MUSIC.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 401, 9 January 1909, Page 9

MUSIC.

■i; . <:■< (Br Treble Clef.) Oscar Strauss's New' Opera.'" ''''' ■ ';At the' Theater an der.Avicn, before ; an I '.iii-j' ,Vitcd.audience, a general rehearsal of .the. r-now ; 'operetta,' ; "The Brave; . Soldier,'' took ■place last ;month. .The', composer is . Herr Oscar Strauss, whose "Wat.ertraum," - togetlier':.with.:Lehar's,\''The Merry Widow." lias made a ;victorious march v. through r ", tne world.. The' work' was' awaited;' .with 1 the. greatest interest,' whioh was enhanced by the fact- that the, libretto,.' by Herr;Jacobsohn, had:as, its', basis Mr.'Bernard Shaw's..play,:; .'.'Arms; and; the Man." About"twenty' thea-. •tre'direptors 'from- all . the-European centres, aid also, several from [America, were :present at'the rehearsalj : which had' all the enkr-; l',actertisjcics,"of a. premiere; •. Herr Oscar j ! Strauss : 'appeared.-himself at. the conductor's: '.desk,- and.;as - the piece; had no, overture the', curtain ; rose at-orice; .after a '.few. bars of in'-'; traduction. "For' an operetta;says': tho i '-Virana:^^s^ndm%J:''tn6 i -li(Sy6n r '.;©aily. Telegraph if/;. .„ top'. ond and,.^^rd.&QtsP : lfr'.is, ; r in;fa;cti 'ah ramu's-;'' ;ing musical:comedy;. : ;;' ; Thov ,!bobk':', 'is "decid-i' : e^y.^eji6r\<p'ithe':Ußuid- : grqfe'^TO i 'operitta libretti;-imd;all'lhe I - . aiidi ambig'uity,/usually'"''so i ', "•are; entirely -"absent;'.; iniich-. to !the. ;a'd^'antage'. : of-.- the.^^rtisiid; tKeT-jjiecei-Yv--;' ,v 'j ..SeWo-ißulgarian" 'war,; "formedis/. : temptingcomedy, ; atethe .'present- moment, ? iibut' forbade; the' re--of^Kingj.'Petpr t -and-'the* Crown '.J?rincei;-,.in:;,a; performance 'here, .again inter-* ifered,. to. prevent; any possibility 1 of^'offencel 1 Mfevertheless, the. title, : Bisvo,- Soldierj' in tlie-plirt£t.'HeH. '~Oscar Strauss;?, melodies* sKp^;,thit''. ; tli6'' 6oiti-", poser is; a; fine- .musician; wlVose strength lies _ in', his brilliant handling, of; the 'orchestra, and'l ■in -'his i peculiar ;'in.usical ! 'characteristics.;. ■ ECi£ i artsio.-'in?| This,! jSiirhaps; ?xplai|i£the' bf >;thosej arias'! please;the'.ear, .as-ill .thejAWal-1 zert-riuni.'. ,Thej public,... how.eveti, w.c V> grati-1 'Agd l).y"many charming and delightful, musical ■tbuches, ; aui:.ithe Servian; niilitary 'march, ■'a polka, a.due't,' ahd' a: delicious;, sleeping'; song J trio ,in : -the ; first act, : - I •.A;' quintet. in .the second '.. act; •--especially:! pleased,- : as'did. also 1 a song-sung.by-a Swiss.- 1 - yblunteer, tlie'-'-fiery' Serbian:, girls,- ahd the .magnificent ending- to :|li"e,act. The- third--actrjcon.taiijs-.a'icharming •' quartet, which iras*''^^)^^3£e ! ''^rlc, , pf..the performers .' and; singers! -wasin; eyery'; way; praiseworthy,'';. v V:-, ;- '.r':,\

England's Musical Sins. .:,'Sir -Charles Stanford, 'in .his. yolufee of • ."Studies J and enumerates '.Eng-r. land's .'seven deadly', sins ,in 'tjie',matter " of music; as' follows First, Englancl'-.has';:/ no. national , opera-,.house.;- then --she:;has ■ .not. / local -.orchestras ■>, of ;> first-rate/ .excels lence; then' she grossly/misunderstood .- Wagner .at.. .first /(this ■ sin has; however, -been amply-atoned 'forsiriccs) j then:*imusi(S.> is grossly' . neglected in - elementary. . ykHools; ' ith'en ( the Church neglects her' dwn: ancient' .music 1 ; then the. musical icriticisms in . the press are so hasty,"as 1 'to: b'e; almost'valueless j 'and, lastly/', the: publisheiWfill. their windows; -and catalogues-with, royalty songs and. musical cQnwdfeV'tbjthe y and • i Talt®bfe v the main only too well-fduh'fled, 'and'"applies io -Australia as ./well as. to- the-Mother ! 'Coun-' . try. ;A,' State-sujiportcd : . -opera; ' house: : and; national; theatre - is- tho only way . by which Hy'tf can hope .to. raise/opera .and ...drama■ to> their proper'artistic level; a permanent orchestra is still only; partially realised in, Mel■bourne itself.. As/to '.the pressi criticisms, as rlo'ng as/the' 'public aiid-the; performers .insist, oii' a notice ,the morning -after,!aconcert, so, long; they will have- to ; be content with hasty 'iihd/ often superficial; criticism. . Otii' educationists j-are. . certainly-. doing- a', little more lor .music than; the.v have (lone; -but.. until everyone can read -music' just as .everyone can read print,; they; have' hot:, fullyaccomplished th'cir work'..; - ;

Notes. ' • i From "Musiqal News" of Novomber-14;—. Milan' is '■■without- music.' Thore is;'a. general strike. of..tHo--playera..'at'.:the'.itheatros';'-!ihd inusic-liallsj; and' given 1 last Sunday." '/ ' ; '"Zy' ' ' : :v "Did Musik" of Berlin has. recently .presented ,to .its' readers two unpublished Polo:! liaises of. Chopin. . Tho - first' is' reported to have boon 'written at the ago of nine.; the second,' -though-also' a .juvenilework, is the 111010 characteristic. There is no trace of tho originals, but tliero avo copies'm tho. handwriting of Oscar Ivolborg. a friend of the Polisir composer-in his'.childhood. v ■.'•'.'. Mme. :Calvo-lios seriously ill with influenza at Pittsburg. .' . ,•■ - ' •'' ■■ . . Fritz 'Krcisler's" great ambition is to acquire property:in*ltaly to lead "tho simple life." Ho contends that all tho.public'wish, to hear'- now are tho works of known composers, and that, therefore, lie is ' forced lto play those to' 'tho exclusion" '.of "everything else'.' 'In years 'to come,' when lie is - independent,.lib -looks forward .to being able :to get a hearing, and tb populariso the works of some of the younger and lesser-known; composers.! .'■'■■ , : - ;The. Bulgarian War ..Office.' has purchased a talking machine for each company of ! soldiers, .which will perform national: soiigs. " Ono thing, this is cheaper than a band. "> In their efforts to help British- composo'rs and to ,popularise their; works, Messrs. Jail and Boris Hambourg liavo hit upon a most novel and interesting, idea.' Some time ■ agb : they i selected an old Irish fold-song, "Tho Londonderry Aii'i" as a : theme- for; a', coniposition, each part of which was to be-the work : of : a separate-composer. Thus, Mr.' Frank Bridge wtotd 'tho. •Introduction- and; 'Allegro,' Mr. Hamiltbn:HaHy,a'Scherzd\mpvement, Mr. a mqvcme'nt 'hffvaria-'' tioni, Mr. Eric. Coates a. "Tempo; di Menuetto,'' and Mr. York Boweu the Finale. ■