MUSIC.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 180, 25 April 1908, Page 12

MUSIC.

"... -——t- —— [Bt TnEDi.E Ci.Er.] The Great Wagner. " : . • By way of commemorating tho twentyfifth anniversary of Wagner's death, the Berlin ''Tageblatt," "which'.ddclates him, to have boen "the greatest cultural force Germany '; has had since Goethe," asked a number of eminent writers and composers for a few lines. reraliqg''their 'attitude"\-ioward him. Tlio eminent Danish critioj Gbbrg Biandcs, wrote in .reply that lie is hot enough':of. a'" musician to judge Wagner's compositions, ad-" ding: "As a poet,'l esteem liim highly. His"', poetic gifts appoar to me to be. insufficiently' 'recognised. Had he boon 'a poet only, 'he".; would; havo-created an epoch .as 'such." ' In ' Denmark,.Brandos adds, opposition' to AVajjy ;' n-er has died ■ out completely, t Though seldom: porformed in a more than. medicbro way; his ' works are the mainstay of the Royal-Opora v in Copenhagen. '' '* Israel, .Zangwill wrote"To-day no one has any opinions about'Wagnfer/s music, no one would , dare, to have, opinions about, -it. It has becomo a part of British life,.hke.tho: . ■ whispering of our trees and' tHb. song of our < birds.". . ' . . . vy' ; ■ ' "Yincent d'ludy sent this':—:* I.preserve for the works of Richard Wasrner..- who was the •light and the delight of .my yoirtj,, 'profouiid admiration, pious Veneration. *and.'- sincere, gratitude." ' ,' v • • )ii ■■ 7 ' To Peledaa, the 'Eminent French p.rt critic. ■ f Wagner is "tho greatest German-npt only or • the nineteenth centuryj but of .alb'conturios. . Double is his creative geniusi Iffusically,'. ho ranks with Bach, and Beethoven, > in- ' his drama he is .the peer of • 'Parsifal' is the apex, to the bafed the ' choruses in the ninth symphony hod 1 callcd. , us. .Wagner's: aesthefjp influence W2i']6n'dure. •, as.long as the Gospels.VHe would, have:been the'redeemer of the theatre, .wore the tfjeatre capable: ofrcdemption. Atanyratej. no one , before him had done so much,, before ' torsj for'the, Holy Ghost, and . TarsifaV ) ''';§upeKl / rior to tho masterworksj is. a' greatest miracle.since the vision of StV-John 1 ,; by Leonardo ;da Vinci." ■; i Giaoomo .Puccini;believes that .''.the genOTal'study, -of . Wagner's .operas,. so: far. asit'.'flid; not 'degenerate into imitation;,, figs' f, contributed in. Italy to ; more seriousness arid a-more onergkic, method . of composing. ' But, the. essentially. theatrical. tendency of the .Latin •mind,-'which, aims; it. direct appeal to the -feelings and;- at humfcii, realities;, expressed with scenic, accuracy,,' is ,' naturally: bpposed to '..Wagner's system;' and is perhaps already pursuing other tendencies,—, which.'are /possibly more-revolutionary, but ' simple? and more emotional." ~' More rerolu-. tionary, more emotional, ; . than "Tristan" 1' ; Where, 0. GiacomqP, • Not; in youlr operas,■isuraly 1; Edmund , Gosse can only: say : that-Wagner's entrancing {iaSsionateness and., his tetnpestuous mfluenco 'on the nerves,have' not, so far as I am concerned,, grown .weaker with' the lapse of time, i but stronger. In my',; opinion, moreover, most music-lovers in Eng-... land acknowledge l this power and succumb t0...its\magic!"i "H-. ::\' A Genius Lost. -~ .-' •;: Very l sad indeed was: the news this week of the deatlf of sturdy, handsoine little Vio- : -tor',Harris, son of Mr.-and Mrs. D. B. Harv ris,; ,of Palmerstou ■North.';. Thegeuiua.of this boy-violinist was Known 1 in Welliiigton. Ho waa' a bright and;' attractive child;.; and apart from his musical genius,' showed talents' considerably in advance of. his -years. I To,send .; him ,to ; study Home, concerts were, held im.various : ceritres, ! and thus.' he became bet-, ter known ,to a. few privileged audienoes. He had' already.;distinguished-himself' at Home,-; : iri - his- studios, <'■ arid ; reports. from time.-, to ; ;time were-.mo6t'promising',for the future.';ln , • their , great bereavement .parents will have . the those;' : who knew; how. devotedly attach&l: were they, to thoin/onlyiichild,?'and,-;what-f.bright hopes-.: they had conjurcd'up for his future. New - French; Compositions. : V:, .s..- \ : 5 French j.oompo&erst'■ have not been, - idle of ; . latp., Massenet;, .has; writen < "Bacchus".; for.,-' : the Paris'Grand-Opera, on'k book, by, Catulle Mcndes, the';librettist of ■ "Anane,''' the best. , paying 'dpiraVof the; year, acoordlng.to officitil ' '.i.;,Th"e .composer also foiind .■tm6:',W;tra,ite,'.aVßhdrt'-ballet; .-."Espada,'''.for* , t-ho Monte Carlo opera.' Gabriel'-Faure, during .; the"; aumimn:. holidays, composed an act;*.; of an ; 6pera,*entitlod, "Penelope.", ! Although-sixty-two 'years ■of ago, this is hisififst'work of tho' kind. jTheodoro Duboisi .late director. ; of,vthb';Conservatoire)...finishedi'a-;*. suite of "Odelottea.AAtigones"—the. jvpr'ds' .being 'by. 1 ! his s'6nr^anH l 'sevpral. : pianoforto • ,-He; also commenced writing l ;a:.'sympnony. r Gh.- : M.' .Widor; gaVe' the last ' touches. to a sym-. phonyvfor orchestra and. grand orgah, 1 which will"'be,first heard in Berlin. Xavier Loroux,. oomp'osM half-Ihei soore of : an, epera based , . . oii' a : book: by the pro_lifio :, librettist,; Catulle Merides; 1 Paul ' Yidal is ' nearin'g . the end' ■:. "Ramsfea,''which . will be brought.,,but soop' .: ■ by : ; the:. new 5 dirOCtors of the i Grand : - Opera. I '- Henri. FevTier lias; completed ;an opera on MaeterlincL's; "Monna-;Vanna.?'; - : t.v Notes. 'iK' ; I? r;; ; '^v--!;'//• : • 'Miss Lillian■'Mitiheli, "the lyric soprano'' from Sydney (says the "Otago Witness"), " -who; gave; Dunedin, concert; lovers a .taste 'or-..'; • her quality a .weekj.br two ago, has.'deemed ; ': it iviseraiot tb' pursjae tho idea' of running ;a ■ series.' of icorioerts' throughout' tho Domiiiion, and has' returned tbVSydney,; thero.-.to take.; up an j\litchell waa.'extrfemely.' ' ( her ooncert in Durifelin, berng up against weather and strong.; , opptfciiipn..' J Despite v tlilis', : ;the Sydney soprano . . may cohsiacr to'have?tlone well-when clear-;, iiig £5 oycT and above'-'exiienses; • •'• It in good news : : (say6 V hDuriodin exchange). : , that Alfred Hillj . the t^donted'Maoriland coin-.. poser; purpcscsTOviviiig).his comic 'opera, ."A 1 Aloorish Maid,;' some tiirfe next.month..- Mr, 1 .-: I Hill .anticipates^gettingsliis, ; ,old':obbrus. ! gether, ana staging tlie'bpera. on the coifl- > pleto which'.chfiraqte'n'sed it oh its .first in''-this2oity.v V.Mr.' Richard; Aldrichp mtiScal critic of the* "Noiv York Times",;of November 10 last, at-:.; tempts-aV.description bf the;niagic bdW :; KubeliK>th^, ; is.to ; appear in Sydney next,;nionths,. He writes, >Mr:;Eubelik's -artistry,;is -of ifche- most. te-V.' 'markable kind. There is stifStJiing. aloof'/ in "- • him as ho plays j yet foW,;-|aW.',the<wwor -of '. so -ravishing 1 the senses withJil&shoer. beauty • of bis tone,. the.charm' of. his%ntilena, tli6. ; ' elfeganbe "and, ease. with;. wKclj'fe masters ■ aD;'* the tochnioal difficulties'of -is l play ing,-,th'at they nb longer "sugges'tc,themselves as difficulties.' Octaves',. sixths ; drop from his instrument in a tonte bf honeyed, - - sweetiiess'.aud, oily, sihoptliness; ;l nob>-a large t; bond','but oiip of ind(Kcribable|.roimdne6s and-purity,'his-'riitis' and passages of;,all,s»rts"are ." as pearls from his hands. Tlier.e is sotftfethiug (r of feminnio grnoe and chann m Mp. lo Kuho-. lilt's playing, but in its. way-it,is ■wholly de-;,. lightful.", ''.V ' ■■ '■ '■ ,