The World of Music News

Abroad August 1910

VLADIMIR De Pachmann is adding to his tremendous popularity in London.

THE Royal Musical Institute of Florence, Italy, has elected the American violinist Albert Spaulding, an "Honorary Academician".

CAPTAIN Scott, the British explorer who hopes to reach the South Pole, is taking a piano with him.

KATHARINE Goodson, the English pianist who met with such favor in this country, has achieved a great success in Paris.

LOTTIE Collins, who danced that egregious song, "Ta-ra-ra-boom-de-ay" into popularity, is dead. Fortunately her song died years ago.

MME. Szumowska-Adamowski and her husband and family have sailed for Europe, where they will spend several weeks at the home of Paderewski.

MARIOTTE'S opera, "Salome" which was written some years before Richard Strauss used the same libretto, has had its first Paris production. It was favorable received.

ARTHUR Nevin's opera "Poia", which was such a fiasco, is to have another opportunity - in London this time. It is to be hoped that it will be more successful. Thomas Beecham has acquired the English rights.

CAMILLE Saint-Saens, who is 74 years old, has given three orchestral concerts in Paris devoted to Mozart's music. He is at work on an opera which will shortly be produced at the Paris opera.

Thomas Beecham, who has been doing operatic wonders in London this year, has engaged Mignon Nevada, who has received training from her famous mother, Emma Nevada, to appear at the autumn season of grand opera in London.

GUSTAV Mahler's Eighth Symphony will be given its first performance at the Munich Exposition in September. The work calls for several soloists, a full chorus and a chorus of children. The musical world awaits the production of this "symphony" with great interest.

DR. RICHTER, the veteran conductor, who has played such an important part in English musical life, has been ordered a complete rest. His successor as conductor of the historic Birmingham Festival will be Henry J. Wood, an English conductor of exceptional ability.

AN interesting attempt is being made in Vienna to introduce the Chinese Nightingale into the public park. Thirty of the pretty green birds have been set free there already, and if these can live in the Viennese climate, and agree to remain in the park, many more will be imported.

ANOTHER American singer! Mary Carson has just made a successful operatic debut in Milan. She has been studying for some years in Italy, but it is worth of note that the foundations of her study were laid in America before she went abroad. She studied at the New England Conservatory.

THE government of Mexico has offered a prize of $5,000 to any musician who will compose a setting for chorus and soloists of a poem already selected. It is intended that the work shall celebrate the centennial of the foundation of the Mexican republic in a musically fitting manner. A gold medal and a "diploma" will also be awarded the lucky composer.

THE great event in Vienna recently has been the celebration of the eightieth birthday of Carl Goldmark. Special concerts have been held in his honor, and he has been over loaded with gifts, wreaths, letters of congratulations and telegrams, many of which have come from America. As the composer of the Sakuntaia overture he has endeared himself to many music lovers in this country.

DEATH has taken Jean Baptiste Weckerlin, the "dean of French composers", who passed away at Geubweiler, Alsace, where he was born eighty-nine years ago. He was the composer of a successful opera, and has written a number of songs. Weckerlin became librarian at the Conservatory of Paris in succession to Felicien David, and became interested in research work appertaining to the folk songs of various countries.

A THREE day festival in honor of Max Reger has been held in Dortmund, Germany. Max Reger is a composer whose name is not so well known in America as it is in Germany. His music is extremely complex and does not appeal to a popular audience. His is a kind of modern Bach, for his music is very contrapuntal in style, and he nearly always adopts the fugue as a means of working up a climax at the end of his compositions. The event proved to be a very great success.

PROFESSOR Scharwenka, whose contributions to The Etude have been of great interest to many of our readers, has resigned from the Klindworth Conservatory, in Berlin, in order to devote his time to concert work and to a school of piano playing which he intends founding. His resignation takes effect from October 1. He holds one of the most prominent positions in the musical educational world today, and we wish him every success in his new venture.

A FESTIVAL devoted to Richard Strauss has been held in Munich, where the composer was born. The somewhat unusual step of erecting a tablet at the birthplace of a composer, during his lifetime, has been taken in Munich. The legend on the stone runs: "Hier wurde Richard Strauss am 11 Juni 1864 geboren" (Richard Strauss was born here on the 11th of June, 1864). It is not often that a composer is so honored in his lifetime, but Munich is very proud of her son, and the old saying that "No prophet is without honor save in his own country" is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. In spite of much talk to the contrary, there never was an age when people were more ready to acknowledge real worth in any branch of human endeavor. It may possible be that Strauss is not all that his friends claim for him, but is is far better to honor him on the chance that he is a genius than to starve him for fear he isn't. He has certainly made a noise in the world!

THE death is announced of Mill Alexeivitch Balakirew, the veteran Russian composer and critic. He was born in Nijni-Novgorod, 1836. After his preliminary training he became very interested in the national fold music of Russia. On going to St. Petersburg he became an enthusiastic supporter of the owrk of Glinka, for which the Russian public had at that time little liking. It was th eperiod when Bellini and Meyerbeer were the popular favorites of the day. Balakirew, however, threw himself with ardor into the musical missionary field, and in 1861 found himself at the head of a movement with a number of distinguished disciples, such as Cesar Cui, Mousorgski, Rimsky-Korsakoff. He founded the Free School of Music in St. Petersburg, and rendered great service to Russian music by giving symphony concerts of the works of the newer Russian school. His work has been enormously productive, for the Russian school of music of today is regarded by many musicians as of paramount importance.

The Etude Magazine August 1910