59
MUSICAL COURIER
THE
STEINWAY
PIANO
stands unapproached in any of the cardinal and essential features which endear it to the artist and the music-loving public the wide world over. It is a glorious masterpiece in power, sonority, singing quality and perfect harmonic effects. Its sound volume is overwhelming, its sound qualities are bewitching and entrancing beyond measure and beyond praise —they are the marvel of performer and listener alike. Withal, THE STEINWAY PIANO has no equal for endurance; it will far outlast any other piano. And, what is more, its price is but little higher than the price of other good pianos.
STEINWAY & SONS
STEINWAY HALL
107109־ East 14th St., New York
Represented by the Foremost Dealers Everywhere
handsome one and is suitably inscribed. With the instrument came a note of appreciation, requesting Mr. Goldman to use it occasionally at his concerts and to treat his audiences to a cornet solo. It was also suggested that he join his six cornetists when they stand to play the sensational finale of his own popular composition, The Chimes of Liberty. The conductor has agreed to this proposal and he will also probably render a solo occasionally during the summer season, and when he goes on tour with his band.
It will probably be remembered that Mr. Goldman was formerly one of the best known cornet soloists in the country and was for ten years a member of the Metropolitan Opera House orchestra. He is particularly pleased with the cornet with which he was presented, because it is an American-made instrument.
Answers to letters received in this department are published as promptly as possible. The large number of inquiries and the limitation of space are responsible for any delay. The letters are answered seriatim.
Absolute Pitch.
“Can you tell me why it is that sometimes when a critic writes of a musical event or of a singer, that absolute pitch is mentioned? Is it something unusual? I know, of course, that some singers do not keep on the key ini singing, and suppose that means they are off the pitch, but always supposed that was the fault of bad training.״
The definition of pitch in the musical dictionaries is: “The position of a note in the musical scale. Pitch is relative or absolute.” Relative pitch of a tone is its position when compared with some other tone. “Its absolute pitch is its fixed position in the entire range of musical tones.״ Absolute pitch is determined by the number of vibrations per second, but that is not perhaps what you want to know. It is a matter of fact that few people possess absolute pitch, especially singers; and it is too often true the singer and the instrumentalist or accompanist are not in perfect accord. Lack of “ear” is one reason for this, lack of training another. Years ago, when the opera company that contained the names of nearly all European celebrities gave a season in Boston, the performances taking place in Mechanics Hall, one of the sopranos became celebrated from the fact that during the entire season she never once sang “on the key.” ־ What is spoken of as a musical ear, (that is, a sense of absolute pitch, so that one at once and unconsciously recognizes a tone on hearing it and is also able, if a singer, to produce any desired note without mistake) is a valuable possession for any musician, one that should be cultivated, and can be, to a certain extent, though absolute pitch seems, as a rule, to be a natural gift. In Lohengrin there is a very bad interval in the first song of the tenor when he comes on with the Swan and sings up stage, where the orchestra is not of much help. Not all Lohen-grins accomplish it successfully. One of the successful ones told the writer that he thought of that interval as the most difficult part of his role, and kept it in his mind until he had successfully negotiated it, then he was sure the remainder of his music would go smoothly.
Interruptions.
“Do you think it is artistic for a singer to interrupt an accompanist and have him begin a song over again? It seems to me to show little thought of what the audience would like. To interrupt any piece of music destroys the continuity of the piece and I know I was much annoyed at a recent recital when this was done.”
It certainly sounds inartistic for a composition to be interrupted, yet it occasionally has to be done, sometimes from lack of memory when an instrumentalist is playing without notes, sometimes when accompanist and singer are not in harmony. Once when the accompanist was playing in four-four time and the singer was singing in three-four time, the audience, at least those who knew anything about music, would have been glad to have a halt called; it was a weird performance. Another time a pianist, trying to play some composition, forgot entirely where she was, or what came next, stopped short, left the piano, went off the stage, returned with the music and sat down at the piano with a deep sigh of satisfaction. The feeling of the audience may be imagined. Both these occurrences took place in London. In this country an oratorio was being sung in one of the large cities. The soprano had a cold, and in the middle of an aria, stopped short, coughed, then went on again, to the dismay of the conductor of the orchestra. Fortunately, these occurrences are not frequent.
Opera Book.
“Can you	give	me	the	name	of any book that has	the operas
up to date,	that	is,	the	titles,	composers, and some	slight description of	the	plot.	I	have	tried to find such a	book and
been told of	such	and	such a one, but none of them are reliable,
even one printed in 1921 is far from complete. Composers, who have written quite a number of successful operas, are represented, when mentioned at all,	by	one or perhaps	two.	As	a
student, it is difficult for me	to	study plots or	parts	when
there are no books to study from.”
There does seem to be a lack of literature about operas of more recent date, but perhaps it would	be difficult to	keep	up	with
new compositions when there are	so many being put	out.	In	fact,
books of reference on certain musical subjects seem to be few and far between. Some of the books ignore the death of the musician entirely, one book in particular, printed in 1915, not mentioning the death of well known musicians, but giving the addresses where they live, this, after they have been dead for several years.
Valenti (Gescheidt Pupil) Praised
Alfredo Valenti, operatic basso and artist pupil of Adelaide Gescheidt, touring England and Scotland with the British National Opera Company, season 1922-1923, has added more triumphs to those he enjo;ed in the beginning of the season.
Mr. Valenti has sung all the leading bass roles, and has been received everywhere with acclaim. His Mephistopheles arouses special interest and favorable comment. The latest press notices from Edinburgh and Glasgow say of him: “The telling sonority of Alfredo Valenti’s voice enabled him to give effect to the masterly writing of Gounod, and his resources as actor are ample for a sinister and convincing delineation of the personage.”—“One of the most arresting figures in the opera was the Mephistopheles of Alfredo Valenti. His was a wonderfully impressive conception of the part.” “There was a particularly interesting Mephistopheles, Alfredo Valenti. Alike in interpretation and makeup it was an enjoyable departure from the conventional. It was a genuinely powerful impersonation.”
Gerhardt and Levitzki in Joint Recital
Elena Gerhardt and Mischa Levitzki joined in a recital at Peoria, 111., on January 10, at the Mohammed Temple. Although the great singer of lieder and the great pianist have known each other for years, this is the first time they have appeared on the same program. It is interesting to recall in this connection that the two artists first met on a train in Denmark, when Mme. Gerhardt was returning from an English tour, and Mr. Levitzki, then a boy of seventeen, was returning from his first Scandinavian tour. It was in the year 1915, in the early days of the war. Since then both have traveled extensively, Mme. Gerhardt has enhanced her reputation as a great lieder singer of our day, and Mr. Levitzki has forged ahead to the forefront of present day pianist.
January 18, 1923
The Late James Sauvage—A Tribute
“A short time ago James Sauvage was promoted to the ranks of the Heavenly Choir, having been stricken with apoplexy in his Newark home. The veteran teacher had just returned from a trip to his native home in Wales, which had been his annual custom for thirty-five years.
“In 1914 we enjoyed this experience together, and at the same time we met many of his distinguished friends in the British realm of music. A volume could be written about this great artist, and pages of wonderful criticisms could be quoted.
“Mr. Sauvage, born in North Wales, in 1851, received his musical education at the Royal Academy of Music, London, and in two years won the bronze, silver and gold medals, and later was elected an associate of the institution, and then a Fellow of the Royal Academy, an honor conferred in recognition of his distinguished career as a teacher of the art of bel canto in this country.
“He distinguished himself in oratorio, opera and concert, and later in America as a teacher of celebrated artists. An unblemished character, a perfect physique, a commanding presence, charm of manner and conversation, an unusual intellect and inborn dramatic instinct coupled with a luscious voice, placed him on a high pinnacle. He was one of the leading baritones of the Carl Rosa Opera Company. His repertory included the standard English, French and Italian works, and he was heard in leading roles.
“When about twenty years of age Mr. Sauvage married Eleanor Lewis, daughter of Llew Lleyfo, Welsh poet and concert singer. Besides Mrs. Sauvage, he is survived by the following children: Mrs. Claude Wallace^ Poole of Newark; Mrs. Harry W. Crowell of Glen Ridge; Mrs. Elliott Owens of Cortland, N. Y.; Tonzo Sauvage, organist and composer of New York; Louis Sauvage of Chester, England, and Elwyn Sauvage of Pittsburgh.
“In 1889 he came from London to America, where he became head of the vocal department at Vassar College, as well as music director at Peddie Memorial Church, Newark, and teacher of a great many artist pupils at his New York studio. His pupils included Evan Williams, Herbert Witherspoon, Dr. Carl Dufft, Gwilym Wiles, John Young, Harold Land, William Fahnestock, John Prindle Scott, Ralph Cox, Anna Russert, Margarete Lemon, Dr. Ion Jackson, Harold Butler, Morton Adkins, etc.
At the Welsh National Eisteddfod in September 1901, he followed an address by Lloyd George, and his singing, reported in the English press, made a deep impression on the great statesman. They met after the concert and renewed a friendship that had begun thirty years before when Lloyd George met Mr. Sauvage at Criccieth; the singer was singing at the festival there, and was to be entertained by the Lloyd George family. The mother of Lloyd George was a semi-invalid, and expressed her disappointment at not being able to hear the baritone that night, whereupon he sang his entire program for her at the home. In 1916 the Knights of the Round Table gave a banquet in honor of Mr. Sauvage in San Francisco. The British Premier, in spite of his many and arduous duties in connection with the war took time to send a very beautiful tribute to the committee concerning the baritone, in which he said: ‘What pleasure he gave to my dear old mother. Ever since there has been a warm spot in my heart for the famous musician.’
“James Sauvage made both name and fortune in Great Britain. When he came to America he was an extremely busy man, but in independent circumstances. The result was that his name was not heralded in huge, letters around the country, and consequently he was not known by many of the present'generation of musicians.
(Signed) Harold Land.
Great Yuletide Project for Appleton (Wis.)
Few cities of its size can boast of such a magnificent Christmas project as Appleton, Wis. The reason is that the many Yuletide events of previous years have been developed into community projects that touch the minds and hearts of the whole public. Christmas week was ushered in with a great indoor presentation of the Pageant of the Nativity, under the direction of Dean Waterman of Lawrence Conservatory of Music. Several church choirs were massed to present this beautiful version of the story of Christmas. The story of the Nativity was told in five episodes with carol interludes. Elaborate costuming and appropriate lighting effects and artistic grouping of the participants enhanced the effectiveness of music and made of the production a genuine musical and religious ministry to the entire community. The solo parts of the pageant were sung effectively by leading soloists of the city and conservatory. It is the plan to make the two great Christian festivals of the year, Christmas and Easter, the times for a wonderful religious and musical expression. This is being accomplished by the united efforts of the various choral organization of the city in a community project.
The music for the pageant was selected from Buck’s Coming of the King, Maunder’s Bethlehem, and Handel’s The Messiah.	__________
William Wylie in New York
Among the recent visitors to the metropolis was William Wylie of Columbus, Ohio. The chief object of his visit was to secure William Wade Hinshaw’s Impresario Company for an appearance in the Ohio city on January 23. This is a direct result of the appearance there on December 7 of Impresario Hinshaw’s Cos¡ Fan Tutte Company, music lovers of Columbus being so charmed with the performance that Mr. Wylie was at once despatched to bring to Columbus the other Hinshaw attraction. Mr. Wylie also has made arrangements to present the Denishawn Dancers on March 8.
During the summer, the City Band concerts under Mr. Wylie’s direction have been a feature, and next summer he proposes to give a series of orchestral concerts, al fresco. In addition to his other work, Mr. Wylie is heard frequently in recital, both in his home city and various other Ohio towns. On February 11 he will give a recital in Chicago.	__________
Goldman Presented with Gold Cornet
On Christmas Day, Edwin Franko Goldman, conductor of the Goldman Band, was presented with a beautiful gold Martin cornet, a gift of the Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, in appreciation of what he has done for music for the people during the past five years. The instrument is an unusually