater things in store for Miss Sovereign, who has a fine voice, musical nature and ingratiating presence combined. These qualities usually lead to prominence and success.
31March Music.
33You may talk about your "oprys"
34And your high priced symphonie, one of two readings
35And your high priced symphonies, one of two readings
36But the first spring bluebird's whistle
37Will be good enough for me.
39—Chicago News
41GENEVIEVE CLARK
42WILSON
43SOPRANO
45MARY BYRNE-IVY
46CONTRALTO
48CECIL JAMES
49TENOR
51CHARLES NORMAN GRANVILLE
52BARITONE
54FRANK CROXTON
55BASSO
57SOLE DIRECTION
58WALTER R. ANDERSON
597 W. 42d ST., NEW YORK
61DIRECTION:
62HENRY WOLFSOHN
63131 East 17th St.
64NEW YORK
66HEAD OF THE PIANO DEPARTMENT, NEW YORK INSTITUTE OF MUSICAL ART; ACCEPTS A LIMITED NUMBER OF ENGAGEMENTS. ADDRESS
67HENRY WOLFSOHN, 131 E. 17th St., New York
The computer misreads some letters and numbers. Where a name matters to you, read the scan.