Music Trade Review

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THE
MUSIC TRADE! REVIEW
Grand Opera for Philadelphia Assured—Subscriptions Already Exceed $250,000—New York
Restaurants and Hotels Spend $1,000,000 Per Year for Music—Paderewski on the Possibili-
ties of the Piano—"Princess d'Auberge" a European Opera Success—Lhevinne Entertains
Pupils—A Musical Bed.
Oscar Hammerstein this week announced that
the subscriptions to his opera season in Phila-
delphia have already exceeded $255,000 and are
increasing every day as the people return to the
city. It now looks as if the Philadelphia propo-
sition will be a success both artistically and
financially. In a chat this week, Mr. Hammer-
stein said that he had heard from a Chicago
matron who was rich enough to build an opera
house in that city and was willing to do it at any
time a manager came forward. He was ap-
proached first, in reference to the matter last
spring. "I recognize," he said, "that this is the
first result of my building an opera house in
Philadelphia, and if that goes through success-
fully next season there will not be a large
American city without its opera house. I did
not care, however, to accept the invitation to go
to Chicago until I had been through a trial of
one year in Philadelphia. Also, I don't like to
have other people build opera houses for me.
They want interest on their money, they want
the building made profitable all through the year
and they trouble a manager in other ways. If I
wanted the interest on my investments here and
in Philadelphia I would never be able to get
through a season. For that reason I don't want
to invest anybody's capital but my own." In
addition to "Carmen," which is to be the opening
bill in Philadelphia, the repertoire will include
"Samson et Dalila," "Thais," "Otello," and "La
Sonnambula," in order to show the full strength
of the company in the first week.
* * * *
The restaurant and hotel managers of New
York are spending more than $1,000,000 a year
for music to beguile their guests at dinner and
tea. At the Waldorf-Astoria there are three and
often four orchestras, and their cost exceeds
$60,000 a year. Nahan Franko, who conducts an
orchestra of thirty men at the Plaza during tea
and dinner, is worth $50,000 a year to the man-
agement. Louis Sherry, in order to keep abreast
with the times, has discarded his red-jacketed
Venetian musicians and will import for next sea-
son the orchestra from the imperial palace in
Vienna. This will bring his bill for music to a
good $50,000. At the Hotel Knickerbocker and
the Hotel Astor the expenses for music are
equally large. At the St. Regis, the Hotel Bel-
mont, the Hotel Manhattan, Cafe Martin, the
Netherlands, the Savoy, the Hotel Buckingham,
the Hoffman House, and Rector's no efforts are
spared to enliven the public rooms with the
strains of music. The most popular music with
these diners out is at present selections from
the Puccini operas, and second in favor are the
Vienna waltzes. There is always a demand for
"Thais" and "Louise" and other new operas. Per-
haps "The Tales of Hoffman" is called for as
often as any other selection. To interpret music
of this sort it is necessary to have men of good
discrimination and an artistic sense, and fre-
quently graduates of the great conservatories of
Europe are glad to accept a steady and lucrative
position in a hotel. By conservative estimates
the tribute by the managers is more than $1,-
000,000 a year.
* * * *
The views of Paderewski are always interest-
ing, and particularly so when he talks of the
mediums through which his great talents have
been made known to the public. When asked
by a correspondent of the Herald the other day
as to what were the limitations and the advan-
tages of the piano as a solo Instrument, he said:
"The limitations lie in the impossibility of in-
creasing the strength of the instrument, and in
this respect it is Inferior to the human voice
and to the organ ( I exclude brass instruments
altogether from my purview). Individuality,
however, can make an audience forget this limi-
as a man, and his sincerity and kindness are a
source of inspiration to his pupils. "Americans,"
writes Miss Hine, "seem to have an instinct for
the best, for among Mr. Lhevinne's pupils are
twelve Americans, coming from different parts of
the United States as widely separated as New
York from California. Tea was served by Mme.
Lhevinne, and a photograph of Lhevinne and his
American pupils was taken and distributed as a
souvenir. Following the tea, a motor boat ride
by the entire party was taken on the beautiful
Wansee Lake to Gliencke Bruche, where a dinner
was given to Mr. and Mrs. Lhevinne by his
pupils."
tation. Its advantages reside in its large range,
in its power of appealing more than any other
instrument to the mass of music lovers, and in
the fact that it does not require the support of
another kind of instrument."
"Do you think, Mr. Paderewski, that the mod-
*
* •
•
ern pianist has any important advantages over
The latest French invention is a musical bed.
Beethoven and Chopin in respect to the musical
It is said to be warranted to cure the most con-
qualities of the instrument he plays?"
firmed victim of insomnia, and to produce sleep
"You will not need to be told that the instru- on stormy or hot nights far more effectually than
ments of to-day are vastly better than the best any narcotic. The subject lies down and with
that Beethoven and Chopin knew. In the matter his foot releases a spring which sets a music
of tone the piaro has been steadily improving, box in motion. The apparatus begins to grind
but a more important factor has been the widen- out sweet lullabies and melodies. It is said that
ing of the range. For instance"—and here Pad- the inventors of this novelty will be able to util-
erewski made a remark of profound importance ize the works of many composers whose pieces
—"it is certain that Beethoven would have writ- are never performed.
ten many passages differently if he had had a
twentieth century instrument at his command.
ADVANCE IN MUSICAL TASTE.
You must remember that the seven-octave piano
is the product of the last quarter of the nine-
teenth century, so that even down to the time of The Strides Made in This Country Since the
Late Wm. Mason Gave a Concert Tour in
Liszt conception was fettered by the limitations
1847—The First Virtuoso to be Heard Says
of the instrument to interpret it."
the Sun—Programs Then and Now.
"Do you think the piano can still be im-
proved?"
The late William Mason mentioned in his
"I do not long for improvement, but I recog-
nize that the piano is always improving. One memoirs of a long musical life that he was the
cannot set limitations to future achievement, but first virtuoso to give concerts in the United
States and provide the entire program. Before
I repeat I do not long for improvement."
"Could you distinguish pianos of different 1847, when he made his tour, it had been cus-
tomary for a singer or instrumentalist, or both,
make solely by tone and touch?"
"Yes—that is, of course, among those makes to accompany the pianist on his travels to re-
lieve what would have been called the monotony
of pianos which I have already used."
"Is it your idea that the piano should be made of a concert given by one person. Taste has im-
as nearly as possible to approximate the human proved during the threescore years that have
voice, or should it be regarded as an instrument passed since Mr. Mason introduced piano recitals,
as such concerts are now called, to the musical pub-
of distinct qualities?"
"The piano certainly is an addition to the lic of this country. Now they are the best man-
human voice. Music is the expression of a mood, ner of appearance possible to a dignified musi-
and the mood most frequently expressed is sad- sian. The old-time mixed concert would be fatal
ness, wh'ch is a purely human emotion. Next to the claims of any pianist who asked to be
comes exaltation, which also is purely human. taken seriously.
So far has the cultivation of the public ad-
After that we have fear, which is a sentiment we
share with the animals, and after that happiness, vanced in respect to the programs it demands
which, in its highest and most poetic form, one that everywhere in this country the recital has
can assume to be purely human. Thus music is become as much of a necessity as it is in the
the expression of human moods, which were larger musical centers. The miscellaneous con-
primitively expressed by tones of the voice. That cert purveyed by a troupe is sure to be resented
any further improvement in the piano is still even in the small towns as an undignified at-
possible along the lines of approximating it to tempt to interest the uncultivated. These com-
the human voice I hardly believe. You must munities refuse to be thought any less musical
remember that music till the beginning of the than others, whether it be a recital of a singer
eighteenth century was an art. With the advent or a pianist they are invited to hear.
Evidence of the extent to which Mr. Mason
of the first Bach, however, it became a science,
lived to see concert programs specialized will be
and a science it has since remained."
found in the so-called one man concert, in which
• • * *
Though the opera "Princesse d'Auberge,' by there is not merely one performer, but one com-
the Belgian composer, Jan Blockx, announced for poser only. Beethoven and Chopin have occa-
the coming season at the Manhattan Opera sionally furnished the material for such recitals
House, is entirely new to this country, it has here, but there have so far been few concerts in
been known in Europe since 1896, when it was New York of such a special character, both the
first performed, with the original libretto in pianists and the public enjoying most of the pro-
Flemish, at the Flemish Opera House, at Ant- grams that begin with the classic, proceed to
werp. There its success was so great that the the romantic and end with the modern numbers
Flemish words of Nestor de TieTe were put into of piano literature. Yet there are many musi-
French by Gustave Lagye, and the opera In its cians who believe that the one man program Is
new form was soon given at Brussels, Ghent, just as inevitable in the concert halls of the
Bordeaux, and other cities, while the original future as the recital has shown itself. Compos-
version continued triumphant in other opera ers who have written in widely different fields
houses of Belgium. It has also been given in are admittedly more susceptible of successful
presentation to audiences in such exclusive form.
Amsterdam with much success.
On the other hand, there are some masters regu-
*
• * •
Josef Lhevinne, the Russian pianist, enter- larly offered on recital programs who might be-
tained his American pupils at tea, given at his come wearisome to the flesh were their music
villa In Wansee, a few weeks ago, where alone selected. It seems certain that if these one-
Lhevinne with his family are summering. A let- man concerts become as usual as the most ad-
ter from one of his pupils, Miss Lucy P. Hine, vanced musicians prophesy, the programs of cer-
to an American friend, speaks of the event en- tain composers will be much more welcome than
thusiastically and as one that will long be cher- others. Mr. Mason's recitals were considered
ished by his devoted pupils. Mr. Lhevlnne's just as revolutionary in their first days as the
greatness as a pianist is second to his simplicity one man concert seems now.