DRAMA AND MUSIC.

Timaru Herald, Volume XCIV, Issue 14482, 1 July 1911, Page 1 (Supplement)

DRAMA AND MUSIC.

MADAME MELBA AT OOVENT GARDEN.

An enormous audience welcomed Madame Molba back to Covent Garden just month, whan S.IIO reappeared aft Mimi in "La Bohciuu." There wore rows on rows of extra stalls to- meet tlio demands of the public, and the telltale "horseshoe" the semi-circular liack row of stalls—one..' more extended mor.j '.nan half-way down the gangway towards the exits. But oven more than this, the. elsewhere, even to -tho gallery f=!ir>s, was packed with enthusiasts, some of whom, bo it recorded, so far forgot the modem "tradition" ns to greet Madame Melba's first appearance thiK season by a, round of applause, that, however, was quickly suppressed until the. drop of tno curtain. All tliis brilliance, the "TcAeRrapli" says, put tlio house on good terras with itself, and the feeling of general pleasure undoubtedly crossed | the footlights, so that the. performers themselves seemed to bo infected by the geniality. In any case, most of those engaged gave of their liest, and tlio charming opera went —at least in parts—with a rare swing. JTor example, the spirit with which Messrs. John M'Cormack, Sanimareo, Mareoux, and Malatesta —the lusty, cheery Bo- ' lieiniuns —wre imbued was «t. joy to I witness. Indeed, it is stated that "Mr. | M'Cormaclt has never previously sung ' with .so great a note of distinction. As for Madame Melba's Mimi, the critic observes that it seems hardly to havechanged one jot or tittle with the passiiig u-f the years—all of which means that Madame Melba, having once made | up her mind as to the manner of playj iii£ and of singing the role, has ' re- , maincd truo to her ideal. What tliat jis all tfho world knows. It was a i pleasure to note again the easy method .of tins voice production. That" pleasure | was clearly shared by all present, since iat cm-tainfall the applause was in- | tensely enthusiastic and warm, ajid ; Madame Melba repeatedly came- for-. \ ward alone to how her aclmowledg- ; moot.

The revival of "Traviata" nt Coven* Garden tho other dav, with Madam© Tetrazzina as Wjo pathetic Yioletta, ia ofHntorost to Australians by reason of the fnct that it is to lie. included in the repertory of the Mclba Opera Company in this part of the world. Tlio ponnlnrity of the opera, would apneai- to bo. ovorgreen., for~the people collected, in vast numbero at Cbnventf)nrd''!i for the. performance, and r»eeired it with vociferous applause. Mcssi-. M'Cormack and Sammaroo shared in the honouTß of the production. CORONATION MAKCHES. Few Coronation marches have, attained jrrect success, but one of tho most widely known ia undoubtedly Meyefbter'a Coronation "march from "Lo Prophete" (says the "Britis-k Bandsman"). Modern composers. have written Coronation marches, EdwaTd German's composition (from the music to. "Henry YIH.") being ono of the best known. Tjchaikowsky also wrote one for the Czar in 1883. but it wbb a, failure. AVhen tho City of Moscow asked Tscha ikoweky to compose the march he declined to accept any payment for it. His biographer thus explains the reason : "When, two voars earlier, his financial situation had "been so dark that he had underatkeit the uncongenial task of editing tho works of Bortinansky,. he had .unknown., to all his friends, applied for assistance to the Czar. After the letter was written ho would gladly have destroyed it, but )m servant bad already sent it to the post. Some days later ho received a donation of 3000 roubles (£300). He resolved to take the first opportunity of giving gome return for his gift, and the Coronation March was the outcome of this mingled feeling of shame and gratitude." ' JS'OTES. Air example of what enthusiasm can do is supplied from Victoria. A "working bee" at Boxhill, in that State, on. a recent Saturday resulted in the erection of a band rotunda of a most suocessful kind. Between til'ty and 6ixty workmen got to work in real earnest about 1 p.m., and at 8 p.m. tho rotunda:—winch roaches a height of 23ft from the ground, has a'floor-space of 21ft in diameter, a eounding-board 3ft (iin in width, a neat balustrade, and various artistic features—was as muoli a. part ot the town as though it had been there for years.

What the London Oouity Council does in the way of providing the public with free hand music may ,hc judged from the following, clipped from an exchange:—The number of performances given by the London. County Council's three bauds and hired bauds, in tte London parks, during IMIO, was 1245. Of these, lOilS were given at 48 places under tlic control of the couueil, and 207 at 17 places under the control of the Metropolitan Borough Councils. The .miin voted by the council- in respei t of performances was £12,500, and tlie total expenditure amounted to £I2,2SS 7s Ud, leaving a balance of £2ll 12s 3d, out of which some small oiitstandiig amounts may still have to be paid. The receipts form the sale of programmes at Id each, and the lcLtnig of chairs at .'.<! each, amounted to £(j!)2 Ss 0M and £oB7 16s respectively, these iigurcs showing an increase of £l6 4s 7d and £25 5s lljd rosneelivoly, upon the corresponding figures for the season of 1909. "' U is common knowledge," says a London writer, "that the violin had, in England, to light its wav into favour. As late as the middioof the seventeenth century it Mas regarded as an instrument only suited to itinerant performers at country revels and tavern doors. It wa3 more esteemed on tho Continent, and This may have been from tho superior workmanship of the Italian and French, makers. .fifter the Restoration English makers snd performers increased in skill, and We all lcn-j'.v its later development."