MUSICAL COURIER
10
February 23, 1922
difficult Chopin group, and pieces by Scriabine, Debussy and others. The critics admire her flawless technic, her “fairy-like” velocity, and the wonderful charm of her distinctly personal utterance. A distinguished career is said to be in store for her.	N. B.
German Festival Forecast.
Berlin, January 14.—There will again be no dearth of music festivals in Germany this year. The earliest announced thus far is a chamber music festival to take place in Nuremberg in May. The modern chamber music festival of Donaueschingen of last year will be repeated, and still another has been added by the town of Sondershausen, known as the Thuringia Music Festival. The official festival of the Allgemeine Deutsche Musikverein will be held in Düsseldorf this spring, and it is more than likely that the classic Nether Rhenish Festival will also be revived this summer, probably in Cologne. C. S.
Prague Has New German Theater.
Prague, January 3.—When in 1918 Czecho-Slovakia became an independent national state, one of the first acts of the new government was the seizure, by military force, of the Deutsches Landestheater, which had been one of the two German playhouses in Prague and which is now devoted to performances in the Czech language. The Germans, undaunted in their determination to cultivate their national art, decided to find an Ersatz for its lost temple. They have now, on New Year’s day, opened a new German theater, situated in the Drei-Reiter Hall of the Neues Deutsches Theater. Leopold Kramer, a former favorite Vienna actor, is director of both theaters, with Alexander von Zemlinsky, conductor-composer, as his musical assistant.	P• B.
Vienna Philharmonic for South America.
Vienna, January 7.—Negotiations are practically completed for the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra (which is identical with the Staatsoper Orchestra) to make a three month’s tour of South America this summer, when it will play at Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires under Weingartner. Contracts will be signed immediately after the Austrian government has given its consent, since the absence of the orchestra will necessitate the closing up of the Staatsoper for a period of three months, beginning June IS.	N.
Bad Business at Vienna Opera.
Vienna, January 9.—Receipts of the Vienna Staatsoper, where capacity audiences had been the rule for years, have dropped down to half since the New Year. “Otello,” with Slezak, drew only a half house a few nights ago. The Redoutensaal Theater in the Imperial Castle, which was opened the end of December after having been adapted for performances of the State Theaters at a cost of many millions of crowns, will be closed for an indefinite period after last night’s performance, owing to lack of attendance.
A New Strauss-Hofmannsthal Work.
Vienna, January 7.—A small circle of literary connoisseurs was invited yesterday to hear Hugo von Hofmanns-
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Philharmonic Orchestra. _ The opinion prevails that Furtwängler may take his place with that orchestra. P. B.
Müller-Hartmann Work Scores Success.
Stuttgart, January 18.—A new symphonic composition by Robert Müller-Hartmann (for the past two years^ the Musical Courier's correspondent in Hamburg), entitled “Variationen über ein pastorales Thema,” has just had its première under the bâton of Generalmusikdirektor Fritz Busch in a recent symphony concert of the Stuttgart Opera Orchestra. The work had real success both at rehearsal and at the concert.	A, S.
Malipiero Writing a “Tryptich.”
Venice, January 15.—Francesco Malipiero has just completed “La morte delle maschere,” a one-act opera constituting the first part of his trilogy, “l’Orfeide.” The second part, called “Sette Canzoni,” already completed, was presented in Paris some time ago. The third is “Orfeo, ovvero l’ottava canzone.” Besides this work Malipiero has lately completed the cycle entitled “Impressioni dal vero,” having just made the orchestral score of the third part, “La Tarantella a Capri.”־ He is now making a thorough study of the dramatist Goldoni, of whose works he is going to use two (“La bottega da caffè” and “Sior Todero Brontolon”) for one-act operas. He also intends to revise his youthful work, “Sinfonie del Silenzio e della Morte.”	A. S.
English Music Wins Prague.
Prague, Januaiy 7.—The first concert of English music ever given in this country took place at the Czech Philharmonic Society last night, with notable success. Conducted by Adrian C. Boult, of London, the orchestra played works of Butterworth, Arthur Bliss and Elgar (second symphony). That of Bliss (Mêlée Fantasque) was especially applauded. The clou of the evening was the appearance of the “English Singers the famous London vocal sextet, which sang madrigals by Byrd, Welkes, Gibbons, Morley, etc., with great virtuosity and charmed both audience and critics so that they received an ovation and were immediately engaged by a local manager to reappear in April, both in Prague and Brünn. Their first visit was made upon the invitation of the Czech-Slovak Ministry of Finance.	E. D.
Forsell Retires from Stage.
Stockholm, January 5.—The Swedish baritone, John Forsell, who was for some time a member of the Metropolitan Opera in New York, has now kept his promise of seven years ago that he would retire from the stage on his fiftieth birthday. He now sings only for charity and recently appeared with success in a benefit performance of “Don Giovanni,” given for Carolina Oestberg, formerly one of the leading Swedish sopranos. Forsell devotes himself chiefly to his work as the head of an opera school which he has founded in Stockholm.	H. G.
American Girl Makes Successful German Debut.
Frankfort-on-the-Main, January 10.—The young American pianist, Dorothy Marcuse, of San Francisco, made a successful debut here last night, playing a Bach toccata, adagio and fugue, arranged by Ansorge (with whom Miss Marcuse studied), a Beethoven sonata (op. 31, No. 3), a
FOREIGN NEWS IN BRIEF
Many Americans in Berlin.
Berlin, January 24, 1922.—Berlin is at the present moment full of Americans and near-Americans, and especially American musicians. Among those who have called at the Musical Courier offices recently are Frederic Stock-hoff, St. Louis composer; Frank van der Stucken, conductor, formerly of Cincinnati and about to return there to conduct the Fiftieth May Festival; Arthur Shattuck, Clarence Gotthelf, Eleanor Spencer, Ruth Klug, Dorothy Marcuse, Hyman Rovinsky, Michael Zadora and Edward Weiss, pianists; Max Rosen, Mayo Wadler, Josef Fuchs, Jenny Skolnik, violinists, all of New York; Bertha Harmon, Valerie Doob and Sonia Yergin, soprano, and Sidney Biden, baritone.
Among the near-Americans there are Mischa Elman and Chailes Dalmores, the tenor. A number of American pupils have already come here for study and their number is Steadily ׳increasing. It is interesting that most of them have come here after a brief sojourn in Paris. Among the teachers, too, there are several Americans, notably Louis Bacbner, who is professor of singing at the Hochschule, also Charles W. Graeff, vocal teacher, and Clara Willen-biicher, sole assistant to Lilli Lehmann.	C. S.
Sauer Eager to Write His Memoirs.
Vienna, January 19, 1922.—Emil Sauer, who has recently resigned from his post as head of the master class for piano playing at the Vienna State Conservatory, expects to retire from concert life for one year in order to write his memoirs, according to an interview published in today’s Neues Wiener Journal. Sauer feels that these memoirs should be a supplement to his book published twenty years ago and that he owes an apology for some of the views expressed there, especially as to the rating of Liszt as compared to Rubinstein. “In my youth a strong, forcible personality like Rubinstein was bound in my mind to outshine a more retiring, serene and almost transfigured old man like Liszt, under whom I was so happy as to study for one entire year,” Sauer states. “Today I know that the great genius of my life was not dazzling Anton Rubinstein, but venerable Franz Liszt.”	P• B.
Slandered Weingartner.
Vienna, January 21, 1922.—Considerable sensation has been caused in local musical circles by slanderous letters received by some hundred prominent musical and social people here. The anonymous writer of these messages not only accuses Weingartner of being an extreme Francophile on the evidence of his recent all-French Philharmonic program recorded in the Musical Courier, but also attacks Weingartner on private grounds in connection with some purely personal family matters. These letters, it is said, have strengthened Weingartner’s determination to leave Vienna at the end of the current season and guesses are being made as to his prospective successor at the Volksoper and with the
LETTERS OF ENDORSEMENT
RECEIVED BY
FRANK LA FORGE and ERNESTO BERUMEN
Mishkin Photo FRANCES ALDA
Photo by Victor Georg MARGARET MATZENAUER
I wish to thank you for the selection of my accompanist, Miss Marion Carley. She is a very gifted girl, splendidly trained, both as accompanist and soloist. I am simply delighted with her.
With kindest regards to you both,
Sincerely yours,
Frances Alda.
When I was so suddenly obliged to depart for Europe last year, it was with the greatest confidence that I left to you the selection of my accompanist and my programs for this season.
Mr. George Vause, whom you selected, has proven in every way a most capable and sympathetic accompanist and soloist. I wish to thank you and at the same time endorse Mr. Vause most heartily.
The programs have met with great success wherever I have sung them.
Sincerely yours,
Margaret Matzenauer.
Miss Kathryn Kerin has been engaged as accompanist and soloist for the La Forge Quartette on their forthcoming Spring tour.
The sixth noonday musicale will be given at Aeolian Hall at 12 o’clock noon on Friday, March third, 1922, under the direction of Frank La Forge and Ernesto Berumen, in conjunction with the Duo-Art Piano. The La Forge Quartette will appear. Admission without charge.
Mishima Photo MARION CARLEY
Phone Columbus 8993
14 West 68th Street, New York
THE LA FORGE-BERÜMEN STUDIOS