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RMFW
THE
ffUJIC TIRADE
VOL. LIV. No. 1.
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill at 1 Madison Ave., New York, Jan. 6,1912
BITTNER'S NEWEST OPERA.
'Berbergsee," a Tragedy of Austrian Peasant
Life, Is the Third Work of a Man Who Is
Both Composer and Librettist and Is Also a
Lawyer and a Judge in a Petty Court of
Vienna—Produced in Several Opera Houses.
Herr Julius Bittner is not only a composer whose
name has recently begun to grow familiar to the
musical world in Austria and Germany, he is also
his own librettist, and besides by profession is a
lawyer, occupying a place as judge in one of the
Vienna petty courts.
Practically self-instructed he was, so to say, dis-
covered just a few years ago by Herr Bruno
Walter, the popular conductor of the Imperial
Opera House, who not only produced his first
work, "Die Rothe Gred" (Red Mag), but further-
more assumed the position of musical sponsor to
the operas that followed. They were recognized
to be in capable hands and the reputation Herr
Walter has gradually earned for himself, which
is the basis for that call to Munich as successor of
Felix Mottl, derives a part of its claim from the
glory that the admittedly model performances of
these extremely difficult tone dramas have earned
for him.
Neither the "Rothe Gred" nor the "Musikant"
(Musician) has taken a firm hold of the repertory
here or elsewhere, though the latter marked an ad-
.vance both in quality and in popularity, over the
maiden effort. For despite the fact that the music
of both gives abundant evidences of talent for
dramatic expression and for vividness of orchestral
coloring, it is not of a kind to appeal to that gen-
eral public from which opera houses must recruit
their audiences the world over. His text books, on
the other hand, are written with a due regard to
the general understanding, and as libretti go are
decidedly well made and interesting. They tell
their story, as it were, pantomimically and are dis-
tinguished by effective moments, where the com-
poser can hold fast and heighten the situation by
the appositeness of his score.
Bittner is fond of depicting the Austrian peas-
ant, and having shown him to us during the Thirty
Years' War, and again at the beginning of the last
century, he now in his latest opera, "Berbergsee"
(the Mountain Lake), which just has been pro-
duced in Vienna and the rights to which have al-
ready been secured by dozens of German opera
houses, has gone back to the early sixteenth cen-
tury, at the time when the mountain folk of Aus-
tria were at war with the mighty Bishop of Salz-
burg.
BEST DAY IN HISTORY OF HOUSE.
New Year Starts Off Well for Harry Von Tilzer
Music Publishing Co.
The Man on the Street made a flying tackle and
halted Will Von Tilzer in his rush this week for a
sufficient space of time to have the latter state that
business for the new year had started off with a
rush and that Tuesday, January 2, the first busi-
ness day in the new year, had broken all single day
records in the history of the Harry Von Tilzer
Music Pub. Co. He also said that the latest suc-
cess, "I Want a Girl" is proving one of the largest
sellers among the popular songs of the day and is
still climbing while the other new numbers in the
catalog will bear close watching.
SPRINGER SIGNS_WITH WITMARK.
New Comic Opera by the Composer to Be Pub-
lished by That House Soon—Now a Resident
of New York.
Andrew M. Springer, the well-known Hun-
garian composer and orchestral conductor, has
signed a contract with M. Witmark & Sons under
which he will write exclusively for that firm for a
term of years. Mr. Springer is a native of Buda-
pest and laid the foundation of his musical educa-
SINGLE COPIES. 10 CENTS.
|2.00 PER VEAR.
"HONEY MAN" HERE AGAIN.
Belle Baker Wins Many Encores with Feist Hit
During Second Week at Hammerstein's—
Responds to Many Encores.
Belle Baker, whose high position in the vaude-
ville field has long been established, had that fact
again proven this week when she was held over
at Hammerstein's for a second week, which occur-
rence has a peculiar significance for those ac-
quainted with the difficulties to be overcome and
the strong impression that must be made to achieve
that distinction. Miss Baker, who scored a tri-
umph with "Honey Man" when the Feist hit first
made its appearance again included that song in
her repertoire for her second week at the Victoria
Theater, and it is worth noting that of the four
songs she uses, three are Feist publications. On
Monday afternoon, when the audience at Ham-
merstein's generally reminds one of a jury sitting
in judgment over a criminal or a bunch of coroners
at an autopsy, Miss Baker put "Honey Man" over
so effectively that she received close to a score of
encores and was forced to make a curtain speech.
In short "Honey Man" is getting its second wind
and is winning success for a number of prominent
acts both in and out of New York.
TWO LIVE SHAPIRO NUMBERS.
The Shapiro Music Publishing Co. have found
a real hit in "That Baboon Baby Dance,," which
is being used by a great many singers in vaudevile
and in cafes. The chorus of the number, especially,
has an irresistible swing to it that causes it to be
remembered and whistled. Edgar Selden's new
novelty song, "The Quaker Girl," is also being fea-
tured in a number of attractions, in some instances
special costumes being provided for the piece.
Belle Blanche, the clever little comedienne, makes
the only costume change in her act for the purpose
of putting "The Quaker Girl" over more effec-
tively.
LIVES UP TO ITS TITLE.
ALBERT SPRINGER.
tion at the university there, winning an enviable
reputation as a conductor of light opera at the
age of seventeen.
Afterward Mr. Springer
achieved great success as orchestral conductor at
the opera house in that city, where, among other
successes, the "Merry Widow" was produced
under his leadership. His introduction to America
was made by Henry W. Savage, when the above-
mentioned musical comedy was presented to New
York.
Among Mr. Springer's recent compositions is a
new light opera, the book of which is by the star
comedian of the Metropole Theater in Berlin,
Henry Bender, and which will be given an elabo-
rate production by a prominent management at an
early date. Other works by the composer are also
in press and will be issued shortly.
Mr. Springer is at present conducting the Ger-
man operas at the Irving Place Theater.
One of the hits in the catalog of the Jerome
& Schwartz Publishing Co. is "That Haunting-
Melody," by Geo. M. Cohan, and which is a song
that really lives up to its title. The number has
been interpolated into the "Modest Suzanne" pro-
duction, which opened at the Liberty Theater on
Monday night, and is also used with great success
by Al. Jolson, principal comedian at the Winter
Garden, Lillian Russell and Norworth and Bayes.
A NEW HEAD CO. SUCCESS.
The latest publication of the Head Music Pub.
Co., the song "Dixie Daisie" is developing rapidly
and a large number of professionals are using it
with considerable success n vaudeville. The num-
ber promises to be included among the spring list
of hits. Other Head successes are to be in-
cluded, "Smile Awhile," "Mexico," "I Want You
Dear," and the long lived hit, "That Railroad
Rag." Other attractive numbers are also in prepa-
ration.