Read Ebook: Annals of Music in America: A Chronological Record of Significant Musical Events by Lahee Henry Charles

Font size: 10 px 15 px 20 px 25 px 30 px 35 px

Background color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Text color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Apply/Save settings

Ebook has 609 lines and 101697 words, and 13 pages

In the forties began the stream of violin and piano virtuosi which has continued in ever-increasing volume to the present day. Ole Bull, violinist, in 1843, Vieuxtemps and Art?t, violinists, and Leopold von Meyer, pianist, in 1844, were the first.

Perhaps the development of opera may be considered of greater interest than other musical items. In 1825 Manuel Garcia arrived in New York, and gave the first performances of Italian opera. In his company were his daughter Maria, who married one Malibran and remained in New York for about two years. At the end of this time she left her husband and returned to Europe, where she had a short but very brilliant career. Young Garcia, the son, who also sang, afterwards became one of the greatest singing teachers in Europe, and invented the laryngoscope. Pauline, who became Madame Viardot, and lived to a great age, was too young to participate in Garcia's performances in New York. For many years she was one of the great singing teachers in Paris.

Garcia did not stay very long in New York, but he began the efforts to present Italian opera, which were continued by many others from time to time, usually with disaster. Nevertheless, the history of the period from 1825 to 1850 is full of first performances of Italian opera. In 1848 the Havana Company visited the United States, and was considered the finest company that had been heard until that time.

In the same year Max Maretzek appeared in New York and at once entered the operatic field, with which he was prominently occupied during the next period.

Before finishing the review of this period we must not forget the production William Henry Fry's opera, "Leonora." This was the first grand opera written and produced by an American. It had several representations, but does not seem to have lived long. The same, however, may be said of many of the Italian operas which were presented during this and later periods. A careful perusal of the list will show the names of operas long since defunct, so far as the American public is concerned. Yet there are many, which were first presented to the American public in this period, and which are as popular today as ever,--in fact no good opera company can afford to be without them. Opera was well started by 1850.

This company included Manuel Garcia, his son Manuel , his daughter, Maria F?licit? , his daughter Pauline and others of less note.

The other operas presented during this season were:

Program: Beethoven Symphony No. 5 . Weber, Scene from "Oberon" . Hummel, Quintet for piano and strings. Weber, Overture to "Oberon" . Rossini, Duet from "Armida" . Beethoven, Scene from "Fidelio" . Mozart, Aria from "Belmont and Constance" . Kalliwoda, New Overture in D . Beethoven's "Eroica" was played at the second concert, Feb. 18, 1843. There were only three concerts in the first season.

Also Max Maretzek arrived in New York and began his career as impresario. His company included Madame Laborde, and Truffi ; Amalia Patti ; Benedetti and Arnoldi ; Giubeli, Rossi and Salvatore Patti . Also, later, Teresa Parodi. His first public appearance was on Oct. 5, at the Chestnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, conducting "Norma."

During this period musical events moved forward quite rapidly, and though there was a pause during the years of the Civil War--from 1861 to 1865--after that time increasing energy was in evidence.

Possibly one of the most significant events was the establishment of "Dwight's Journal of Music," in Boston, the first journal in America devoted entirely to musical matters. It was published every two weeks, and while the greater part of the space was devoted to musical affairs in Europe, yet there were letters and reports from various centres in this country, which make the Journal something of a history in itself. Moreover, John S. Dwight helped very materially in bringing to the American people something in the way of musical criticism, which was sadly needed. Indeed, anyone who takes the trouble to look over the reports of concerts and operas in the daily papers of these times will be surprised at the absurdity of the comments on the performances of the noted musicians. Ritter, for instance, quotes a criticism of a pianoforte recital where the critic was much pleased by a "double run on the chromatic scale, in which the semitones were distinctly heard." With singers the chief point was whether the singer of this season could sing louder than the singer of last season. John S. Dwight was the pioneer of musical criticism in America,--an intellectual man, one of the noted band of idealists who were in the "Brook Farm" movement. "Dwight's Journal of Music" went out of existence in 1881. Musical criticism has since become a specialized art.

Musical societies were multiplying,--Cincinnati and Milwaukee had them, and in Chicago the "Philharmonic Society" was organized. In 1850 also the Worcester "Festivals" began, and in 1858 the Peabody Institute concerts, in Baltimore.

In 1858 the "Mendelssohn Quintet" was formed, and for many years toured the country giving concerts of a high standard, and doing much to raise the level of musical taste. This organization had its beginning in Boston, but it traveled so widely that it may be said to have belonged to the nation.

Towards the end of this period the "Apollo Club" was organized in Chicago, and it is today one of the most excellent clubs in America. The following year the "Cecilia Society," in Boston, was organized and likewise still exists and flourishes. But these are only a few.

The American composer was beginning to show himself--perhaps not yet very brilliantly in comparison to the great men of Europe--but he was beginning to be heard from. William H. Frye, besides his two operas, composed several symphonies, which were played by Jullien's Band in 1853. Also a "Grand Symphony" in 1855 and "The Pilgrims' Cantata" by C. C. Perkins, were performed in Boston, and we have record of an oratorio, "The Cities of the Plains," by Dawley, in 1855. Apart from these efforts the American composer seems to have been inconspicuous. In fact there were no facilities for the study of music or for the hearing of music which could be compared, as a training school for composers, with the musical centres of Europe, so that the efforts of these earlier composers may be considered, in some respects, premature, and prompted by energy and ambition rather than by scientific preparation.

The story of grand opera of this period is one of perpetual striving for the unattainable. In Chicago the first performance of grand opera was given in 1850. Chicago is now a rival of New York in matters of opera.

San Francisco heard its first opera in 1853. The gold fever of 1849 drew people of all kinds to California, and among them were musicians. Henri Herz, the French pianist, reached California in 1849 when the excitement was at its highest, and he gives an interesting account of his adventures. It may also be well to mention here Signora Biscaccianti, who went to San Francisco in 1852, and was there more or less till 1864. Signora Biscaccianti was one of the first American singers to achieve a measure of success in Europe. She was the daughter of a musician named Ostinelli, was born in Boston, where she met with some success as a singer, went to New York and thence to Europe. Another American who was, perhaps, better known in her own country was Miss Isabella Hinkley who appeared in 1861, but another who appeared in New York in the same year, became still better known and was prominent for many years, Clara Louise Kellogg. Eighteen hundred and fifty-nine was the year of Adelina Patti's d?but.

The list of great singers who were imported during this period is long. We can but touch on it,--there was Jenny Lind in 1850, then came Marietta Alboni in 1851. Two years later Sontag, and the next year Grisi and Mario. In 1865 came Parepa Rosa, and in 1870 Christine Nilsson. In 1873, Maurel and Campanini. In 1855 Brignoli appeared, and was for many years a great popular favorite.

We find efforts in New York to promote German opera. Operas by Germans--"Fidelio" for instance--had been heard together with operas by Italians, and others, but now Wagner came above the horizon, and German opera began to mean Wagner. So we find a "Tannh?user" and "Lohengrin" in New York in 1859,--quite inadequate performances according to the opinion handed down to posterity,--but yet, performances. They were followed in 1862 by "Der Fliegende Holl?nder," all worthy but inadequate efforts. Maretzek and Strakosch were the chief figures in grand opera during this period, but there were spasmodic efforts by others which need not be recorded.

Pianists were not so numerous as later. Alfred Jaell had appeared and, in 1854, Dr. William Mason returned from Europe and established himself in New York, but was not known as one of the traveling virtuosi. He had a great influence in musical education, for many years. Anna Mehlig visited America in 1869.

In 1862 Louis M. Gottschalk, a native of New Orleans, returned to America after a brilliant career in Europe, and he appears to have been the first American to have made a career as a piano virtuoso.

Violinists were few in comparison to singers,--Miska Hauser, Pablo Sarasate, in 1850, and Camilla Urso in 1852. Then a space of twenty years without any great virtuoso.

An important matter in the musical life of America was the establishment of conservatories. There had already been the Academy of Music in Boston, which enrolled twenty-two hundred pupils the first year, but the conservatory idea appears to have developed just after the Civil War, for we find in 1865 a conservatory of music established with Oberlin College, in 1871 Illinois College at Jacksonville followed suit, and in 1873 Northwestern University. In the meantime, in 1867, we find the Boston Conservatory, under Julius Eichberg, the New England Conservatory, under Eben Tourj?e, the Cincinnati Conservatory, and the Chicago Academy of Music, which became the Chicago Musical College,--and in 1877, a couple of years after this period, Syracuse University added a conservatory.

Beethoven's Seventh Symphony--in A. Mozart's Symphony in D major. Haydn's Symphony in G major . Beethoven's Pianoforte Concertos in E flat and G.

Ambroise Thomas' "Le Caid." Donizetti's "La Favorita." Hal?vy's "Jaquarita l'Indienne." Grisar's "Les Amours du Diable." Adam's "Ch?let" and "Si J'Etais Roy." Hal?vy's "La Juive." Auber's "Les Diamans de Couronne." Hal?vy's "Reine de Chypre."

The Boston Conservatory, Julius Eichberg, director, Boston, Mass. The New England Conservatory, Eben Tourj?e, director, Boston, Mass. The Cincinnati Conservatory, Clara Bauer, director, Cincinnati, O. The Chicago Academy of Music, Dr. F. Ziegfeld, director, Chicago, Ill.

The period of fifteen years from 1875 to 1890 was most certainly a period of progress. Not only was the country growing rapidly in population and wealth, but means of communication were much greater and more efficient than in the preceding years. The present writer well remembers a journey from San Francisco to St. Louis, and on to Boston in 1878, when there was one single track railroad between Oakland and Omaha. Cheyenne consisted of two rows of primitive looking wooden houses, behind which were "anchored" many emigrants' wagons, or "prairie schooners" as they were called. Only a few years later Colonel Mapleson visited Cheyenne with his opera company, which included Patti and Gerster, and wrote thus of the place: "Although Cheyenne is but a little town, consisting of about two streets, it possesses a most refined society, composed, it is true, of cow-boys; yet one might have imagined oneself at the London Opera when the curtain rose,--the ladies in brilliant toilettes and covered with diamonds; the gentlemen all in evening dress. The entire little town is lighted by electricity. The club-house is one of the pleasantest I have ever visited, and the people are most hospitable."

This account reminds the writer of a visit, not so many years ago, to Oklahoma City where the ladies resembled those of Cheyenne. There was, however, but one gentleman, within the writer's range of vision, in evening dress. And when Mapleson visited Cheyenne Oklahoma was an Indian reservation. Thus has civilization advanced.

In 1875 San Francisco was already a good-sized city, but almost the whole country between San Francisco and Chicago and St. Louis has been developed since 1875.

In San Francisco we find the establishment of the "Loring Club" in 1877. But good music was getting its roots in deeper in the East. In New York the "Symphony Society" was founded by Dr. Leopold Damrosch in 1878, and was followed in 1881 by the "Boston Symphony Orchestra," which was established through the liberality of Major Henry L. Higginson.

"The Music Teachers' National Association" was also formed in 1876, and while it is not in the public eye in the way that opera and concerts are, yet its influence throughout the land has been very marked, and has led to state associations, with their annual conferences, and exchanges of views among teachers.

In the concert world we find the names of several celebrities,--Rubinstein had visited America in 1872, and Hans von B?low in 1875, Moritz Rosenthal in 1888, and Godowski in 1890. We find also among the noted pianists who were first known here in this period Arabella Goddard, Rafael Joseffy, Fanny Bloomfield-Zeisler and Josef Hofmann.

Some noted violinists also visited America, August Wilhelmj in 1878, Ovide Musin, Teresina Tua, and in 1888 Fritz Kreisler. But perhaps the most noteworthy event was the appearance of Maud Powell, an American woman, whose career placed her in the front rank of violinists, and has but recently ended with her death.

Of singers there were a great many, but most of them appeared in opera. Of the Americans who gained international reputation were Emma Abbott, Alwina Valleria , Lillian Nordica , Emma Nevada , and Charles R. Adams.

Among the European celebrities who visited America were Madame Rudersdorff, Etelka Gerster, Scalchi, Marcella Senibrich, Amalia Materna, and Lilli Lehmann, also Alberto Stagno, Max Alvary, Albert Niemann, Francesco Tarnagno.

This leads us to a short review of opera, and as New York City was the headquarters from which numerous companies issued to charm the rest of the country, a review of New York is practically a review of opera for the whole country.

From 1850 to 1875 opera is said to have "flourished on failure" chiefly under Maretzek and Strakosch. Also, opera meant Italian opera, or at least opera in Italian. There were spasmodic efforts to promote German opera, chiefly by Adolf Neuendorff, who managed the German Theatre in New York City from 1872 to 1883. In 1876 a Wagner Festival was given in New York, and in 1878 there was a short and unsuccessful season given by the Pappenheim Opera Company, during which "Rienzi" was sung for the first time in America. Theodore Thomas did much to prepare the way by playing excerpts from the Wagner operas at his concerts, but Dr. Leopold Damrosch in 1884 set on foot a movement which, during the next few years, brought to America several of the greatest German singers, and gave to the public adequate representations of many of the Wagnerian operas. Dr. Damrosch died in 1885 and his work was taken up by Anton Seidl, who had been associated with Wagner in the production of the "Ring" at Beyreuth. Under Seidl "Die Meistersinger" had its first performance in America, in 1886; "Tristan und Isolde" and "Siegfried" in 1887; "Die G?tterd?mmerung," in 1888, and "Das Rheingold" in 1889. Thus German opera was well launched in this period.

To return to Italian opera,--Colonel Mapleson invaded the United States in 1878 bringing with him a good company of singers. He did not go farther west than St. Louis. Several tours followed in succeeding years. During his third tour he gave the first performance in America of Boito's "Mefistofele," with Campanini, Valleria, Cary and Novara. About this time he found a strong competitor in Henry E. Abbey, who secured Nilsson as a counter-attraction to Patti who was under Mapleson. This competition caused Mapleson to proceed farther west, so he led his company as far as San Francisco, where he appears to have taken the town by storm, and, if his account is correct, the march in "Aida" was performed by six hundred of the State militia and he had the assistance of a military band and an extra chorus of three hundred and fifty voices. But Mapleson's enterprises were beset with difficulties and finally ended in disaster, although not for some years. To many people, who can remember the rivalry between Abbey and Mapleson in the eighties, when Patti, Gerster, Sembrich, Scalchi, Nilsson, Annie Louise Cary, Campanini, Ravelli and del Puente were in their prime, these were the days of Italian opera in America. Probably much was lacking in the staging and scenery, but the singers have been unsurpassed.

Before closing the review of this period we come to that which is of immense importance in the development of music in America, viz. the appearance of a number of composers who have taken high rank among the composers of the world;--John K. Paine, whose first symphony was produced in 1875, was followed shortly by Arthur Bird, George W. Chadwick, Horatio Parker, Harry Rowe Shelley, Dudley Buck and Edward A. MacDowell. Nothing speaks more eloquently of the progress of music in America than the work of these men, and of several others of smaller achievements.

The decade covered in this chapter was remarkable for progress in many directions.

Large orchestras were established all over the country--Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Los Angeles, widely scattered cities, were among those which made serious efforts in the orchestral line, and performed large orchestral works.

America became in a still greater degree the hunting ground of the musical star who came from Europe, and swept the country of its loose dollars, appearing both as soloist with these orchestras, and giving recitals in the various cities.

Among pianists we had Busoni, who was, for a time, resident in Boston, Vladimir de Pachmann, the great interpreter of Chopin, who was immensely popular for some twenty-five years, and Paderewski, whose progress through the country was marked by previously unheard of demonstrations. It is said that thousands of people traveled many miles to see the train pass in which he was traveling. Alfred Reisenauer came in 1895, Slivinski, Alberto Jon?s, Raoul Pugno, Siloti and Dohnanyi, were among those who made their first appearances in America during this decade.

There was also a large list of violin virtuosi beginning with Adolf Brodsky, who was followed by Henri Marteau, C?sar Thomson, Ondriczek, Burmester, Halir, Gregorovitch, Marsick, Maud MacCarthy, Petschnikof and Madame Normann Neruda, who had been prominent in England for many years, and was long past her prime when she visited America. But the greatest artist of all was Eugen Ysaye, who first appeared in 1894, and who, since the great war, has been conductor of the Cincinnati Orchestra.

Among the singers brought here by this combination was Tamagno, who appeared in 1890. The following season came Jean and Edouard de Reszke, who reigned supreme for a number of years. Also two American singers who had made reputations abroad,--Emma Eames and Marie van Zandt. In 1893 Nellie Melba and Emma Calv? came; and in 1894 Pol Plan?on. In 1896 the Abbey and Grau combination collapsed. Abbey died soon after, and Grau continued alone until 1903.

In 1895 Walter Damrosch made an effort, which extended over several years, to re?stablish German opera, at the Metropolitan Opera House. This house, by the way, had been burned down in 1892, but was rebuilt and opened again in the following year. Several new singers were brought over from Germany, among them being Johanna Gadski.

In 1897 and 1898 Walter Damrosch joined forces with Charles A. Ellis, the manager of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, who had already been managing a company of which Melba was the star.

In 1896 Ernestine Schumann-Heink made her first American appearance in Chicago, and the following year joined the Metropolitan Company. Also Milka Ternina, an excellent artist, made her first appearance in Boston.

In 1898 Maurice Grau was the leading operatic impresario once more and introduced several new singers, including Marie Brema, Suzanne Adams, an American, and Marie Engle, also in 1900 another American, Louise Homer, while of the men Albert Alvarez, a French tenor, and Antonio Scotti, an Italian baritone, were the most brilliant stars.

Italian opera was now being pushed hard by German opera, while French opera was very little heard. The table of performances published in New York at the end of the season 1900-1901 shows that Wagner had thirty-four performances out of a total of eighty-six. Gounod was next with twelve performances, Verdi with eight, Puccini with eight, Meyerbeer with five, Mascagni with four, Reyer and Massenet three each, Boito, Mozart and Donizetti two each, and Beethoven, Leoncavallo and Bizet one each.

American composers were seeking new themes indigenous to the soil. Many had already written something under the title of "Rip van Winkle," and Walter Damrosch had brought out an opera based on Hawthorne's novel "The Scarlet Letter." Anton Dvo??k composed his "New World Symphony" making use of negro melodies for his themes. The resources of the Indians, the prairies and the mountains have been tapped more or less successfully. The oil fields still offer a thrilling subject for the composer.

Share on: WhatsApp @Hash Facebook Tweet