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VI CTRO LA

BOOK OF
THE OPERA

STORIES OF THE OPERAS

WITH ILLUSTRATIONS &> DESCRIPTIONS

Of VICTOR. OPERA RECORDS

SEVENTH EDITION

Rewritten and Revised

Acknowledgment must be made to Oliver
Ditson Co. and G. Schirmer for kind permission to
quote occasionally from their copyrighted publica
tions. Both these houses have set new standards
with their operatic publications the Schirmer with
superbly printed opera scores and collections of
opera airs en titled "Operatic Anthology'*; and Ditson
with the Musicians' Library, masterpieces of music
typography

Camden, New Jersey, U. S. A.

Prices shown herein are Victor Company 's
current list prices

DE 13 '26

7A(DEX

Africaine, Africana, L' 19

Aida 25

Alessandro Stradella 388

Amleto 165

Andrea Chenier 35

Bajazzi 300

Ballo in Maschera 259

Barber of Seville, The 36

Barbiere di Siviglia, II 36

Bartered Bride, The 42

Bohme 44

Bohemian Girl, The 51

Boris Godounow 54

Carmen 56

Cavalleria Rusticana 70

Chimes of Normandy, The .... 78

Cid, Le 79

Cloak, The 382

Cleopatra, Cleopatre 81

Cloches de Corneville, Les 78

Contes d'HorTman 389

Coqd'Or, Le 83

Damnation of Faust, The 85

Daughter of the Regiment, The 87

Dinorah 89

Don Carlos 91

Don Giovanni, Don Juan 93

Donne Curiose, Le 97

Don Pasquale 98

Dusk of the Gods, The 158

Elisire d'Amore, L' 101

Elixir of Love, The 101

Erminie 104

Ernani 106

Eugen Ongin Ill

Falstaff 113

Faust 116

Favorita, La 133

Favorite, The 133

Fidelio 137

Figaro's Hochzeit 247

Figlio del Reggimento, La .... 87

Fille du Regiment, La 87

Flauto Magico, II 229

Fliegende Hollander, Der 139

Flying Dutchman, The 139

Force of Destiny, The 143

Forza del Destine, La 143

Fra Diavolo 147

Freeshooter, The 148

Freischutz, Der 148

Gianni Schicchi 151

Gioconda, La 152

Giojelli della Madonna 186

Golden Cock, Golden Cockerel,

The 83

Gotterdammerung 158

Goyescas 162

Guarany, II 164

Guglielmo Tell 440

Guillaume Tell 440

Hamlet 165

Hansel and Gretel 169

H6rodiade, Herodias 171

Hochzeit von Figaro, 247

Huguenots, Les . . . . T 176

Inquisitive Women 97

Iris 183

Jewels of the Madonna 186

Jongleur de Notre Dame 188

Juggler of Notre Dame 188

King of Lahore 362

King of Ys 363

Konigin von Saba 341

L' Africaine, L'Africana 19

Lakme 191

Lily of Killarney 195

Linda di Chamounix 196

INDEX (Continued*)

Lohengrin 198

Lombard!, 1 206

Louise 208

Lucia di Lammermoor 209

Lucrezia Borgia 216

Madama (Madame) Butterfly. . 219

Madeleine 227

Magic Flute, The 229

Manon (Massenet] 235

Manon Lescaut (Puccini) 241

Maritana 245

Marriage of Figaro, The 247

Martha, Marta 254

Masked Ball, The 259

Mastersingers, The 271

Mefistofele (Mephistopheles) . . 265

Meistersinger, Die 271

Mignon 278

Mikado, The 282

Mireille, Mirella 284

Natoma 285

Norma 288

Nozze di Figaro, Le 247

Oberon 291

Orfeo 293

Orpheus and Eurydice 293

Othello, Otello 295

Pagliacci 300

Paillasse 300

Parsifal 310

Patience 320

Pearl Fishers, The 321

Pearl of Brazil, The 325

Pe-cheurs de Perles, Les 321

Perle du Bresil, Le 325

Pescatori di Perle 321

Pinafore 326

Pique Dame 328

Pirates of Penzance 329

Players 10

Prince Igor 330

Prodana Nevesta 42

Profeta, II, Prophete, Le 333

Puritani, 1 338

Queen of Sheba (Goldmark) . . . 341

Queen of Sheba (Gounod) 342

Queen of Spades 328

Regina di Saba 341

Reine de Saba 342

Rheingold, Das 345

Rhinegold, The 345

Rigoletto 349

Rinaldo 358

Robert le Diable 359

Robert the Devil 359

Robin Hood 360

Roi de Lahore, Le 362

Roi d'Ys, Le 363

Romeo and Juliet 364

Romeo e Giulietta 364

Rustic Chivalry 70

Samson and Delilah 369

Semiramide, Semiramis 377

Siegfried 379

Sister Angelica 382

Snegourotchka 383

Snow-Maiden, The 383

Sonnambula, La 385

Suor Angelica 382

Stradella 388

Tabarro, II 382

Tales of Hoffmann, The 389

Tannhauser 384

Thais 402

Tosca 405

Traviata, La 412

Tristan und Isolde 417

Trovatore, II 423

Ugonotti, Gli 176

Vaisseau Fan tome, Le 139

Valkyrie, The 431

Vascello Fantasmii, II 139

Verkaufte Braut, Die 42

Walkure, Die 431

Werther 43<)

William Tell 440

Zauberflote, Die.
Zaza

220

446

METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE, PHILADELPHIA

THE MARIENSKOI OPERA, rETROGRAD

FAMOUS OPERA HOUSES OF EUROPE

FAMOUS AMERICAN OPERA HOUSES

FAMOUS OPEKA HOUSES OF EUKOPE

PREFACE

THIS seventh edition of the Vic-
trola Book of the Opera, like all
previous editions, has been pre
pared for the purpose of telling the
stories of Grand Opera as completely
as seems necessary for general under
standing and to show the wealth
of operatic music which is available
on Victor records for study and for
entertainment.

For the convenience of the reader
and in order that the flow of the nar
rative may not be interrupted, the
Victor records from each opera are
listed at the end of each story.

In addition to the operas listed in
this book there are many others from
which only isolated arias, duets,
marches, overtures, and so forth, have
become part of the world's musical
repertoire. Among them are many
veritable gems of which splendid Victor
records are listed in the Victor Record
Catalogs, but not referred to here
because the complete operas are not in
current use.

Revised editions of the Victrola
Book of the Opera are issued at inter

vals of about two years. New Victor
Records are issued every week so that
at any given time the most recent
issues of operatic records will be found
in supplements to the Victor Catalogs.

There is still another source of supply
and one which is of the utmost interest
to the connoisseur and to the student.

From time to time over a period of
many years records have been with
drawn from the catalogs because,
though rendered by famous artists,
they were made before the art of re
cording had reached its present per
fection.

These records, showing the individual
interpretations of the great artists in
the parts on which their fame is based,
from the time the first serious work in
recording music was undertaken, have
all the charm, all the interest, all the
historic value which attaches to "limited
editions" in any form. A special catalog
listing these numbers is available to
any music-lover who is interested in
records not now in general circulation
upon application to dealers or to the
Victor Company.

WHAT IS AN OPERA?

COMPARATIVELY few of the
hundred and ten million in
habitants of these United States
ever have seen an opera. Most of the
remainder never will see one. A con
siderable number of educated people
occasionally go to the opera, and have
been there perhaps a half dozen times
in all. And a still smaller proportion,
probably very small, may be classed
as "opera fans," going regularly every
season. With these we are not so
deeply concerned, but with the two
former classes we are, and especially
with those who go once in a while.

Frequently those who attend the opera
but rarely, come away disappointed,
for the simple reason that they have
gone expecting something that is not
there. Consequently they have failed
to get the full value of what is there
through their not having noticed it.
It is not to be expected that one can at
tend this exotic form of entertainment
and at once comprehend its deepest
subtleties. We may very well ask
ourselves, therefore, what to expect
when going to the opera, and to answer
some of the criticisms of the opera
which sometimes arise through lack of
understanding.

Most people, if asked what an opera
is, would answer "A play set to music,"
but this is true only in the most general
way. An opera is indeed a drama, but
it consists of Action, Speech, Song and
Stage-setting. Since an ordinary spoken
drama provides these things with
out the music, it follows that the
"song" is really the chief thing in an
opera, and the one thing to which the
other factors are sacrificed in greater
or less degree. All too often, Ameri
cans go to the opera expecting plenty
of "action," and are correspondingly
disappointed when they find that there
is really "very little doing." A mo
ment's thought will show them that it

is impossible for a human being to
have enough breath to negotiate a
high C and at the same time give way
to violent action of any kind. If there
is any "violent action" in an opera, it
usually takes place "off-stage," or is
reduced to a few stereotyped motions.
In a "real" play, for instance, a duel
can be fought out with great verisimili
tude, as it usually is in "Hamlet"; but
in an opera a duel is generally reduced
to a few stereotyped motions more or
less in time to the music, as in " Faust."
And a great deal of the time, the artists
are grouped about the stage in pic
turesque attitudes in which motion is
reduced to a minimum for reasons
easily apparent; those actually singing
need their breath, and any vigorous
movement apart from them would dis
tract the attention of the audience.

As a matter of fact, music being the
language of the emotions, the emotions
in an opera are naturally of paramount
importance. We are supposed to be
interested not so much in what our
hero, heroine or villain may do, as in
how he feels before and after the action
is performed. Thus, for instance, in
"II Trovatore," when Manrico learns
that Azucena^ whom he supposes to be
his mother, has been captured, his im
mediate desire is to rescue her; but
instead of dashing off at once, as he
might dash in real life, he steps to the
front of the stage and sings a song ex
pressing his mad desire for vengeance.
To the average American, unaccus
tomed to the conventions of opera,
there is in this, perhaps, naturally
something very strange; but the humor
strangely lies in his own naive confu
sion between Life itself and Art, which
mirrors the emotions and reactions of
life. In more familiar forms of art,
even dramatic art, he is ready enough
to accept the conventions without
question. If the same scene occurred

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

in a photoplay, for instance, we should
3~ undoubtedly have a "close-up" in
^, r which Manrico, before setting off to
^t rescue his mother, would come to the
front of the screen and by facial ex
pression make clear his emotions. We
are so used to this that we accept it
without question, presumably enter
tained in watching an actor "register"
/npake-believe horror, hatred and ven-
Ugeance! In the photoplay, however,

action is the chief thing, and we should
ave to see him attempt the rescue
/and fail, instead of going right on to
yraie next scene, where we find Manrico
'v& a dungeon with Azucena, again
/melodiously expressing his feelings.
^Unless you go to the opera prepared
/to accept its conventions, you may be
Disappointed.

in Another thing that may confront
'the operatic neophyte is the compara
tive scantiness of the kind of melody
that can be readily whistled. Here
again, he forgets that in true opera,
nelody is a lyrical outburst attainable
>nly in moments of climax. It is all
/-ery well for Madame Butterfly, worked
ip to an intense pitch of belief in
Pinkertons return, to sing "Un bel di
^edremo"; but how is the Pinkerton
n the same opera to invite the Ameri-
Tean Consul to have a whiskey and
soda? He does it in a parlante, a sort
of recitative in which the voice follows
j^Xfthe normal inflections of spoken voice,
and the orchestra plays music typify-
mg his particular mood. There is no
^ room for melody, no reason for it. The
demand for melody was so great in
days gone by, when opera-goers went
-mainly to hear this or that great artist,
that melody was often employed to a
aegree detrimental to the development
of the opera, threatening to degenerate
ithe art into a glorified concert; but
'such reformers as Gluck, Wagner and
Xhe later Verdi perceived the danger
and led the art back to its higher levels.

<J>

/./d
^

Those who go to a modern opera ex
pecting a "Celeste Ai'da" every other
minute, are doomed to disappointment.
If there is any "melody" at all (and
ultra-modern opera composers may
seem to avoid giving us any!) it is re
served for the great moments, coming
only once or twice in an evening. In
its place, however, there is a portrayal
(and it can be a wonderfully subtle
one!) of the workings of the human
emotions, the cross-purposes, the com
binations and permutations of feeling,
suggested by the interplay of strange
harmonies, fragmentary melodies, and
the voicing of strings, woodwind and
brass.

Another question that sometimes
arises is: "Why don't they sing in
English?" If every town and village
in America had an opera-house at
tended by Americans to hear American
singers sing American operas, no doubt
they would. With us, however, opera
is a foreign importation. We have
very little opera, but what there is is
the very best in the world. We hear
French, Italian, German opera as it is
to be heard only in France, Italy and
Germany, usually sung by the pick of
the artists from those countries. To
force these artists to sing in a hastily
learned English would be as unpleasant
for them as for us. Moreover, the
opera with us is a luxury, supported
by the wealthier class, many of whom
keep a "working acquaintance" with
one or more European languages. They
much prefer to hear operas unmarred
by translation. Only those who have
read the English translations of foreign
operas know how terrible these trans
lations can be. The plain fact is that an
opera loses much of its flavor when
translated even by a master of English
when that master is compelled to con
form to the needs of the music.

It is sometimes urged, also, that
English is "unsingable" owing to the

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

fact that most English words end
in consonants. If these consonants
(many of which are sibilants) are
slurred over, the words are unintelli
gible, yet if the consonants are pro
nounced they result in a series of little
explosions not satisfactory to the ear.
Even German, they say, is better be
cause so many words end in vowel
sounds. We believe, however, that if
Americans really desired it, a way
would be found in which to sing the
musical language of Shakespeare and
Milton, Byron, Keats and Shelley.
The Victor Company has met the
"English problem/' as far as possible,
by having records sung in English by
acknowledged masters of the art, as
well as records sung by foreign artists
in their own tongue. Generally speak
ing, it seems as though most Americans
prefer to hear the best artists sing the

melodies in the best way, regardless of
language, for the great demand for
operatic records sung in the original
seems to point in that direction.

In this newer edition of the "Victrola
Book of the Opera, " besides retelling
the stories of the opera, we have in
cluded much biographical, historical
and critical matter relating to the chief
works, believing they will be better
appreciated if better understood. Only
those well read in music know how
much confusion exists in the average
mind regarding the different "schools''
or varieties of opera. We are acutely
aware that much has been omitted, but
we have done our utmost to keep free
of mistakes of any kind, and to main
tain the broadest and most inclusive
critical spirit in what criticisms may
appear. For they are not made to opin-
ionize, but only to make easier the way.

HISTORY OF OPERA

A BRIEF OUTLINE

FORMS of dramatic entertain
ment in which music plays a
prominent part have been
known from the earliest times. But
to a group of Florentine nobles and
art-lovers. Count Bardi, Peri, Caccini
and others, who flourished at the end
of the sixteenth century and the be
ginning of the seventeenth, belongs
the honor of having founded modern
opera. The music of that period was
chiefly polyphonic, that is to say,
based upon the strict laws of counter
point and the combination of melodies
into canons, fugues, and the like. This
was admirable for ecclesiastical uses,
but it was quite unsuited to the
drama; so these Florentines, turning,
as did all art-lovers in that age of
the Renaissance, to the ancient glories
of Greece and Rome, strove to re
produce what they believed to^ be
the original Greek form of musical
declamation. Their efforts, revealed in
such works as " Euridice " and " Dafne,"
were crude enough, yet they opened
up new possibilities in composition, of
which more able musicians, such as
Carissini, Monteverde, and especially
Alessandro Scarlatti, soon availed
themselves. Opera quickly passed
from the narrow circle of the Floren
tine nobles, and achieved a new func
tion when it was used to glorify the
great princes of the Italian cities.
Scarlatti took it a step further by
popularizing it with the masses; so
that opera-houses soon appeared.
These were definitely devoted to the
new art, the first of its kind being
the Teatro di San Cassiano, in Venice,
1637.

Opera quickly spread to other coun
tries, where it developed for the most
part along national lines. Space does
not permit an elaborate account of its

development, but a brief summary of
the part each country played in the
history of opera may be attempted.

ITALY

Being the original birthplace of the
new art, Italy naturally dominated
the minds of opera composers for many
years. And when other countries
established and maintained it, upon
lines peculiar to themselves, Italy still
kept its musical independence of style.
The Italian opera gradually developed
into a form in which especial attention
was paid to melody and to vocal dis
play, yielding, at its height, such
works as the masterpieces of Rossini,
Bellini and Donizetti. Despite their
beauties and those of less significant
works the domination of the voice in
these led to a certain degeneracy in
style a true lack of artistic balance.
Italian opera became a string of colora
tura arias with accompaniments for
the orchestra of so slight a kind as to
be trivial. The "plots" also were of
secondary importance. Dramatic in
terest failed, and the opera might just
as well have been sung off stage.
There are notable exceptions to this, as
in the case of Rossini's "William Tell,"
but composers in other countries had
shown that a higher standard of art
was possible. The first to realize this
was Verdi, whose early works followed
the Rossini-Bellini models. He was
too great an artist to remain unaffected
by the general development of opera
elsewhere, and soon adopted a virile
course of his own in which, while re
maining true to Italian ideals of plenti
ful melody, he gave more attention to
the drama, and to the fuller emotional
expression made possible by modern
harmonies and an improved orchestra.
In such works as "Rigoletto,""Tra-

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

viata," "Aida," and finally in "Otello"
and"Falstaff,"he brought Italian
opera back to its traditionally high
standards. His successors such as
Giordani, Ponchielli, Puccini, Mas-
cagni and Leoncavallo, have main
tained his achievements. They have
held to Italian ideals as to melody, but
have fully availed themselves of all
modern resources. Their plots have
tended to be "realistic," often melo
dramatic, but in this they have but
followed the general artistic trend of
the age.

FRANCE

Italian opera was introduced into
France by Lulli, about fifty years after
the Bardi-Peri experiments in Florence.
Here it was quickly grafted on to the
older French art of the Ballet, and it
developed along lines of its own.
Lulli's initial efforts were succeeded by
those of Rameau, a Belgian (1683-
1764) and some very necessary re
forms which affected opera in all coun
tries were brought about in Paris by
Gluck (1714-1787). France ^ has been
peculiarly indebted to foreigners for
the development of her opera, but has
naturally produced many opera-com
posers of her own. The French gave
special attention to the art of declama
tion and they have, in this respect,
steadily maintained their prestige. The
opera-bouffe is a form of opera peculiar
to France, for which the world remains
in her debt. French ideals were main
tained by such composers as Halevy,
Auber, Thomas, and later, Gounod
and Bizet with "Faust" and "Carmen"
respectively. Saint-Saens and Mas
senet did much to develop French art
in the latter part of the nineteenth
and beginning of the twentieth cen
turies, and still further advances have
been made in recent years by Debussy
and others. The latter-day French
have steadily adhered to the French

ideal of faithful declamation^rather
than melodic inventions, which ac
counts for the fact that the modern
French operas yield few " tunes" for
the multitude to whistle.

GERMANY

The first distinctively German operas
were given us by Reinhard Keiser, who
flourished in Hamburg, where Handel
also made his first operatic ventures.
The first genuine "Singspiel" publicly
performed was Johann Theile's "Adam
and Eve/' produced in Hamburg, 1678.
This form is somewhat akin to the
English "ballad-opera," consisting
chiefly of a dramatic story interpolated
with songs and ballads. Even Mozart,
who generally followed Italian models,
was attracted by this novel form. A
notable advance in German opera was
Beethoven's "Leonore," in which the
great master followed lines of his own,
somewhat resembling those of Gluck.
The modern German romantic opera
is generally said to have been founded
by Weber with "Der Freischiitz," in
which he falls back for his subject upon
German legend. Spohr and Marschner
also contributed to this movement,
which certainly payed the way for
Richard Wagner, without doubt the
greatest dramatic composer the world
has yet known. Not only did Wagner
exert a profound influence upon Ger
man art, but he affected the composers
of all nations, in instrumental as well
as in dramatic music. Since Wagner's
epoch the greatest of the German opera
composers has been Richard Strauss,
with "Salome," "Elektra" and kin
dred works. Other notable followers
of the Wagnerian model, whose works
are known in this country, have been
Humperdinck, Goldmark and Smetana
(whose "Bartered Bride"is a Bo
hemian work specially characteristic
of latter-day nationalistic efforts). A
notable contemporary of Wagner was

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Meyerbeer, who for awhile dominated
the French stage. Meyerbeer was a
law unto himself, however, producing
works along German, French or Italian
lines with equal facility, contributing
here and there to the general develop
ment of opera yet founding no school,
and having no disciples. The Germans
have excelled both in declamation and
in melody, and have greatly enriched
and dignified the resources of opera
with their great learning in the arts of
harmony, counterpoint, instrumenta
tion, stage-setting, as well as by their
highly idealistic standards of beauty.
In recent times these qualities ran to
seed somewhat, and much that was
beautiful gave way to that which was
merely "kolossal"; but Germany today
is, if anything, as deeply affected as
ever by the splendid traditions of
Beethoven and Wagner.

ENGLAND

In England the operatic ideas of the
Italians were grafted onto the Masque
as in France they had been grafted
onto the Ballet. Purcell, Thomas
Arne and others made a splendid be
ginning. Handel contributed some
thing before turning his attention to
oratorio; but on the whole England
has not added anything to opera
worthy to rank with her splendid con
tributions to literature and the stage.
The most distinctive type of opera
England has given the world has been
the ballad-opera such as "The Bo
hemian Girl" and"Maritana" (both
by Irish composers!). The lighter
forms of opera have been developed
in this country with some success.
"The Beggars* Opera" was an early
effort in this direction. In more recent
times, a more distinctive type of satir

ical comedy-opera had a promising be
ginning with Gilbert and Sullivan, but
so far there has been no successor to
"H. M. S. Pinafore," "The Mikado"
or " Patience," in which the movements
and personalities of the day were held
up to salutary ridicule.

RUSSIA

At first Russia followed strictly
Italian models, but in "A Life for the
Czar" (1836), Glinka showed what
might be drawn from Russia's own
immense resources in national folk-
music, and since his day such com
posers as Moussorgski, Balakireff,
Tschaikowsky, Rimsky-Korsakoff,
Borodin and others have produced
some highly original works. These
are steadily growing in favor.

AMERICA

Receptive to all schools of opera, the
United States has as yet produced no
distinctive type, the works of Victor
Herbert, Cadman, Horatio Parker and
others being apparently founded more
or less on German or French models.
The Metropolitan Opera House in
New York (if we except the opera in
New Orleans) so far is almost the only
organization that has persisted over a
number of years in producing the great
est works in the best style. It seems
probable that Chicago may succeed
in maintaining a permanent organi
zation of its own, but efforts to estab
lish permanent independent opera in
such cities as Philadelphia and Boston
have so far proved abortive. Our
other cities are dependent solely upon
local amateur efforts, upon visits of
the Metropolitan or Chicago Com
panies, or the more or less successful
itinerant companies which struggle for
existence.

NOTE ON PRONUNCIATION

EE all systems of pronunciation
involving foreign languages, the
system of pronunciation fol
lowed in the "Victrola Book of the
Opera" cannot hope to reproduce every
sound exactly,

Many European languages^ contain
sounds, especially vowels, which have
no exact equivalents in English. _ Cer
tain French sounds are exceedingly
difficult for many English-speaking
persons to learn the vowel sounds of
u and eu, for instance, and certain
terminal consonants, such as the n in
words like charmant. The German ch,
to many, also is difficult, and the
vowels, a, 6 and ii. The best practice
is to Anglicize these frankly, where the
exact pronunciation cannot ^be learned
by word of mouth. There is no harm
in referring to "L'Africaine," for in
stance, as "Lafricayn"; anybody who
knows the French name of this opera
will understand you, will accept _your
pronunciation, and you need be in no
fear of ridicule. If you cannot say
Alberich, call this character Alberick.
It is best, of course, to learn each pro
nunciation, but where this is not pos
sible, the best thing is to pronounce
the name as it is given in the "Book of
the Opera". Imperfect knowledge is a
thousand times better, in such matters,
than blank ignorance.

If Italian pronunciations seem con
fusing, it is well to remember that c,
before e and i, is pronounced like ch
in cheese; before other vowels, like k.
The Italian ch is "hard," like our own
k. G, before e and i, is soft, as in gem
and gin; before other consonants hard,
as in gate y go. In French there is no
syllabic accent, or stress, all syllables
being sounded equally. But here and
there, in French names, we have placed

an accent mark over a syllable, to indi
cate that it must be pronounced as
clearly as the others, and not slurred
over.

Many of the standard operas have
several names, according to the lan
guage into which they may be trans
lated. Wagner's Fliegende Hollander^
for example, in French first became
Le Vaisseau Fantome^ which is not a
translation at all, and in English it is
The Flying Dutchman. Pagliacci,
in French, becomes Paillasse; the first
English translator rendered it simply
Clowns. Romeo and Juliet in Italian

Romeo e Giulietta^ and in French

Romeo et Juliette. Here and there
throughout the volume, for greater
intimacy with English-speaking audi
ences, a character originally English in
origin (as Othello), is not translated
into Italian except in the title to the
opera. Happily most operas bear
titles (like A'ida), for example, which
are the same in all languages.

The nomenclature of the operas is
that by which they are most familiarly
known in America. The titles in the
index include all the variants, in differ
ent languages, likely to be called for
by an English-speaking public. Where
a name is similar in several languages,
the original article is not changed.

It is believed this procedure, while
affording liberal cross-references, will
save a good deal of vexation. Nothing
is more exasperating, to the music-lover
unschooled in operatic history, than to
hear, or to come across, references to
some strange work whicli proves to be
only a familiar one under an unfamil
iar name. European countries, despite
their knowledge of one another's speech,
cling pertinaciously to their own titles
for operatic works.

L'AFRICAINE

(THE AFRICAN)

MEYERBEER might be called
the Chameleon of Music. In
the arts, he was all things to
all persons, writing for public demand.
He was born in 1791, in Berlin, of
Jewish parentage. His father was a
rich banker named Beer, and the com
poser added the "Meyer" in compli
ment to an uncle bearing that name.
He early exhibited musical powers,
and wrote much music, in a stiff and
formal style. He adapted this first,
however, to the needs of Vienna, then
to the needs of Italy, where he was
hailed as a sort of new Rossini. In
France he grew more Gallic, it would
seem, than the French.

Meyerbeer was a slow and uncertain
workman. He wrote and erased and
re-wrote interminably. He received the
libretto of "L'Africaine" in 1838, and
it occupied him for years, not being
actually produced until after his death.
The plot was tinkered with and modi
fied times out of number so much so,
that the present hero, Vasco di Gama>
was added to the characters as an
afterthought!

"I/Africaine," says Grove, "is the
most purely lyrical of Meyerbeer's
operas. None is so melodious or so
pathetic, or so free from blemishes of
conventionality. . . It approaches the
domain of poetry more nearly than any
of his other operas." It was one of the
longest, requiring six hours to produce,
so that it had to be cut down radi
cally. It is one of the best, however,
of Meyerbeer's works; it is rich in
melody and contains many famous
numbers, some of them recorded.

THE OPERA

OPERA in five acts. Text by
Scribe; music by Meyerbeer.
First produced at the Opera, Paris,

April 28, 1865, with a cast including
Sasse, Batteo, Naudin and Faure.
First London performance in Italian,
under the French title, at Covent
Garden, July 22, 1865; and in
English at the Royal English Opera,
Covent Garden, October 21, 1865.
First American production December
1, 1865. Mmes. Hauk, Moran-Olden,
Bettaque, Breval,Nordica and Litvinne
are some of the famous prime donne
who have appeared as Selika in
America. Vasco di Gama has been
sung by Campamni, Giannini, Perotti,
Grienauer, Dippel, de Reszke and
Tamagno; and Nelusko by Faure,
Scotti, Stracciari and Campanari. Pro
duced at the New Orleans Opera
December 18, 1869. Important New
York revivals occurred in 1901 with
Breval, de Reszke, Adams, Plancon
and Journet; and in 1906 with Caruso
(his first appearance in the role),
and again in 1923.

CHARACTERS

SELIKA, (Say-lee f -kaK) a slave,
formerly an African prin
cess Soprano

INEZ, (Ee'-nez) daughter of

Don Diego Soprano

NELUSKO, (Nay-loos'-koh) a
slave, forme/ly an African
chief Basso

DON PEDRO, (Don Pay'-droJi)
President of the Royal
Council Basso

GRANDE INQUISITORS Basso

DON DIEGO, (Don Dee-ay'-goh)

Member of the Council . . . Basso

HIGH PRIEST OF BRAHMA

(Brah'-mati) Basso

VASCO DI GAMA, (Vahs'-koh dee
Gah'-mah) an officer in the
Portuguese Navy Tenor

CARUSO

AS VASCO DI CAM A

V I C T ROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Chorus of Counsellors, Inquisitors,
Sailors, Indians and Attendant Ladies

The Action occurs In Portugal, on Don
Pedro's Ship at Sea^ and in India

(The Italian name of the opera is
"L'Africana," Lqf-ree-kah* -nah\ the
French is "L'Africaine", Laf-ree-kahri).

ACT I

SCENE Council Chamber of the
King of Portugal

VASCO DI GAM A has returned
after an expedition with news of a
new and strange land; he has brought
papers, charts, and two slaves, Selika,
formerly an African princess, and
NeluskOy a former chieftain of hers.
Vasco is a blend of quixotism and
practical ability, uniting the sailor's
bluffness with the poet's idealism. He
is eager to do in the East what Colum
bus did in the West, and to add a new
El Dorado to the Portuguese realms.
We find him in Council, and we hear
a dignified opening chorus, "Dio che
la terra venere" (Thou Whom the
Earth Adores). The slaves are pre
sented Indian in feature though he
bought them in Africa. Vasco, un
knowingly enough, through his love
for Inez, daughter of Don Diego, has
awakened the enmity of Don Pedro,
President of the Council, and when he
asks for funds for a new vessel to ex-

Elore the new territory, his request, to
is amazement, is followed by his
arrest, and he is led off between guards.

ACT II

SCENE Prison of the Inquisition

VASCO sleeps fitfully, Selika watch
ing. As she sings a lullaby of her
own land, Nelusko enters with a knife
to slay him. She reminds Nelusko of
his debt to Vasco, who saved his life,
and, awakening the sleeper, saves
Vasco s in turn. Selika tells Vasco
the route to the land of his heart's

desire. He embraces her, and she be
lieves she has won him. Inez and Don
Pedro^ enter. The girl's father and the
courtier have told her that Vasco loves
Selika; it < seems true, and Inez re
nounces him, declaring she is now the
affianced of Don Pedro. Vasco is set
free, and he removes her jealousy by
giving her the two slaves.

Vasco learns that the King has given
Don Pedro^ the expedition and the
governorship of the new country. Don
Pedro offers to buy the slaves to learn
the route. Nelusko is overjoyed, for
this will separate Vasco and Selika.
As Vasco leaves the prison, he learns
that Inez has wedded his arch-enemy.

ACT III

SCENE Deck of Don Pedro's Ship

THERE is an orchestral prelude,
in placid vein, typifying the lapse
of time; a. plaintive melody for the
cor anglais is prominent. The rising
curtain discloses the ship's deck, where
Nelusko, who has misguided her course,
planning escape, sings the weird "All'
erta, Mariner!" (What Ho, Mariners!)
followed by the weirder ballad of
"Adamastor, Re dell'onde profonde"
(Adamastor, King of the Seas). This
rolling stave, mocked with a trombone,
affects all with superstitious fear. A
storm arises, a ship is seen in the offing,
and Don Pedro's ship heaves to. Vasco,
with true chivalry, comes aboard. He
has come off on his own account, and
he comes to warn Don Pedro of danger.
Don Pedro orders him slain, when
Selika rushes at Inez with a poised
knife, threatening to kill her unless
Vasco is released. Don Pedro com
plies; but Vasco is imprisoned in the
hold. Selika is led to be flogged, when
the storm breaks and all find occupa
tion. Suddenly the ship is boarded by
Indians. Don Pedro and his host are
slain. Nelusko is acclaimed leader,
and Selika queen.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE BALLAD OF ADAMASTOR

ACT IV

SCENE A Temple of Brahma

TO the semi-barbaric strains of the
"Marcia Indiana," or "Indian
March", Selika is placed upon her
throne. The women survivors of the
ship are being marched to the deadly
grove of mancinilla trees, whose in
fluence is poison. Concealed in the
ship's hold, Vasco is discovered later,
and he is brought before Selika^ al
ready sentenced to death. Left alone
with his guard, he sings the lovely
" O Paradiso " (Oh Paradise), a smooth,
lovely cantilena with an eloquent cli
max. Then the crowds return, de
manding his death. Selika is with
them; she ^can save his life only by
claiming him as her husband. She

compels Nelusko's consent by threaten
ing suicide. The priests consent, but
demand a ritual marriage in native
style. Thinking Inez dead, fiasco con
sents. Alone with his bride, he hears
the voice of Inezwho has escaped.

ACT V
SCENE I The ^tiecn's Garden

INEZ is recaptured. Sel'lka^ with
swift insight, learns her love is
true, pure and worthy of her own sac
rifice. She gives Nelusko some tablets
declared poisonous, and tells him to
place Inez and Vasco on a homeward-
bound ship; the tablets, to be ad
ministered on the way home, of course
are harmless. Then Inez prepares for
death.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

SCENE II A Promontory by the Sea

A MANCINILLA tree overlooks
JL\ the broad ocean. Selika, stand
ing beneath it, gazes at a distant sail.
She sings a long and sorrowful fare
well, "Gia Todio m'abbandona" (All
Thoughts of Hate). She seizes some
of the deadly flowers, and inhales the
perfume. Nelusko, seeking her, finds
her swooning. He, too, drinks of the
poisoned air of the flowers, and sinks
beside her.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless otherwise noted)

ACT III
ALL' ERTA MARINAR!

(What Ho! Mariners!) TITTA RUFFO,
Baritone 817 10-in., {51.50

ADAMASTOR, RE DELL' ONDE PRO-
FONDE

(Adamastor, Ruler of Ocean) TITTA
RUFFO, Baritone 6262 12-in,, 2.00

NELUSKO:

Adamastor, monarch of the pathless deep,
Swift o'er foaming waves

To sound of fierce winds tramping;

When his dark steeds vex the misty sea,

Beware, mariner! Beware, mariner!

When the gale rolls o'er the deep,

Then beware, then beware!

See, the lightning's flash reveals to thine eye,

How the dark waves seek the storm-laden sky

All hope now is lost,

For the doomed wretch no tomb.

None, none but a watery grave!

ACT IV
O PARADISO!

(Oh Paradise!) ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

6007 12-in., 2.00

BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor

6138 12-in., 2.00

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor
6193

2.00

12-in.,

EVAN WILLIAMS, Tenor In English

6308 12-in., 2.00
VASCO:

Hail! fruitful land of plenty,

An earthly Paradise art thou!

Oh Paradise on earth !

Oh azure sky, oh fragrant air

All enchant my heart;

Thou fair new world art mine!

Thee, a radiant gift,

On my native land I'll bestow!

O beauteous country mine thou art at last!

VASCO AROUSES THE JEALOUSY OF INEZ

HOMER.

AS AMNERIS

THE RETURN OF RHADAMES ACT II

AIDA

GIUSEPPE VERDI was almost
sixty. He had worked long,
hard and successfully, and he
felt he had earned the right to retire.
But the Viceroy of Egypt was to open
the new Grand Opera House in Cairo,
he wanted a new opera for the dedica
tion, and Verdi seemed the logical com
poser to write it. A work dealing with
the past grandeurs of Egypt was to
be the subject to which Verdi's genius
for the grandiose seemed especially
fitted. When approached, however,
he sought to evade the commission by
naming an exorbitant fee a method
by which Grieg, in later years, sought
to avoid the rigors of a sea voyage
and an American concert tour. Verdi,
like Grieg, was embarrassed when his
offer was accepted. Unlike Grieg, he
could not plead ill health, and he set
to work. He soon became interested,
as he felt the opera growing beneath

his hand. When completed, it was
realized to be the greatest work of
his career. He little dreamed that
sixteen years later he was to bring forth
an even greater one!

"A'ida" was successful from the first.
It lacked none of the composer's earlier
fire, but it was more mature in style and
more ^ convincing in dramatic power.
Its vivid plot, its golden pageantry,
its richness of melody, of harmony,
and of orchestral scoring, marked it
not simply as one of the best of Verdi's
works, but as one of the greatest of all
time. And years have rather increased
than diminished its reputation.

In " A'ida,' ' Verdi realized he was pre
paring a pageant an opera in mag
nificent setting, with plenty of room for
display. He was composing for large
masses of people, and^he did not fail to
provide melody in its simplest and
most impressive form, in a setting of

VI CT ROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

politan as Rhadames. A highly impres
sive open air production was given in
1912 at the foot of the pyramids of
Egypt.

CHARACTERS

AIDA, an Ethiopian slave

(Ah-ee f -dah) Soprano

THE KING OF EGYPT Bass

AMNERIS, (Am-nay'-riss) his

daughter Mezzo-Soprano

RHADAMES, (Rahd'-ah -maze)

Captain of the Guard Tenor

AMONAS RO, (Am -oh-nahz f -

roK) King of Ethiopia. . . . Baritone
RAMFIS, (Rahm'-fiss) High

Priest Bass

A MESSENGER Tenor

Priests, Priestesses, Ministers, Cap
tains, Soldiers, Officials, Ethio
pian Slaves and Prisoners,
Egyptians, etc.

harmony and orchestration all might
appreciate. Yet there is careful char
acterization throughout. The music
of Rhadames is bold and romantic; the
vanity, pride, anger, jealousy, terror of
Amneris find ample expression. The
simple, loving Aida is no less carefully
drawn; so it is with minor characters,
Amonasro, Ramfis, The King.^ Nor is
the proper background wanting the
blazing pageantry of Rhadames' re
turn; the soft beauty and mystery of
Egyptian night; the awe-inspiring rit
ual of the priests of Isis, Osiris and
Ptah. The more one studies "Aida"
the more one is amazed at the lavish
genius of the composer. It is a land
mark, not only in his own develop
ment, but in that of opera itself.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Text trans
lated from the French of Locle by
Antonio Ghislanzoni. Music by Giu
seppe Verdi. First produced in Cairo,
December 24, 1871; at La Scala, Milan,
under the direction of the composer
himself, February 8, 1872; at Naples in
March, 1872; at Parma, April, 1872;
Berlin, 1874; in Paris, at the Theatre
Italien, April 22, 1876; revived at the
same theatre in 1878; and given at the
Opera, March 22, 1880, where it has
since been one of the most popular of
all works. First London production at
Covent Garden, June 22, 1876; pro
duced at St. Petersburg, in Russian,
1879. First performance in America
at the Academy of Music, New York,
November 26, 1873, the cast includ
ing Torriani, Gary, Campanini and
Maurel. Produced in Philadelphia,
December 12,1873; and at the New
Orleans Opera December 6, 1878. The
opera has always been a favorite one
in America, and holds the Metropoli
tan Opera record for the largest num
ber of performances. In 1904 Caruso
made his first appearance at the Metro-

The Scene is laid in Memphis and
Thebes ', in Pharaoh's time.

ACT I

SCENE I A Hall in the Palace. Through
the Great Gate at the rear may be
seen the Pyramids and the Tem
ples of Memphis

TO a soldier, the knowledge of his
country's danger must act as a
trumpet-call; to Rhadames it implies
even more. Ramfis^ the high priest,
the power behind the throne, has told
him the Ethiopians are about to rise
against Egypt, and that an expedi
tion is to go forth to prevent them.
He intimates that the sacred Isis,
the omnipotent goddess of his peo
ple, has chosen a certain brave and
young warrior to command. He de
parts, leaving Rhadames to ponder his
words.
But the young warrior is not dream-

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

AIDA SUNG AT THE FOOT OF THE PYRAMIDS IN 19 1 2

ing simply of war. He thinks also of his
victorious return to his beloved A'ida
the slave, captured from the very
people he proposes to attack. In his
triumphs he will have full power to
atone for her present misfortunes. In
the visions of his new power and the
intoxication of his love, he sings the
beautiful "Celeste Ai'da:"

This melody, sung against a shim
mering background of string-tone, ex
presses to the full the devotion of Rhad-
ames. Its beauty has made it. the
most popular number in the opera, and
the number most frequently played by
itself. Yet as a part of the opera it is
even finer establishing, by sheer mus
ical beauty, the intensity of Rhadames*
love in such a way as to make his sub
sequent sacrifice on A'ida 's behalf both
logical and inevitable.

His musings are broken by Amneris^

the king's daughter, a woman whose
demure aspect conceals a passionate
and highly charged nature. She ral
lies the hero upon the unwonted fire of
his glance, declaring the woman who
may inspire it is to be envied. A
strange and ardent light indeed gleams
there, but it gleams, not for Amneris
but A'iday who is seen approaching.
Her woman's wit quickened by jeal
ousy, Amneris comprehends. She, a
royal princess of Egypt, ignored for a
foreign-born slave !

Her anger is delayed by the entrance
of the Kingy with his guards. A mes
senger brings the news that the Ethi
opian invasion is an accomplished
fact that the enemy approaches under
Amonasro. ("My father!" exclaims
Aida, aside.) Amid excitement, Rhad-
ames is appointed leader, and Amneris
enjoys a proud moment as she pre
sents him with the banner beneath
which he is to go forth.

The King enjoins the Egyptians to
guard with their lives the sacred Nile,
and they depart to make ready for war.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE GREAT CONSECRATION SCENE

Afda, with conflicting feelings, is left
alone on the stage. There she sings the
remarkable aria, "Ritorna Vinci tor/ '
blaming herself for the words of en
couragement she had given the hero
when about to set forth against her
own father, yet confessing to herself
again the racking power of her love for
Rhadames.

The girl is horrified, as much at her
self as at the workings of circumstance;
but she sincerely loves Rhadames and
wishes for him to return in glory. The
varied melody, the shifting harmonies
of the music here, supported by ever-
varying ^ orchestral touches as con
flicting ideas seize her, make this a
memorable instance of Verdi's mature
genius. A'ida seems ready to collapse.
But she recovers, calls wildly upon the
gods for aid, and goes out slowly as the
curtain falls.

SCENE II The Temple of Vulcan. In

the center is an Altar illumined

by a mysterious Light

from above

R3ADAMES has come to seek the
blessing of the gods. Ramfis and
his priests and priestesses intone bless
ings upon the expedition, while an in
visible choir chants the praises of Ptah.
Rhadames enters and receives the con
secrated veil. He is solemnly blessed
by Ramfis^ responding with a fervent
prayer to his gods to protect the sacred
land of Egypt, of which he is now the
sworn champion and leader. Ramfis
then sings the closing invocation,
"Nume custode e vindice" (God,
Guardian and Avenger). This is a broad,
dignified melody, against a steadily
beating orchestral accompaniment in
which a majestic contrapuntal bass is
heard. Soon the air is taken up by
Rhadames and the chorus with rich
and gorgeous effect. Rhadames is in
vested with the sacred armor, and as
the priestesses |o through the mystic
dance, the curtain foils. Never is Rhad
ames farther, than at this moment,
from the thought of treachery to his
beloved country. Wait and see!

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT II

SCENE I A Hall in Amneris' Apart
ment

R "HAD AMES has been away for some
time long enough for him to
have justified his command with victory,
and more than long enough to set
Amneris thinking upon his strange be
havior with the slave-girl. She lies in
dolently upon her couch, her own girls
chanting songs in his praise. She her
self calls upon love to fulfil her soul
with rapture and to heal her own
jealousy. The girls' chorus, "Chi
mai fra" (His Glory Now Praise), is
rich and heavy with Oriental color
ing. As they sing, Amneris takes up
the melody. There is a beautiful,
long-drawn trumpet note in the accom
paniment.

Seeing A'ida approach, Amneris pre
pares for a moment of revenge. It is
deftly achieved. She treacherously
consoles the girl just long enough to
gain her confidence; then when the se
cret is out, she turns upon her like a
scorpion. "Time will heal the anguish
of thy heart/ 7 she declares, "and more
than this, a powerful god-love/ ' Sym
pathy is the last thing the captive looks
for, and she is melted. The talk of love
disarms her, and the crafty princess,
watching with cat-like eyes, has no dif
ficulty in reading the pallor upon her
rival's face.

" Among the braves who fought so well,
Has someone a tender sorrow awakened in
your heart?"

This is enough. "What say'st thou?"
cries the unhappy girl, and her secret is
out. Amneris then confesses her own
love for the hero the love of the king's
own daughter.

Then follows a powerful scene.
A'ida is dazed. She can but implore
mercy from the merciless. She makes
no denial, only pleads, helplessly, for

pity. Amneris first threatens her
with death, but refines upon this by
demanding that she shall witness
Rhadames* triumphant return, and his
obeisances to herself as she sits beside
her father, the King.

SCENE II Without the City Walls

THE scene changes to a gate of the
city of Thebes. The King and his
court are assembled about a great
throne to receive and welcome the con
quering army. A majestic chorus is
sung by the people and the priests,
leading up to the famous "Grand
March/;

This is introduced by trumpet calls,
in an introductory crescendo, broad,
suave, melodious, followed by the mar
tial strains so familiar to all. Specially
designed trumpets are used here. They
are long and straight, like the trumpets
used in Renaissance art. Each has a
tiny valve concealed beneath the
trumpeter's hand.

The pomp and the splendor of this
scene are unsurpassed by anything
in the range of opera. The Egyptian
troops, preceded .by the trumpeters,
enter, followed by chariots of war, en
signs, statues of the gods, dancing
girls carrying treasures, and finally
Rhadames, riding in triumph under a
canopy borne by twelve slaves. An
additional brass band, as a rule, is
employed on the stage here, in addi
tion to the trumpets. The effect is
magnificent beyond description.

The King descends from the throne
to embrace Rhadames, as the saviour of
his country. At his own command,
Amneris crowns the victor, who is
asked to name any boon he desires.

At that moment the prisoners enter,
including Amonasro, dressed as a plain
officer. A'ida cries out "My father!"
but she is signaled not to betray his
rank. Amonasro then acknowledges
his daughter, admits defeat, and de-

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

scribes how the "King of the Ethi
opians", (himself!) transfixed by
wounds, died at his feet. That this
duplicity is not simply a means of
salvation but of revenge is shown in
his plea to the King., whom he asks
to be merciful, as Fate may bring him
his own misfortunes on the morrow!

Amonasro s bluff, soldierly manner
commends itself to the King. The popu
lace and prisoners beg his release; the
priests demand his death, and that of
the other captives. Rhadames pleads
for mercy, and recalling the King's
promise of whatever he desires, de
mands life and liberty for the Ethi
opians. The King yields, stipulat
ing only that A'ida and Amonasro re
main as hostages. So far, all is well;
but he announces that Rhadames shall
have, for further reward, the hand of
Amneris.

Then follows a magnificent finale.
Amonasro, released, swears secret ven
geance, already planning, a bad man
but a true man of action. Amneris is

triumphant, her vengeance complete.
But as the curtain falls, Rhadames and
A'ida gaze upon one another in blank
despair. The hand of Fate has struck
them, and struck hard.

ACT III

SCENE The Banks of the Nile; Moon
light. The Temple of Isis can be
seen behind Palm Trees

FROM out the temple is heard a
sweet, mysterious chant of praise,
"O tu che sei d'Osiride" (O Thou who
art Osiris). Oboes and wood-winds,
against a gently persistent rhythmic
accompaniment, yield tranquil but
weird suggestions of the Orient night.
The calm is portentous, however,
as before a storm. A boat approaches
with Ramfis and with Amneris^ who
has come to give thanksgiving for vic
tory, and to pray that Rhadames shall
be hers forever. The pair enter the
temple, when A'ida comes cautiously
forward, in hope that Rhadames him
self may appear. She sings a tender

COPY T MISHK1N

DALMORES AS RHADAMES

CARUSO AS RHADAMES
30

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

and despairing song of the lovely land
she may never see again. This air, "O
Patria Mia" (My Native Land), is one
of the loveliest in the work. Blending
with its melody is a weird, wandering
strain for the oboe, faint, high, sweet
and mysterious.

Turning ^ to go, she sees Amonasro,
who conceives in her love for Rhad-
ames a means of escape, and even
victory. Skilled plotter, he plays, even
as Amneris\&& played, upon the feel
ings of the innocent girl. He tells her,
almost brutally, he knows of her love,
and the princess's jealousy. Agonized,
she cries out that she is in the power of
Amneris, when he tells her how she
may gain happiness with her lover and
return to Ethiopia.

The proposal is an ugly one; the way
for it is laid by a harrowing picture of
the Ethiopians' treatment by their con
querors. And that is too much for
the girl, who recoils. Then follows a
terrible scene, in which the woes of her
people are laid upon her own head. She
cries out for pity but what are the
woes of a girl beside the ambitions of
kings and the fates of peoples? At last
she yields, and the tragedy moves on.

Rhadames at this moment appears,
Amonasro concealing himself among
trees. The hero seeks to embrace his
beloved, but, scientifically prepared,
she bids him prove his affection by flee
ing with her. The scene, "Fuggiam
gli ardori" (Fly With Me), is a remark
able dialog in music, the pleading ac
cents of the girl and the agitation of
the hero being in sharp contrast. He
resists, but the glamor of her presence,
the spell of the night, and the desperate
prospects of his marriage to Amneris,
weaken his resolve. He in turn suc
cumbs; and caught up, by reaction, up
on the surge of his own emotions, he
gives way, freely, to his vision of an
easy future. The music follows and
expounds all. In yielding, he lets slip

the information that the Egyptian
army must go out by the pass ojf Na-
pata. And Amonasro then leaps forth.

Rhadames > commander of the Egyp
tians, has let loose his plans. But his
fatal devotion to Aida is too strong,
and it is too late to repent. Amonasro,
with subtle casuistry, points out that
he is guiltless, that his betrayal is Fate.
He paints an attractive picture of what
lies, for all of them, in Ethiopia. Rhad
ames , as a man, is done.

The worst is yet to follow. Among
the still palms, there has been a double
eavesdropping. Amneris, coming from
the temple, has overheard.

Mad with jealousy she rushes m and
denounces the trio, her wrath blazing
forth with especial virulence against
Rhadames , the betrayer of his country,
his gods and herself. So blind is her
passion, that Amonasro escapes, and
with him Aida who sees, in a flash,
that her one hope is to help her father
in his attack on the Egyptians, if Rhad
ames ever is to be rescued.

ACT IV

SCENE I A Room in the Palace. One
side, a Door leading to Rhadames y
Prison Cell

\ MNERIS is passionate, hot-blood-
JL\. ed, vindictive, but she is a woman.
If self-love is the guiding star of her life,
she nevertheless loves Rhadames with
the full hunger of a selfish nature. As
the curtain rises, she is seen in despair,
weighing the cost of her own action in
giving up her lover to the priests. Her
rival has escaped; Rhadames, through
her own act, awaits a traitor's punish
ment how unjustly only she herself
knows; for he was controlled by human
impulse, not design. Could he learn
to love her, she yet might save him!
She resolves to try, and he is brought
in. Then begins the first great duet of
the act; "Gia i sacerdoti" (The Priests
Assemble). Exerting all the power of

VICTROLA BOOK OF T HE OPERA

her beauty and her womanhood, she
offers to save Rhadames if he will re
nounce Aid a,. He refuses, and is told
that death is the alternative. What
does Rhadames care for death? As the
scene wheels on, " Aida, a me togliesti"
(Aida, Thou Hast Taken), he speaks
again of his rapt affection for the slave-
girl. The duet rises to supreme heights
when he declares that his death ^ for
Aidas sake can be counted as the high
est blessing he can desire. Then the pity
of Amneris subsides into the darkness
of hate, and she calls upon the gods for
revenge. The men-at-arms appear,
and conduct Rhadames into the judg
ment room.

Amneris must suffer too. Rhadames
once gone, she cries out against the
very fate to which she has sent him.
This is a most beautiful moment;
"Ohime, Morir mi sento!" (Ah, Me,
Death Approaches !) sings the unhappy
princess. Then she turns, to see Ramfis
and the Priests filing past her and enter

ing the judgment hall. " Behold/ ' she
cries, "the fatal ministers of death
Ah, do not let me behold those white-
robed phantoms !" But the law now is
stronger than the will of Amneris. Her
lamentation, the stern voice of Ramfis
and his priests, from behind the scenes,
conducting the trial, combine to pro
duce a doubly tragic sense of forebod
ing. It is marvellously reflected in the
music. The bass tuba in the or
chestra sounds with baleful effect, and
the hollow voices of the priests, chant
ing in unison, add to the gloom that
prevails. Amneris^ in torture, covers
her face with her hands; but she cannot
shut out the terrible voices of Rhad
ames' accusers. Throughout all, he
remains silent. Finally the voice of
Ramfis pronounces the sentence
death by burial alive beneath the altar
of the gods whose nobler attributes -of
faith and justice he has offended.
The priests re-enter, and again file im
passively across the room, before the

AIDA: "Clasped in thy arms, love, I resolved to perish!"
32

VI CTR OLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

despairing eyes of Amneris. The
wretched woman denounces them, but
they repeat that their work is done.
She departs in wild despair, her last
hope gone; for nothing now can save
the man she loves from the terrible
doom that awaits him beneath the
temple-floor.

SCENE II Interior of the Temple of Vul
can below^ a Subterranean
Apartment^ the Tomb of
Rhadames

THE setting of the last scene is one
of the most remarkable in opera;
Verdi himself is said to have devised it.
The work, in the words of Camille
Blaigue," finishes in serenity and peace,
and such terminations are the most
beautiful. Above, the temple full of
light, where the ceremonies continue
immutable in the sanctuary of the in
different gods; below, two human be
ings dying in each other's arms/ ' The
stage, indeed, is divided; the upper half
shows the temple, where the chanting
priests intone their endless litanies; the
lower half, underneath the very statue
of Osiris, the deity of the nether world,

is the tomb where Rhadames awaits
death by starvation.

^ The hero, dedicated to death, believes
himself alone, and his reflections are
embodied in the incomparable music of
the aria, "La Fatal Pietra" (The Fa
tal Stone), which is swung into place
overhead. He laments, not suffering
and death, but separation from his be
loved. As the last sounds die out above
he sees, among the shadows, the out
line of a human figure. He is not mis
taken, not delirious, it is she! She has
come to partake of death beside him.
Her father is slain, his troops scattered;
she has crept to earth like a stricken
animal, her heart foreseeing the sen
tence to be passed upon Rhadames.

The great duet between the pair is
one of the supreme moments in all op
era. It is known as "O terra addio"
(Farewell, O Earth). Its melody is in
broad calm phrases, tranquil as the sea
of Eternity. It is sung in unison even
the blending of the voice-parts sym
bolizing the absorption of their souls
into a union free of all earthly dross.
Together they bid farewell to earth and
its sorrows, and await the Dawn.

ACT I

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless otherwise noted)

CELESTE AlDA!

(Heavenly Aida!) ENRICO CARUSO,

Tenor 6000 12-in., 2.00

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

6192 12-in., 2.00
RHADAMES:
Heavenly A'ida, beauty resplendent,

Radiant flower, blooming and bright;
Queenly thou reignest o'er me transcendent,

Bathing my spirit in beauty's light.
Would that thy bright skies once more behold
ing, _

Breathing the soft airs of thy native land,
Round thy fair brow a diadem folding,
Thine were a throne next the sun to stand!

RITORNA VINCITOR

(Return Victorious!) ROSA PONSELLE,
Soprano 6437 12-in., 2.00

AIDA:

Return victorious! And from thy lips
Went forth the impious word! Conqueror
Of my father of him who takes arms
For me to give me again
A country; a kingdom; and the illustrious

name

Which here I am forced to conceal!
The insane words forget, O gods;
Return the daughter
To the bosom of her father;
Destroy the squadrons of our oppressors!
What am I saying? And my love,
Can I ever forget

This fervid love which oppresses and enslaves,
As the sun's ray which now blesses me?
Shall I call death on Rhadames
On him whom I love so much?
Ah! Never on earth was heart torn by more
cruel agonies!

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT III

PATRIA MIA

(My Native Land) ROSA PONSELLE,
Soprano 6437 12-in., 32.00

AIDA:

My native land, no more to thee shall I return!
O skies of tender blue, O soft airs blowing,
Where calm and peaceful my dawn of life

pass'd o'er,

hills of verdure, perfum'd waters flowing,
O home beloved, I ne'er shall see thee more!
fresh and fragrant vales, O quiet dwelling,
Promise of happy days of love that bore.
Now hope is banish'd, love and yonder dream

dispelling,
O home beloved, I ne'er shall see thee more!

ACT IV

GlA I SACERDOTI ADUNANSI

(The Priests Assemble) LOUISE HOMER,
Contralto and ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

8012 12-in., 2.50

AI'DA A ME TOGLIESTI

(Ai'da Thou Hast Taken) LOUISE HOMER,
Contralto and ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

8012 12-in., 32.50

MORIR MI SENTO

(Death Approaches) BIANCA DE CASES,
Mezzo-Soprano and Chorus

6351 12-in., 2.00

LA FATAL PIETRA

(The Fatal Stone) Final duet, Part I
JOHANNA GADSKI, Soprano and ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 8015 12-in., 2.50

O TERRA ADDIO

(Farewell, Oh Earth) Final duet, Part II
JOHANNA GADSKI, Soprano and ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 8015 12-in., 2.50

LUCY MARSH, Soprano and TOHN

-" 12-in., 2.50

McCoRMACK, Tenor 8034

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

(Celeste Aida! (Heavenly Alda!) ..................... Paul Altho use, 7V0r\, cm ,

I Standchen (Serenade) (Schubert) (In German) ......... Paul Reimers, Tenor!* 50 * 5

/Ritorna vincitor (Return Victorious!) .............. Lucy Marsh, Soprano\^,^

10 patna mia (My Native Land) .................... Lucy Marsh, Soprano} 55135

fAIda Grand March ............................ VesselMs Italian Eand\,^ f .

I Rondo Caprtccioso .............................. ^esse//as Italian 6

10 .
12 " m '

,. .
12 " m ->

JFuggiam gli ardori (Ah! Fly With Me) ]

I ,- , _ Lucy Marsh, Soprano and Paul Althouse, TVwortsSOSS 12-in

I Madame Butterfly-0 quanti . . Olive Kline, Soprano and Paul Althouse, Tenor]

/Aida Selection Anhur p ryor ^ E tm fa .

I AttilaGrand Trto (Verdi] Kry/'s Bohemian Band}^ 1 * 12 - m *>

I Aida Selection Hurtado Brothers Marimba Eand\ , - - CQ

I Lucia Sextette Hurtado Brothers Marimba Band} 3SS39 12 - in '

'Gems from "ATda';-Part I Victor Opera Company

Chorus A mighty Phtha" Solo, "Heav'nly ATda" (Celeste Aida)
Women s Chorus, "Come Bind Thy Flowing Tresses "Soprano
Solo, Love, Fatal Power" Chorus, "On to Victory"

Gems from "ATda"-Part II . . Victor Opera Company 35726 "-in,

^tecSl^^^r^' ^ Native l^f.Asfs.^

-Solo, Priests

, - A
L5

2S
ISO

1.25
L2S

Chorus, "Oh Kin? in Thy Power, Transcendent"
of Isis" Finale, Duet and Chorus, "Fatal Stone"

ANDREA CHENIER

OPERA in four acts; libretto by
Luigi Illica; music by Umberto
Giordano. First produced at
La Scala, Milan, March 28, 1896.
London, 1903, Carl Rosa Company,
in English. First American produc-
tion Academy of Music, November 13,
1896. Revived in 1908 by Hammer-
stein. Metropolitan, 1922.

' I A HE Countess de Coigny is giving a
JL ball to church and state digni
taries. Chenier, whose verses have
found interest, is to be a guest. Gerard,,
a footman, soon to be revolutionary
leader, sees his aged father, a lackey,
at work; he sings the powerful dra
matic air, "Son Sessant' Anni" (For
Sixty Years) decrying his servitude.
The guests arrived, the Countess asks
Chenier to improvise; he refuses, con
senting when her daughter Madeleine
pleads. He outrages all but Madeleine,,
a sincere, spirited girl, by his idealistic
social and human creed. This is sung
in the aria, "Un di all 'azzurro spazio,"
criticizing church and state. A troop
of beggars enters, introduced by Gerard
as "His Serene Highness, Prince Pov
erty/' and is ejected, with Gerard.
Chenier follows.

In Act II, Chenier becomes a Revo
lutionary. Roucher appears with a pass
port for him, counselling flight. He
refuses without Madeleine, who arrives
in disguise, and begs him to save her
fromG<?7Wv/,nowa Revolutionary power
who is attracted to her. They start,
but are caught by Gerard,, who seizes
the girl. Gerard and Chenier fight,
while she is spirited away. Gerard is
hurt, but magnanimously counsels
Chenier to save the girl. He tells the
crowd his assailant is unknown to him.
Later on Gerard presides over a
Revolutionary tribunal. A spy

announces Chenier 's arrest, urging
Gerard to denounce him. The papers
are signed after the great scene,
"Nemico della patrie" (The Enemy
of His Country). Madeleine appears
and offers to give up her life for Chenier,
who, denounced as a traitor, pleads
his own cause. Gerard would relent,
but the mob thirsts for blood and
Chenier is led off for execution.

The last act is in St. Lazare prison,
where Chenier is writing his last verses,
the beautiful "Come un bel di
di Maggio" (As Some Soft Day in
May) expressing his belief in truth
and beauty. Madeleine bribes her
way in. Gerard brings her, then goes
for a last vain appeal to Robespierre
himself. At dawn the death-tumbril
comes for Chenier. Madeleine goes to
death with him. Gerard,, self-redeemed,
has for his reward the consciousness
of his own lofty self-sacrifice.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT I
SON SESSANT' ANNI

(Sixty Years Hast Thou Served Them)
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone

817 IQ-in., 31.50

UN DI ALL' AZZURRO SPAZIO
(Once O'er the Azure Fields) ENRICO

CARUSO, Tenor 6008 12-in., 2.00

BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor

6139 12-in., 2.00

ACT III
NEMICO DELLA PATRIE?

(The Enemy of His Country?) TITTA
RUFFO, Baritone 6262 12-in., 2.00

ACT IV
COME UN BEL Di DI MAGGIO

(As Some Soft Day in. May) ENRICO

CARUSO, Tenor 516 10-in., 1.50

BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor

975 10-in., 1.50

BARBER OF SEVILLE

(IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA)

(Italian)

WHEN told that Rossini had
composed "The Barber" in
thirteen days, Donizetti re
plied: "Very possible; he is so lazy."
The remark was at once a tribute and
a censure; for Giaoachino Antonio
Rossini was one of those men upon
whom Providence most lavishly scat
ters gifts.

Superficially, Donizetti's taunt is de
served in "The Barber." It bears all
the signs of a work hastily flung to
gether. The original overture was
lost and the present one belongs to a
totally different opera "Elizabetta";
the opening of the cavatina "Ecco
ridente" is borrowed from "Aureli-
ano"; the air of Serf ha, "II vecchietto
cerca moglie" was suggested by a
Russian tune, and the eight opening
measures of "Zitti, Zitti" are taken
from Simon's air in Haydn's "Sea
sons." Yet these numbers are at least
well chosen, and the rest of the opera
is so rich with original melody, so
joyous in its abounding good spirits,
so ^spontaneous and fresh, so subtle
in its characterization and so brilliant
in its climaxes that "The Barber" is
regarded by many as the greatest of
Rossini's ^ works. Not even the fact
that the incomparable Mozart himself
had dealt with the same Figaro in
another episode from the comedy of
Beaumarchais "The Marriage of Fi
garo" dims altogether its lustre.

"The Barber of Seville" was a vio
lent failure when first produced in
Rome. In this it fulfilled an almost
fixed tradition with meritorious, or
afterwards popular, works.

Aware that his opera was good,
Rossini took failure with philosophy;
he believed that the opera would ulti
mately succeed, and the belief was

justified. To this day, "The Barber
of Seville" has the place of honor
among the twenty operas Rossini
wrote in the eight years from 1815 to
1823. It is only surpassed if it is
surpassed by "William Tell," written
in 1829 the last opera the composer
wrote, though he was not yet forty
years of age.

Rossini's greatest contribution to
music in "The Barber" is his joyous
spontaneity. The melodies are so
fresh and vigorous, so lavish in their
bubbling fertility, that they disarm
technical analysis; but one technical
gift Rossini did possess a thorough
understanding of the human voice;
and this gift is displayed to the utmost
in "The Barber of Seville." The
"Largo al factotum" is possibly the
best basso buffo number ever written
and among coloratura arias none is
more famous than "Una voce poco
fa." In these, only the initiated can
tell how artfully the composer has
contrived to give the singer every
chance to make the most of vocal
skill without in any way lessening the
flow of natural melodic inspiration.

THE OPERA

COMIC opera in two acts; text
by Sterbini; founded on the
trilogy of ^Beaumarchais. Music
by Rossini. First presented at
Rome, February 5, 1816. The opera
was at first called "Almaviva," to dis
tinguish it from Paisiello's "Barber."
First London production, 1818. At
Paris, in^ Italian, 1819; m French,
1824. First production in Germany
at Brunswick, 1820. Produced at
Vienna, 1820; Berlin, 1822. First
N. Y. production November 29, 1825,
by Manuel Garcia and company; sung

VICTROLABOOKOFTHE OPERA

at the New Orleans Opera, March 9,
1828. Many notable revivals have oc
curred in America of recent years in
1892 with Patti, her last appearance
in New York as Rosina; in 1898, for
Melba, who made her first American
appearance as Rosina; for Sembrich's
farewell operatic appearance in 1909;
by Hammerstein, for Tetrazzini; the
New Theatre production with Lipkow-
ska, and the Metropolitan revival,
February 5, 1916, on the 100th anni
versary of the first production, with
Barrientos, Mattfeld, de Luca, Da-
macco and de Segurola.

CHARACTERS

COUNT ALMA VIVA (Ahl-mah-vee'-vah)

Tenor
BARTOLO (Bahr f -toh-loh) physician

Bass

ROSINA (Ro-zee-nah) his ward . Soprano
BASILIC (Bah-seel'-yoh) music master

Bass
BERTHA, Rosina's governess. .Soprano

FIGARO (Fee f -gah-roh) Baritone

FIORELLO (Fyo-rel'-lofi) servant to

the Count Tenor

Scene and Period: Seville, the

, Seventeenth Century
(The original Italian name of the
opera is "II Barbiere di Siviglia", Eel
Bahr-be-ay-reh dee See-veel'-yah).

ACT I

SCENE I A Street in Seville.
Day is Breaking

THE handsome and distinguished
Count Almaviva is deeply in love
with Rosina, the ward of Doctor Bartolo,
a physician both mean and suspicious.
Not wishing to have the glamor of his
rank influence the girl, Count Alma-
viva has taken the name of Lindpr, and
as such, we find him serenading the
lady of his heart. Not very successfully,

it must be admitted, for she pays no at
tention though the musicians wake the
neighborhood. He sings a lovely sere
nade, "Dawn With Her Rosy Mantle/'
but as it fails, he conceals himself to
watch a newcomer who is vigorously
making known his identity. It is Figaro,
the factotum, the jack-of-all- trades, the
debonaire Barber of Seville the same
hero who figures again in Mozart's
"The Marriage of Figaro." Figaro is
thoroughly well satisfied with himself,
and gives a list of his accomplishments
in the famous "Largo al factotum' 1
(Room for the Facto turn) . 1 1 should be
remembered that in the days of perukes,
powder and patches, the barber was
not only "tonsorial artist/* but also a
dentist and chirurgeon who bled his
customers as readily as he shaved
them. Incidentally, he was a privileged
person, whose easy access to the homes
of the distinguished made him a con
venient instrument for the plots and
schemes of young lovers and old roues.
This brilliant and loquacious "Largo
al factotum" (Room for the Factotum)
sung at breakneck speed, is a severe
test of the singer's art. The music is
as merry and forceful as the words.

Figaro is accosted by the Count, who
asks him to arrange a meeting with
the fair Rosina. They have no sooner
made an alliance than Rosina and old
Bartolo appear at the balcony window.
If Rosina has seemed unresponsive
to the serenading Lindor, her very
suspicious guardian has been watching
her. After the Count again serenades
her with the "Se il mio nome," (If my
name you would know) she contrives
to drop him a note.

Shortly after, Bartolo leaves the
house, ordering that nobody shall be
admitted save Basilio, a music master,
and incidentally a matrimonial agent.
Meanwhile, however, Figaro has plot
ted to gain admittance for the Count.
Troops are coming to the city, and

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Almaviva, disguised as a dragoon, may
easily be billeted on the unwilling
Eartolo. This is a grand idea!

SCENE II A Room in Bartolo's
House

RDSINA is discovered reading a
note from Lindor. She is agi
tated, as one might expect, and she
lets loose her feelings in an ever-
delightful coloratura aria, the "Una
yoce poco fa" (A Little Voice I Hear).
It is one of the gems of the work.

Almost every resource known to the
coloratura singer's art is employed in
this glittering number. Rapid scales,
detached, legato; brilliant arpeggi,now
soft, now loud, now high, now low, sur
prise the ear, and in their bubbling
gaiety express the full charm of the
equally gay and charming words.

At the end of it Rosina runs out of
the room when her guardian appears
in company with Basilio. Bartolo is
telling the matrimonial agent that he
wishes to marry Rosina himself, but
that her hand is sought by one Count

Almaviva, though he little suspects
that the serenader of the night before
and the Count are one and the same.
Basilio, scenting profit, is sympathetic,
and they agree to produce a story that
will disgrace him. "A calumny!" cries
Basilio. "What is that?" asks the
Doctor. In reply the musical matri
monial agent gives his famous descrip
tion in song, "La calunnia" (Slander's
Whisper), full of bombastic humor.

With the departure of the two plot
ters, Rosina returns accompanied by
Figaro, who tells her that her guardian
plans to marry her himself. She
laughs at the idea and asks Figaro who
the young man is she has seen from
the balcony. Figaro admits he 5s an
excellent youth, but has one failing.
"A failing? "cries the girl. "Yes, a
great one," answers the factotum
blandly, "he is dying of love." The
girl, greatly interested, presses for
further details, and learns that the
adored maiden is none other than
Rosina herself. "You are mocking,"
she cries; and the two make merry in

COPY 5 T TERKELSON & HENRY"
TETRAZZINI AS ROSINA

MELBA AS ROSINA

COPY'T DUPONT

SEM8RICH AS ROSINA

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

a delightful duet, the " Dunque io son "
(What! I?). And all seems well.

The comedy so characteristic of the
whole work here gallops through the
music. Figaro leaves after telling her
his scheme to billet Lindor upon the
household, and Bartolo returns, to
accuse Rosina of writing a note and
dropping it from the balcony. He
misses the very sheet of paper:
"Manea un foglio" (Here's a
Leaf Missing), declares he.

The old Doctor's anger and
the girl's impertinent replies
are admirably treated in the
music. He points out an ink-
mark on her finger, to which
she answers that she used the
ink as a salve for a small cut.
He calls attention to a freshly
trimmed quill pen and the
missing sheet of paper; and
she replies that she used the
paper to wrap up some sweets
for a girl friend and the pen to
design a flower for her em
broidery; the old man is in a
violent and quite just rage.

A loud knocking is heard at
the door the Count in his
soldier's guise, pretending to
be drunk. A comic scene

follows, in which Lindor man
ages to get a word with Rosina
before the police are called in. The
Count escapes arrest by secretly declar
ing himself to the commandant, when
the astonished official salutes and takes
his men away. Bartolo is so enraged
he can hardly speak; he does, though,
and the act ends with the brilliant
quartet, "Guarda Don Bartolo" (Look
at Don Bartolo).

ACT II

SCENE A Room in Bartolo' s House

nPHOUGH the soldier scheme has
A fallen through, Figaro soon in
vents another by which the Count may

COPY'T MATZENE

RUFFO AS THE BARBER

obtain entry to Bartolo' s dwelling. As
the curtain rises, we find the old Doctor
wondering if the drunken soldier may
not be an emissary of Count Almaviva.
He is interrupted by a stranger, none
less than the Count himself, but this
time disguised as a music-master. He
explains that Don Basilio is ill, and that
he has come to give Rosina her music
lesson in his place. He makes
himself known in a melodious
greeting, the "Pace e gioia"
(Heaven Send You Peace and
Joy). Neither is at hand.

In this interesting number
the Count exhibits himself as
a specially humble and obliging
music-master, but Bartolo sus
pects he had seen a man of
similar build before. To allay
these suspicions the Count does
a bold thing; he produces the
note written by Rosina to her
charming Lindor^ asserting
that he found it at the inn
where Count Almamva is stay
ing, and he offers to make
Rosina believe she is the
Count" s dupe. The idea pleases
Bartolo^ Rosina enters, and the
famous lesson scene begins.
Rossini wrote a special trio
for this scene, but unfortunate
ly the manuscript is lost and
Rosina usually interpolates an air ad
libitum^ sometimes a strange one!

As Bartolo insists on remaining it
looks as though the Count would have
to make good his promise to deceive
Rosina, but the resourceful Figaro ar
rives and declares this is the Doctor s
day for shaving. He contrives, more
over, to secure the key to the balcony
for future use. The game once more
approaches a disastrous end when Don
Basilio, the real music teacher, ap
pears expecting to give Rosina her
lesson. The Count is resourceful, how
ever, and reminding Bartolo of their

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

scheme to deceive Rosina y he points
out that the matrimonial-agent-music-
teacher must be gotten rid of. Doctor
Bartolo immediately detects in Don
Basilio the symptoms of an imaginary
fever. The Count and Figaro promptly
follow his lead. The mystified Don
Basilio is disposed to insist on the ex
cellence of his health, but with a fat
purse the Count manages to convince
him he is suffering acutely. The shav
ing is renewed after Don Basilio's de
parture and Rosina and the Count
under cover of the music lesson, talk
elopement. The situation cannot last,
however, and soon Bartolo becomes
suspicious. He approaches the pre
occupied lovers, to realize that he has
again been duped. The three con
spirators laugh at him and run out,
followed by the Doctor, who is purple
with rage.

The pertinacity of Figaro and the
Count is such that Doctor Bartolo is
now determined to play his last card.
He shows Rosina the note, saying

that her supposedly devoted Lindor is
conspiring to give her up to Count
Almaviva. The furious Rosina offers
to marry Bartolo at once, tells him of
the plan to elope and bids him have
Lindor and Figaro arrested as soon
as they arrive. Bartolo goes for the
police and for the marriage broker. He
is barely out of sight when the Count
and Figaro enter by means of the key
which Figaro procured during the
music lesson. Rosina greets them
with a storm of reproaches, accus
ing Lindor of duplicity. The Count
promptly makes known his true iden
tity and the lovers are soon embracing
amid a shower of blessings from Figaro.
They are interrupted by Don Basilio
who has returned in the office of notary
and marriage broker, to unite Rosina
and Bartolo y but with the aid of a pistol
he is persuaded to unite Rosina and
Count Almaviva. No sooner is the
marriage completed than Bartolo ar
rives with the police. The comman
dant demands the name of the culprit,

BARTOLO ARRIVES WITH THE SOLDIERS FINALE. ACT JJ

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

but finding he has to do with the dis
tinguished Count Almaviva, already
married, he declines to interfere, and
Eartolo submits with the best possible
grace, the opera closing with the gar
rulous good wishes of the irrepressible
Figaro.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)
ACT I

ECCO RIDENTE IN CIELO

(Dawn With Her Rosy Mantle)
TITO SCHIPA 965 10-in., $1.50

LARGO AL FACTOTUM

(Room for the Factotum) PASQUALE

AMATO, Baritone

6039 12-in., 2.00

EMILIO DE GOGORZA, Baritone
6068

12-in.,
12-in.,

2.00
2.00

TITTA RUFFO, Baritone 6263
GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

6077 12-in., 2.00
FIGARO:

Room for the city's factotum here,

La, la, la, la, la, la.

I must be off to my shop, for dawn is near,

What a merry life, what pleasure gay,

Awaits a barber of quality.

SE IL MIO NOME

(If My Name You Would Know) TITO
SCHIPA 965 10-in., 1.50

UNA VOCE POCO FA

(A Little Voice I Hear) LUISA TETRA-

ZZINI, Soprano 6337 12-in., 32.00

AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

6130 12-in,, 2.00
ROSINA:

A little voice I heard just now:

Oh, it has thrilTd my very heart!
I feel that I am wounded sore;

And Lindor 'twas who hurl'd the dart.
Yes, Lindor, dearest, shall be mine!

I've sworn it, and we'll never part.
My guardian sure will ne'er consent;

But I must sharpen all my wit:
Content at last, he will relent,
And we, oh, joy! be wedded yet.

LA CALUNNIA

(Slander's Whisper) MARCEL JOURNET,

Bass 6174 12-in., 2.00

FEODOR CHALIAPIN, Bass

6059 12-in., 2.00

BASILIO:

Oh! calumny is like the sigh
Of gentlest zephyrs breathing by;
How softly sweet along the ground,
Its first still voice is heard around.
So soft, that sighing amid the bowers
It scarcely fans the drooping flowers.
Thus will the voice of calumny,
More subtle than the plaintive sigh,
In many a serpent-wreathing find
Its secret passage to the mind;
Thus calumny, a simple breath,
Engenders ruin, wreck and death;
And sinks the wretched man forlorn,
Beneath the lash of slander torn,
The victim of the public scorn!

AN OPEN-AIR PERFORMANCE OF BARTERED BRIDE AT ZOPPSOT

THE BARTERED BRIDE

FRIEDRICH SMETANA strove
to do for his native Bohemia
what Liszt had done for Hun
gary nationalize its music. One re
sult was "The Bartered Bride/' He
wrote eight operas and a set of sym
phonic poems, all in national style. In
late life, like Beethoven, he grew deaf,
yet ^ produced some of his finest music
during this deafness. He was born in
1824, studied with Liszt, and first be
came known as a conductor. The
"Founder of the Bohemian School/' it
was he who first recognized and aided
Dvorak.

THE OPERA

COMIC opera in three acts;
libretto by Sabina. Music by
Friedrich Smetana. First performance,
Prague, May 30, 1866, where the suc
cess of the work led to Smetana's ap
pointment as director of the Prague
opera. Produced at the Vienna Music
Festival 1892. First London produc
tion in 1895. First heard in America
at the Metropolitan, February 19, 1909,

with Destinn, Jorn, Didur and Reiss,
under the direction of Gustav Mahler.

HANS, a servant in the household
of Kruschina^ has won the love of
that rich peasant's daughter, Marie,
who is planned, at the instance of a
marriage broker, Kezal> to be married
by her father to the rich but half-witted
Wenzel^ son of Kruschinas friend
Micha. Kezal offers Hans 300 crowns to
renounce her; he agrees if the contract
shall contain the words "Marie shall
be married only to a son of Micha!"
Marie refuses to believe Hans has sold
her; but on meeting him, he seems
quite joyous over the affair. Micha
and his wife arrive in time to recog
nize in Hans their long-lost eldest son.
The contract remains valid, and the
marriage broker is out 300 crowns.

The opera is lively, brilliant, and is
written in finished style. Perhaps the
best-known individual number is its
Overture, inspired by Bohemian airs and
treated with consummate musicianship.

BLACK LABEL RECORD

/Bartered Bride Overture ............

I Madame Butterfly-Selection (Puccini} .

124n *>

RUDOLPH AND MIMI

LA BOHEME

PUCCINI is one of the few compos
ers of recent times whose operatic
successes are both numerous and
lasting. Indeed, he is matched only by
Massenet as to numbers, and so far as
frequency of performance is concerned,
the Italian composer far surpasses the
Frenchman, in America at least. No
doubt this is largely due to the highly
melodic character of his works. Puc
cini's music is modern without being
ultra-modern. You will hark in vain
for the trills and tremolos, the musical
frills and furbelows, of old-time"! talian
Opera;" and you will hark just as
vainly for the non-melodious murky
obscurity characteristic of some more
recent operatic developments (of course
we exclude Massenet from the latter
class). For the rest, his harmonies and
orchestration are opulent as to color
and his melodies informal in character,
breaking in on the thread of musical
discourse only when justified by the
dramatic situation, and apt to be re
pressed as rapidly as they have been
begun by some sudden turn of dramatic
events.

Not only is "La Boheme" rich in

melody, but the melody is of the most
appealing kind. Puccini, like his
heroes, Rudolph^ Marcel^ Colline and
Schaunard) was in his youth an artist
whose riches were measured in terms
of genius rather than hard cash. He,
too, lived in an attic wherein he found
the problems of existence more baffling
than those of Harmony and Counter
point. His life was touched also by the
romance, the beauty of living, inter
spersed with that drudgery and discom
fort which only become tolerable when
viewed through the mists of memory.
Experiences such as these, hallowed by
time and made precious by success,
could hardly fail to influence him in
composing the music of "La Boheme/'
It is said, indeed, that some of the in
cidents in the opera came directly from
his own experience, and, while the
opera is, of course, founded on Miir-
ger's novel, "La Vie Boheme," it
varies considerably from the original in
detail, though most faithfully preserv
ing the spirit of the work, a spirit in
which comedy and tragedy, charming
idealism and harsh reality, are richly
interwoven.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in four acts, ^ext by
Giacosa and Illica; music by Puc
cini; being an adaptation of part of
Murger's La vie Boheme, which depicts
life in the Heartier Latin, or the Stud
ents' Quarter, in 1830. First produced
at the Teatro Reggio, Turin, February
1, 1896, under the direction of Tosca-
nini. In English as "The Bohemians,"
at Manchester (Carl Rosa Company),
April 22, 1897, and at Covent Garden
with the same company, October 2d
of the same year. At the Opera Comi-
que, Paris, June 1898. In Italian at
Covent Garden, July 1, 1899. First

production in the Americas at Buenos
Ayres in 1896. First LJ. S. production
at San Francisco March, 1898, by the
Royal Italian Opera Company, follow
ing their tour of Mexico. The company
later sang the opera in New York, Wai-
lack's Theatre, May 16, 1898, Given
in English by the Castle Square Opera
Company at the American Theatre,
New York, November 20, 1898. The
first important production in Italian
was that given by Melba's Company in
Philadelphia, December 29, 1898. Pro-
duced in 1907 at the Metropolitan,
with Caruso, Sembrich and Scotti.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

CHARACTERS

RUDOLPH, a poet Tenor

MARCEL, a painter Baritone

COLLINE, a philosopher Bass

SCHAUNARD, a musician Baritone

BENOIT, an importunate landlord.. Bass
ALCINDORO, a state councilor and

follower of Musetta Bass

MUSETTA, a grisette Soprano

MIMI, a maker of embroidery . .Soprano

Students, Work-girls, Citizens,
Shop-keepers, Venders, Soldiers,

Waiters, etc.
Scene and Period: Paris y about 1830.

ACT I

SCENE In the Attic

TWO of the four inseparables of
art are at home. Marcel is busy
painting at his never-finished canvas,
"The Passage of the Red Sea," blowing
on his hands from time to time to warm
them. Rudolph, the poet, is gazing
through the window over the snow

capped roofs of Paris. The attic Itself
is roomy, but sparsely furnished a
fireplace empty of fire, a table, a small
cupboard, a few chairs, a few books,
many packs of 8 cards, an easel, and
the riff-raff of an artist's studio. Mar
cel is first to break the silence; he
complains of the cold, saying he feels
as though the Red Sea were flowing
down his back. Rudolph answers in
kind, and finally Marcel ceases paint
ing and is about to break up a chair,
but Rudolph offers instead the manu
script of one of his own plays. They
burn it act by act, warming their bodies
and feasting their eyes on its meagre
flames. The acts burn quickly, and
Rudolph admits that brevity is the soul
of wit, finding his drama quite spark
ling. Colline^ the philosopher, enters,
stamping with cold. Suddenly, how
ever, Schaunard comes, too, bringing
wood for the fire, food for the table,
wine and money and plenty of each.
The three others gaze in rapturous

COPY'T MI3HK.IN
CLUCK AS MIMI

PHOTO BERT

FARRAR AND SCOTTI AS MIMI AND MARCEL
(ACT III)

COPY'T DUPONT

SEMBRICH AS MIMI

V I CT R O LA BOOK OF THE OPERA

tender sympathy of the opening
"Your little hand is cold;" the bold
avowal, "I am a poet;" the glorious
beauty of the love motive at the end,
and the final brilliant high note are un
forgettably lovely.

She in turn tells him her story how
she makes artificial flowers for a living
the while she yearns for the blossoms
and green meadows of the country;
that she leads a lonely life in her garret
among the housetops. She gives us in
sight into her tenderness, her youth,
her tremulous but infectious gaiety, so
that we, with Rudolph^ feel the magnet
ism of her charm, and sympathize with
her desire for a fuller and richer life.

Soon the two are close friends. They
hear the other three artists hilariously
shouting as they make their way across
the courtyard below, and move to the
window to watch Marcel, Colline and
Schaunard depart. A flood of moon
light envelops Mimi, and Rudolph^ look
ing at her, knows that life for him will
never be the same again. The act
closes with the beautiful duet, "O
soave fanciulla," in which Rudolph and
Mimi awake to a realization of each
other. The lovely melody with which
the duet begins is associated with Mimi
all through the opera, and is employed
with touching effect in the death scene
of Act IV.

Mimi shyly begs Rudolph to take her
with him to the Cafe Momus, where he
is to rejoin his friends, and the curtain
slowly falls as they leave. The "little
white hands" have fastened themselves
on Rudolph 3 heart forevermore.

amazement. Schaunard, pressed for
an explanation, informs them he has
been giving a music lesson to a rich
English amateur this was before the
days of the American tourist-invasion
of Paris. They begin to feast merrily,
but are interrupted by the landlord,
who wants his rent, having, after the
manner of his kind, scented the riches
from afar. They show him money and
give him wine more wine and^ again
wine till he becomes in turn jovial,
melancholy and maudlin, after which
they throw him out of the room. "I
have paid the last quarter's rent," re
marks Marcel^ shrugging his shoulders
as he locks the door.

Though more comfortable, or per
haps because of it, Rudolph is still dis
posed to be pensive; so he refuses to
go with the others when they hilari
ously depart to spend the money they
have saved from the landlord's clutches
Colline wearing the splendid coat
which he has so far contrived to keep
in spite of its obvious salability. It
covers a multitude of sartorial short
comings, that coat!

A timid knock is heard at the door.
It is Mimi) the girl from the room
above. She is a slight girl, frail but
graceful, with a complexion that has
the white velvety bloom of the camelia,
though suffused with a warm glow that
would have warned anybody but a poet
that her health' is not of the best.
"This frail beauty allured Rudolph"
says Miirger, " but what wholly served
to enchant him were Mimi' 's tiny hands
that, despite household duties, she con
trived to keep as white as snow/' She
has come to ask for a light for her can
dle, and the two fall into conversation.
She asks him, artlessly enough, what
his occupation is, and he tells her in
the familiar "Narrative."

This air is one of the great numbers
from the opera, and one of the most
popular of recorded numbers. The

ACT II

SCENE A Students Cafe in Paris

THE Cafe Momus is one of those
odd restaurants in Paris much
frequented by artists, and by those of
the outside world who wish to do as the
artists do vain searchers after the
elusive joys of "Bohemia" which can

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

SCENE FROM ACT II

come only to those who can suffer as
well as rejoice; a class whom the artists
themselves have dubbed " Philistines/*
who may suitably be despoiled by the
Children of Light. Hither come Ru
dolph and Mimi to join their com
panions, who are already here. So also
is Musett; a delightful little lady who
is enjoying the hospitality of one Akin-
dorOy a rich Philistine. She makes eyes
at her old friend Marcel, and is not a
whit abashed when his offended jeal
ousy makes him pretend not to see her.
She gets rid of her elderly admirer and
joins the party, singing the charming
"Musetta Waltz."

This number is not only charming in
itself, but it typifies the lightness, the
joyous abandon, the freedom of the
"Quartier Latin." The melody is famil
iar to every one, and indeed there is no
better waltz melody in modern music.
It has wings. It floats airily and lightly
in one's brain, after the record is silent.

The fun now becomes fast and furi
ous. Musetta is finally carried shoulder

high by the friends, while the foolish
old banker, Alcindoro, is left to pay the
bills of the entire party.

ACT III

SCENE A City Gate in Paris

BUT good times cannot last forever,
and one bitter cold morning we
find Mimi shivering as she asks the
officer at the gate in the environs of
Paris if she can see Marcel. Marcel
has left the studio, and is staying at an
inn on the Orleans road, painting not
landscapes but tavern signs for a living.
He is surprised to find Mimi, who has
come to tell him that she can no longer
live with Rudolph she cannot endure
their continual quarrels. Love in a
lofty garret, it seems, is no nearer heav
enly bliss than love in a cottage when
the cupboard is bare. Marcel expresses
his astonishment in "Mimi io son."

This duet affords a fine glimpse of
Marcel's sympathetic nature, and his
concern on discovering that Mimi is
not only unhappy but physically ill.

VICTRQLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

having ended rather dismally in _ the
fogs of misunderstanding and recrimi
nation.

ACT IV

Much disturbed, he goes into the inn,
where Rudolph has come to visit him
to tell his version of the trouble with
Mimi. Mimi, meanwhile, secretes her
self, and is not surprised to overhear
Rudolph accusing her of fickleness.

Marcel is once more placed in the
position of a sympathetic observer as
his friend upbraids Mimi with flirting,
apparently not without cause.

A distressing fit of coughing, how
ever, puts an end to Mimi s eavesdrop
ping, and brings Marcel and Rudolph
out to her.

Mimi bids farewell to her lover with
exquisite pathos. Her "Farewell" mel
ody is one of the loveliest in the entire
work, and is a universal favorite. Most
tenderly does the poor girl's "Farewell,
may you be happy" come from her
simple heart as she turns to go. Ru
dolph protests, something of his old
affection having returned at the sight
of her wan beauty.

They are interrupted by the entrance
of Musetta, who is in turn accused by
Marcel of flirting. A pretty quarrel
ensues a vulgar but human and
wholesome "scrap" in sharp contrast
with the depth of feeling underlying
Rudolph's quarrel with Mimi. The
other two, however, are drawn into the
discussion, and a remarkable quartet
ensues, the "Addio, dolce svegliare."

In this remarkable modern ensemble
the emotions expressed are as diverse
as they are in the famous "Rigoletto"
quartet, though it in no way resembles
that number in style. The sadness of
Mimis farewell to Rudolph, his last-
minute tender efforts to induce her to
remain, the fond recollections of hap
pier times and in contrast the sharp
bickerings of Marcel and Musetta; all
these differing moods find plastic ex
pression in Puccini's music.

With this the Act closes, the love
affair of Rudolph and Mimi, which
began so prettily in the moonlight,

SCENE Same as Act I

BEREFT of their sweethearts, the
two men are living sad and lonely
lives. "At this time," says Murger,
"the friends for many weeks had lived
a lonely and melancholy existence.
Musetta had made no sign, and Marcel
had never met her, while no word of
Mimi came to Rudolph, though he
often repeated her name to himself.
Marcel treasured a little bunch of rib
bons which had been left behind by
Musetta, and when one day he detected
Rudolph gazing fondly at the pink bon
net Mimi had forgotten, he muttered:
'It seems I am not the only one!' " In
the opening scene Marcel stands at the
easel pretending to paint, while Ru
dolph, apparently writing, is furtively
gazing at Mimi s little pink bonnet.
The true state of affairs is finely re
vealed in the famous duet, "Ah, Mimi,
tu piu" (Ah, Mimi, False One), The
music is remarkably rich in feeling and
melodious in character. This number
is so familiar that to describe it would
be to gild the lily. Its depth of feel
ing, however, and the spontaneity of
its melody make it one of the rarest
and richest numbers in modern music.
The two men pretend to brighten up
when Schaunard and Collins appear
with materials for supper. This scene
of rather forced gaiety is interrupted
by Musetta, who has come, wide-eyed,
to tell them that Mimi has been de
serted by her viscount and is coming
home to die. The poor girl is brought
in and laid on RudolpJis bed, while lie
is distracted with grief. The friends
hasten to aid her, Marcel going for a
doctor, while Co/line, in order to get
money for delicacies for the sick girl,
decides to pawn his famous overcoat.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

He bids farewell to the coat in a song
that is not without its touch of whim
sical pathos, the "Vecchia zimarra"
(Farewell, Old Coat), the delight of the
operatic basso.

This little flicker of comedy in a
scene otherwise overburdened with
tragedy affords a charming relief. The
coat affords one of the byplays of
comedy throughout the opera. No
matter how destitute the four insepar
ables may be, Co/line refuses to raise
money on this garment. Yet in the
hour of Mimi 9 s necessity he parts with
it like the good fellow he is.

Colline and Schaunard go softly
away, leaving Mimi and Rudolph to
gether, and they sing their beautiful
farewell song. This is the last thing
before the passing of Mimi. In dreamy
tones the dying girl recalls other days
they spent together, and with heart
breaking pathos they plan yet happier
days together. , .

There is something pitifully tragic in
this last scene, as they discuss a future
which shall be free from jealousies and
quarrels, for Rudolph at least knows
that such a future is only too likely for
both of them, Mimi 3 end being now
very near.

Just as Mimi, in soft accents^ re
calls their first meeting, she is seized
with a sudden faintness that alarms
Rudolph. The young man's grief is
pitiful.

The music of this final moment is
touching in its simplicity, suggesting
indeed, that "peace which passeth
understanding," toward which the un
happy girl is bound.

Rudolph quickly summons his friends
who are returning with the delicacies
for which, alas, there is now no need;
for the young girl, weakened by disease
and privation, passes away in the
midst of her weeping friends, and the
curtain falls to Rudolph's despairing
cry of "Mimi! Mimi!"

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless noted)

ACT I
RACCONTO DI RODOLFO

(Rudolph's Narrative) ENRICO CARUSO,

Tenor 6003 12-in., 32.00

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

6192 12-in., 2.00

JOHN MCCORMACK, Tenor 6200 12-in., 2.00
ORVILLE HARROLD, Tenor 6151 12-in., 2.00
MI CHIAMANO MIMI

(My Name is Mimi) NELLIE MELBA,

Soprano 6210 12-in., 2.00

GERALDINE FARRAR, Soprano

6106 12-in., 2.00

LUCREZIA BORI, Soprano 6048 12-in., 2.00
FRANCES ALDA, Soprano 6038 12-in., 2.00

SOAVE FANCIULLA

(Thou Sweetest Maiden) NELLIE MELBA,
Soprano and ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

95200 12-in., 2,00

FRANCES ALDA, Soprano and GIOVANNI
MARTINELLI, Tenor 8002 12-in., 2.50

LUCREZIA BORI, Soprano and JOHN Mc-
CORMACK, Tenor 3029 10-in., 2.00

ACT II

MUSETTA WALTZ
ALMA GLUCK., Soprano 649 10-in., 1.50

ACT III
MIMI, 10 SON

(Mimi, Thou Here!) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano and ANTONIO SCOTTI, Baritone

8023 12-in., 2.50
FARRAR-SCOTTI 10007 12-in., 3.50

ADD1O

(Farewell) GERALDINE FARRAR, Soprano

^ 6106 12-in., 2.00

NELLIE MELBA, Soprano

6210 12-in., 2.00

ALMA GLUCK, Soprano 649 10-in., 1.50
QUARTET, " ADDIO, DOLCE SVEGLIARE"
(Farewell, Sweet Love) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano, GINA C. VIAFORA,
Soprano, ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor and
ANTONIO SCOTTI, Baritone

10007 12-in., 3.50

ACT IV

AH MIMI, TU Pit!

(Ah, Mimi, False One) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor and ANTONIO SCOTTI, Baritone

8000 12-in., 2.50

VECCHIA ZIMARRA

(Farewell, Old Coat) MARCEL JOURNET,

^ Bass 698 10-in., 1.50

YICTRQLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

fMimi e una civetta (Cold-Hearted Mimi!) (In Italian] 1

| de Gregorio y Casini and Ferrettt \
I Trovatore Soldiers' Chorus (Verdi) (In 'Italian) La Scala Chorus]

/BohSme Selection Pryor's Band\

1 Jolly Robbers Overture Pry or s Band)

f Boh&ne Selection Vessella's Italian ^35353

1 Madame Butterfly Fantasia 'Cello Rosano Bourdon)

f Musetta Waltz (Whistling Solo) Guido & al M\\($$i

1 Carmen Selection Xylophone Wm. H. Re^tz)

12-in.,

12-in.,
12-in.,

31.25

1.25

.75

/Ah, Mimi, tu piu (Ah Mimi, False One) (In Italian] Murphy a

I Faust Trio Prison Scene, Part III Victor Opera Tno

COPY T MISHK1N

GILLY AS MARCEL

COPY'T DUPONT

FARRAR AS MIMI

COPY T MISHKIN

CARUSO AS RUDOLPH

PHOTO BYRON

THE CARNIVAL AT PRESBURG ACT II

THE BOHEMIAN GIRL

THE never-failing melodic charm
of "The Bohemian Girl" is
neither Latin nor Teutonic but
Celtic, at least by geography. The
composer, Michael William Balfe, was
a Dublin boy, born 1808, the son of a
dancing master. Early proficiency as
a violinist ripened into the greater
gifts of musical composition, with a
special faculty for writing simple but
effective tunes. Of Balfe's many oper
atic works/ 'The Bohemian Girl" is by
far the most famous; and its popularity
is justified by its melodious character.
The composer's fame extended all
over Europe, and he was particularly
admired by the French. "The
Bohemian Girl" won him the French
decoration of Chevalier of the "Legion
of Honor" as well as other honors from
other governments. He lived chiefly
in England, where he died in 1870.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts; text^by
Bunn; music by Balfe, First
produced at Drury Lane, London,

November 27, 1843, the cast in
cluding Harrison, Rainforth, Betts,
Stretton and Borrani. An Italian
version was brought out at Drury
Lane, February 6, 1858. First Ameri
can production November 25, 1844,
with Frazer, Seguin, Pearson and
Andrews. The work, after its English
success, was translated into many
languages, and produced in Italy as
La Zingara (at Trieste, 1854); in
Hamburg as La Gitana; in Vienna as
Die Zigeunerin, and in Paris as La
Bohemienne.

CHARACTERS

ARLINE, daughter of Count

Arnheim. Soprano

THADDEUS, a Polish exile Tenor

GYPSY QUEEN Contralto

DEVILSHOOF, Gypsy leader Bass

COUNT ARNHEIM, Governor of

Presburg '. Baritone

FLORESTHSTE, nephew of the

Count Tenor

Retainers, Hunters, Soldiers,
Gypsies, etc.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Time and Place: Presburg, Hungary;
Nineteenth Century

ACT I

SCENE Country Estate of Count
Arnheim, near Presburg

A MERRY hunting party is in prog-
JiXress in the Castle grounds at
Arnheim, and the assembly is com
pleted by the arrival of the Count
himself, who greets his little daughter
Arline before joining the hunt. As
soon as the hunters depart, Thaddeus,
a young Polish nobleman, appears.
He is a fugitive escaping from Austrian
political enemies, and in a desperate
case. Devilshoof and a party of gypsies
then arrive, and are about to attack
Thaddeus, when he explains his con
dition, and is made a member of the
band. No sooner has this occurred than
a great noise is heard. Little Arline,
it appears, is in danger from a wild
stag, and all is confusion as the hunts
men come rushing back. Thaddeus
alone keeps his head, and, seizing a
rifle, he manages to shoot the beast.
The child is taken to the castle, badly
scared, and slightly wounded in the
arm, while Thaddeus is invited to the
feast and freely lionized. His refusal
to drink the health of the Austrian
Emperor, however, causes trouble.
Seeing him in danger, the Count flings
him a bag of gold and bids him depart.
Thaddeus indignantly refuses the gold
and is attacked by the guests. Devils-
hoof comes to his rescue and he
escapes, but the gypsy chief is himself
captured and imprisoned in the castle.
While the feast is resumed, Devilshoof
not only gets away, but kidnaps the
unfortunate Arline. He is seen, and
the hunters go in pursuit, but Devils-
hoof kicks away a tree that is the
only bridge across a rocky ravine and
so gets off. The Count falls fainting
at the loss of his daughter.

ACT II

SCENE Gypsy Camp in the Outskirts
of Presburg

TWELVE years elapse before the
gypsies again return to Presburg.
They make their presence known by
robbing Florestine, the self-indulgent
and drunken nephew of the Count.
He parts in good grace from his watch
and jewels but laments the loss of a
valuable medallion. A pretty romance
between Thaddeus and Arline, follows
the girl's recital of her vision, "I
Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls/*
Thaddeus tells her of her noble origin
and capture by the gypsies, and the
two plight their troth. The Gypsy
Queen, who is in love with Thaddeus,
attempts to separate them, but only
succeeds in hastening a gypsy wedding
between the two lovers. Her oppor
tunity for revenge occurs in the next
scene a carnival in the public square.
Florestine attempts to flirt with Arline
but is repulsed. Observing this event,
the Gypsy Queen gives her the medallion
stolen from Florestine the night before.
This is subsequently discovered by
Florestine, and Arline is arrested as a
thief and brought before Count
Arnheim. The Count has just been
ruminating over his long lost daughter,
singing "The Heart Bowed Down."
When Arline appears he is struck by
her beauty and obvious innocence,
and later discovers the scar on her arm
from the wound made by the stag. By
this he knows her for his own child
and the Act closes in a happy reunion.

ACT III

SCENE Castle of Arnheim

AHLINE, restored, nevertheless is
pining for her gypsy lover and
husband, Thaddeus, and is overjoyed
when Devilshoof contrives to bring
him to her chamber. The sweethearts
are interrupted, however, by Count

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Arnheim and his friends, and Arline
barely has time to conceal Thaddeus
in a closet. A veiled woman enters
the room and approaches the Count.
It is the Gypsy Queen, and she bids
him look in the closet where Thaddeus
is concealed. A highly dramatic
scene follows this disclosure, and
though Arline pleads boldly for her
lover, the angry Count bids him depart.
Before leaving, however, Thaddeus
shows that he is of noble blood, and
Arline reminds her father that
Thaddeus saved her live. This softens
the Count and all appears to be about
to end happily. But the vengeful
Gypsy Queen directs one of her followers
to shoot Arline. He puts the rifle to
his shoulder and is about to fire when

Devils ho of intervenes and turns the
rifle in the direction of the Queen her
self, who falls as the shot is fired,
The safety and happiness of Thaddeus
and Arline is thus assured, and the
curtain falls on a joyous scene.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

ACT II

I DREAMT I DWELT IN MARBLE HALLS

MABEL GARRISON, Soprano

641 IQ-in., 31.50

HEART BOW'D DOWN

CLARENCE WHITEHILL, Baritone

6307 12-in., 2.00

THEN YOU'LL REMEMBER ME
JOHN McCoRMACKj Tenor

747 10-in., 1.50

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

(Overture to Bohemian Girl Arthur Pryor's

\ La Czarine Mazurka (Ganne) Arthur Pry or' s Band\

(I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls Elizabeth Wheeler, Soprano\

\Then You'll Remember Me Lewis James, Tenor)

/Then You'll Remember Me and I Dreamt I Dwelt McKee Trio\

\ Good-Night, Beloved (Nevin) (Violin- Cello-Piano) McKee Trio!

(Selections from Bohemian Girl Arthur Pry or' s

\ Yelva Overture (Reissiger) Arthur Pry or* s

Gems from Bohemian Girl Part I Victor Opera Company

Chorus, "Away to Hill and Glen" Solo, "I Dreamt I Dwelt in
Marble Halls" Solo, "Heart Bow'd Down" Mixed Quartet, "Si
lence, the Lady Moon" Solo, "Fair Land of Poland" Chorus,
"Happy and Light"

Gems from Bohemian Girl Part II Victor Opera Company

Chorus, "In the Gypsy's Life" Solo and Chorus, "Come with the
Gypsy Bride" Solo, "Bliss Forever Past" Duet, "What is the
Spell" Solo, "Then You'll Remember Me" Solo and Chorus,
"Oh, What Full Delight"

10-in., .75

12-in., 1.25

35603 12-in., 1.25

BORIS GODOUNOW

MOUSSORGSKY'S life and ge
nius were strangely erratic and
disordered. He died in poverty
hastened by dissipation. His musical
training was irregular; yet he was per
haps the most original composer Russia
ever produced. "Boris Godounow" has
powerfully influenced the music of our'
own day, and from it many composers
have gathered fresh and vivid material.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. Text ar
ranged by Moussorgsky, based on
a historical drama by the famous
Russian poet, Pushkin. Music by
Modeste Moussorgsky. Portions of the
opera were given at St. Petersburg in
February, 1873, but the production of
the work in its entirety was delayed
until January 24, 1874. Produced at
Moscow in 1889. In 1896^the orches
tration was somewhat revised by the
composer's friend, Rimsky-Korsakpff.
Given at Paris in 1908 by a Russian
opera company, with Chaliapin in the
title role. First American production
at the Metropolitan Opera House, New
York, November 19, 1913, with the
original Paris costumes and scenery.
First Berlin performance, 1924.

CHARACTERS
(With the Cast of the First American

Production)
BORIS GODOUNOW, Regent of Russia

Adamo Didur
XENIA, his daughter. .Leonora Sparkes

THEODORE, his son Anna Case

THE NURSE Maria Duchne

MARINA Louise Homer

CHOUISKY Angelo Bada

DIMITRI Paul Althouse

VARLAAM Andrea de Segurola

MISSAIL Pietro Audisio

TCHELKALOFF. . . Vincenzo Reschiglian
PIMENN Leon Rothier

A SIMPLETON Albert Reiss

A POLICE OFFICER Giulio Rossi

~ T j Louis Kreidler

Two JESUITS. . j Vincenzo Resch iglian

Time and Place: About 1600; Russia

(The name of the opera is pronounced
Boh'-reess Goti-doo-noff).

THE first scene is before the Novo-
dievitchi Convent, Moscow. Boris
Godounow is regent for CzarFeodor, son
of Ivan the Terrible. In an ambitious
moment Boris has murdered his nephew
Dimitri, Ivan's younger brother, to
whom the throne would have passed
upon the tyrant's death; but seized
with remorse, he has fled to the Novo-
dievitchi Convent to expiate the sin.
He has a wide following among the
people, who are unaware of the mur
der. And they have thronged, with no
bility at their head, to beg him to take
the throne.

The scene changes to a cell in the
Convent of Miracles. Pimenn, an old
monk, reveals to Gregory, a young
monk, the story of Dimitrfs death.
Gregory, learning that Dimitri was of
his own age, resolves to spread the re
port that Dimitri was never slain, and
to usurp the Russian throne. Again
the scene changes; Boris, among great
pomp, consents to take the throne as
regent. This scene affords a magnifi
cent half-barbaric stage setting.

The second act, in the opera as
usually given, opens in an inn on the
Lithuanian border, whither Gregory,
with two companions, has escaped
from the Convent. He hopes to cross
the frontier and raise an army, but is
prevented by a Government order
issued after escape. He just misses
arrest, by making a soldier believe one
of his companions the offender, then
leaping off through a window.

Meanwhile, Boris, in the Czars pal-

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ace in the Kremlin, a prey to fear and
remorse, is talking with his young
son, Theodore, when an old accomplice,
Chouisky, appears, to bring the news
that people are in revolt, under the be
lief that Dimitri still lives. They are
actually at the Russian borderland if
they once enter the country, the coun
try must fall. Boris, a superstitious
mystic, actually wonders if the ghost
of Dimitri has risen., to appear against
him.

In the third act Gregory awaits the
lovely Marina, a Polish lady who serves
the interests of Poland by helping
him play Dimitri. He lurks in her
garden during a great banquet. When
this is ended, Marina appears, to stir
up together his ambition for the throne
and his love for herself. This is the
remarkable " Garden Scene," with its
wonderful slow-swinging, seductive
rhythm and melody, like nothing else
in music.

The next phase of the work is in

the Forest of Krony, where peasants
are making sport of a nobleman who
has fallen into their hands. The scene,
written years ago, is a prophecy ^of
what since has happened in Russia.
Gregory, as the false Dimitri, enters,
and the people, dissatisfied with Boris,
join him in revolt. As they disappear,
a village Fool sits alone in the snow,
singing a heart-rending ditty on the
hopeless condition of the empire. The
simple irony of this touch is unsur
passed in opera.

Finally,, the Duma gathers in the
Imperial Palace to meet Boris. Chou-
isky plans treachery, and hints to the
assembled boyars, or nobles, some
thing of the real truth regarding Di
mitri. Boris, entering, is confronted by
Pimenn, who tells how a blind man has
been restored to vision at the tomb
of the murdered youth. Boris listens
with horror, and finally interrupts with
a cry. He is dying, and he asks for
Theodore. He passes away begging the
son to rule wisely and to protect Xenia,
his sister. The opera ends abruptly,
leaving the inference that Gregory's
rebellion must perish, the true facts of
Dimitri's death being known.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

BORIS GODOUNOW

(Garden Scene Finale, Act III) MAR-
GARETE OBER, Contralto and PAUL
ALTHOUSE. Tenor In Italian

76031 12-in., 1.75

Farewell of Boris (Farewell, My Son,
I Am Dying) (Act IV) FEODOR
CHALIAPIN, Bass 88661 12-in.,

1.50

PHOTO WHITE

ALTHOUSE AS DIMITRI

In the Town of Kazan (Act II)
FEODOR CHALIAPIN, Bass

558 104n., 1.50

PHOTO BYRON

THE DEATH OF CARMEN ACT IV

CARMEN

CARMEN is among the three or
four most popular operas of all
time; yet recognition came to
it but slowly. For one thing, its
originality was against it. "Carmen"
appeared at a time when Wagnerian
theories of opera were bringing con
sternation among conservative musical
critics; and, as Bizet adopted innova
tions in his scorings he was charged
with imitating Wagner. Unquestion
ably, Bizet was influenced by Wagner's
ideas, like any progressive composer;
but he was no imitator, and the fact
was recognized in due course. It was
declared, too, that the work was "im
moral," for Paris was going through
the ''crinoline stage" of prudery. Again,
internal politics at the Paris Opera
were against it. But these things died
out after the first overwhelming suc
cess of the work in London; today the
work has no rival in Paris, unless, per
haps, "Faust" itself. Bizet regarded
" Carmen' ' as his magnum opus, and he
was distressed at its first failure, which
is said to have hastened his death, three

months after its first performance. He
never knew that he had given the world
what is to this day, perhaps, the finest
example of French operatic art.

George Bizet was born in Paris, Oc
tober 25, 1838^ he died there June 3,
1875. He studied at the Conservatory,
winning the coveted Prix de Rome in
1857, with its period of study in Italy.
In this year his first opera, "Docteur
Miracle," was produced in Paris. He
had studied with Halevy, whose daugh
ter he married. The career thus aus
piciously begun, however, was not to
continue so fortunately. Other works
of his were produced, among them "Les
Pecheurs cles Perles," "La Jolie Fille
de Perth," the incidental music to
Daudet's play, "L'Arlesienne," but
their success was trifling. Bizet's
chronic poverty is revealed in a letter
in which he complains that he has to
waste valuable composing time in mak
ing cornet-arrangements of popular
tunes an experience also of Wagner's.
But many friends acknowledged Bi
zet's genius, among them Liszt, for

COPY'T DUPONT

FARRAR IN ACT I

COPY T MISHKIN

CARUSO AS DON JOSE

COPY T MISHKIN

AMATO AS THE TOREADOR

PHOTO WHITE

THE QUINTET ACT II

COPY T DUPONT

FARRAR AS CARMEN ACT III

THE METROPOLITAN REVIVAL OF 1915

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

when did Liszt ever fail to recognize
genius? Nor did he lack recognition
from fellow-craftsmen, which, no
doubt, helped him endure somehow the
slings and arrows of an unnecessarily
outrageous fortune.

Bizet's was not an obscure genius;
considering his gift of melody and his
talent for clothing his tunes in warm
harmonies, his want of success is hard
to understand. Perhaps he was not
finally happy in his choice of subjects;
not until "Carmen" did he "find him
self' ' and display his magnificent mas
tery over "local color. " This^ opera,
with its gypsy scenes, its Spanish set
ting, furnished him with every pic
turesque opportunity he could wish
for, and the drama itself, with its clear
play of elemental human passions mov-
ing'logically and inevitably to a tragic
end, revealed in Bizet an unexpected
dramatic ability, worked out with ad
equate power of treatment but fine re
straint. There is no ranting in "Car
men/' The conflict of passions set up
in the first act, works out simply and
majestically to its certain consumma
tion. Despite his talent for local color,
the composer never pauses to paint
pretty but unessential tone-pictures.
His gift is used as a means to an end;
notwithstanding the lively scenes, gay
melodies, one feels throughout the
sense of foreboding, of impending dis
aster, maintained with growing inten
sity until the curtain falls. Only a
master of musical dramatics could en
sure to us this steady crescendo of
emotion.

Carmen^ beautiful, audacious gypsy
girl, has been working in a cigarette
factory in Seville. To the square, op
posite, comes a troop of dragoons,
among them Don Jose. Don Jose is af
fianced to Micaela, who comes from his
native village to see him, with money
and a message from his mother. Don
Jose loves the girl, but he is attracted

by Carmen's deliberate coquetries.
Carmen is arrested for stabbing one of
the factory girls in a quarrel, and is
placed in charge of Don Jose. She in
duces him to untie the rope that binds
her, and she escapes. ^For this Don
Jose is arrested and himself impris
oned. Carmen repairs to a tavern
near Seville, frequented by smugglers,
to await Don Jose's release.

Carmen passes her time gaily at the
inn, where she meets Escamillo, a tore
ador, whose courage and dash attract
her. When Don Jose comes to the inn,
'she says nothing of Escamillo, but en
deavors to make the dragoon join the
smugglers. She fails, but he overstays
his leave. His officer, entering, tries to
flirt with Carmen. He orders Don Jose
to depart to barracks, and strikes him.
A fight follows, and the pair are sep
arated by Carmen's friends. But Don
Jose, now guilty of insubordination, is
forced to desert and join the smug
glers. He goes off with them and with
Carmen, whom he now adores pas
sionately.

Don Jose is not happy in his new
surroundings; Carmen mistakes his
feeling for cowardice. Quarrels arise.
Carmen, perplexed, "reading the cards,"
is appalled when she turns up spades
"a grave!" The smugglers go off on
a mission of their own, leaving Don
Jose as sentinel; he fires a shot at a
stranger in the distance. He proves
to be Escamillo, who has come after
Carmen. Don Jose is enraged and a
fight ensues. The pair are separated
by the gypsies and Carmen, attracted
by the shot. Don Jose is for having
it out, then and there, when Micacla
appears with the news that his mother
is dying and would see him. He de
parts, after Escamillo has invited all
to the bull fight.

The closing scene is at Seville, out
side the bull ring. The crowd has
gathered to receive Escamillo , now in

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

his glory., and Carmen,, who has fol
lowed him. The toreador and his ad
mirers enter the ring, but Carmen,
despite warnings, awaits Don Jose
outside. He arrives, and piteously
begs her to remain true to him. She
refuses. His anger arises; when she
remains obdurate, he stabs her to the
heart just as the victorious Escamillo
emerges from the doors of the bull
ring to receive her congratulations.
He finds her dead, and Don Jose, in
agony, throws himself across the body.

THE MUSIC

With such a theme in such a
setting, Bizet came into his own.
Each number of " Carmen" is a
musical masterpiece, brilliant with life
and color; yet no number is out of
keeping with the rest, and the principal
airs stand out like jewels in a perfect
mounting. Bizet united French logic,
Gallic fitness, to a vivid Jewish imagina
tion. Moreover, in his characteriza
tions he displays a profound psychol
ogy; and despite his easy, flowing
style, his inexhaustible tunefulness,
his dash and brilliancy, which cannot
hope but captivate the most superficial
audiences, his music withstands the
scrupulous analysis of those who really
look underneath the surface.

He is especially tuneful in delineat
ing Carmen who is far from being the
unconventional, "Bohemian" sort of
person early critics considered her. If
she does not live according to the con
ventions of the village-bred Micaela,
it is because she neither understands
nor appreciates. She has been reared
among smugglers and bandits and out
lawswith whom wildness and audac
ity are the true "conventions." They
are gamblers who play with life and
liberty who stake a full stomach and
a fat purse against a bloody death,
who know no greater disgrace than to
fail to pay their own strange debts of

honor. If these are conventions, then
Carmen is the most conventional of all.
She, too, is a gambler, taking gamblers*
chances with what cards are dealt her.
Her cards are her own audacious
beauty, her wild coquetry, the danger
ous fires of human passion; against the
prize she plays for, the hearts of men,
she can stake only herself. If we do
not accept this as the basic psychology
of Carmen s nature, the last act of the
opera becomes meaningless. Why
should she face Don Jose alone when
she might have gone into the bull ring,
or commanded a body-guard of her
own friends? She knows that Don
Jose, a ruined man, is desperate and
fearless when aroused. Yet she chooses
to stay deliberately. According to
gypsy law, she is his until the union is
broken by mutual consent. Her
"gamble" has been that he will weary
of her when she wearied of him; and
she has lost. Well, she will pay. None
can accuse her of fear or falsehood.
She owes that much to her self-respect
in conformity with gypsy convention.
So she stands alone and "faces her
man."

All this is revealed in the music.
The "Fate" motive which sounds so
ominously at the end of the overture,
is echoed again and again through the
score, changing its form in a dozen
ways. In the card scene it flickers
through and through, like an angry
tongue of flame in a bank of smoke.

At the end, when the tragedy is
done, it blazes forth luridly. Carmen's
own music is saturated throughout
with her own seductive charm. No
less care is given Don Jose, a normal,
well-regulated man with a dark streak
of passion woven into his being;
observe his tenderness toward Micaela,
his devotion to his mother, his sense
of shame at deserting! All this contrasts
darkly with Carmen's recklessness.
Incompatibility is bound to spring up

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

GARMENT SINGING THE U HABANERA" ACT I

and worse, for these are people of give her the quiet courage necessary
strong passion; contempt for each to make her way to the smug-
other's way of life is sure to bring glers' abode and Don Jose. EscamiTlo
tragedy^ Micae!a y the modest exem- is brave as he is boastful. To each
plar of civilized convention, is all maid- the music fits, as the flesh fits the
enly shyness, all gentle loyalty; these spirit.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in four acts. Text by
Meilhac and Halevy, founded on
the novel of Prosper Merimee. Music
by Bizet. First production at the
Opera Comique, Paris, March 3, 1875.
First London production June 22, 1878.
First American production October
23,^1879, with Minnie Hauk, Campa-
nini and del Puente. First New Orleans
production, January 14, 1881, with
Mmes. Ambre and Tournie. Some
notable revivals in New York were

in 1893, being Calve's first appearance,
the cast including Eames, de Reszke
and La Salle; in 1905 with Caruso;
and the Hammerstein revivals of 1906,
with Bressler-Gianoli, Dalmores, Gili-
bert, Trentini and Ancona; and 1908
with Calve. After five years 1 neglect
the ^Metropolitan, in 1915, staged a
brilliant revival with an "all-star**
cast, including Farrar, Caruso, Alda
and Amato. The opera is frequently
given today.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

CHARACTERS

DON JOSE (Don Ho-zay'} a Brig
adier Tenor

ESCAMILLO (Es-ca-meel'-oJi) a

Toreador Baritone

DANCAIRO (Dan-ky'-roh) Baritone

REMENDADO (Rem-en-dah'-doK) . .Tenor

(Smugglers)
ZUNIGA (Tsoo-nee'-gaK) a Captain. Bass

MORALES (Moh-rah'-lez) a Brig
adier Bass

MICAELA (Mih-kah-ay* r -lah] a

Peasant Girl Soprano

FRASQUITA (Frass-kee'-tah) } Mezzo-
MERCEDES (Mer-chay'-dayz)} Soprano

(Gypsies, friends of Carmen)

CARMEN (Kar'-meri) a Cigarette Girl,
afterwards a Gypsy Soprano

An Innkeeper, Guide, Officers, Dra
goons, Lads, Cigar Girls, Gypsies,
Smugglers

Scene and Period: Seville, Spain;
about 1820

ACT I

SCENE A Public Square in Seville

THE prelude to "Carmen" is vivid,
inspiriting, intense, bidding the
blood to tingle as it calls up visions of
the crowds gathering outside the
bull ring in Seville. The women are
magnificent dark beauties, with sump
tuous black hair and flashing black
eyes that glitter like half-hidden gems
from beneath their lace mantillas.
They are garmented in silks that are
stiff and heavy with embroideries and
tassels, and they are shod with black
"zapatos," high-heeled shoes that give
to the graceful Spanish gait an added
charm and mystery. Their escorts
are lean, swarthy men, tanned with
the sun and hardened with outdoor
life. They, too, are clad in gala attire.
The dashing "March of the Tore

adors," the first theme of the prelude,
is probably one of the most invigorat
ing themes in all opera. It gives way
to the proud, steady step of the world-
famous "Toreador Song," goes back
to the march theme, and then dies out
with the ominous "Fate" theme which
pursues Carmen^ an audible shadow of
disaster, until the very end.

There is an odd story told of this
theme, which is said to be of Eastern
origin. The legend is that when Satan,
according to Mohammedan tradition,
was cast from Paradise, he remem
bered only one strain of the music he
had heard there. This was known as
"Asbein," or the "Devil's Strain," and
Bizet used it with fine symbolic as
well as perfect musical fitness.

The effect in the prelude, after the
bright measures of the Toreador's
music, is almost appalling; the lugu
brious notes of the brasses, heard be
neath the flickering tremolo of strings,
giving true and poignant expression
to the tragedy of Don Jose and his
gypsy sweetheart, whose fickleness
only aggravates her charm. This
movement breaks off with a sudden
detached chord as the curtain rises.
This short but brilliant prelude is a
summation of the whole opera, and a
key to it. It is complete in itself, and
makes an admirable record.

The curtain rises upon the noon-
hour of the cigarette girls. They are
gathered in little knots, chatting gaily
with the men. Most of them surround
Carmen, who is piqued at Don Jose's
indifference to her charms, as well as
by his handsome figure in his dragoon's
uniform. It is less to the others than
at Don Jose that she sings the "Ha
banera" (Love is Like a Wood-Bird).

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

This is the first "air" of the opera,
and one of the best known, though,
strangely enough, Bizet did not write
its music. He selected it, a typical
Spanish tune, from Yradier's "Album
des Chansons Espagnoles." The rather
slow, seductive tempo, the dreamily
sensuous melody, are most aptly
placed; the refrain is particularly
fascinating.

With this Don Josis fate is sealed.
He is not in love with Carmen yet;
but he cannot banish her image from
his mind, even when, later, Micaela,
his betrothed sweetheart, appears
with the letter from his mother, who
also sends him a kiss most shyly and
modestly delivered.

A lovely duet follows, "Parle-moi
de ma mere" (Tell Me of My Mother).
It shows, as plainly as music may,
that Don Jose's affection for the girl
is real, and that she, in turn, has given
him her whole heart. Micaelas air
develops into a broad, sustained melody

PHOTO REUTLINGER

THE CARDS PREDICT CARMEN*S DEATH
(EMMA CALVE)

of real lyric "swing" and power, Don
Jose taking it up as the memories of
his old home crowd back upon him
the valley, his mother, his first love
for Micaela.

When the girl departs, Don Jose is
left alone with his thoughts. But it
is not for long. A commotion breaks
out in the factory and the reading of
his mother's letter is interrupted by
the outpouring of an excited rabble.
Carmen has quarrelled with another
girl and stabbed her. She is brought
before the officer of the guard and
arrested.

The girl behaves with insolence. Her
hands are therefore tied behind her,
and she is left in charge of Don Jose
while the soldiers drive off the crowd.
Alone with him, she proceeds to bring
to bear upon the dragoon all of her
powers of fascination; she is frankly
charmed by the handsome youngster
and piqued by his apparent indiffer
ence. Does she know it is not real?

PHOTO WHITE

ALDA AS MICAELA

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

She proceeds, woman-wise, to bring
these' powers into play. She sings to
him the famous "Seguidilla," another
famous dance-song, composed in an
insidious yet powerfully rhythmic vein.
Its cadences cannot fail, in his present
state, to move the heart of Don Jose.
She tells him of her plans to go to the
inn of Lillas Pastia, near the ramparts
of Seville. The tormented dragoon
knows that she is making the vulgarest
love to him, for purposes of her own;
yet he cannot resist her beauty and
her song especially when she tells
him that she will meet at the inn a
soldier whom she loves. Who can this
be but Don Jose himself? Blind to all
but his infatuation, blind to his duty,
forgetful of Micaela, heedless of what
may happen, he unties her hands.
When the soldiers come to take her
away, she pushes Don Jose aside, and
in the confusion escapes to the inn
of Lillas Pastia.

Between the first and the second
acts, a graceful orchestral interlude
serves to typify the lapse of time until

Don Jose y free of prison, is able to re
join Carmen. This interlude is a gem.
It is complete in itself, yet it gives
continuity to the opera, where it is
placed with the certainty with which
a single deft note is placed in a melody
and with as much significance. Its
dancy, gypsy rhythm and its many-
colored orchestral setting, figure forth
the new world in which Don Jose is to
find himself a light-hearted, reckless,
but jealous and high-blooded com
munity of smugglers and thieves and
vagabonds.

ACT II

SCENE Tavern in Suburbs of Seville
RMEN is in her element. Gypsy
smugglers have come down from
the mountains. They are having a
gay time dancing, feasting on rabbits
and olives, and drinking muddy wine.
They break into a dashing gypsy song,
"Les tringles de sistres," one of the
most typical gypsy numbers in the
opera. Its eager rhythm, the clash of
tambourines, the freshness and origi-

COPY T DUPONT

DE LUSSAN AS CARMEN

EMMY DESTINN AS CARMEN

COPY'T DUPONT

CALVE SINGING THE GYPSY
SONG ACT II

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

nality of the harmonies and modula
tions, which never grow stale repeat
ing, the delicacy of the instrumenta
tion all are in Bizet's happiest vein.

The dance is repeated, the smugglers
are ready to go, and they invite Carmen
to join them. But mindful of Don Jose,,
she refuses. Meanwhile, before her
lover appears, she makes a new friend
Escamillo, the Toreador, who intro
duces himself in what is perhaps the
most famous air of the whole opera;
and what is certainly one of the most
clever pieces of description in all music.

This fiery tale of the bull fight itself
is admirably set in the melody and its
accompaniment, while the refrain is
one that sets the heart beating. The
refrain is that previously heard in the
"Prelude," and it occurs, in different
forms, throughout the opera whenever
the Toreador comes to the scene. Its
effect on Carmen is singular. She is
loyal to Don Jose, but she is rather
upset by the Toreador.

Don Jose is heard singing in the
distance. Carmen and her friends peer
through the shutter. They admire his
appearance and agree he would make
a fine smuggler. Carmen pushes them
from the room and prepares to meet him,
as he enters singing the last high note of
the soldierly air, " Halte la ! Qui va la ? "
(Halt There). He is greeted with joy.

Carmen dances for Don Jose to an
odd little air of her own composing,
with castanets. She begs him to join
the smugglers. Beat for beat, how
ever, the bugles sound against her odd
song. ^ Affairs come to a climax, in a
splendid piece of dramatic writing.
Carmen pitches Don Jose his cap and
sabre, and bids him begone. He is
more enslaved than ever; he is morti
fied by the prospect of losing her, and
his passion surges up to the boiling-
point. Now is the moment for a really
great love song and we have it, in
the "Air de la Fleur," or Flower Song.

Don Jose reminds Carmen of the flower
she threw to him at their first meeting,
and he tells her, in touching accents,
how he kept it through the dreary
weeks of his prison life.

La fleurquetu mm-vais je le - Dans m pri-jon m'e-lalt rei-t6 - e
Tkufov'ryoiL gait to me.dt- grot- td' Mid fri-to* aallt t've ttpt Uuf /orf - tt

The young man pours out his heart
in this^ rich and tender romanza.
Carmen s wild heart is touched, and
she grows more determined than ever
that he shall go off with her to the joy
and the freedom of the gypsies* life
the adventures and the dangers and
escapes, the long nights under the free
winds and the stars.

He and Carmen sing of them to
gether "La bas dans la montagne"
(Away to Yonder Mountains); but
Don Jose is determined, for the time
being, to go back to his duties as a
soldier. His love affair seems likely
to come to an end when his captain,
Zuniga^ enters the inn. He insolently
orders Don Jose to be off, and he turns
upon Carmen an eye of proprietorship.
Don Jose refuses, Zuniga strikes him,
and the trooper, mad with rage, draws
the sabre which Carmen had thrown
him a little while before.

Carmen screams for help to prevent
bloodshed. Officer and man are sepa
rated and^ overpowered, and for Don
Jose the life of a law-keeping subject
and soldier is done. Guilty of insubor
dination^ of an attempt upon a su
perior's life, he can only go with the
gypsies, desert and become an outcast
however much the lover of Carmen.
Before the next act there is another
interlude of great beauty a pastoral
melody of exquisite and touching grace.
Its melody is given by a flute against
plucked strings:

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

It is taken up in "imitation" by
other instruments. Its song-like sweet
ness and purity are like cooling waters
after the heady and intoxicating vint
ages of the second act. They refresh
the emotions for the struggles yet to
come.

ACT III

SCENE A Wild and Rocky Pass in the
Mountains at Night

THE drama sweeps on. Don Jose
is lost. He has burned his bridges;
he is passionately in love with Carmen.
He has forgotten Micaela, he has for
gotten his mother, he has abjured the
laws which governed him, he has broken
all authority, he is an outcast with a
price upon his head. And Carmen?
He is her slave; woman-like she is tiring
of him, because she has discovered his
weakness. Don Jose is hardly a good
smuggler. Loyal unto the band, he
despises the life, is resentful against

her even while he loves her; then, in
the background, is Escamillo. Already
in spirit Don Jose and Carmen are
separate separate by the strange
forces of heredity and circumstance
that. by determining society, control
life, even as against the very passions
that bind them together.

The stage is dark. It is the hour
before dawn; the smugglers arrive in
groups, set down their bundles and
light a fire. Here occurs the famous
Sextette. Carmen and Jose are at
open odds. Carmen drifts to where
Frasquita and Mercedes are "reading
the cards."

Here she sings the "Voyons que
j'essaie" (Let Me Know My Fate)
trying to read her own fortune. Out
of the orchestra steals the terrible
"Fate-theme. "Spades, spades, spades,
the emblems of death and disaster!
She throws them aside with fury but
with despair. The camp is ready, the

COPY'T DUPONT
CARUSO AS DON JOSE ACT III

COPY T DUPONT

CALVE AS CARMEN

COPY^T MISHKIN
DALMORES AS DON JOSE

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

smugglers retire. Then, though Don
Jose is on guard, there steals in the
pitiful figure of Micaela.

Don Jose's mother is dying, and the
girl, for all her terrors, has brought the
news into the mountains. In a beauti
ful air, "Je dis que rien ne me'epouv-
ante" (I am not Faint-Hearted) she
calls upon heaven to protect her. The
music takes on the softer and tenderer
coloring appropriate to her pure devo
tion to Don Jose. The solo is touching
in this tenderness, and in curious con
trast to the weird gloom of the card
scene.

A shot is fired, and the girl runs into
a cave. Don Jose has seen a stranger,
and fired at him. It is Escamillo^ who
has come to join Carmen. He appears
examining his hat, which the bullet
has pierced. He introduces himself
with fine bravado: "Je suis Escamillo"
(I am Escamillo). The two men learn
they are rivals. In a moment knives
are out, when Carmen and the smug
glers, attracted by the shot, again ap
pear and intervene. Don Jose again
would bring the matter to a finish, but
Micaela appears with her news, and
Don Jose must leave to see his mother
before her death. All else is forgotten.

Carmen scornfully echoes Micaela s
request, the music echoing Don Jose's
jealousy. The Toreador song chorus
returns, as if to indicate Escamillo' s
ascendency, but it dies out in strangely
distorted echoes. Don Jose and Micaela
disappear in the opposite direction.
Carmen leans faintly against a boulder
and watches them depart. With a
shudder she remembers the message
of the cards. Well, whatever will be,
will be. Such is fate.

ACT IV

SCENE A Square in Seville ', before the
Entrance to the Bull Ring

\ THIRD intermezzo indicates
JLJL again the changed scenes of the
opera. It is lively, delicate yet vigor
ous, like a swift dance only the oboe
has a few plaintive notes. Then the
curtain rises on the crowd outside the
great "Plaza de Toros." A brilliantly
dressed throng awaits the procession
into the ring and the entrance of Es-
camillo. The brilliant opening therne
of the prelude rings out again with ir
resistible verve. Street hawkers with
oranges, fans and favors, are vigor
ously pushing their wares. Soldiers

,.,, _ r ; ..... . t

CARD SCENE ACT III
66

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

and civilians, cits and peasants, aristo
crats and bull-ringloafers, black-haired,
black-eyed women with towering
combs and floating mantillas and em
broidered silken shawls, throng the
open square. Escamillo appears with
Carmen, both magnificently dressed.
Carmen s own brilliant attire proclaims
its own story, and hers. The "Toreador
Song" greets Escamillo y who takes leave
of Carmen before he enters the ring,
in the song, "Si tu m'amas" (If You
Love Me!), he promises to fight all
the better for her love; for Escamillo ,
despite his rough life and his gayeties,
is a brave and gallant Spanish gentle
man. Carmen^ won to him, yet half-
conscious of what Fate is bringing her,
avows, in return, her own willingness
to die for Escamillo. As the Toreador
enters the ring, Carmen is warned of
Don Jose's nearness. But she is no
coward herself and she replies that
she does not fear him. Alone upon the
stage she waits his reappearance
which does not take long.

Then the clouds of tragedy lower in
truth.

For the first few moments the air
is tense; question and reply are
swift, the one pleading, the other mer
ciless. Don Jose pleads in impassioned
accents; Carmen for a moment seems
even to waver; but from the interior
of the ring come the plaudits of the
crowd, the first theme of the prelude
reappearing, reinforced with magnifi
cent choral harmony. Carmen faces
it out, but her heart is chill, for she
knows that the end is come. Don
Jose's rage increases when the applause
of the multitude again crashes forth.
Carmen , seeming uplifted, throws at
Don Jose s feet the ring he has given
her. He draws his knife and rushes in.
Carmen has seen death.

When Escamillo appears, a moment
later, among the crowd, at the wide-
flung doors, Carmen is lying there and
Don Jose has surrendered. But at the
sight of his rival, Don Jose frees himself
a moment, and flings himself, as if to
join her in the death he cannot yet
hope for, across the body of his be
loved. Another magnificent phrase
peals out, "My Adored Carmen!"
and Fate has had its will.

12-in., 2.00

ACT I
PRELUDE

Philadelphia Orchestra 796 10-in., 31.50

FANTASIE

ERIKA MORINI, Violinist 6445
(Soldiers Changing the Guard)
STOKQWSKI AND PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA

1017 10-in., 1.50
HABANERA

(Love is Like a Wood-bird)
GERALDINE FARRAR, Soprano

621 10-in.,

GABRIELLA BESANZONI, Contralto In
Italian 6047 12-in.,

SOPHIE BRASI.AU, Contralto

550 10-in.,
CARMEN:

Ah! love, thou art a wilful, wild bird,
And none may hope thy wings to tame,

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French unless noted)

If it please thee to be a rebel,
Say, who can try and thee reclaim?
Threats and prayers alike unheeding;
Oft ardent homage thou'lt refuse,
Whilst he who doth coldly slight thee,
Thou for thy master oft thou'lt choose.
Ah, love!

For love he is the lord of all,
And ne'er law's icy fetters will he wear,
If thou me lovest not, I love thee,
And if I love thee, now beware!
If thou me lovest not, beware!
But if I love you, if I love you, beware!
beware!

PARLE-MOI DE MA MJRE

(Tell Me of My Mother) LUCY MARSH,
Soprano and JOHN McCoRMACK, Tenor

8034 12-in., 2.50
SEGUIDILLA

(Near the Walls of Seville) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano 6108 12-in., 2.00

1.50
2.00

1.50

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

CARMEN (airily)-.

Nigh to the walls of Sevilla,
Soon at my friend Lillas Pastia
I'll trip thro 1 the light Seguidilla,
And I'll quaff Manzanilla,
I'll go seek out my friend Lillas Pastia.
(Plaintively, casting glances at Jose] :
Yes, but alone one's joys are few,
Our pleasures double, shared by two!
So just to keep me company,
My beau I'll take along with me!
A handsome lad deuce take it all!
Three days ago I sent him off.
But this new love, he loves me well;
And him to choose my mind is bent.

ACT II

LES TRINGLES DE SISTRES

(Gypsy Song) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano 6109 12-in., 2.00

Ah! when of gay guitars the sound
On the air in cadence ringing,
Quickly forth the gypsies springing,
To dance a merry, mazy round.
While tambourines the clang prolong,
In rhythm with the music beating,
And ev'ry voice is heard repeating
The merry burthen of glad song.
Tra la la la, etc.

CANCION DEL TOREADOR

(Toreador Song) PASQUALE
AMATO, Baritone In Italian

6040 12-in., 2.00

HALTE LA! QUI VA LA?

(Halt There!) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano and GIOVANNI MARTINELLI,
Tenor 8019 12-in., 2.50

AIR DE LA FLEUR

(Flower Song) ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

6004 12-in., 2.00
ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor In Italian

6007 12-in., 2.00
GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

6191 12-in., 2.00
JOHN McCoRMACK, Tenor In Italian

6200 12-in., 2.00
FERNANDANSSEAU, Tenor 6348 12-in., 2.00

DON JOSE:

This flower you gave to me, degraded
'Mid prison walls, I've kept, tho' faded;
Tho' withered quite, the tender bloom
Doth yet retain its sweet perfume.

Night and day in darkness abiding,
I the truth, Carmen, am confiding;
Its loved odor did I inhale,
And wildly called thee without avail.
My love itself I cursed and hated,

Then alone myself I detested,
And naught else this heart interested,
Naught else it felt but one desire,
One sole desire did it retain,
Carmen, beloved, to see thee once again!
O, Carmen, mine! here as thy slave, love binds
me fast,

Carmen, I love thee!
From Schirmer score. Copy't G. Schirmer

LA-BAS DANS LA MONTAGNE

(Away to Yonder Mountain) GERAL
DINE FARRAR, SOPRANO 6108 12-in., 2.00

ACT III
VOYONS QUE J'ESSAIE

(Let Me Know My Fate) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano 6109 12-in., 2.00

CARMEN:

Come, let me know my destiny.
Pictures! spades! a grave!
They lie not; first to me, and then to him,
And then to both a grave!

(March of the Smugglers)

STOKOWSKI AND PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA

1017 10-in., 1.50

JE DIS QUE RIEN NE M'^POUVANTE

(I Am Not Faint-Hearted) (Micaela's Air)
FRANCES ALDA, Soprano 6038 12-in., 2.00
ALMA GLUCK, Soprano 6145 12-in., 2.00
MICAELA:

I try not to own that I tremble;

But I know I'm a coward, altho* bold 1

appear.
Ah! how can I ever call up my courage,

While horror and dread chill my sad heart

with fear?
Here, in this savage retreat, sad and weary

am I,

Alone and sore afraid.
Ah! heav'n, to thee I humbly pray,

Protect thou me, and guide and aid!
I shall see the guilty creature,

Who by infernal arts doth sever
From his country, from his duty,

Him I loved and shall love ever!
I may tremble at her beauty,

But her power affrights me not.
Strong, in my just cause confiding,

Heaven! I trust myself to thee."
Ah! to this poor heart give courage,

Protector! guide and aid now me!

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT IV C'EST TOI!

ARAGONAISE (You Here?) GERALDINE FARRAR,

(Prelude) TOSCANTNI and La Scala Or- Soprano and GIOVANNI MARTINELI.I,

chestra 839 10-in., 31-50 Tenor 8019 12-in.,' 32.50

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

{Carmen Selection Sousa's Band]

Prelude, Act I Entr* acte, Act IV -Toreador Song [35000 12-in., 1.25

Freischiltz Overture Sousa's Band)

/Toreador Song Werrenrath and Chorus} ccn/: o IT i en

I Pagliacci Prologue (In Italian) Reinald Werrenrath, Baritone}**^ 12 ~ m '> LM

/Toreador Song (In English) Alan Turner^ Baritone\*sr 71 in 7 r

t TrovatoreTempest of the Heart (In English) Alan Turner, Baritone] 1 3 " 1 iu-in., ./3

/Carmen Selection (Xylophone) Wm. Reitz\ -, ,-QQ^ 1A - 7 r

I BohemeMusetta Waltz (Whistling) Guido Gialdimj 2 J

(Carmen Selection JSessel/a's Italian Band\
Prelude Toreador Song Habanera >35610 12-in., 1.25

Coronation March (Le Prophete) (Meyerbeer) Vessella's Italian Band]

/Prelude (2) First Intermezzo Victor Herbert's Orchestra\r~* m n - , r n

IPrelude Finale and Tnird Intermezzo Victor Herbert's Orchestra j^ 1 ^ J -" m - 1 ' :?u

DON JOSE AND CARMEN

PHOTO LANDE CARUSO TOSCANINl DESTINN GATTI-CASA'ZZA, HOMER MARTIN

A REHEARSAL OF CAVALLERIA AT THE METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE, NEW YORK

CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA

UNLIKE many suddenly success
ful works, "Cavalleria Rusti-
cana" continues to hold its own
as one of the most popular of operas.
Nor is this hard to understand. The
plot moves directly and simply to its
predestined end; the music is forceful
and strong, intensely dramatic in feel
ing and rich in harmony and orchestra
tion. Best of all, Mascagni manages
to combine a good deal of straightfor
ward melody in a score which otherwise
follows the modern idea in having no
set arias and ensembles.

For Pietro Mascagni, the production
of "Cavalleria Rusticana" proved as
dramatic a turn in fortune's wheel as
any such turn, perhaps, in the history
of opera. The son of a poor baker of
Leghorn, born December 7, 1863, aided
by a friendly uncle, he entered the
Cherubini Conservatory against his

parents' wishes. Some preliminary suc
cesses not only reconciled his father,
but brought aid from Count Florestano
de Larderel, a wealthy amateur, who
sent him to the famous Conservatory
at Milan. Here success for a time
deserted him. Resenting the dry stud
ies of harmony and counterpoint, he
soon left his teachers, not unwillingly,
to mould artistic temperaments less
assertive than his own. He found
himself conductor of an obscure touring
opera company visiting the smaller
Italian cities with no very brilliant
prospects for the future, though he
learned many practical details of his
art which he might never have learned
at the Conservatory. Wearying of this
life of constant travelling, he married
and settled down to the humdrum
career of a music teacher at Cerignola,
near Foggia. About this time, how-

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ever, there was need felt in Milan for
short, concise one-act operas, and a
prize for such a work was offered by
Sozogno, the music publisher. Securing
a libretto, Mascagni worked feverishly,
and in eight days wrote "Cavalleria
Rusticana/' Not only did he win
Sozogno's prize, but he won the yet
greater prize of universal approval, and
while still in his twenties this obscure
music teacher found himself hailed as a
genius, one of the newest and brightest
stars in Italy's lustrous host of operatic
composers. Medals were struck in his
honor. His native city, Leghorn, wel
comed him back with torchlight pro
cessions and illuminations, and the
King of Italy conferred upon him the
order of the crown of Italy, an honor
not bestowed upon Verdi until middle
life. "Cavalleria" was hailed with
rapture all over Italy, and soon was
equally popular in all music-loving
countries. Mascagni's subsequent ca
reer has been devoted largely to oper
atic composition, but has produced no
work quite rivalling "Cavalleria" in
popular esteem. His u Piccolo Marat/'
first given, in Italy, in 1921, remains
to be more thoroughly known.

The story of "Cavalleria Rusticana"
is so simple that it can be told in a sen
tence. Turiddu, a young Sicilian peas
ant, returns from the wars to find his
old sweetheart Lola wedded to Alfip,
and he makes love to Santuzza; but in
Alfio's absence he renews relations with
Lola. Santuzza in despair informs
Alfio upon his return, and the two men
fight it out with knives till Turiddu is
slain. The raw facts of the plot are
so simple as to savor of every-day po
lice court news, but the charm of the
Sicilian setting, the interplay of human
nature as the various characters thread
out their destiny, the passionate inten
sity of the music, are such as to lift this
tragedy of low life into a vivid and
heart-searching drama. In contrast

with the love of two women for Tu~
riddu is the love of a third his mother.
Through all the misfortunes which his
escapades bring him, the mother-love
is unfailing, and Turiddu s mother is no
less sympathetic with the wronged and
outraged Santuzza. This, and the sim
ple religious piety of the peasant-folk
at Eastertime, lift the tragedy out of
the commonplace.

The music of "Cavalleria Rusticana"
is ajiappy blend of the old and the new.
In its melodiousness it adheres to the
older tradition. Tunes abound, so
simple in character that any person
with an average ear for music can read
ily grasp them. In this respect the
work is obviously a descendant of the
old Italian school of opera; but the
method in which the melodies are used
is modern. There are no set arias, no
elaborately arranged ensembles halting
the movement of the plot while the
singers display their vocal charms. The
melodies occur naturally and spontane
ously, and, moreover, they are arrayed
in all the panoply of modern harmony
and orchestration. There is none of
the stiff recitative of the older day.
The recitative, on the contrary, is flex
ible and natural, giving a just musical
presentment of the speaking voice's
inflections with an accompaniment for
the orchestra which faithfully follows
the mood of the moment. Emotional
crises develop, reach their climax and
pass away; or again, they reach a point
where the lyric outburst of melody
seems natural, and indeed inevitable.
This flowing continuity of style is es
sentially modern, being one of the
innovations in operatic treatment for
which we are indebted to the genius of
Richard Wagner. Ultra-modern com
posers have carried the idea forward to
such a degree as practically to elimi
nate melody in the ordinary sense of
the word; but the success of their ef
forts is still in doubt.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in one act. Libretto
adapted from the book of
Verga by Targioni-Torzetti and
Menasci; music by Mascagni. First
performed at Rome, May 17, 1890;
in Germany, at Berlin, October 21,
1891; London, 1891; Paris, January
19, 1892. First United States produc
tion in Philadelphia, September 9, 1891.
Given in New York October 1, 1891.

CHARACTERS

and Original American Cast

SANTUZZA (San-toot'zaK), a vil
lage girl Soprano (Kronold)

LOLA (Low'-laK), wife of Alfio

Mezzo-Soprano (Campbell)

TURIDDU (Too-ree'-doo), a young

soldier Tenor (Guille)

ALFIO (Al'-fee-oK), a teamster

Baritone (Del Puente)

LUCIA (Loo-chee'-ah) y mother of

Turiddu . . . Contralto (Teale)

Chorus of Peasants and Villagers.
Chorus behind the Scenes.

The Scene is laid in a Sicilian Village.
Time, the Present.

(The name of theopera is pronounced
Kah-vahl-leh-ree'-ah Roos-tih-kah'-nah .
Its English translation is Rustic Chiv
alry],

SCENE A Square in a Sicilian Village.
Attheright in the Background is a Church.
At the left, the Inn and Dwelling of Mam
ma Lucia. The Time is Easter Morning
in the Present Day.

^ I A HE opera really begins with the
JL Orchestral Prelude, which takes
the form of a fantasia on the principal
airs of the work, welded together with
splendid musicianship. During the
performance, however, the voice of
Turiddu is heard from the curtained

stage singing the "Siciliana," one of the
most popular airs in the whole work :

It is a love-song pure and simple; but
in its long-drawn cadences, its darkly
colored harmonies, is some hint of the
tragedy which is the consummation of
Turiddu s love for Lola. t It is a serenade,
and the composer has given the melody
a guitar-like accompaniment which is
unusually charming, but of course the
main significance lies in the melody
and the ardent wooing of Turiddu:

Lola, fair as flow'rs in beauty smiling,

Love from thy soul-lit eyes

Softly is glowing;

He who would kiss thy lips, red and

beguiling,

Blissful and favored were he
Such heaven knowing 1

# # # *

It is Easter Day, a festival that
means as much to the Sicilians as
Christmas to us. Moreover, it is
springtime, and the air is fragrant
with the odor of orange blossoms, and
the lark rises singing from myrtles in
full bloom. The warm beauty of the
day is eloquently suggested in the
opening chorus, "Gli aranci plezzano"
(Blossoms of Oranges). This is sung
first by women, and then by men, and
during its melodious progress the cur
tain slowly rises, showing the people
of the little village crossing the square
to enter the church opposite the inn
where Lucia^ mother of Turiddu^ plies
her trade.

No sooner has the happy crowd en
tered the church than Santuzza appears
and calls for "Mamma Lucia." "What
is it?" asks the old woman, coming
from the house. " Where is Turiddu?"
questions the girl. Something in her
manner warns Lucia, and she evades

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

the repeated question with "Do not ask
me. I don't know. I want no trouble."
But Santuzza pleads, asking her to be
merciful as the Saviour was merciful to
the Magdalen. This leads to the
"Dite, Mamma Lucia" (Tell Me,
Mother Lucia).

Lucia replies that Turiddu has gone
to Francofonte for wine. "No," de
clares Santuzza, "someone in the vil
lage saw him last night." The older
woman's suspicions are quickly aroused
and she invites the girl to enter; but
this the unhappy Santuzza cannot do.
In this little Sicilian village the moral
code is strict, and she is an outcast,
excommunicated for her sins! "What
of my son?" questions the mother; but
before Santuzza can reply, the cracking
of whips and jingling of bells announces
the arrival of Alfio> the carrier, who
presently enters, followed by the crowd.
He sings the "II cavallo scalpita" (The
Sturdy Steed), a vigorous description
"of a carrier's career. The lively rhythm
and swift changes of harmony are par
ticularly exhilarating, and this number
is one of the most brilliant in the opera.

Alfio has every reason to be happy, for
as a public carrier he possesses much
prestige, and he thoroughly enjoys the
life. Moreover, is he not the husband
of the beautiful Lola? All his simple
satisfaction bubbles over in this num
ber, the latter part of which is given
over to his joy at returning home for
Easter, and the welcome that awaits
him from his adored one. He has no
suspicion that a few hours earlier
another man has been likening the lips
of the dusky Lola to crimson berries.
The chorus joins gaily in his lively
music, and afterwards disperses, some
into the church, and the rest about
their business, Alfio among them.

The gaiety of Alfio' s song gives place
to the Easter music which now fills the
air. Two records present the "Regina
Coeli" (Queen of the Heavens) and the
"Ineggiamo al Signore" (Let Us Sing
Before the Lord) .

This Easter music is exceptionally
rich in melody and harmony. Its
tranquil beauty and sanctity of feeling
deeply emphasize the part religion
plays in the lives of these simple, pas-

PHOTO BERT, PARIS

AMATO AS ALFIO

GADSK.I AS SANTUZZA

SANTUZZA PLEADING WITH TURIDDU ACT I
(DESTINN AND CARUSO)

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

toral people. There is splendid breadth
and dignity in its familiar tunes.

With the departure of Alfio and his
admirers, Santuzza and Mamma Lucia
are left alone again, and Santuzza pours
her sad story into the kindly ears of the
sympathetic Lucia. Before Turiddu
went away to serve his time in the
army,, it appears, he was in love with
Lola, who seemed to return his love.
But when his time was up, and he re
turned to the village he found Lola
married to Alfio. To console himself,
Turiddu made violent love to Santuzza,
who yielded to his ardor all too com
pletely. Now, it seems, Turiddu is
again paying court to Lola, who re
ceives him with favor, and Santuzza
finds herself doubly disgraced by his
desertion. The story of Santuzza is
set forth in the "Voi la sapete" (Well
Do You Know Good Mother).

This is one of the most powerful, and
indeed one of the most beautiful num
bers in the opera, the melody being
familiar to everybody:

Vrf to M
Surt 0. you Jbww. o*.

Lucia is not wholly surprised, but
deeply grieved. She looks with fore
boding upon the future, and she does
her best to console the unhappy girl,
who pleads for her prayers, in the
"Andante, O mamma' 7 (Implore Your
God to Save Me).

Lucia tries to comfort her, remaining
patient even when the frantic Santuzza
threatens vengeance against her son;
then even Santuzza s mood softens as
she thinks of the love she has lost.

Lucia leaves Santuzza to enter the
church, and a moment later Turiddu
himself appears. Then follows the
duet, "Tu qui, Santuzza" (Thou Here,
Santuzza?), in which the two quarrel
violently.

This number is a melodious semi-

recitative which presents the quarrel
with growing intensity. "Thou here?"
asks Turiddu, and Santuzza explains
that she has come to see his mother.
She then confronts him with the fact
that he did not go to Francofonte,, as he
was ^ supposed, but instead to Lola.
Turiddu accuses her of spying upon
him, and is soon beside himself with
anger. Santuzza insists that he has
been seen by Alfio, Lolas husband
himself, but Turiddu refuses to listen,
taunts ^her with jealousy and ingrati
tude, bidding her to leave him.

They are interrupted by the sound
of a woman's voice, singing from be
hind the scene as she approaches. It
is the unsuspecting Lola, on her way to
church, carolling out the lovely "Fior
di giaggiolo" (My King of Roses).

The music is adapted to suit the
words, which express her love for Tu
riddu:

My king of roses,

Radiant angels stand

In Heav'n in thousands;

None like him so bright

That land discloses,

My king of roses!

She enters and grasps the situation
at a glance. The two girls converse
with thinly veiled irony; the embar
rassed Turiddu contributes but little.
Finally Lola proceeds to church, invit
ing her lover to follow. Santuzza
claims him, however, and they continue
their former quarrel. This is carried
on in one of the loveliest numbers of the
entire work, the "Ah, No, Turiddu,
rimani" (No, Turiddu, Remain!).
^ The melody is tender and pathetic,
rising to^a great climax as the dis
traught girl begs Turiddu to return to
her. He refuses, and the scene that
follows is passionate and intense. The
girl's frenzied agony is no less powerful
than Turiddu s violent anger, and fi
nally, when Santuzza advances threat
eningly upon him, Turiddu seizes her
and throws her down, hastening into

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

SANTUZZA:

None should go

But those who have not sinned!

church in pursuit of Lola. "Accursed!"
cries the wretched girl, "accursed at
Easter, thou false one!" and yields her
self up to despair.

She is aroused by the arrival of Alfio y
and another great scene ensues, which
is set forth in three records, "Turiddu
mi tolse Fonore" (Turiddu Forsakes
Me),"Comare Santa, allor" (Santuzza,
Grateful Am I), and "Ad essi io non
perdono" ('TisThey Who Are Shameful) .

In these the duet is presented with
extraordinary dramatic force, and
interspersed with the semi-recitatives
are melodic passages unsurpassed in
modern dramatic music. Santuzza
tells all she knows. At first Alfio finds
it hard to believe in Lola s guilt. His
anger is immediate and passionate
"If thou art lying I'll have thy heart's
blood" but in the end he is convinced.
Santuzza repents having told him, and
reproaches herself; but Alfio, who is at
bottom generous by nature, tries to
calm her. He breaks out again in sud
den fury against Turiddu and Lola
" 'Tis they who are shameful! Revenge
rilhaveuponthem,thisdayandhour."

They go out, leaving the stage empty

while the beautiful "Intermezzo" is
played. The calm serenity of this
music, and the peaceful scene upon the
stage, are in sharp contrast with the
highly charged scenes of a moment ago,
and that which is to come. It provides
a moment of relief for which the audi
ence is grateful, and serves to .empha
size the devout religious spirit of the
Sicilian peasants despite their hot-
blooded conduct in human affairs.

This exquisite interlude, with its
heavenly melody at the end, is doubt
less the most familiar single number in
the entire work, and is complete in it
self. Not only is the melody beautiful,
but the harmony is rich, and the orches
tral scoring, with its fine contrasts of
woodwind and strings, is a beautiful
piece of musical tone-painting.

PART II

A") the last strains of the Inter
mezzo die away, the people begin
to leave the church, and soon a merry
crowd is assembled outside the inn of
Mamma Lucia. They sing "A casa, a
casa" (Now Homeward), a lively chor
us which prepares the way for the

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Brindisi "Viva il vino spu meggiante"
(Drinking Song).

This is a lively number, in striking
contrast to the prevailing tragic tone of
Mascagni's opera. It has a most fasci
nating swing, and is full of life and
color, beginning:

The "Brindisi" is sung by Turiddu as
if he had not a care in the world,
though perhaps his gaiety is a trifle
hysterical, for the end is already at
hand. As the "Brindisi" draws to a
close, Alfio approaches in time to see
Lola drink in response to Turiddu s
toast. Watched with tense interest
by the assembled crowd, Turiddu offers
Alfio a glass of wine. "A voi tutti
salute" (Come Here, Good Friends),
sings he.

Alfio scornfully refuses, to the horror
of Lola. Turiddu^ still in a mood of
bravado, pours the wine carelessly on
the ground, and the peasants, realizing
the situation, withdraw leaving the
two rivals face to face. A challenge is
quickly given and accepted, after the
Sicilian fashion, Turiddu biting Alfio's
ear, and the men arrange to meet in the
garden.

Now follows an affecting scene in
which Turiddu bids farewell to his
mother, in the "Addio alia madre"
(Turiddu's Farewell) and the "Mamma
quel vino e generoso" (Too Much Wine,
My Mother) Turiddu's Farewell, con
tinued, and finale of the opera.

^ Without explaining the details, Tu
riddu pretends to have been drinking,
and declares the wine-cup to have
passed too freely among his comrades.
He must go away, he says, and he
would bid his mother farewell. Lucia
is not deceived; his distraught manner,
the passionate tenderness of his fare

well, tell her more than words could
say, and she watches him horror-strick
en as he tears himself from her arms
and rushes away, first bidding her take
care of Santuzza.

There is but little more to tell. San
tuzza enters and throws her arms about
Lucia. People crowd about them, and
soon a woman comes running with the
cry "Neighbor Turiddu is murdered!"
Several other women rush in, terrified.
Santuzza falls swooning, and Lucia is
supported by other women in a fainting
condition. The curtain falls rapidly as
the crowd gathers round the unhappy
pair, and all is over.

NOTE The quotations from Cavalleria

Rustic ana are given by kind permission

of G. Schirmer. (Copyright 1891.)

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless noted)

ACT I
SICILIANA

(Thy Lips Like Crimson Berries) ENRICO

CARUSO, Tenor 516 10-in., #1.50

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

734 10-in., 1.50
VOI LO SAPETE

(Well You Know, Good Mother) MAR-
GARETE MATZENAUER, Contralto

6327 12-in., 2.00
MARIA JERITZA, Soprano 687 10-in., 1.50

SANTUZZA:

Well do you know, good mother,
Ere to the war he departed;
Turiddu plighted to Lola his troth,
Like a man true-hearted.
And then, finding her wedded
Loved me! I loved him!
She, coveting what was my only treasure-
Enticed him from me!
She and Turiddu love again!
I weep and I weep and 1 weep still!

AVE MARIA

(Adapted to the Intermezzo) JOHN
McCoRMACK, Tenor and FRITZ
KREISLER, Violinist, 3021 10-in., 2.00

ADDIO ALLA MADRE

(Turiddu's Farewell to His Mother)
ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor 6008 12-in., 2.00

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE COMPLETE CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA (IN ITALIAN)

Every part of Mascagni's popular opera has been recorded in this new series. On account of
Parts 6, 10, 11, 14, 15 and 16 being in 10-inch size it has not been possible to double the series in
regular order, and the records should be played just the way they are numbered. For example,
35686-A should be followed by 18549- A, etc.

[No. 1. Prelude and Siciliana (Thy Lips Like Crimson Berries) 1

Francesco Tuminello, Tenor, and La Scala OrA.>35680 12-in., 31.25
[No. 2. Prelude, Part II ................................ La Scala Orch.}

(No. 3. Introduction and Chorus of Villagers (Gli aranci olezzano) 1

La Scala Charus\15&\ 12-in., 1.25
No. 4. Chorus of Villagers, Part II .................... La Scala Chorus]

(No. 5. Dite, Mamma Lucia .................. G. Ermolli and E. RaveHi}*?^, 10 . , oe

\No. 7. Easter Hymn, Part I (Regina Coeli) .......... The Opera Chorusf 35 ^ 6 12 ' in '' L25

(No. 8. Easter Hymn, Part II (Inneggiamo al Signore) ]

s Giorgina Ermolli, Soprano and Chorus >35685 12-in., 1.25

[No. 9. Voi lo sapete ........................ Giorgina Ermolli , Soprano]

(No. 6. Alfio's Song (II cavallo scalpita) ......... Enrico Perna, Baritone}-, or^o -in 7?

I No. 10. Andate, o mamma ................... Giorgina Ermolli, Soprano) ** lu-in., ./:>

/No. 11. Tu qui, Santuzza? ....................... Ermolli and Tuminello} + Q rr Q m 7 r

\No. 14. Turiddu mi tolse 1'onore .................... Ermolli and Perna f 1 ** 1U ' m *> J *

JNo. 12. Fior di giaggiolo ............... G. Ermolli^ Tuminello and Ravelli} ^^/-n^ ** c

INo. 13. Ah, No, Turiddu, rimani .................. Ermolli and Tuminello] ^ b * f U ' m '> Llb

(No. 15. Comare Santa, allor ....................... Ermolli and Perna}*, OCC7 in 7C

\No. 16. Intermezzo ................................ La Scala Orchestra^ 557 10 - ln - J5

JNo. 17. A casa, a casa .................. Tuminello^ Ravelli and Chorus^f^n 19 , 9 r

\No. 18. Brindisi Viva il vino spumeggiante ....... Tuminello and Chorus j^ 056 lz - m -> L ~>

/No. 19. A voi tutti salute .............. F. Tuminello^ Perna and Ravelli} -3c/:oQ 10 i oc

\No. 20. Mamma, quel vino e generoso ............. Tuminello and Ravelli}^^ LZ ~ m '^ L ^

MISCELLANEOUS CAVALLERIA RECORDS

/Prelude fossel/a's Italian Band

\Introduction to Act I Vessellas Italian

/Gems from "Cavalleria" (In English) .................... Victor Opera

t Gems from " Pagliacci" (In English) .................... Victor Opera

/Prelude ............................................ La Scala Orchestra} ~ c -, n , + * , r

\Selection ("Alfio's Song," "Easter Chorale/' "Intermezzo"). Pry or 9 s Band] 5bl( * 12 ~ m ' J L25

/Intermezzo ................................... Victor Concert Orchestra}-, ** t * * n . 7C

1 Tales of Ho/man Barcarolle .................. Victor Concert Orchestra( L/jLi 1U " ln '' Jb

/Intermezzo ................................. Victor Herbert* sOrchestra\it* o/: IA i nn

1 Spring Song (Mendelssohn} .................. Victor Herbert's Orchestra r* M * 6 iu - m '> LU(J

(Intermezzo ...................................... Pietro's Accordion J\ 7QA 1 in 7C

} 1 * 1 1U " m) '*

1 Pagliacci Vesti la guibba (Accordion) ......................... Pietro

/Intermezzo ...................................... Vessellas Italian Band

I Minuet (Boccherini) ............................ Vessel/a' s Italian Band

CHIMES OF NORMANDY

(LES CLOCHES DE CORNEVILLE)

(French)

COMIC opera in three acts. Text
by Clairville and Gabet; music
by Robert Planquette. First
produced at the Folios Dramatiques,
Paris, April 19, 1877, where it ran for
400 continuous performances. First
New York production at the Fifth Ave
nue Theatre, October 27, 1877.

Time and Place : Normandy ; Time of
Louis XV

(The French title of the opera is "Les

Cloches de Corneville," Lay Klohsh

duh Korn'veel}.

HENRI, Marquis de Valleroi^ is
romantic and adventurous. In
his absence from home, singular things
have happened. Gaspard y the warden
of the estate, has turned miser, and
has planned that Germaine^ his sup
posed niece, shall wed the Sheriff and
ward off investigation. Germain e^ how
ever, loves Grenicheux, who saved her,
she believes, from drowning. Greni-
cheux seeks her hand, also the sup
posed wealth she will inherit; and he
has jilted Serpolette, a girl of unknown
parentage, found as a baby in the fields
by Gaspard. Villagers, at a fair, try to
tease Serpolette, but fail. She claims
she is a nobleman's daughter and cares
nothing for Grenicheux. Henri returns,

in Mexican costume, and is not recog
nized.

Corneville castle is "haunted."
Chimes ring there mysteriously.
Henri will investigate. Germaine and
Serpplette^ with Grenicheux, enter his
service, and he reveals his rank. They
discover, after blood-curdling experi
ences, that Gaspard is using the castle
as a treasure-house and ringing the
chimes to keep away the curious-minded
and the superstitious. Gaspard is
discovered counting his money-bags,
and the shock drives him insane.

Henri further makes himself known,
and gives a fete. Serpolette arrives in
fine raiment, announcing she is the
long-lost Marchioness de Litcenay; but
Henri has doubts. Grenichcux, who has
been masquerading as her factotum,
claims the hand of Germaine in return
for his rescue. But it transpires that
Henri rescued the girl himself, and
Grenicheux is joyously kicked out.
Gaspard becomes suddenly lucid, and
reveals that Germaine is the true Mar
chioness. Henri and Germaine marry,
and Grenicheux and Serpolette. The
chimes ring out for a double wedding.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

DANS MES VOYAGES

(With Joy My Heart) RENATO ZANELLI,
Baritone, In French 879 10-in., #1.50

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

[Selection of the Principal Airs Pry or' s

I Poet and Peasant Overture (von Suppt) Pry or' s Band)'

[Selection of the Principal Airs Victor Concert Orchestra}

I Erminie Selection Victor Orchestra]

35583 12-in., 1.25

LE CID

MASSENET, for all of nis pop
ularity, was a modern. He
was lavish in orchestral ef
fects, subtle in his presentation of
character, and his score, though melo
dious, afforded few "set pieces." He
revelled in the picturesque and the
heroic of which "Le Cid," from the
life of the great Spanish warrior, is a
characteristic example.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Text by
A. D'Ennery, Louis Gallet and
Edward Blau, based upon the play
of the same name by Corneille, glori
fying a famous Spanish hero, El
Cid (1040-1099). Music by Jules
Massenet. First production at the
Opera, Paris, November 30, 1885, with
a notable cast including Jean and
Edouard de Reszke and Pol Plancon.
The first American production oc
curred at the New Orleans Opera.
First New York presentation February
12, 1907, with the de Reszkes, Plancon,
Lassalle, de Vere and Litvinne.

CHARACTERS

KING FERDINAND ........... Baritone

DON URRAQUE, his son ....... Baritone

COUNT GORMAS ................ Bass

CHIMENE, his daughter ....... Soprano

DON RODRIGUE, known as The

Cid ..................... Tenor

DON DIEGO, his father ........... Bass

LEONORE, maid to Chimene. . .Soprano
Courtiers, Soldiers, Townspeople

Time and Place: Seville, Spain; Twelfth

Century

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Luh Seed; in Spanish it is
El Theed, with the th as in "thread.")

curtain rises to show him receiving
knighthood from King Ferdinand, at
the house of Count Gormas y whose
daughter, Chimene,, loves the warrior
with a love that is returned in full. The
King and his family approve, for the
Kings daughter herself loves The Cid;
a match, however, is impossible be
tween her and one not of royal blood.

But the King bestows upon Don
Diego , father of The CzW,a governorship
expected by Count Gormas. The County
enraged, insults Don Diego , who, too
old to fight, calls upon his son to uphold
his honor without naming his adver
sary.

The Cid accepts the task, and is dis
mayed to find himself set against the
father of his beloved. By accident
more than design he kills Count Gormas.
He expires in the arms of his daughter,
who sets aside love and swears ven
geance. The King refuses her en
treaties for justice, influenced, of

CID, (from the Arabic el seid,
JL "The Conqueror,") has returned
from victory over the Moors, and the

ORIGINAL POSTER BY CLAIRIG

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

course, by his daughter, who loves The
Cid> but also by the fact that the Moors
again are advancing. Before he de
parts to fight them, The Cid gains audi
ence with Chimene^ who finds her love
as strong as her wish for retribution.
After a dramatic scene they part, both
torn with anguish.

The Cid 's encounters turn out badly
at first, and Chimene and the King both
hear he is dead. The girl's vengeance
is fulfilled, but her love is racked with
despair. A second report turns the
news. He has routed the enemy, and
is alive. He returns, to find the girl
still implacable. The King, shrewdly
enough, now promises her he will pun

ish the warrior. He has nc intention
of complying, but with Solomon-like
wisdom he asks her to pronounce, her
self, the death-sentence. His judg
ment is correct; Chimene cannot bring
herself to this. Finally, when The Cid
draws his own dagger and threatens
to end his own life if she will not wed
him, Chimene is forced to acknowledge
that Love is triumphant, The Cid a
conqueror in love as in war.

VICTOR RECORD

6 SOUVERAIN, 6 JUGE, 6 PJiRE!

(Almighty Lord, Oh Judge, Oh Father)
ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor In French

6013 12-in., #2.00

l^^C^r^

SCENE FROM LE CID

PHOTO ENRIETTI (MONTE CARLO)

THE GALLEY OF CLEOPATRA (MONTE CARLO OPERA)

CLEOPATRA

CLEOPATRA, like the even less-
known "Panurge," is a posthu
mous work of Massenet's.
Rumor has it that really the opera was
written before "Manon," but that Mas
senet was not satisfied with it. What
ever the truth, it was not given until
after the composer had passed away.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Text by
Louis Payen; music by Jules
Massenet. First produced at Monte
Carlo, February 23, 1914, with Marie
Kousnezoff, Alfred Maguenat and M.
Roussiliere. First American perform
ance by the Chicago Opera Com
pany, January, 1916.

CHARACTERS

CLEOPATRA, Egyptian Queen

Mezzo-Soprano

MARK ANTHONY, Roman Em
peror Baritone

OCTAVIA, betrothed to Mark

Anthony Soprano

CHARMIAN, Cleopatra's maid. .Soprano
SPAKOS, Egyptian Freedman, in

love with Cleopatra Tenor

ENNIUS J Roman Officers Baritone

SEVERUSJ

AMNHES, tavern keeper of Alex
andria Baritone

ADAMOS. A dancer

A VOICE '. . - Baritone

Greek and Egyptian Slaves, Roman

Officers, Gift-Bearers, Jugglers, Guards

of Mark Anthony and Octavius.

The Scene: Vicinity of Alexandria^ Asia
Minor; and in Rome

MARK ANTHONY, encamped in
Asia Minor, is in the first act
receiving pledges of fidelity from de
feated enemies. Spakos, an Egyptian
freedman, arrives to announce Cleo
patra. Mark Anthony is not pleased,
but the Queen's beauty impresses him

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

and he falls in love. Despite orders
recalling him to Rome, he decides for
Egypt with her. They enter the royal
barge, to the chagrin of Spakos, him
self in love with the Queen.

Anthony wearies of his prize, and he
returns to Rome to wed his former be
trothed, Octama. An officer from Egypt
arrives at the wedding festivities, in
the second act, with the intelligence
that Cleopatra has lightly consoled her
self with Spakos. Anthony becomes
jealous, leaves his bride and hurries
back to Egypt.

His action is hastened, no doubt, by
his reading over some letter-tablets
Cleopatra has sent him in the past.
These awaken the emotions told of
in the "Air de Lettre Tes Messages
d' Amour" (Letter Song Thy Mes
sages of Love).

The next scene is in the notorious
quarter of Alexandria, where Cleopatra,
disguised, is seeing the dissipations of
her people. Cleopatra takes one of her
sudden fancies for a boy named Ada-
mos, head of a company of dancers.
Spakos, in a rage, endeavors to kill him.
The mob is about to close in upon the
strangers when Cleopatra makes her
self known.

In the midst of this, Charmian ar
rives, to tell the Queen that Anthony
awaits her at the palace. Spakos tries
to detain her, but she has him placed
under arrest, hastening back to wel
come her old lover.

The third act sees another fete, in
Cleopatra's gardens. Octama arrives,
and pleads with Anthony to return, as
the Roman army is marching against
Egypt. Anthony ', his infatuation strong
as ever, refuses, going out at the head
of Egyptian troops, while Octama sadly
returns to Rome.

The last act sees Cleopatra awaiting
the victorious return of Anthony.
Spakos informs her that her hero be
lieves her dead. Cleopatra, enraged,
stabs the man. Anthony, his army
vanquished and himself mortally
wounded, appears in time to die in the
Queen's arms. Cleopatra then, over
come with grief, applies to her breast
a poisonous asp, which bites her, and
she dies.

THE VICTOR RECORD

AIR DE LETTRE TES MESSAGES

D' AMOUR
(Thy Messages of Love)
MARCEL JOURNET, Bass In French

699 lO-in., 1. 50

MME. KOUSNEZOFF (CLEOPATRA)

MAGUENAT AS ANTHONY

ARRIVAL OF KING AND QUEEN"

LE COQ D'OR

(THE GOLDEN COCK)

WITH a story as fantastic as
anything out of the Arabian
Nights, "Le Coq d'Or" (The
Golden Cock) was in the first instance
written as an opera. Its first pro
duction in Russia was a failure. It
then was rewritten as an "opera-panto
mime" for the Diaghileff Russian bal
let, the text being sung by vocal artists
and the chorus-; the action being
performed, in dumb-show, by the bal
let. The fate of the opera was almost
exactly that of the composer's "Sche
herazade" suite, originally a pure con
cert work but which developed into
one of the "classical" ballets of modern
music. Ballet or opera, it is imagina
tive and original.

THE OPERA

OPERA pantomime in three acts.
Text by V. Bielsky, founded on a
fairy tale by Pushkin; music by

Rimsky-Korsakoff. First performance
September 24, 1909, at Zimin's Private
Opera House, Moscow; at Petrograd
January, 1910. The revised version
was produced at the Paris Opera June
9, 1914; London, June 25, 1914. First
American performance at the Metro
politan Opera House, March 6, 1918.

CHARACTERS

(With the Original American Cast)
CHARACTERS SINGERS PANTOMIMISTS

Maria Bar- Rosina Galli
rientos

THE
PRINCESS

THE KING

Adamo Didur

AMELIA Sophie Braslau

THE Rafaelo Diaz
ASTROLOGER

Adolph
Bohm

Queenie

Smith

Giuseppe
Bonfiglio

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

CHARACTERS SINGERS PANTO-

MIMISTS

THE PRINCE Pietro Audisio Marshall

Hall

THE Basil Ruysdael Ottokar

GENERAL Bartik

A KNIGHT Vincenzo Res- Vincenzo
chiglian loucelli
VOICE OF THE Marie Sun-
GOLDEN COCK delius
Boyars, Court Ladies and Nobles, Sol
diers, Oriental Dancers, Giants, and

Dwarfs.

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Luh Cokh Dohr'} .

ACT I

SCENE Palace of King Dodon

DODON (which is Dodo), an aged
king, is conferring with his boy-
ars or princes. He is weary of rule and
warfare, but his council is incapable of
advice. The Crown Prince Girdon
suggests that troops be concentrated
at the capital, but General Polkan ob
jects, and there is a quarrel. The
Astrologer appears, and offers to Dodon
a Golden Cockerel which will always
give warning when danger is near. The
bird is put to bed with much ceremony.
The King is doubtful, though he ac
cepts the gift, saying if the Cockerel
proves worthy, he will give the Astrolo
ger anything he may demand. The
bird soon warns the King there is an
invasion at his borders. The blood-
princes go off to repel the attack.

ACT II

SCENE A Narrow Gorge in a Moun
tain Pass

DODON is warned by the Cock to
go aid his sons. He finds their
bodies and sheds a few tears over them,
but sorrow is forgotten when a beauti
ful woman appears from a tent on a
hillside, singing, in the opera, the

unique "Hymn to the Sun." In a
strange wailing canticle, tinselled
through with extraordinary chromatic
scales and weird modulations, this
beautiful but vain creature asks if in
her own "dear land" the roses yet grow
in splendor and the "lilies burn in fiery
sheaves;" if in the evenings, the maid
ens come with soft songs to the foun
tains of mystical water.

The white-bearded Dodon falls in
love with the Queen, singing to her in a
voice like a bee in a bottle, and dancing
in front of her a clumsy and fantastic
dance. Rheumy-eyed, thick-ankled,
yet the Queen returns his love and
promises to marry him.

ACT III

SCENE Outside Dodon 's Palace

THE people await the King and his
new Queen, who arrive in fairy-tale
splendor. But the lady is bored with
her doddering old lord and master.
There is a way out. Dodon sees the
Astrologer passing, and he asks him to
name his reward for the gift of the
Golden Cock. The Astrologer demands
the Queen, and Dodon strikes him dead
on the spot. A storm threatens, and
when the King turns to his Queeti, in
helpless terror, she scorns him. Sud
denly, among thunder, the Golden
Cock is heard crowing. He flies at
Dodon, pecks him on the skull, and the
monarch, in his turn, fells dead. It
has grown dark during the storm, but
when light breaks, a moment later, the
bird and the Queen have gone, and over
the body of Dodon the folk sing a weird
lament.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

HYMNE AU SOLEIL

(Hymn to the Sun) MABEL GARRISON,

Soprano In French CoK IQ-in., $1.50

AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

In French 631 10-in., 1.50

FRITZ KREISLER, Violinist 6183 12-in., 2.00

MISCHAELMAN, Violinist 6100 12-in., 2.00

L ART DU THEATRE

THE RIDE TO HELL ACT V

LA DAMNATION DE FAUST

(DAMNATION OF FAUST)

HECTOR BERLIOZ'S dramatic
legend in four parts; book based
on de Nerval's version of
Goethe's poem, partly by Gandonniere,
but completed by Berlioz himself. First
performed December 6, 1846, at the
Opera Comique> Paris, in concert form.
In New York under Dr. Leopold Dam-
rosch, February 12, 1880. It was given
at Monte Carlo as an opera February
18, 1893 5 with Jean de Reszke as Faust.
Revived there in 1902, with Melba, de
Reszke and Renaud. First American
performance of the operatic version in
New York, 1908.

CHARACTERS

MARGUERITE (Mahr~guer-eet') .Soprano

FAUST (Fowsi) Tenor

MEPHISTOPHELES (Mef-iss-tof-

el-leez) Baritone or Bass

BRANDER Bass

Place: A Hungarian Village

(The name is pronounced, in French,
Lah Dam-nass-see-ohn duh Fowst; its
English equivalent is "The Damnation
of Faust.' 1 )

FAUST soliloquizes upon the vanity
of life; young folk are heard in the
distance, then Hungarian soldiers

tramping past to the "Rakoczy
March." He is about to take poison
when he hears the strains of Easter
music. Mephistopheles joins him, and
suggests they see the world together.

The story, in the main, follows the
Gounod "Faust." They go to a beer
cellar in Leipzig, leaving in fire and
smoke; then to a forest, where Faust
sleeps, to see the vision of Marguerite.
The next scene corresponds to the
Gounod garden scene, Mephistopheles
distracting the maid's attention with a
serenade,

*-, to the *wr. to the door <if My too - tr

while Faust enters the room of the
sleeping Marguerite. The girl wakes in
a kind of trance. Endeavoring to enter
the church, she is withheld by the
malevolent power of Mephistopheles.
She returns and falls into the arms of
Faust.

The last part contains four scenes:
a moonlit room where Marguerite sings
her lament; a rocky pass where Meph-

VICTRQLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

istopheles tells Faust she is about to be angels hovering overhead to rescue the

executed for murdering her mother, soul of the pardoned girl,
and where Faust barters away his soul

to save hers; a "Ride to Hell" on the

THE VICTOR RECORDS

infernal steeds Vortex and Giaour, RAKOCZY HUNGARIAN MARCH

shown, as a rule, by a moving pano
rama, and a vision of the town with

TOSCANINI and La Scala Orchestra

6300 12-in., 32.00

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

fDance of the Sylphs
ISylvia Ballet Pizzic

ato Polka

. Victor Concert Orchestra} 10940
Hral

. . . Victor Concert Or chests

/"Rakoczy March ..................................... Conway s f

iRadetzky March .................................... Conway' s Bandl 6

10-in., .75

PHOTO BERT

DAMNATION OF FAUST FOURTH SCENE PARIS OPERA

THE DAUGHTER OF THE
REGIMENT

BY the year 1840, Donizetti had
written fifty-three operas; and
during that year he added five
more to his credit. His insanity and
his death, late in the "fatal thirties,"
are attributed to overwork.

Donizetti's operas set no new stand
ards; they are for the most part typical
of what the average music-lover calls
"Italian Opera of the old school." Yet
his gifts were personal; even when he
followed the stereotyped rules of his
day, he could not help investing his
work with a tender lyric charm vouch
safed to but few.

"The Daughter of the Regiment" is a
brilliant little opera, with rollicking
songs, drums and military fanfares, a
vivacious heroine and a comic charac
ter the old Sergeant of the Twenty-first.

THE OPERA

COMIC opera in two acts. Words
by Bayard and St. Georges.
Music by Donizetti. First produced
at the Opera Comique, Paris, Febuary
11, 1840;Milan, October 30,1840;
Berlin, 1842, at the Royal Opera,
and during the next sixty years it had
two hundred and fifty performances on
that stage. Produced in London, in
English, at the Surrey Theatre, De
cember 21, 1847, and during the same
year, in Italian, with Jenny Lind. The
first American performance of which
the author has knowledge was that at
the New Orleans Opera, March 7, 1843.
Jenny Lind, Sontag, Lucca, Patti, Rich-
ings, Piccolommi, Albani and Parepa
Rosa have all appeared here as Marie.
Given by the Strakosch Opera Co. in
1871 with Cary, Capoul and Brignoli.
Maretzek produced the opera just
after the Civil War broke out, empha
sizing the military features, with Clara

Louise Kellogg as Marie. Sung in
English by the Boston Ideal Opera Co.
in 1888 with Zelie De Lussan as Marie.
Revived in 1902-03 at the Metropolitan
Opera Houe for Sembrich, the cast
including Charles Gilibert as Sulpizio.
Produced by Oscar Hammerstein in
1909, with Tetrazzini, McCormack and
Gilibert. Revived at the Metropolitan
Opera House, 1917.

CHARACTERS

TONIO, a peasant of Tyrol Tenor

SULPIZIO, Sergeant of the 21st. . . .Bass
MARIE, Vivandiere of the 21st, Soprano
MARCHIONESS OF BERKENFELD

Mezzo-Soprano

The Scene is laid in the Swiss Tyrol

(The Italian name of the opera is "La
Figlia del Reggimento," Lah Feel' -yah
del Re d'-jee -men-toll-, the French is
"La Fille du Regiment," La Fee r -yeh
eTRezh'-ee-mong') .

AZT I opens in a Swiss Alpine vil
lage, where trouble has long been
brewing.

The Marchioness of Berkenfeld^ clan
destinely married to a young officer of
inferior rank, many years before, has
left her child, Marie, with her husband,
who has since been slain in battle. The
child has been discovered and reared by
Sulpizio, the sergeant, and brought up
as a vivandiere, the "Daughter of the
Regiment." When the curtain lifts
we see her in uniform, a lively young
lady of seventeen, adored by numerous
"fathers" the gallant men of the 21st,
Savoyards under Napoleon.

Marie wishes to marry Tonio^ a
young Tyrolese who has saved her
from tumbling down a precipice, but
who, to complicate things, is in danger
of being shot as a spy, having come too

VI CTRO LA BOOK OF THE OPERA

near the lines for a glimpse of her. The .
fact that he has saved her life, however,
saves his own; Su/pizio and the Regi
ment, duly consulted, give their con
sent to the wedding, provided Tonio
joins the regiment which he does.

Everything seems lovely, and the
"goose to be hanging high;" but Sul-
pizio meets the Marchioness , who
claims to be the "aunt" of Marie. This
proud lady is horrified at the girl's be
trothal to a mere peasant, having big
ger plans for her. She carries her off,
to her disgust, the regimental anger,
and Tonio' 's despair.

The second act exhibits the Mar
chioness's salon.

Marie is living in luxury, but she
still pines for her old comrades and her
soldier-lover. Sulpizio is with her, on
sick-leave after a wound. The Mar

chioness counts on marrying the girl to
a rich nobleman, and the marriage con
tract is all ready to be signed. Marie is
half in rebellion and half in despair,
when the Regiment comes to town, and
with it her beloved Tonio, who has
risen to high rank.

It is now the turn of the Marchioness
to be gloomy; as a last resort she pro
claims the truth that Marie is her
daughter. The girl recognizes that
disobeying her mother is a serious
matter; and she consents to wed the
Count, her suitor. Touched by such
devotion, the Marchioness relents, and
Marie marries Tonio.

THE VICTOR RECORD

PER VIVER VICING

( To Be Near Her) JOHN McCoRMACK,

Tenor In Italian 6203 12-in., 32.00

BLACK LABEL RECORD

(Selection Vessellas Italian

\ Fra Diavolo Selection Vesselld $ Italian Band\

12-in., ?l.2S

COPY'T FOLEY

TETRAZZINI AS MARIE

DONIZETTI

COPY'T FOLEY
McCORMACK AS TONIO

THE SHADOW DANCE

DINORAH

OPERA in three acts. Libretto
by Barbier and Carre. Music
by Giacomo Meyerbeer. First
production Paris, Opera Comique y April
4, 1859. First London production,
under direction of Meyerbeer, July 26,
1859. First American production,
November 24, 1864, with Cordier,
Brignoli and Amodio. Sung by lima
di Murska at Booth's Theatre in 1867.
Other productions occured in 1879
with Mariman and Campanini; and in
1882 with Patti. Revived in 1892 for
Marie Van Zandt; by Oscar Hammer-
stein in 1907 for Mme. Tetrazzini;
and more recently by the Chicago Opera
Company as a vehicle for the art of
Mme. Galli-Curci.

CHARACTERS

HOEL, a goatherd (Qh-ell'} ... Baritone
CORENTINO, bag-piper (Koh-

ren-tee-no) Tenor

DINORAH, betrothed to Hoel

(Dee-no f -rah) Soprano

HUNTSMAN Bass

Place: Breton Village of Ploermel

ACT I

homestead of Dinorafis father
JL has been destroyed by storm, and
the girl's lover wishes to help the
stricken household. He is advised, by
the village soothsayer, of a vast
fortune hidden in the mountains. This
can be had only by one who lives
for a year in a lonesome glen, and even
at that the first person to touch it will
surely die. Being but a credulous
goatherd, Hoel accepts the story, and
he takes with him the half-witted bag
piper CorenfinOy hoping he will be the
first to touch the treasure. Dinorah
knows nothing of her lover's intentions,
and becomes insane from the belief
that he has deserted her. As the cur
tain rises, we find her in the moun
tains, arrayed in her bridal dress,
seeking her goat. When she discovers
the animal sleeping she sings a charm
ing, if strange lullaby, "Si, carina cap-
rettina" (Yes, My Beloved One).

This takes place near the hut of
CorentinQ) and when the piper returns

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

and finds Dinorah, he mistakes her for
an evil fairy who is said to so bewitch
those who have been lost or have gone
astray in the mountains., that they
dance until they die. Corentino is
scared out of his wits, and the half
insane girl forces him to dance until
he falls exhausted, when she disappears.
Hoel then enters, telling the bagpiper
how the wizard has instructed him to
seek for a white goat which will lead
him to the treasure. The bell of
Dinorah 's goat is heard and he goes
off in pursuit, dragging with him the
terrified Corentino.

ACT II

THE moon shines upon an open
clearing in the woods. In its clear
light is seen Dinorah. The moon
throws a strong shadow upon the
ground. Seeing her own form thus fan
tastically outlined, the girl regards it
as a friend. She sings and dances
with her shadow as with a living part
ner. Then is heard the world-famous
"Ombra leggiera" (Shadow Song).

This delightful waltz-like coloratura
aria is j us tly popular. The flute follows
the voice through the difficult runs and
vocal ornaments in a manner that clear
ly suggests the dancing shadow. The
florid cadenza is especially effective.

The scene changes. And a violent
storm arises, in the midst of which
Hoel still seeks the treasure; but Co
rentino^ having heard from Dinorah
that he who first touches it must die,
refuses to take the risk, suggesting that
the demented maid of the mountains
may do so in his place. As Hoel has
no objection they go in search of her.
Then a dam bursts high in the moun
tains and the flood carries away a

bridge on which Dinorah is crossing a
ravine. Hoel, rushing to her rescue,
finds she is none other than his own
sweetheart.

ACT III

AJL is quiet and peaceful after the
storm; herders and huntsmen are
gathered together. Hoel brings the still
senseless Dinorah., and lays her among
them. Believing her dead, he bitterly
reproaches himself, in the "Sei vendi-
cata assai" (Thou art avenged). But
she revives; and with her recovery,
reason returns; Hoel, thinking she is
treasure enough, gives' up his futile
hunt for a mythical fortune. All ends
happily as the reunited lovers go home,
and the curtain descends upon the
preparations for the wedding.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT II
OMBRA LEGGIERA

(Shadow Song) AMELITA GALLI-CURCI,

Soprano

6129 12-in., #2.00

Light flitting shadow, companion gay

Go not away!

Play here beside me, dark fears betide me
When thou dost go far from me!

Each coming morn I thee would find,
Ah prithee stay and dance with me!
If thou wilt stay, nor go away,
Thou thus shalt hear me sing.

Know'st thou not that Hoel loves me?
That as his bride he claims me!
Love well hath known
Our two hearts to unite!

ACT III
SEI VENDICATA ASSAI

(Thou Art Avenged) GIUSEPPE DE LUCA,
Baritone ^ 6443 12-in., 2.00

BLUE LABEL RECORD

fOmbra leggiera (Shadow Song) Olive Kline, SoPrano\.^,^ , , . . cn

\ Lucia-Mad Scene Olive Kline, Soprano}*^ 7 12 ' m - L5

FROM A PAINTING

SCENE FROM DONT CARLOS

DON CARLOS

OPERA in four acts. Libretto
by Mery and Du Locle; music
by Verdi. First produced at
Paris, March 11, 1867; in London, at
Her Majesty's Theatre, June 4, 1867.
Although it was revised and improved
by Verdi in 1883, it is seldom given
nowadays. Revived at La Scala,
Milan, in 1912, more recently at Monte
Carlo for Ruffo. New York, 1920.

CHARACTERS

(Original Paris Cast)

PHILIP II Obin, Bass

DON CARLOS (Kahr'-los) Morere,Tenor
MARQUIS DE POSA. . . .Faure, Baritone

GRAND INQUISITOR Belval, Bass

ELIZABETH DE VALOIS (duh-

Val-wali) Sass, Soprano

PRINCESS EBOLI. . Gueymard, Soprano

DON CARLOS, son of Philip II,
King of Spain, is in love with
Elizabeth de Valois^ daughter of Henry
II of France. His affection is deep and
sincere, and it is returned in equal
measure. For reasons of state, how
ever, Elizabeth is wedded not to Don
Carlos but to Philip II, and the young
prince therefore finds himself in love
with his own stepmother. He confides
in Rodrigo, Marquis de Posa, who
entreats him to leave the Spanish
court. The two pledge friendship in
the beautiful "Dio che nelF alma in-
fondere" (Infuse Friendship Into Our
Souls O Lord!). Carlos therefore begs
the Queen to obtain Philip* 's permission
to join the Flemings in the struggle
against the Spaniards. But as the
King is secretly in favor with the
Spanish tyrants the request only

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

angers him and further estranges
father and son.

Don Carlos has a dangerous admirer
in Princess JLboli^ who learns that the
Queen has by no means ceased to love
Don Carlos though married to his
father. Princess Eboli allows jealousy
to get the better of her and she informs
King Philip of the condition of affairs.
This maddens the King still further,
and, on the advice of the Grand
Inquisitor, Don Carlos is thrown into
prison. Rodrigo visits the Prince
there, and is shot by the Kings friends,
who suspect him of aiding the Flemings.
He bids farewell to earth in a beautiful
aria, "O Carlo, Ascolta" (O Carlos,
Hear Me), repeating a theme of the
friendship duet. And even before this,
filled with the idea of sacrificing his
own liberty for that of Don Carlos , he
has a noble aria, the "Per me giunto
e il di supremo" (The Supreme Day).
Carlos is freed, and goes to the Mon
astery of St. Just to keep tryst with
Elizabeth. The King surprises them
there, and his anger once more aroused,
he hands over Don Carlos to the Offi

cers of the Inquisition, who bear him
away to death as the curtain falls.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)
ACT I

DIG CHE NELL' ALMA INFONDERE
(Infuse Friendship Into Our Souls, O
Lord) ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor and
ANTONIO Scorn, Baritone

8036 12-in., #2.50

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor and
GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

8047 12-in., 2.50

PER ME GIUNTO 6 IL DI SUPREMO

(The Day Supreme) MATTIA BATTISTINI,

Baritone 604-4 12-in., 2.00

GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

6078 12-in., 2.00

ACT III
O CARLO, ASCOLTA

(O Carlos, Listen to My Plea) GIUSEPPE
DE LUCA, Baritone 593 10-in., 1.50

ELLA GIAMMAI M'AMOl

(Her Love was Never Mine!) FEODOR

CHAUAPIN, Bass 88665 12-in., 1.50

MARCEL JOURNET, Bass 8047 12-in., 2.50

UASSANI, MILAN DONr CA RLQS AT LA SCALA, MILANACT II, SCENE II

DON GIOVANNI

(DON JUAN)

(Spanish')

MOZART wrote "Don Gio
vanni," perhaps the greatest
of his works, on a stone table
in a pleasant room at Koschirz, near
Prague. For once he was happy. It
was in September, 1787; from his win
dow in the house of his friend Duschek
(Dussek), he could look out upon the
vine-crowned hills and their clusters of
purple fruit. He had rooms in Prague,
where his wife stayed, but he loved the
house of his friend, where he could
compose or play skittles as he willed.
He played much skittles but by the
end of October the opera was complete!
It was produced in Prague on October
29th. The night before, the overture
was still unwritten; but Mozart worked
all night, kept awake by his wife with
stories and with punch. He had to
rest a bit, but by seven in the morning,
when the music copyists came, the

work was done. It is no pot-pourri of
the chief airs, but a masterly work,
charged with the atmosphere of the
drama a perfect introduction. When
the opera was produced that night,
Mozart was welcomed with a fanfare
of trumpets, and the kindly Bohemian
audience greeted every number with
rapture. Well they might! for never
has melody more fresh and spontane
ous, more copious in quantity, more
delicately moulded in style, greeted
human ears.

Familiarize yourself with these magi
cal melodies! So sweet and simple on
the surface, they possess deeper qualities
than can be fathomed at first hearing.
There is perhaps no emotion of which
humanity is capable, which does not find
expression in Mozart's music. With
his uncanny artist's intuition, he pene
trated the very souls of his characters.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in two acts. Libretto by
Lorenzo da Ponte. Music by
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. First
produced at Prague, October 29,
1787; at Vienna, May 7, 1788; at Ber
lin, 1791; Paris, 1811. First London
production, April 12, 1817; an English
adaptation, called "The Libertine,"
was given in Philadelphia, December
26, 1818, with Mr. and Mrs. Henry
Wallach and Joseph Jefferson (grand
father of the favorite exponent of Rip
Van Winkle); produced in New York
May 29, 1826. Some notable revivals
occurred in 1889 at Metropolitan
Opera House, with Reichmann, Ka-
lisch, Behrens and Fischer; in 1898
with Sembrich, Nordica, Eames and
Plancon; in 1900 with Sembrich, Nord

ica and de Reszke; and at the Manhat
tan Opera in 1909 with Russ, Donalda,
Bonci and Renaud.

CHARACTERS

DON GIOVANNI (Joh-vahn'-nee], a
licentious young nobleman

Baritone

DON OTTAVIO (Ot-tah'-vee-oK), be
trothed to Donna Anna. . . .Tenor

LEPORELLO (Lep-oh~rel r -loh} , ser
vant of Don Giovanni Bass

DON PEDRO (Pay-droh\ the Com
mandant Bass

DONNA ANNA, his daughter . . . Soprano

MASETTO (Mas-set f -toh), a peasant

Bass

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ZERLINA (Tsair-lee r -nah) y betroth
ed to Masetto Soprano

DONNA ELVIRA (El-vee'-rah\ a

lady of Burgos Soprano

Peasants, Musicians, Dancers, Demons

Scene and Period: Seville ', in the Middle
of the Seventeenth Century

(The opera is also known as "Don
Juan," Don Wahri).

ACT I

SCENE The Court of the Commandant's

Palace at Seville. Night. Donna

Anna's Window is partly open

THE stage seems wholly dark, until
we discern, among fantastic moon
light shadows, the figure of Leporello.
He is awaiting his master, who is with
in, making love to Donna Anna. A
scream is heard, and Don Giovanni
rushes into the courtyard, followed by
the lady. Her father appears, with
lamp and sword. Don Giovanni par
ries with coolness each trembling pass
of the aged swordsman. He strikes
the lamp from his hand, then runs him
through. Then he and Leporello es
cape. Donna Anna is joined by Don
Ottavio. Search is hopeless. Over the
dead body of her father, Donna Anna
then swears vengeance.

The scene shifts to a desolate spot, by
a mountain road, with an inn. The fugi
tives conceal themselves as a carriage
approaches. A lady is seen within, and
Don Giovanni scents adventure. To his
dismay, however, he recognizes Donna
Elvira^ whom he has wronged. Leaving
Leporello to explain, he makes off.

Leporello' *s consolation to the lady is
to read over the list of his master's
former victims in the famous "Nella
bionda" (The Fair One), often known
as the "Catalogue Song/' It reveals,
for all its musical beauty, the character
of Leporello as an oily braggart, a cow
ard, a lackey by nature as well as

occupation. His music differs greatly
from the suave and courtly airs of his
master. Good-natured comedy ap
pears, none the less.

Again the scene changes to the
grounds of Don Giovanni 's own estate.
A wedding is in progress, and peasants
are enjoying the festivities. Don Gio
vanni is disposed to join in the fun and
make love to the bride, Zerlina. Mas-
etto, her betrothed, interferes, but the
Don touches his sword significantly,
and the poor wretch hopelessly fol
lows the crowd to refreshments
under Leporello.

Zerlina is flattered by the Don, who
suggests she is too beautiful to wed
the bumpkinly Masetto. The duet
which follows, reveals admirably the
simple character of the girl and the
evil finesse of the Don. It is known
as "La ci darem la mano" (Thy Little
Hand, Love,) and it nearly proves the
ruin of Zerlina. But Donna Elvira
appears, smarting under Leporello } s
insults, and she leads away the girl.
Then Donna Anna and Don Ottavio
appear, for the extraordinary purpose
of begging aid from Don Giovanni in
the search for the Commandant' s
murderer! The Don promises aid,
and excuses himself to look after his
guests. Donna Anna confides to her
betrothed that she recognizes his voice.
When the two depart, Don Giovanni
returns with Leporello, whom he com
mends for having escorted Donna
Elvira to the palace gates, declaring
to the guests that she was ill when she
endeavored to "make a scene."

Once more the visible scene shifts,
to Don Giovanni's garden where
Zerlina is striving to make peace with
Masetto in the lovely air, "Batti,
batti" (Scold Me, Dear Masetto),
an air that is full of natural grace and
sweetness, hence a true revelation of
the character of Zerlina, who really
loves her great, hulking lover.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

The Don., however, has not made
mischief enough. With another shift
of the scene, he lures her away from
the dance, and from Masetto. We are
unaware of this, however, until the
screams of Zerlina^ for help behind the
scenes, electrify everyone. Donna
Anna, Donna Elvira and Don Ottavio
leading, all rush in. Don Giovanni is
cornered. He listens defiantly, then
with drawn sword, fights a way through
and away.

ACT II

SCENE A Square in Seville. Donna
Elvira's Residence. Moonlight

THE Don is no better. This time
he is enamored of Donna Elvira s
maid. He comes to serenade her, but
for safety's sake has changed costumes
with Leporello. He finds not the maid
at the casement, but Elvira , whom he
proceeds to woo in the old fashion.
Unable to resist the Dons blandish
ments, the lady descends, when she is
deftly passed over to Leporello^ dressed
as' the Don who makes a terrible out
cry. The two run away, leaving him
free to serenade the maid in one of

the most remarkable of melodies, most
perfect in form and lovely in spirit.

He is interrupted by Masetto with
armed villagers. Masetto boasts of the
drubbing he will give Don Giovanni.
Asking to see the weapon, the Don
beats Masetto and gets away. Lepo
rello is captured and brought before
Donna Anna> Ottavio and Zerlina. The
wrong man, he is permitted to go free.
He is comforted in the " Vedrai Carino, "
(Dearest, Shall I Tell Thee). Don Ottavio
then sings, to comfort his beloved, the
"II Mio Tesoro'; (Fly With Me) one cf
the loveliest airs in all music a master
piece, too, of voice-writing, with its
smooth long-drawn phrases and deft
embellishments.

There is an end of all easy things.
Don Giovanni is next rejoined by Le
porello in a square in Seville. The
moon shines upon a newly-erected
statue of Don Pedro. Leporello shud
ders, but Don Giovanni speaks to it
inviting it to a banquet the following
night. The statue is seen to nod reply.

The scene changes to the banquet
hall, where, among festivities, Zerlina
once again appears to beg the Don to

DON GIOVANNI: Depart! or my sword shall teach thee obedience

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

repent. After she has left, screams are visitor. He is once again bidden to

heard. Leporello is sent to investigate, " T7 ~- " u " } * " ; ~" u ~ ~r~

and returns, white with dread, to an
nounce the statue. The guests flee, but
the Don offers his hand to the strange

repent. For the last time he refuses.
The statue sinks, flames arise, and
Don Giovanni is carried off by demons
to his eternal punishment.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless otherwise noted)

ACT I
NELLA BIONDA

(The Fair One) MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

6180 12-in., 32.00
LEPORELLO:

Ev'ry country, ev'ry township, fully confesses
Those of the sex whom to his rank he presses.
Gentle lady, this my catalogue numbers
All whose charms lent my master beguiling.
'Tis a document of my compiling,
And it please ye, peruse it with me.
In Italia, six hundred and forty;
Then in Germany, ten score and twenty;
As for France, double fifty seem plenty;
While in old Spain here, we count thousands

three!

Some you see are country damsels,
Waiting-maids and city ma'amselles,
Countess', duchess', baronesses,
Viscount* ev'ry kind of 'esses.
Womenfolk of all conditions,
Ev'ry form and ev'ry state!
First the fair one's unthinking blindness
He would dazzle with honied speeches;
Toward the dark-ey'd all pure kindness,
With the blue-ey'd he beseeches;
Winter, he prefers the fatter,
Summer, thin girls suit him better.

LA CI DAREM LA MANO

(Thy Little Hand, Love!) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano and ANTONIO Scorn,
Baritone 8023 12-in., 2.50

ACT II
SERENATA-DEH VIENI ALLA FINESTRA

(Open Thy Window) TITTA RUFFO,
Baritone 818 10-in., 1.50

ANTONIO SCOTTI, Baritone

6283 12-in., 2.00

DON GIOVANNI:

Ope, ope thy casement, dearest,

Thyself one moment show;
Oh, if my pray'r thou hearest,

Wave but that arm of snow.
Canst thou my ceaseless sighing

With cold indif'rence greet?
Ah! wouldst thou see me dying

Despairing, at thy feet?
Thy lip outvies Hymettian-honied bowers,
Virtue worthy an angel thy heart doth cherish;
Thy sigh were balm amid a heav'n of flowers;

Oh, for one kiss, one word, the soul would
perish!

VEDRAI, CARINO

(Dearest, Shall I Tell Thee) LUCREZIA
BORI, Soprano 543 10-in., 31-50

IL MIO TESORO

(To My Beloved) JOHN McCoRMACK,
Tenor 6204 12-in.,

OTTAVIO:

Fly then, my love, entreating,

To calm her anxious fears;

Oh, still her heart's wild beating,

And wipe away her tears.
Tell her I'll vengeance take

On him who slew her sire;
This arm his grave shall make,

Or I'll by his expire.

2.00

DONNE CURIOSE THE CLUB, ACT I

LE DONNE CURIOSE

MUSICAL comedy in three acts;
libretto by Sugana; music by
Wolf-Ferrari. Produced in
Munich, November 27, 1903, as Die
Neugierigen Frauen. First production
in America at the Metropolitan, Janu
ary 3, 1912, with Farrar, Jadlowker,
Scotti and Lambert Murphy.

CHARACTERS

OTTAVIO, a rich Venetian (Ot-tah'-

vee-oh) Bass

BEATRICE, his wife (Bay-ah-tree 1 -

cheh} Soprano

ROSAURA, his daughter (Ro-zow-

rati) Soprano

FLORINDO, betrothed to Rosaura

(Floh-rin'-doh) Tenor

PANTALONE a Venetian merchant

(Pahn-tah-loh'-neh) Baritone

COLOMBINA, Rosaura 's maid

(Koh-lom-bee f -nati) Soprano

ELEANORA .Soprano

Servants, Gondoliers, Men and Women
of the Populace

Time and Place: Venice; the Middle of
the Eighteenth Century

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Leh Don'-neh Koo-ree-oh'-seK).

E~: DONNE CURIOSE (Inquisi
tive Women) is pure comedy.
Beatrice,, Rosaura,, Eleanora and Colom-
bina plot entrance to the Friendship
clubhouse, of which their husbands
and lovers are members. No women
are admitted. Each has her own theory
as to what goes on there. The beauty
of the climax is that nothing does go
on, except what is right and proper.
The women, by bribing servants and
wheedling a key from one of the
clubmen, get into the house to find
the men harmlessly at dinner. Every
thing ends with a dance.

There is a charming air, in Act II,
"II Cor nel ^ contento" (My Heart,
How It Leaps in Rejoicing), a love-duet
between Rosaura and Florindo^ her
fiance, sung after she has induced
him to give up his key.

DON PASQUALE

COMIC opera in three acts; text
and music byGaetanoDonizetti.
Libretto adapted from the older
Italian opera Ser Marc 1 Antonio, by
Camerano. First presented at the
Theatre des Italiens, Paris, on January
4, 1843. First production in Paris, in
French, 1864; London, June 30, 1843.
First New York production March 9,
1846, in English, and in 1849 in Italian.
Revived at the New Theatre, New
York, December 23, 1909, with di
Pasquali, Bonci, Scotti and Pini-Corsi;
at the Metropolitan in 1913 with Sem-
brich, Scotti and Rossi.

CHARACTERS

DON PASQUALE, an old bachelor

(Don Pas-quah f -leti) Bass

DR. MALATESTA, his friend, a physi
cian (Mah-lah-tes'-tah] . . . Baritone

ERNESTO, nephew of Don Pasquale
(Ayr-nes'-toK) Tenor

NORINA, beloved of Ernesto

(Noh-ree'-naJi) Soprano

A NOTARY Baritone

Chorus of Valets and Chambermaids,

Majordomo, Dressmaker and

Hairdresser

Scene and Period: Rome; the Beginning
of the Nineteenth Century

ACT I

SCENE I A Room in Don Pasquale 's
House

/ T^HERE is a jolly overture, and
JL the opera begins without further
ado. Don Pasquale, advanced in years,
is angry with his nephew Ernesto^ a bit
of a scapegrace who has dared to fall
in love with Norina, an unknown but
probably scandalous young Roman
lady, and to refuse a wealthy and
respectable mate solemnly picked out

for him. Don Pasquale decides to
disinherit the youth, and get married
himself. The only trouble is, to find
a bride. For this purpose, he has called
in his old friend Dr. Malatesta, who
comes in to " report progress" in the
scene, "Son nov'ore" ('Tis Nine
o'clock). The Doctor proposes Sophro-
nia, his own sister.

Now at that, the Doctor is no fool.
He has no sister, there is no Sophronia;
but a practical joke, he thinks, will
cure the Don's folly and help Ernesto
to his Norina. The old Don pipes of
the wedded bliss to be: " Un fece
insolite" (A Fire All Unfelt).

The friends are interrupted by
Ernesto^ who is urged to give up
Norina. He of course refuses, and is
told of the Dons intention. Knowing
that, penniless, he cannot ask Norina
to marry him, he gives up to despair,
in the scene, "Sogno soave e caste"
(Fond Dream of Love). Before leav
ing he implores his uncle to ask Doctor
Malatestas advice; he is dumbfounded
when he is told that the Doctor origi
nally suggested marriage, and pre
sented his own sister as a proper bride.
Ernesto, thinking himself betrayed by
his best friend, writes a farewell note
to Norina.

SCENE II A Room in Norina s House

NOW Norina is no fool either; what
is more, she trusts the Doctor.
We find her reading a novel, from
which she quotes a passage, "Qual
Garde" (Glances So Soft). It sets her
thinking upon her own gifts: "So
anch'io la virtu magica" (Thy Virtues
Know). In this sprightly number she
declares she too knows the value of a
glance and a smile. Then she receives
Ernesto's letter. What can it mean?
The solution arrives in the person of
Malatesta, who comes to tell her she
must undergo a mock-marriage with

VICTROLABOOKOFTHE OPERA

the' Don, then make things hot for
him so he will yearn for the pristine peace
of his bachelor days even at the cost
of Ernesto's marriage with herself.
Norina proves herself a girl of spirit.
She at once begins to rehearse; "Pronta
io son" (My Part I'll Play!) she sings.
The details are worked out in the half-
giddy duet which ends the act, "Vado
Corro" (Haste We!).

ACT II

SCENE A Richly Furnished Hall;
Don Pasquale' s

THE bridegroom, youthfully ar
rayed, is admiring himself and
awaiting the arrival of brother and
sister. They arrive, the bride heavily-
veiled and shy as a mouse which
interests the elderly swain. The Don
is in love and his judgment somewhat
obfuscated. He signs over half his
property to Sophronia and makes
her absolute mistress of the house.
Ernesto appears, and things look bad
for a moment, till the Doctor drags
him aside and whispers an explanation.
He then signs the marriage-contract
as a witness.

Once a wife, Norina "shows her dis
position." She refuses to kiss the
bridegroom. Ernesto roars with laugh
ter. The Don orders him out, and
Norina flies at the Don like a wildcat.
She tells him he is too old and fat and
feeble for a young wife. As this is
perfectly true, it sears like fire. She
declares she must have a cavalier, and
chooses Ernesto. The Don is enraged,
and Norina,, who is quite capable,
threatens to beat him. She orders in
the servants, acclaims herself mistress
of the house, engages fresh servants,
two carriages, new furniture, and plans
to spend much money. The Don^ in
querulous rage, declares, "Son Tra-
dito!" (I am Ruined!). Ernesto and
Norina^ behind his back, are capering
with joy.

ACT III

SCENE I As in Act I

^ INHERE is a "rag on every bush."
JL Floor and furniture are piled with
dresses and bandboxes, hats, furs and
lingerie, and Don Pasquale is half-
demented for he is facing the bills.
Norina enters, dressed to go out. The
poor old crock makes a last bid for
authority, "Signorina in tanta fretta"
(Why This Haste?) and he is told in
so many words to hold his tongue. The
Don flushes, and has his ears boxed.
The lady flounces out, intentionally
dropping a note which asks an ap
pointment in the garden "between
nine and ten." Don Pasquale reads it,
baa's like a sheep, and totters out after
Malatesta^ who appears, in his absence,
with Ernesto, whom he instructs to go
into the garden at nine-thirty. The
Don returns. "Brother-in-law," ex
claims he, "You see in me a dead man
walking upright." Malatesta is all
sympathy, and proposes they watch
for the guilty pair. The Don gloats
over his coming triumph: "Aspetta,
aspetta, cara esposina" (Wait, W T ait,
Dear Little Wife!).

SCENE II The Garden

THE scene is a lovely one, and
Ernesto is moved to song, in the
lovely, strange and languorous air,
"Com e' gentil" (Soft Beams the
Light) a wandering strain, with long
sustained notes and a seductive
rhythm, with frequent pauses that
never disturb it. Norina joins her
lover, and they renew their vows in an
equally lovely duet. But they see the
Don and the Doctor , with dark lanterns
that betray their every movement.
The Don cannot restrain himself, and
he runs forth, to find Norina alone,
Ernesto having vanished. He threatens
divorce, which Malatesta discounte
nances, for fear of publicity. He asks

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

the privilege to settle the affair, and
suggests that the bride be allowed to
share the house with Ernesto's bride,
a certain Norina. "Sophronia" pro
tests furiously, when he suggests that
she wed Ernesto herself. The Don
brightens a bit he will agree to any
thing to get rid of his lady-love.

COPY'TMISHKIN

BORI AS NORINA ACT II

Ernesto appears, and the affair is
settled. It is then confessed to the
Don, who at first is hurt, but who soon
relents as he is a good old fellow at
heart, and can enjoy a good joke, even
against himself; especially as there is
nothing else to be done.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

OVERTURE Part I and Part II
Toscanini and La Scala Orchestra

841 10-in., 31.50

ACT I

CAVATIN A QUEL GUARDO

(Glances So Soft) AMELITA GALLI-CURCI,
Soprano 6128 12-in., 2.00

VADO CORRO

(Haste We) LUCREZIA BORI, Soprano
and GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

8004 12-in., 2.50

PRONTA IO SON

(My Part I'll Play) LUCREZIA BORI, So
prano and GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Bari
tone 8004 12-in., 2.50

ACT III

SERENATA COM' E GENTIL

(Soft Beams the Light) GIOVANNI MAR-
TINELLI, Tenor and Metropolitan

Opera Chorus

734 10-in., 1.50

100

WHITE, N. Y.

DULCAMARA EXPOUNDING THE ELIXIR ACT I

(CARUSO AND DE LUCA)

ELIXIR OF LOVE

(L'ELISIR D'AMORE)

(Italian)

THE ancient belief in love-philtres
and charms has supplied the
theme for many a sparkling
comedy. The present ^one, with its
vivacity and tingle, incited Donizetti
to bring forth many of his gayest and
lightest melodies. Indeed, the opera
has all the essentials of a first-class
play in the lighter vein, the story
telling of Adina, a lively but sensible
village beauty and heiress, with whom
Nemorino, a poor but honest peasant,
is seized with a love which triumphs
alike over the too-gallant Sergeant
Be/core, and that insinuating and
plausible quack, the travelling Doctor
Dulcamara.

THE OPERA

OPERA in two acts. Text by
Romani. Music by Gaetano Doni
zetti. First produced in Milan, May
12, 1832; Barcelona, 1833; Paris, 1839;
Berlin, 1844. First London production
10, 1836. First American

production at the New Orleans Opera
March 30, 1842. Given in Boston in
English by the Seguins shortly after
ward. The Boston Ideal Opera Com
pany presented an English version in
1887, with the title of "Adina."
Revived in 1904 at the Metropolitan
with Sembrich, Caruso, Scotti and
Rossi; at the Manhattan Opera in
1909, with Binkert, Bonci, Gilibert and
Trentini; and in 1916 at the Metro
politan Opera, with Hempel, Caruso
and de Luca.

CHARACTERS

ADINA, a wealthy and independent

young woman (Ah-dee'-naK)

Soprano
NEMORINO, a young peasant, in love

with Adina (Nem-o-ree'-noh)

Tenor
BELCORE, sergeant of the village

garrison (Bell-ko'-ray) Bass

DOCTOR DULCAMARA, a quack doctor

(Dool-kah-mah f -rah]

101

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

A Landlord, a Notary, Peasants,
Soldiers, Villagers

Scene and Period: A Little Italian
Village; the Nineteenth Century

(The Italian name of the opera is
pronounced Lay-lee-seer r Dam-oh'-reK).

ACT I

SCENE The Homestead of Adina $ Farm

IT is a glorious summer day. Sur
rounded by her friends, Adina sits
reading a romance. From a distance
the love-sick Nemorino gazes in a
rapture that finds expression only in
song the aria, "Quant'e bella" (Oh,
How Lovely!).

A burst of laughter from Adina
startles everyone. She reads the legend
of Tristan and Isolde, in which the
knight wins the lady's affections by
means of a wonderful elixir.

Nemorino ^ " sighing like furnace,"
can find no mirth in such a tale, and
he longs, bumpkin-like, for some of the
draught. He is disturbed by the sound
of martial music. The dashing Ser
geant Be/core appears with a bouquet
for Adina^ which he presents with an
audacity that scares Nemorino. The
lady, however, is not so easily won.
Finding courage, Nemorino contrives,
when the party breaks up, to obtain a
word with his beloved. Adina^ how
ever, cares little for the doleful counte
nance of her lover; she tells him that
while she respects him, she cannot
marry him. No one can blame the
girl; Nemorino is a worthy young fel
low, but^ poor, and dull. If only his
lover's sighs were leavened with some
of the Sergeant's gayety! Adina tells
him to go visit his rich uncle, who is
ill at a nearby village.

Her delight in dismissing him is
interrupted by a terrible rumpus. The
great Doctor Dulcamara rides in, in his
splendid carriage, with a whole trunk-
ful of nostrums. These will cure every-

102

thing, from apoplexy to rickets ac
cording to the Doctor.

Nemorino listens open-eared, and he
gazes open-eyed and open-mouthed.
He wonders if such a master-physician
may not have in his possession the elixir
that won Isolde for Tristan. He ques
tions the Doctor ', who is puzzled, but
quick-witted like all of his clan. He
declares he possesses it, and assures
Nemorino it tastes just like wine.
Figuring that in a few hours he will
have left the village, the Doctor warns
Nemorino not to expect results until
the next day. His back is no sooner
turned than Nemorino vigorously ap
plies himself to the bottle.

Nemorino feels exalted. Adina^
coming in, finds him singing and danc
ing. She is disposed to humor him,
but he disregards her; he will teach her
a lesson! Nemorino 's dignity is gone;
he is uproarious in a new and by no
means dull fashion. In plain language,
Nemorino is "tight."

Adina is yet more mystified. She
coquets with the Sergeant; Nemorino
laughs, and the indignant girl engages
herself to marry Be/core within three
days. Nemorino finds this a grand
suggestion, and he whoops with laugh
ter. The time is reduced to twenty-
four hours. Then the Sergeant re
ceives orders for departure on the
morrow. Nemorino has a sudden chill;
he sobers quickly, and pleads with
Adina^ but in vain.

ACT II

SCENE The Farmhouse Interior

THERE is a great wedding-day
feast. Dulcamara^ scenting a free
meal, has remained over, and he is
sharing honors with the Sergeant. He
sings a duet the latest 'barcarolle
from Venice with the bride-elect.
The^ notary arrives, and the party
repairs to an inner room to sign
the marriage contract. Dulcamara

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

remains loyal to the table. ^To him
comes Nemorino > whose uncle is dying,
and whose sweetheart is marrying an
other. And the Elixir did not work!
Dulcamara prescribes another bottle,
but Nemorino has not the price. The
Doctor places it in his pocket and walks
off, declaring he will be at the inn for
an hour. Be/core succeeds him. Nemo
rino desperately confides to Be/core
he has no money. A thought strikes
Belcore, and he urges him to enlist as
a soldier, when he will receive twenty
crowns. This colloquy takes the form
of a wonderfully melodious duet,
"Venti Scudi" (Twenty Crowns), in

WHITE

NEMORINO:

"Night and day, in every object,
I do see and hear but thee, love!'*
(CARUSO AND HEMPEL ACT i)

which the tempter achieves an excellent
stroke of business; he gets Nemorino, as
he believes, permanently out of his way.

Nemorino makes sure of the Elixir,
and the Sergeant of an excellent re
cruit. Meanwhile Adina develops a
lachrymose fit, becoming astonishingly
tearful, even for a happy bride the
more so when she sees Nemorino y
freshly heartened by the second bottle,
approaching among sixteen girls. Adina
being only human, capitulates. Nemo
rino y seeing her tears, is convinced the
Elixir has worked. He sings the lovely
romance, "Una Furtiva Lagrima"
(A Furtive Tear).

It now transpires that Adina has
left the marriage-feast, cancelling her
marriage with Be/core, from whom she
has brought back Nemorino' *s discharge.
She does not understand, however, the
real reason why the tipsy but somehow
loyal Nemorino has become so sud
denly popular with the girls. It trans-
spires that his uncle has left him his
fortune. Be/core, declaring there are
"other women in the world," is dis
missed. The contract is made out for
Nemorino. The Elixir is justified, and
Dulcamara sells many bottles.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT II
VENTI SCUDI

(Twenty Crowns) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor and GIUSEPPE DE LUCA,
Baritone 8006 12-in., 32.50

UNA FURTIVA LAGRIMA

(A Furtive Tear) ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

6016 12-in., 2.00
JOHN McCoRMACK,Tenor 6204 12-in., 2.00

Down her soft cheek a pearly tear

Stole from her eyelids dark,
Telling their gay and festive cheer,

It pained her soul to mark;
Why then her dear presence fly?

When all her love she is showing?
Could I but feel her beating heart

Pressing against mine own;
Could I my feeling soft impart, and mingle

sigh with sigh,

But feel her heart against mine own ?
Gladly I then would die,

All her love knowing I

103

PHOTO BYRON

SCENE FROM ORIGINAL PRODUCTION OF ERMINIE

ERMINIE

THE story of this favorite comic
opera comes from the old melo
drama, ''RobertMacaire."
Though Jakobowski has produced
other comic operas "Paolo/' "The
Three Beggars/' "Dick," "Mynheer
Jan," "A Venetian Singer, "none has
rivaled it in favor. The music is light
and dainty, the most popular single
number being the ever-delightful
"Lullaby."

THE OPERA

COMIC opera in two acts. Text
by Claxson Bellamy and Harry
Paulton; music by Edward Jakobow
ski. First production at the Comedy
Theatre, London, November 9, 1885.
First American production at the
Casino, New York, March 10, 1886,
where it had the unprecedented run of
more than twelve hundred perform
ances at that house alone. The
operetta has had a number of success
ful revivals in recent years, the names
of Francis Wilson and of De Wolf
Hopper being most frequently associ
ated with the comedy roles.

104

CHARACTERS

(Original American Cast)
CADEAUX (Cah-doh f \ a thief

Francis Wilson
RAVANNES (Rah-vahn 1 }^ a thief

W. S. Daboll
MARQUIS DE POMVERT (duh

Pahm-vair) Carl Irving

ERMINIE, his daughter (Ayr r -

ma-nee) Pauline Hall

JAVOTTE (Zha-vot f ) ..... Marie Jansen
EUGENE MARCEL, the Marquis*

secretary Harry Pepper

CHEVALIER DE BRABAZON, Mar
quis' guest (Brah-bah-zawn)

Max Freeman
CERIJSE MARCEL, Eugene's

sister Marion Manola

PRINCESS DE GRAMPONEUR

(Grahm-poh-nuhr] Jennie Weathersby
VICOMTE DE BRISSAC (Bree f -

sak) C. L. Weeks

Sergeant, Soldiers, Peasants, Acrobats,
Clowns, Lords, Ladies, etc.

Time and Place: France $ the Last Century

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ERMINIE, daughter of the Marquis
de Pomverf, is affianced to Ernest
de Brissac, a young nobleman she has
never seen. But she loves Eugene
Marcel^ the Marquis' secretary. She
and her father have come to the inn
to meet de Brissac, who has been
robbed and bound to a tree by two
rascals, Ravannes and Cadeaux. These
two arrive at the inn, where Rauannes,
learning the circumstances, decides to
pass himself off as de Brissac. He ex
plains his tattered appearance as the
result of highway robbery, and is taken
to the castle. The true de Brissac ar
rives, and is arrested as the man who
has robbed Ravannes.

Ravannes cannot quite live up to the
role, and the suspicions of the Marquis
arise. He confides them to Erminie^
who tells him of her love for Marcel.
Deeply touched, he informs her, never
theless, that although, for her mother's

sake, he would like her to be happy,
neither he nor she can go back on the
promise of betrothal. She outwardly
agrees, but her true feelings are charm
ingly expressed in the "Lullaby/*
Ravannes gains her confidence, and
she unwittingly aids him in his plan
to rob the house by confessing that she
is about to elope with Marcel. The
plans of both are discovered, and
Ravannes is arrested. De Brissac ar
rives only to explain that he is not the
man Erminie was to marry, but a
younger brother, and himself betrothed
to Cerise^ MarceVs sister. The elder
de Brissac^ the fiance of Erminie^ is
dead. There being no further obstacle,
Erminie and Marcel are duly betrothed.

THE VICTOR RECORD

LULLABY

MABEL GARRISON, Soprano with Mixed
Chorus 6137 12-in., 2.00

DOUBLE-FACED RECORDS

/Lullaby Elsie Baker, Contratio\ ]7U r lft

{ Message of the Violet Olive Kline, Soprano} 11 ^ 1U " m ' J

Selection Victor Concert Orchestra

"Soldiers' Chorus" "Downy Jail-Birds of a Feather" "Dream
Song" "Darkest the Hour" "What the Dicky Birds Say" "Lul
laby" Finale
Chimes of Normandy Selection Victor Concert Orchestra

Gems from "Erminie" Victor Light Opera Co.

Opening Chorus, "A Soldier's Life" "When Love is Young All the
World is Gay" "Join in the Pleasure" "What the Dicky Birds
Say" "Lullaby"" Deign Pray to Cheer Each Heart" "Marriage
is a Holy Union" "Away to the Chateau"
Gems from " Florodora" Victor Light Opera Co.

35583 12-in., 1.25

35451 12-in., 1.25

105

THE TOMB OF CHARLEMAGNE ACT IV

ERNANI

THOUGH an early work,
"Ernani" is one of the most
melodious of all Verdi's operas.
When first produced, it was hailed by
many as an important contribution
to the art of the time. London and
Paris were less enthusiastic.

Its actual production was not un
eventful. In Venice the police com
plained of the conspiracy scene in the
third act, as likely to incite volatile
Italians to rebellion. An elderly noble
man complained of the hunting-horn
used in the closing scene, as a desecra
tion of music and its temple, the opera-
house! A more valid objection came
from Victor Hugo, who resented the
fashion in which the librettist had
treated his book, and the melodra
matic atmosphere that had been thrown
about a finely conceived written tra
gedy. Nevertheless the work marked

an advance in Verdi's long climb to
the towering heights of "A'ida," "Fal-
staff" and "Otello." And Hugo must
be excused if he failed to find, in occa
sionally bombastic passages, the striv
ings of a mind as tempestuous, and as
ceaseless, in its efforts at genuine self-
expression, as his own.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Libretto
adapted by Maria Piave; from
Victor Hugo's drama "Hernani ";
music by Giuseppe Verdi. First
performance in Venice, March 9, 1844.
First London production at Her Ma
jesty's Theatre, March 8, 1845. At
its Paris premiere, January 6, 1846,
the libretto was altered at Victor
Hugo's request, the characters being
made Italians and the name of the
opera changed to II Proscritto. First

106

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

New York production, 1846, at the
Astor Place; in Boston, 1856. Pro
duced at the French Opera, New
Orleans, April 13, 1858.

CHARACTERS

DON CARLOS, King of Castile. Baritone
DON Ruv GOMEZ DE SILVA, a
Grandee of Spain (Day Seel'-

vah) Bass

ERNANI, a bandit chief Tenor

DON RICCARDO, an esquire of the

King Tenor

IAGO, an esquire of Don Silva

(Ee-ati '-goh) Bass

ELVIRA, betrothed to Don Silva

(El-vee'-rah) Soprano

GIOVANNA, in attendance upon her

(Jeoh-vah'-nah) . . . Mezzo-Soprano
Chorus of Mountaineers and Bandits,
Followers of Don Silva, Ladies of
Elvira, Followers of the King,
Spanish and German No
bles and Ladies, Elec
tors and Pages

Scene and Period: Aragon; about 1519
(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Ayr-nah r -nee).

ACT I

SCENE I The Mountains of Aragon

ON the summit of a rocky mountain
stands a solitary figure gazing
down a valley, with an expression of
sadness, toward a Moorish castle,
faintly visible in the blue mountain-
shadows. He is Don Juan of Aragon,
Duke and Count of Segorbe and Car-
dona; but to the district around him
he is better known as Ernani^ a chief
of brigands. His father has been
murdered, in cold blood, by Don Carlos,
King of Castile, and he himself has
been driven from the land of his an
cestors to become nothing more than
leader of a band of assassins who recog
nize no law but his will. One thing
remains out of the past his love for

Elvira, who is to be married to Don
Silva, her guardian, whose castle, in
the valley, is disappearing in the night-
shadows.

While Ernani stands pondering, his
followers at the foot of the rock, make
merry about the camp-fire, and their
songs are heard as the curtain rises:
"Beviam, Beviam" (Comrades, Let's
Drink and Play). Their chief joins
them. They note his melancholy ap
pearance, and they listen in silence as
he tells them how his love is to marry
the elderly Don Silva. The story is
recounted in the aria, "Come rugiada
al cespite" (The Sweetest Flow'r). It
is one of great tenderness and beauty,
conceived in Verdi's earlier style. It
has all the vocal flourish, the sustained
pause-note, the clearly defined melody
which characterize the Italian opera
of his time; but its pathos and expres
siveness are worthy of the composer
at his best. The bandits pledge their
service to help prevent the wedding,
and a plan is quickly formed.

SCENE II Elvira's Apartment in the
Castle

ELVIRA loves Ernani, and^ with
equal love. She sits alone in her
chamber, awaiting sacrifice. Grief-
stricken, almost hysterical, she calls
to her lover for aid though he is far
beyond hearing. "Ernani, Involami"
(Ernani, Fly With Me), is a coloratura
number, rich in vocal display, but be
neath its surface, a true under-current,
run the authentic accents of despair.
Young girls, bearing bridal gifts,
enter to congratulate Elvira. She
thanks them, but the tears are hard to
withhold. Finally she gets rid of
them when she is amazed to discover
a man in the room. It proves to be
Don Carlos, King of Castile, not only
the murderer of Ernams father, but a
secret admirer of her own. She pleads
with him to leave.

107

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT II
SCENE A Hall in Silva s Castle

His reply is a declaration of love
the "Da quel di che t'ho veduta"
(From the Day When First Thy
Beauty); and the King is a fiery lover. TT is the wedding-morn. Knights,
Elvira is terrified the more when he JL pages and ladies-in-attendance sing
force.

threatens force. The girl draws a
dagger, and threatens to slay her as
sailant, then herself. The King is
about to summon his guard, when a
secret panel opens in the wall, and
Ernani appears. The men quarrel,
Elvira trying to protect her lover. The
sounds of strife attract Don
Silva, who rushes in, aston
ished to find two men fighting
over his bride on her wedding-
eve. The aria "Infelice e tu
credevi " (Unhappy One!)
follows.

Heaping reproaches on El
vira, he summons aid, and
calls for his armor and sword.
Then, at the entry of one of
the King's squires, he recog
nizes, for the first, just who
is fighting. He cannot rebel
against his own sovereign at
least not openly, He swal
lows down his rage, and bends
his knee before Don Carlos,
saying, "Duty to my King
cancels all offences." The
King accepts this homage in
the quartet, "Verdi come il
buon vegliardo" (Well I Know My
Trusty Vassal), which follows, bringing
the act to an end. The King is im
pressed with Don Silva's easy compli
ance, but a retainer warns him that
underneath this, the old courtier
nourishes a fiery and vengeful heart.
Ernani is allowed to go, at a word
from the King, Elvira urging him to fly.
Don Silva, with smooth diplomacy,
expresses delight to entertain his royal
visitor. What the King thinks, for
the present is not told. But circum
stance, working against Kings
against commoners is not idle.

VAN DYCK AS ERNANI

praises of the noble Silva and his bride.
All is smooth, serene; Elvira has been
told that Ernani is dead.

To Silva, who is dressed like a
Grandee of Spain, enters I ago, an at
tendant, announcing a holy man who
craves hospitality. As to give this
confers a blessing upon the
giver, he is welcomed. Sud
denly, throwing off his cloak,
he reveals himself as Ernani.
He has been hard-pressed,
and defeated, by the King.
And in desperation he has
sought sanctuary with his
enemy, Don Silva. Under the
old chivalry, this is sacred,
and the guest must be pro
tected, even at the cost of life.
But on learning that Don
Silva is at last to wed Elvira,
he begs his host to deprive
him of the life he has ceased
to value.

Don Silva, however, is
punctiliously conscious of his
duties as host. He refuses
to harm a man he has volun
tarily given sanctuary; the
outward forms and ceremonies of life,
to the old courtier, mean life itself.
Suddenly word is brought that the King
and his retainers are without. Orders
are given to admit him, and Ernani
is concealed in a secret passage. The
King enters, demanding the outlaw,
but Don Silva refuses, point blank, to
surrender his guest. The soldiers search
the castle, but vainly. The King
threatens ("Lo vedremo") when Elvira
begs for mercy. The King paints for
her a bright future as his queen, and
finally grants her request, but insists on
taking her with him as a hostage.

108

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PHOTO LARCH ER

ELVIRA S APARTMENT ACT I

Scarcely have the King and his fol
lowers gone with Elvira, than Silvas
hatred against the King bursts forth.
Then he remembers Ernani, the cause
of his loss; and releasing the bandit,
he takes two swords from the armory
and challenges him to combat: "A te
scegli, seguini" (Choose Thy Sword,
and Follow!). Ernani refuses to fight;
he is taunted with fear, but both know
better. He has voluntarily yielded
his life to the man who has saved him
from the King at the risk of torture.
He asks, however, a last talk with
Elvira, and is told she has gone with
the King as hostage. The men com
bine against their mutual foe; but re
membering his life is now Silva's,
Ernani gives him a hunting-horn, and
swears, by the memory of his dead
father, that when the horn is blown,
he shall return to yield up his life.

whenever it may be claimed of him.
Silva accepts, and they swear ven
geance upon the King, Don Carlos.

ACT III

SCENE-

-A Vault in the Catacombs of
Aix-la- Chap elk

TWO figures enter, by torchlight,
among the tombs of kings, one of
which bears the legend, "Charlemagne."
To the tomb of his ancestor, Don
Carlos, the King, has come to overhear
a conspiracy against his life. He has
changed since the preceding events, is
depressed and melancholy, and he
pledges himself to better deeds should
the Electors, now in session, proclaim
him Emperor :"O de verd' anni miei"
(Oh Bright and Fleeting Shadows), a
beautiful, grave sustained cantilena,
tells all. A sound is heard, and the
conspirators assemble. Ernani is

109

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

chosen to assassinate the King. Don
Silva begs this honor, offering for it
to return the hunting-horn. Ernani,
thinking of his father, refuses and is
hailed with honor: "O sommo Carlo"
(O Noble Carlos) . This great ensemble
is interrupted by the booming of can
non which announce that Carlos has
been elected Emperor. At the same
time the King appears from the tomb
of Charlemagne. For a moment the
conspirators believe it is the ghost of
the great monarch; but they are un
deceived and surrounded, and the
King condemns them to death. Elvira
once more pleads for mercy, and once
more is successful. As an act of grace,
the newly-elected Emperor pardons
all, and even restores Ernani to his
former rank and unites him with
Elvira.

All glorify the new sovereign; but
Don Silva now secretly desires ven
geance against both Ernani and the
Emperor, Don Carlos.

ACT IV

SCENE Terrace of a Palace in
Aragon

THE tragedy is swiftly consum
mated. Another wedding scene
appears -this time the wedding of
Elvira and Ernani. Masquers, pages,
ladies, greet the happy pair. The
lovers, in bridal attire, emerge from
the ball-room on their way to their
own apartments. "Ferma, crudel
estinguere" (Stay Thee, My Lord!).

Suddenly a blast from a horn is heard.
Ernani' s blogd freezes. Elvira asks,
"What is it?*' A second time, and a
third, the fatal call rings out. Don
Silva has come to claim his debt. He
offers Ernani the choice between a
dagger and a cup of poisoned wine.
Ernani, bound by his oath, takes the
dagger, and before his bride, stabs
himself. Elvira falls across his body,
as the curtain descends upon Don
Silva s revenge.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT I
COME RUGIADA AL CESPITE

(The Sweetest Flow'r) GIOVANNI MAR-

TINELLI, Tenor

737 10-in., 551.50

ERNANI INVOLAMI

(Ernani, Fly with Me) ROSA PONSELLE,
Soprano 6440 12-in., 2.00

Ernani, fly with me;
Prevent this hated marriage!
With thee, e'en the barren desert
Would seem an Eden of enchantment!
One nightless, unending day!
One Eden of enchantment!

ACT II
LO VEDREMO, O VEGLIO AUDACE

(I Will Prove, Audacious Greybeard)
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone 818 ' 10-in., 1.50

ACT III
O DE' VERB' ANNI MIEI

(Oh Bright and Fleeting Shadows)
GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

6077 12-in., 2.00
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone 6264 12-in., 1.50

110

PHOTO REMBRANDT

THE' DUEL SCENE

EUGEN ONEGIN

PUSHKIN'S poem, written in
1833, is familiar to most Rus
sians. The libretto, in three acts,
follows it closely, the text being by
Tschaikowsky and Shilowsky. The
music is by Peter Iljitch Tschaikowsky.
The opera never has reached perhaps,
in the United States at least, the atten
tion merited by its fine style and its
dramatic moments. Scenes from it were
given in New York, 1914. Walter Dam-
rosch later gave it in concert form.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. First pro
duced at St. Petersburg, 1879,
following a performance by the stu
dents of the Moscow Conservatory in
March, 1879. First Berlin performance,
1888; in Hamburg, 1892. First London

production in 1892; revived at Covent
Garden in 1906 with Emmy Destinn
as Tatiana. Produced, New York, 1920.

CHARACTERS

MADAM LERIN, a landed proprietress
TATIANA ) i , ,
OLGA } her daughters

FILIPEVNA, a waiting-woman
EUGEN ONEGIN, a Russian gallant
LENSKI, his friend
PRINCE GREMIN, a captain
TRIQUET, a Frenchman

Scene and Period: The Action takes
place upon a Landed Estate and in St.
Petersburg; Second Decade of the Nine
teenth Century

(The French pronunciation is ap
proximately Oo-zhain Oh-nay-gheen;
Russian, Yev-ghay'-nee Ohn-yay-gheeri).

Ill

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT I

AT Mme. Leriris shabby country-
house near Petrograd, this lady
and her daughters, Tatiana and Olga,
with a servant, are making preserves.
Mme. Lerin tells of an old romance
an officer who sang divinely but who
married another. Olgas fiance, Len-
skiy enters, bringing with him a friend,
Eugen Onegin. Tatiana and Onegin
wander off, while Lenski pours a love-
song into the ears of Olga. Onegin is
bored by simple Tatiana^ who, by con
trast, is delighted.

That night Tatiana writes to Onegin
confessing her love, and asking a meet
ing. She cannot sleep. In the morn
ing she gives the note to Filipevna to
deliver. In the second scene she waits
at the trysting place. Onegin appears,
but is cold. He explains he is flattered
but has no taste for domestic life. The
girl's dream is shattered, as was her
mother's.

ACT II

MME. LERIN gives a ball for
plain, bucolic neighbors, who
bore Onegin.

Exasperated with Lenski^ he flirts
with Olga. Meantime a ridiculous
foreigner, Triquet, flirts with Tatiana,
and insists on reciting her his poems.
She is compelled to listen while Onegin
dances with her reckless sister. She
can contain herself, but Lenski cannot.
He picks a quarrel with Onegin, and a
duel is set. The following morning,
near the village mill, awaiting, he
sings the strange, melancholy, but

beautiful "Echo lointain de ma jeun-
esse" (A Distant Echo of My Youth),
with its marvelously unfolding harmo
nies and acute climax. Lenski dreams
of his early days, his love for Olga.
The duel is fought in the snow and
Lenski falls. Onegin realizes the folly
of his acts. For jealousy he has killed
his friend.

ACT III

*'* " ,'

FOR six years Onegin has travelled,
tired of life. Returning, he attends
a reception at the home of his cousin,
Prince Gremin. In the princess he
recognizes Tatiana^ transformed into a
lovely and sophisticated woman of the
world. He is captivated, while Tati
ana is strangely moved. Later he dis
covers her alone, weeping over the let
ter she had sent him. He declares his
new-found passion. It is her moment
for revenge, but she loves him with
the lifelong affection of a simple-
minded woman. For a moment she
sinks into his arms; but her sanity re
turns, and she tears herself loose, 'bids
him a swift good-bye and darts from
the room. Onegin^ cheated either by
himself or by Life (and who can say
which?), cries out in his despair. The
curtain falls.

THE VICTOR RECORDS
AIR DE LENSKI

("Echo lointain de ma jeunesse!"
Faint Echo of My Youth) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor In French

6017 12-in., #2.00
GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor, In
Italian 6195 12-in., 2.00

112

FORD CUDGELLING FALSTAFF, WHO IS DISGUISED AS THE OLD WOMAN OF BRENTFORD ACT IV

FALSTAFF

THAT Verdi nearly in his eight
ieth year should have written one
of the greatest of all operas in the
comic vein is a matter of continual
marvel. This has been more fully dis
cussed, however, in the account of
"Otello."

COMIC opera in three acts. Text
by Boito, taken from Shake
speare's Merry Wives of Windsor.
Music by Verdi. First production,
Milan, March, 1893. Berlin produc
tion June 1, 1893; Vienna, 1893;
Buenos Aires, 1893; Paris, 1894. First
London production May 19, 1894.
First North American production at
the Metropolitan, New York, February
4, 1895, with Eames, Maurel, Scalchi,
de Lussan and Campanari. Revived
in 1909 with Scotti, Destinn, Alda,
Gay, Ranzenberg and Campanari.

CHARACTERS

(Original Metropolitan Cast)

SIR JOHN FALSTAFF Baritone. .Maurel
FENTON, a young gentleman

Tenor. .Russitano
FORD, a wealthy burgher

Baritone Campanari
DR. CAIUS, a physician Tenor. . . Vanni

BARDOLPH 1 followers! Te ? r ,,- -

PISTOL ofFalstaffL R ^. al ^ n !

J [ Bass Nicolini

MRS. ALICE FORD . Soprano .... Eames

NANETTE, her daughter

Soprano. . . .de Lussan

MRS. QUICKLY. ..Contralto Scalchi

MRS. MEG PAGE

Mezzo-Soprano . . .de Vigne

ACT I

THE opera, under the loving hands
of Boito and Verdi, holds close to
the Shakespearian model. The work
opens at the Garter Inn, where Fa/-
staff^ a potbellied, vainglorious, choleric
old rogue,- is with his friends Bardolph>
Pistol and the innkeeper. Dr. Caius
arrives and quarrels with him, but is
thrown out. Falstaff then writes his
extraordinary love-letters, one to Mis
tress Page and the other to Mistress
Ford.

In Ford's garden, the two women
compare the letters, finding them both
alike, so with the help of Mistress
Quickly , they plan a revenge in which
the men, Ford, Fenton, and Dr. Caius
give aid, together with Bardolph and
Pistol,vrho have a bone to pick with Fal-
staff. Fenton is there because he loves

113

VJCTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Nanette y the daughter of Mistress Ford
though Nanetti slather plans to marry
her to Dr. Cains. Mistress Quickfy is
sent to invite Fahtaff to an interview
with 'Mistress Ford, and the men ^ ar
range to have Bardolph and Pistol
introduce that lady's husband to Fal-
staff under an assumed name.

ACT II

MISTRESS QUICKLY delivers
her message and Ford,, introduced
as Signer Fortuna, offers money to the
fat knight to intercede for him with Mis
tress Ford. Ford swallows his jealousy-
while the braggart knight is arraying

BYRON FALSTAFF GETS IN THE BASKET ACT II

himself for the adventure. Fahtaff is
quite ready to "intercede" for Signer
Fortuna.

Fahtaff arrives at Ford's house. He
sings here the boastful "QuancT ero
paggio" (When I Was Page). But
Mistress Quickly arrives and he is
compelled to hide himself behind a
screen. As soon as she has departed,
the men arrive, and Fahtaff this time
has to hide in a large clothes-basket,
thoughtfully provided by the artful
women. The men, however, hear a
sound suspiciously like a kiss, and
pulling down the screen, discover Fen-
ton and Nanette in an unrehearsed love
affair of their own. Ford is now fully

enraged, and Pent on is driven out in
disgrace. When the men again re
sume the search, the "merry wives"
order the clothes-basket to be thrown
out into a ditch, where the escaping
knight affords the crowd some gaiety.

ACT III

ONCE back at the inn, Fahtaff
receives yet another invitation
through Mistress Quickly > the new ad
venture planned by the men. He is
to meet a "lady" at Herne's Oak, a
haunted spot in the Windsor forest.
On condition that he keeps the ap
pointment disguised as Nanette , Dr.
Cams is offered the hand of that lady
in marriage by Ford. The women,
however, are determined to block this
bit of enterprise, and arrange that
Fenton^ arrayed as a monk, shall upset
the plans of Dr. Gains. Fahtaff is
superstitious and only with terror
does he keep tryst at the haunted
place. He and Mistress Ford are terri
fied by the declaration that the Wild
Huntsman is approaching. The knight
is then captured and given a sound
lambasting by the men, disguised as
elves and fairies. Dr. Cains y believing
the Fairy Queen to be Nanette^ dis
covers that he has been flirting with
the disguised Bardolph. Ford realizes
that he can no longer interfere with
the will of destiny and gives his sanc
tion to the marriage of Nanette with
the faith fuljFVw/0?2. All ends happily
except for the luckless Fahtaff*

THE VICTOR RECORDS

ACT I
L'ONORE! LADRI!

(Your Honor! Ruffians!) TITTA RUFFO,
Baritone In Italian 6264 12-in., #2.00

ACT II
QUAND' ERO PAGGIO

(When I Was Page) ANTONIO SCOTTI,

Baritone In Italian 6283 12-in., 2.00
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone In Italian

876 10-in., 1.50

114

THE GARDEN SCENE FAUST, MARGUERITE AND MEPHISTOPHELES

115

FAUST

DOCTOR FAUSTUS, the origi
nal of the dominant figure in
Goethe's tragedy, was a legend
ary character, a metaphysician whose
pseudo-logic brought him a large fol
lowing among the mystical half-wits of
late medieval Germany. He was a
rogue, and a shrewd one, who taught
philosophy with his tongue in his
cheek, and who, when his casuistry ap
proached exposure, kept the silence
which was golden from which his
followers inferred that "he could an'
he would/

The age was ripe for such a creature.
The Reformation had broken down
some of the old foundations of belief
without fully establishing new ones.
Artists were busy delving into pagan
legends of Greece and Rome to create
the Renaissance. Many kept faith
with medieval Rome; others took their
creed from Luther. Between these
extremes were hosts of people filled
with spiritual doubt and dismay,
crying out for a new prophet to lead
them out of the metaphysical wilder
ness. Such times are propitious for
the upspringing of false prophets;
Doctor Faustus was an unquestioned
success, for people respected his alleged
power over diabolical agencies. It
has been said that there are always
those who would rather worship the
Devil in secret than God in the open.
It is positive that Doctor Faustus had
among these a large and believing
clientele.

Many legends collected about Doc
tor Faustus. To most of us, today,
these would only bring hilarity; but to
Goethe, with his great and powerful
human sympathies, they were a source
of rich and splendid imagery. Poet
and seer, he beheld in them the evi
dences of human aspiration the
ceaseless yearning, in the hearts of
mankind, for some justification of life,

some balance between right and wrong
to which it might look for assurance
of its own divinity, and its hope of
salvation and happiness. The spirit
ual history of nine-tenths of human
kind has in the past been a record of
hope and of appeal to false gods and
false prophets. And so, by a singular
yet natural perversion, the lying
Faustus, the charlatan and poseur, the
impudent, brazen quack, at the hands
of a man of genius became an instru
ment of inspiration and truth.

Now Goethe's tragedy poem, "Faus
tus," was built upon so vast a scale
that it could not be condensed into a
single opera. Gounod took, therefore,
from it one single episode that of
Faust and Gretchen (Marguerite in
the opera), which had previously been,
because of its dramatic possibilities,
the theme of many plays. From this
Barbiere and Carreformed theirlibretto,
to which Gounod wrote the greatest
music he was destined to compose
producing, on the whole, the noblest
opera that has yet come out of France.

Many have marvelled that Gounod,
having written "Faust," should have
brought forth no other opera nearly so
fine. But he was peculiarly suited by
training and temperament to write a
work in which human passion and
religious sentiment were in conflict
the same elements of war being at
work within his own intelligence. He
was the son of a father who was a
painter, and a mother who was a
musician. His father died, shortly
after his birth, in 1818, and upon his
mother devolved the task of bringing
him up. She taught him music, but
was determined he should not be a
professional musician unless nature
proved too strong. And nature did.

In spite of his desire, she quietly
but firmly refused to permit him to go
to the Conservatory until he had first

116

V1CTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

graduated at the Lycee St. Louis as a
"Bachelier-es-lettres," the first step
toward becoming a lawyer. But in
1836 he entered the Conservatory, and
three years later won the Prix-de-
Rome,, which entitled him to further
study in Italy and marked him out as
a musician with a future. In Rome
he became engrossed in the religious
music of Palestrina, and on returning
to Paris he was appointed organist at
one of the leading churches. His
interest in religion widened and deep
ened to such a degree that he seriously
thought of entering the priesthood.
By natural right, therefore, he was a
combination of priest and artist a
combination whose artistic validity
was testified to by many a Gothic
architect, many an illuminator, many
a Renaissance painter. He divided
his time between operatic and church
music. Until "Faust" 'was produced,
perhaps Gounod's sacred music was
his best, though his operas revealed a
power of sensuous melody rather
startling, at times, in a man of

his ecclesiastical predilections! In
"Faust," however, he found the per
fect vehicle for his possibly complex
nature, and today it remains his mas
terpiece. It may, almost, like "Tann-
hauser," be taken to typify the struggle
between the powers of good and evil
in the human soul itself.

THE PLOT

FAUST, the aged philosopher,
longs for his lost youth. To
regain it, he sells his immortal soul
to MephistopheleSy an emissary of the
Evil One or as many may insist,
the Evil One in person. Mephistopheles
reveals him a vision of Marguerite, a
lovely maiden, and the pair go in
search of her. We next find them at
a village festival, Faust appearing as
a young man. Valentine y brother of
Marguerite^ enters on his way to the
wars. He leaves his sister in charge
of Siebel) a youth who is timidly in
love with her. Mephistopheles con
trives a meeting between Faust and
Marguerite; later he throws enchant-

CQPY T BURR M INTOSH
CARUSO AS FAUST

FARRAR AS MARGUERITE

117

COPY'T DUPONT
JOURNET AS MEPHJSTO

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ment over Marguerite's dwelling,
allowing Faust and Marguerite to
meet while he sets up a flirtation with
Martha,, her chaperon. After the
lapse of time, Marguerite is again seen,
deserted by Faust, who has left her
with child. Valentine returns, and is
killed by Faust, cursing his sister as he
dies. Marguerite , deserted by her
friends, seeks consolation in the cathe
dral, but the voices of demons drive
her to madness, and she kills her child.
She is sent to prison, where Faust
visits .her with Mephistopheles. At
sight of the demon, who now covets
her soul as well as Faust's., she takes
refuge in prayer. As the curtain de
scends, a chorus of angels attends her>
chanting her salvation through re
pentance. Mephistopheles drags Faust
to the underworld to fulfil his compact.

THE OPERA

OPERA in five acts. Words by
Barbier and Carre, founded
upon Goethe's tragedy. Music by
Charles Gounod. First produced at
the Theatre Lyrique, Paris, March 19,

1859. First performance in Berlin,
at the Royal Opera, January, 1863;
in London, June 11, 1863; in New
York, November 25, 1863; at the
Academy of Music, with Kellogg,
Mazzoleni, Biachi and Yppolito.

Some famous American productions
were in 1883, with Nilsson, Scalchi and
Campanini; and the same year with
Nordica (debut) as Marguerite; in 1892
with Eames, the de Reszkes and La-
salle; and in 1913 with Caruso and
Farrar. Revived at the Metropolitan
in 1917, with Farrar, Martinelli and
Rothier.

CHARACTERS

FAUST (Fowsf) Tenor

MEPHISTOPHELES (Mef-iss-tof

el-leez) Bass

VALENTINE (Val-en-teeri) Baritone

BRANDER, or WAGNER Baritone

SIEBEL (See f -bel) . . . . Mezzo-Soprano
MARGUERITE (Mahr-guer~eet r ] Soprano

MARTHA Contralto

Students, Soldiers, Villagers,

Sorcerers, Spirits
The Action takes place in Germany

COPY'T DUPONT

MELBA AS MARGUERITE
CHURCH SCENE

PLANC.ON AS MEPHTSTOPHELES

118

PATTI AS MARGUERITE, 1875

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT I

The Compact

HE _ scene is an apartment in a
> medieval German house. By the
expiring light of a single lamp can be
seen glimpses of a student's parapher
nalia a skeleton, a retort, a shelf of
parchment rolls, a number of equally
curious objects. The dying flame is a
symbol of the despair in the heart of
Faust) who sits dreaming of human
futility as typified in his own lifetime
of study. He is shaken with despair.
"Another day," cries he, "and yet
another day. O Death, come in thy
pity and bid the strife be over." He
raises to his lips a goblet of poison.
His hand is stayed when he hears,
from without, a song borne by the
evening wind. Outside a happy band
of farm toilers is making merry. The
tune is fresh and springlike, "La Vaga
pupilla" (Rise, Slumbering Maiden),
and with its drone-bass and pastoral
rhythm, it is in marked contrast to
the gloomy and reflective polyphony
of Faust's own music. The sage
hastens to the window, and, filled
with envy and despair at the sight
of^ human happiness, he curses all
things and calls upon the powers of
darkness.

In a flash Mephistopheles appears.
He is clad in courtly raiment, though
it is of a brilliant crimson color through
out. His manner is cynical, debonair,
blandly ingratiating. Two numbers
(presented on a single record) develop
the scene: "Mais ce Dieu, que peut-il
pour moi" (But This God, What Will
He Do For Me?) and "A moi les plais-
irs" (The Pleasures of Youth).

The first of these illustrates, clearly
and richly, Gounod's mastery of vocal
dialogue. That which follows, in which
Faust declares his wish for returning
youth and the caresses of woman, is
the very essence of youthful fire and
joyous abandon. It is repeated, at

the end of the scene, Mephistopheles
echoing phrase after phrase.

In return for the boon of youth and
its delights, Mephistopheles asks for the
soul of Faust. The philosopher hesi
tates, but he is convinced when the
demon vouchsafes to him a vision of
the beautiful Marguerite. A gap is
seen to open in the wall of the room,
and the maiden is disclosed, sitting at
her spinning-wheel. Faust, entranced,
can only speak in wonder. "O mer-
veille" (O Heavenly Vision), declares
he, and in his declaration is heard
the first promise of the famous "Garden
Scene"music. It is heard in the orches
tra, the tenor singing in recitative
telling how, for such loveliness, he is
willing to pawn his immortal soul.
Men have declared such things, with
no Mephistopheles at hand.
^ It is enough! The parchment is
signed in letters of fire. Faust drains
the magic potion offered him, as the
vision disappears; then, with a new
spring in his step, he goes off, singing
again the "A moi les plaisirs," the hand
of Mephistopheles ^ his new comrade, on
one shoulder.

ACT II
The Fair

IN the public square of a German
town, a crowd of soldiers, students,
peasants, old men, young women and
matrons, has gathered to celebrate.
All are drinking, talking, flirting,
quarrelling. The music reveals every
type of individual there and every
contrasting mood. This is the so-
called "Kermesse Scene." Each group
contributes its distinctive melody
the rough-and-ready tune of the sol
diers being in marked relief against the
laughing and chattering of the women,
the delicate accents of the girls, the
colorless counter-tenor of the old men,
and the ribaldries, it must be confessed,
of the students. At the close, the dif
ferent groups are combined into a six-

119

V1CTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PAINTED BY KREUNG

FAUST, AGED PHILOSOPHER, WEARIES OF LIFE

part chorus of cheerfully melodious
polyphony.

Among the soldiers, one is reserved
for an unusual fate. This is Valentine^
brother of Marguerite.

When the day is over, the soldiers
must depart. And Valentine^ con
scious of what may happen during his
absence, bids farewell to his sister in a
melody broad, noble, and of singular
beauty. This is the "Dip Possente"
(Even Bravest Heart), which has been
the favorite operatic air of more than
one fine baritone. Valentine speaks
of his fears frankly enough, and he
contemplates with affection an amulet
Marguerite has given him as a protec
tion against ill-fortune. This number
was not originally in the score of the
opera, but was written for the baritone
Charles Santley in the English pro-

KRELING

MARGUERITE LONGS FOR FAUST*S RETURN

duction of 1864. It was first heard in
the United States three years later,
when Santley sang it in Philadelphia
with the Caroline Ritchings Company.
The bustle of the fair scene returns.
Wagner is singing a somewhat coarse
ditty concerning a rat. Mephistoph-
eles pushes through the crowd, and
with an abrupt "Pardon!" volunteers
a better song. Then follows the fan
tastic "Le Veau d'Or" (The Calf of
Gold). It opens with a whistling,
fiendish accompaniment in the orches
tra, with odd descending chromatics in
the bass and shrill semi-quavers in the
treble, and it alternates between sinis
ter gaiety and the mock-solemn,
stamping chords of a diabolical hymn
to Mammon. It ends with a weird
dance in which Mephistopheles himself
leads.

120

VI CTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

cally, its freshness and gaiety are in
fine and relieving contrast to the tense
mysticism and the dramatic suspense
of the preceding scene. In the midst
of it Marguerite appears, and Faust
approaches her with a respectful
greeting. To the wisdom and the
craft of age, he now has added the
freshness and the charm of youth; and
the two are irresistible. He begs if he
may not see her safely home after the
Kermesse.

She declines, modestly, but her
heart has been sorely fluttered. He
will not be forgotten even though she
dares not hint it. Everything remains
in her mind as she leaves the scene to
the diminishing strains of the waltz.
She walks off like a soul in a dream
as, indeed, she is.

ACT III

The Garden Scene

WALENTINE has gone, and Siebel,
* in fulfilment of his charge, is in
Marguerite's garden. He adores her with
all the sincere and tender reverence of
a first affection. He is upset, however,
by the prediction of Mephistopheles.
To test it he gathers a nosegay of
flowers; but they wither away, one by
one, at his touch. In this scene he
sings the delightfully sweet and melo
dious u Le parlate d'amor" (In the
Language of Love), the famous "Flow
er Song.'* It is particularly touching
especially the passage describing
how the flowers fade before his eyes.

The crowd is vastly entertained.
The stranger finds himself in the mid
dle of an admiring circle, as he tells
fortunes, reads palms, and performs
bewildering feats of magic. Among
others, he catches Siebel^ and amuses
the crowd by telling him that whatever
flower he touches, will wither in his
grasp. The simple-hearted youth is
seriously disturbed, and he draws
aside. Mephistopheles volunteers a
toast. Wine is brought, and he tastes
it with a grimace.

He offers to give them better, and
striding over to the "Barrel of Bac
chus" set above the inn-door as a sign,
he strikes it with his sword. A magi
cal wine gushes forth. Each in turn
is invited to drink, and whatever wine
is best to his taste, runs into his goblet.
The stranger is carefully watched by
some, however, including Valentine^
whom he insults by drinking a toast,
by name, to Marguerite. Valentine is
amazed and hurt, but it is the desire of
Mephistopheles to kill him and get him
out of the way for Faust. Swords are
out in a moment, but Valentine s is
broken in his hand by the sinister
touch of his enemy's. With medieval
instinct, he turns the broken blade
hilt uppermost, the hilt and guard
forming a Cross. The demon quails
to behold this sacred symbol, but, as
the others advance, he draws with the
point of his own weapon in the ground,
a magic circle which none may pass.
Behind this he shrinks away. The
music here is a noble chant, with
broad, sustained harmonies, magnif
icent in strength and simplicity. Meph
istopheles disappears, leaving Faust
to pursue his own fortunes, for the
time, in the crowd. The popular and
ever-beautiful waltz now begins.

This waltz is most interesting. Its
flowing beauty, the variety and con
trast of its themes, have made it a
favorite among waltzes. Dramati-

ere

ir c"i

o m-I det - to me) dl'Ct-mor or.,..
n-ftfjort tott mt mot my/tit r/ */...,

The happy thought occurs to Siebel
to dip them in holy water. He does,
and the spell is broken. He triumph
antly places them before the door of
Marguerite i and runs off.

But the youth has been watched.
Faust and the grinning Mephistoph-

121

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PAUL BOY EH 4* lifcKT

SETTING FOR GARDEN SCENE AT PARTS OPERA

eles step from behind the bushes. Faust
is dreamy, quiet, distraught, for by
this time he loves Marguerite. His
demoniac companion, however, is in
high glee he is making mischief and
disaster and tragedy in the world.

Fausfs own worship extends, lover-
like, even to the dwelling which houses
his beloved. He sings to it the beauti
ful apostrophe, "Salut demeure" (All
Hail, Thou Dwelling), a melody of
exquisite tenderness, a violin obbligato
wreathed about it like a living vine.

The melody is one of the loveliest in
music, and one which is not easy to
sing, for all of its slow and tender
utterance. But while Faust is lost in
his love-dream, the practical Mephis-
topheles has placed near the bouquet
of Siebel a casket of jewels. His
worldly wisdom knows the heart of
woman as it knows that of man. Flowers
against gems? Even Faust might

have told him that! The two hurriedly
conceal themselves as the girl enters
the garden.

Marguerite will never again appear
as she appears now lovely, fresh,
virginal, at the mysterious threshold of
womanhood, the bloom of body and
mind as yet untouched. Her dreams
are as innocent as those of childhood;
but they center upon the handsome
gallant whose memories filter through
her consciousness like strains of audible
song. A lovely strain from the orches
tra, in clarinets and violins, is heard at
her entrance. She seats herself at her
spinning-wheel, her song keeping per
fect rhythm with its droning, monoto
nous clack. This is the song of "Le
Roi de Thule" (The King of Thul6).
It is older than Gounod, being tradi
tional; and it is surrounded with odd,
quaint, yet natural- sounding archaic
harmonies.

122

VlCTRQLA BOOK OF THE OPRA

She cannot spin the song breaks
off in the middle becomes vague,
dreamy, until she remembers. There
is another attempt, but she gives it up.
The day itself is languid, dreamy,
adapting itself to her mood. Half-
dazed, she returns toward the house.
The brilliant-hued nosegay catches her
eye. Siebel's^ of course but look
a casket! Who could have left this?
. . . perhaps the stranger

The girl's hand goes to her heart
but it returns to the casket and the lid
is thrown back.

To resist the jewels would be to re
make life. She begins to deck herself
with them, at first diffidently, but
confidence grows, and with it the sense
of her own beauty and power. She
now sings the remarkably brilliant
"Air des bijoux'* (Jewel Song) one of
the few instances in which a coloratura
song, making the most exacting de
mands upon the voice, is dramatically
appropriate. The swift flying scales,
the dazzling fioriture^ have none of the
mechanical stiffness so often found in
songs of this type, but seem indeed the
exultant outpourings of a full heart
the heart of a young girl which, once
awakened, speaks to the full its confi
dence in happiness yet to be. Margue
rite,, alone in her garden (as she be
lieves), is at last drawn from her re
serve; and she carols away like a lark
in the springtime.

But patter-tongued, foolish old
Martha^ most susceptible of souls,
appears upon the scene. She is in
raptures over the necklace and the
other treasures. But in the midst of
them, the red cavalier enters with the
news that Martha 's absent husband is
dead. He behaves so graciously that
she ceases to lament, and strange hopes
spring up in her own foolish old heart.
Faust) meanwhile, has busied himself -
with Marguerite, inducing her to take
his arm, as the four promenade the

garden. An odd but beautiful quartet
here develops mostly wrought of solo
passages, but joining here and there
into peals of ringing, delicious harmony.
This is known as "Eh Quoi toujours
seule?" (But Why So Lonely?). Then
follows an equally beautiful dialogue
between the lovers. Marguerite con
fides to Faust her loneliness, and in an
exquisite passage she speaks of her
little dead sister. He is all tenderness,
all sympathy, and her trust in him in
creases. Meanwhile Mephistopheles
has lost Martha in another part of the
garden.

He looks on with satisfaction. His
work is thriving. But it dawns on
Marguerite that the hour is late. She
flees, and Faust follows her. Martha
crosses the scene, failing to see her
demon-suitor, whom she now dreams
of marrying. She trots off into the
evening shadows; and, left alone,
Mephistopheles proceeds to the next
step. With arms extended, he sings
the beautiful and solemn "Invocation"
(Oh Night, Draw Thy Curtain)., calling
upon the night to cast over the scene
its own magic, so that the lovers, be
neath its witchery, shall be drawn into
one another's arms. For once his
satirical manner is lost; he is in deadly
earnest. The music, broadly harmonic,
passing through rich dignified alterna
tions of major and minor, is weird and
wonderful. As the blue darkness of
the night subdues the last orange of
the setting sun, the lovers again appear
arm in arm, and Mephistopheles retires.

Then the enchantment of the night
begins to work upon the souls of the
lovers. Marguerite gently bids fare
well to Faust, in the gentle and lovely
"Tardi si fa" (The Hour Is Late), but
he pleads with her. Then succeeds
the soft loveliness of the "Dammi
Ancor" (Let Me Gaze), which has
rarely if ever been excelled in music.
Saving, perhaps, the "Eternelle"

123

VICTROLA BOOK OP THE OPERA

which follows, no music has more per
fectly expressed the sensuous beauty
of human love in all its depth and
sincerity. Then comes the confession
of love/the avowal which, to any lovers
seems the moment for which the whole
of life has been waiting. Surely no
lovers' litany was ever sung to music
richer in emotion or more loftily con
ceived! Soft chords in the wood- wind,
mellow tones of horns and strings
blend softly with the voices of the
lovers as the night, in very truth,
draws its cloak about them.

Yet somewhere deep in the heart of
the girl, is a sanity which protests
against this ecstatic madness. She
breaks away from her lover, running to
the house. But on the threshold she
pauses to waft him a kiss.

Faust has a promise to meet on the
morrow, and already he longs for the
morning to come. The woes and
the pains of age are forgotten even
the wisdom of his years. He loves as
youth loves blindly, instinctively,
without guile. His heart is full as he
turns away. He worships Marguerite,
and he has no thought but for her hap
piness.

"Wait!" cries Mephistopheles.
"Thou dreamer, wait and hear what
she tells to the stars!" "Elle ouvre sa
fenetre!" (She Opens the Window).

Marguerite indeed opens the case
ment, and in a stream of song she
pours out to the night the full floods of
her rapture the rapture of a heart
that indeed is full to overflowing. The
melody, borne upward by flute and

FAUST: ELLE OUVRE LA FENETRE'

MEPHISTOPHELES:
You shall stay and hear
That which she telleth the stars!
See! She opens the window!

124

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

clarinet, climbs slowly but surely to its
ultimate heights of ecstatic expression.
She stands there, a figure of beauty.
Her tremulous cry to the deaf ears of
the night is heard by her lover; and
Mephistopheles, who has held him back,
releases him. Crying out her name,
he rushes to the open window and
clasps her in his arms, where she sinks
fainting. The curtain descends to
music of undying loveliness broken
only by a sardonic "Ha! Ha! Ha!" by
the fiend in the garden.

ACT IV

The Desertion

THE lovely echoes of the last scene
the unearthly beauty of its music
will linger long in memory after its first
hearing. It is so admirably adapted
to the song-tone of the violin, that a
fantasie has been built from its melo
dies, and played on a single record;
with all the genius of Mischa Elman,
it is one of the loveliest imaginable
bits of violin-playing.

The drama proceeds. Love and
happiness, for Marguerite., are at an
end at least this side the grave.

The story is an old one. A year and
a half has passed, and Marguerite has
been deserted by Faust and shunned by
her neighbors. Siebel alone remains
faithful. As she sits again by the
spinning-wheel, he comes to her with
consolation as she broods over her
sorrows. Woman-like, she must brood
over them, though not Faust, but really
Mephistopheles, is to blame, and she,
herself, except under the cruel human
law, is innocent of wrong. Siebel talks
against Faust, but Marguerite, of the
guileless heart, will not hear it and the
youth's own hopes die. ,

The scene changes abruptly, and we
stand in front of the cathedral, the
house of Marguerite on one side. Sud
denly there is heard the sound of mar
tial music the troops are coming

home victorious; the air itself seems
filled with the sense of great things,
Valentine appears among them, safe
and sound, as they are greeted by their
wives and sweethearts. Their wel
come is voiced by the familiar "Depo-
niam il brando," known throughout
the world, in original form and in cari
cature, as the "Soldiers' Chorus."
Valentine enters his sister's house, and
the stage is emptied as the others drift
away.

Faust and the demon appear. Meph-
istopheles is for entering, but Faust is
torn with grief and contrition. How
much it means to his tempter is shown
when, throwing back his cloak, he
stations himself beneath the window,
and sings a villainous and mocking
serenade (Catarina, While You Play at
Sleeping !).

This infernal and insulting chant, in
a sinister, snarling minor mode, is a
striking example of the sardonic mood
in .music. But least impressive is a
hideous mocking laugh at the end,
beginning of high G, andjumping
by successive octaves to low G,
where it gives way to noteless and
horrible cachinnation.

if f f r r r ir ^-^-^^
;

Hi! hil ba! ba! hm! ha! ha! ha- ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! ba! ha' ha! ha' baf h'

Valentine rushes out, sword in hand.
It is not told what has transpired in the
house, but he realizes that an insult has
been offered his sister. Faust for the
first time learns his identity as Mar
guerite* s own brother. Valentine
rushes at Mephistopheles and shatters
with his sword the mandolin which
accompanied the song. "Que voulez-
vous, messieurs?" (What Is Your Will
With Me?) he asks.

The scene is full of brilliant, almost
savage energy. Character, as always
under circumstance, appears. Valen
tine is indignant, Faust weakly per
plexed, Mephistopheles scornful. The

125

PAINTED BY KREUNG

VALENTINE (dying):
Thy fine betrayer's sword
Hath sent thy brother homel

126

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

trio leads up to a fine climax, when the
swords cross. Valentine has no chance
against two adversaries, one of them a
master of black magic. He is mor
tally wounded, and a crowd gathers.

The "Morte di Valentino" (Death
of Valentine) is the next step in the
tragedy. Valentine lies in agony, and
the crowd, Marguerite among them,
cry out with pity. But pity has been
denied him the stern law of the sol
dier is above the tenderer emotions.
With his last breath he curses the
innocent Marguerite as the cause of his
death. The pleas of those around him,
and Marguerite ' s own prayers, will not
stay his tongue nor its utterances. His
last syllable completes the curse.

(This and other scenes from "Faust"
are vividly pictured in the paintings of
Kreling which are reproduced through
out the present text. They appear

through the courtesy of Mme. Sofia
Romani, who lent for the purpose her
collection, perhaps the only one in
America).

The scene shifts again to the cathe
dral, where Marguerite^ deserted and
scorned in truth by her friends, has fled
for consolation. But as she kneels, she
hears only the voice of Mephistopheles
and his mocking chorus of demons.
On Victor Records this is distributed
over three separate discs: "Scene de
l'Eglise"(Church Scene) Parts I and II,
and "Rammenta i lieti" (Dost Thou
Remember?).

The girl, upon her knees, fearful to
look up, can find no hope. Through
the scene, we hear the chanting of the
choir and the rolling .chords of the
cathedral organ, as terrible to the girl's
tortured consciousness as the sound of
thunder to a timorous, ignorant soul.

KRELING MARGUERITE AT THE SHRINE

MARGUERITE AND THE TEMPTER

127

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Far from bringing hope to seal her
repentance, the sounds that assail her
are menacing, gloomy, sad, foreboding,
as though Heaven itself added to the
Tempter's mockery the condemnation
of a judgment above all human measure
of good or ill, eager only to punish and
not to forgive.

There is a little relief for the hearer,
at the end of the act, where the "Ballet
Music" follows. This depicts, in music,
the "Walpurgis Night," whereon the
witches of earth and the demons of the
underworld hold revelry on the moun
tain of the Brocken, in the Thuringian
Hartz. Faust ^ led thither by Mephis-
topheles, for a moment sees the spectre
of Marguerite. Through considera
tions of length, this scene is rarely
given in the actual presentations of the
opera. There are, however, Victor
Records of its music, a really splendid
series of orchestral recordings, brilliant,
rich and varied.

ACT V

The Prison

]\/f ARGUERITE has killed her child.
V *- She is in prison, lying pale and hag
gard on the straw pallet of her dimly-lit
cell. Faust and his infernal master,
defying bolts and bars, have found a
way within. Mephistopheles has warned
Faust that if the girl is to be saved, it
must be done quickly, as the gallows
awaits her. The bad heart of Faust is
melted with compassion. He calls
upon her name. Hearing his voice,
she responds, semi-delirious. The
music is here deeply affecting. "Mon
coeur est penetre d'epouvante!" cries
Faust, (My Heart Is Torn With Grief
and Repentance!).

Marguerite sings dreamily of the
Fair where she and her lover first met;
the echoes of the "Kermesse Scene"

MARGUERITE (awaking):

Twas not the cry of the demons;
'Tis his own voice I hear.

128

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

music return, phrase by phrase, with
heartrending effect. Number by num-
ber, the scene develops; first the
"Attends! Voici la rue" (This is the
Fair), which develops the waltz music,
with its echoes of a happier time. It
sounds strange, ghostly, as though it
had filtered into the domain of con
sciousness from another world or
another condition of being. She re
peats the first words Faust had ad
dressed to her. Faust urges her to
come away with him; but the broken
mind cannot return to realities. Then
the brutal "Alerte" of Mephistopheles
opens the final superb trio, "Alerte! ou
vous etes perdus!" (Then Leave Her!).

The interruption of Mephistopheles
for a moment brings Marguerite back
to the world of reality. But even as
she cries out in her horror, Mephis
topheles hears in the courtyard the
hoofs of the horses that are to bear
him and Faust to the nether regions.

The tramping and the neighing of
horses is suggested in the accompani
ment, and the song of the "Calf of
Gold" is heard in the pulsing of deep
bass instruments. Marguerite finds the
strength for prayer. Then there comes
into being, like a star born suddenly
into sight in a dark sky, the wonderful
"Anges Pures" (Holy Angels), one of
the most inspired of all operatic
climaxes. The voice of Marguerite
breaks into a wonderful, broad, noble,
melodic phrase, a veritably seraphic
hymn, which mounts, step by step, into
higher and higher keys as to the soul
of the girl is unfolded, step by step,
the clear vision of Heaven and the
eternal salvation that lies there alone.
Faust and Mephistopheles urge her
away with them, but she now is be
yond earthly power, and beyond
earthly hearing. She gazes upwards,
as through the stony ceiling of her
cell, in ecstasy. The music surges and
swells around her, heavenly voices

chant. The heavens open and a com
pany of angels gather her up in their
arms and bear her away. Mephis-
topheles, with an imprecation, seizes
Faust and bears him off into the fiery
abyss.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French unless otherwise noted)

ACT I
O MERVEILLE

(Heavenly Vision) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor and MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

8016 12-in., 32.50

ACT II
DIO POSSENTE

(Even the Bravest Heart) EMILTO DE
GOGORZA, Baritone In Italian

6069 12-in., 2.00
ANTONIO SCOTTI, Baritone

In Italian 6284 12-in., 2.00

TITTA RUFFO, Baritone In Italian

6429 12-in., 2.00
GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone In Italian

6079 12-in., 2.00
Even bravest heart may swell,
In the moment of farewell,
Loving smile of sister kind,
Quiet home I leave behind;
Oft shall I think of you,
Whene'er the wine-cup passes 'round,
When alone my watch I keep
And my comrades lie asleep
Upon the tented battleground.
But when danger to glory shall call me,
I still will be first in the fray,
As blithe as a knight in his bridal array,
Careless what fate may befall me,
When glory shall call me.

Oft shall I sadly think of you
When far away, far away.

VEAU D'OR

(Calf of Gold) MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

695 10-in., l.SO

FEODOR CHALIAPIN, Bass 960 10-in., 1.5Q
MEPHISTOPHELES:

Calf of Gold! aye in all the world

Incense at your fane they offer

To your mightiness they proffer,

From end to end of all the world.

And in honor of the idol

Kings and peoples everywhere

To the sound of jingling coins

Dance with zeal in festive circle,

Round about the pedestal,

Satan, he conducts the ball!

129

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Calf of Gold, strongest god below 1

To his temple overflowing

Crowds before his vile shape bowing,

As they strive in abject toil,

As with souls debased they circle

Round about the pedestal,

Satan, he conducts the ball!

DES EP&ES

(Scene of the Swords) PASQUALE AMATO,
Baritone, MARCEL JOURNET, Bass and
Opera Chorus 8003 12-in., 32.50

WALTZ ERIKA MORINI, Violin

791 lain., 1.50
Philadelphia Orchestra 944 lain., 1.50

ACT III
LE PARLATE D'AMOR

(Flower Song) (SiebePs Air) LOUISE
HOMER, Contralto In Italian

678 lain., 1.50
Each flower that you touch,
Every beauty you dote on
Shall rot and shall wither!

SALUT, DEMEURE

(All Hail, Thou Dwelling Lowly) ENRICO

CARUSO, Tenor 6004 12-in., 2.00

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

6191 12-in., 2.00
JOHN McCoRMACK, Tenor In Italian

6203 12-in., 2.00
BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor 6138 12-in., 1.50

All hail, thou dwelling pure and lowly!

Home of an angel fair and holy,

What wealth is here, what wealth outbidding

gold,

Of peace and love, and innocence untold!
Bounteous Nature!

'Twas here by day thy love was taught her,
Here thou didst with care overshadow thy

daughter

In her dream of the night!
Here, waving tree and flower
Made her an Eden-bower of beauty and delight.

LE ROI DE THULE

(Ballad of the KingofThule) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano 6107 12-in., 2.00

Once there was a king in Thule
Who was until death always faithful,
And in memory of his loved one
Caused a cup of gold to be made.

AIR DES BIJOUX

(Jewel Song) GERALDINE FARRAR, So
prano 6107 12-in., 2.00

Oh Heav'n! what brilliant gems!

Can they be real ?

Oh never in my sleep did I dream of aught so
lovely!

If I dared for a moment

But to try these earrings, so splendid!

And here, by a chance, at the bottom of the

casket, is a glass!
Who could resist it longer?

SEIGNEUR DIEU!

(Saints Above) Quartet from Garden
Scene, Part I, FARRAR, CARUSO, JOUR-
NET and MME. GILIBERT

10004 12-in., 33.50
EH QUOI TOUJOURS SEULE?

(But Why So Lonely?) Quartet from the
Garden Scene, Part II, FARRAR, CA
RUSO, JOURNET and MME. GILIBERT

10004 12-in., 3.50
INVOCATION MEPHISTOPHELES
(Oh Night, Draw Thy Curtain!) MARCEL

JOURNET, Bass 695 10-in., 1.50

MEPHISTOPHELES:
It was high time
See, 'neath the balmy linden,
Our lovers devoted approaching;
'Tis well! Better leave them alone,
With the flow'rs and the moon.

O night! draw around them thy curtain!
Let naught waken alarm, or misgivings ever!
Ye flower's, aid the enchanting charm,
Her senses to bewilder; till she knows not ,
Whether she be not already in Heaven!

LAISSE-MOI

(Let Me Gaze) (Preceded by "II se fait
tard" The Hour is Late!) Duet
from the Garden Scene, Part I,
GERALDINE FARRAR, Soprano and
ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

8009 12-in., 2.50

ELLE OUVRE SA FENfiTRE

(She Opens the Window!) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano and MARCEL JOUR-
NET, Bass 8022 12-in., 2,50
FARRAR and JOURNET 10008 12-in., 3.50
ETERNELLE

(Forever Thine!) Duet, Part II, GERAL
DINE FARRAR, Soprano and ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 8009 12-in., 2.50

NOTE The above three numbers are from the
same scene.

FANTASIE FROM GARDEN SCENE

MISCHA ELMAN, Violin 601 10-in., 1.50

ACT IV
SERENADE MEPHISTOPHELES

(While You Play at Sleeping) MARCEL

JOURNET, Bass 6174 12-in., 2.00

TITTA RUFFO, Baritone In Italian

819 10-in., 1.50
FEODOR CHALIAPJN, Bass 960 10-in., 1.50

130

REDEMPTION- OF MARGUERITE

Gems from "Faust" Victor Opera Company}

"Kermesse Waltz" "Flower Song" "Jewel Song" Duet from
"Garden Scene" Trio from "Prison Scene" "Soldiers* Chorus." |

Gems from " Rigoletto" Victor Opera Company}

131

12-in., 31.25

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

MEPHISTOPHELES:

Thou who here art soundly sleeping,
Close not thus thy heart.
Close not thus thy heart!
Caterinal wake thee! wake theel
Caterina! wake! 'tis thy lover near!
Hearken to my love-lorn pleading;
Let thy heart be interceding,
Awake, love, and hear!
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! ha!
Don't come down until, my dear,
The nuptial ring appear
On thy finger sparkling clearly
The wedding-ring the ring shineth clear.
Ha! ha! ha! ha! etc.
Caterina! cruel, cruel!
Cruel to deny to him who loves thee
And for thee doth mourn and sigh
A single kiss from thy rosy lips.
Thus to slight a faithful lover,
Who so long hath been a rover,
Too bad, I declare!
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!
Not a single kiss, my dear,
Unless the ring appear!
Ha, ha, ha, ha! etc.

SCENE DE L'EGLISE (I)

(Church Scene, Part I) GERALDINE FAR
RAR, Soprano, MARCEL JOURNET, Bass
and Chorus 8021 12-in., 32.50

SCENE DE L'EGLISE (II)

(Church Scene, Part II) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano, MARCEL JOURNET,
Bass and Chorus 8021 12-in., 2.50

RAMMENTA I LIETI DI QUANDO

(Dost Thou Remember?) TITTA RUFFO,
Baritone In Italian 819 10-in., 1.50

ACT V
PRISON SCENE PART I, MON COEUR

EST PNTRE D' EPOUVANTE

(My Heart is Torn With Grief) GERAL
DINE FARRAR, Soprano and ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 8010 12-in., 2.50

PRISON SCENE PART II, ATTENDS!
VOICI LA RUE

(This Is the Fair) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano and ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

8010 12-in., 2.50

PRISON SCENE PART III, ALERTE!

(Leave Her) FARRAR, CARUSO and
JOURNET 10008 12-in., 3.50

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

(Even Bravest Heart (In English] Reinald Werrenrath,

\ Bohemian Girl Heart Bowed Down Reinald Werrenrath^ Baritone

fin the Language of Love (Flower Song) (In English] . , Elsie Baker, Contralto}.
\ Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes(Ben Jonson] Harry Macdonough, Tenor) '

(Soldiers' Chorus Made especially for School Marching Victor Band]

\ March Religiose (Onward Christian Soldiers] Victor Band\

/Ballet Music Cleopatra and the Golden Cup . Victor Symphony

IBallet Music Dance of Cleopatra and Her Slaves Victor Symphony Orchestra

[Ballet Music Dance of the Trojan Maidens and Mirror Dance 1

\ Victor Symphony Orchestra p 5720

IBallet Music Dance of Phryne ............. Victor Symphony Orchestra}

/Ballet Dance of Nubian Slaves ................... Vessellas Italian &z<J\

IBallet Dance of Trojan Maidens .................. Vessellas Italian Band]

(Prison Scene Part III (In English] .................... Victor Opera 2

\ BohSme-Ah^Mimi-Lambert Murphy, Tenor and Reinald Werrenrath, Baritone}

/Prison Scene ......................................... Vessellas

\ Favorita Fantasia .................................... Vessellas Band]

f Waltz from Kermesse Scene ................ Victor Symphony

IBallet Music Dance of the Nubian Slaves ...... Victor Symphony Orchestra

12-in., 31-50

12-in., 1.25

10-in., .75

10-in., 1.00

12-in., 1.25

132

r^r^'^ ^
->/

ttftttUt fi

'4*'*" 1 * ^ "^E?

THE DEATH OF LEONORA

LA FAVORITA

THIS was about Donizetti's fifty-
seventh opera, the chronological
order of his sixty-four odd works
not being very clear. Its plot, in com
parison with the opera plots of its
time and school, is almost a master
piece of ironic tragedy. Its music is
melodious, fluent, at all times without
harshness.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Text by
Alphonse Royer and Gustave
Waez, adapted from a drama of
Baculard-Darnaud, Le Comte de Com-
minges. Music by Donizetti. First
produced at the Academic^ Paris, De
cember 2, 1840. First London pro
duction in English, 1843; in Italian
February 16, 1847. First American

E-oduction at New Orleans 1843. An
nglish version was given at the Park
Theatre, New York, October 4, 1848.
Some later American productions were
in 1895-96, with Manelli, Cremonini,

Ancona and Plangon; and in 1898, at
Wallack's Theatre, and in 1905 at the
Metropolitan.

CHARACTERS

ALPHONSO XI, King of Cas
tile Baritone

FERDINAND, a young novice of
the Convent of St. James . . .Tenor

DON GASPAR, the King's Min
ister Tenor

BALTAZAR, Superior of the Con
vent of St. James Bass

LEONORA DI GUSMANN, the

King's favorite Soprano

INEZ, her confidante Soprano

Courtiers, Guards, Monks,

Attendants, etc.

Scene and Period: The Action is sup
posed to take place in Castile,

about the year 1340
(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Lah Fah-voh-ree r ~tah. Its
English equivalent is "The Favorite").

133

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT I

SCENE The Monastery of St. James

T7ERDINAND, or Fernando, a nov-
J? ice, Is sitting with Baltazar, the
Prior, in a quiet, grass-grown, ancient
cloister. He is describing to the un
worldly and somewhat scandalized old
priest a beautiful girl he has seen. He
speaks of her in the aria, "Una Ver-
gine" u Une ange, une femme in-
connue" (Like an Angel).

Justly outraged, his friend and su
perior protests, in "Non sei tu che d'un
giusto" (Know'st Thou?) an air in
vigorous, dramatic, yet tuneful style,
proclaiming to the youth that he is
designed to succeed Baltazar himself
as Prior. But Ferdinand can only
reply that he loves the stranger. He
is dismissed, but goes without pro
test, to seek, somewhere in the
world, his beloved idol. At the last
moment he recalls his novitiate. He
would turn to Baltazar with outspread
arms. But the Prior turns away.

For once the miraculous thing hap
pens. Ferdinand hears from the lady,
through a fair guide who leads him,
with bandaged eyes, to the Isle of Leon,
where Inez, the attendant of his un
known beloved, Leonora, is gathering
flowers.

Leonora is the mistress of the King
of Castile, and a most unhappy
woman. Beguiled at an early age, she
now is shunned by former friends.
Despite the flowers and the sunshine,
to her the place is a prison of torment.

Ferdinand's bandages are removed.
He gazes wonderingly around him, and
he begs of Inez the name of his un
known fair one. She smiles, declaring
that only the fair one herself may tell;
and in due course, the fair one
appears. There is a delightful love-
scene, with a constant shadow of fear,
however, in the background; the King
may arrive at any minute.

Ferdinand passionately avows his
love; he is heard willingly but with
distress. Finally Leonora commands
him to leave her forever; but since
miraculous things are yet to happen,
she gives him a parchment which, she
avers, will ensure his future. The
duet "Fia vere!" (Fly From Thee!)
heard here, is a dramatic but exceed
ingly tuneful number. He wishes to
remain, when Inez enters, whispering
that the King is at the villa. As
Ferdinand leaves he recognizes the-
monarch, and his hopes fall. If the
King comes to woo his mistress how
can he, a recreant monk, aspire to her
hand? He looks at the parchment
his commission as an officer of the
Kingl

ACT II

SCENE Gardens of the Alcazar Palace

THE King walks in his garden, re
cently regained from the Moors.
He reflects how his victory might have
been defeat, had it not been for one
Ferdinand, a young officer who rallied
the troops an action worth reward.
He is disturbed by a messenger from
Baltazar, the King's father-in-law, and
head of the powerful Church party.
The King is threatened with the
wrath of the church if he will not
give up Leonora; but he is in no mood
to submit to ecclesiastical authority,
and he defies it.

Leonora enters. She is melancholy,
and the King asks the cause. "Vien,
Leonora," sings he (Leonora, Thou
Art Alone), and he promises her wealth
and honor if she will but return his
love. Leonora's pathetic reply ex
tends over two numbers: "Quando
lesoglie" (From My Father's Halls)
and "Ah! 1'alto ardor " (Oh Love!).
She reminds the King that as a child
she believed in his promises, but that
he broke them to bring dishonor to
her father. Now she dwells, in pub-

134

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

lie contempt, in her island-garden, a
plaything, no more.

The music here is vividly arresting;
it increases in interest as Leonora goes
on to beg the Kings permission to leave
his court, so that she may die remote
from its grandeur. Baltazar enters,
with a mandate from the Pope himself.
The King declares he will wed Leonora,,
for a second time defying religious
authority. The rejoinder is a threat,
by Baltazar^ of Divine vengeance
before which both the King and his
favorite shrink back in terror. The
music here, "Ah! paventa il furor' 7 (The
Wrath of Heaven), is one of the most
impressive of the opera's concerted
numbers. The curtain descends upon
a dramatic tableau Leonora weeping
with shame, the King hesitating be
tween love and fear, and Baltazar
thundering down upon them the ter
rible words of the Papal curse.

ACT III

SCENE A Room in the Palace

THE King has not forgotten his
debt to Ferdinand. He offers to
discharge it, and the young man asks
the hand of the lady to whom he owes
all. Her name is requested. When
Leonora is pointed out the King changes
his mind. He has guessed, of late,
from the lady herself, the condition of
her heart so this is it! Well, why
not? No pleasure the King might find
in her, would atone for a break with
the Church. And what sweeter re
venge than to bestow upon this pre
sumptuous youth a lady of tarnished
honor?

In the presence of the Court, the
King consents; the melody "A Tan to
Amor" (Thou Flower Belov'd) is in
bitter irony, and every word stabs like
a knife-thrust the heart of Leonora.
Ferdinand is oblivious of this, and he
listens with respect.

Leonora, like many another woman
in a false position, is a woman of char
acter. She bids Inez to tell Ferdinand
everything, but Inez is arrested before
he can receive the message. So, then,
Leonora prepares for the wedding. The
King has conferred upon Ferdinand
the title of the Count of Zamora.

Leonora appears, and seeing Ferdi
nand gaze at her lovingly, believes the
message of Inez has been delivered,
and that her past has made no dif
ference. But when the pair are pre
sented at Court, cold looks and averted
eyes whisper to Ferdinand more than
tongues. White with anger, he draws
sword, and bloodshed is prevented only
by the arrival of Baltazar ', who tells
the truth. The new Count is dumb-
stricken. Then he denounces the
King. An intense scene follows, Leonora
striving to tell of her message through
Inez: "Orsu, Fernando" (Stay, Hear
Me, Fernando). Ferdinand hurls at
the Kings feet his badge of honor and
the pieces of his broken sword.

ACT IV

SCENE The Cloisters of the Monastery

sun is rising over the cloister
JL walls. The monks have assembled
to welcome back Ferdinand from the
earthly life. Heart-broken, he has
asked to renew his vows, and he is re
turning to accept the forgiveness so
freely held forth. There is first a
hymn-like song of greeting, " Splendon
piu belle in ciel le stelle" (In Heavenly
Splendor) sung by Baltazar and chorus.
The repentant is told to lift up his eyes
from earthly things, and to contem
plate the stars. Left alone a moment,
he sings his farewell to the external
world, the beautiful "Spirto gentil"
(Spirit so Fair). The phantom of love
and its illusions are left behind only
memories remain, pale, tranquil, tender
and ineffably sad. As Ferdinand goes

135

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

to the chapel, word is brought that a
novice craves admittance. Unseen,
the newcomer watches Ferdinand take
the final vows, then falls before the
chapel entrance. The newly-accepted
monk helps the prone figure to arise;
then he recognizes Leonora. Horri
fied, he bids her begone.

But love, if still of the earth, is ter
rible to break. Leonora only wishes
to say farewell. There is a touching
duet, "Pietoso al par d'un Nume" (As
Merciful as God). Even now, the
torn and wracked Ferdinand would go
back, for the second time into the
world, but she forbids him. She
is seen to be very near death; and
with the assurance that she and her
lover will meet again, in a happier
land, she sinks lifeless.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless otherwise noted)

ACT II
AH! L'ALTO ARDOR

(Oh, Love!) MARGARETS MATZENAUER,
Contralto and PASQUALE AMATO,
Baritone 8003 12-in., 32.50

VIEN LEONORA

(Leonora, Thou Alone) MATTIA BATTIS-
TINI, Baritone 6044 12-in., 2.00

ACT II
A TANTO AMOR

(Thou Flower Beloved) GIUSEPPE DE
LUCA, Baritone 6080 12-in., #2.00

ALPHONTSO:

Thou flow'r beiov'd,

And in hope's garden cherish'd,

With sighs and tears refresh'd,

Both night and morn;

Fad'st from my breast,

Thine ev'ry beauty perished.

And in thv stead alone have left a thorn!

O MIO FERNANDO

(Dearest Ferdinand) GABRIELLA BESAN-
ZONI, Contralto 6047 12-in.,

ACT IV
SPIRTO GENTIL

(Spirit So Fair) ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor
6005 12-in.,

BENIAMINO GiGLi,Tenor 6139 12-in.,
EVAN WILLIAMS, Tenor In English

2.00

2.00
2.00

6308 12-in., 2.00

FERDINAND:

Spirit so fair, brightly descending,
Then like a dream all sadly ending,
Hence from my heart, vision deceiving,
Phantom of love, grief only leaving,
In thee delighting, all else scorning,

A father's warning, my country, my fame!
Ah, faithless dame, a passion inviting,

Fair honor blighting, branding my name,
Grief alone thou leav'st, phantom of love!

BLACK LABEL RECORD

/Grand Fantasia.

. , Vessella s Italian Band'

\ Faust Prison Scene Vessella' s Italian .

?r AA Q 1 7 -

U ' m '>

136

PHOTO WHITE

THE METROPOLITAN CAST OF 1913

FIDELIO

BEETHOVEN'S only opera, ;'Fi-
delio," called for much revision
before it satisfied the composer
and his followers. It was twice con
densed from its original form. At the
second performance, in 1806, even the
title was changed, to "Leonore." No
less than four overtures were written
for it, "Leonore No. 2" being the first.
Then came "No. 3," then "Fidelio,"
which the composer himself thought
too "light" for the work. Musically,
"No. 3 "is the grandest a monumental
work heard frequently in concert even
today. It has been recorded for the
Victor, on two records. The buoy
ant, soaring melody of its first theme
is one of Beethoven's finest melodic
inspirations. A striking passage for
trumpet, usually played ^off-stage,"
typifies the arrival of deliverance, in
the opera, in the person of Don Per-
nando.

THE OPERA

OPERA in two acts, adapted by
Sonnleithner from Bouilly's
Leonore y ou T Amour Conjugal. Music

by Beethoven. First produced at
Vienna, November 20, 1805. Given
in London May 18, 1832. In Paris at
the Theatre Lyrique, translated by
Barbier and Carre, and in three acts,
May 5, 1860. First American per
formance in New York, September 9,
1839, with Giubilei, Manvers and
Poole. Other notable productions in
1858, with Mme. Caradori and Karl
Formes; in 1868, with Mme. Rotter,
Habelmann and Formes; at the New
Orleans Opera, in Italian, December 11,
1877; the Damrosch production of
1884, with Brandt, Belz and Koegel;
the Metropolitan performances in 1901
with Ternina as Leonore; and the re
vivals of more recent years.

CHARACTERS

DON FERNANDO (Fair-nahn 1 -

doK), Minister Baritone

DON PIZARRO (Pee-tsar'-ro],

Governor of the State

Prison Baritone

FLORESTAN (Floh* -ray-stahn\ a ,

prisoner Tenor

137

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

LEONORE (Lay-oh-noh' -reti) ^ his

wife, known as Fidelio. . . . Soprano

Rocco (Roh'coh) , jailor Bass

MARZELLINE (Mahr~tsay-leen f -

eti), his daughter Soprano

JAQUINO (Yah-kwee'-noh), gate
keeper Tenor

Soldiers, Prisoners, People, etc.
Place: A Spanish State Prison in the

Vicinity of Seville

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Fee-day' -lee-oK).

E'ONORE and Fidelio are one and
the same person the wife of
Florestan^ a Spanish nobleman who
has incurred the enmity of Don
Pharro^ Governor of the State Prison.
Pharro has placed him in a dungeon,
and announced his death. Leonore re
fuses to believe. Disguising .herself as
a lad, she makes love to Marzelline^
daughter of Rocco > the jailor, under the
name Fidelio^ thus gaining access to
the place, where she learns of a mys
terious prisoner. Hope nearly dies

when she overhears Pharro plotting
with Rocco to have this prisoner killed.
His death has become necessary, be-
cause the harsh methods of Pharro
have become known, Don Fernando,
Minister of the Interior, is to investi
gate, and "dead men tell no tales."
Fidelio is assigned the task, with
Rocco, of digging her own husband's
grave. While she is plying the spade,
Rocco brings in the prisoner, whom she
does not at first recognize, so terrible
is his condition. Pharro, entering,
tries to stab the man, but Leonore,
now scorning disguise, throws herself
between. Pharro is about to kill both
when trumpets announce the arrival of
Don Fernando. Husband and wife are
rescued, and Pharro is duly punished.
The liberation of other prisoners af
fords opportunity for one of the most
inspiring of Beethoven's male choruses;
the "Prisoners' Chorus" (Oh, What De
light). The music throughout the opera
is of a dignified, noble character as be
fits the utterance of a great composer.

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

I Leonore Overture, No. 3 (Part I) Victor Concert Orchestra}*

(Leonore Overture, No. 3 (Part II) Victor Concert Orchestra]

[Leonore Overture, No. 3 (Part III) Victor Concert Orchestra} W x g 19 i 9t -

\ ^g70 from Fourth Symphony (Beethoven) VesselMs Band] '

[Prisoners' Chorus (Oh! What Delight) Victor Male Chorus\<>ccn, 19 1 9 r

1 TA<? Heavens Resound (Beethoven) Victor Oratorio Chorus] l--m., l.-i

REMBRANDT

SCENE FROM FIDELIO

138

THE PHANTOM SHIP

THE FLYING DUTCHMAN

(DER FLIEGENDE HOLLANDER)

(German)

DRIVEN by a gale, a phantom
ship approaches the shore,
the ship of Van der Decken,
who after trying vainly to pass the Cape
of Good Hope, swore he would not quit,
if he had to sail the ocean to Eternity.
To punish his blasphemy, he is to sail
the ocean forever, in a phantom ship
with a phantom crew. Such is Heine's
legend.

As in all Wagner's operas, however,
there is mercy. If The Dutchman can
find a woman who will be faithful unto
death, he will go free. To find her, he
is allowed to go ashore once every seven
years. This is the time. The Over
ture itself tells the story. Above the
howling of the gale is heard a motive, or
theme, which signalizes damnation^
the curse motive :

There is another to balance it the
motive of redemption an echo of an
ancient phrase signifying "Farewell,"
a phrase used by Beethoven, by
Schubert, by Mendelssohn, and later
on, with sublime effect, in "Lohengrin"
by Wagner himself. Against the Curse
of The Dutchman s own will, is the
Redemption which will come to him
through a woman's true soul. Senta y
the daughter of Daland, a sea-captain,
is the chosen one. But the story is
best told in detail

THE OPERA

R)MANTIC opera in three acts.
Text and score by Richard Wag
ner. First produced at the Royal
Opera in Dresden, January 2, 1843.
Produced in Berlin in 1844; Zurich,
1852; Weimar, 1853; Vienna, 1860;
Munich, 1864. First London pro
duction July 23, 1870, under the title

139

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

LQlandese Dannato, the book being
translated into Italian by Marches!;
and in English by Carl Rosa, October
3, 1876. In Italy, at Bologna, 1877.
Another Italian version was given at
Covent Garden., this time called //
Fas cello Fantasma^ June, 1877. First
American production at Philadelphia,
November 8, 1876, by the Pappen-
heim Opera Company, in Italian; first
New York production, in English,
January 26, 1877; in German, March
12, 1877. Given at New Orleans Opera
in 1877.

CHARACTERS

DALAND, a Norwegian sea captain. Bass

SENTA, his daughter Soprano

ERIC, a huntsman Tenor

MARY, Senta's nurse Contralto

DALAND'S STEERSMAN Tenor

THE DUTCHMAN Baritone

Sailors, Maidens, Hunters, etc.

Place: On the Coast of Norway

(The German name of the opera is
pronounced Dalr Flee' -gen-deh Hol-
layn'-der).

ACT I

SCENE The Coast of Norway

THE worst of the storm is over;
Daland brings his ship to anchor oft
the rocky coast. As the crew furls the
sails, he goes ashore to obtain his bear
ings. From the head of the cliff he
discerns he is but seven miles from
home; but as he must wait, now, for a
change of wind from off-shore, he al
lows the crew to rest. He is weary him
self after his long struggle with sea and
wind, so he leaves the vessel in charge
of the Steersman as he goes below.

The Steersman^ to keep himself
awake, sings a ballad to the South
Wind that is to bring him home to
his beloved one. Nevertheless, he falls
asleep, and he cannot see, gliding in
silently through the darkness, the
blood-red sails and the black masts of

The Dutchman's fearful craft. The
spectral crew, with their pale faces and
phosphorescent eyes, furl the strange
sails and drop the rusty anchor. And
the Steersman sleeps on.

But The Dutchman stands alone on
the rotting deck of his ship, and he
sings the famous soliloquy, "Die Frist
1st um" (The Term is Passed). This
is a strange number, half recitative,
half aria, weird, imaginative and won
derful. It expresses The Dutchman's
hopelessness of salvation. A night or so
ashore, then another seven years, then
another and another and yet another,
and so, possibly, throughout Eternity.
What woman may be found to love
such a wretch, and to remain faithful ?

Daland appears on the deck of the
other ship, and he is astonished to see
the strange craft alongside. He wakes
the Steersman^ and the two hail her.
The Dutchman asks for a night's shelter
in the house of Daland^ for which he
offers a generous sum. He notes the
Norwegian's quickness to accept, and,
hearing that he has a daughter, he pro
poses marriage. The simple-minded
captain consents, provided the girl,
Senta y is willing. The stranger, thought
ful-looking, is nevertheless of distin
guished appearance, and obviously
rich. A wind springs up, the Nor
wegian sails for home, and The Dutch
man promises to follow at once.

ACT II

SCENE A Room in Daland 's House

WOMEN, in Daland' s house, await
his arrival, spinning, singing,
laughing, chatting among themselves.
They sing the wonderful "Spinning
Chorus," with its light tripping melody
and its whirring accompaniment, for all
the world like the steady rote of the
spinning-wheel.

Among the girls, Senta sits somewhat
aloof and inattentive. Her eyes are
fixed upon a fanciful portrait of the

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Flying Dutchman , hanging on the wall.
The legend of the unhappy mariner has
deeply impressed her mind. Her com
panions ridicule the girl, declaring her
lover, Eriky will be jealous. She is dis
posed to be resentful; she objects to the
spinning song, and asks that someone
may sing the ballad of the Flying
"Dutchman's ship. None will. She sings
it herself, the grim, fantastic, terrible
"Curse" motive breaking like a raw
sea-wind into the warm homelike
atmosphere of the spinning party. The
wind itself wails, in fierce chromatics,
throughout the song.

But as the tale proceeds, this new
theme of salvation, or redemption by
woman's love, one of the tenderest and
most melodious phrases in music, is
heard. Half-conscious, she runs to
ward the portrait with outstretched

arms.

r r g is

'.'IJ,

The girls are amazed. Some of them
rush out to produce Erik. The young
man brings with him the news that
Daland' s ship has arrived and that of
the stranger. The women-folk run to
the shore with greetings; but Erik re
mains to chide Senta. She refuses to
listen, and he goes too. Left alone,
she remains in a half-dreamy state.
Then the door opens, and there stands
the Flying Dutchman, for all the world
like the picture of himself that some old
painter has imagined or painted from
someone's description. The girl looks
at this, then at her visitor, and back
again. The eyes of the pair meet, and
they remain in awed silence. Daland
is delighted at the impression his
daughter and the stranger have made.
He announces The Dutchman's pro
posal of marriage. The lovesick girl
assents. The couple are left alone, in
the strange, half mystical rapture of

their discovery. Daland has not rec
ognized the original of the picture.
Senta, before her betrothed, promises
to remain faithful unto death.

ACT III
SCENE The Harbor

D ALAND'S ship is gay with lan
terns, strung out in lines of
fire in the gathering gloom. The crew
is merry-making over a safe voy
age, and over the wedding to be.
The women bring baskets of good
things to eat. The men of Daland' s
ship receive them joyously, but there
is no sign from The Dutchman s* They
turn over their baskets, and, hurt at
this silent reception, they return home.

Then Daland 's crew turn to the
strange vessel. They call once more,
inviting her crew to the feast. Sud
denly the sea rises, the air grows icy
cold, and a singular glow illumines the
ship. The crew then appear, misty,
spectral figures, and begin a sepulchral
chant. The Norwegians are aston
ished and dismayed. They cross them
selves in terror and run below, fol
lowed by devilish-sounding laughter.
The lights burn blue and die upon the
stranger's decks. And the ship and
her crew disappear again into the
darkness.

Senta and Erik arrive. The young
man has heard, and he is beside him
self. He kneels and begs his love to
take pity on him. Senta, for all her
love for The Dutchman, is human, and
her pity indeed is aroused. She lets it
be seen when The Dutchman suddenly
appears.

He cannot but believe, after his
years of torture and disappointment,
that his love is false. He cries out,
briefly, "All is lost farewell!"

It is the signal for action. The crews
appear. The Dutchman declares his
identity, and admits himself cursed

141

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

forever. He leaps to the deck of the
ship. The blood-red sails drop from
the yards, and belly out beneath a wind
that no man ever felt on earth. The
crew set up their wild refrain, the
weird St. Elmo's fires light up the
mastheads, and the crazy and worm-
eaten phantom ship goes off, cutting
the water like a knife, irrespective of
wind or tide.

Senta^ in wild exultation, rushes to
the shore, crying out "I am faithful
unto Death!" Before a hand can stay
her, she has thrown herself into the
sea. As she does so, the phantom

ship sinks too. But rising from the
wreck can be seen the forms of the
Flying Dutchman and his eternal bride,
clasped in one another's arms. The
curse has been dissolved by the love
of one true woman. Legend or sym
bol, such is the tale.

THE VICTOR RECORD

(Sung in German unless otherwise noted)

ACT II
TRAFT IHR DAS SCHIFF

(A Ship the Restless Ocean Sweeps)
MARIA TERITZA, Soprano (In German)

74776 12-in., 31-50

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

fDie Frist ist um (The Term is Past) Part I (In German] Fritz Feinhals\s^n* 12 gj 25

Part II (In German] Fritz Feinhah]

\Die Frist ist um Part II (In German]

/Spinning Chorus (In English) ' Victor Women's

\ Lohengrin Bridal Chorus . Victor Opera Chorus

12-in., 1.25

BERGER

RENAUD AS THE DUTCHMAN

HOFFERT, BERLIN

SCHUMANN-HEINK AS MARY

142

DON ALVARO:

Swear in this hour

That you will grant my wish!

LA FORZA DEL DESTINO

(THE FORCE OF DESTINY)

OPERA in four acts. Book by
Piave; music by Giuseppe
Verdi. First produced at St.
Petersburg, November 11, 1862; in
London, June 22, 1867; in Milan, 1869;
Paris, 1876; Berlin, 1878. First New
York production February 2, 1865,
with Carozzi-Zucchi, Massimilliani and
Bellini. It was not heard again for
fifteen years, when it was produced at
the Academy of Music, with the last
act rewritten by the composer, the cast
including Annie Louise Gary, Campa-
nini, Galassi and Del Puente. Given
in recent years in San Francisco by the
Lombardi Opera Company. Revived

in 1918 at the Metropolitan with
Caruso.

CHARACTERS
MARQUIS OF CALATRAVA (Kal-

ah-trah f vah) Bass

DONNA LEONORA! his f Soprano
DON CARLO J children [Baritone
DON ALVARO (Ahl-vah'-roti) .... Tenor
ABBOT OFTHE FRANCISCAN FRIARS. Bass

MELITONE, a friar Baritone

Muleteers, Peasants,Soldiers,Friars,etc
Scene and Period: Spain and Italy; about
the Middle of the Eighteenth Century
(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Lah Fort'-zah del Des-tee'-noh]

143

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

opera has an overture, in which
JL is given a foretaste of what is to
follow. It opens with a trumpet blast,
followed by an air in the minor., leading
in its turn to a striking theme in the
stringed instruments, which has been
compared to a familiar theme in a Liszt
rhapsody and one in a composition by
Brahms showing the plasticity of a
simple motif in the hands of three com
posers of varying nationalities and
temperaments. This is the theme of
the "Madre Pierosa," afterwards heard
with magnificent effect in the opera:

ACT I

SCENE Drawing Room of the Marquis
of Calatrava

DON ALVARO is a young prince
of an illustrious family in India.
His forbears have claimed descent
from the sun itself; but this counts for
little in proud Spain. Aware that her
family will never permit marriage with
him, Leonora plans to elope. Alvaro
arrives by night, but the noise of de
parture awakens the household, and
the aged Marquis of Calatrava discovers
the pair. Leaping to the wrong con
clusion, he ignores the protests of both.
To take the blame alone, Alvaro throws
his pistol away, intending to present his
bare breast to the aged noble's sword.
But the weapon is a hair-trigger affair,
and in the act it goes off. When the
smoke clears, the Marquis liesmortally
wounded, cursing his daughter with his
last breath.

ACT II

SCENE I An Inn at Hornacuelos

IN the warm kitchen of this mountain
hostelry is gathered a crowd of
muleteers, soldiers, a monk, a student,
a gypsy fortune-teller, and Leonora in
male disguise. Hither she has fled
from the home of an aged relative who
gave her temporary shelter. Her

brother, Don Carlo^ has sworn to kill
both Leonora and her lover; and having
lost trace of Don Aharo since the fatal
night, Leonora is both alone and des
perate. Her terror and despair increase
when she discovers that the student,
hobnobbing with a friar, is none but
Don Carlo^ who in disguise is hoping to
find some trace of the man he believes
the seducer of his sister and the mur
derer of his father. She flees the place,
among the confusion caused by the
announcement, from a gypsy girl, that
Italy and Spain have declared war
upon the Austrians.

SCENE II The Monastery at
Hornacuelos

EONORA has come to the door of
the monastery, where, kneeling in
the moonlight, she asks the Virgin to
protect her. This plea affords a very
beautiful number, based on the theme,
"Madre Pietosa Vergine" (Holy Moth
er, Have Mercy), heard previously in
the overture. It begins in agitated
style, but soon develops into a beauti
ful aria succeeded by solemn choral
passages, the Venite of the monks sing
ing in the chapel. Above these the
solo voice rises with supreme power.

Still in her disguise as a man, Leonora
seeks admission, confessing all to the
Abbot. He procures her suitable at
tire, and directs her to a cave in the
nearby mountainside which is shunned
by the superstitious folk. The monks
solemnly lay a curse upon all who may
seek to learn the stranger's identity.
She remains for some years in her
solitary hold; but love remains alive
in her heart, affording rich material
for the sport of Destiny.

ACT III

SCENE A Military Camp near Valletri
A LVARO, believing Leonora dead,
JL\ has, with the outbreak of the
war, enlisted with the Spanish army
to fight in Italy against Austria. He

144

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

bears an assumed name, but he is
tormented by memories of his beloved:
"O tu che in sono agli angeli" (Thou
Heavenly One), he sings, in a tender
and melancholy number which prays
to her, believably in Heaven, to look
down upon his loneliness of heart.

His reveries are interrupted. He
hears a cry of distress, and goes out
to find a wounded man. It is Don
Carlo, his sworn enemy. But as the
two never have met, they do not
recognize one another. They become
close friends. Another battle follows,
and this time it is Don Aharo who is
wounded, seriously, to all seeming
mortally.

His new friend volunteers to ad
minister his last wishes. Aharo begs
him to search in his cloak for a key
and a casket of letters. These are to
be burned, without opening, and Don
Carlo is sworn to execute this office.
The adjuration affords a fine duet,
beautiful in melody and intense in its
emotional fervor, the famous "Solenne
in quest* ora" (Swear in This Hour).
Don Carlo is torn with pity.

But, Destiny preferring to work in
its own fashion, Don Aharo does not
die nor does Don Carlo break his
oath. But having accidently mentioned
the name Calatrava y his suspicions
are aroused when Aharo starts at the
sound of it. He does not open the
casket, but otherwhere in the wounded
man's effects he discovers a picture
of Leonora. When Aharo recovers,
Don Carlo makes himself known; at
the same time, unwittingly, giving his
enemy to understand that Leonora
still lives though he does not know
where. Aharo is overjoyed; he in
turn discloses himself, striving to con
vince Don Carlo he is guiltless of
wrongdoing, and worthy of his sister.
Unable to draw Aharo into combat,
Carlo threatens then to search out
Leonora^ and take her life instead. A

dramatic scene rises: "II segreto fu
dunque violate ?" (Is My Secret Then
Betrayed?). A duel follows, and Aharo
wins. Believing he has killed a second
man, he decides to take holy vows and
to end his days in a monastery. He
cannot now go to Leonora with a
brother's blood, as well as a father's,
upon his hands.

ACT IV

SCENE The Monastery of
Hornacuelos

FIVE years have passed. And Don
Aharo^ now Father Raphael^ has
become noted for his goodness of life,
his compassionate kindliness toward
all who suffer. But Don Carlo has
sought, and he has now found him
only to taunt the devoted and harm
less soul with cowardice. "In Vano,
Alvaro" (In Vain, Alvaro!) sings he.
The friar, well schooled to ignore his
own feelings, tries hard to convince
Don Carlo that vengeance lies with
God. In return he receives the most
venomous insults. He endeavors,
vainly, to reach a peaceful solution. In
the duet, "Le minaccie, i fieri accenti"
(Thy Menaces Wild), the tensity of
the situation reaches the breaking
point. Slowly but surely the benev
olent priest becomes, again, the fiery
"man of honor." A pathetic instru
mental melody coupled with the
broken speech of Don Aharo^ is ex
ceedingly touching; but it disappears
in the riot of stormier passions. The
convent is no place to fight, and the
two seek a hillside the very hillside
where, unknown to either, Leonora
herself abides in misery.

ACT V

SCENE A Wild Spot near
Hornacuelos

PALE and worn, yet still beautiful,
Leonora issues for the thousandth
time from her cave, to implore Heaven
to let her die and forget her lover.

145

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Heaven's only reply is a storm of rain
and wind and thunder which drives
her back just as the two men arrive.
Again Don Carlo is vanquished, and
in fair fight. This time the wound is
mortal, and the dying man begs his
enemy, as Father Raphael^ to confess
him and yield absolution. This Alvaro
cannot do, the place being under the
"ban" still set upon it. But he calls
the A ' friar" who dwells in the cave.
Leonora^ finding her brother dying,
rushes to embrace him. Seeing her in

the presence of Don Aharo> he suspects
the pair of complicity, and stabs her as
her arms fold about him. The music
here is impressive, "Non imprecare,
umiliati" (Swear Not, Be Humble"),
one of Verdi's great concerted numbers.
What is there left for Don Aharot
He has been responsible, an instrument
played upon by the skilful and mali
cious fingers of Destiny, for three
deaths. What atonement is there?
He casts himself from the cliff as the
monks arrive singing a Miserere.

ACT II

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT III

MADRE, PIETOSA VERGINE

(Holy Mother, Have Mercy)

CELESTINA BONINSEGNA, Soprano and

La Scala Chorus 6351 12-in., #2.00

LEONORA.
Oh, Holy Virgin,
Have mercy on my sins!
Send help from Heaven
To erase from my heart
That ungrateful one.
(The friars are heard in their morning hymn.}

sublime song,
Which like incense,
Ascends heavenward
It gives faith, comfort,
And quiet to my soul.

1 will go to the holy sanctuary.

The pious father cannot refuse to receive me.

Lord! Have mercy on me,

Nor abandon me.

(She rings the bell of the convent.)

O TU CHE IN SENO AGLF ANGELI

(Thou Heavenly One) ENRICO CARUSO,

Tenor 6000 12-in., 22.00

SOLENNE IN QUEST' ORA

(Swear in This Hour) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor and ANTONIO SCOTTI, Baritone

8000 12-in., 2.50

IL SEGRETO FU DUNQUE VIOLATO?
(Is My Secret Then Betrayed?) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor and GIUSEPPE DE
LUCA, Baritone 8006 12-in., 2.50

ACT IV
INVANO ALVARO

(In Vain, Alvaro!) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor and PASQUALE AMATO, Bari
tone 8005 12-in., 2.50
LE MINACCIE, I FIERI ACCENTI
(Thy Menaces Wild) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor and PASQUALE AMATO, Bari
tone S005 12-in., 2.50
PACE, PACE MIO DIO

(Peace, Oh My Lord) ROSA PONSELLE,
Soprano 6440 12-in., 2.00

BLACK LABEL AND PURPLE LABEL RECORDS

Solenne in quest' ora (Swear in This Hour) Murphy and Werrenrath 70103 12-in., #1.25

/Overture Part I Victor Symphony Orchestra} ~ c ~ n , .-. . ~-

lOverture Part II Pictor Symphony Orchestral** 721 12 ~ m '> L25

Symphony i

/Overture Arthur Pryor's Band\

\ Orpheus Overture (Offenbach) Arthur Pryor's Eand\ ^

fSolenne in quest' ora Vessellrfs Italian

I Mejisto/ele Selection VesselMs Italian

146

12-in.,
2 12-in.,

1.25

FRA DIAVOLO

COMIC opera in three acts. The Scene: Italy ^ in the Neighborhood
Libretto by Scribe, music by of Terracina
Daniel Francois Esprit Auber. (The name of the opera is pro-
First production at the Opera Comique, nounced Frah Dee-ati-voh-loh).
Paris, January 28, 1830. Presented

in Vienna, 1830. London, at the '"PHIS is a spirited little opera.

Drury Lane Theatre, in English, A Zerhna and Lorenzo>hzr soldier,

November 3, 1831; in Italian at the are too poor to marry. The girl's

Lyceum Theatre, 1857. First Ameri- father, Matteo, has a rich suitor all

can production at the Old Park Thea- ready, and "tomorrow is the day.

tre, New York, in English, June 20, There is a gay time at the inn. Lord

1833. Produced in New Orleans in Rocburg and his wife, Lady Pamela,

1836. It was not until 1864 that it arrive. They have been robbed, and

was given in Italian in New York, at Lorenzo and his men go after the ban-

the Academy of Music, with Kellogg, dits. Another guest, the smooth Mar-

Colonel Mapleson gave three perform- qw of San Marco, (Fra Dtavolo, the

ances of the opera at the Academy of bandit,) next comes in to flirt with

Music in 1 885. Zelie de Lussan made her Lady Pamela, and to gam access to

debut here in the part with the Bos- the noble Lord s money-belt. He is

ton Ideals in 1888'. Recently revived distressed when Lorenzo returns with

at the Manhattan Opera and after- the jewels and news of slam robbers,

wards at the New Theatre by the The young man is given a ^ reward

Metropolitan forces. ' which seems to make possible his

marriage.

CHARACTERS That night, the Marquis and two

FRA DIAVOLO, calling him- followers, Beppo and Giacomo, conceal

self "Marquis of San themselves in Zerlina s room to rob

Marco" Tenor Rocburg in the night. Lorenzo arrives;

LORD ROCBURG (Lord All- ' discovered, the Marquis makes both

cash), an English trav- him and Rocburg believe he has been

eler Tenor conducting affairs with Zerlina and

LADY PAMELA (Lady Allcash) Lady Pamela. Both merf challenge

his wife .' Soprano him. Next morning Zerlina discovers

LORENZO, Chief of the Cara- Beppo and Giacomo were in her room

biniers Tenor too. Lorenzo arrests them, and they

MATTEO, the innkeeper Bass are forced to betray their chief. He

ZERLINA, his daughter Soprano is led into a trap and shot. Then it

GIACOMO and BEPPO, com- transpires, of course, that Fra Diavolo

panions of Fra Dia- and the Marquis were one. All ends

volo Bass-Tenor happily.

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

(Overture to Fra Diavolo Arthur Pryor's 5<A 3S10 g 12 .; n L2 5

I Marriage of Figaro Overture (Mozart) Arthur Pry or s Band) ' "

/Fra Diavolo Selection Vessellrfs Italian Band\ ^^^ ^ . 1 ?5

I Daughter of Regiment Selection Vessellas Italian Band} ~ ">

147

PHOTO LANDE

THE WOLF S GLEN SCENE

DER FREISCHUTZ

CARL MARIA VON WEBER,
like others of his group Men
delssohn, Chopin, Bellini
died before his genius had fulfilled
itself. He is usually regarded as the
first important operatic composer to
open the new avenues of romanti
cism in the nineteenth century. In
"Der Freischutz" he sought to escape
Italian influence by discarding plots of
intrigue, seeking rather, for material,
the legends of his own country. He
gave to German operatic music that
first tinge of nationalism which devel
oped to its ultimate in Wagner, with
his monumental music dramas of Teu
ton mythology.

The word "Freischiitz" means not so
much "Freeshooter" as "Free Marks
man;" it was applied to one who used
charmed bullets. It plunges at once
into that mystical word of legendary
superstition where fact is subordinate
to fancy. This opera must be enjoyed
in the fairy-tale spirit, remembering

that first of all it is a story. W 7 e learn,
however, even in the guise of folk lore,
that it is safer to put trust in the forces
of right than those of evil in what
ever romantic guise.

THE OPERA

ROMANTIC opera in three acts.
Words by Friedrich Kind; mu
sic by Carl Maria von Weber; com
pleted as Die Jager$braut y May 13,
1820. Produced at Berlin, June 18,
1821; in Paris (as Robin des Bois, with
new libretto by Blaze and Sauvage,
and many changes), at the Odeon, De
cember 7, 1824. Another version, with
translation by Pacini, and recitatives
by Berlioz, at the Academic Royale,
June 7, 1841, under the title of Le Franc
Archer. In London as Der Freischutz
or The Seventh Bullet, with many bal
lads inserted, July 23, 1824; in German,
at King's Theatre, May 9, 1832; in
Italian, as II Franco Ardero> at Covent
Garden, March 16, 18SO (recitatives by

148

VICTROLA BOOK OP THE OPERA

Costa). First New York production,
in English, March 2, 1825. This was
followed by other versions, Charles E.
Horn appearing as Caspar in 1827.
German performances were given at
the old Broadway Theatre, 1856, and
by other German companies in the
sixties. Produced at the Metropolitan
under Dr. Damrosch in 1884, and at
the Academy of Music in 1896. Re
vived at the Metropolitan in 1910,
and in 1924 with recitatives.

CHARACTERS

PRINCE OTTOKAR, Duke of Bo

hemia ................. Baritone

CUNO, head ranger .............. Bass

KILIAN, a rich peasant ......... Tenor

A HERMIT ..................... Bass

ZAMIEL, the fiend huntsman ..........

AGNES, Cuno's daughter ...... Soprano

ANNIE, her cousin .......... Soprano

Chorus of Hunters, Peasants and Spirits

Scene and Period: Bohemia^ about 1750

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced, approximately, Dair Fry-
sheetz) .

A BEAUTIFUL overture sums up
JL\ much of the music. Abroad, low
unison melody for the whole orchestra,
leads to a lovely horn passage, rich
with the spirit of the woodlands. The
night is falling, soft and mysterious.
A rushing allegro fills us with the
doubts of the young hunter-hero; we
hear his magic bullets fall into the
melting-pot, one by one,, and the ter
rors of the Wolfs Glen sweep down
upon us. A lovely melody brings re
lief picturing the tender love of the
heroine, only to bring fresh dread and
distress. But triumph comes at last,
and the overture ends with a ringingly
melodious climax.

The story is simple. Max a young
ranger in the service of the Bohemian
Prince Ottokar, loves Agnes, who has
promised to marry him if he wins the
shooters' contest. He fails, the prize
going to a peasant, Kilian. Max be
wails his misfortune in a highly dra
matic air, "Durch die Walder " (Thro'
the Forest). He thinks of his beloved:
"Jetzt ist wohl ihr Fenster offen" (Now
Beside Her Lattice), and he works him
self into rather a desperate mood.
Caspar, a dissolute fellow-ranger, ap
pears. Caspar's excesses have led
him into the power of Zamiel, the
Demon Hunter of Bohemian tradition
a kind of Mephistopheles. Any
hunter who will sell his soul to Zamiel
will receive seven bullets which will
never fail their mark. For each victim
he brings, the supply is extended and
his own life; but woe to him if he fails
to bring a fresh one before the seventh
bullet!

Caspar sees his chance in Max
whom he induces to meet him in the
Wolfs Glen, to receive the charmed
bullets.

Meanwhile, Agnes awaits, with
alarm, her absent lover. Her cousin
Annie, offers cheer, but vainly, so she
departs. The girl, alone in her room,
prays in the starlight for the safety of
her lover. Her "Preghiera ?> (Agnes'
Prayer), is the most famous air of the
opera if we except the horn passage
in the overture, which has been set as
a familiar hymn. The quiet dignity
of the "prayer," its restful faith in
Heaven, have won it the love of all
true music-lovers.

Max arrives, followed by Annie; his
manner is agitated. He declares he
must go to the Wolfs Glen to bring in
a stag he has shot; Agnes, knowing the
place's reputation, begs him not to.
But he insists, and the scene changes to
the Glen, where, among picturesque
terrors, he meets Caspar. Visions ar-

149

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

rive and pass, fiends rave, and the bul
lets are cast amid thunders and winds
and earthquakes.

Max returns with the bullets, and
the Prince asks him to shoot a dove.
He does, but the bullet just misses
Agnes., who has come to look for Max,
among her bridesmaids. Caspar is
wounded by this very bullet, which he
hoped viould strike Agnes and thus
yield Zamiel another victim. Zamiel^
however, claims Caspar and the story

is revealed. The Prince would punish
Max, but opportunely a Hermit ap
pears, showing that the prayer of
Agnes has been answered, Providence
using her to restore Max to truth and
honor. Max is forgiven, and all ends
well.

It is to be noted that, as usually
produced, "Der Freischutz" is in
"comic opera" form, being given with
spoken dialog in places. Recitatives
however, have been written for it.

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

JFreischutzOverture Part I Victor Symphony Orchestral ^j^

iFreischutz Overture Part II Victor Symphony Orchestral

fOverture to Der Freischiit2 Sousas ^ an ^\^^QQQ

I Carmen Selection (Bizet) Sousas Band}

12-in.,
12-in.,

fLeise, leise, fromme Weise (Agatha's Prayer) (In German) Louise Votgt, s P rano \^71 12-in
I TannhauserDichy teure Halle (In German) Louise Voigt, Soprano) <J

1.25

PRINCE OTTOKAR PARDONS MAX FINAL
SCENE OF THE OPERA

150

THE RELATIONS HEAR THE NEW WILL

GIANNI SCHICCHI

OPERA in one act; text by Gio-
achino Forzano ; music by
Giacomo Puccini. First pro
duced at the Metropolitan Opera
House, New York City, December 14,
1918, in conjunction with two other
Puccini one act operas, "II Tabarro"
and "Suor Angelica."

GIANNI SCHICCHI is a shrewd,
cunning, but good-hearted Tus
can peasant of the thirteenth cen
tury. He has a daughter, Lauretta^
who loves Rinuccio, whose family is
much worried because a relation, Buoso
Donati, who has just died, has left his
fortune to a monastery. Schicchi is
consulted by the disappointed relatives
in the hope that he may prove clever
enough to suggest a plan for getting
the property. Donates death not yet
having been made public, Schicchi sug
gests that he impersonate the old man
and dictate a new will, leaving the
estate to Rinuccio's family. Schicchi

is placed in the dead man's bed, and a
notary is sent for. He takes down the
new will; but Schicchi y after making a
few minor bequests to the relatives,
leaves the bulk of the property to him
self! This pleases Rinuccio and Lau
retta^ since they will eventually benefit
by the will. The relatives are highly
indignant, but they do not dare expose
Schicchi^ as they would make them
selves liable for punishment. They
keep their peace, while the opera ends
happily for the lovers.

In one air Lauretta begs Gianni to
help secure a part of the wealth which
Buoso has left to a monastery, and tells
her "dear daddy" that if he will con
sent she will be able to buy a handsome
wedding ring. This is the "O mio bab-
binocaro" (Oh, My Beloved Daddy).

THE VICTOR RECORD

O MIO BABBINO CARO

(Oh, My Beloved Daddy) FRANCES ALDA,
Soprano In Italian 528 10-in., 31-50

151

PROGRAM OF FIRST PERFORM
ANCE (MILAN, 1876)

COPY T MISHKIN

DESTINN AS GIOCONDA

COPY'T MISHKIN

CARUSO AS EN2O

LA GIOCONDA

E GIOCONDA is a product of
those happy days when the un
trained music-lover was con
sidered; the days before melody was
banished from the opera-house in
favor of uneasy harmonies and choked
orchestration. Doubtless the frank
"emotional appeal" of the middle nine
teenth century had to suffer the gen
eral law of change in giving way to the
subtleties of our own time. Those
educated to the modern fashion of
unresolved sevenths and augmented
fifths may turn up noses today at their
forefathers' simpler tastes; but even a
musician of parts may today find de
light in "La Gioconda" not simply
from its dramatic power, but from its
music top.

Ponchielli was born at Palermo Fas-
olaro, Cremona, in 1834, and he died in
Milan in 1886. He belongs to the
halcyon days that followed Wagner's
banishment of the banjo-like accom

paniments and the sleep-inducing har
monies of the Italian '30's and '40's,
yet preceded the hour when melody
took fright before the cacophonous
attacks of the "very modern." "La
Gioconda" has plenty of tunes, gener
ously embellished with interesting
harmonies and with orchestrations
which are generously colored.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Libretto by
Arrigo Bo'ito; an adaptation of
Victor Hugo's drama, "Angelo."
Music by Amilcare Ponchielli. First
presented at La Scala, Milan, April
8, 1876. Rewritten by Bo'ito and
given at Genoa, December, 1876, and
the following February at La Scala.
First London production, June 7, 1883.
Given in Petrograd, January 30, 1883;
in Vienna April 28, 1883; in France, at
Nice, December 29, 1886. First New
York production, December 20, 1883,

152

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

with Nilsson, Scalchi, Fursch-Madi, del
Puente and Novara. Revived at the
Metropolitan Opera House New York,
December 25, 1913.

CHARACTERS

LA GIOCONDA (Joh-kon'-dah), a

ballad singer Soprano

LA CIECA (Chay'-kah), her blind

mother Contralto

ALVISE (Al-vee f -zeK), one of the

heads of State Inquisition. . . . Bass

LAURA, his wife Mezzo-Soprano

ENZO GRIMALDO, a Genoese noble

Tenor
BARNABA, a spy of the Inquisition

Baritone

ZUANE (Tsoo~ahn'-ay\ a boatman. Bass
ISEPO (Ee-zay' -poh) , public letter-
writer Tenor

A PILOT Bass

Monks, Senators, Sailors, Shipwrights,
Ladies, Gentlemen, Populace,
Masquers, etc.

The Action takes place in Venice, in the

Seventeenth Century
There is a prelude to the opera, soft,
melodic, with a fine climax. It is not
able in introducing, as its chief theme,
a beautiful melody from the first act,
where La Cieca, the blind woman of
Venice, accused of witchcraft by the
mob and rescued by Alvise, offers to her
protector, in gratefulness, almost her
only possession an old rosary.

ACT I

SCENE Street near the Adriatic Shore ',
Venice

IT is the afternoon of a Spring holi
day, and the Grand Courtyard of the
Ducal Palace is alive with moving color
the forms of monks, sailors, dancers,
shipwrights, and the people-at-large,
old and young. At the rear are seen
the Giant's Staircase and the Portico
della Carta, with a doorway leading

into the interior of the jewel-blazing
Church of Saint Mark. The writing
table of a public letter-writer is seen,
and across-stage can be remarked one
of the public "Lion's Mouths'* bear
ing its legend, "For Secret Denuncia
tions to the Inquisition, Against Any
Person, with Safety, Secrecy and Bene
fit to the State/'

The spy, Earnaba, stands, moodily,
with his back to one of the exquisite
marble columns, watching the crowd.
A small guitar hangs from his shoulder.
He points ironically at the pavement-
gratings upon which the people dance.
"Dancing above their graves," says
Earnaba, knowing the prisons of the
Inquisition are underfoot.

He notices La Gioconda, with her
blind mother, La Cieca; the street
singer is in the bright costume of her
profession; fresh and young, she brings
an unpleasant hunger into the eye of
Earnaba. Having seated her mother
where she will enjoy the sun and the
charity of Venice, she turns to follow
the crowd, headed shoreward to watch
the regatta.

But she is the last, and, save for her
self, her mother and the spy, the square
is deserted. Suddenly Earnaba steps
forth and arrests her passage, declaring
he loves her. She is furious, and
dashes away. Believing her in danger,
the blind mother screams for help.

A dastardly revenge is plotted by the
man. When the people return from
the regatta, "chairing' 7 the victor,
Earnaba tells the defeated competitor,
Zuanc, he has been bewitched by La
Cieca, and thus defeated. The super
stitious crowd attacks the old blind
woman, whose screams bring La Gio
conda, followed by Enzo Grimaldo,
whom the girl adores. Enzo fights oft
the mob, when the Grand Duke Alvise
and Laura, his wife, suddenly appear.
Chiefly through Laura, La Cieca is
saved; and she bestows upon the

155

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Duchess her rosary. Barnaba sees a
meaningful glance pass between La
Gioconda and Enzo.

Presently all depart but the two
men. "Enzo Grimaldo, Prince of Santa
Flor," begins the spy, "you look
thoughtful." Enzo is astonished that
his rank is known. He is a prince
proscribed.* and despite his kindness to
the street singer, his heart long ago
was given to Laura, now the wife of
Ahise. Barnaba tells him Laura will
visit Enzo's ship that evening. Enzo
is grateful, though the men lose no love
for one another. He departs, when
Barnaba turns to the public scribe.
As he does so, the mother and daughter
return, concealing themselves when the
girl sees their enemy. They overhear
him dictate a letter to the Grand Duke,
warning him of the love between Enzo
and Laura. Apostrophizing the stone
lion for its usefulness in such matters,
Barnaba places the missive between its
j aws. All is seen by La Gioconda, whose
passionate soul is filled with hate
against Barnaba, against Laura and
against Enzo; for is not Enzo her lover?
For her, too, the way of revenge lies
open; but not Barnaba s way,

ACT II

SCENE A Lagoon near Venice. Enzo s
Ship at the S^uay

THE early moon reveals Enzo s
ship, at anchor at an island in the
Fusirna lagoon. The sailors are singing
and merrymaking. Disguised as a
fisherman, now appears Barnaba, with
Isepo, the letter-writer. He notes the
number and disposition of the crew,
and sends off Isepo for aid. He sings
a merry ballad, "Ah, pescator affonda
1'esca" (Fisher Boy, Thy Bait Be
Throwing), which brings hearty ap
proval from the men aboard ship.
Soon Enzo appears, and they go be
low. Barnaba hides. Left alone, Emo
sings of his joy at the approaching

visit, in the beautiful aria, "Cielo e
Mar" (Heaven and Ocean). It has
a striking passage

clot)l-l il . t* del -I'm-mo-re, del 1'* mo

tt TluH would awtrtkt* all, wp*l<tm**r!hre alt' y M*

Suddenly, out of the dusk, a boat
appears, and Laura steps aboard ship.
A touching love scene follows, and the
pair agree to sail off as soon as the
wind may rise. Enzo is called below, and
Laura kneels at an altar on the deck.
La Gioconda creeps from hiding at the
bow of the ship, and advances. Her
muffled curses arouse the praying
woman. "Who are you?" cries Laura,
in sudden fear.

"I am a shadow. .1 am Vengeance!"
is the strange reply; and the girl in
fury, pours out her woes. Finally she
takes a dagger and points it at the
breast of Laura when she catches
sight of the rosary, and she remembers.
Her arm falls, powerless; taking the
distracted Laura, the girl drags her to
a boat alongside and puts her aboard.
When Enzo comes on deck, crying for
Laura, he greets the followers of Almse,
headed by Barnaba. Caught, he sets
fire to the ship.

ACT III

SCENE -The House of Gold

ADVISE is in agitation. There is a
great festival at his house, where
he has planned a'n exquisite revenge.
Laura enters, robed for the ball. She
is told that she must die. She begs
for mercy, but is thrown to -the floor,
and dragged to an adjoining room,
where she sees a funeral bier, prepared
to receive her. Ahise gives her a
goblet of poisoned wine, which she
must drink before the next dance.
Then he goes to receive his guests.
Again La Gioconda appears, emptying
the poisoned wine into a bottle, and
replacing it with a sleep-inducing but

154

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

harmless narcotic. Then begins the
famous "Dance of the Hours,"
today one of the most popular of
orchestral pieces. At the end of it,
in rushes Barnaba,, among the dancers,
with Enzo y dragging La Cieca, who
cries out with fright. Barnaba insists
she was working malice, but the
woman avers she was but praying
for the dead. A bell is heard tolling,
and Barnaba whispers to Enzo that
it is for Laura. Enzo then advances
upon Ahise, throws off his mask and
lets himself be known. Ahise tells
the story of the wrong done Laura^ and
drawing back the curtains, shows her
lying, in her ball dress, on the bier.
Enzo rushes at him but is withheld.

ACT IV

SCENE The Orfano Canal

STILL swooning, Laura is brought
to a ruined palace on the island of
the Giudecca, where at La Gioconda' s
command, she is placed on a couch.
Near her are set a flask of poison and
a dagger. The street singer has agreed
with Barnaba to become his if he will

help Enzo and Laura to escape. She
sings the famous "Suicidio" (Suicide
Only Remains). What is there, indeed,
to live for? She is half tempted to
drown the unconscious Laura. Then
Enzo reappears from prison.

This is Barnaba s work. But when
Enzo declares he will die at the tomb of
Laura^ La Gioconda mockingly declares
she has removed the body. Enzo
lifts his. dagger. For a moment the
girl would gladly die by his hand, so
great is her infatuation; but Laura
appears, restored. And she returns
the girl her mother's rosary.

The lovers go. Then, last of all,
comes Barnaba^ to claim his reward.
The girl plays upon his feelings until
he cannot contain himself. He seizes
her in his arms. But, more deft than
he, she stabs herself with her dagger.
"La Gioconda is thine!" she declares.
Barnaba^ stooping down, howls in her
ear:

"Last night your mother offended
me. I have strangled her!" But he
speaks into an ear that is deaf as stone;
for the girl is dead. Barnaba rushes
back into the night.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT (I

PESCATOR, AFFONDA L'ESCA

(Fisher Boy, Thy Bait be Throwing)

TITTA RUFFO, Baritone (>265 12-in., #2.00

.1.10

PASQUALE AMATO, Baritone and Metro
politan Opera Chorus 539 10-in.,

CIELO E MAR

(Heaven and Ocean) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor 6020 12-in., 2.00

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

738 10-in., 1.50

BENIAMINO GiGLi,Tenor 643 10-in. ? 1.50

ENZO:

Heaven and ocean! yon ethereal veil
Is radiant as a holy altar,
My angel, will she come from heaven?
My angel, will she come o'er ocean?
Here I await her, I breathe with rapture
The soft zephyrs fill'd with love.
Mortals oft, when fondly sighing,
Find ye a torment, O golden, golden dreams.
Come then, dearest, here I'm waiting;

Wildly panting is my heart.
Come, then, dearest! oh come, my dearest!
Oh come, taste the kisses that magic bliss
impart!

ACT TV
SUICIDIO

(Suicide Only Remains) EMMY DESTINN,

Soprano 6086 12-in., 2.00

MARIA JERITZA, Soprano 6375 12-in., 2.00

155

VI CTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

12-in., l.SO

THE RUINED PALACEACT IV

156

FBRD. LEEKE

SIEGFRIED:

If you threaten my life,

Hardly you'll win from my hand the ring!

157

GOTTERDAMMERUNG

(THE DUSK OF THE GODS)

MUSIC-DRAMA in three acts
and a prelude. Words and
music by Richard Wagner,
who began composition of the music at
Lucerne in 1870 and completed it in
1874. First produced at Bayreuth,
August 17, 1876, with Materna and
Unger. First American production at
New York, January 25, 1888, with
Lehmann, Seidl-Krauss, Traubman,
Niemann and Fischer. Given in Italy
at LaScala in 1890. Many notable
productions have been made at the
Metropolitan, and the work has been
presented almost every year at this
house.

CHARACTERS

SIEGFRIED (Zeeg f -freed] Tenor

GUNTHER (Goon'-ter) Bass

HAGEN (Hah' -gen) Bass

BRUNNHILDE (Breen-hil-deh) . . Soprano
GUTRUNE (Goot-troon r ~eh] Soprano

WOGLINDA

WELLGUNDA
FLOSSHILDE

(Vo-glin'-de) f Soprano
(Veil-go on' -deh}\ Soprano
(Floss-hil'-deh] [Contralto

(Rhine-Nymphs)

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced (nearly) Gay-ter-daym-mer-
oong).

PRELUDE

WITH dawn comes the leave-tak
ing of Brunnhilde and Siegfried,
for the conqueror must go forth into
the world to prove himself a hero among
men. He leaves her as a love-pledge
the magic Ring, the Ring taken from
Alberich by Wotan to pay the giants,
and taken by Siegfried in turn from
Fafner, dragon-giant. In answering
faith, Brunnhilde gives Siegfried her
Valkyrie armor, dowers him with her
protecting magic, and leads to him the
horse Grant. Mounting, he rides away

down the rocky defile, and Brunnhilde,
watching him from a high rock, hears
his horn echoing down the valley.

ACT I

SCENE Castle of King Gunther

ON the banks of the Rhine is the
kingdom of the Gibichungs, gov
erned by Gunther and his sister Gutrune.
Gunther has a magician adviser in
Hagen, who is in fact a natural son of
Alberich. When Alberich first renounced
woman kind, he required a human
agent to defeat Siegfried,, so he bought
a wife with his gold. Hagen tells
Gunther^ listening wide-eyed, of Brunn
hilde and the Ring, saying that the
sleeping goddess can be won only by a
fearless hero who can penetrate through
her curtaining veil of fire. Siegfried
alone may bring her to Gunther', Hagen
has on foot a scheme whereby with
magic he may win for Gunther the
powerful Brunnhilde, and wed Gutrune
to Siegfried. Thus he plans to secure
the ring for his father, Alberich.

\Yhen Siegfried arrives at the hall of
the Gibichungs, he is royally welcomed.
He is given to drink of a magic draught
whereby he completely forgets the
unsuspecting Brunnhilde and falls in
love with Gutrune, the sister of the
King. He next swears blood-brother
hood with Gunther, and promises, in
exchange for Gutrune, to bring Brunn
hilde from her mountain of fire. By
means of the Tarnhelm he changes
himself into Gunther s form and goes
upon his mission. Brunnhilde is hor
rified when Siegfried, in the visible
shape of Gunther, seizes her. She be
lieves this must be the last vengeance
of Wotan. She strives to protect her
self with the magic of the Ring, but as
it is Siegfried himself appearing to her

158

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

in Gunther s form she is dismayed to
find the Ring powerless. Siegfried
takes the Ring from her as a sign of
their wedding; but remains beside her
with the sword between them in
memory of his brotherhood pledge to
G unt her.

ACT II

SCENE The Rhine near Gunther s
Castle

HAGEN is awaiting the return of
Siegfried., when Alberich appears,
to discuss their plot to regain the Ring.
Hagen swears to accomplish his pur
pose, and Alberich vanishes when Sieg
fried arrives. The hero is in his own
form but wears the Tarnhelm, which he
now places in his belt, declaring that
Gunther, with Brunnhilde, is following.
Hagen speeds to the Castle, where the
retainers are called forth to celebrate
the double wedding of Siegfried with
Gutrune and Gunther with Brunnhilde.
When Gunther arrives with Brunnhilde,
the Valkyrie is startled to see Siegfried,
whom she approaches tenderly. He
ignores her, but she perceives the Ring
upon his finger. Gunther is perplexed
when she claims that Siegfried has
wedded her with the Ring, and he now
believes himself betrayed. Siegfried,
still beneath the baneful effects of the
drink, denies all memory of his having
given Brunnhilde the Ring. He goes
off with his new love, Gutrune, leaving
Brunnhilde, Gunther and Hagen to plot
vengeance. Briinnhilde tells her new
companion that she has made Siegfried
invulnerable from a frontal attack, but
knowing that he will never turn his
back to a foe, has taken no pains to
protect him from the rear. They then
plan between them to kill Siegfried.

ACT III

SCENE I A Wild Valley near the Rhine

OFF on a hunting expedition, Sieg
fried has strayed from his com
panions. At the banks of the Rhine,

the Rhine maidens endeavor to per
suade him into giving up the Ring. He
is charmed by their songs and their
cajolery, but laughs at the demand for
the Ring. Thereupon they warn him
that this very day he will die. He
treats their prophecy with lightness,
forgetting it completely when Hagen
and Gunther appear. Having killed
nothing, he is obliged to eat of their
food and drink of their wine. Hagen
gives him yet another magic potion, by
which his memory is so far restored
that he tells them something of his past
life, including the story of Mime and
the Dragon, "Mime hiess ein murri-
scherZwerg" (Mimi, Know Then, Was
a Dwarf).

^ Plied by Hagen, he proceeds to tell of
his communion with the birds; then,
scene by scene, the whole of his past
life. Much of this is given in the "Zu
den Wipfeln lauscht' ich" (To the
Branches Gazed I Aloft).

As he repeats to them the message of
the birds, he thinks dreamily once more
of Briinnhilde, Hagen keeping the
drinking-horn well supplied. Two ra
vens fly overhead. "Canst read the
speech of those ravens aright?" asks
Hagen, and Siegfried starts at the mem
ory of the bird who led him on his way
to Brunnhilde. As he arises, Hagen
plunges a spear into his back. The
dying Siegfried, with his last breath,
now recalls the kiss of Brunnhilde and
his love. "Brunnhilde beckons me!"
groans the hero as life dies out of him.

SCENE II Hall in Gunther s Palace

THE body of Siegfried is borne
back to the Castle to the music,
perhaps,of the greatest threnody
ever composed, "Siegfried's Funeral
March."

To the solemn rhythm of this as
tounding musical picture of the pas
sage of Death, are added one by one
the leading themes or "motives" of the

159

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

entire Ring. We hear, as in review, the
heroic motive of the Volsungs^ the race
founded by Wotan and ended with
Siegfried^ and then follow all the other
leading motives, like the images said to
be seen by drowning men; the Com
passion of the unhappy Sieghnde, the
love of Siegmund and Sieglinde^ the
Sword^ and that of Siegfried, Guardian
of the Sword) and that of Siegfried him
self in its heroic form, and his love of
Brunnhilde. The complaint of the
Rhine-maidens, the motive of Erunn-
hildes captivity, and the Curse-motive
all are heard, and in the imagination
we may picture the funeral procession,
disappearing among the mountains
into the silence of the night, a single
wan beam of moonlight tragically illu
mining the scene.

Siegfried's body is borne majestically
into the Hall of Gunther s Castle, where
the weeping Gutrune clasps the dead
form of her husband. Hagen now de

mands the ring, but Gunther refuses it.
Once more the Curse works out, and
Gunther ^ in his own hall, dies by Ha-
ge-n's hand. Then, when Hagen ap
proaches the dead hero to take the Ring
from his finger, Siegfried's arm rises in
warning and Hagen recoils in horror.

The last great moment approaches.
Brunnhilde appears, and gazing long
and sadly upon the face of Siegfried,,
commands that a great funeral pyre be
set up to consume his body. The vas
sals obey, building a mighty pyre in
sight of the Rhine waters. High upon
this the body of Siegfried is laid. Brunn
hilde summons the two ravens from the
rocks, commanding them to summon
the Fire-god.

Thus begins the great Immolation
Scene, "Fliegt heim."

The ravens are sped away, to bid
Loki burn the palace of Valhalla; then
kindles the pile, which burns rapidly as
the black-winged messengers disappear.

CLICHE HANS BRAND

SETTING OF ACT II AT BAYREUTH
160

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Commanding that the horse Grant be
brought her, Briinnhilde takes from
him the bridle.

She swings herself onto his broad
back and rides him boldly into the
burning funeral pyre, whose terrible
flames partly destroy the Hall itself.
The Rhine rises, however, and puts out
the fire, and on its level surface are
seen the Rhine-maidens, who seize the
Ring from the embers. Hagen rushes
upon them, crying: "The Ring is mine !"

But the maidens seize the creature and
drag him down into the now-roaring
flood. The smoke from the pyre gathers
into a great bank, and the frightened
Gibichungs note an increasing red glow
appear in the midst of it high above
them. Valhalla itself is in flames and
the gods and heroes, their work accom
plished, are seen awaiting their fiery
doom as the flames lick about their
great castle of Valhalla. Thus ends
the old order, giving place to the new.

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

Mime hiess em miirrischer Zwerg (Mimi, Know Thee Then, Was a Dwarf) "j

(In German) Carl Burrian, Tenor I ^ --

Zu den Wipfeln lauscht' ich (To the Branches Gazed I Aloft) (In German) f

Carl Burrian, Tenor]

The parting of Briinnhilde and Siegfried Prologue, Part I Vocalists
Florence Austral-Tudor Davies

12-in., 31.50

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates

The parting of Briinnhilde and Siegfried Prologue, Part II
Vocalists Florence Austral-Tudor Davies

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates.

Gunther and Gutrune welcome Siegfried Act I Vocalists Tudor Davies,
Robert Radford and Bessie Jones

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates
Hagen meditates revenge Act I Vocalist Robert Radford

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Percy Pitt

Prelude: The Rhine-maidens scene Act III

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Eugene Goossens

Briinnhilde kindles the funeral pyre Part 1 (Act III) Vocalist Florence
Austral Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates\

[Briinnhilde kindles the funeral pyre Part 2 Vocalist Florence Austral }
J Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates\ qqoiS

I Briinnhilde kindles the funeral pyre Part 3 (Act III) Vocalist Florence |
[ Austral Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates}

("Siegfried's Journey to the Rhine Part I . .Percy Pitt and Symphony Orchestral
ISiegfried's Journey to the Rhine Part II.. Percy Pitt and Symphony Orchestra)

/Siegfried's Funeral March Vessellas Italian

\ Die WalkureRide of the Valkyries Vessella's Italian

55212 12-in., 1.50

5521" 12-in., 1.50

12-in., 1.50

12-

in., 1.50
in., 1.25

161

GOYESCAS

OR THE RIVAL LOVERS

THIS beautiful work attracted
notice at the time of its first
production, not simply for its
inherent charm, but for its promise of
greater things to come. Enrique
Granados was known only to a few
as a promising composer., some piano
works of his having attracted the
attention of the pianist Ernest Schell-
ing, who made them public. The
scenes as well as the ideas for the four
principal characters were taken from

famous paintings by Goya, the Spanish
painter. The composer reproduced
some of the vivacity and fire of that
great human satirist and much was
expected of him. Such expectations,
however, but served to intensify the
tragedy of his loss when he and his
wife, on their return journey, loaded
with honors and happy with the
promise of a brilliant future, went
down with the ill-fated -Sussex, tor
pedoed by a German submarine.

TH E O PE RA

by Fernando Periquet;
A music by Enrique Granados. The
work was accepted for the Paris
Opera, but war prevented a production,
so Senor Granados brought it to
America, personally supervising the
premiere. It was produced for the
first time on any stage at the Metro
politan, New York, January 28, 1916,
and is the first grand opera to be sung
in the United States at a first-class
opera house in the Spanish language.

CHARACTERS AND ORIGINAL
CAST

ROSARIO, a lady of rank (Ro-

zah' -ree-oti) Anna Fitziu

FERNANDO, her lover (Fare-

nahn f -doh) . . . Giovanni Martinelli
PEPA, a notorious "maja"

(Pay 1 -pah} Flora Perini

PAQUIRO, a toreador (Pah-kee f -

roh) . . . . Giuseppe de Luca

A PUBLIC SINGER Max Bloch

Conductor Gaetano Baragnali
(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Go-yes'-kahs.)

Time and Place: Outskirts of 'Madrid r ,
about 1800.

SCENE I

THE opera is divided into three
scenes or "pictures"; the first
shows a gay festival in a village near
Madrid. The people of the village are
making a good deal of Paquiro, the
toreador, a swaggering ruffian. Chief
among those who adore him is Pepa,
one of the "majas," or a gay young
woman of the village; but Paquiro' s
head is filled with memories of Rosario,
a lady of high rank who has conde
scended to dance with him at the baile
de candil (a low ball given in a lantern
lighted barn), the lady having gone
slumming in quite the modern fashion.
Rosario arrives to keep a rendezvous
with her lover, Fernando, and Paquiro
audaciously invites her again to dance
with him at the ball-room. She refuses,
but she is overheard by Fernando, a
young military officer of jealous dis
position. He insists that she accept
Paquiro' s invitation but that she shall
dance with himself alone. The
toreador is affronted at this insult
before all his admirers. Rosario tries
to retreat, but Fernando is firm. Pepa,
noting her toreador-admirer's angry

162

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

face, admits that the young soldier has
courage to take the risk of meeting
Paquiro on his own ground.

SCENE II

THE ballroom is a cheap, boisterous
place, lighted by gaudy lanterns
and decorated with flaring colors. Out
of place in such surroundings, the aris-
tocraticFernando and Rosario &TQ
jeered by the crowd. In insulting
language, Paquiro congratulates Fer
nando on his choice of a sweetheart.
He provokes a quarrel, and the two
men agree to meet in a duel at ten
o'clock that night at the Prado^ near
Rosario *s home.

SCENE III

R3SARIO sits in the moonlit garden
listening to the nightingale, her
self singing a passionate love-song.
Fernando arrives and they renew their
vows. The clock strikes ten, and the

officer strives to leave her. She begs
him to stay; but unknown to her he
sees the cloaked figure of Paquiro
slipping by in the street. Pepa fur
tively follows. Fernando finally leaves;
but with trembling steps, and as
though conscious of some unnameable
evil, Rosario trails behind. In im-
passiveness too deep even for contempt
of the human drama, the moon looks
down upon the trees. Soon comes the
sound of clashing steel; then shrieks
one from Rosario and one from Fer-
nandoy mortally wounded. Pepa and
the toreador return and pass by.
Shortly afterward, Rosario staggers
back to the garden supporting the
wounded figure of her lover. In spite
of her lamentations there is nothing
she can do. As she sees the light of
life recede from Fernanda's eyes,
Rosario falls fainting on his body.

Themes from the opera are included
in the poetic and charmingly-colored
intermezzo.

PHOTO WHITE

THE CHALLENGE SCENE II

163

IL GUARANY

IL GUARANY contains some bril
liant music and many picturesque
effects. The most famous num
ber is a beautiful duet for Pery and
Cecilia in Act I. It is coloratura music
of the most elaborate type,, demanding
both mechanical skill and finesse.
The overture is characteristic, and
the melodies of the Amazon Indians,
which Gomez introduced to give "local
color" to the work, are piquant and
effective.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Text by An
tonio Scalvini; music by Antonio
Carlos Gomez. First produced at La
Scala, Milan, March 19, 1870, and
shortly afterward at Genoa, Florence
and Rome. First London production,
Coven t Garden, July 13, 1872. Once
given in New York.

CHARACTERS

DON ANTONIO DE MARITZ, a Portu
guese Knight Bass

CECILIA, his daughter Soprano

PERY, chief of the tribe of Guarany

(Ga-rah f -ne) Tenor

DON ALVARO, a Portuguese ad
venturer Tenor

GONZALES | Spanish guests of [Baritone
RuY-BENToiDon Antonio, \ Tenor
ALONSO J ad venturers [ Bass
IL CACICO, chief of Aimore Tribe, Bass
PEDRO, service guard of Antonio, Bass

Time and Place: Brazil^ in the Neighbor
hood of Rio Janeiro; 1560

DON ANTONIO DE MARITZ, an
early Brazilian settler of noble
birth, is at war with the neighboring
Indian tribes of Aimores, who detest
the European invaders. His beauti
ful daughter is loved by Gonzales,
a Spanish adventurer, but her heart
is given to Pery, chief of the tribe
of Guarany, a young man of lofty
character, for all his despised native
birth. The girl is torn between duty
to her father, and love for one of
his bitterest foes; and there are many
dramatic scenes of rivalry between
Pery and her admirer Gonzales. During
the war, it is brought home to Don
Antonio that the wrongdoing is not
wholly on the ' side of the natives,
and inspired by the genuineness of the
love between his daughter and Pery,
he resolves on a remarkable sacrifice.
The climax is reached in the last act,
when the Don's castle is besieged by
the Indians. After sending Pery and
Cecilia to a place of safety, the old
Don fires the powder-magazine, de
stroying himself and his enemies.

As the curtain falls, the united lovers
look down, from a lofty headland, upon
the scene of desolation, the result of a
father's self-sacrifice.

THE VICTOR RECORD

SENTO UNA FORZA INDOMITA

(An Indomitable Force)
EMMY DESTINE, Soprano, and EN
RICO CARUSO, Tenor. In Italian

6355 12-in., 32.00

BLACK LABEL RECORD

(II Guarany Selection ................................ Pietro. /iccordionist\^AQQ -o

\ Tranqulllo Overture (Pietro) ........................ Pietro, Accordionist}^^ 12 ' ln '>

oc
25

164

HAMLET

TO take an opera from a Shakes
peare play is to measure genius
with the greatest, especially
when " Hamlet" is the chosen battle
ground. It is not surprising that there
are pages in this opera which scarcely
"measure up" to the theme. But
there are compensations in the music
at least, and we must be grateful for
many exquisite melodies. The well-
known " Brindisi " is deserv
edly popular, a typical flash
of Gallic brilliancy. Ham-
lefs song of mourning for
Ophelia^ in a directly oppo
site vein, is no less worthy
to be cited.

The task of the librettists
was hard. Opera compels
few words, many tableaux
and little action, many
changes from the original
thus being necessary. The
Shakespearian must there
fore be prepared to forgive
much, in a French perversion
of Shakespeare's verse, re
translated into libretto-
English. He may find it
less easy to forgive the close
of the opera, . where the
spectre of the murdered
King appears before the
multitude, and, after incit
ing his son to kill the usurper, and com
mitting the Queen to a nunnery,
vanishes amid "tumultuous applause,"
Hamlet meanwhile being placed on
the throne as the curtain falls and a
festive chorus gives the musical equiva
lent of three rousing cheers.

Such blemishes as this account for
the rare production of the work. But
" opera is opera;" and it does not,
and should not, deter the world~at-
large from enjoying those melodies
which have won their place in the

o 1

world of art through the unequivocable
claims of aesthetic beauty.

THE OPERA

PERA In five acts. Book by Bar-
bier and Carre, based on Shakes
peare's play. Music by Ambroise
Thomas. First production March 9,
1868, at the Paris Academic^ with
Christine Nilsson and Faure. First
London production June 19,
1869,, in Italian. Produced
at the Academy of Music,
New York, April 20,^1872,
with Nilsson, Gary, Brignoli,
Barre and Jamet; in 1882,
with Gerster and Ciappini;
and in 1892, with La Salle
and Marie Van Zandt.
Revived recently by the
Chicago Opera Company
for Ruffo.

PHOTO ERMINI

RUFFO AS HAMLET

CHARACTERS

HAMLET Baritone

CLAUDIUS, King of

Denmark Bass

LAERTES, Polonius*

son Tenor

GHOST of the dead

King Bass

POLONIUS, Chan
cellor Bass

GERTRUDE, Hamlet's mother, Queen

of Denmark Mezzo-Soprano

OPHELIA, daughter of Polo-

nius : . . . Soprano

Lords, Ladies, Officers, Pages,
Peasants, etc.

Scene Elsinore, in Denmark

(In French the "H" in Hamlet is
silent. The Italian name is "Arrileto,"
Ahm-let'-to}.

165

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT I

SCENE I A Room of State in the Palace

KNIGHTS and nobles, Lords and
retainers join in acclaiming the
new Queen upon her wedding to
Claudius^ only two months after the
death of her late husband, the present
King's brother, former occupant of
the throne. The absence of her son,
Hamlet^ from the festival, occasions
comment. After the ceremonies he
enters, in bitter mood, solemnly clothed
in black. His strange mus
ings are interrupted by the
entrance of Ophelia, his
betrothed. She has heard
that Hamlet, disgusted at
the early marriage of his
mother, intends to leave
the kingdom, and asks him
if he has ceased to love her.
The " Nega se puoi la luce"
(Love Duet) is heard.

In this he reassures her,
using in part Shakespeare's
own words:

" Doubt that the stars are fire,
Doubt that the sun doth move,
Doubt truth to be a liar;
But never doubt my love."

He does not succeed, however, in
wholly convincing Ophelia, when they
are interrupted by Laertes, who comes
to discover if Hamlet intends to depart
with him; but Hamlet refuses, so
Laertes confides Ophelia to his care.

SCENE II Esplanade of the Palace.
It is Night

/ TpHE hour of midnight approaches.
JL Hamlet ascends the battlements of
the castle. Earlier in the day Horatio
and Marcellus y two officers of the watch,
have come to him with the strange,
story of a spectral visitant strangely
like his father, the late king. Deeply
moved,, he seeks to find out for himself.

COPY T DUPONT

CALVE AS OPHELIA

166

The clock strikes the hour of midnight,
and the ghost appears. Horatio and
Marcellus withdraw, leaving Hamlet
alone with his singular guest. Hamlet
hears the story of his father's murder,
and the perfidy of the present king,
who is both his uncle and his step
father. The ghost bids him take
revenge, but warns him to leave his
mother's punishment to God.

ACT II

SCENE Garden of the Palace

N order to watch his
uncle more closely, and
at the same time to avoid
suspicious action, Hamlet
decides to feign insanity.
One of the first to suffer
from this is Ophelia. The
Queen finds the girl weeping
and she soon ascertains the
cause. The Queen is greatly
disturbed, and, in a fine
duet with the King, speaks
of a vision that is haunting
her too. A troupe of players
arrives, and Hamlet plans to
present a play before the
King, so nearly in accord
ance with the murder as described by
the spectre as to force the King to
betray himself. By this means he
seeks to Aerify the suspicions he has
formed since seeing the ghost. In this,
he reckons well.

The King and Queen are delighted
at the prince's reviving interest in the
festivities, and they consent to witness
the play. Calling the troupe of actors
about him, he instructs them in the
plot he has conceived. The Prince
then calls for wine and makes merry:
The Brindisi is sung, "O vin discac-
cia la tristezza" (Wine, This Gloom
Dispel).

This exceedingly brilliant number
is deservedly popular: its bright melody

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

and vigorous rhythm are especially
attractive, especially the melody, first
heard as a solo and afterward repeated
by the Chorus.

In the next scene we are brought to
the Palace Hall, on one side of which
has been arranged a stage. The court
assembles and the play opens, Hamlet
sitting at Ophelia s feet, whence he
can observe his uncle. As the play
progresses the guilty man shows agita
tion, and finally in a rage orders the
play to stop and the actors to begone.
Hamlet rushes forward and denounces
the murderer, but the Court believes
him simply a madman. Hamlet has
overplayed his role of simulated in
sanity!

ACT III

SCENE The Queens Apartments

HAMLET chides himself on his
lack of decision, now that he is
indeed convinced of the Kings guilt
yet has so far done nothing. His
thoughts find expression in the well
known " Monologo," or Soliloquy.

In a fine piece of musical declam
ation he sings the well known pas
sage, rather abridged to suit operatic
conventions, or, rather, operatic needs :

"To be or not to be, that is the -question.
To die, to sleep; perchance to dream;
Ah! were it allowed me to sever
The tie that binds me to mortality.
And seek " the undiscovered country
From whose bourne no traveler returns!"
"Ay! To be, or not to be?
To die, to sleep; perchance to dream."

His mother and Ophelia enter and
plead with him to give up these wild
imaginings. He maintains the old
pose, however, half convinced Ophelia
is involved in his mother's scheming.
He treats the girl harshly ("Get thee
to a nunnery, girl"), and as she departs
he sternly rebukes his mother. The
famous scene in which he bids her
look on the two pictures of his uncle
and his father is not omitted. Finally
the ghost appears to Hamlet, but, as
it is invisible to the Queen, she is
terrified at what she simply believes
a further mark of the youth's insanity.

ACT IV

SCENE The Willow-lined Shore of a
Lake

HAMLET'S pretended madness
and his harsh treatment have
brought to Ophelia a madness that is
real enough. By the shore of the lake

FROM THE PAINTING BY CZACKORSKI

HAMLET AND THE ACTORS ACT II
167

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

she plays with a garland of flowers.
This develops the "Ballata d'Ofelia"
(The Mad Scene).

Ophelia turns to the shepherds and
asks them to listen to her song, a
strange, sad melody interrupted by
wild laughter and weeping. Presently
she seems to forget, and she placidly
weaves wreaths of flowers, until the
magical siren's song is heard luring
her to the water's edge, and she
plunges in, singing of Hamlefs vow of
love as she floats to " that undiscovered
country from whose bourne no traveller
returns."

ACT V

SCENE The Churchyard

HAMLET watches the grave dig
gers prepare a last resting place
for Ophelia and he sings his beautiful
song to her memory, the ' ' Come il
romito fior" (As a Lovely Flower).

The tragic pace of the rhythm and
the sombre harmonies, the rich low
tones and grave dignity of this number
have made it deservedly popular.

Presently the cortege arrives bear
ing the coffin of Ophelia. The ghost

also appears, looking reproachfully
at Hamlet. In a tremendous scene,
Hamletfinally rushes upon the King and
stabs him. The ghost solemnly nomi
nates him successor to the throne, con
signs the Queen to a convent, and disap
pears as the crowd accl aim Hamlet King.

VICTOR RECORD

(Sung in Italian)

ACT II
O VIN DISCACCIA LA TRISTEZZA

(Brindisi) (Wine, This Gloom Dispel)
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone and La Scala
Chorus 6266 12-in., 32.00

HAMLET:

wine! the gloom dispel,

That o'er my heart now weighs;

Come grant me thine intoxicating joy;

The careless laugh the mocking jest!

wine! Thou potent sorcerer,

Grant thpu oblivion to my heart!

Yes, life is short, death's near at hand,

We'll laugh and drink while yet we may.

Each, alas, his burthen bears.

Sad thoughts have all; grim thoughts and

sorrows;

But care avaunt, let folly reign,
The only wise man he,
Who wisdom's precepts ne'er obeys!
(The curtain falls on a scene of merriment.)

168

HANSEL AND GRETEL

IN looking at the score of "Han
sel and Gretel," one is reminded
that Lewis Carroll, author of
"Alice in Wonderland/' was a uni
versity professor of mathematics; for
Engelbert Humperdinck was a deeply
learned musician whose scholarship is
manifest on every page of this delight
ful ginger-bread fairy-tale opera. Not
that the learning is ponderously dis
played; quite the contrary. But it is
there if you look for it good, solid,

workman-like counterpoint, melody
and counter-melody flowing along as
smooth as a lowland river, yet rich with
inimitable humor, and at times ex
quisitely beautiful. It is said that
Humperdinck wrote this little master
piece to please his own children, with
out thought of publication; and it
possesses just the naive spontaneity
required to give an air of probability to
the legend; and as a legend, it contains
the materials of delight.

TH E O PE RA

A FAIRY opera in three acts. Text
/\.byAdelheid Wette. Music by
Engelbert Humperdinck. First pro
duced, December 23, 1893, at Weimar.
First American production at Daly's
Theatre, New York, October 8, 189S.
Produced at the Metropolitan 1905,
with Homer, Alten, Abarbanell and
Goritz.

CHARACTERS

PETER, a Broom-maker Baritone

GERTRUDE, his wife. . . Mezzo-Soprano
HANSEL 1 (Hayri-sel) . . Mezzo-Soprano

GRETEL j (Gray'-tel) Soprano

(Their Children)
THE WITCH, who eats children

Mezzo-Soprano

SANDMAN, the Sleep Fairy .... Soprano

DEWMAN, the Dawn Fairy .... Soprano

Children, Angels, Peasants

ACT I

SCENE House of the Broom-Maker

T?ATHER and mother have gone to
JF market, leaving Hansel and Gretel
behind to do their work Hansel mak
ing brooms and Gretel knitting. But,
as children will, they spend their time
playing, and singing the old German
folk-song, "Susie, What is the News?"
with its nonsense about the geese going

barefoot for lack of shoes "Suse, liebe
Suse" (Little Susie!)

The old nursery tune goes placidly
along, the orchestra carrying on a gen
tle accompaniment which proves on
investigation to be an independent
stream of melody all its own, but ingen
iously derived from the principal tune.

Hansel's remarks interrupt but do
not prevent the due recital of the story.
Not keenly interested in the adventures
of the geese, he wants to know when
they are to eat. Very soon, however,
the children grow more boisterous.

In the midst of it their mother re
turns, cross and tired. She has not
made a penny for all her work, and
there is nothing to eat in the house
except a pitcher of milk. She turns
loose on the idle children, and in giving
them a push knocks over the cream-
pitcher. It is the last straw ! She sends
them out into the woods to gather
strawberries, sinks down into a chair
and, praying heaven to send food for
her family, falls asleep. Her husband
Peter returns with a loaded basket; and
while they both have supper it grows
dark. He hopes the children have not
wandered into the Isenstein, the place
bewitched, where an old hag entices
children into her house, bakes them
into gingerbread and eats them.

169

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT II

SCENE In the Woods

THE children have wandered into
the depths of the forest, eating the
berries fast as they pick them. Dark
ness soon comes, and they cling togeth
er in fright. Finally they lie down to
sleep, first singing their little prayer
that the fourteen angels may come and
guard them. A little grey man an
swers. He is the Sandman who pours
sand in their eyes as he sings his air, the
beautiful "Der kleine Sandman bin ich"
(I Am the Sleep Fairy)

ACT III

SCENE Same as Act II
Next morning they are roused by
Dewman y the Dawn Fairy. A mist
has swept up in the night, but as it
disperses it reveals a wonderful ginger
bread house. The hungry Hansel be
gins to nibble at it, and out pops the
Witchy who does her crabbed best to
cast a spell over them. Here follows
the "Hexenritt und Knusperwalzer"
(Witches' Dance).

The hag builds a fire in the stove for
roasting Hansel^ who is put in the barn
and fed on almonds and raisins to fat
ten for the repast. Gretel is ordered to
stoke the fire while the witch rides mer
rily round the room to the mad melody.
Clever little Gretel knows by now this
must be the Isenstein, and pretends she

cannot make the stove work. The
witch pauses to examine, poking her
head in the stove for a better look. The
little girl gives her a good hard push,
knocks her into the oven, and promptly
closes the door. Hansel is released and
they dance around the room to a good
old German waltz-tune, whose melody,
for all its simpleness, really is a double-
melody written with the utmost contra
puntal ease. They prepare to eat the
good things they find in the house.
After the witch is burned, many chil
dren who have been turned into ginger
bread by the witch's magic, come to life
again, and the opera ends with a joyous
dance, and a final hymn of praise to the
good God who takes care of little chil
dren and gives them food to eat.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in German)

ACT I
SUSE, LIEBE SUSE

(Susy, Little Susy) ALMA GLUCK,
Soprano and LOUISE HOMER, Con
tralto 8030 12-in., 32.50

ACT II
DER KLEINE SANDMANN

(I Am the Sleep Fairy) ALMA GLUCK,
Soprano and LOUISE HOMER, Con
tralto 8030 12-in., 2.50

ACT III

HEXENRITT UND KNUSPERWALZER
(Witch's Dance) ALMA GLUCK, Soprano
and LOUISE HOMER, Contralto

87526 10-in., 1.25

PH01O WHITE

THE HOME OF THE WITCH
170

THE CHAMBER OF HEROD

HERODIADE

OPERA in five acts. Words by
Milliet and Gremont, based on
Gustave Flaubert's novelette.
Music by Massenet. First production
December 19, 1881, at the Theatre de
la Monnaie, Brussels. Produced in
Paris 1884, with Jean de Reszke (his
first appearance in tenor r61es), Maurel
and Devries. Revived at the Theatre
de la Gattem 1903 with Calve and
Renaud. First London production
1-904, under the title Salome, with
Calve, Kirkby Lunn, Dalmores and
Renaud, and with the locale changed
to Ethiopia by the British censor's
orders. First American production
at the New Orleans Opera in 1892.
Produced by Oscar Hammerstein at
the Manhattan Opera, New York,
November 8, 1909, with Cavalieri,
Gerville-Reache, Duchene, Dalmores
and Renaud. Revived February, 1914,
by the Philadelphia-Chicago Opera
Company.

CHARACTERS

JOHN THE PROPHET Tenor

HEROD, King of Galilee Baritone

PHANUEL, a young Jew Bass

VITELLIUS, a Roman procon
sul Baritone

THE HIGH PRIEST Baritone

SALOME Soprano

HERODIAS Contralto

Merchants, Soldiers, Priests, Levites,

Seamen, Scribes, Pharisees,

Galileans, Samaritans,

Ethiopians, Nubians,

Arabs, Romans.

The Action takes place in Jerusalem

Time, about jo A. D.
(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Ay~rohd~yadd.}

Al the dawn casts its light upon
the courtyard of the palace of
Herod,, the slaves awaken and unbar the
gates, admitting many traders and mer
chants from all parts, laden with
wares silver and gold, and precious
stones; silks, satins and sables, incense
and perfumes, pistachi from lumea,
amber from Judea, attar of roses from
Araby. In the huckstering that follows,
however, the jovial spirit soon gives

171

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

way to one of contention; the Pharisees
and Sadducees begin fighting. Phanuel,
the seer, chief adviser of Herod the
Tetrarch) Is drawn out by the sounds
of conflict. He bids the people cease
quarreling, and finally they disperse.
Phanuel sadly contemplates the de
parting caravan. How can these
weak tribes, everlastingly falling out
among each other, hope to cast off the
Roman yoke ?

PhanueTs musings are interrupted by
Salome^ who comes from a doorway of
the castle. She tells him she is seeking
John, the Prophet whose new gospel so
profoundly affects the people. In a
lovely air she tells how he has saved
her from the desert as a child, and how
good and kind he is: <C I1 est doux, II
est bon" (He is Kind, He is Good).

Phanuel hearkens to this lovely,
impassioned air with deep sympathy
for the child, already a woman it
seems, who has given herself so com
pletely to one who has been to her
both father and brother. He wonders
if she may possibly know who 'her

COPY'T MISHKIN

DUFRANNE AS PHANUEL

mother is! Just as she goes out,
Herod comes in seeking her. He has
seen her but little, yet his passions are
inflamed by this new beauty who lives
so obscurely in the palace. His mu
sings are stopped by Herodias who
comes in raging and crying out for
vengeance. She demands the head of
John, saying that he has insulted her,
calling her Jezebel. Herod listens im
patiently, and refuses. His former
favorite is amazed, and reminding him
of how she has left husband, child, all,
for his sake, she fights hard for her old
power. As she pleads and scolds, how
ever, John himself arrives, and de
nounces them both with such pro
phetic vigor that they run terrified from
his presence. Salome comes toward
him as soon as they have gone, and she
confesses frankly her great love for the
prophet. He listens to her kindly,
understandingly; but he bids her turn
to God, and dream only of that love
whose fulfilment lies in heaven. Sa
lome is puzzled. She does not quite
make out why she should not love and
be loved on the earth as well as in the
promised Hereafter.

ACT II

SCENE I Herod's Chamber

HEROD THE TETRARCH lies
restless on his couch. Before him
dance the almond-eyed women whose
only concern is in his pleasure and whose
very lives are at the mercy of his up
lifted finger. He bids them begone:
for Salome is not among them. The
fact that he has seen her so little only
adds fuel unto flame; he longs for her
as only a man who has everything
possible may long for that which can
not be had. A serving woman brings
him a cup containing a most remark
able potion, the rays of Aurora, cap
tured from a shrine of gold hid deep
in the woods. Whoever drinks of it
will see the image of the one he most

172

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

loves. Herod yearns to drink deep of
it; but he fears a trap does death
lurk at the bottom of the cup? He
overcomes his fears with an effort, and,
drinking down the stuff., he beholds a
vision, vivid, elusive, tantalising, mad
dening. He sings the "Vision fugi
tive" (Fleeting Vision).

A world of longing lies in the surging
phrases of this melody. Softly it
starts, as a dream from which one fears
to wake; but as the image of Salome
takes reality, the cries of Herod grow
more frantic. In the rushing, upward-
soaring phrases one can see the bony
hands of Herod stretching out with
claw-like grasp for the fair but unat
tainable phantom-Salome.

The vision past, he tosses and turns
restlessly on his couch, unable to sleep.
Seeing him there, Phanuel muses for
a moment on the man who rules a
kingdom and would lose it all for a
woman. Phanuel has come to warn
him that his hold upon the populace
is insecure. But even as he speaks,
from without there is a great cry for
Herod. The world of action speaks.

SCENE II A Public Square In Jeru
salem

A DEPUTATION has come from
jL\ Herod^s allies, swearing alle
giance to the death, and denouncing
the power of Rome. They plan an up
rising, but Herodlas mocks their plans.

warning them that Rome is fully
awake. Even as she speaks, the trump
eters of Vitehius are heard in the dis
tance. Soon the legionaries arrive,
and Herod is among the first to bow
the knee to Vitellius. His allies follow
suit; but there is one who does not,
and one whom the people of Herod
greet with an odd respect. Vitellius
wonders who this man may be, this
man called John. Herod notices
nothing, his eyes are fastened upon
Salome^ following the prophet. Her-
odias sees everything. Though she
watches Herod and Salome she warns
Vitellius of the prophet's growing in
fluence. She has no need, for John,,
with the voice of one inspired, begins
to denounce Rome, fearlessly telling
Vitellius his power is but for a day.
The Canaanites surround this dan
gerously outspoken character, and he
is lost in the crowd as Vitellius^ Her-
odias y and the courtiers enter the pal
ace. Phanuel follows with Herod^ who
comes unwillingly. His eyes are fixed
upon the slight figure of Salome. The
world of action is "abjured and forgot. "

CAUTIN & BERCER

RENAUD AS HEROD

CAUTIN & BERGER

CALVE AS SALOME

173

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT III

SCENE ' I Phanuel' s House

" T JNDER a wide and starry sky,"
\~) Phanuel gazes upon the city of
Jerusalem, which lies at his feet. He
is thinking of John. "Is he man or
god?" he cries to the stars, in the "Air
de Phanuel " (Oh Shining Stars) .

The music here possesses great dig
nity, though it is restless too. Phanuel
is stirred. His cry to the stars is really
a prayer, for power lies within him to
read something of their eternal riddle.
To hear what they may declare, even
now, Herodias enters, in violent agi
tation. She longs for revenge, and
bids Phanuel read from the firmament
if her desire will be granted. He reads
her horoscope, and sees nothing but
blood. To her star, however, one
other is inextricably linked, and it
serves to remind Phanuel that Herodias
has had a child in days gone by. He
speaks of it to the startled woman, and
strange memories stir her, for she
has long since crushed down all thought
of the past. She longs to see this
daughter again, and Phanuel takes her
to the window, from which are seen
the gates of the Temple. As they
gaze, Phanuel points to the figure of
Salome. Herodias is horrified, "My
daughter?" she cries. And then hat
red flaming within her, "Never! She
is my rival!"

SCENE II Inner Court of the Temple

HALF fainting, Salome falls before
the entrance to the temple prison.
She has learned that John has been
captured, and her heart is filled with
a despair that is only increased by the
music of a chorus sung by invisible
choirs within the temple. Here also
comes Herod, considering the chance
of using John as a weapon against the
Romans. He stumbles on Salome,
and all thoughts of politics vanish.

He draws close to the girl, and begins
to speak, with passion. She is at
first too sick at heart to pay attention.
Slowly it dawns upon her that here is
Herod, the all-powerful, making love
to her before the very gates of Johns
prison. She recoils .in horror, pushing
him away as she might a beast. She
tells him she loves another, and Herod,
enraged, swears to kill them both.
She tells the maddened Tetrarch that
she would as soon die as live, and he
leaves her declaring vengeance. And
Salome, trembling, sinks down before
the Veil of the Temple that conceals
the holy of holies.

ACT IV

SCENE I Prison Cell in the Temple

AS John paces up and down in prison,
Salome appears. In his heart the
prophet loves her, and her entrance
seems to him almost the reply of God
to his prayer. They sing a duet of
infinite tenderness, Salome declaring
her wish to die with him, though he
bids her fly for her life. As they con
verse, the Priests come to lead the
prophet to his death, and they order
Salome to the temple. She resists
desperately, but is dragged away.

SCENE II Great Hall in the Temple

SALOME is brought before Herod at
a great Festival in honor of Rome.
Here are gathered Vitellius and his
centurions, and the priests and patri
archs of Jerusalem. Perfumed flower-
girls dance to exotic music women
of Babylon, Phoenicia, and Egypt, and
the fair-haired daughters of Gaul.
Before them Salome is brought in and
led to the steps of the throne. She
begs Herodias to help her, saying,
" If thou wert ever a mother, pity me ! "
The Queen trembles at the word, and
is perhaps about to yield. But from
the rear comes an Executioner with
dripping sword, crying "The Prophet

174

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

is dead!" At the look on the face of
Herodias y Salome realizes who has
caused the death of John. Maddened
with fear and hate she draws a dagger
and rushes upon the ^ueen. "Spare
me!" screams the frightened woman.
"I am thy mother!" A cry of aston
ishment goes up from the assembled
multitude. Salome recoils in horror,
then crying "If thou be my mother,
take back thy blood with my life,"
then drives the dagger into her own
breast. Her dying body falls into the
arms of Herod \ the King.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French)

ACT II
VISION FUGITIVE

(Fleeting Vision) EMILIO DE GOGORZA,

Baritone 6352 12-in., 2.00

REINALD WERRENRATH S Baritone

74610 12-in., 1.50
GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

6081 12-in., 2.00
ACT IV
NE POUVANT RJiPRIMER LES &LANS

DE LA FOI

(The Power of Thy Faith Cannot be Re
pressed) FERNAND ANSSEAU, Tenor

6104 12-in., 2.00

INNER COURT OF THE TEMPLE ACT III

175

VALENTINE: Raoul, they will kill thee; ah, in pity stay! (Act IV)

LES HUGUENOTS

IN "L'Africaine" attention has been
called to Meyerbeer's faculty for
adapting his technique to his sur
roundings. The same faculty enabled
him also to adapt his style to the pe
culiarities of the opera which engaged
his interest. In "Les Huguenots" he
had, as his biographer in Grove's Dic
tionary points out, to picture "the
splendours and the terrors of the six
teenth century its chivalry and fa
naticism, its ferocity and romance,
the brilliance of courts and the chame
leon colors of artificial society, the
sombre fervor of Protestantism." In
this he was so completely successful
as to baffle his Parisian audiences at
the first production, giving them some
thing entirely different from " Robert
le Diable," which had won him so
brilliant a reputation. It is hardly
surprising that the opera was a failure
at first; and it is less surprising that

"Les Huguenots" became eventually
recognized as Meyerbeer's greatest
work.

Meyerbeer's place among musicians
is unique. He developed the opera
through more magnificent lines than
any one had before in this respect
being eclipsed by Wagner alone. His
mastery of the orchestra was consum
mate; we are indebted to him for many
novel effects. As a writer of melodies
he was perhaps less successful, so many
of his themes have magnificent be
ginnings only to tail off into insig
nificance. His harmonies are fre
quently original and arresting and as
frequently commonplace. These di
vergences account for the varied views
of his genius during life. To some he
appeared a veritable triton among
minnows; others of his critics were less
favorable. Not least of the latter was
Wagner, who called him "a miserable

176

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

music-maker," and "a Jew banker to
whom it occurred to compose operas."
Today we know Meyerbeer to be a
unique figure, one who followed his
own laws and left no disciples, whose

works must be judged solely on their
merits; posterity, so judging, has found
much that is worth hearing. And
that is the final test. If there is any
other, we do not know of it.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in five acts. Libretto by
Scribe and Deschamps. Score
by Meyerbeer. First presented at
the Academie in Paris, February 29,
1836. First given in Italy at Teatro
della Pergola^ Florence, December 26,
1841, under the title of Gli Anglicani.
First London production in German
in 1842; in Italian, July 20, 1848. First
New Orleans performance April 29,
1839 (first in America). Some notable
New York productions were in 18S8,
with La Grange, Siedenburg, Tiberini
and Formes; in 1872, with Parepa-
Rpsa, Wachtel and Santley; in 1873,
with Nilsson, Gary, Campanini and
del Puente; in 1892, with Montariol,
de Reszke, Lassalle, Albani Scalchi;
in 1901, with Melba, Nordica, de
Reszke and Plangon; in 1905, with
Sembrich, Caruso, Walker, Plan^on,
Scotti and Journet; in 1907, with
Nordica, Nielsen, Constantino and de
Segurola; at the Manhattan in 1908,
with Pinkert, Russ, Bassi and Ancona;
and at the Metropolitan in 1913, with
Caruso, Destinn,Hempel,Matzen-
auer, Braun and Scotti. Revived by
the Chicago Opera Company 1917.

CHARACTERS

f COUNT OF ST. BRIS (San Bree')
\ COUNT OF NEVERS (Nev-airz')

Catholic noblemen Baritone

RAOUL DE NANGIS (Rah-ool' day

Non-zhee f ), a Protestant

gentleman Tenor

MARCEL (Mahr-cel f ), a Huguenot

soldier and servant to Raoul . Bass

MARGARET OF VALOIS ^

betrothed to Henry IV. . .Soprano
VALENTINE, daughter of St.

Bris Soprano

URBANO (Ur-bah '-noli) , page to

Queen Margaret . . Mezzo-Soprano
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Court,
Pages, Citizens, Soldiers,

Students, etc.

Scene and Period Touraine and Paris;
during the month of August > 1572
(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Layz Yoogn'-noh.)

ACT I

SCENE House of the Count of Nevers

A GAY party of Catholic nobles is
gathered in the magnificent salon
of the Count 0/ Nevers. The Count
seems preoccupied; his guests rally
him, and he tells them that he expects
another guest, Raoul,, son of the Count
of Nangis. "A Huguenot!" they ex
claim. The Count shrugs his shoulders.
Everybody present knows that Mar
garet of Valois is eager to reconcile
Catholic and Protestant, and that
those who serve the King's betrothed
are likely to win power and influence,
Raoul arrives. He is received with
ironical politeness, but he is far too
frank and open by nature to be dis
turbed by frigid courtesy. Nevers
toasts the ladies, proposing that each
tell over some adventure with the fair
sex. Raoul as the latest arrival, is
called upon first, and he relates his
rescue of an unknown beauty from
some drunken revellers that very

177

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

morning. He does not know her, but
is inflamed by her beauty.

A short recitative leads to "Piu
bianca Romanza" (Fairer Than the
Lily) 5 a melody which has long been
famous among music-lovers. Its long-
drawn cadences and rich vocal orna
mentation never fail to please admirers
of Italian Opera:

The applause which greets this ro
mantic recital is interrupted by Marc el >
an old servant of RaouL The rugged
old Protestant makes no secret of his
displeasure at sight of the young man
in such company. In deep distrust,
he sings the Lutheran choral, "A
Mighty Fortress is our God," which
already has played a prominent part
in the Overture, and which runs
through the work as a crude sort of
leit-motiv. The guests accept Raoufs
apologies for his behavior, and invite
the old fellow to sing. He accepts,
and in sturdy defiance he trolls out a
vigorous Huguenot ditty against the

"snares of Rome" and the wiles of
woman. "You, sirs, should know it
well," he says. "It was our battle-
song: you heard it at Rochelle." And
with this gracious reminder of a des
perate battle he sings: "Piff! Paff!"
(Marcel's Air). It is almost a buffo
song, in a vigorous scherzo-rhythm,
its warlike quality at variance with
the old man's sophisticated Parisian
surroundings.

This achievement is received with
applause in which there is a good deal
of constraint; but the matter leaves the
minds of the guests when a servant
announces that a veiled lady wishes to
speak to Nevers y who retires to an ad
joining room, not without banter from
his friends. Much curiosity is felt as
to the lady, and Raoul himself is one
of those who do not disdain to peep
behind a curtain. It proves to be the
fair one whom that morning he had
rescued from ruffians. Instantly the
young man's interest in her takes an
opposite turn. The woman he may
love is not likely to visit the somewhat
unsavory Count of Nevers behind a
sheltering veil.

COPY T DUPONT

PLANQON AS ST. BRIS

COPY'T DUPONT

HOMER AS THE PAGE

COPY'T MISHKIN

CARUSO AS RAOUL

178

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Yet another diversion occurs when
a young page enters, and in a lovely
air known as the "Page Song," an
nounces a message for one of the
cavaliers. It proves to be for the
highly puzzled Raoul. He has no idea
who can have sent it, especially as it
bears the startling request that he will
go blindfold in a carriage wherever his
guide will take him. He gallantly ac
cepts the strange assignment, wonder
ing whither it may lead. He wonders
also at the singular change which
comes over the guests, who suddenly
begin to treat him with extraordinary
respect. He is not aware that the seal
on the letter is that of Margaret of
Valois, but there are others present
who are not so ignorant.

ACT II

SCENE Castle and Gardens of
Chenonceaux

MARGARET OF VALOIS sits on
a kind of throne, surrounded by
her maids of honor, rejoicing in the
sunshine and the open meads of
Touraine after the stress of life at
court: "O, vago suol della Turenna"
(Fair Land of Touraine), she sings.
This is a rich and lovely melody, a
moment of welcome calm before the
storms so soon to break.

Among the ladies of the court is
Valentine, daughter of the Count of
St. rtS) who is rejoicing in the fact
that her visit to the Count of Nevers
has resulted in breaking their engage
ment to marry. The Queen rejoices
too, having other plans for the girl.
The ladies retire as Raoul appears, and
when the bandage is withdrawn from
his eyes he beholds none but Margaret
of Valois. He offers her his sword and
his service with such gallantry that she
is half tempted to make love to him
herself, but she finally tells him of her
desire that he shall wed Valentine.

Possibly aware of the Queen's ambition
to reconcile the Catholics and the
Protestants by this union, he consents.
The nobles of the Court are summoned,
including those whom he has left but
a short while since. When they ap
pear, they and Raoul gather round the
Queen and solemnly swear they will
bury their differences with the union
of Raoul and Valentine whom Raoul^
be it remembered, has not yet seen.
The Count of St. Bris now leads in his
daughter, and Raoufis astonished and
horrified to discover her to be the lady
who has that morning visited the Count
of Nevers under such equivocal cir
cumstances. "Perfidy! Treachery!"
he cries. "I her husband? Never,
never 1"^

A terrible scene follows. The Catho
lics are furious, and Valentine is over
come with shame. Margaret does her
best to smooth matters over, but her
plan to unite Catholic and Protestant
is ruined forever. Marcel^ the crusty
old soldier-servant, alone is pleased,
and as the curtain falls, the Lutheran
hymn rises from the orchestra with
ominous power.

ACT III

SCENE A Square in Paris

NEAR the entrance to a chapel on
the Seine banks, a group of Cath
olic students has gathered about the
doors of an inn; and at another inn
across the way some Huguenot sol
diers are drinking and playing dice.
All manner of people are passing to
and fro, their variegated costumes
adding color to the scene in the bright
sunlight. The soldiers sing the lively
"Coro di Soldati" (Soldiers' Chorus
Rat-a-plan) in which the chorus main
tains a drum-like "rat-a-plan, rat-a-
plan, rat-a-plan-plan-plan " against a
fine sustained melody, with singularly
brilliant effect.

179

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

This is interrupted by the arrival of
a bridal procession. Valentine and the
Count of Nevers are to be married.
Marcel appears with a letter from
Raoul to St. Bris, who is not to be
disturbed, being in the church. Pres
ently the wedding is over, and the
Count of^ Nevers appears alone, Valen
tine having desired to spend the day
in prayer before surrendering herself
to a man she cannot love. After the
Count of Nevers has passed on, Marcel
presents his note to St. Bris. It proves
to be a challenge. The nobles then
enter the chapel.

Gradually the long day closes, but
it is night when Valentine comes from
the church. She is m deadly terror,
earnestly seeking Marcel. During her
watch in the chapel she has heard the
nobles plotting to slay Raoul. Here fol
lows the " Nell a notte lo sol qui veglio "
(Here By Night Alone I Wander).

In this lovely number. Valentine not
only warns Marcel of the plot to slay
Raoul, but shows plainly how deeply

she loves the youth, despite his recent
action. Marcel hurriedly gathers
friends and proceeds to the rescue.
The two parties prove to be evenly
matched, and a serious fray is threat
ened. It is prevented by the arrival
of Margaret of Valois, who appears
just in time. She also tells Raoul that
he has deeply wronged Valentine,, the

firl having visited Nevers merely to
reak off her engagement. Raoul is
overcome with remorse. Too late!
For already, as he gazes toward the
river, a boat approaches decorated
with lanterns, and gay with music.
Count of Nevers and his bride enter
the vessel and are borne away, while
Raoul overcome with grief, seeks sup
port in Marcel's arms.

ACT IV

SCENE A Room in Nevers* Castle

'TpHOUGH married to Count of

JL Nevers, Valentine can think of

none but RaouL Brought on the barge

THE FINAL TRAGEDY
180

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

to Nevers' palace, we find her brooding
over her sorrows, for which even
prayer can offer no comfort, "for
while I pray I do but love him more."
Suddenly Raoul himself appears, hav
ing entered the palace at risk of his
life. She warns him, but he insists on
remaining, and he has only time to
hide behind the tapestry before St.
Brisy Nevers , and others of the Catho
lic leaders arrive. Thus the young
Protestant overhears the whole ghastly
plot for the massacre of the Huguenots.
Among them all, Nevers alone objects
to the proposal, and, refusing to be
come an assassin, he breaks his sword
and is led away by the guards. The
conference closes with the famous
"Benediction of the Swords/'

The number begins with the pas
sage sung by St. Bris^ the father of
Valentine ', as he outlines his murderous
schemes against various enemies:

This is followed by the noble strain
of the Benediction, a broad flowing
melody of impressive character:

.,-u.n* .. -. .<-, .. --*. i ,.

^^Ef J " "

D'un M - crn zel IV do . re
On ffeav'u'tjutt eautt re-ly uuf.

e - la - vie scat - di I'll - in
impiotu rate fa-fy. tny,

Then comes a furious and sweeping
chorus of priests and lords.

After the nobles have departed,
Raoul slowly lifts the tapestry, looks
cautiously about him, then runs swiftly
to the door, hoping for time to warn
his friends. On his way, however, he
meets Valentine ', who stops him. She
cannot let him go when it may mean
the death of her own father. But she
forgets even this as love overcomes
her, and he, too, is enraptured at dis
covering that her heart is his. Valen
tine s avowal of love is one of the finest
of Meyerbeer's melodies, the "Dillo
ancor" (Speak Those Words Again).

Scarcely has the last cadence of this

lovely number died away than the
great bell of St. Germain sounds the
preliminary signal for the slaughter,
and Raoul makes a fresh effort to go
to the aid of his people. Valentine
clings to him, but he rushes to the
window and shows her that the mas
sacre has already begun. He tears
himself from her arms and leaps
through the window, while she falls
fainting.

In American productions, because of
the great length of Meyerbeer's work,
the opera usually ends with the shoot
ing of Raoul by the mob as he leaps
from the window; but in the original
version a fifth act occurs, in which
Nevers is killed, and Valentine^ re
nouncing her faith is united to Raoul
by Marcel. St. Bris and his party
enter the street, and, not recognizing
Valentine^ fire upon the three and kill
them. The curtain falls as St. Bris
discovers that he has murdered his
own daughter.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian except as noted)

ACT I
PIU BIANCA ROMANZA

(Fairer Than the Lily) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor 6005 12-in., 32.00

RAOUL:

Fairer far e'en than fairest lily,

Than spring morn more pure and more

lovely and bright,
An angel of Heaven born beauty
Burst upon my ravish'd sight.
Sweetly she smiled as I stood by her side,
Sighing the love which e'en her tongue to

speak denied;

And in her eyes the love-light gleamed,
Bidding me hope her love to gain.

PIFF! PAFF!

(Marcel's Air) MARCEL JOURNET, Bass
In French 6173 12-in., 2.00

MARCEL:

Old Rome and her revelries,
Her pride and her lust, boys,
The monks and their devilries,
We'll grind them to dust, boys!

181

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Deliver to fire and sword
Their temples of Hell,
Till of the black demons
None live to tell!
Woe to all defilers fair!
I ne'er heed their shrieking
Woe to the Delilah's fair,
Who men's souls are seeking!

Refrain
Piff, paff, piff; slay them all,

Piff, paff, piff, ev'ry soul!
Piff, paff, piff; paff; piff; paff, piff, paff!
All vainly for aid or for mercy they call;
No pity for them ! No they die slay all!
No, no, no, no, no, no, no; slay all!

ACT IV

BENEDICTION OF THE SWORDS
MARCEL JOURNET, Bass, and Opera
Chorus 6173 12-in., 2.00

BLUE LABEL RECORD

fCoro di Soldati (Soldiers* Chorus) ............ . . Metropolitan Opera Chorus}

I Magic Flute~0 his ......................... Metropolitan Opera Chorus!

in *
iU " m ''

COPY'T MISHKIN

SCOTTI AS NEVERS

182

COPY'T WHITE

IRIS FATHER CURSES HER

IRIS

"IGHT is the language of the eternal
ones/* cries Illica the librettist,
in his foreword. "Hear it!" The
work opens with a solemn orchestral
picture of the dawn. Softly, almost
inaudibly, the basses are answered by
mellifluous general harmonies leading
up to a climax as the sun appears to
claim dominion over the earth in the
choral proclamation, "I am! I am life!
I am Beauty Infinite !" And an echo
of this trembles throughout the
whole of the work.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Luigi Illica; music by Pietro
Mascagni. First production, Cos-

tanzi Theatre, Rome, November
22, 1898. Revised by the composer
and produced at La Scala, Milan,
January, 1899. First American pro
duction, Philadelphia, October 14,
1902, during the tour of Mascagni's
own company. Two days later New
York heard the same organization give
the opera, but the production by the
Metropolitan Opera Company did not
occur until 1908, with a cast including
Caruso, Eames, Scotti and Journet.
Revived April 3, 1915, with Bori,
Scotti and Botta in the principal roles.

CHARACTERS

CIECO, the blind man (Tchay f -

koh] Bass

IRIS, his daughter (Ee-reece) . . .Soprano

183

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

OSAKA (Oh-sah-kati) Tenor

KYOTO., a takiomati (Kyoh-toh)

Baritone

Ragpickers, Shopkeepers,
Geishas, Mousme, Laundry
Girls, Citizens, Strolling
Players

ACT I

SCENE The Home of Iris near the City

BENEATH the shadow of Fujiyama,
the Wistaria mountain, to which
all Japanese pay that respect which is
the truest reverence, Iris plays with
her dolls among the flowers. Here
this lovely Japanese girl with the Greek
name, literally "Rainbow," lives with
her father // Cieco. She adores him.
Though she is woman grown, we find
her, after the manner of her people,
delighting in the sun, the semblances
of living children and the exquisitely
tender flowers. As the dawn wins,
Iris turns the arms of her doll upward
in salutation to the sun. She is noted
by Osaka, dissolute nobleman, who
has become enamoured wi th her beauty.
He plots with 'Kyoto, a pander, how
he may obtain her. They devise a
doll show, intending to steal her away
as she watches. "Mousmfs" young
girls, come to the river, and Iris sings
her joyous song, "In pure stille" (Life
is Gaily Passing).

While she thus greets the flowers
in the garden, the puppet show arrives.
She is interested, and joins the group
of girls who surround it. She follows
closely the serenade, sung by Osaka
for one of the puppets "Apri la tua
finestra" (Open Thy Lattice Window).

As she listens to the song, three
geisha girls or professional entertainers,
come dancing toward her, their skirts
flying higher and higher until, beneath
their cover, Iris is carried off. Osaka
leaves money to pay the blind old
father, thereby, according to Japanese

custom, leading him to believe the
girl has gone voluntarily to the Yosht-
wara. So to that singular quarter of
the ancient Japanese city, the incensed
old man follows her, securing two
peddlers to help.

ACT II

SCENE Interior of a House in
Yoshiwara

THE drugged Iris awakens be
wildered, half believing, from her
luxurious surroundings, that she must
be dead; but dead she cannot be, for
death brings knowledge and Paradise
joy, while Iris is weeping. Kyoto brings
in Osaka, who does not quibble over the
high price set upon her by Kyoto, but
sends for adornment. Osaka praises
her eyes, her form, her hair, her loveli
ness. She listens, thinking him to be
the godly offspring of Amaterasu, the
sun-goddess. But he says his name is
Pleasure, and she shrinks away, a
priest having told her that pleasure and
death are one. She tells Osaka of a
certain vision of these things which
came to her as a child in the Temple:
this is the "Un di al tempio" (One Day
at the Temple). The nobleman pro
ceeds, but she is utterly innocent, and
when at last he seizes her passionately,
she weeps and asks for her father.
Half weary, half afraid, Osaka gives
her up; but Kyoto clothes her in richer
robes, magnificent kimono and obi,
placing her on the caged balcony of the
Yoshiwara so that her beauty is
visible to the pleasure-seeking passers-
by in the street. Once more Osaka
returns, to plead vainly for her love.
"Iris!" It is the cry of her blind
father, and wild with joy, she rushes
to the edge of the balcony. But he
gathers a handful of mud from the
street throwing it in the direction of
her voice. "There! In your face!
In your forehead! In your mouth!
In your eyes! Fango!" The girl is

184

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

first dismayed, then alarmed In
terror she rushes along a passage and
casts herself from a window, falling
into the open drain beneath.

ACT III

SCENE A Waste Space outside
the City

FROM the bitter world of reality
we pass to the realms of allegory
and symbolism. By the light of the
waning moon, just before the dawn,
ragpickers are searching in the filth
of the sewer. A ray of light from
Fujiyama, the Wistaria mountain,
gleams " on something white in the
tainted stream. Once more it flashes,
and the ragpickers pull forth the body
of Iris. They begin to strip the body
of its finery but she moves, and they
flee in terror. She gazes dreamily
about her while voices from the in
visible tell her of the world and fate.

Osaka's baffled desire; Kyoto's slavery
to pleasure; her father's dependence
upon his child, such is life! Such is
fate! Death comes softly as the girl
hearkens. The sky turns rosy, and
brings remembrance; she stretches out
her arms to the sun with whose growing
light a field of blossoms spreads about
her. Into the soft depths of the flowers
her body sinks as once more the song
of the sun rises to blazing triumph, as
in the beginning. "I am! lamlife!
I am Beauty Infinite I"

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)
IN PURE STILLE

(Life is Gaily Passing) LUCREZIA BORI,
Soprano 545 10-in., $1.50

APRI LA TUA FINESTRA

(Open Thy Lattice Window) GIOVANNI
MARTINELLI, Tenor 737 10-in., 1.50
BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor

646 10-in.,. 1.50

COPY T WHITE

IRIS IN HER GARDEN (MME. BORl)

185

JEWELS OF THE MADONNA

EiRETTO by C. Zangarini and
E. Golisciani; music by Ermanno
Wolf-Ferrari. First performed
as Der Schmuck der Madonna at the
Kurfuersten Oper, Berlin, December
23 3 1911. First American production
at the Auditorium Chicago, January
16, 1912. First New York performance
March 5, 1912. Later included in the
repertoire of the Century Opera Com
pany.

CHARACTERS
GENNARO, in love with

Maliella (Jen-nati-roh\ Tenor

MALIELLA, in love with

Rafaele (Mah-lee-el'-laK)^ Soprano
RAFAELE, leader of the Cam-

orrists (Rah-f ay-el' ~leh) . . Baritone

CARMELA (K.ar-may-laJi) Soprano

BIASO (Byas-sd) Tenor

CICCILLO (Tchee-chee-loK) Tenor

STELLA Soprano

CONCETTA Soprano

SERENA Soprano

GRAZIA Dancer

Rocco Bass

Vendors, Monks, People of
the Streets, etc.

Time and Place: The Scene is laid in
Naples , at the Present Time

(The original Italian name of the
opera is "I Giojelli della Madonna,"
pronounced Ee Joh-yel'-lee del-lah Mah-
don-nah.)

TH E O PERA

'^TAPLES, that city of sunshine and
JL Al loveliness under the flaming shad
ow of Vesuvius, has among many for
tunate inhabitants its own share of the
less fortunate, those who live in
squalor and in misery yet perpetually
long for better things. As is usual with
such people, wrongdoing and super
stition walk hand in hand. There are
many too, whose desperate courage
exceeds their wisdom. In surroundings
of this character, secret societies abun
dantly flourish. The Camorristi are
perhaps the wildest of them all. And
of the Camorrista, few are bolder,
more attractive to the eye of a pretty
girl than Rafaele. Small wonder that
Maliella finds him more to her
romantic liking than her foster-
brother, Gennaro > in whom honesty is
united with simplicity to the general
effect of dullness. Rafaele has boasted
that he will stop at nothing to prove
his love for Maliella. He will even
steal for her the jewels which deck the
image of the Virgin! Annoyed by

Gennaro' s attentions, the girl taunts
him with his lack of enterprise, and
she repeats the boast of Rafaele. To
Gennaro the taunt is a challenge.
After a struggle with his conscience
the young man summons up courage
and in the dead of night he enters the
church, seizes the jewels and lays them
at Maliella s feet. At first she is
fascinated; but she soon realizes the
enormity of the sacrilege. In terror
she flies to Rafaele at the inn of the
Camorristi. But Rafaele^ too, is shocked.
He is not only shocked but jealous,
and he spurns her, avowing she has
sold herself for the jewels. So strangely
are passion and superstition interwoven
in the girl's mind that she believes
herself accursed. In a moment of mad
ness she returns the jewels to Gennaro
and drowns herself. The unlucky
youth, having naught else to live for,
makes what atonement is possible, by
restoring the jewels to the altar, pray
ing for mercy, and stabbing himself
with a dagger. As the outraged pop-

186

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ulace burst into the chapel to claim their
vengeance they find his dead body
lying at the feet of the Madonna.

The two intermezzi are delightful
examples of the music Wolf-Ferrari
has written for this rather sordid
story. One is the waltz intermezzo
between the second and third acts, a
study in chromatics. The violins with
their chatterings high in the treble are
the voice of irresponsible gaiety, and
in fine contrast is the lovely song of
the 'cellos. The other, chiefly for
harp, flute and strings, is played be
fore Act II. The Serenade occurs in
the second act. The scene is laid in

the garden of Maliellas house. It is
evening, and from the distance are
heard the strains of an old Neapolitan
folk ballad, sung by a chorus afloat on
the bay. This is succeeded by the
tinkling of mandolins and guitars
behind the wall in Maliellas garden.
It is here that Rafaele and his com
panions come, and the reckless
camorrist sings his Serenade, begin
ning "Apri la bella la fenestrella.

THE VICTOR RECORD

RAFAELE'S SERENADE

PASQUALE AMATO, Baritone with
METROPOLITAN OPERA CHORUS In
Italian 539 10-in. 5 1.50

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

/Intermezzo (Second Entr'acte) ....................... .... Vessellas

I Lucia Sextette (Donizetti] ............................... Vessel/as

/Intermezzo (Second Entr'acte) .................. Victor Concert Orchestral

I Merry Wives oj Windsor Overture (Nicolai] ....... Victor Symphony Orchestral

/Intermezzo 1 (First Entr'acte) ........................ Victor Orchestra\-ir*,Q*

1 Danse Maca&re (Saint-Saens, Op. 40) .............. Vessels Italian Band}^^ 1

-i 9
1Z ~ m< >

19
1Z " m '

SCENE FROM JEWELS OF THE MADONTNA

187

LE JONGLEUR DE NOTRE

DAME

(THE JUGGLER OF NOTRE DAME)

THIS opera is said to owe its exist
ence to the fact that a certain
concierge, or hall porter, in Paris
fell ill and took a "day off"; thereby
obliging M. Massenet to collect his own
mail. Otherwise, thelibretto wouldhave
gone the way of hundreds of libretti
continually showered upon the suc
cessful composer. It is a unique work,
an experiment. It is written for men's
voices only. Mr. Henry T. Finck sug
gests that Massenet was piqued be

cause his critics complained of the long
line of Massenet's heroines Tha'is,
Salome, Manon and wished to show
he could write an opera omitting the
"fair sex." If so, there is irony in the
fact that Mr. Hammerstein assigned
the role of Jean to Mary Garden at the
Manhattan production. Incidentally,
the work reveals Massenet's extraordi
nary technical skill, reminding one that
for many years he was professor of com
position at the Paris Conservatoire.

TH E OPE RA

E; JONGLEUR DE NOTRE
DAME, miracle play in three acts,
text by Maurice Lena, from a mediaeval
miracle play. Etui de Nacre, by Anatol
France. Music by Jules Massenet. First
production at Monte Carlo, February
18, 1902,withRenaud. First Paris pro
duction May, 1904, and afterward given
in all the principal cities of Europe. First
American production, Manhattan
Opera, New York, November 27, 1908,
with Garden, Renaud and Dufranne.

CHARACTERS

JEAN (Zhahri), a Juggler Tenor

BONIFACE, (Boh-nee-fass) cook

of the Abbey Baritone

PRIOR OF THE MONASTERY Bass

Angels, Virgin, Monks, Cavaliers,
Citizens

Time and Place: Cluny, near Paris; Six
teenth Century.

(The name of the opera is pronounced
Luh Zhong-glur duh Noh-tr Dahni) .

ACT I

IT is May Day in Cluny, and a merry
crowd is gathered before the gates
of the monastery, "laughing and yell
ing, buying and selling," drinking a
little too, and at times getting into a
fight. Jean, "King of the Jugglers,"
haggard and worn from illness, and
weak from lack of food, begs leave to
entertain them. They scoff at his
sorry appearance, but insist on hearing
"The Hallelujah of Wine," a sacrileg
ious mock-litany for which the juggler
noted. He "obliges," regretting

that his stomach is pagan while he can
boast of a Christian heart. At the
height of the performance, the Prior of
the monastery appears and disperses
the crowd in wrath. After threatening
Jean with the torments of Hell, he sug
gests that the mountebank enter the
monastery. Jean dislikes to give up
his freedom, but the sight of Boniface,
leading home a mule heavily laden with

food things destined for the table of the
rothers, is too much and he is directly

188

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPR A

converted. He enters the monastery
with the Prior and Boniface, con
triving to smuggle in with him the
soiled fineries and the battered tools of
his extraordinary trade.

ACT II

E?E in the Abbey agrees with him
physically; but Jean's perpetual
quips and quirks and his gross delight
in the things of the table, scandalize
even while they amuse his fellow-monks.
He strives to sing with the choir, re
hearsing a Latin hymn, but the foreign
language puzzles him. What should a
poor juggler know of that chosen lan
guage of the saints of God ? He has no
sense of art, neither in painting nor
sculpture, and when the monkish pro
fessors of these occupations try to teach
him they quarrel among themselves as
to which is the greatest of the arts, and
the good Prior is obliged to convey
them off into the chapel to study art in
a spirit of prayer and contemplation.
Poor Jean, only too conscious of his
lack of all gifts but the despised art of
jugglery, is grieved by his ignorance;
and to console him the good cook Boni
face tells him that anything done well
is good in the sight of the Lord. To con
vince him Boniface sings the "Legende
de la Sauge" (Legend of the Sagebrush).
The eyes of the old monk soften as he
tells the quaint story of the rose that
refused to shelter the little child Jesus
from the wrath of Herod for fear of
staining its lovely petals, and the hum
ble sage-flower that undertook the task
so cheerfully and became blessed among
flowers. Jean listens open-mouthed.
Is it possible that even the low gift of
the juggler may be acceptable in the
eyes of the Blessed Virgin ?

ACT III

IN the dimlit chapel, Jean appears in
his juggler's costume before the pic
ture of the Virgin. To the horror of the

Prior and his monks, he begins to per
form his tricks and sing his villainous
songs in the holy place. Boniface,
noting the feverish intensity of earnest
ness in the juggler's manner, prevents
interruption. Soon, however, Jean
breaks into a wild dance. The Prior
and his monks are outraged, and just as
Jean collapses in prayer before the pic
ture of the Virgin above the altar, the
monks strive to rush upon him. But
Boniface points to a strange glow of
light upon the face of the Virgin, who
slowly stretches forth her hands in ben
ediction. "A miracle!" cries Boniface,
and the others echo his cry and sink to
their knees. They beg the wondering
Jean to intercede for them; but he can
scarcely understand. Now the chapel
becomes illuminated with a mystic
glow, and the face of Jean,t\i& humble
juggler, is transfigured. The monks
pray for the passing of a soul, and from
above comes the choiring of the angels
chanting the Kyrie eleison. "At last,"
cries the dying juggler; "at last I can
understand Latin!"

THE VICTOR RECORD

LEGENDE DE LA SAUGE

(Legend of the Sagebrush) MARCEL
JOURNET, Bass In French

6180 12-in., 32.00

FRENCH POSTER

DEATH OF THE JUGGLER

189

GALLI-CURCI

AS LAKME

LAKME

OF the French composers of the
late nineteenth century, Leo
Delibes was one of the most
charming. He was born, 1836, at St,
Germain du Val, and he died in Paris,
where he lived most of his life, in 1891.
He came beneath Wagnerian influence,
and the shifting tonalities, brilliant or
chestrations, married to vivid rhythm
and charming melodies, which" consti-
tute his best gifts, reveal plainly
his susceptibilities in this direction.
Charm he possessed aplenty; but

dramatic power seemed in great meas
ure denied him; hence his best work
is found in his admirable ballets,
"Sylvia," "Naila," "Coppelia." These
survive, while his operas, all save
"Lakme," are dead. "Lakme' ' survives
by its melodies; the plot is unconvinc
ing, and it obviously is indebted to
"L'Africaine" for its climax. Yet the
strangely exotic beauty of the music,
during its really lyric moments, never
is merely theatrical and never seems
to lose Its effect.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in three acts. Book by
Goudinet and Gille, taken from
the story, Le Mariage de Loti.
Music by Leo Delibes (Deh-leeb f ).
First production Paris, April 1, 1883,
First London production at the Gaiety
Theatre, June 6, 1885. First Ameri
can performance in 1883, by the Emma
Abbot Opera Company, a version
that can hardly be taken seriously.
First adequate production March 1,
1886, at the Academy of Music, by the
American Opera Company, ^ under
Theodore Thomas, with Pauline L'-
Allemand in the title role. Produced
at the Metropolitan Opera House,
April 2, 1890, with Patti; and again on
April 22, 1892, with Marie van Zandt
and de Reszke. Revived in 1906 for
Sembrich; in 1910 by the Chicago Op
era Company, for Tetrazzini; in 1916
at the Metropolitan, with Barrientos,
Martinelli and de Luca; and in 1917,
at Chicago for Galli-Curci.

CHARACTERS

) officers of the

NILAKANTHA (Nee-la-kun-thaK)

a Brahman priest ............. Bass

HADJI (Hud-jee), a Hindoo slave Tenor
LAKME (Lak-may), daughter of

Nilakantha Soprano

Hindoos, English Officers and Ladies,

Sailors, Bayaderes, Chinamen, etc.

Scene and Period: India at the
Present Time

ACT I

SCENE A Garden in India

IN a flower-decked garden of India
there stands a small temple, half
concealed by the trees. The figure of
the Lotus is sculptured over the door,
and nearby is a statue of Ganesa, the
God of Wisdom, a creature with a hu
man body and the head of an elephant.
Behind the temple, the light of dawn
reveals a small river, forming a barrier
on one side of the garden, which is en
closed otherwise In a light fence of bam
boo. Near this sacred spot lives Nila-
kantha, its Brahman guardian. Before
the shrine are gathered many Hindoo
worshippers, and Nilakantha exhorts
them to have courage and await the
day when the English invaders shall be
driven from their land. Even as he
speaks, the voice of a maiden is heard
in prayer, "O Durga! O Shiva! Mighty

191

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Ganesa, created by Brahma!" it runs,
and the worshippers echo it devoutly.
Lakme is praying, the daughter v{ Nila
kantha, so lovely she is regarded, even
by her father, with a sort of dread.
To-day Nilakantha has to go on a jour
ney, and he leaves Lakme in charge of
her attendants,warning them that if any
foreigner dares trespass within the holy
garden, his life is forfeit.

Lakme and her attendant sing a
lovely greeting to the flowers the jas
mine and roses which cluster about
the temple, before leaving in the little
boat that has been kept among the
reeds by the river. As they float away
the sounds of light laughter and con
versation are heard. A party of Eng
lish officers and ladies are sight-seeing
and they have wandered hither.
Against the advice of an officer, Fred
eric^ they break down the frail fence
and make a way into the garden.
Gerald, another officer, is charmed by
the spot, and he is disposed to belittle
the danger of which his friend is more
conscious. "These trees and lovely
flowers can hide no harm," avows one
of the girls, gathering a white blossom.
"Those are daturas" answers Frederic,
"they are dazzlingly beautiful and
deadly poisonous!" Frederic tells
them of Nilakantha and his daughter,
Lakme, and the romantic Gerald is
much interested despite the presence
of his fiance, Ellen, daughter of the
English Governor. Presently they come
on some jewels left by Lakme, and
decide to leave a spot where they
are so obviously trespassing. Frederic,
however, insists on sketching the de
sign of the jewels, which has caught his
fancy. ^Left alone, he contemplates
them with pleasure in the "Fantasie
aux divins mensonges" (Idle Fancies).
It is a charming melody, its inter] ectu-
ral phrases highly typical of a poet's
wayward fancy.

Despite his happiness, he Is subtly

aware of danger. He decides to leave
without completing the sketch, and he
is about to depart when he hears the
voice of Lakme from the approaching
boat. He conceals himself, and watches
her and her attendants place votive
blossoms at the foot of the image of
Ganesa. Her attendants go into the
stream to bathe, but Lakme hesitates
conscious of a strange sense of rapture,
singing the "Pourquoi dans les grands
bois" (Why Love I Thus to Stray?).

Suddenly she beholds Gerald. She
knows he is one of the race she is sworn
to hate, but she cannot dislike this
good-looking stranger. She knows
perfectly well that a word from her
would bring guards from the temple,
but she is powerless to utter the sum
mons that would mean instant death
to the youth, so frankly charmed at her
presence. Dismayed, she bids him be
gone. His answer is a rhapsody of love,
which, far from arousing fury, affects
her deeply. But she remembers that
at any moment her father may return.
Finally she does get rid of Gerald, just
as Nilakantha comes back, to find the
fence broken where the strangers have
entered. He declares, before the ter
rified Lakme, the intruder must die.

ACT II

SCENE A Street in an Indian City

IN the bazaar, the native shopping
district, of an Indian town may be
discovered people of many races, of all
ages and both sexes, official and non-
official, rich, poor, and those indiffer
ently blessed with wealth. In the
crowd, Nilakantha and Lakme are free
to mingle with little chance of recog
nition by any but their friends. The
Brahman knows that in the bazaar to
day are the same English people who
wandered into his grounds so recently,
and he is determined to single out the
man who has dared address himself to
Lakme. It does not occur to the man,

192

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

a high-caste Brahmin, of the old school,
that she herself may not desire ven
geance upon the intruder. He con
ceives that if the stranger should see
Lakme or hear the priestess's voice he
could not fail to betray himself. He
orders her, therefore, to sing the legend
of the Pariah's daughter, the well-
known "Ou va la jeune Hindoue" or
"Bell Song/'.

The music of this is in one sense that
of a coloratura air certainly it makes
most exacting demands upon the voice;
but its peculiar oriental quality, the use
of bells, the appropriateness of the con
text to the situation, give it an emo
tional quality far beyond that of most
such arias. The classical story of the
Indian maid beloved by a god is so
much like Lakme 's own that the effect
is strangely moving.

A crowd gathers, but Gerald is not
among those present. The disappointed
Nilakantha thereupon orders her to
sing it a second time; and scarcely has
she begun when Gerald^ attracted by
her singing, draws near and betrays
himself by his expression. Nilakantha
now is convinced that the gods have
made his daughter the divine instru
ment of the officer's doom. He ac
cordingly contrives to have him cut off
from his friends. But Lakme manages
to warn him, and bids him flee. Gerald
will not go he feels this to be un
worthy of his rank as an officer. She
pleads in vain, for they are surrounded,
and Nilakantha himself rushes up,
drives a knife into the soldier, and
makes his escape. Lakme is in despair,
but soon finds that, although her lover
who lies at her feet, has swooned away,
he is not mortally hurt.

She has him taken to a hut in the
forest where she may nurse him back
to safety and perhaps win his love!
Torn between this hope and her sacred
duty, she chooses, womanlike, with
unwisdom. Time will show!

ACT III

SCEN T E An Indian Forest

lies on a bed of leaves,
\J Lakme watching over him with
loving care. He wakes and greets her
with rapture, in the ct Vieni al contento
profondo" (In Forest Depths).

His awakening consciousness recalls
the events of the past, and his eyes
fasten upon Lakme in adoration. As
Geralds strength steals back, he
appears to forget all else but his love
for Lakme y who is deliriously happy.

One morning a group of young men
and maidens pass on their way to
drink at a sacred spring. Lovers who
drink thereof may be sure of retaining
one another's love, for they are blessed

PHOTO WHITE

MARTINELLI AND DE LUCA IN LAKME

of the gods. Gerald questions Lakme
and eagerly she consents to go and
bring some of the water. While she is
away, Frederic^ who has followed the
trail of blood into the forest, appears,

193

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

and reminds the wounded man of his
duty., Gerald agrees to go back when
he hears that the troops have been
ordered out to put down an uprising
but he secretly dreams of remaining
with Lakme. After Frederic s de
parture, the girl returns, quick to dis
cover a subtle change in her lover.
With sickening dread she notes how
Gerald starts at the sound of a distant
bugle. She drinks some of the sacred
water, and gives some to her patient.
As he drinks it down, Gerald hears the
sound of drums and fifes, and the song
of soldiers on the march. He starts up
eagerly, and Lakme knows now that

her hold is broken. Unobserved she
gathers some of the datura stramonium
flowers whose innocent milky- white
petals conceal a rank poison.

Nilakantha suddenly appears in rage
at finding them both together. But
the now dying Lakme warns her father
that Gerald has drunk from the sacred
spring, and is therefore blest of the
gods; to harm him would be sacrilege.
Thus Lakme saves his life once more.
With her last breath she thanks her
lover that he has given her that inter
mingled agony and delight which the
heart of humanity calls love. She dies
in his arms, and the curtain descends.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

ACT I
POURQUOI DANS LES GRANDS BOIS

(Why Do I Thus Love to Stray) LTJCRE-
ZTA BORI, Soprano In French

1009 10-in., $1.50
ACT II
OU VA LA JEUNE HINDOUE

(Bell Song) MABEL GARRISON, Soprano

In French 6135 12-in., 2.00

AMELITA GALLI-.CURCI, Soprano In

Italian 6132 12-in., 2.00

LAKME:

Down there, where shades are glooming,
What trav'ler's that, alone, astray?
Around him flame bright eyes, dark depths

ilium ingj

But on he journeys, as by chance, on the way!
The wolves in their wild joy are howling,
As if for their prey they were prowling;
The young girl forward runs, and doth their

fury dare.

A ring in her grasp she holds tightly,
Whence tinkles a bell, sharply, lightly,
A bell that tinkles lightly, that charmers wear!
(She imitates the bell]
Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!
While the stranger regards her
Stands she dazed, fiush'd and glowing,
More handsome than the Rajahs, he!

And to heaven she soars in his holding,
It was Vishnu, great Brahma's son!
And since the day in that dark wood,
The trav'ler hears, where Vishnu stood,
The sound of a little bell ringing,
The legend back to him bringing.
DANS LA FOR^T

(In the Forest) FRANCES ALDA, Soprano
In French 533 10-in., 31.50

ACT III
VIENI AL CONTENTO PROFONDO

(In Forest Depths) JOHN McCoRMACK,

Tenor In Italian 3029 10-in., 2.00

GERALD:

I too recall, still mute, inanimate,

I saw you bent o'er my lips; while thus lying,

My soul upon your look was attracted and
fastened;

'Neath your breath life awoke and recovery
hastened.

O my charming Lakme*;

Through forest depths secluded,

Love's wing above us has passed;

Earth-cares have not been intruded,

And heaven on us falls at last.

These flow'ring vines, with blooms capricious,

Bear o'er our pathway scents delicious;

Which soft hearts, with raptures beset,

While all else we forget!

194

THE LILY OF KILLARNEY

ROMANTIC opera in three acts.
Text by Oxenford and Boucic-
ault, founded on the latter's ro
mantic drama, "The Colleen Bawn."
Music by Sir Julius Benedict. First
production at Covent Garden, London,
February 8, 1862.

Time and Place: Killarney, Ireland;
Nineteenth Century

IN the hall of Tore Cregan a wed
ding party is held to celebrate the
forthcoming union of Hardress Cregan
with Anne Chute, the lovely heiress.
The party, as might be expected,
ends in a wager concerning two
horses. The guests issue forth to run
the race by moonlight, and no sooner
are they gone than Corrigan appears.
He is a smooth adventurer, who, by
mortgage, holds the Cregans in his
power. To ensure payment he asks
either that a written guarantee shall be
given that Hardress will marry Anne
Chute, or else that Mrs. Cregan shall
herself become Mrs. Corrigan. Mrs.
Cregan is somewhat puzzled by the first
of these conditions until she learns that
Hardress is secretly married to Eily
O'Connor, the "Colleen Bawn." In
proof of this, he and Mrs. Cregan con
ceal themselves and watch Hardress
signal across to an island in the lake,
where Eify is concealed.

On the island itself Eily awaits her
husband; but he comes only to beg her
to give him up. Her old adviser Father
Tom, however, makes her promise
not to part with her "lines," and a for
mer lover of hers, Myles Na Coppaleen,
keeps faithful watch over her. In the
meantime, Hardress Cregan learns of
Corrigan s alternative, and he longs to
be rid of Eily. His hunchback boat
man, Danny Mann, offers to do away
with her if he will but let him have his
glove to lure her away from the cottage.

This, of course, Hardress refuses, but
the boatman, bent on murder, goes to
Mrs. Cregan and without giving a rea
son, he secures from her one of her son's
gloves. This he presents to Eily, de
claring her husband wishes to see her at
a cave in the "DiviPs Island/* Danny,
fortified with drink, is a bad guide, but
Eily's faith in her husband is strong
and she goes. At the cave, however,
Danny demands her marriage certifi
cate; refused, he throws her into the
water. Myles, her former lover, who
is in the habit of shooting otters for a
living, takes a pot-shot in the darkness
at what he believes to be legitimate
prey. In reality it is Danny, who is
mortally wounded. Myles comes for
ward in time to rescue Eily, clinging ^to
a rock. He conveys her to his cabin.

Word having gone out that both
Eily and Danny are dead, Hardress is
stricken with remorse. On the very
day of his wedding to Anne Chute he
confesses his marriage with Eily. No
sooner has he done so than, at Corri
gan s instigation, Hardress is arrested
as an accessory to the murder of Eily.
When he denies the charge, his glove is
offered in proof. His mother screams
at the sight of it, insisting that she
alone is guilty. Just then, however^
matters are set right by the appearance
of Eily herself. ' Hardress is overjoyed
to see her, and we are led to infer that
the generous Anne Chute comes to his
aid with money and eliminates Corri
gan.

The best-known melody is the duet
sung by Hardress and Danny Mann.,
"The Moon Has Raised Her Lamp
Above."

THE VICTOR RECORD
THE MOON HAS RAISED HER LAMP
ABOVE

JOHN McCoRMACK and REINALD
WERRENRATH In English

3024 10-in., $2.00

195

LINDA DI CHAMOUNIX

OPERA in three acts. Words
by Rossi; music by Donizetti.
First production in Vienna,
May 19, 1842; in Paris, November 17,
1842; in London, June, 1843; in New
York, at Palmo's Theatre, January 4,
1847, with Clotilda Barili. Given at
the Academy of Music, March 9,
1861, with Clara Louise Kellogg.
Revived April 23, 1890, at the Metro
politan, with Patti, Fabbri, Bauer-
meister, Marescalchi and Carboni.
A gala performance was given some
years ago in Milan before the King and
Queen and a distinguished audience.
De Luca was specially engaged to sing
Boisfleury.

CHARACTERS

MARQUIS DE BOISFLEURY
(Mar-kee duh Bwah-flur-
ee) Baritone

CHARLES DE SIRVAL, his son

(Sharl duh Sur-vahl) Tenor

THE PARISH PRIEST Bass

ANTONIO LOUSTOLOT, a farm
er (Loos-toh-loti) Bass

MADELINE, his wife (Mad-a-

layri) Mezzo-Soprano

LINDA, their daughter (Lin-

dah de Ska-moo-nee) .... Soprano

Time and Place Chamounix and

Paris ) 1760^ during the reign of

Louis XV

IN the valley of Chamounix, beneath
the shadow of the French Alps, live
the aged couple Loustolot and Madeline
with their daughter Linda. They are
heavily in debt, but the Marquis de
Boisfleury assures them he will not
press the mortgage. His secret object,
in this unusual kindness, is to possess
himself of Linda^ who is very much in
love, however, with a young painter,
Charles. Her affection is charmingly
expressed in a well known air, the "O

luce di quest'anima" (Guiding Star
of Love).

Their love is a charming idyl, but
it is soon to be interrupted. The
Prefect of the village acquaints the
girl's parents of the Marquis's designs
against her, and Linda is sent off to
Paris, to live with the Prefect's brother.
On arriving she learns this personage
is dead, and she soon is in difficulties.
Charles has followed her. He tells her
he is in reality the Marquis's own
nephew and the son of the Marchioness
de SirvaL He installs her in a palatial
house of her own, and he then goes off
to ask his mother's consent to marry
her. While he is away, the girl's
father arrives, having been compelled
by the extortionate Marquis to give
up his farm. Finding Linda in sus
piciously fine circumstances, he leaps to
the worst possible conclusion and he
curses his own daughter. In the
meantime, the Marchioness has refused
consent to the wedding, and threatens
to put Linda in prison unless Charles
proves willing to marry, instead, a
lady of her own choice. The young
man consents temporarily. But as
Linda knows nothing of his secret
intention to be true to her alone, she
accepts his denial as final; and this,
added to her father's cruelty, drives
her insane.

In the last act we are back in Rome,
Linda having gone to friends. At
last winning the consent of the
Marchioness , Charles comes in pursuit
of her. He sings to her the old song
of their early courtship, and by this
means restores her mental balance.

THE VICTOR RECORD
ACT I

(Sung in Italian)
CAVATINA O LUCE DI QUEST' ANIMA

(Guiding Star of Love) AMELITA GALLI-
CURCI, Soprano 6357 12-in., $2.00

196

FERD. LEEKE

LOHENGRIN:
Thy life I spare:
May'st thouin peace repent!

(Lohengrin, Act I)

197

LOHENGRIN

WAGNER completed the score
of "Lohengrin" in Dresden, in
1847, the year he was banished
from Germany for complicity in the
popular uprising. Before his ten years of
exile he had heard only the last chorus
of the first act in his new opera, which
he rightly believed to be his greatest
achievement to that time. In his ex
tremity, he turned to Liszt, and to that
musician of genius and man of pro
found generosity he owed the first pro
duction of "Lohengrin." No one at
the present time can imagine the moral
courage necessary for a man like Liszt
to sponsor a work of Wagner's. Liszt
was courted of kings, the greatest liv
ing pianist, acknowledged on all sides,
and as usual in such cases, the target of
endless criticism. Wagner was a polit
ical exile, and practically unknown.
The letters he and Wagner exchanged
during the period of preparation and
rehearsal are worth reading. Liszt's
respect for the work was profound,
and he, the foremost musical power
of his day, sits at the feet of Wagner
like a disciple before his master.

By this means "Lohengrin" was not
only launched, but given the proper
artistic attention its undoubted beauty
warranted.

In the days of its production, "Lo
hengrin" was at once over- and under
estimated. In these days we need do
neither. As music, it contains some of
Wagner's finest inspirations, some of
the greatest music of all time. This is
true, for instance, of the Prelude with
its ethereally divided strings. The
"Swan" music, Elsas "Dream," and
many other lovely passages are unsur-
passably beautiful. Generations of
couples seem unwilling to proceed
down the nuptial aisle to any music but
the "Lohengrin Wedding March." To
us the beauty of this music is familiar
enough, but in the day of its origin it
must have seemed like a new language.
To the musty academics Wagner was
an iconoclast; to men of younger blood
he was a prophet, a guiding star. He
was a little of both, like all men of true
genius. And no one better realized it,
perhaps, than Wagner himself.

If your heart is still young enough
to accept a fairy story of a shining
prince and a golden-haired princess; if
you would permit the intoxication of
sweet sounds to possess your very soul,
then by all means see and hear "Lohen
grin" as it really is one of the most
beautiful of all operas, and one of the
most inspired.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in three acts. Words and
music by Richard Wagner.
First produced at Weimar, Ger
many, August 28, 1850, under the di
rection of Liszt. Produced at Wies-
baden, 1853; Munich and Vienna,
1858; Berlin, 1859; Bologna, 1871.
First London production in German,
1875, and also, in Italian, at Covent
Garden, the same year. First produc
tion in English at Her Majesty's, in
1880. Given at St. Petersburg, 1875;

Paris, 1887. First American produc
tion in German at Stadt Theatre, in
New York, April 3, 1871; in Italian,
March 23, 1874, with Nilsson, Gary,
Campanini and Del Puente; in German
in 1885, ^ with Brandt, Krauss, Fischer
and Stritt this being Anton Seidl's
American debut as a conductor. First
New Orleans production, in Italian,
December 3, 1877; in French, March 4,
1889. More frequently given since
than any other opera of Wai

vagner s.

198

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

CHARACTERS

HENRY THE FOWLED King of

Germany Bass

LOHENGRIN- (Lo f -hen-grin) Tenor

ELSA OF BRABANT Soprano

DUKE GODFREY, her brother

Mute Personage

FREDERICK OF TELRAMUND (Tel r -
rah-moond}) Count of Brabant

Baritone
ORTRUD (Ohr'-trood), his wife

Mezzo-Soprano

THE KING'S HERALD. .Bass

Saxon, Thuringian and Brabantian

Counts and Nobles, Ladies of Honor,

Pages, Attendants

ACT I

SCENE Banks of the Scheldt^ near
Antwerp

ON the green banks of the river,
seated upon a raised throne beneath
the Oak of Justice, sits Henry the Fow
ler, King of Germany. On one side of
him are gathered the knights and
nobles of the Saxon Arriere-ban. Oppo
site to them are the Counts and Nobles
of Brabant, headed by Frederick of
Telramund, his wife Ortrud beside him.

The King has come to gather an army
together but he finds the people of
Brabant torn in dissension. The trou
ble is due to the disappearance of young
Duke Godfrey of Brabant, who with his
sister Eha y lived under the charge of
Telramund) who was to have married
the girl. Telramund y however, charges
that E/sa herself has killed the boy,
hoping to succeed to his estates. Tel-
ramund has been led to believe this by
Ortrud , whom he has married after be
ing assured of Elsas guilt. Ortrud is
the daughter of Radbod, the last of her
race, and her faith is still with the an
cient gods, Wo tan and Freia. She prac
tices the black art of magic, and it is
she, in fact, who has caused Godfrey's
disappearance.

Telramund is a knight of proven
courage. Indeed, he has saved the life
of the King himself in a fight against
the Danes. Yet Henry the Fowler is
loth to believe the monstrous charge of
fratricide against the girl Elsa. He
commands that she shall be brought
before him. She approaches as one in
a dream, a mystic look in her deep blue
eyes, the pale gold of her hair gleaming
in the sunlight. Her women attend-

COPY'T DUPONT

HOMER AS ORTRUD

COPY T DUPONT

EAMES AS ELSA

COPY T DUPONT

SCHUMANN-HEINK AS
ORTRUD

199

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ants accompany her, but remain re
spectfully at the outer edge of the circle
of justice. Telramund makes his charge
in a clear, ringing voice, and the King
declares that justice shall be done
through the ancient ordeal by battle.
Elsa is asked to name her champion,
but she at first declines. When pressed
she tells of a dream she has had, in
which a knight in shining armor comes
to protect her. This is the wonderful
"Elsa's Traum" (Elsa's Dream). The
soft, ethereal music of the Grail suf
fuses this lovely number, its shifting
harmonies seeming, in their visionary
opalescence, to be of the very texture
of dreams.

The King is greatly moved, and he
invokes the judgment of God. Four
trumpeters blow a summons to the four
points of the compass, and the Herald
calls, "Who will do battle for Elsa of
Brabant? Let him appear." There is
no answer, and Elsa sinks to her knees
in fervent prayer. A second call is
sounded and a challenge given. This

time the men nearest the river bank
suddenly descry a strange figure. Lo!
a knight in shining armor, such as Elsa
described, approaches in a boat drawn
by a swan, to whose neck is attached a
long golden chain. The nobles crowd
to the river bank. The knight arrives
and is greeted warmly by the crowd.
He pauses, however, to bid farewell to
the swan which has brought him here.
"Nun sel bedankt,meinlieberSchwan!"
(My Trusty Swan !) sings he. The mys
tical beauty of this number, its exquis
ite tenderness, its mood of profound,
almost religious reverence, give it a
unique place in the field of opera music.
The King offers to this mysterious
champion a grave and lordly welcome,
saying he believes he may know from
whence he arrives. Elsa welcomes him
with shy, adoring eyes. He tells her
that he has come at her summons, and
he asks if she will accept him as her be
trothed. When she humbly accepts
him he offers to fight for her and wed
her, insisting, however, upon one thing.

COPY T MISHKIN
WITHERSPOON AS THE KING

COPY T MISHKIN

DALMORES AS LOHENGRIN

GADSKI AS ELSA

200

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PANEL BY HUGO BRAUNE

ELSA RELATING HER DREAM

On no account must she ask his name,
rank or station. Her trust must be
absolute. Twice he repeats the con
dition, and Elsa wholeheartedly ac
cepts.

Then the King summons the knights
to combat, first calling solemnly upon
heaven to judge the right. This is the
famous "Mem Herr und Gott Kon-
igs Gebet" (King's Prayer).

There are few bass airs in opera
which have the majestic breadth and
stateliness of this fine inspiration. The
broad, full, opulent harmonies of the
accompaniment are typically Wagner.

The nobles warn Telramund that he
may not hope to break such a heaven-
protected champion, but the knight's
courage is more commendable than his
judgment. He elects to fight. A field
of battle is measured off by three Sax
ons for the stranger and by three Bra-
bantians for Telramund. They solemnly
stride forward and plant their spears,

FROM AN OLD PRINT

ORTRUD KNEELING TO ELSA

to form a complete circle. The King
beats three times with his sword upon
his shield, which hangs upon a tree, and
the fight begins.

The innocence of Elsa is soon proven.
The white knight strikes Telramund to
earth, but mercifully spares his life.
Amid cheering crowds Elsa plights her
troth to the stranger. Telramund
drags his stricken body to the feet of
Ortrud, in whose deep eyes gleams a
light that promises harm to the inno
cent.

ACT II

SCENE Court of the Palace

T is night. The moon precipitates
gloomy shadows off the battlements
of the great castle in Antwerp. On the
steps of the chapel, Telramund and
Ortrud crouch dejectedly, clad in the
habiliments of disgrace. Outcasts both,
they suffer each in some individually
poignant way. Telramund is querulous,

201

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

irritably blaming his wife for mislead
ing him. Ortrud is defiant. She is the
stronger of the two, and she skilfully
works upon his superstitious feelings.
This strange knight, she claims, has
won by magic; if he could be compelled
to divulge his name and state, his
power would cease. Elsa alone has the
way to compel that secret! Possessed
of it, Telramund can freely fight him
again, for the first loss of blood will
weaken him for ever. Telramund lis
tens breathlessly. All, then, is not lost.

Presently Elsa comes to the window,
to sing to the wandering breezes, be
neath the white moon, the new joy of
her life. In a rapturous soliloquy she
pours out her love for the stranger and
her gratitude for her own vindication.
But she hears her name called in the
darkness and she ceases in wonder.
Telramund has spoken, but Ortrud bids
him begone. Then, with smooth guile
the witch-woman, called to Elsa s side,
first feigning repentance, implants in
the girl's heart the insidious seeds of
doubt. She hints of mystery and magic
things easily believed in in the cir
cumstances of the case. Outwardly
Elsa rejects all suspicion. Her song of
faith in her lover and defender uprises
in pure triumph. But Ortrud has ac
complished her work, nevertheless.

The light of day is welcomed by a
castle trumpeter, his ringing dawn-
call answered by another trumpeter
from a distant turret. It is Elsa s
wedding day. Servitors pass to and fro
in the bustle of preparation. Knights
and nobles cross the court, arrayed in
festive attire, the sharp glitter of their
steel accoutrements, and the blaze of
their multi-colored robes making brave
their pageantry in the clear sunlight.
A Herald proclaims the banishment of
Telramund) the recreant knight, and
the leadership of the mysterious cham
pion who will not accept the Dukedom,
but calls himself the "Guardian of Bra

bant." The wedding procession com
mences; ere long Elsa herself appears,
marching in stately fashion across the
courtyard. Just as she is about to enter
the chapel, however, Ortrud springs up
before her a very different Ortrud
from the suppliant of the night before,
now demanding priority over the bride-
elect of a nameless knight. Her stormy
harangue raises some commotion, and
soon the King and Elsa s champion
appear. Telramund steps out from be
hind a buttress, and a stormier scene
ensues. The beaten man charges the
knight with sorcery, demanding his
name and station, claiming his myster
ious arrival upon the swan-drawn boat
as evidence of magic. But the King
will not listen, the couple are ignomin-
iously driven forth, and the procession
is continued after Elsa has renewed her
vows of faithfulness. Her mind is filled
with questionings, nevertheless.

ACT III

SCENE I The Bridal Chamber in the
Palace

BEFORE the opening of this Act
the orchestra plays the gorgeous
"Epithalamium" prelude so beloved of
concert-goers. The joyous burst of
strings, wood-wind and brass, the
crash of cymbals, the masculine
strength of the tremendous theme for
trombones are familiar to all music
lovers, noless than the charming
feminine grace of the middle section.
Never has wedding festival been more
happily, riotously expressed in music!

As the curtain rises upon the bridal
chamber, the strains of the wedding
music continue, but in softer mood.
The great doors at the rear fly open,
and the bridal procession enters the
ladies leading Elsa and the King,, the
nobles conducting the bridegroom.
They sing the familiar "Bridal Chorus."

As this comes to an end the King>
nobles and ladies retire, leaving the

202

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE- OPERA

bride and bridegroom together. Then
it is that Elsa first shows the doubt
that is in her heart.

"How sweet my name as from thy lips it

Canst thou deny to me the sound of thine?"

The stranger knight reproves her
with gentleness. He sings his beauti
ful air reminding her of her faith in the
vision, the "Atmest du nicht mir sus-
sen Dufte?" (Dost Thou Breathe the
Incense Sweet?). It is an exquisite
melody, familiar to music lovers.

Elsa scarcely hears; the poison in
jected into her mind by Ortrud is work
ing and fermenting there. She grows
more and more insistent, her curiosity
strengthening by her lover's own pro
tests. As the scene moves to a climax
Telramund suddenly leaps into the
chamber, close-followed by four asso
ciates with drawn swords. Elsa swiftly
hands her husband his own sword,
and with the weapon he strikes the
assassin dead. The four men promptly
kneel at the champion's feet. But
the noise of the fight brings others to

the chamber, and the victor commands
that the dead body of Telramund be
carried to the Oak of Justice. He may
no longer keep his identity secret, and
he is going to yield to Elsa's demand.

SCENE II Same as Act I

STRANGELY perturbed, the King
waits beneath the Oak of Justice.
Soon he beholds Elsa, pale as one already
dead; behind her is the stranger knight,
his countenance drawn and stern. He
easily justifies the slaying of Telramund
and, in a few words, he reveals how
Elsa has broken her promise. Then
comes one of the most touching of
scenes, in which the stranger knight
proclaims himself to be none other than
Lohengrin , the son of Parsifal of Mon-
salvat, a knight of the Holy Grail.

After the amazing "Lohengrin's
Narrative" (In Distant Lands), which is
received in sad wonder, Elsa is deeply
affected. " 'Tis dark around me! Give
me air! Oh, help, help! oh, me, most
wretched!" During her lamentations
the swan is seen approaching and Lo
hengrin prepares to go. He bids an af-

PHOTO BYRON

THE KING DENOUNCING TELRAMUND ACT II
203

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

fee ting farewell to his bride, saying
that had she trusted him for a year, her
vanished brother Duke Godfrey would
have been returned to her. He leaves
behind his horn, his sword, and his ring
to be given to the boy should he ever
return. Meantime the swan with the
boat has reached the river bank. And
Lohengrin steps aboard. No sooner
has he done so than a sudden cry of
triumph is heard. It is Ortrud, who
claims that after all her magic is supe
rior. " 'Twas I that wound the golden
band around the neck of yonder swan;
he is the true heir of Brabant ! )r But
Ortrud speaks prematurely. Her words
are heard by Lohengrin, who is seen by
the excited onlookers to be kneeling in
the boat, and earnestly praying. All

eyes are fixed upon him. The white
dove of the Holy Grail flutters down
from above. Lohengrin perceives it,
and with a grateful look rises swiftly
and loosens the chain from the swan,
which immediately sinks. From the
depths of the water Lohengrin then
raises Godfrey ', a fair boy in shining sil
ver raiment, and lifts him to land.
"Behold the ruler of Brabant!" cries he.
The boy rushes into Elsas arms, while
the dove mysteriously draws the boat
on its course to Monsalvat. Lohen
grin is seen once more ere he is lost to
view, with head bent sorrowfully, lean
ing upon his shield. "My husband!
My husband!" cries E!sa y sinking life
less to the ground. But Lohengrin is
gone forever.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in German except as noted)

ACT I
ELSAS TRAUM

(Elsa's Dream) MARIA JERITZA, Soprano

6172 12-in., 32.00
ELS A:

Oft when the hours were lonely,
I unto Heav'n have pray'd,
One boon I ask'd for only,
To send the orphans aid;
Away my words were wafted,
I dreamt not help was nigh,
But One on high vouchsafed it,
While I in sleep did lie.
(with growing enthusiasm)
I saw in splendor shining,
A knight of glorious mien,
On me his eyes inclining,
With tranquil gaze serene.
A horn of gold beside him,
He leant upon his sword,
His words so low and tender,
Brought life renew'd to me.
(with rapture}

My guardian, my defender,
Thou shalt my champion be.

NUN SEI BEDANKT, MEIN LIEBER
SCHWAN!

(My Trusty Swan) ORVILLE HARROLD,

Tenor ' 74813 12-in., 1.50

LOHENGRIN:

I give thee thanks, my faithful swan!
Turn thee again and breast the tide,

Return unto that land of dawn

Where joyous we did long abide,

Well thy appointed task is done!

Farewell! farewell! my trusty swan!

(to the King )

Hail, gracious sov'reign!

Victory and honor be thy valor's meed!

Thy glorious name shall from the land

That chose thee ruler, ne'er depart.

MEIN HERR UND GOTT KONIGS
GEBET

(King's Prayer) MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

915 10-in., 1.50
KING HENRY:

O King of kings, on Thee I call;
Look down on us in this dread hour!
Let him in this ordeal fall
Whom Thou know'st guilty,

Lord of pow'r!

To stainless knight give strength and might,
With craven heart the false one smite;
Do Thou, Lord, to hear us deign,
For all our wisdom is but vain!

ACT III

PRELUDE THE WEDDING MARCH
BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

547 10-in., 1.50

204

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

LOHENGRIN'S NARRATIVE

(In Distant Lands) EVAN WILLIAMS,

Tenor In English 6314 12-in., 32.00
LOHENGRIN:

In distant land, by ways remote and hidden,
There stands a mount that men call Monsal-

vat;

It holds a shrine, to the profane forbidden;
More precious there is nought on earth than

that,

And thron'd in light it holds a cup immortal,
That whoso sees from earthly sin is cleans'd;
Twas borne by angels thro' the heav'nly portal,
Its coming hath a holy reign commenc'd.
Once every year a dove from Heav'n descend-

eth,

To strengthen it anew for works of grace;
'Tis called the Grail, the pow'r of Heav'n

attendeth
The faithful knights who guard that sacred

place.

He whom the Grail to be its servant chooses

Is armed henceforth by high invincible might;

All evil craft its power before him loses,

The spirits of darkness where he dwells take
flight.

Nor will he lose the awful charm it blendeth,

Although he should be called to distant
lands.

When the high cause of virtue he defendeth:

While he's unknown, its spell he still com
mands.

By perils dread the holy Grail is girded.

No eye rash or profane its light may see;

Its champion knight from doubtings shall be
warded,

If known to man, he must depart and flee.

Now mark, craft or disguise my soul disdain-
eth,

The Grail sent me to right yon lady's name;

My father, Percival, gloriously reigneth,

His knight am I 3 and Lohengrin my name!

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

/Bridal Chorus (In English) Victor Opera Chorus\ + r ^Q<

\ Flying Dutchman Spinning Chorus (In English) .... Victor Women s Chorus]

/Introduction to Act III (Wedding March) Herbert's Orchestra\r*n.Q 77

1 Wedding March (Mendelssohn) Herbert's Orchestra] i^-m.,

/Coro delle nozze (Bridal Chorus) (In Italian) La Scala Chorus} , A -- 7 1A .

\ Tannhauser Pilgrims' Chorus Pryors Band]_*' 10 " m '

(Lohengrin Fantasie Rosario Bourdon, 'Cellist

\ Souvenir (Drdla) Maximilian Piker, Violinist,

12-in., 31.25
12-in., 1.50

.75

10 .
1Z " ln ' s

TSelection, No. 1 Sousa's Band\*r-, -, ,

\ Flower Song (Blumenlied) (Lange) Rosario Bourdon, ' Cellist] L l *

12-in., 1.25

FRAGMENT OF THE BRIDAL CHORUS IN
WAGNER'S OWN HANDWRITING

205

I LOMBARDI

(THE LOMBARDS)

IL O M B A R D I is one of Verdi's
earlier operas. It is rarely heard,
though it contains some lovely
music, which Verdi afterwards used to
some extent in his "Jerusalem/' brought
out at the Academic ^ Paris, November
26, 1847. It is typically Verdian.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts; words by
Solera. Music by Verdi. First
produced at La Scala, M[ilan, Feb
ruary 11, 1843. Produced in London,
at Her Majesty's Theatre, March
"3, 1846; Paris, Theatre It 'alien , January
10, 1863. First New York production
March 3, 1847, by an Italian Opera
Company, under the management of
Sign or SanguinicoPatti (father of
Adelina Patti), and Signer Pogliani.

CHARACTERS

PAGANO (P ah-gah f -noli) ^ a bandit,

brother to Arvino Bass

ARVINO (Ar-vee'-noh)y a nobleman

of Lombardy Tenor

PIRRO (Pee'-roK)) an accomplice of

Pagano Bass

ACCIANUS (At-chan-nus), King of

Antioch Tenor

ORONTES (Oh-ron'-tayz), son of

Accianus Tenor

VICLINDA, wife of Arvino Soprano

GISELDA (Jee-zel'-daJi), her daugh
ter Soprano

SOPHIA, mother of Orontes. .Contralto
Time and Place: Lombardy and Anti
och in the Holy Land, Eleventh Century
(The name of the opera is pronounced
Ee Lorn-bar' -dee ^)

206

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

BEFORE the rising of the curtain, Pa-
gano and Arvino, sons ofFolco, the
Lombard, have fallen in love with Vic-
linda. Pagano is a man of storms and
passions, and his hatred is awakened
when the girl prefers his younger
brother, and marries him. Pagano
then attempts to kill Arvino, and,
compelled to fly for his life, becomes
leader of a gang of brigands.

The opera begins in the square in
front of the Cathedral Church of St.
Ambrose at Antioch. Arvino has been
elected a captain in the first Crusade
against the Saracens. The seemingly
repentant Pagano has returned and
been forgiven, but the air is dark with
suspicion, and justly; for with the aid
of Pirro he again attacks Arvino and
attempts to kidnap Vidinda. By mis
take, however, he slays his father, Fol-
co, and in despair he then flies to the
wilderness.

After many years we find Vidinda
dead, and her daughter Giselda a cap
tive of the Saracens. Giselda has been
placed in the harem of a Saracen prince,
Orontes, who loves her and whom she
loves dearly. Orontes, however, obeys
his mother's command that they shall
not marry until both are of the same
religion. Arvino, meanwhile, with a
Crusaders' company, seeks a hermit
who dwells in a cave above Antioch,
hoping to learn from him the where
abouts of his daughter. The repentant
Pirro, who aided Pagano in the attack
on Arvino, is now in Antioch with the
Saracens. Through -him the myste
rious Hermit contrives to have a gate
way left open by night. The Cru
saders enter the city, and Arvino rescues

his daughter. But Giselda, almost in
sane, believing Orontes dead, is so pal
pably distressed at sight of her father
that he becomes greatly angered. Qron-
tes, however, is not dead, and he soon
comes to her at risk of his life. She
flees with him, but he is wounded, and
the pair find refuge in the cave of the
Hermit. Through his influence, the
dying Orontes becomes a Christian.
The remarkable trio at this point has
been recorded, the "Qual volutta"
(With Sacred Joy). Comparatively
little else is heard today, from this
opera.

Orontes begins the trio with a lovely
flowing melody, and this is followed by
duet passages between Giselda and the
priest and later with her wounded
lover. The terzetto grows more im
passioned as it proceeds, the three
voices combining into a splendid cli
max at the end.

After the death of Orontes, the Her
mit conveys Giselda to her father, and
by his inspiration enables her to find
happiness in the religious life. For
this both father and daughter are pro
foundly grateful. The Hermit takes a
highly active part in the fighting
against the Saracens, and is mortally
wounded. Almost with his last breath
he confesses to Arvino and Giselda that
he is none other than Pagano. He dies
forgiven by the brother whom he twice
has tried to kill.

THE VICTOR RECORD

QUAL VOLUTTA

(With Sacred Joy) FRANCES ALDA,
Soprano, ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor and
MARCEL JOURNET, Bass. In Italian

10010 12 in., 33.50

207

LOUISE

OPERA in four acts. Words
and music by Gustave Char-
pentier. First presented at the
Opera Comique, Paris, February 2,
1900. First American production at
the Manhattan Opera, 1908.

CHARACTERS

LOUISE Soprano

HER MOTHER Contralto

HER FATHER Baritone

JULIEN, an artist Tenor

Girls at the Dressmaking Establish
ment, Street Peddlers, People, etc.
Scene and Period: the Present Time

f^HARPENTIER'S first opera,
\^t "Louise," is a romance of Bohemian
Paris. The story tells of Louise^
a beautiful young girl employed in a
dressmaking establishment. Julien,
a romantic artist, falls in love with the
maiden, and soon finds his love
returned. The mother and father of
Louise disapprove of the gay young
artist, but Julien will not give up
his sweetheart, and he implores her
to leave her hard work and go with
him to a little home. Louise at first
refuses, knowing how her parents
would grieve, but Julien persists. He
tempts her with visions of a bright
future, and at last, unable to resist, the
young girl consents.

She falls in with a merry company
of true Parisian Bohemians, who
crown her as the Queen of Revels.
In the midst of a gay party her
mother appears, begging her to return
to her father^ who is ill. Louise is filled

with remorse and returns to her home,
trying all the while to forget the gay,
happy life she has left at Montmartre.
Her father reproaches her for her con
duct, and Louise remembering only the
kindness and tenderness of Julien,
rushes out into the night and hastens
back to the protection of her lover.

The lovely "Depuis le jour," is sung
by Louise in the garden at Montmartre
in Act III. The young girl tells Julien
how happy she has been since they
have come to the cottage, comparing
her life with the dreary one she has
left.

The melody of this number, one of
the most beautiful in the whole range
of modern opera, is so simple that
almost anyone might have written^ it.
But it only occurred to Charpentier.
It is a remarkable instance of the fact
that a composer of creative power may
be able to weave the simplest melodic
forms into a thing of beauty far out
ranking the more ambitious works of
an inferior mind. The "Depuis le
jour" is probably the most popular
lyrical number in any French opera of
a generation younger than Gounod,
Bizet and Saint-Saens.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French)

DEPUIS LE JOUR

(Ever Since the Day) NELLIE MELBA,

Soprano 6216 12-in., 2.00

ALMA GLUCK, Soprano 6145 12-in., 2.00
DEPUIS LONGTEMPS

(For a Long Time) ORVILLE HARROLD,
Tenor and EVA GAUTHIER, Soprano

6151 12-in., 2.00

208

THE SEXTETTE

LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR

ACOTCHMAN named Izett,
wandering afield in search of
fortune, discovered it in Italy,
where he took to himself the prefix
of "Don," thus acquiring for his chil
dren the name "Donizetti." Such
was the ancestry, according to report,
of Gaetano Donizetti, composer of
"Lucia di Lammermoor," and some
sixty-two other operas. Donizetti was
born at Bergamo, November 25 th
(Dr. Hugo Riemann says November
29th), 1797, and he died there April 8,
1848, much taking place in the inter
vening half century. His father in
tended he should become a teacher,
and to avoid this he enlisted in the
army, where, if history serves, he spent
most of this time writing music which
art he had studied in Naples and
Bologna. His first opera, "Enrico di
Borgogna," was produced in Venice,
1818, while he was quartered there,

and two others followed. But his
"Nozze in Villa," Rome, 1822, won
military exemption with honors, for
he was carried through the streets in
triumph and crowned at. the citadel.
From that time on he devoted himself
to music, more particularly to opera.
He was a prolific and a rapid worker.
In 1836, while he was in Naples, a
certain theatre was in imminent risk
of bankruptcy, and the prima donna
came to him for help. He had no
libretto, but one was gotten somehow,
and in nine days, it is said, "the li
bretto was written, the music com
posed, the parts learned, the opera
girformed, and the theatre saved."
e is also said to have composed the
whole of the last act of "La Fille du
Regiment" (Act IV), except the aria,
"Ange si Pur," and the slow part of
the duet, in three or four hours. Not
only could Donizetti boast great

209

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

musical ability, but also considerable
literary skill. He is known to have
designed and written the last acts of
both "La Favorita" and "Lucia di
Lammermoor."

Donizetti's musical career, which
began, so far as a reputation was con
cerned, with "Anna Bolena," produced
at Milan, 1830, and which later gave
the world such masterpieces as "Lucia
di Lammermoor," "Daughter of _ the
Regiment," "Linda di Chamou'nix,"
"La Favorita," "Lucrezia Borgia' 1
and "Elixir d'Amore," ended some

what sadly. During his last years
Donizetti was subject to fits of melan
cholia. In 1845 he had a stroke of
paralysis, and in 1847 he returned to
Bergamo in time to die. He was buried
some little distance outside the town,
and lay in peace until September 12,
1875, when his body was disinterred
and given the belated distinction of
burial in the church of Santa Maria
Maggiore, where a monument by
Vincenzo Vela does honor to his mem
ory. He has not been forgotten, how
ever, elsewhere. For his works live.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Salvator Cammerano, derived
from Scott's novel,"The Bride of
Lammermoor." Music by Gaetano
Donizetti. First production at Naples,
September 26, 1835. Performed in
London, at Her Majesty's, April 5,
1838; Paris, 1839; New Orleans, De
cember 28, 1841; New York, in Eng
lish, at the Park Theatre, November
17, 1845; and in Italian, November 14,
1849. Notable revivals occurred April
7, 1890, at the Metropolitan, with
Patti; April 26, 1894, at the Metro
politan, with Melba; November 20,
1900, American Theatre, with Yvonne
de Treville.

CHARACTERS

HENRY ASHTON, of Lammer
moor Baritone

LUCIA, his sister (Loo-chee'-ah)

(Lucy) Soprano

SIR EDGAR, of Ravenswood. . . .Tenor

LORD ARTHUR BUCKLAW Tenor

RAYMOND, chaplain to Lord

Ashton ^ Bass

ALICE, companion to Lucy

Mezzo-Soprano

NORMAN, Captain of the Guard

at Ravenswood .Tenor

Ladies and Knights related to the

Ashtons; Pages, Soldiery, and

Domestics in the Ashton

Family

Scene and Period: The Action takes

Place in Scotland,, close of the

Sixteenth Century

ACT I

SCENE I A Wood near Lammermoor

\ STRANGER is seen lurking about
O\the grounds of Lammermoor.
This is disquieting, for Sir Henry
Ashton^ who through black treachery
has recently acquired the neighboring
Ravenswood estates, has many ene
mies, not least of them Sir Edgar of
Ravenswood. When the curtain rises,
therefore, we find Norman y Sir Henry
Ashton s Captain of the Guard, direct
ing his men to search the vaults be
neath the ruins of the old Ravenswood
tower, whose grey battlements are
visible above the tree-tops. Hardly
have the men gone than Sir Henry him
self appears, followed by the chaplain,
Raymond. He is troubled over the
strange visitant, troubled over his own
fate, and troubled over his sister Lucy,

210

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

who has been behaving curiously since
her mother's death, and who has formed
the habit of going daily to visit her
grave. From Norman y Sir Henry
learns that on these visits, Lucy has
been meeting the stranger, and further
more, that this mysterious personage
has rescued her from an angry bull by
shooting the beast. As they speak of
these things, the retainers come back,
telling of a man who has met them
near the ruined tower, "pale and
mute, with aspect daring," clad in
black and mounted upon a black
charger. This is Edgar of Ravenswood.

SCENE II A Park near the Castle

\T the daily trysting place near a
/^fountain in the park Lucy waits
for Edgar. She is accompanied by
her maid, Alice. Lucy is pale and
distraught. She looks with dread at
the fountain, and she tells Alice a
gruesome legend of a Ravenswood
who stabbed his sweetheart beside it.

She vows that she herself has seen, in
the dark waters, an apparition of the
murdered woman, who has warned her
against her present lover. This is told
in the "Regnava nel silenzio" (Silence
O'er All) .^

There is probably more of wistful-
ness than fear in this pathetic melody,
which clearly foreshadows the mood
of Lucy's tragic "Mad Scene" at the
end.

Meanwhile she turns away from
these memories to the anticipations
of happier things, and in the second
part of the aria, "Quando rapida in
estasi" (Swift as Thought), she chants
the ecstasy of love.

This number is bright and joyous
as anyone might wish a loving wo
man's dreams of a love that shall be
"all in all." ^

Edgar arrives, a sombre figure with
his melancholy attire, his black-plumed
cavalier hat, his cloak of sable. It is
to tell her that this is their last meeting,

PHOTO WHITE

ACT II, SCENE II, AT THE METROPOLITAN OPERA
211

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

for he has been ordered to France. He
begs permission to go to her brother,
to volunteer to forget and forgive, and
to claim her hand in marriage; but
Lucy knows this impossible. And why ?
he asks, answering himself; because
her brother still nourishes hatred in
his bosom, even though he has killed
Edgar s father and usurped his estates.
Lucy s lover is inflamed with passion,
and she tries vainly to check it; but
he tells how his love for her has made
him give up all dreams of vengeance.
The two of them chant their lovers^
litany, the "Verrano a te sull'aura"
(Borne on the Sighing Breeze).

The swaying rhythm of this melody
lends a swift glint of sunshine and a
breath of summer wind to a soon-
developing tragedy.

Edgar tears himself from Lucy's
arms, leaving the half-fainting girl to
be consoled by the sympathetic Alice.

ACT II

SCENE I An Anteroom in the Castle

IN supposing that Henry Ashtons
opposition is a matter of hatred,
Edgar is wrong. As a matter of fact,
Henry Ashton is in desperate straits
because of the part he has taken in a
rebellion against King William I. His
only chance of escape is to wed Lucy
to Lord Arthur Bucklazv, beneath
whose domination he now lives. To
make Lucy break off her connection
with Ravenswood he has resorted to
guile. He reads all the correspondence
that passed between the lovers, and
he now has a letter forged in Ravens-
wood's hand-writing which seems to
prove beyond doubt that Lucy is be
trayed, her lover having deserted her.
The girl is almost dumbstricken.
And Henry then tells her he will be
disgraced and ruined unless she con
sents to wed Lord Arthur. The dis
cussion between them takes the form

of a highly dramatic duet, the " Se^ tra-
dirmi, tu potrai" (I'm Thy Guardian).
The unequal struggle between them
is the more unequal, because with
Henry Ashton haste is necessary.
Preparations for the wedding ceremony
are already made, Lord Arthur ap
proaching while Lucy is kept helpless
by reason of the forged note. She
miserably consents to the sacrifice.

SCENE II The Great Hall of the Castle

IN a great hall of the castle, where
walls are hung with the trophies of
hunt and battle, a great concourse of
people is assembled to witness the
wedding of Lucy of Lammermoor with
Lord Arthur Bucklaw. The knights
and ladies sing a gay chorus of welcome
but the bride is so pale and agitated
that their gaiety rings false. Sir Henry
excuses her conduct to Lord Arthur on
the ground that she still mourns for
her mother. Lucy^ is escorted to a table
where the notary is preparing the mar
riage papers. Pale to the lips and al
most fainting, she is supported by her
maid, Alice ^ and the chaplain, Ray
mond. With trembling hand she signs
the document which makes her Lady
Arthur Bucklaw. No sooner has she
set down the pen, than a stranger
enters the room. All eyes are turned
upon him, in fear and amazement.
Edgar of Ravenswood^ sword in hand,
pistol in belt, stalks boldly toward the
table.

Such a dramatic moment might have
inspired a far less powerful composer
than Donizetti to produce a master-
scene, but he has made it ever-memor
able with his immortal sextette, " Chi
me frena" (What Restrains Me).

To attempt to describe this Sextette
is superfluous; only music may express
music. Its flowing melody, majestic
rhythm and gorgeous harmonies and
soaring climax are known to all; but
few realize how magnificently it

212

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

expresses in sound the conflicting emo
tions of this dramatic scene.

After it reaches its climax and dies
out in lingering tones, others find
voice, and many bid the stranger
begone. There follows the quartet,
"T J allontana, sciagurato" (Get Thee
Gone!).

Henry Ashton faces his enemy with
drawn sword, and the two are ready
for life or death. Raymond restrains
them, bidding both in Heaven's name
sheathe their weapons. Coldly Ashton
asks Ravenswood the reason of the
visit, and he displays the marriage
contract. Ravenswood, refusing to
believe his senses, then turns to Lucy
for confirmation. With her eyes fixed
upon him she tremblingly nods her
head in assent. In a furious rage,
Edgar of Ravenswood seizes the paper,
tears it to pieces, flings it at the horror-
stricken girl, and rushes from the
castle. Lucy stares after him with
unseeing eyes. What is left the girl?

ACT III

SCENE I The Tower of Ravenswood

Castle

'TpHAT night as poor Ravenswood
JL broods over his misfortunes, a
horseman rides up, dismounts and
enters the tower. It proves to be Sir
Henry y who brings a challenge. They
agree to fight to the death when morn
ing arrives, and in a duet they pray
that the night may hasten away, and
the dawn bring vengeance. This is
"O sole piu rapido" (Haste, Crimson
Morning).

Henry Ashton departs, and Ravens-
wood wanders to the burial ground of
his ancestors, where, beside the grave
of his murdered father, he finds con
solation in the thought that death, on
the morrow, may claim him, too.

SCENE II Hall in Lammermoor Castle

MEANTIME at the ^ castle, the
lights burn in the windows, and
the peasants

and domestics make

RAYMOND ANNOUNCING THE TRAGEDY ACT III

213

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

merry. Suddenly the laughter ceases
and the song dies upon their lips.
Raymond tells them that Lucy has
gone insane, and that she stands in
the bridal chamber with a bloody
sword above the corpse of hef husband.
"O qual funesto avvenimento" (Oh!
Dire Misfortune), sing they. Scarcely
has the full story been heard by the
guests when Lucy herself appears, pale
and lovely, robed in white, her hair
loose upon her shoulders. In her eyes
there is seen a strange unnatural light,
and her face wears the tender, half-
puzzled expression of one who strives
to recall a dream. Exactly as the
nerves become paralyzed when pain
is inflicted beyond the bearing point,
so, too, the tortured brain refuses to
suffer an agony too prolonged. Lucy
is mad indeed, but she is happy in her
madness, for she believes herself with
her lover. Then comes the famous
"Mad Scene."

Heard apart from the opera, this
number seems hardly more than an un
usually brilliant coloratura aria. But in
its proper setting, carolled out by the
demented Lucy amid the startled re
tainers, it takes on an ironic character
quite its own. The scales &&& fiorituri
seem what they are, the audible wan
derings of a mind distraught. The
very happiness of the music adds only
to its grim pathos. Lucy, in this strain,
reenacts the wedding-scene of the day
before, and the memories come flood
ing back. She falls insensible, and is
carried to her room by Alice and Ray
mond^ as the curtain descends.

SCENE III The Tombs oj the
Ravenswoods

BUT as the night wears on, the lights
still winking gaily from the castle
at Lammermoor, convey to the silent
watcher who stands amid the graves
of the Ravenswoods, no knowledge
of these tragic events. The young

man's despair is revealed in a lovely
number, the "Fra poco a me ricovero"
(Farewell to Earth).

The tragic pathos of the situation
has penetrated through the conven
tional form of the opera. The "dulcet
strains" of the music move like the
clock, and as inexorably. Time will
neither postpone the end, nor hasten it.
The set musical speech of the stage
Edgar, if it is not Life, it is Fate.

Edgar s only desire is to find peace
in the grave, and he calls upon "that
faithless woman" to give it a thought
as she passes by leaning on the arm of
her husband. Yet even as he, in self-
pity, heaps reproaches upon the absent
Lucy, he remarks a train of mourners
coming from the castle. His intention
had been to cast himself upon his ad
versary's sword, but he soon learns
that Henry, filled with remorse, has
left Scotland never to set foot again
upon its unhappy shores. Then he is
told of Lucy's madness and of her love
for himself. She lies, they tell him, in
the castle, at the point of death. And
even as they rehearse the story, the
sound of a tolling bell brings word that
Lucy's gentle soul has passed. As the
dawn comes, Edgar of Ravens wood sings
hisowndyingprayer that his soul may
join that of his beloved in realms remote
from the gloomy halls of Lammermoor.
"Tu che a Dio spiegasti 1'ali" (Thou
Hast Spread Thy Wings to Heaven),
sings he, in a melody of wonderful
pathos, which deepens as it proceeds.

There is none of that momentary
hope,that disbelief in misfortune, which
withholds many a man, similarly cir
cumstanced, from putting hands to his
life. The tolling bell has not lied.

Edgar Ravenswood draws a dagger
from his belt, and despite the efforts
of Raymond to prevent him, stabs him
self, and so speeds forth his soul to
that eternity from whence beckons his
beloved Lucy.

214

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian except as noted)

ACT II
SEXTETTE CHI MI FRENA

(What Restrains Me) TETRAZZINI, CA
RUSO, AMATO, JOURNET, JACOBY and
BADA 96201 12-in., 2.50

GALLI-CURCI, EGENER, CARUSO, DE
LUCA, JOURNET and BADA

10000 12-in. } 3.50

ACT III
IL DOLCE SUONO

(Mad Scene) (With Flute Obbligato)
LUISA TETRAZZINI, Soprano

6337 12-in., 2.00

NELLIE MELBA, Soprano 6219 12-in., 2.00
AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

6129 12-in., 2.00
LUCY:

I hear the breathing of his tender voice,

That voice beloved sounds in my heart forever.

My Edgar, why were we parted?

Let me not mourn thee;

See, for thy sake, I've all forsaken!

What shudder do I feel thro' my veins?

My heart is trembling, my senses faill

{She forgets her trouble and smiles.)

Come to the fountain;

There let us rest together,

Ah me! see where yon spectre arises,

Standing between us! Alas! Dear Edgar!

See yon phantom rise to part us!

(Her mood again changes.)

Yet shall we meet, dear Edgar, before the altar.

Hark to those strains celestial!

Ah! 'Tis the hymn for our nuptials!

For us they are singing!

The altar for us is deck'd thus,

Oh, joy unbounded!

'Round us the brilliant tapers are shining,

The priest awaits us,

Oh! day of gladness!

Thine am I ever, thou mine forever!

SPARGI D'AMARO PIANTO

(Cast on My Grave a Flower) (Mad
Scene Part 2) AMELITA GALLI-CURCI,
Soprano 634 10-in., 1.50

FRA POCO A ME RICOVERO

(Farewell to Earth) JOHN McCoRMACK,

Tenor 6196 12-in., 2.00

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

6189 12-in., 2.00

TU CHE A DIO SPIEGASTI L'ALI
(Thou Hast Spread Thy Wings to
Heaven) GIOVANNI MARTINELLI,
Tenor 4 6189 12-in., 2.00

JOHN McCoRMAck, Tenor

6196 12-in., 2.00

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

f Mad Scene (In Italian) Olive Kline, Soprano

\ Dinorah Shadow Song (In Italian) Olive Kline, Soprano

/Sextette (In Italian) Victor Opera Sextette\ r r/y-/-

I Rigoletto Quartet (In Italian) Victor Opera Quartet]

fSextette (Trancription) Pianoforte

I Caprice Espanol (Moszkowski) Pianoforte Charles G. SprossJ

fSextette Vessella y s Italian Band}

\ Jewels of the Madonna Intermezzo Vessellas Italian Band!

fSextette Hurtado Bros. Marimba Band\

\ A'ida Selection (Verdi) Hurtado Bros. Marimba Band!

rerranno a te sull'aura (In Italian) Pereira and Salvatn
Quartette, T'allontana, sciagurato (Get Thee Gone!) (In Italian) 168454

Pereira, Maggi, Bettoni and de Gregorio]

fPrelude (Act I, Scene II) Francis Lapitino, Harpist} ^7929

\ Norma Fantasie t Francis Lapitino, Harpist)

12-in.,
12-in.,
12-in.,

12-in.,
10-in.,

$1.50
1.50
1.25

1.25
1.25

215

LUCREZIA BORGIA

OPERA in three acts; text by
Felice Romani, from Victor
Hugo's novel. Music by Doni
zetti. First production LaScala, Milan,
1834; given at the Theatre Italien,
Paris, October 27, 1840. First
London production, June 6, 1839; in
English, December 30, 1843. Pro
duced in New Orleans, April 27, 1844;
in New York, Astor Place Opera House,
1847, and September 5, 1854, with
Maria Grisi; given in 1855 at the
Boston Theatre, with Grisi and Mario,
this being the first Italian Opera Com
pany to sing at the present Boston
Theatre; in May, 1855, Steffanone,
Brignoli and Vestvali appeared in the
opera at the Boston Theatre; and later
a long list of popular singers appeared
in Boston as Lucrezia, among them La
e,Parodi, Medori, Caro^zzi-

fact from her husband, the child having
been raised by a fisherman without
knowledge of his parents, save that
good fortune has attended him through
the mysterious influence of a mother
unknown to him, yet whom he adores.
Overcome by a desire to see her son,
Lucrezia has secretly come from Fer-
rara to Venice, is followed, unsuspect
ing, by her husband's spies.

At the rise of the curtain, Gennaro,
with his sworn friend Orsini, are
among those of^a merry party.
Gennaro however, is tired, and when
Orsini begins to express hatred and
dread of the Borgias, he drops off
asleep. The others depart, and as
they do, Lucrezia herself appears, and
gazes upon the slumbering Gennaro.
She kisses his hand and thus awakes
him. He makes love to her but,

vjrrange, JT a,ru u.i, ivjucu-^i i,>^a.x^^/-A- mm. AJ-^. iiit-viv^.^ ^^ T ~ y i i
Zucchi, Parepa Rosa, Lavielli, Tietjiens moved by impulse, tells her of his love

i TI . ._ 1 ! ~.1,~^~ ', *-. XTo.tTr "W^-lr- -v* I-MO TI t-iL'fiotxT'n mnfnpr / ^J.r.TP.^lfL

and Pappenheim; given in New^ York
in 1876, with Tietjiens and Brignoli,
and not again until Colonel Mapleson
gave a production at the Academy of
Music, October 30, 1882. The next
production did not occur until 1904
with Caruso, de Macchi, and Scotti.

CHARACTERS

LUCREZIA BORGIA (Loo-kray-

tz-yah Bor-jah) Soprano

MAFFIO ORSINI (Maf r -fee-oh

Or-see'-nee) Contralto

GENNARO (Jen-nah'-roti) Tenor

IL DUCA ALFONSO (Eel Doo'-

kah Al-fon f -soh) Baritone

LlVEROTTO, VlTELLOZZO, PETRUCCI,

GAZELLA, Young noblemen
Scene and Period: Daly; the Beginning
of the Sixteenth Century

ACT I

SCENE In Venice

T UCREZIA BORGIA, now Duchess
JLrf of Ferrara, has had a son by a

former marriage, but has concealed the

for his unknown mother. Lucrezia
listens, deeply touched, until unknown
to her, Orsini and his companions
have returned. Lucreziaweeps,
withdrawing the mask from her face
to dry her eyes. She is recognized by
Orsini as the dreaded Borgia, the
poisoner of his brother, who has
murdered his brother's sister. All,
including Gennaro, though powerless
to harm a woman of her rank de
nounce her. She is maddened at their
insults, and plans revenge upon all
save her son.

ACT II
SCENE In Ferrara

ORSINI, Gennaro and their com
panions are part of an embassy
appointed from Venice to Ferrara.
They hate the Borgias. Don Alfonso,
Duke of Ferrara, is aware of his wife's
interest in Gennaro without divining
the cause, and he is naturally jealous.
Unhappily, Gennaro in his contempt for
the Borgias deletes the letter B from

216

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

the name above the palace gate, and
Lucrezia ^ stung by the insult, demands
Instant death for the miscreant. This
furnishes the Duke opportunity for ven
geance. The bitterness of his feeling
is expressed in a well known aria:
"Vieni, la min vendetta" (Haste Thee,
for Vengeance).

The Duke has Gennaro arrested, and
great is Lucrezia s horror on discover
ing that the man whose death she
commands is her own son. She pleads
with the Duke, but only to learn of his
jealousy. She is told Gennaro must die
by dagger or by the famous Borgia
wine, a poisonous vintage. She selects
the wine, and she is compelled to
administer it while the Duke offers
Gennaro his liberty with fair promises.
Secretly, however, she gives him an
antidote which counteracts the poison
and permits him to escape.

ACT III

Scene In Venice

RELEASED from the grip of the
Borgia, Gennaro returns to his
own home. Around the gates are a
group of bravos who have been set to
watch for him. They make merry
while they wait, singing the chorus,
"Rischiarata e la finestra" (Yonder
Light is the Guiding Beacon).

Unexpectedly, however, Gennaro
falls in with his friend Orsini, who per
suades him that the attempt on his life
is a trick of Borgia* s to win his grati
tude and so make him her tool. Against
his better judgment, Gennaro is also
persuaded to attend a banquet that
night. Once there, all is gaiety.
Wine is handed round to the guests and
made the subject of the fine Brindisi, or

drinking song, "It is Better to Laugh."
While the feast is at its height, a bell
tolls, and there is heard the sound of a
chant for the dead. The lights fade
out. Hooded monks file into the room
and behind them a company of armed
men followed by Lucrezia Borgia. She
reminds them of their deadly insults in
Venice, and she informs them they
have made merry on Borgia wine. As
a reminder of its potency, curtains are
flung back, disclosing five narrow cof
fins. To her horror, however, Gennaro
steps forward and demands a sixth. As
the dying guests leave to enter the cur
tained room, Lucrezia desperately of
fers her son the phial with the last drop
of the antidote. Not being enough to
save his friends also, he refuses, even
though she makes known to him that
she is his mother. It is but to accord
him the privilege of dying in her arms.
When the Duke enters a few moments
later it is to find that she also has taken
the fatal draught, and lies beside her son.

THE VICTOR RECORDS
VIENI LA MIA VENDETTA

(Haste Thee, for Vengeance) JOSE MAR-
DON ES, Bass. In Italian 6456 12-in., $2.00
BRINDISI

(It Is Better to Laugh) ERNESTINE
SCHUMANN-HEINK, Contralto. In
German 6278 12-in., 2.00

SOPHIE BRASLAU, Contralto. In
Italian 550 10-in., 1.50

MARGARETE MATZENAUER, Contralto.
In Italian 999 ^10-in., 1.50

It is better to laugh than be sighing.

When we think how life's moments are flying;

For each sorrow Fate ever is bringing,

There's a pleasure in store for us springing.

Tho' our joys, like to waves in the sunshine,
Gleam awhile, then are lost to the sight,

Yet, for each sparkling ray

That so passes away,

Comes another as brilliant and light.

PINKERTON S JAPANESE HOME

218

MADAME BUTTERFLY

EARLY in 1900, an American pro
ducer needed a play with which
to save a rather disastrous
season, and finding possibilities in the
story, fashioned "Madame Butterfly"
in considerable haste. It was a success.
The all-night vigil was especially attrac
tive. The play then went to London,
where it was seen by the stage manager
of the Covent Garden Opera. Knowing
Puccini needed a successor to "La
Tosca," he wired the Italian composer,
who came on immediately, and fell in
love with " Madame Butterfly," though
he did not at this time, it is said,
understand a word of English.

The opera, "Madame Butterfly"
was produced at La Scala, February 17,
1904. Strange to say it was a fiasco.
It is hard to account for this save on
the ground that Italian audiences are
notoriously parochial in operatic mat
ters. They did not seem to have
relished the Japanese setting. Fiva
Italia! The opera was withdrawn,

and Puccini made a few changes,
notably omitting the all-night vigil
which had been so successful in the
play. Three months later, the work
was given a new production at Brescia,
this time with success. After a trial
performance in Washington, D. C.,
an English version ran for several
months at the Garden Theatre, New
York, under the management of the
Savage Opera Company, and a Metro-
politan performance, of course in
Italian, was given February 11, 1907.
Since then it has become one of the
most popular of all operas.

While much of this success is due to
the dramatically-conceived play, much
more is due to Puccini's music, which
attains a quality not exceeded by any
of this composer's works, and perhaps
equalled only in "La Bohme." The
composer makes free use of Japanese
themes, but he is frankly Italian, as a
rule, in the emotional parts. And in
these he is more than successful.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in two acts, a Japanese lyric
tragedy, founded on the book of
John Luther Long and the drama by
David Belasco, with Italian libretto by
Illica and Giacosa. Music by Giacomo
Puccini. First produced at La Scala,
Milan, in 1904, it proved a failure.
Revived the following year in slightly
changed form with much success. First
American presentation (in English) oc
curred in October, 1906, in Washing
ton, D. C., by Savage Opera Company.
Produced in English at the New Orleans
Opera, January 9, 1907, and in French
January 6, 1912. First representation
in Italian at Metropolitan Opera
House, February 11, 1907, with Farrar,
Caruso, Homer and Scotti, ,and from
six to eight performances have been
given each season since that time.

CHARACTERS

MADAME BUTTERFLY (Cho-

Cho-San) Soprano

SUZUKI, Cho-Cho-San's

servant Mezzo-Soprano

B. F. PINKERTON, Lieutenant in the

United States Navy. . . ; . . .Tenor
KATE PINKERTON, his American

wife Mezzo-Soprano

SHARPLESS, United States Consul

at Nagasaki. , Baritone

GORO, a marriage broker Tenor

PRINCE YAMADORI, suitor for

Cho-Cho-San Baritone

THE BONZE, Cho-Cho-San's

uncle B^s

TROUBLE, Cho-Cho-San's child,
Cho-Cho-San's relations and

friends Servants
At Nagasaki, Japan Time, the Present

219

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT I

SCENE Exterior of Pinkerton' s
House at Nagasaki

IT is all vastly amusing! This match
box of a house and its sliding panels,
convertible rooms, neat and ingenious
devices; and ridiculously inexpensive!
Pinkerton is charmed and amused as
the self-important Goro shows him over
the little house he is to share with his
"Japanese wife" during a not-too-
prolonged stay in Japan. Presently
Sharp/ess, United States Consul, turns
up. Pinkerton tells him delightedly
about the whole thing and plans the
"wedding." The consul has a dim
suspicion that the experiment may turn
out more seriously than the sailor an
ticipates, but Pinkerton will not listen
to hints of tragedy. They argue the
matter in a magnificent duet; the
"Amore o grillo" (Love or Fancy?)

Pinkerton' s share of this music is a
splendid melody which grows in life
and energy until a sudden modulation
shifts the tonality from B flat to D
flat, and it is repeated a minor third
higher in pitch, in a region calling for
the most brilliant of tenor tones.
Sharp/ess, as becomes his greater age
and dignity, is given a more dignified
part. The voices combine at the end
for a brilliant climax, when, having
filled their glasses, they drink to " folks
in America/ 1 and to the time when
Pinkerton will have a "real" wedding
back there in "God's country."

As the two men are looking out over
the glorious scenery, they see a group
of girls approaching. Among them is
Cho-Cho-San "Madame Butterfly"
herself.

The warmth and freshness of her
first melody, the entrance of Cho-Cho-
San, fully express the girl's youth and
the awakening of springtime in her
heart. Curious successions of har
monies (mostly augmented fifths) lead

to a melody which is to be heard again
in the finale of the act, in much nobler
form. The throbbing of the orchestra
perfectly symbolizes her meaning as
she tells her girl companions how she
has hastened here at the call of her
own beating heart.

Madame Butterfly is duly introduced.
She vastly entertains her American
lover with the stories of her relations;
an awkward moment is achieved when
she speaks of her dead father and the
grinding poverty of her lot since the
misfortune of his loss. A very pathetic
melody used here is heard in "leri son
salita," in a beautifully augmented
form.

Swarms of relatives now arrive and
the amused Pinkerton signs the wed
ding papers by which, for the paltry
sum of one hundred yen, he acquires
the deliciously attractive little maiden
who has come to him, arrayed in white
like a real American bride. During
the formalities she entertains him by
withdrawing from her capacious sleeves
her small possessions silk handker
chiefs, a pipe, a tiny silver buckle, a
fan, a jar of carmine, and with great
solemnity the sheath of a dagger.
The laughing Pinkerton is slightly
puzzled by the last, and seeing that it
is evidently of great importance to the
girl he asks Goro for information. It
had contained a knife sent to her
father by the Mikado. Something in
Goro's manner induces Pinkerton to
pursue the topic. "And her father?"
"Was obedient!" is the grim answer.
Pinkerton is thus suddenly reminded
that he is in a land given to seppuko,
or "hara-kiri," a condemned gentle
man's privilege to die by his own hand.
Not all is tea and incense and chrys
anthemums.

_ The girl also brings from her capa
cious sleeves her ottoke images of her
forefathers which the young officer
examines curiously. He does not take

220

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PHOTO HALL

THE MARRIAGE SCENE ACT I

them very seriously. It is then, how
ever, that the girl confides in him the
fact that she has been to the Mission
and has adopted the Christian religion.

This is the "leri son salita" (Hear
Me). The melody is an expanded form
of that which is heard softly and ten
derly during her mention of her father.
In it she pours out from her full heart,
her confession of .surrender to her
American lover. She promises him,
with infinite pathos, that she will "try
to be frugal," remembering that he has
paid for her the vast sum of a hundred
yen. Almost, she declares, she can
forget her own race and kindred for
his dear sake.

Pinkerton, we cannot help observing,
does not realize, even remotely, the
power of her devotion. To him it is
simply, a charming if casual adventure.
His chief concern is to get rid ofi the
relatives, for which purpose he plies
them with saki and cakes. As they
are about to leave, however, Madame
Butterfly's uncle rushes in, violently
enraged. He asks Madame Butterfly
what she has been doing at the Mission.
Guessing that she has forsworn her
religion, he and her relatives are in
dignant beyond measure. Her mother
intervenes, but is pushed angrily aside.

Finally they disown her altogether.
The girl stands petrified.

Having not the faintest idea what
the turmoil is all about, Pinkerton re
sents the intrusion; he eventually dis
misses the whole gathering. He is
perhaps somewhat amused; but it is
plain that Butterfly is deeply perturbed.
He comforts her, and now that they
are alone, Jie makes ardent love. Her
delightful, shy coquetry fascinates him.
Well is she named "Butterfly:' The
name, however, reminds the girl that
she has heard how, in America, butter
flies are sometimes caught and a needle
driven through their struggling bodies;
is that true? Pinkerton admits it gaily,
and says he has now captured his little
butterfly and she is his forever, no
matter how she may struggle.

In a fashion that perhaps only the
East may know, they talk on, far into
the afternoon, until the sun sets and
its gold and scarlet fires die out and
are replaced by the soft glow of moon
light. They sing the "O quanti occhi
fisi" (Oh Kindly Heavens).

The chief melody of this passionate
love-duet is a fuller and richer variant
of the melody suggested at the entrance
of Cho-Cho-San. It is a full-throated
song of love, soaring upward to a mag-

221

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

nificent mid-climax, which ultimately
quiets down till the voices almost
cease. Then, very softly, as the curtain
descends, we hear the tender melody
used at the mention of Butterfly's
father, and used again in "leri son
salita." It is the melody of Butterfly's
sacrifice, the quintessence of her love
for the man who, with such light-
hearted gaiety, goes on to amuse himself
with a Japanese wife, in .a little match
box of a house, in a ridiculously charm
ing land of tea and chrysanthemums.

ACT II

SCENE I Interior of Butterfly' s Home

at the back a Garden with Cher

ries in Bloom

years have now elapsed
JL since the wedding of Cho-Cho-San;
Pinkerton has long been back in Amer
ica ! He does not know that there is now
a little son in the match-box house, nor
is he aware that the money he left is
almost gone. Butterfly remembers how
he promised to return " when the robins
built their nests"; so far he has not
come, though the robins have built
thrice. Suzuki, the maid, insists that
she never heard of a foreign husband
who returned to his Japanese bride;
Madame Butterfly at once flies into as
royal a rage as Japanese house-eti
quette permits. At length she quiets
down somewhat, and compels the maid
to say "he will come"; but the tears
in Suzuki's eyes sadden her beyond
words. And yet somehow they serve
in the end to strengthen her faith in
his return. This finds new expression
in by far the most famous air in the
opera; the "Un bel di vedremo" (Some
Day He'll Come).

This melody, with its peculiar step-
by-step descent ^ from a high G flat
curiously wavering before each long
note^ is one of the most haunting of
Puccini's many haunting melodies, and
surely the one most strongly associated

with this opera. There are many
which might easily belong to either
"Boheme," "Tosca" or "Butterfly "
possessing a certain family resemblance
which undoubtedly blurs memory; but
this is not so with "Un bel di vedremo."
It is Madame Butterfly's own tune!

Sharp! ess comes in while the women
are discussing their affairs. He has a
difficult task to perform. He has re
ceived a letter from Pinkerton inform
ing him that there is now an American
Mrs. Pinkerton and that Butterfly is
free to seek a Japanese divorce. His
methods must be delicate, for Butterfly
has faith in her husband. She asks her
visitor how often the robins nest in
America, and the embarrassed consul
is obliged to confess that he is no orni
thologist. The question is overheard
by Goro ) who laughs outright. Madame
Butterfly, for all her affection, begins
to waver at Pinkerton s faithlessness.
Goro, however, presents Yamadori, a
wealthy but elderly Japanese who
swears he is dying for love of Butterfly.
She is more surprised than flattered;
Yamadori has had many cc consorts."
Goro withdraws with the discomfited
love-seeker, and S harpies s renews his
efforts to read the letter. This leads
into the "Ora a noi!" (Letter Duet).

After a brief introductory passage
the orchestra takes up a melody having
a distinctive rhythmic accompaniment
soon to be heard again during the all-
night vigil. The two converse to
musical phrases cleverly worked into
the tonal scheme with great ease and
naturalness.

Everything Sharpless reads is per
verted by Butterfly into a happy as
surance that her husband is soon to
return. So he is obliged, at last, to
tell her bluntly enough, that Pinkerton
wants no more to do with her. She is
furious, and she sends out for Suzuki
to show this impudent man the gate.
Her natural politeness returns, and

222

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

with it perhaps, a glimmering doubt
of Pinkerton. When Sharp/ess asks
her what she will do if he fails to return
she says, gravely, that there are two
alternatives: one is to go back and
entertain, as a professional geisha, her
friends with songs and games; the
other is to kill herself. Sharpless is
horrified, and he advises her to marry
YamadorL This restores her faith in
her husband, and to convince Sharpless
she orders Suzuki to bring Trouble
the name she has bestowed on her
little son. The consul receives a second
shock to learn that, unknown to
Pinkerton^ there is a child. The worst
of it is, Pinkerton is about to return to
Nagasaki with his American bride.

Madame Butterfly now sings a piti
ful little air to her child, the "Sai
cos' ebbe cuore" (Do You Know My
Sweet One).

She enjoins little Trouble not to
believe the bad man who says her
husband would leave her, forcing her to
wander through the streets for a living.

Sharpless is badly upset. He goes

away wondering what the outcome
will be. Soon after he has gone a
cannon shot is heard booming over the
water, announcing an American war
ship in the bay. With the help of a
telescope. Butterfly discovers it is
Pinkerton's ship. With difficulty she
makes out the vessel's name, the
"Abraham Lincoln."

So, then, the agony of waiting is
over! He has come with the robins
her lover, her husband, her adored one!
In a moment the two women are
feverishly rushing to the garden to

father cherry blossoms to deck the
ouse. They sing the joyous "Tutri i
fior " (Duet of the Flowers).

The feverish abandon and exultation
of this number make it memorable.
It throbs with excitement from start
to finish.

Butterfly hastens to put on the wed
ding dress she wore that day so long
ago, so that she may greet her lover
as he first knew her. It is white, the
color worn only for love and death.

But night is falling, and as it is un-

COPY'T MISHKIN

DESTINN AS BUTTERFLY

COPY T DUPONT

THE LETTER FROM PINKERTON,

ACT H (GERALDINE FARRAR)

223

COPY T MISHKIN

MARTIN AS PINKERTON

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

likely Pinkerton will come before the
morrow, Butterfly > Trouble^ and the
maid Suzuki take their places at the
window and the long night vigil com
mences. As it begins, the waiting
motive (a sustained melody with a
peculiarly haunting rhythmic accom
paniment) is heard in the orchestra,
together with distant voices of the
sailors on the vessel in the harbor.
This music is included in the recorded
"Fantaisie" by Victor Herbert's Or
chestra.

SCENE II Same as in Preceding

IT is daybreak. Suzuki, exhausted,
is sleeping, but Butterfly still watches
the pathway leading up the hill. The
maid awakens, and insists that her
mistress take some rest. She promises
to call her when the Lieutenant ar
rives. While Butterfly sleeps, however,
her husband comes with Sharpless.
Pinkerton is deeply touched at finding
that Butterfly has been faithful, and
that a child has been born.

Suzuki beholds a lady in the garden,
wearing European dress, and she learns
that it is Pinkerton s American wife,
Kate. She is horrified and she justly
dreads the effect of this news upon her
mistress. Weeping, she goes to Butter
fly's chamber, while the friends are
left to their bitter reflections. These
find expression in a powerful duet,
44 Ve lo dissi?" (Did J Not Tell You?)
It is in semi-recitative, an admirable
example of modern musical dialogue,
made intimate with rich harmonies
and fluent counterpoint. Pinkerton
seems a broken man, and the Consul
again reminds him to beware lest the
heart of Butterfly suffer likewise.

Suzuki returns, and the duet leads
into a fine trio, "Lo so che alle sue
pene" (Naught Can Console Her).

Here the accompaniment is fuller
and more melodic, and the three singers
converse in especially tuneful phrases.

Pinkerton is conscious of the decora
tions, the cherry-blossoms so lavishly
scattered about the little match-box
house where he had found so much
happiness in days gone by. But they
leave before Butterfly comes, and in
stead of Pinkerton she meets Kate.

The introduction of Kate into this
act has been somewhat criticised, and
her role is usually omitted in French
productions. She is kindly and sym
pathetic, and she offers to adopt
Trouble if Butterfly so wills it.
Butterfly learns that Pinkerton has
been married a year, and she is sure
now, that Pinkerton s love for her is
dead.

With this fact certain, and with the
welfare of her child made certain, the
conviction slowly dawns upon the mind
of the wretched Butterfly that she, and
she alone, stands in the light of Pinker-
ton s complete happiness. There is
therefore only one thing she can do.
She takes down the dagger with which
her father has fulfilled the iron law of
his race, and she reads the inscription
written upon its blade: "To die with
honor when one can no longer live
with honor." Then comes the grand
"Finale Ultimo" (Butterfly's Death
Scene).

This affords a wonderful end. In
the orchestra, American motives are
strangely mingled with Japanese
themes, notably the theme usually
associated with Butterfly's mystical
fear of her ancestors. At the close,
however, a stern Japanese melody,
thundered out in octaves by the whole
orchestra, with occasional chords to
fix the tonality, gains the day. The
final chord of the opera is arresting to
an extraordinary degree. Many music-
lovers are curious regarding it, and
they may be interested to know it is
simply a first inversion of the sub-
mediant chord of the prevailing key,
B minor. Instead of the chord, B, D,

224

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PHOTO BYRON

(Homer) (Farrar)

MADAME BUTTERFLY ACT H, SCENE II

F sharp the ear has learned to expect,
it hears B, D, G 3 the G making all the
difference.

The end of the opera soon is told.
Butterfly seats her child on a little
cushion, giving him a doll and an
American flag to play with while she
gently bandages his eyes. She then
goes behind a screen from which hangs
a long white veil. The knife is heard
to fall, and the veil disappears. A
moment later and Butterfly with the
veil about her neck, drags herself
toward her child. As she reaches him
with a last effort of her failing strength,
Sharpless and Pinkerton rush in. With
a feeble gesture the dying Butterfly
points to the child and expires. Pinker-
ton kneels beside her stunned with
horror, and Sharpless takes to his
knees the child, still playing content
edly with the American flag. Then,
as that stupendous Japanese melody
rings out from the orchestra, the cur
tain falls. Pinkerton has learned.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian except as noted)

ACT I

AMORE O GRILLO

(Love or Fancy?) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor and ANTONIO SCOTTI, Baritone

8014 12-in., 2.50

ENTRANCE OF BUTTERFLY

(Ancora un passo) GERALDINE FARRAR,

Soprano 616 10-in., 1.50

FRANCES ALDA, Soprano 528 10-in., 1.50

IERI SON SALITA

(Hear What I Say) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano 616 10-in., 1.50

O QUANTI OCCHI FISI

(Oh Kindly Heavens) GERALDINE

FARRAR and ENRICO CARUSO

8011 12-in., 2.50
FRANCES ALDA and GIOVANNI MARTI-

NELLI 8002 12-in., 2.50

ACT II

UN BEL DI VEDREMO

(Some Day He'll Come) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano 6110 12-in., 2.00

225

V1CTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

FRANCES ALDA, Soprano 6037 12-in., $2.00

FRANCES ALDA, Soprano 8044 12-in., 2.50
AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

6130 12-In., 1.50

ORA A NOI

(Now at Last) (Letter Duet) GERALDINE
FARRAR,Soprano and ANTONIO SCOTTI,
Baritone 8039.. 12-in., 2.50

SAI COS* EBBE CUORE

(Do You Know, My Sweet One)
GERALDINE FARRAR, Soprano

617 IQ-in., 1.50

TUTTI I FIOR

(Duet of the Flowers) FRANCES ALDA,
Soprano and SOPHIE BRASLAU, Con
tralto 8044 12-in., 32.50

VE LO DISSI?

(Did I Not Tell You?) ENRICO CARUSO
and ANTONIO SCOTTI 8014 12-in., 2.50

LO SO CHE ALLE SUE PENE

(Naught Can Console Her) MARTIN,
FORNIA and SCOTTI 87503 10-in., 1.25

BUTTERFLY'S DEATH SCENE

(L'ultima scena) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano 617 10-in., 1.50

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

/Madame Butterfly Selection, No. 1 ......................... Pry >or 's B an d

[ Bartered Bride Overture (Smetana) ....................... Pry or s Band]

/Madame Butterfly Selection, No. 2 .......... . .............. Fryer's -^ 35331

\ Tannhauser Selection (Wagner) ........... ............... Pry or s Bandj

12-in., 1.25

[Madame Butterfly Fantasie Rosario Bourdon, 'C

\ La Boheme Selection (Puccini] Vesselltfs Italian .

{O quanti occhi fisi (Oh! Kindly Heavens) Olive Kline, Soprano}
Paul Althouse, Tenor [55058 12-in., 1.50
Aida Fuggiam g/i ardori (Verdi) Marsh-Althouse\

I Madame Butterfly Fantasie Victor Herbert's Orchestral

I "Some Day He'll Come" "Waiting Music," Act II "Indeed, My U
I Friend, You're Lucky," Act I Duet, Act I * 'Oh, Kindly Heavens '* |
[ A Dream of Love (Liszt) Victor Herbert's Orchestra]

[Some Day He'll Come (In English] ....... ....... Agnes Kimball, Soprano

\ MarthaSpinning Wheel Quartet ................. Victor Opera Quartet

12-in., 1.25

12-in., 1.50

i rn
1 ' iu

PHOTO BYRON

FARRAR AND HOMER IN ACT II

226

PHOTO WHITE

MADELEINE DINES WITH HER MOTHER

MADELEINE

ERIC opera in one act. Text by
Grant Stewart,based upon a
short French play, Je dine chez
ma Mere, by Decourcelles and Thibaut,
long a standard work on the French
stage. Music by Victor Herbert. First
performance at the Metropolitan Opera
House, New York, January 24, 1914,

CHARACTERS AND ORIGINAL
CAST

MADELEINE FLEURY (Mah-duh-layn f
Fluh-ree), prim a donna Frances Alda

NICHETTE (Nee~shet r ), her maid

Leonora Sparkes

CHEVALIER DE MAUPRAT (duh
Moh-praJi) Antonio Pini-Corsi

FRANQOIS (Frahn-zwah) , Due
d'Esterre Paul Althouse

DIDIER (Dee-dee-ay)) a painter

Andrea de Segurola

Time and Place: Salon of Madeleine's

House y Paris; New Years Day, 1770

THE OPERA

/CONTINUING the policy, begun
\_j in 1900, of making an annual pro
duction of an opera by an American
composer, the management of the Met
ropolitan Opera House brought out on
January 24, 1914, this new one-act
opera by Victor Herbert. Mr. Stew
art's English text is familiar in Mrs.
Burton Harrison's playlet, frequently
given by amateurs.

Nichette, the maid, is in high spirits
as she receives the many gifts for Made
leine, for today is New Year's day,
which all good French people spend at
home. She and the lackeys arrange
the presents, but scuttle out when
Madame herself appears with that an
cient beau, the Chevalier de Mauprat.
Madeleine admires the beautiful brace
let he has made for her, ^and she
begs him to dine. But alas! it is impos
sible. Today he dines with his mother.

227

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Good naturedly the prima donna ac
cepts the excuse, for nothing can alter
his decision, not even a quail with
truffles and fresh asparagus. As he
bows himself out, she asks Nichette if
Didier, the artist, has yet brought the
picture of her mother which he has been
restoring. He has not. Madeleine is dis
appointed, but she is very happy. She
doubles the servants' wages. A com
motion outside announces her lover,
Fran f pis y with a gift of four high-
stepping English thoroughbreds. Made
leine is enraptured, and begs Francois
to dine with her. But Francois, too,
must dine at home. Madeleine is dis
tinctly annoyed; her invitations to dine
are not usually so treated. But Fran-
gois is firm. She insists, threatening
to close the door upon him forever if he
will not dine with her today. Gravely
he declines, for today is sacred. He
loves her. Tomorrow morning he must
fight a duel for her sweet sake with the
Baron de Fontanges, but today he dines
with his mother. Now fairly enraged,
Madeleine bids him begone, vowing she
will invite the Baron and wish him luck
for the morrow. No sooner does Fran
cois go than she writes her letter. But
even the Baron declines, for the same
reason that the others gave. The
singer is now determined to have some
body dine with her, and she invites
Nichette. The trembling maid, how
ever, reminds her that today of all days
it is impossible, Madame has given her
leave,, and her parents are expecting
her. Madeleine grows almost hysteri
cal. She dismisses the maid, she dis
misses all her servants who stand help
lessly about as she walks to and fro like
the proverbial caged panther. In the
midst of all, Didier arrives with the

picture of her mother. The now weep
ing Madeleine confides her sorrows to
this old friend of her youth. Treating
her like a child, he finally assuages her
tears. But of course he cannot accept
her invitation to dine, as today he dines
at home. Will she not dine with him ?
Eagerly she accepts. Nichette enters in
tears to say good-bye, but Madeleine
reinstates her, reinstates all the ser
vants. She borrows one of Nichette' *s
dresses, for she must not appear too
grand before Didier's peasant parents.
As she does, she realizes it is unfair to
intrude on Didier s humble abode
under false pretences at such a time.
She decides she will dine at home. Ni
chette returns to say that she has told
the circumstances to her mother, who
gives her permission to dine with Ma
dame. But the now radiant Made
leine sends her home again, reaffirming
her intention to double the salaries of
her servants. She kisses Didier a ten
der good-bye, and sits down at the
table, placing the restored portrait in
front of her. She, too, will dine with
her mother! And tomorrow she will
forgive Francois. As she sits there
alone, a last ray of the waning sun
strikes through the window upon the
portrait, and lovely strains of soft
music from the orchestra make us feel
what is in the heart of this spoiled yet
altogether lovable child.

The noted composer has given us
some characteristically charming melo
dies in this opera, notably Madeleine's
air, "A Perfect Day." But there are
others, too, in abundance.

THE VICTOR RECORD

A PERFECT DAY

FRANCES ALDA, Soprano 6370 12-in., 32.00

228

PHOTO WHITE

THE GREAT INVOCATION SCENE

THE MAGIC FLUTE

MOZART wrote and produced
"The Magic Flute" in 1791,
the year of his death. He
wrote it to help Schickaneder, an
actor-manager-musician of highly
mingled virtues and vices, who yet had
the gift of winning friends. This
musical extravaganza (for that is
what it really is) was highly successful,
and it relieved Schickaneder from his
financial straits. It is the more extra
ordinary, therefore, that this manage
rial upstart could not see his way to
help Mozart in his distress; for while
the cheery people of Vienna flocked
nightly to see the amazing "show"
and to hear the master's incomparable
music, Mozart lay dying in deepest
poverty. Within a few hours of his
last breath he wished he might conduct
another performance of the work, and
he smiled when, at his request, some
body sang Papageno' *s air. Yet Mozart
was laid in a pauper's grave, which has
never since been located, while Schicka
neder waxed fat. So humanity con

serves chaff and throws the wheat to
the four winds of Heaven.

THE OPERA

OPERA in two acts. Libretto
by Schickaneder, adapted from
a tale by Wieland, "Lulu; or the
Magic Flute/' Music by Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart. First produced
in Vienna, September 30, 1791, Mozart
directing. First Paris production as
"Les Mystires d*Isis" August 20, 1801.
First London production, in Italian,
in 1811; in German, 1833; in English,
1838. FirstNew York production
April 17, 1833, at the Park Theatre, in
English, and not again until November
21, 1859, when it was given at the
German Theatre in Italian. Later
productions included that of 1876,
with Carlotta Patti; at the Grand
Opera House, with di Murska, Lucca
and Ronconi; and at the Academy
with Gerster.

The latest revival was at the
Metropolitan in 1912 3 with Destinn,

229

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Hempel, Homer, Slezak and Lambert
Murphy.

CHARACTERS

SARASTRO (Sahr-ass r -troh),Yi\g}i Priest

of Isis Bass

TAMINO (Tah-mee'-noh), an

Egyptian Prince Tenor

PAPAGENO (Pap-ah-jay f -noti),

a bird-catcher Baritone

THE QUEEN OF NIGHT Soprano

PAMINA (Pam-ee'-naK), her

daughter Soprano

MONOSTATOS (Moh-noh-stat'-

oss), a Moor, chief slave

of the Temple Baritone

PA PAGE NA (Pap-ah-jay-nah) . . Soprano

Three Lady Attendants of the Queen;

Three Boys belonging to the

Temple; Priests and Priest
esses; Slaves; Warriors;
Attendants, etc.

The Action occurs at the Temple of Isis

at Memphis, about the Time of

Rameses I

ACT I

INTO a rocky territory, a mysterious
region which supplies a foreground
to the Temple of the Queen of Night,
the Japanese prince Tamino has been
chased by a huge serpent. Separated
from his friends, alone with this
dreadful creature, amid such ominous
surroundings, and desperately fatigued,
he falls into a faint. Three maidens
from the castle, veiled attendants of
the Queen,, slay the serpent and depart.
When Tamino recovers, he finds the
serpent dead, and no one near; yet
from the rocks there comes the piping
of a syrinx. Tamino hides, to see the
performer, who is none other than the
bird-catcher, Papageno, picturesquely
arrayed in birds' feathers. In a merry
song this odd-looking creature de
scribes his calling, and Tamino, gather
ing courage, steps forth to make his
acquaintance. Papageno is not of a

nature to deny his own importance
and he indicates that he has slain the
serpent. He is somewhat dismayed,
therefore, by the sudden return of the
veiled ladies, who berate him for
boastfulness, and lock up his loose
mouth with a huge padlock. To
Tamino, however, they are all smiles.
They let him see a miniature portrait
of Pamina, the lovely daughter of the
Queen of Night, who has been taken off
by Sarastro, the Priest of Isis, here
represented as a most evil being.
Tamino falls in love with the picture,
and offers to restore Pamina to her
mother. A burst of thunder, which
nearly kills off the muzzled Papageno,
announces the Queen of Night, who
promises that if Tamino is successful
his reward shall be the princess.
As Papageno wishes to adventure
with his new friend, in the hope of
finding a suitable mate for him
self, the padlock is removed, and
he is given a magical chime of bells to
help him on his dangerous journey.
At the same time, Tamino is presented
with the Magic Flute, whose music
endows him with rather more than
the powers of that Orpheus whose
music made the very trees bow their
heads. In addition three genii, lovely
boys who are "young, beautiful, pure
and wise," are told off to act as hidden
yetpowerful guardians. It is these three
youths who are so unceremoniously
made over into servants of Sarastro
in the next act, without notice being
served on the opera's hearers. Thus
armed and equipped, the two set off.
The interesting quintette in which
these doings are told is said to have
been planned by Mozart during a
game of billiards, to which it appears
he was at least as fond as was the
philosopher Herbert Spencer.

The scene changes to a room in the
Castle of Sarastro, where Pamina is
in charge of the Moor, Monostatos.

230

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

This gentleman has been placed in
solemn wardship over the girl by the
High Priest, but he breaks faith by
making love to Pamina, who lies in
chains, weeping. Just as the Moor is
about to woo her, however, Papageno
enters. The Moor is as scared by the
feathered man of the woods, as the
bird-catcher is by the Moor's black
face. They run from one another.
But Papageno y first recovering spirits,
returns to comfort Pamina with the
tale of Tamino's quest, and his deep
love for her. They then sing a charm
ing duet, "La dove prende" (Smiles
and Tears). This delightful number,
with its grace and inimitable gaiety,
introduces the melody of an old song,
"Bei Mannern."

Meantime the three genii lead
Tamino into a beautiful grove, where
are three temples dedicated to Wisdom,
Nature and Reason. Admonished to
be "steadfast, patient and silent,"
he is left alone in this sacred and
mysterious place. He then knocks at
each of the temple doors. Entrance
is sternly denied him at the first two.
From the Temple of Wisdom, however,

steps an aged priest, from whom he
learns that he is at the abode of
Sarastro, and that admission is re
fused anyone whose heart entertains
hatred or the desire for vengeance.
He remonstrates, but is told that he
has been deceived by a woman of
evil omen, and that Pamina has been
removed for her own good. He cannot
even learn if the girl is living, for the
priest is bound to silence by an oath..
Voices from the temples, however,
answer his question in the affirmative,
he learns that he may be admitted
only by solemn initiation. Beginning,
in his delight, to play upon his magic
flute, he soon draws about him the
strange creatures of the wood. Papa-
geno comes with Monostatos y but they
are set upon by Pamina and her slaves.
Papageno, by his magic chime, compels
the girls to dance, and leads them
away. ThusPamzna and Tamino
meet. Solemn strains of music are
heard, and soon the High Priest,
Sarastro himself, appears. He agrees
to unite them but only after they
have been proven worthy. They
kneel before him, their heads are veiled,

COPY'T DUPONT

GAD SKI AS PAMINA

PHOTO BERT

PAPAGENA AND PAPAGENO

231

PHOTO WIIXINCER

PAPAGENO

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

and they are ushered into the Temple
of Probation as the curtain descends.

ACT II

BEFORE a great gathering of the
Elect, in a forest before the Temple
of Wisdom, the lovers are initiated.
The priests assemble, and Sarastro
sings the magnificent "Invocation"
(Great Isis), praying the gods Isis
and Osiris to give strength to the
neophytes.

The stately melody, with its solemn
harmonies, enhanced by the sombre
coloring of the deeper-toned orchestral
instruments of the orchestra, affords
an indeed impressive number.

The priests accept them, their
promotion being announced by three
trumpet calls like those heard in the
Overture. Papageno is also admitted,
as a probationer. Tamino and his
comrade are solemnly warned against
the deceitfulness of women, and their
trials begin. They are left alone but
a short while when the Queen of Night
magically appears with her three veiled
attendants. She thinks to terrify them
with stories of the priests. Papageno,
at least, is affected. Voices from
within, however, proclaim the sanctity
of the temple, and the ladies disappear.
Pamina also is tempted by the Queen
of Night y who rises from the earth and
gives her a dagger, telling her that she
must slay Sarastro if she will have
Tamino. Pamina hesitates, and her
mother threatens vengeance upon all,
in the terrifyingly dramatic "Aria
della Regina" (The Queen's Air).

This is famous not only for its beauty
but for its extreme technical difficulty,
more especially for its remarkable
range. It was specially composed by
Mozart for his sister-in-law, who first
played the role.

The Queen is confronted by the
entrance of Sarastro^ who declares that
in punishment her daughter shall

marry Tamino. He then sings a noble
air, justly considered one of the finest
of basso numbers, the "Qui sdegno
non s'accende" (Within These Sacred
W 7 alls).

Meantime the probationary trials of
Tamino and Papageno continue. They
are taken into a large hall and told to
keep silent till they hear a trumpet
call. The bird-catcher begins chatter
ing with an old woman, but a thunder
clap reduces him to terrified silence.
The three genii bring a table of food,
and the flute and bells, and he is at
once restored. The hardest trial for
Tamino is when Pamina is suffered to
pass through, and, unaware of his
compulsory silence, is led to believe
that he has ceased to care for her.
She expresses her grief in a pathetic
little air: "Ach ich fiihl's, es ist
verschwunden " (My Happiness Has
Flown). The girl is distressed; she tries
to kill herself, but she is prevented by
the three genii, who, by order of
SarastrO) assure her that all will end
well. Other trials await the neophytes,
a lion appears, but is tamed by
Tamino 's flute; the youth is condemned
to walk for a space through flood and
flame, for which he enters a subter
ranean cave, guarded by two men in
armor; and there is much more fantasy
of the pantomimic order, accompanied
by divinely beautiful music. In the
end, however, the lovers are united
in the sacred temple. The Queen and
her accomplices try to prevent the
ceremony, but the scene suddenly
changes to the Temple of the Sun,
where Sarastro is seen on his throne
with Tamino and Pamina beside him,
while the baffled Queen sinks into the
earth. Papageno also is made happy,
when the old woman he talked with is
magically changed into the charming
Papagena, arrayed in bird-feathers
like himself. Out of this farrago is
built a magnificent opera.

232

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT II
INVOCATION

(Great Isis) POL PLAN^ON, Bass

(Piano ace.) 6371 12-in., 32.00

MARCEL JOURNET, Bass In French

699 10-in., 1.50

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung In Italian unless noted)

Great Isis, great Osiris!

Strengthen with wisdom's strength this tyro

pair;
Ye who guide steps where deserts lengthen,

Brace theirs with nerve, your proof to bear!
Grant them probation's fruit all living;

Yet, should they find a grave while striving,
Think on their virtues, gracious gods,
Take them elect to your abodes!

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

fO Isis und Osiris (Chorus of Priests, "Grand Isis!") (In German)

Huguenots Coro dl Soldati (Soldiers* Chorus] (In Italian}

Metropolitan Opera Chorus

45051 IQ-in., 31.00

Metropolitan Opera Chorus.

f Magic Flute Overture Part I Victor Symphony Orchestral* an--, t/x - T

IMagic Flute Overture Part II Victor Symphony Orchestral ' 15 5 L lu - m -> J

PHOTO WHITE THE HIGH PRIEST BLESSING THE LOVERS

233

FARRAR

AS MANON

MANON

MUCH of this opera was com
posed by Massenet in the
summer of 1882, in the very
room in which the Abbe Prevost had
lived in The Hague. "His bed," Mas
senet remarks, "a great cradle shaped
like a gondola, was still there." No
doubt these surroundings aided him to
create Manon, one of the loveliest and
most pathetic figures in all opera, as
she is in French literature. There is so
much natural, spontaneous girlishness
and grace about her that the misfor
tunes which befall the girl, even though
they come about by her own self-indul
gence, seem like enormous crimes. In
the eyes of the moralist there was no
excuse for Manon , yet she was none the
less beautiful. Her siren-loveliness led
men to their destruction, yet no man
could quarrel with her. Des Grieux
not only loved her, but understood her.
He knew that she loved pretty things
to wear, sparkling gems, silks and sat
ins, better than she loved him, yet he
sinned, as men so often sin, for her sake
bringing down disgrace upon himself
and ruin upon others. And the charm
of her held him to the last. He offered
her gold for her silver, reckless love for
petty affection which was all she was
capable of giving. Tragedy followed.

Possibly alone among modern com
posers could Massenet deal with this
modern Helen of Troy. In his subtly-
wrought score she stands forth, frail
and lovely as in the Abbe's novel. We
do not need his reminiscences to tell us
that he long desired to write an opera
about her. He was born to the task.

The opera remains one of his great
est achievements; and it is pleasant to
think that he reaped from it some bene
fit during his lifetime. In his memoirs,
written shortly before his death, he re
fers to the 763rd performance of the
work. Surely a remarkable record !

Massenet and his librettist departed
considerably from the details related by
the Abbe Prevost, notably in having
Manon die in the arms of Des Grieux in
Havre instead of in that impossible,
dry "vast plain" so unceremoniously
dumped into the swamps of Louisiana.
In such a work as this, though, mechan
ics matter little. It is Manon alone
that. counts. The external mechan
isms of the plot are merely designed to
reveal her character, and Massenet,
seeing this, wisely adapts them to the
modern theatre. Massenet has his
critics, but none denies to him that
acute dramatic sense which seems to be
every Frenchman's natural birthright.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in four acts. Words by
Meilhac and Gille, after the
novel of Abbe Prevost. Music by
Jules Massenet. First production
at the Opera Comique, Paris, January
19, 1884; at Brussels,^March 15, 1884.
First London production May 7, 1885;
in English by the Carl Rosa Company,
at Liverpool, January 17, 1885. In
French at Covent Garden, May 19,
1891; in^ Italy at Milan, October 19,
1893. First American production at

New York, December 23, 1885, at the
Academy of Music, with Minnie Hauk,
Giannini and Del Puente. First New
Orleans production January 4, 1894.
Some notable revivals were: in 1895
with Sybil Sanderson and Jean de
Reszke; in 1896, with Melba and de
Reszke; in 1899 with Sayille, Van Dyk,
Dufriche and Plangon; in 1909, at the
Metropolitan, with Caruso, Farrar,
Scotti and Note; and in 1912, with
Caruso, Farrar, Gilly and Reiss.

235

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

CHARACTERS

CHEVALIER DES GRIEUX (Day

Gree-uh) Tenor

COUNT DES GRIEUX, his father. . . . Bass

LESCAUT (Les-koh), Manon's
cousin, one of the Royal Guard

Baritone

GUILLOT MORFONTAIN (MoJlT-

fon-tahn)) a roue, Minister of
France Bass

DE BRETIGNY (Duh Bray-teen'-
ye}) a nobleman Baritone

MANON (Mahn'-ori)) a school

girl Soprano

People, Actresses and Students

Time and Place: 1721; Amiens^ Paris,
Havre

ACT I

SCENE Courtyard of an Inn at Amiens

IN this age of the railway, we are
prone to forget how great a part in
the life of the people of the past was
played by the inn. It was the gather
ing place of the convivial, the depot for
travellers and the meeting place of
friends. Among the crowd gathered to
meet the coach in the Inn Courtyard is
Lescaut^ who has come to meet his
cousin Manon y and to escort her to a
convent. Lescaut is a soldier, and a
good deal of a rascal. He is pleasur-
ably surprised to find his cousin as
charming as she is unsophisticated.
He accepts her proffered lips in cousinly
greeting, and he hastens within to
engage rooms.

No sooner has he gone than the old
roue Guillot trots out and begins to pay
court to the girl. Manon is amused
and a trifle flattered. Others of the
crowd make game of the old libertine,
who is not easily thwarted. He is
called away, however, by Eretigny^ his
travelling companion. Among those

who remark Manon are three girls of
doubtful character, beautifully cos
tumed. Their fine apparel is not lost
upon Manon y who thinks between sighs
and tears of her own sad lot, and her
approaching gray life in a convent.
Her musings are interrupted by Des
GrieuXy who now approaches and pays
his own addresses. The famous duet
follows, "Et je sais votre nom" (If I
Knew Your Name). The two quickly
become acquainted, and in the passion
ate climax it is evident their attraction
is to be a strong one. The story con
tinues in the "Non, votre liberte ne sera
pas ravie" (You Shall Remain Free).

A carriage previously placed at the
disposal of the young girl by the infat
uated Guillot unexpectedly draws near;
intoxicated with her new-found love,
she suggests they fly together to Paris.
Des Grieux joyfully agrees and in their
second duet, the "Nous vivrons a
Paris" (We Will Go to Paris), they
carol rapturously of their life together.
Presently Manon hears the voice of her
cousin, Lescaut) and the two jump into
the carriage and depart.

Lescaut comes out of the inn grum
bling. He has lost his money. He is
soon to learn that he has lost his cousin
also. Guillot appears, and the angry
soldier accuses him of having taken off
Manon. A crowd assembles to watch
the fun, but the innkeeper tells them
that Manon has departed with a young
man. "Listen!" he says, and faintly
they hear the rattle and the galloping
hoof-beats of the departing coach.

ACT II

SCENE Apartment of Des Grieux and
Manon in Paris

DES GRIEUX is writing at a desk
while Manon is looking over his
shoulder. He is writing to his father
and trembles for fear the old man may
read in anger what he writes from

236

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

his heart. "Afraid ?" says Manon. "Ah
well, then well read it together." Then
follows the well-known "On Fappelle
Manon" (She Is Called Manon). It is
a charming duet, beginning with a
simple and charming melody.

Some little glint of Manon's weak
ness is visible in her answer to his glow
ing phrase, "In her eyes shines the ten
der light of love." "Is this true?"
asks Manon. Des Grieux is .soon to
ask himself that same question. As he
passes to go out, he remarks a bouquet
of flowers mysteriously left for Manon.
She returns only an evasive answer to
his questions. The servant declares
that two soldiers are without, dressed
in guardsman's uniforms. As Des
Grieux,) somewhat perturbed by the
sight of the flowers, opens the door to
leave, the two soldiers enter. One is
Lescaut, the other Bretigny y who has
been at the Inn at Amiens and has no
ticed Manon s beauty. Lescaut loudly
demands satisfaction of Des Grieux for
the abduction of his cousin. Des
Grieux takes him off, and shows him the

letter to his father, as proof of his hon
orable intentions. Bretigny, left with
Manon, makes the best or his time. He
tells her that Des Grieux is to be carried
off by his own father that night, and he
urges her to fly with him. Knowing
that Bretigny can give her the pretty
things for which her heart so longs,
Manon hesitates and is lost. Lescaut
again becomes vociferous, but this time
over his pretended satisfaction at Des
Grieux* s intentions toward the girl. He
departs with Bretigny.

Des Grieux also goes out to mail his
letter. Manon, left to herself, strug
gles with the temptation that has come
to her but the struggle is brief, as her
pathetic little song reveals: "Adieu
notre petite table" (Farewell, Our Lit
tle Table) sings Manon. Farewell to
her love of a day off with the old love
and on with the new! The peculiar
wistful charm of this melody, the play
of light and shadow between the major
and minor harmonies of its accompani-
ment, make it a typical Massenet
aria, French in form and content.

COPY'T MISHON
DE SEGUROLA AS LESCAUT

COPY'T DUPONT

ALDA AS MANON

237

CLEMENT AS DES GRIEUX

VICTRQLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

SCENE II Reception Room at St.
Sulpice

THE Count is before her. He does
his utmost to persuade the boy to
give up his notion of a holy life. Is
he to tell the people at home that they
have a "saint in the family?" He
pleads, he grows bitter, he grows cyni
cal; he is everything but impolite, and
that he cannot be. But it is all to no
purpose. Des Grieux, left alone, sings
a melody of altogether haunting love
liness, the "Ah! fuyez, douce image !"
"Dispar, vision ! ' ' (Depart, Fair Vision !) .
The consciousness of Manon obsesses
the youth even here, where the soul
within him cries out for peace.

Des Grieux leaves the reception-room
for the quiet of his own cell, but scarcely
has he gone when Manon appears,
delicately shuddering at the gloomy
walls and wondering if her lover has
quite forgotten her. She sends the
porter in search of him. Somewhere
in the place a choir is heard practicing
a Magnificat, and Manon, always af
fected by her surroundings, begins to
pray also. By the time Des Grieux
arrives she has worked herself up into
a fine mood of repentance. He is sur-

B-ised to see her. "Toil Vous!" (Thou
ere!) exclaims he.

Des Grieux chides her for her perfidy,
but he asks Heaven for strength to re
sist her pleadings. He well may ; for her
mood of repentance is no less charm
ing than all her other moods, and Des
Grieux, monk or no monk, is a young
man in love. The more he resists the
more she pleads. "N'est-ce plus la
main?" (Is it Not My Hand?) signal
izes the real climax of their meeting,
and it works into a fine frenzy of pas
sion. Des Grieux can resist no longer.
"Ah\Manon!'\ he cries. "No longer will
I struggle against myself!" And they
depart together. Love is stronger than
determination, and impulse stronger
than reason. Fate is stronger than all.

Tears come into Manoris eyes, but at
the return of Des Grieux she tries to
hide them. He sees them, none ^ the
less, and tries to comfort her. He sings
the familiar "II sogno" "Le Reve"
(The Dream).

Very tenderly, to a soft, murmurous
accompaniment, he describes the little
home he plans to share with her. But a
knock at the door halts the dream, and
Manon starts guiltily. "Oh Heaven,"
she cries, "already they have come
for him." She tries to prevent her
lover from opening the door, but he in
sists, and before Manon s suddenly re
pentant eyes he is captured and borne
off. She gives way freely to her grief
and despair.

ACT III

SCENE I A Street in Paris on a Fete
Day

A BIG crowd of holiday-makers, with
the usual peddlers, and small-fry
entertainers, are in the streets. Lescaut
enters, and later Manon, accom
panied by de Bretigny. Her beauty
is remarked by the people about her,
and the flattery goes to her foolish
head. She is in a gay mood, reckless,
daring, but always delightful. She
sings a fine vocal gavotte, "Obeissons
quand leur" (Hear the Voice of Youth).
A stranger approaches. He proves
to be an old friend of Bretigny, and a
gentleman of some significance to
Manon. It is the Comte de Grieux,
father of Manon s erstwhile lover. He
vouchsafes the information that his son
is about to enter a monastery. Bretigny
is incredulous, and begs him to explain.
"Heaven attracts him," says the Count
with a shrug. Manon knows better.
She determines to go and see him, and
calls Lescaut, bidding him take her
there. Puzzled, he demurs; but
Manon, petulant, repeats that he is to
take her to St. Sulpice. And to St.
Sulpice this singular couple go.

238

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT IV

SCENE A Gambling Room in Paris

IN a gambling-house in Paris, Guillot
and Lescaut are playing amid a mob
of croupiers and fellow-punters. But
everything stops when Manon enters
with Des Grieux. He is sad, and
Manon rallies him. She responds to
the peculiar environment of the gamb
ling-den as readily as she did to that of
the monastery, and now she is all se
duction. Des Grieux is tempted. Elu
sive as quicksilver ordinarily, never
was Manon more soft, more siren-like
than tonight. As ever, he is compelled
to yield and he soon engages Guillot in
a game for heavy stakes. He wins, and
they play again. Always, with Manon
to help him, he beats his rival, who
soon comes to believe that he is being
cheated. There is a great scene; but
finally Guillot leaves. Manon desires
to go, too, but Des Grieux insists that
if they go now it may seem as though
Guillofs charges are true.

Soon there is a knocking at the door,
and the police enter with Guillot L , who
gives in charge both Manon and Des
Grieux. Nor is that all, for among those
who come with the police is the Comte
des GrieuX) the young man's father,
shocked beyond measure at the sight of
his son in such circumstances, so soon
after he had left him at the priory.

ACT V

SCENE On the Road to Havre
qpHROUGH the influence of his
JL father, Des Grieux has been re
leased. Indeed, he appears to be guilt
less, for Massenet's librettists are more
merciful than the Abbe Prevost and
the Des Grieux of the opera does not
degenerate into the common cheat of
the novel. The only result is to make
the deportation of Manon a trifle un
convincing. Apparently, however, her
other misdemeanors are enough.' She
is convicted as an abandoned woman,

and she is sentenced to be deported to
the French province of Louisiana.
When the curtain rises Des Grieux and
Lescaut are on the Havre road, awaiting
the soldiers and the prisoners for the
ship to America. He has conceived
a mad plan to effect a rescue: "Manon,
la catena" (Manon in Chains!) declare
they. But Des Grieux learns from
Lescaut that there are no "men fully
armed" hiding in ambush to leap
out at his command. Thesoldiers
approach, singing; Des Grieux is for
attacking them bare-handed, but
Lescaut knows a better way. He
waits till they draw up, thirsty with
song, and begging their sergeant to
let them get a drink. The sergeant
is inclined to do so; he finds little
glory in escorting "les demoiselles
sans vertu." He inquires as to the
prisoners and learns that one is ill,
almost dead. "Heavens!" cries Des
Grieux , "Manon ! ' ' Lescaut bids him be
silent. Lescaut comes forward with
money, and tells the sergeant that the
sick girl is of his family. The sergeant
is not so hard, but he is willing to be
bribed into permitting a half-dead girl
to see her cousin. Manon is in the
village behind, Des Grieux takes the
place of Lescaut) so that he may at least
bid her farewell. The duet follows,
" Manon ? Tu piangi ?" (Manon, Thou
Weepest) and "Si maledico ed im-
preco" (With Remorse and Contempt).
In a magnificent finale, Manon^
remembering all those who worshipped
at her peculiar shrine, begs and
receives the forgiveness of the one
man who really loved her, Des Grieux ,
who had sacrificed everything money
name, honor, for but a part of her
love. He is content that she should
die in his arms, though his despair is
touching as he sees her young beauty
fade at the silent call of death. He
gives a great cry and falls upon her
dead body as the curtain descends.

239

ViCTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French, unless noted)

ACT II
ON V APPELLE MANON

(She is Called Manon) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano and ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor 8011 12-in., 32.50

ADIEU NOTRE PETITE TABLE
(Farewell, Our Little Table) GERALDINE

FARRAR, Soprano 6111 12-in., 2.00

LUCREZIA BORI, Soprano 1009 10-in., 1.50
LE RfiVE

(The Dream) EDMOND CLEMENT, Tenor

6062 12-in., 2.00

JOHN McCoRMACK, Tenor In Italian

767 10-in., 21.50

TITO SCHIPA, Tenor In Italian

828 10-in.., 1.50

ACT III

GAVOTTE OB&SSONS QUAND
LEUR VOIX APPELLE

(Hear the Voice of Youth) GALLI-
CURCI 1018 10-in., 1.50

AH! FUYEZ, DOUCE IMAGE!

(Depart, Fair Vision!) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor 6020 12-in., 2.00

ANTEROOM OF ST. SULPICE METROPOLITAN OPERA SETTING

240

THE BURIAL OF MANGN* ACT IV

MANON LESCAUT

NOT often in modern times do two
composers go to the same source
for inspiration, as they did in
the days of Handel and Gluck, when
the same Greek legends appeared over
and over again. It is somewhat unusual,
therefore, that Puccini should have
selected the Abbe Prevost's book,
"Manon Lescaut," as a theme for an
opera nine years after the production
of Massenet's similar work. It was a
bold step, for Massenet's reputation
was safely established by the time Puc
cini began his "Manon Lescaut," while
the Italian had to his credit only the
immature one-act opera "Le Villi" and
the confessed failure "Edgar." Puccini,
moreover, was thirty-five years old
when "Manon Lescaut" was produced,
his genius having flowered slowly. Yet
he was quite sure of himself, and he
was convinced the failure of "Edgar"
was due to an impossible libretto as
indeed it was. With the help of a few
friends, he made his own libretto from

the Abbe's novel, thus safeguarding
himself against a second failure. He fol
lowed the French author somewhat
more faithfully than Massenet, even to
the end, the final scene of his opera,
like that of the book, being laid in "a
vast desert plain" near New Orleans!
Puccini and Massenet were not alone
in having selected this work for oper
atic setting. Halevy wrote a ballet
upon the same subject in 1830, and
other settings followed, by Balfe, 1836,
Auber in 1856, and Massenet in 1884.
Puccini's music does not surpass Mas
senet's, but it has a full right to exist
ence upon its own merits. His "Man-
on Lescaut" is somewhat a forerunner
giving promise of the genius so abund
antly fulfilled in his next operatic ven
ture, three years later, with "La Bo-
heme." It won the composer some
considerable reputation, just the same,
and frequent performances testify
strongly enough to the excellence of the
work as a whole.

241

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

TH E O PE RA

OPERA In four acts. Music by
Giacomo Puccini, the libretto
(founded on Abbe Prevost's novel)
being mainly the work of the composer
and a committee of friends. English
version by Mowbray Marras. First
presented at Turin, February 1, 1893,
with Cremonini, Ferrani and Moro.
Produced at Covent Garden, May 14,
1894; at Trieste, June 10, 1893; at
Hamburg, November 7, 1893. First
performance in France at Nice, March
19, 1906 (not given at Paris until
1910); at Madrid, November 4, 1893.
First performance in the Americas at
Buenos Aires, June 9, 1893; in the
United States at Grand Opera House,
Philadelphia, in English, August 29,
1894, with Selma Kronold and Monte-
griffo. Given in French by a small
travelling company at Wallack's Thea
tre, May 27, 1898, and at the Tivoli
Opera House, San Francisco, in 1905.
Produced at Wallack's Theatre, New
York, May 27, 1898, by the Royal Ital
ian Grand Opera Company. First im
portant New York production, Janu
ary 18, 1907, with Caruso, Cavalieri
and Scotti, under the direction of the
composer, who then visited America
for the first time. Given by the Phila
delphia-Chicago Company in 1912,
with White, Sammarco and Zenatello.

CHARACTERS

MANON LESCAUT (Mahn-on Les-
koh') Soprano

LESCAUT, sergeant of the King's
Guards Baritone

CHEVALIER DES GRIEUX (day
Gree-uh f ) Tenor

GERONTE DE RAVOIR, Treasurer-
General (day Rah-vwah f ] Bass

EDMUND, a student Tenor

An Innkeeper, a Dancing-master, a

Sergeant, a Captain, Singers, Beaux

and Abbes, Girls, Citizens, Students,
People, Courtesans, Sailors

Scene and Period: Paris and Vicinity;
Second Half of the Eighteenth Century

ACT I

SCENE A Street in front of an Inn at
Amiens

THE scene is laid in a spacious
square near the Paris Gate, beside
the inn. It is gay with students and
citizens, women, girls and soldiers. A
group of students, headed by the poet
Edmund^ ridicule Des Grieux y who
stands somewhat apart and who does
not seem any too interested in the girls.
Readers of Prevost's novel may remem
ber that the Des Grieux of this period
was rather a serious young man. He
rallies sufficiently, however, to sing a
gallant song, ostensibly of flattering
purport, but not quite free from irony.
This is the "Tra voi belle brune" (Now
Among You).

It is a typical Puccini melody, broad,
full, hauntingly sweet. As though con
sidering some secret ideal, he asks if
among the maidens before him there
may be gleaming his own "fair star/'
His subtlety is lost upon the girls, who
assume that he is making game of
them as they turn away to seek new
excitement.

_ This is provided by the arrival of a
diligence, containing Manon Lescaut.
Her brother is with her, and a chance
acquaintance, the elderly Geronte^ who
is "all eyes 1 ' for the girl. Manon is
indeed beautiful, and Des Grieux sees
in her the ideal of his romantic dreams.
He takes the liberty to speak while her
brother and Geronte are in the inn ar
ranging for quarters. Manon responds
shyly, but without fear; already we de
tect that fatal softness of character

242

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

which causes her to yield so easily to
temptation, yet which, by its very
frailty, but charms the more. Des
Grieux is an immediate victim, and he
is properly horrified when she tells him
her brother is taking her to a Convent.
Soon, however, her brother calls her to
the inn, and the pensive youth gazes
after her a prey to her beauty and his
own emotions. "Donna non vidi mai"
(A Maiden So Fair), which sums them
up in music, is a lovely melody, lumi
nous with the fires of youth. "Manon
Lescaut, they call me!'' he repeats
her phrase to himself, wringing out of
memory every last inflection of her low,
tender voice. His comrades rally Des
Grieux, but he is in no mood for their
japes, and he quietly goes indoors.
Meantime, the rascally Lescaut, Man-
on 's brother, already counting on a
road to Gerontes purse by way of his
sister's charms, is attracted by a group
of soldiers playing cards. Geronte him
self, seeing Lescaut absorbed in the
game, orders the landlord to have ready
a swift horse and carriage; with these
he designs to abduct Manon. The ob
servant Edmund, however, overhears
the plot, and he informs Des Grieux.
Des Grieux decides to save Manon
from the restrictions of convent life on
one side, and the amorous attentions of
her elderly beau, on the other. His
methods aie simple; he will abduct her
himself. It is (alas!) no difficult mat
ter to persuade Manon. When Ge
ronte is all ready to fulfil his own plans,
the pair have gone. He is furious, but
the fertile-minded Lescaut reminds him
that a student's purse is never too full,
and they will be found in Paris. He
even hints, with charming grace, that
if Geronte will include him in the family
he will use his influence to get her away
from Des Grieux. Of Manon he thinks
little; what is a sister for, if not to fill a
gallant soldier's pockets once in a while?
Poor Manon! Her only sin is beauty !

ACT II

SCENE An Apartment in Geronte 1 s

House

flies fast in Grand Opera.
JL Lescaut has already been so far suc
cessful that Manon has been installed
in the home of Geronte. She is at her
toilet, preparing for a party in her
honor, surrounded by every luxury.
She is dealing with a hairdresser, a
dancing-master, maids and attendants.
Her brother comes in, and she asks
after Des Grieux, only to learn that,
disconsolate over her loss, he is gam
bling hard in hope to have her back.
Manon confesses she still loves him;
but her enjoyment of her new luxuries
is pretty evident. Then, since confes
sions are in order, she confesses she is
weary of Geronte. Here is heard the
lovely "In quelle trine morbide" (In
these soft silken curtains).

She is interrupted by a group of sing
ers, sent by the devoted old gallant for
her entertainment. They sing the
Madrigal, "Sulla vetta del monte"
(Speed O'er Summit), a quaint concep
tion, a rather knowing pseudo-pastoral,
which celebrates the amorous adven
tures of Phyllis and Phaon. The com
poser has cleverly caught the old-time
style. The accompaniment suggests
the lute.

Geronte, who has brought with him
some of his cronies, (old beaux in their
dotage), applauds the singers, and they
watch delightedly when the dancing-
master steps forward to teach Manon
the minuet. Other visitors come in,
loading Manon with flowers and com
pliments. But soon the party is over;
Geronte and his guests leave; Manon is
to follow later. She completes her
toilet, and is about to go when Des
Grieux appears. He chides her for
deserting him, but, weak as ever, yields
to her pitiful appeals and soon they sing
a passionate duet This is followed by

243

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

a song in which Des Grieux reproaches
her for her weakness, her love of silks
and satins, of jewels and precious
things, soft to the touch and dazzling
to the eye. As well reproach a kitten
for enjoying warmth!

Into the midst of this pleasant scene,
enter Gerontel He has come to see
what has delayed Manon at the party.
He is enraged, his is a cold rage and a
deadly one, the polished anger of one
who knows the world, Manon, de
ceived by his ironical civility, goes a
bit too far. She has the bad grace to
put a mirror before him and before Des
Grieuxy laughing at the comparison.
It is the last merriment she is destined
to know for some considerable time.

Geronte leaves them, apparently in
cynical indifference. Manon, woman
like, possibly indifferent too, lets him
go. A little time later, in flies Lescaut
with a warning that the police are at
hand. There is time for escape, and
both Des Grieux and Lescauf urge the
girl to hasten. Her love of finery, in this
as in so much else, proves her undoing.
She stops to gather her jewels, her

S-etty dresses and possessions. When
es Grieux rushes her to the alcove it is
to find the way barred by police. Geronte,
quiet, keen and as cold as ice, has her
borne away.

ACT III

SCENE The Harbor of Havre

WE are spared the prison scenes of
Prevost's novel. Banished from
France, as an abandoned woman, Ma
non is to embark for the French prov

ince of Louisiana. By bribing the sen
tinel, Des Grieux and Lescauf nearly
succeed in rescuing the girl from prison,
where she awaits the ship. They are
interrupted, however, by the arrival of
the man of war's captain. As a last
resort, Des Grieux begs the captain to
take him also to America. To his
overjoyed surprise, the bluff old skipper
consents, and the strangely-assorted
pair, with some hopes of fresh fortunes,
embark for the New World.

ACT IV

SCENE A "Desolate Spot in Louisiana

M' ANTON'S flamelike beauty having
won her, in the New World, the
unwelcome attentions of yet one more
importunate, the French official com
mander, the lovers have had to flee into
the wilderness. Manon's strength is
failing, and her companion is powerless
to help. The musical last farewell of
the pair culminates, of course, in the
death of Manon. In her lover's arms
she dies a harmless, helpless soul
whose only crime is her beauty. Des
Grieux chants his misery to the deso
late waste, and he falls senseless across
her dead body as the curtain shuts out
the scene.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

DONNA NON VIDI MAI

(A Maiden So Fair) ENRICO CARUSO,

. Tenor 505 10-in., 31.50

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

738 10-in., 1.50

244

MARITANA

E~"CE John Field, like Arthur
William Balfe and like Victor
Herbert, William Vincent Wal
lace, composer of "Maritana" and of
many delightful minor works, was born
in Ireland. Though, unlike these three
gentlemen, he was not born in Dublin,
he went there at an early age from Water-
ford, his birth-town. He was an ac
complished organist, and a violinist of
notable powers. He toured the greater
part of the civilized world, giving
concerts and meeting many interesting
adventures. "Maritana,'* first given
in London, held the stage for many
years, by virtue of its simple and mel
odious character throughout.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. Libretto
by Edward Fitzball. Music by
William Vincent Wallace. First pro
duced at Drury Lane, London, No
vember 15, 1845. First American pro
duction at the Bowery Theatre, New
York, May 4, 1848, by the Seguins.
Other notable productions: In 1854 at
the old Broadway Theatre, New York,
with Louise Pyne and Sims Reeves; in
1857 by the Pyne and Harrison Opera
Company, with the composer conduct
ing; in 1865 by the Harrison English
Opera Company, at Niblo's,with Theo
dore Thomas conducting; in 1868 by
the Caroline Richmgs Opera Troupe,
and in 1870 by the Parepa-Rosa Eng
lish Opera Company. More recent
revivals by the Metropolitan English
Opera Company, Gustave Hinrichs
and Henry W. Savage.

CHARACTERS

CHARLES II, King of Spain Bass

DON JOSE DE SANTAREM, his

Minister Baritone

DON CAESAR DE BAZAN Tenor

MARQUIS DE MONTEFIORI Bass

LAZARILLO Mezzo-Soprano

MARITANA, a gypsy singer. . . .Soprano
MARCHIONESS DE MONTEFIORI

Soprano

Time and Place: The Scene is laid in
Madrid^ at the Time of Charles II

/CHARLES II of Spain is hated by
V_>his minister, Don Jose, who for
merly loved the Queen. Disguised in
Madrid during Holy Week celebra
tions, he meets tylaritana, a gypsy
singer. Don Jose observes, and he de
cides to use the girl in his plots. Don
Caesar de Bazan, an old friend, gets
into a brawl protecting Lazarillo, an
armorer's apprentice, who has tried to
drown himself. He fights the captain
of the guard, and is sentenced to be
hanged for duelling in Holy Week.
Don Jose visits Don Caesar in prison,
and tells- him that if he will marry a
certain veiled woman, he will arrange
that he shall die a gentleman's death
by shooting instead.

Lazarillo unexpectedly brings in the
Kings pardon, but gives it to Don Jose,
who decides to produce it for his
"grand effect" when the time comes.
The veiled lady is duly married to
Don Caesar, while Lazarillo takes the
bullets from the rifles of the firing
party.

The Marquis Montefiori gives a ball,
during which shots are heard, as though
for the execution of Don Caesar. Don
Jose, who holds the Marquis under
obligation, tells him he is to receive a
visit from his "niece," the Countess de
Bazan. Believing Don Caesar has been
shot, the puzzled Marquis consents.
The King enters, disguised, then
Maritana, believing she is to meet her
promised husband promised by Don
Jose. Incognito, the King tries to
make love to Maritana; she resents it,
and he departs, making way for Don

245

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Caesar, who, disguised as a monk, de
mands his wife of the startled Don Jose.
Don Jose meets the situation by having
the heavily veiled Marchioness appear
as Don Caesar's wife. Don Caesar is
horrified; Don Jose offers him a pension
to get out of Madrid, and he consents.
Ready to go, he hears the voice of his
beloved singing in the next room. He
demands his wife. Maritana enters
and asks who the stranger may be.
Don Jose has them arrested and they
go off, the girl to a villa where she is to
be used as a bait /or the King, and
Don Caesar to prison.

Maritana still mourns her unknown
husband; Don Jose brings to her the
King, disguised, telling her this is her
husband. She repudiates his love.
Don Caesar meanwhile has been re
leased. Lazaril/Oy placed by him on
guard, shoots at a man who climbs in
the window of Maritana. The King

is suspicious of this entry. Don Caesar ,
not revealing himself, demands his
wife again. He is equally curious re
garding the stranger, whom he asks
his identity. The King replies "Don
Caesar de Bazan" sorely puzzling the
Don. Lazarilloy horrified at having
pot-shotted at his benefactor, whispers
to him that he is in the presence of the
King. "Who are you?" asks the mon
arch of Don Caesar, who replies, " The
King of Spain." The King is amused,
explanations follow. Maritana returns,
to be united with her husband, Don
Caesar^ who later kills Don Jose when
he finds him in the Queen's apartment.
As the King cannot object to this duel,
he appoints Don Caesar governor of
Valencia.

THE VICTOR RECORD

THERE IS A FLOWER
JOHN McCoRMACKjenor 775 10-in., #1.50

DON CAESAR, THE HERO OF <C MARTTANA* !

246

PAINTED BY BECKER

MARRIAGE OF FIGARO AND SUSANNA

THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO

(LE NOZZE DI FIGARO)

(Italian)

THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO
is the second of a trilogy of
"Figaro" comedies by Beau
marchais from the first of which
Rossini derived his "Barber of Seville."
Though Mozart's work precedes
Rossini's by thirty years, it is taken
from the second of the three comedies.
It will be recollected, however, that
the Italian, Giovanni Paisiello com
posed a "Barber of Seville" in 1780
six years previous to Mozart's setting
of a Beaumarchais comedy.

Beaumarchais deliberately aimed in
his "Figaro" comedies to expose the
moral complacency and the intel
lectual futility of the aristocrat of his
time. Performance of this very com-
edy,"The Marriage of Figaro,"was for
bidden in Paris, not on moral grounds
but on political. Modern audiences are
accustomed to comedies in which the

servant is exalted and the noble lordas-
signed- to a comedy , role, but in those
days it savored of lese majeste. The
play was written onlya scantdecadebe-
fore the French Revolution; and gov
ernment officials, already conscious of
gathering storms, made out that such a
production, at such a time, could serve
less as a warning to a Court apparently
bent on riding to its destruction, than
as a simple means of developing resent
ment against a cynical and a con
scienceless aristocracy. The inevitable
happened; "The Marriage of Figaro"
took on the charm of forbidden fruit.
In place of the public performances,
private "rehearsals" were given, at
which no less a personage than Marie
Antoinette (always liberal in matters
of art) condescended to be present.

It was an instant success. One of
the singers in that memorable pro-

247

XMCTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

duction has left record of the event.
This authority, Kelly, who took the
double roles of Basilio and Don Curzio>
tells us that "Never was anything more
complete than the triumph of Mozart
and his 'Nozze di Figaro', to which
numerous overflowing audiences bore
witness. Even at the first full band
rehearsal, all present were roused to en
thusiasm, and when Benucci came to
the fine passage, 'Cherubinp, alia vit-
tqria, alia gloria militar,' which he gave
with stentorian lungs, the effect was
electric, for the whole of the performers
on the stage, and those in the orchestra,
as if actuated by one feeling of delight,

vociferated 'Bravo! Bravo, Maestro!
Viva, viva, grande Mozart! 7 Those in
the orchestra I thought would never
have ceased applauding by beating the
bows of their violins against the music
desks. And Mozart? I never shall
forget his little animated countenance,
when lighted up with the glowing rays
of genius; it is as impossible to describe
it as it would be to paint sunbeams."
It is pathetic to remember that all
this glory brought no grist to the mill,
and even after the success of "Figaro"
Mozart still had to struggle on for mere
existence a struggle which hastened
his death only five years later.

TH E O PERA

OPERA in four acts. Text by
Lorenza da Ponte, founded on
a comedy by Beaumarchais. Music
by Mozart. First production Vienna,
Mayl, 1786, with Mozart conduct
ing. In Paris as Le Mariage de
Figaro^ in five acts, with Beaumar
chais' spoken dialogue, at the Acade
mic, March 20, 1793; at the Theatre
Lyrique, as Les Npces de Figaro, by
Barbier and Carr, in four acts, May 8,
1858. In London, in Italian, at the
King's Theatre, June 18, 1812. First
American production in 1823, in Eng
lish. Some notable revivals were in
the '70s, with Hersee, Sequin and Par-
epa-Rosa;; in 1889, with Nordica,
Eames, and de Reszke; in 1902, with
Sembrich, Eames, de Reszke and Cam-
panari; and in 1909, with Sembrich,
Eames, Farrar and Scotti, and in 1917
with Hempel, Farrar and de Luca.

CHARACTERS

FIGARO (Fee'-gahr-roh), the Bar
ber, valet to the Count Bass

COUNT ALMA VIVA (Al-mah-vee '-
vati), a Spanish noble Baritone

COUNTESS ALMA VIVA, his wife Soprano

SUSANNA, maid of the Countess,

betrothed to Figaro Soprano

CHERUBINO (Kay-ruh-bee r -noh) y

page to the Countess Soprano

MARCELLINA (Mar-chel-lee'~nah\
servant to Bartolo Contralto

BARTOLO, a rejected lover of

Susanna Bass

BASILIO (Bah-zee'-lee-oh), a busy
body Tenor

Servants, Country People, Guards

Scene and Period: Seville; the Seven
teenth Century. The Action is a
direct continuation of the
Barber of Seville

The opera is preceded by an Over
ture, which, without drawing directly
upon the music of the following scenes,
is admirably alive with the spirit of
comedy in which "the work was con
ceived.

The chattering violin-figure in oc
taves at the opening is famous. No less
charming 1 is the second subject, in
which the laughter in the treble
provokes a response from the bass
an ascending figure for basses and
bassoons.

248

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

COPY T DUPONT

CALVE AS CHERUBINO

PHOTO WHITE, N. Y.

"Play no more, boy, the part of a lover
"What is this feeling makes me so sad? Nor about beauty foolishly hover."

What is this feeling makes me so glad?" Act II. Act I.

ACT I

SCENE A Room in the Chateau^ only
Half Furnished

FIGARO, in high spirits, is preparing
the room assigned to him and Su
sanna by Count Almaviva. His spirits
are dashed, however, when Susanna
points out the proximity of the room to
the Counfs own, and suggests that the
" Count has not paid her dowry for noth
ing. Figaro s rage at his master finds
expression in a famous air, the"Se vuol
ballare, Signer Contino" (Will You
Dance?), in which he expresses his
fears with some little directness.

But other troubles are to beset the
erstwhile Barber of Seville. Old Dr.
Eartolo ^ whom he outwitted in former
days, yet bears a grudge against him.
Eartolo discovers that in a weak mo
ment Figaro has promised to marry the
aged Marcellina^ and that the old dame
seeks to force him to fulfil the contract.
Susanna overhears their plotting, some
of which is levelled against herself.

Eartolo departs and Susanna and Mar-
cellina exchange a few cattish remarks,
in which the younger girl comes off
rather best. Marcellina departs; in
her place there appears the adolescent
CherubinOy deeply in love, if you please,
with no less a personage than the Coun
tess herself. He describes his emo
tions to the amused Susanna, in the
"Non so piu cosa son" (Oh What Feel
ings!).

Rarely has music more subtly
swayed to the mingled emotions of a
youth in the throes of his first love.
Mozart's ineffable genius has captured
one of the most difficult moods in the
whole realm of emotion. This air will
repay many hearings, for it does not
reveal itself to the full at the first per
formance. This is characteristic of
Mozart, the past-master of the art that
conceals art beneath a deceptive and
always charming simplicity.

The Count suddenly knocks at the
door, and Cherubino hastily conceals
himself behind a large arm-chair. When

249

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

the Count enters, it is to exclaim
against Cherubino, whom he suspects of
paying court to his Countess. Yet
even as he speaks another knock is
heard. The Count hastily hides be
hind the same chair as Cherubim, the
page darting out to the front and con
cealing himself in the depths of a chair
covered with one of Susanna s dresses.
This time it is Easilio, an odious busy
body, who first taunts Susanna with
flirting with the Count, and then twits
her concerning Cherubino. The feel
ings of the pair in hiding may be imag
ined. As soon, however, as Easilio
mentions Cherubino's name in con
junction with that of the Countess,
Almaviva can stand it no longer. He
appears and indignantly demands an
explanation of all this talk. Count
Almamva then tells how but a short
while ago he discovered the boy flirting
with Easilws cousin, Earbarina^ Cher
ubino being concealed under the table.
To show how he found him under the
table-cloth, the Count reaches Susan
na s dress from the arm-chair and so
discovers Cherubinol

The Count is so enraged, he threat
ens then and there to have the boy
killed; but Figaro enters and pleads for
him; so the Count is satisfied to give
the lad a commission as Captain in his
own regiment, where he may expend
some of his energies on the field of
honor.

ACT II

SCENE Apartment of the Countess

SUSANNA has confided to the
Countess the unwelcome atten
tions of the County and the two women
are in despair. The Countess sings her
lovely appeal to Cupid, the "Porgi
amor" (Love, Thou Holy Impulse).

The resourceful Figaro enters and
describes his plan to make the Count
jealous by letting him discover a note
making an assignation between the

Countess and a lover in the garden. It
is planned to send Marcellina in the
Countess" place, and Cherubino, dressed
as Susanna, to meet the Count in Su
sanna's place. It is hoped that through
ridicule the Count will be persuaded
henceforth to stick to his Countess.
With this plan settled, Figaro leaves.
Cherubino comes, charmed at the pros
pect of seeing his beloved Countess be
fore joining the army. He sings his devo
tion to her in a delightful air, the"Voi
che sapete"(\Vhat Is This Feeling?).

The noted critic Otto Jahn has
pointed out that Cherubino is not ex
pressing his emotions directly, but in
directly in a romance, directing his shy
but ardent glances toward the Count
ess in all the bashfulness of youth. The
guitar-like accompaniment of the
strings is filled out by solo wind-instru
ments which seem to express delicate
suggestions of the boy's inner feelings.

The women dress up the page to rep
resent Susanna. They have no sooner
done so than the Count knocks. Cher
ubino is concealed in the closet; and the
Count, observing his wife's confusion,
and hearing the sound of a falling chair,
(clumsily upset by the terrified youth),
demands entry. Susanna, concealed in
an alcove, hears the Countess refuse to
open the door on the ground that her
maid is dressing within. The suspi
cious Count, however, goes out for a
crowbar to break down the door, and
insists on taking the Countess with
him. As soon as they have gone Cher
ubino emerges, and escapes through the
window a twenty-foot drop! and
Susanna quickly hides in the cabinet in
his place. When the Count returns,
prepared to batter a way, the Countess
finally confesses that Cherubino is with
in. She is therefore as startled as her
husband when Susanna suddenly ap
pears! The Count quickly concludes
he is the victim of a joke, and is almost
penitent when a half-drunken gardener

250

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

arrives and complains that somebody
has dropped on his flower-bed from the
window, and smashed a valued flower
pot. Quickly the Count's suspicions
reawaken, but Figaro now opportunely
turns up and, grasping the situation,
promptly announces that it was he who
jumped through the window. The gar
dener produces a paper dropped by the
runaway, and the thoroughly perplexed
but highly suspicious Count tells Figa
ro that he will believe him if he will tell
what the paper contains.' Through a
quick whisper of Susanna 's, Figaro
learns it is Cherubino's commission!
The situation looks hopeless, but Figa
ro, ever-resourceful, declares that the
commission lacked a seal, and he had it
in his pocket for attention. As the
commission actually does lack a seal,
the day is saved. But Figaro now has
to face a worse situation. Marcellina
now enters with her lawyer, and de
mands that Figaro shall keep his prom
ise and marry her. The Count y disposed
to vengefulness, avers he will look into
this; assuredly the Count will!

ACT III

SCENE A Cabinet in the Counfs Res
idence

COUNT ALMAVI VA plans to force
Susanna to accept his attentions
by threatening to make Figaro wed the
ancient Marcellina, but Susanna, un
expectedly entering, and wishing to
further the plans of her mistress, seems
to surrender. The Count goes forth
happy in the conviction that his ends
are s gained. But he overhears Susanna
explain to Figaro , who enters as he
leaves, that "our cause is victorious."
He at once grows suspicious, resolving
to deal with Susanna in his own time,
but to punish Figaro at once.

Figaro y however, is concerned with
another matter, having discovered
some clues which appear to suggest he
is a man of noble birth. As he is ex
plaining, Marcellina, with Bartolo y the
Count and her lawyer, come to inform
Figaro that he must wed or pay dam
ages. He probably will be rich enough
to pay the damages, but as he is

HEMPEL AS

SUSANNA

PHOTO WHITE

SUSANNA, COUNTESS AND CHERUBINO IN ACT I

(HEMPEL, MATZENAUER AND FARRAR)

251

COPY'T MISHKIN

DE LUCA AS FIGARO

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

explaining this, Marcellina suddenly
asks him if he has a spatula mark upon
his right arm. He has. By this she
knows him to be her long-lost son. The
Count finds his plans badly disar
ranged. Mother and son embrace
and are so discovered by Susanna, who

CHERUBINO S BALLAD

is much distressed until explanations
are forthcoming. Since there is no
further obstacle, preparations for the
wedding of Figaro and Susanna are
begun.

Susanna now seeks the Countess and
tells her of the success of their plan.
The mistress then dictates a letter in
which Susanna is to appoint a time and
a place for the meeting. This results
musically in the "Che soave zeffiretto"
(Letter Duet Song to the Zephyr).

It is a remarkably simple, fluent duet
conversation, full of melody. The
Countess dictates, and Susanna takes

down the message, the orchestra al
lowing ample time for the writing a
fine exhibition of Mozartian craftsman
ship.

The letter is sealed with a pin, which
the Count is to return as a sign that he
will keep the appointment. In the next
scene, Figaro and Susanna are married,
and Susanna contrives during the cere
mony to slip the note to the Count.
Some amusement is caused when the
Count, engaged in the task of bestowing
a seignorial kiss upon some of the vil
lage maidens, unexpectedly kisses Cher-
ubinoy still in woman's clothes. The
page is discovered, and condemned to
marry Barbarina.

ACT IV

SCENE The Garden of the Chateau

IT is night. Figaro , having discov
ered the note of Susanna to the
Count y at the place of assignation, solil
oquizes upon the fickleness of women.
He then conceals himself, just as the
Countessy disguised as Susanna, and
Susanna, disguised as the Countess,
enter. The mistress hides, too, and
the maid, awaiting the County and
knowing that her husband is listening,
sings her famous soliloquy addressed to
her imaginary lover. This is with a view
to harrowing Figaro.

CherubinOy having an appointment
with Barbarinay suddenly appears on
the scene, and seeing the Countess,
whom he believes to be Susanna, he at
tempts to kiss her. The Count arrives,
just in time to see this, and steps be
tween them, unexpectedly receiving
the kiss himself. He gives the boy a
violent box on the ear, and the young
ster flies, his head ringing. The Count
then proceeds to make ardent love to
his wife, believing her Susanna. He
presents her with a diamond ring.

Figaro , mad with rage, unexpectedly
meets Susanna, whom he of cburse be-

252

VICTROLABOOKOFTHE OPERA

lieves to be the Countess. He accord
ingly tries to awaken her jealousy. Su
sanna,, however, reveals herself, and the
Coun^ seeing Figaro apparently em
bracing the Countess y promptly forgets
the supposed Susanna^ and seizing Fi-
garOy calls for help. Explanations now
follow, and the Count, perceiving him
self outwitted, begs his wife's forgive
ness and promises to be a model hus
band. Cherubino and Barbarina ap
pearing, the curtain falls upon three
happy couples, about to re-enter the
palace to take part in the marriage
festivities.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)
ACT I

SE VUOL BALLARE, SIGNOR CON-
TING

(Will You Dance?) GIUSEPPE DE LUCA,
Baritone 596 10-in., 31.50

NON SO PIU COSA SON
(I Know Not What I'm Doing)
AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

634 10-in., 1.50

ACT II
VOI CHE SAPETE

(What Is This Feeling?) NELLIE MEL-

BA, Soprano 6219 12-in., 2.00

CHERUBINO:

What is this feeling makes me so sad ?

What is this feeling makes me so glad?

Pain that delights me, How can it be?

Pleasure that pains me I

Fetter 'd though free!

Whence, too, these yearnings,

Strange to myself?

Tell me their meaning, spirit or elf!

ACT III
CRUDEL PERCHE FINORA

(Too Long You Have Deceived Me)
GERALDINE FARRAR-ANTONIO SCOTTI

8039 12-in., 2.50

ACT IV
DEH VIENI, NON TARDAR?

(Ah, Why Delay So Long?) LUCREZIA

BORI, Soprano 6049 12-in., 2.00

BLACK LABEL RECORD

/Overture ......................................... Arthur Fryer's Ban

I Fra Diavolo Overture (Auber) ...................... Arthur Pryor's

IT -
1 - m -

'253

PHOTO BYRON

THE FAIR SCENE

MARTHA

MARTHA (in Italian "Marta"),
perhaps of all operas most
deserves the appellation of
an "old favorite." Friedrich von Flo-
tow, possibly as much as von Weber,
deserved Beethoven's censure, as know
ing the "art of pleasing"; had
Beethoven lived, he would have placed
him in the same category, as regarded
his effect upon the "popular mind."

Flo tow was of noble birth; he was a
son of Baron von Flotow of Mecklen
burg, who designed him for a diplo
matic career. He was born in 1812,
and he was not so very old, perhaps,
when the Baron sent him to Paris for
study; for the boy loved music. His
first opera was "Pierre et Catharine/'
followed by "Stradella"; the overture
to the latter work is a concert favorite,
even today.

Many great prime donne have sung
the role of Martha Patti, Nilsson,
Gerster, Richings, Parepa-Rosa not
to speak of the present generation, in
which Sembrich and Hempel have
excelled. The opera, though it be

longs to the "coloratura" class, is
composed under the German tradition.
Melody and harmony are vigorous,
never too "fleshly," and at times they
reach heights, if not too exalted
heights, of inspiration, and depths, if
not too profound depths, of musical
knowledge. The work is a lively one.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Libretto by
St. George and Friedrich. Music
by Friedrich von Flotow. The opera
is an elaboration of "Lady Henrietta,"
a ballet-pantomime, with text by St.
George and music by Flotow, which
was presented in Paris in 1844.
"Martha.' ' was first produced at the
Court Opera, Vienna, November 25,
1847, with Anna Kerr and Carl Formes.
First London production July 1, 1858,
at Covent Garden, in Italian, and at
Drury Lane in English. First Paris
production 1858. In Italy, at Milan,
April 25, 1859. Given in 1865^ at the
Theatre Lyrique, Paris, with Patti. First
American production 1852, in German.

254

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

First New Orleans production January
27, I860, with Mile. Dalmont. A
notable New York production occurred
in 1887 with Patti, Guille, Del Puente
and Scalchi. Later Metropolitan per
formances were in 1896; 1897 (sadly
memorable because of the death of
Castelmary on the stage in the second
act); 1900, in English; the brilliant
revival of 1906, with Caruso, Sembrich,
Homer and Plangon, In 1916 another
production was made with Caruso,
Hempel, Ober and de Luca.

CHARACTERS

LADY HARRIET DURHAM, Maid-of-

honor to Queen Anne .... Soprano
NANCY, her friend .... Mezzo-Soprano
SIR TRISTAN MICKLEFORD, Lady

Harriet's cousin Bass

PLUNKETT, a wealthy farmer. . . . Bass
LIONEL, his foster-brother, after
wards Earl of Derby Tenor

THE SHERIFF OF RICHMOND Bass

Chorus of Ladies, Servants, Farmers,

Hunters and Huntresses,

Pages, etc.

The Scene is laid, at first, In the Castle
of Lady Harriet, then in Richmond

ACT I

SCENE I Boudoir of Lady Harriet

EDY HARRIET, a maid-of-honor
to Queen Anne, has grown weary
of the elaborate monotony of court
life. She has admirers without number
dresses and jewels and flowers, social
position, all the assurances and all the
distractions, in short, all the average
woman craves. Her faithful maid,
Nancy, discovers her weeping. "Why
do you weep?" she is asked, and the
reply is one familiar to all races and
generations of humanity. It is the
expected one "I don't know!"

Harriet has a cousin, Tristan, a gay
but rather tottery old beau. Skilled

in the ways of women, he now pro
poses a new list of diversions; but
Harriet rejects them all, and she "rags"
the gentleman unmercifully. Hearing
through the open window, the song of
the servant maids on their way to
Richmond Fair, Harriet has a charac
teristic inspiration she will go with
them! Nancy and Tristan demur, but
she orders them along with her.

The women go off dressed as servant
girls, and the aristocratic Tristan as a
farmer.

SCENE II The Fair at Richmond

THE fair is in full swing crowded
mostly with men and maidens in
search of work; for it was the old cus
tom for farmers to seek their hired
"help" at the fair. Two young farm
ers, Lionel and Plunkett, appear in the
crowd. Lionel is an orphan, and
Plunketfs adopted brother. Lionel's
father, on his deathbed, it appears,
has bequeathed to Plunkett a ring,
which he has been instructed to pre
sent to the Queen if he ever gets into
trouble.

The two men sing of this circum
stance in the familiar ''Solo, Profugo"
(Lost, Proscribed), an air which has
become in truth "universally popular."
It has been reset to various poems,
including a familiar hymn:

i r

Plunkett, in the course of it, reaf
firms his life-long affection ^ for^ his
foster-brother. Soon the disguised
ladies appear, with the harassed
Tristan, who considers the whole affair
in monstrous poor taste. The farmers
see the two girls, and, attracted by
their obvious good looks, they offer to
hire them. Carried off by the spirit of
their prank, the two * Servants " accept.
They take the money proffered them,

255

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

not knowing that by this they are
legally bound to serve their masters
for a year. Tristan protests, but he
is hooted off the grounds, and the
now terrified girls are led away by
the two farmers. Work threatens.

ACT II

SCENE A Farmhouse

AS the curtain rises, the two men
j[\. enter, dragging with them the
new members of their household. Then
follows the first of the beautiful quar
tets for which this act is especially
famous, the "Siam giunti, o gipva-
nette" (This is Your Future Dwelling).
It is followed, at once, by the second,
the "Che vuol dir cio" (Surprised and
Astounded!). Harriet^ asked her name,
gives it as Martha. Nancy becomes
Julia for the time being.

Mistress and maid recover their
breath; when they realize that nothing
very frightful is going to happen to
them, their temptation to plague their
employers becomes irresistible. It be
gins in earnest when the young men
endeavor to instruct them in their new
duties. Plunkett shows them the door
of their room. They are eager to
escape and talk things over; but half
way there, Plunkett stops them. The
man is hungry; who is going to cook
for him? He gives them his hat and
coat to hang up, and Harriet throws
them on the floor.

The men are mystified. Such in
subordination is not in their philoso
phy. They ask the girls to exhibit
their skill at spinning. Then follows
the beautiful "Presto, Presto" (Spin
ning Wheel Quartet). The girls can
not spin, and their employers, melting,
volunteer to teach them. At the end
of the quartet, Nancy overturns her
wheel and runs out, pursued by
Plunkett^ who quickly loses his temper.
Lionel follows the beautiful Martha^

with whom he already is head over
heels in love. The girl laughs at him,
but there is an odd little catch in her
laughter; he is a good-looking and
manly youth, with an air of distinction
she is not quite able to account for.
Suddenly he asks her to sing for him,
and, taking the rose from her bosom,
she sings for him the familiar "Last
Rose of Summer," which every so
prano of the last seventy-five years,
almost, has sung at some time or other.

This air, as is now generally known,
is not by Flotow, but is an old Irish
air, "The Groves of Blarney," to which
Thomas Moore fitted the poem. First
criticised by musicians as an obvious
bid for popular favor, it is probably
the best known of all "operatic"
numbers even today.

At the end of the song Nancy re
turns, followed by the bleating but
exasperated Plunkett. The farmers
now realize they have engaged a couple
of "problems." They bid the girls
good-night in the exceedingly beauti
ful "Quartetto notturno," or "Good
night Quartet."

The farmers retire. The girls peep
out from their room, and seeing no
one near, they whisper their chances
of escape. Outside, they suddenly de
tect the soft call of Tristan 's voice. A
carriage awaits them, and they slip
away home. They sleep profoundly.

ACT III

SCENE A Hunting Park in Richmond
Forest

THE young farmers, more mystified
than ever at the defection of their
servants, have come to watch the
Queen and her train at the hunt in
the hope, thereby, to forget the bright
eyes and the bad manners of the two
girls. The act opens with a very mas
culine and very spirited apostrophe to
Porter, which is an obsolete drink

256

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

somewhat resembling beer, but darker
in color and somewhat sweeter to the
taste. Lionel attributes to porter the
leonine strength of the British empire.
The farmers disperse, leaving Lionel
alone to sing, forgetting even porter,
his famous " M'appari " (Like a Dream) ,
a singularly melodious air, telling, with
genuine feeling, of his seemingly hope
less passion for the unknown Martha.
In the midst of the song, enters
Lady Harriet. Though the young man
is amazed at seeing her in the dress of
a lady, he is frank enough to declare
his love, and he still is young enough
and unworldly enough to plead it.
Lady Harriet is forced to call the hunt
ers, to whom she declares Lionel must
be insane. Poor Lionel is nearly dis
tracted, Plunkett administering vain
consolation. A beautiful finale brings
the scene to an appropiate close.

ACT IV

SCENE I Plunkett 's Farm House

PLUNKETT is alone, musing on
the unhappy plight of his foster-
brother, who, since his rejection by
Harriet^ is not to be appeased. His
mind is clouded, and nothing can be
done for him. Nancy enters, and she,
being of common birth, is able to
patch up peace with the young man
a peace which, if it does not pass
understanding, at least develops into
it. The pair decide to present Lionel's
ring to the Queen, and thus clear up
the mystery surrounding him.

SCENE II A Representation of the
Richmond Fair

TIONEL'S ring has been duly shown
JL/ to the Queen, when it transpires
that he is really the son of the banished
Earl of Derby. He refuses, neverthe
less, to accept his rightful rank, and
he continues to brood over the insult
offered him in the forest. Being the

son of an earl, things are now arranged
for him the most important being a
complete reproduction of the scene at
Richmond Fair, into which Harriet is
introduced, in her servant's dress.
Lionel is led in by Plunkett^ and his
mind at once clears. He embraces
Harriet^ Plunkett embraces Nancy -, and
there is a general time of embracing,
when the curtain drops.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless noted)

ACT I
SOLO, PROFUGO

(Lost, Proscrib'd) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor and MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

8016 12-in., 32.50

ACT II
SIAM GIUNTI, O GIOVINETTE

(This Is Your Future Dwelling) FRANCES
ALDA, Soprano; JOSEPHINE JACOBY,
Contralto; ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor and
MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

10002 12-in., 3.50

CHE VUOL DIR CIO

(Surprised and Astounded) FRANCES
ALDA, JOSEPHINE JACOBY, ENRICO
CARUSO and MARCEL JOURNET

10002 12-in., 3.50
PRESTO, PRESTO

(Spinning Wheel Quartet) FRANCES
ALDA, JOSEPHINE JACOBY, ENRICO
CARUSO and MARCEL JOURNET

10003 12-in., 3.50

LAST ROSE OF SUMMER

LUISA TETRAZZINI, Soprano In English

6343 12-in., 2.00
AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano In

English 6123 12-in., 2.00

MISCHA ELMAN, Violinist 608 10-in., 1.50

'Tis the last rose of summer.

Left blooming alone;
All her lovely companions

Are faded and gone;
No flower of her kindred,

No rosebud is nigh
To reflect back her blushes,

Or give sigh for sigh!

I'll not leave thee, thou lov'd one,
To pine on the stem;

257

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Since the lovely are sleeping,

Go sleep thou with them.
Thus kindly I scatter

Thy leaves o'er the bed
Where thy mates of the garden

Lie scentless and dead!

QUARTETTO NOTTURNO

(Good Night Quartet) FRANCES ALDA,
JOSEPHINE JACOBY, ENRICO CARUSO
and MARCEL JOURNET 10003 12-in., 33.50

ACT III

CANZONE DEL PORTER

(Porter Song) MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

698 10-in., 1.50
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone 876 10-in., 1.50

PLUNKETT:

I want to ask you, can you not tell me,

What to our land the British strand

Gives life and power? sayl

It is old porter, brown and stout,

We may of it be justly proud,

It guides John Bull, where'er he be,

Through fogs and mists, through land and sea!

Yes, hurrah! the hops, and hurrah! the malt,

They are life's flavor and life's salt.

Hurrah! Tra, la, la, la, la, la, la, la!

And that explaineth wher'er it reigneth

Is joy and mirth! At ev'ry hearth
Resounds a joyous song.
Look at its goodly color here!
Where else can find you such good beer?
So brown and stout and healthy, too!
The porter's health I drink to you!

M'APPARI

(Like a Dream) ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

6002 12-in., ^2.00

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

6193 12-in., 2.00

BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor 6446 12-in. 5 2.00
LIONEL:

Like a dream bright and fair,

Chasing ev'ry thought of care,

Those sweet hours p^ass'd with thee

Made the world all joy for me.

But, alas! thou art gone,

And that dream of bliss is o'er.

Ah, I hear now the tone

Of thy gentle voice no more;

Oh! return happy hours

Fraught with hope so bright.

Come again sunny days of pure delight!

Fleeting vision cloth'd in brightness.

Wherefore thus, so soon depart;

O'er my pathway shed thy lightness once again,

And glad my heart.

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

/Overture to Martha .......................... Victor Symphony Orchestral

lOverture to Martha ......................... Victor Symphony Orchestra)

{Overture to Martha ................................... Pryor's Band\

\ Nocturne in E Flat (Chopin) (Piano ace.) ......... Victor Sorlin, '

/Last Rose of Summer (In English) ................... Elizabeth f

1 TannhauserThe Evening Star ............... Rosario Bourdon, 'Cellist

/Good Night Quartet (In English) ........................... Lyric uartet\

1 Madrigal Jrom " The Mikado " (Gilbert-Sullivan) ............. Lyric Quartet)

f Spinning W T heel Quartet ........................ Victor Opera

\ Madame Butterfly Some Day He II Come ....... Agnes Kimball, Soprano

/Last Rose of Summer ...................... Lucy Isabelle Marsh, Soprano\ ^ Q ^

1 My Am Countrie ...................... Lucy Isabelle Marsh, Soprano}*^

/Last Rose of Summer (Violin) ......................... Samuel Gardner} f 707-1

I Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms ...... Samuel Gardner^ 1 *' x

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258

COPY T DUPONT

CARUSO AS RICHARD

COPY'T MISHKIN

DE SEGUROLA AS SAMUEL

THE MASKED BALL

(BALLO IN MASCHERA)

(Italian)

THE history of "Un Ballo in Mas-
chera" is a stormy one, at least in
its beginnings. This work was
written for the San Carlo Opera House
in Naples during a period of great po
litical stress. It was just after the at
tempt of Orsini upon Napoleon III,
and as it was first called "Gustavo III,"
after an assassinated Italian monarch,
and included in its plot a similar mur
der, it not unnaturally attracted un
welcome attention from the police.
Verdi was told outright to adapt his
music to fresh words. He of course re
fused. He was then sued for 200,000
francs damages by the manager of the
San Carlo for breach of contract.
When this became known, together
with the fact that the San Carlo man-

lution. The episode was turned to po
litical account. Crowds of Italians, an
gered against Austria, gathered under
Verdi's window or followed him through
the streets shouting "Viva Verdi!" an
innocent pastime in itself until the let
ters forming the composer's name are
taken as initials of the phrase "Fittorio
jEmmanuele Re D'/talia." In this crisis,
Jacovacci, a Roman impresario, offered
to produce the work in the Eternal City,
making arrangements with the Roman

Eolice, and undertaking all responsi-
ilities. Verdi gratefully accepted
this offer, and the work was given a
Roman debut, February 17, 1859.
It proved a great success; but in order
to meet the police requirements the
names of the characters and the locale of

ager had not sought permission to give the plot incidents were altered ^so that
the work as Verdi intended, a riot en- Gustavo III became Richard, Count
sued which nearly amounted to revo- of Warwick and 11 Governor of Boston.

259

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE OPE RA

OPERA in three acts. Text by
M. Somma, music by Verdi.
First produced in Rome at the Teatro
Apollo, February 17, 1859; at Paris,
Theatre des Italiens, January 13, 1861.
First London production June IS, 1861.
First New York production February
11, 1861. Some notable Metropolitan
revivals occurred in 1903 with de
Reszke; in 1905, with Caruso, Eames,
Homer, Scotti, Plan^on and Journet;
and in 1913, with Caruso, Destinn,
Hempel and Amato.

CHARACTERS

RICHARD, Count of Warwick

and Governor of Boston Tenor

REINHART, his secretary Baritone

AMELIA, wife of Reinhart Soprano

ULRICA, a negress astrologer. Central to

OSCAR, a page . Soprano

SAMUEL ) r L ^ f Bass

TOMASO I enemies of the Count I Bass

The Scene is laid in Boston^ U. S. A.^
at the end of the Seventeenth Century.

(The Italian name of the opera is
pronounced Eahl-loh in Mahs'-
keh-rah).

ACT I

SCENE I A Hall in the Governor s House

THE hall of the Governor's audience
chamber is filled with people offi
cers, deputies, gentlemen who have
come to transact their sundry affairs at
the beginning of the day. They sing
the Governor s praises, but not all are
his friends; for among the many most
loyal followers are Samuel 'and Tomaso,
his bitter enemies. The Governor en
ters and is warmly greeted. A list of
names of those invited to the ball is
given and he is delighted to find Ame
lia s name on the list. His greeting to
his followers, and his joy over Amelia

find expression in the delightful quartet
and chorus, "La rivedra nell' estasi"
(I Shall Behold Her). ^

The people unite in a chorus of
praise. Tomaso and Samuel decide to
wait for some better occasion before
attempting the Governor' s life. A
judge enters, with a paper to be signed
condemning Ulrica, a negro witch, ac
cused of sorcery. Richard laughs at
the charge, and refuses to sign; he in
vites his friends to go with him in dis
guise to hear the woman prophesy.

SCENE II The Hut of Ulrica

T TLRICA'S hut is crowded with
LJ people who have come to hear their
fortunes. The sorceress stands over
a cauldron, chanting incantations and
invoking the powers of darkness to
aid her. The Governor arrives, dressed
as a sailor, his companions with him,
including the vengeful Tomaso and
Samuel. All are dismissed, however,
from the witch's presence, to admit a
mysterious lady visitor. Richard^ nev
ertheless, conceals himself. To his
amazement he hears Amelia beg the old
dame for something that will yield her
peace of mind by driving from her
heart her love for Richard^ Count of
Warwick and Governor of Boston^ for she
is (and she desires to remain) the loyal
wife of his friend Reinhart. Richard's
feelings may well be imagined. The witch
tells her that there is a certain herb, but
to make potent it must be gathered at
night by the one who suffers the pangs
of love; and it grows only where the
moon shines upon a gallows where men
have actually been hanged. Here there
is an interesting trio, the "Delia citta
all 'occaso" (Hard by the Western
Portal).

The frightened girl consents to go,
and Richard secretly vows that he

260

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

shall be there. When she has gone, the
crowd reenters the hut, and Richard
asks the witch his fortune. In his
character as sailor he sings a barcarolle,
a song of the sea:"Di' tu se fedele"
(The Waves Will Bear Me).

This ballad is full of humor, the
staccato passages toward the end in
dicating the Governor s impatience to
learn the future. He openly banters
the woman, asking if he will meet with
storms on his next voyage.

But Ulrica finds nothing to ridicule.
She warns him that he is soon to die,
not sword in hand as men desire, but
by the dagger of a friend and that
that friend shall be the next one who
is to take him by the hand. This
involves the fine quintet and chorus,
"E scherzo, od e follia" (Your Pro
phecy Absurd !)

The Governor scoffs at the notion,
and promptly offers his hand to all his
friends present. They refuse it in
dread, Tomaso and Samuel being
especially uneasy.

Suddenly, however, Reinhart enters,
in some anxiety over his chief. Glad
to find all well with him, he shakes
him warmly by the hand, addressing
him by name, to the astonishment of
those who did not know the Governor
was among them. Richard tells the
witch she is a poor fortune-teller for
this is the best friend he ever had.
Nevertheless, he pardons Ulrica, de
claring she has nothing to fear from
him, and he throws her a fat purse of
money. His bravery and his gallant
action win fresh applause of the people,
who kneel and sing a hymn to his
honor, "O figlio d'Inghilterra" (Oh,
Son of Glorious England).

ACT II

SCENE On One Side a Gallows

UNDER the shadow of the gallows,
the frightened Amelia seeks the
magic herb in the "Ma dell'arido

stelo divulsa" (Yonder Plant En
chanted). A shadowy figure terrifies
her, but it resolves itself into Richard,
who now makes himself known. The
unhappy girl confesses she loves him,
but she begs him to go away. A duet
follows, "Ah! qual soave brivido"
(Like Dew Thy Words Fall).

In this remote spot, the last person
on earth they wish to see suddenly
appears Reinhart. He has come to
warn Richard that his life is in danger.
Richard refuses to escape down an
available sidepath, but Amelia threat
ens to make herself known if he refuses.
As Reinhart does not know who the
veiled lady is, the threat is effective,
and Richard consents to escape pro
vided Reinhart will give her his pro
tection back to the city without
speaking or making any attempt to
learn her identity. This Reinhart
promises, and we have the Boccaccio-
like situation of a husband escorting
his own wife home from a meeting
with her lover. As the Governor leaves
however, hiswould-be murderers
appear. Discovering th at Reinhart is not
Richard they tear the veil away from the
lady's face, and thus Reinhart discovers
Amella\ The great finale to the act
now occurs, the "Ve'se di notte qui con
la sposa" (Ah! Here by Moonlight).

Protesting her innocence, the un
happy woman almost faints with
shame. Reinhart bitterly upraids her,
denouncing his false friend Richard.
The conspirators depart, anticipating
a sensation on the morrow when the
city shall learn of the incident; but
before they go Reinhart makes an
appointment with them for the morn
ing. He then tells Amelia that he
will escort her to the ,city but in
such tones as make her tremble for
her life. As the curtain goes down, ^ a
sensitive audience can easily share in
the poor soul's forebodings. There is
tragedy in the air.

261

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT III

SCENE I A Room in Reinhart 1 s House

IN a terrible scene, Reinhart pours
down upon the unhappy Amelia the
full flood of his anger. Finally in an
access of fury he bids her prepare for
instant death. The frightened woman
swears she is innocent, begging on her
knees for a chance to bid farewell to
her child their child. This is the
solemn and tender "Morro, ma prima
in grazia" (I Die, Yet First Implore
Thee). It sobers Reinhart^ for the
time at least, and he grants her request.
Left alone, he repents his intention,
reserving his wrath and his vengeance
for Richard in the remarkable "Eri tu"
(Is It Thou?)

This is the greatest air allotted to
Reinhart) and perhaps the most famous
in the entire opera. At its close,
Samuel and Tomaso enter, doubtful
of their reception. Reinhart proves
by a paper that he is aware of their
plan to attack the Governor,, and as
they cower back expecting arrest he
unexpectedly tells them that he, too,
seeks revenge. To convince them he
offers his own son in hostage. They
are delighted to secure so influential
an ally. His only stipulation is that
his own hand must deliver the blow.
They refuse this, but consent to draw
lots. Just as soon as these have been
prepared, however, Amelia enters an
nouncing <0scar, the Governors mes
senger. The crazed Reinhart looks on
her as an instrument of Fate, and he
forces her to draw the scraps of paper.
It is her hand therefore that, by draw
ing a slip bearing Reinharfs name,
condemns Richard to death. With
her woman's instinct, she divines it.
The page enters with invitations to
the Governor s ball. And the con
spirators withdraw after deciding on
the password, and upon the costumes
to be worn. The frightened Amelia

overhears a word or two and all doubt
dissolves as to the quality of the men's
intentions. They are bent on murder.

SCENE II The Governor s Private Office

MEANTIME, Richard^ decides
upon a beautiful sacrifice. By
sending Reinhart and Amelia back to
England can he avoid the peril of be
traying his friend. He sings the
pathetic romanza, "Ma se m'e forza
perdeti" (Forever to Lose Thee), a
recitative, closely followed by a lovely
air. A page brings a note from an
unknown lady, warning him that an
attempt will be made upon his life
at the ball. Remembering, however,
that his absence might be construed
into cowardice, he decides to go.

SCENE III The Grand Ball Room in
the Governor s House

RilNHART in vain seeks the
Governor among the masked
guests. At last he meets the page
Oscar, who, however, taunts him, in the
sprightly "Saper vorreste" (You
Would Be Hearing).

This singularly felicitous little scherzo
is grossly out of tune with the vengeful
Reinharfs mood. He tells the page
harshly enough, that affairs of state,
make it imperative he should know the
Governor on sight. He is told that
Richard is dressed in black with a red
ribbon on his right breast.

Amelia^ in the meanwhile, has con
trived a meeting with Richard in order
to say farewell, and to warn him
against her husband's vengeance. As
the -two are mournfully parting, Rein-
hart rushes in and stabs the Governor
in the back. The dying man, sup
ported by friends, now tells Reinhart
that Amelia is guiltless; that he him
self has planned, for her happiness and
Reinharfs, to send them both back to
England out of harm's way. With his
dying breath he forgives his friend,
and declares him innocent of harm.

262

FAMOUS OPERA HOUSES OF EUROPE

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless otherwise noted)

ACT I

LA RIVEDRANELL' ESTASI

(I Shall Behold Her) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor, FRIEDA HEMPEL, Soprano,
LEON ROTHIER, Bass, A. PERELLO DE
SEGUROLA, Bass; and Chorus

10005 12-in., 3.50

DI'TUSEFEDELE

(The Waves Will Bear Me) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor, and Metropolitan
Opera Chorus 512 10-in., 1.50

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

732 10-in., 1.50
RICHARD:

Declare if the waves will faithfully bear me;

If weeping the lov'd one from whom I now
tear me,

Farewell, to me saying, my love is betraying.

With sails rent asunder, with soul in commo
tion,

I go now to steer thro' the dark waves of ocean,

The anger of Heav'n and Hell to defy!

Then haste with thy magic, the future explor
ing,

No power have the thunder or angry winds
roaring,

Or death, or affection my^path to deny!

QUINTETTE E SCHERZO, OD FOLLIA
(Your Prophecy Absurd) ENRICO CA
RUSO, Tenor, FRIEDA HEMPEL, So
prano, LEON ROTHIER, Bass, A. PER
ELLO DE SEGUROLA, Bass, MME. Du-
CHENE, Soprano, and Metropolitan
Chorus

10005 12-in., 3.50

ACT III
ERI TU CHE MACCHIAVI

(I s_ It Thou?) EMILIO DE GOGORZA,

Baritone

6068 12-in., 2.00

PASQUALE AMATO, Baritone

6040 12-in., 32.00
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone

6266 12-in., 2.00
GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

6078 12-in., 2.00

MA SE M' FORZA PERDERTI
ROMANZA

(Forever to Lose Thee) (Preceded by
the recitative, "Forse la soglia")
(This Affair Must End) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 6027 12-in., 2.00

RICHARD:

Haply I have decided, finding peace of mind.
Reinhart will return to his country,
His wife, submissive, will follow him.
Farewells unspoken, the broad ocean will

divide us.

If compelled to lose thee now
To part from thee forever:
My burning thoughts will fly to thee,
Though fate our lot may sever.
Thy memory still enshrined shall be
Within my inmost heart.
And now, what dark forebodings
Around my soul are thronging?
When, once more to behold thee,
Seems like a fatal longing!

SAPER VORRESTE

(You Would Be Hearing) LUISA TET-
RAZZINI, Soprano 6341 12-in., 2.00

OSCAR:

You would be hearing, what dress he's wearing
When he was bidden, the fact be hidden?
I know right well but may not tell

Tra la la la, la la la!
Of love my heart feels all the smart,
Yet watchful ever, my secret never
Rank nor bright eyes shall e'er surprise!

Tra la la la, la la la!

264

PHOTO BYRON

SCENE FROM MEFISTOFELE (ACT III)

MEFISTOFELE

A RRIGO BOITO was a man of un-
/Jk usual genius, but one whose
JL JL. achievements, perhaps, did not
quite reach his natural possibilities. He
was as much poet as musician, and he
was the author of a novel, some remark
able poems and opera libretti, includ
ing "La Gioconda," and Verdi's "Fal-
staff" and "Otello." In addition he
was a composer. He was born at
Padua, 1842, and died in 1918. His
father was Italian, but his mother was
Polish, and perhaps this northern strain
in his blood may account for his philo
sophical bent. His elder brother, an
architect of note, suggested Goethe's
"Faust" to the boy as an opera theme
long before Gounod's work was pro
duced; and even in his student days he
had the work in hand. The failure of
"Mefistofele" at its first production
was partly due to technical conditions
the role of Faust being assigned to a
baritone and the scenes tending to
discursiveness. But it was also due, in
part, to a lack of understanding by en
thusiastic but unphilosophical artists
and producers. And misconceptions
of the work were certainly induced by

discussion. In a revised form, far
more practical but perhaps less distinc
tively original, "Mefistofele" was again
brought forward at Bologna in 1875
and this time with success.

Boi'to's opera is never likely to be
popular, yet it is a landmark in music
especially in Italian opera. He has
sought to give the whole of Goethe's
"Faust" and not merely the Faust-and-
Marguerite incident employed by Gou
nod and others. So gigantic a poem
cannot readily be condensed into a
four-hour opera without suffering a
diffusiveness highly perplexing to those
unfamiliar with Goethe's masterpiece.
Full appreciation of Boi'to's "Mefisto
fele" calls for familiarity with the oper
atic score supplemented by much quiet
study of Goethe's poem. It is a really
significant work, in no sense popular,
yet one which has strongly influenced
many of the best of latter-day Italian
composers. Verdi himself cherished the
greatest veneration for Boito's genius,
and there is no question that Bo'ito influ
enced the later masterpieces of the com
poser who wrote "Otello" and "Falstaff"
as well as "Trovatore" and "Aida."

265

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

TH E O PERA

OPERA in four acts. Text and
music by Arrigo Boito; a para
phrase of both parts of Goethe's
"Faust/' The first production at La
Scala, Milan, 1868, was a failure. Re
written and given in 1875 with success.
First London production July 6, 1880.
First American production at the Acade
my of Music, November 24, 1880,
with Campanini, Gary and Novara.
Given at the New Orleans Opera in
1881, in Italian, and in 1894, in French.
Some notable American productions
were in 1896, with Emma Calve; in
1889, in German, with Lilli Lehmann;
and in 1901 with Mclntyre, Louisa
Homer and Pol Plan^on; in 1904 with
Caruso and Emma Eames; in 1907,
for Chaliapin; in 1906 at the Man
hattan Opera; the Chicago opera re
vival for Titta Ruffo; and the recent
Metropolitan production with Caruso,
Emmy Destinn, Frieda Hempel and
Pasquale Amato.

CHARACTERS

MEFISTOFELE Bass

FAUST Tenor

MARGARET Soprano

MARTHA Contralto

WAGNER .Tenor

HELEN Soprano

PANTALIS Contralto

NEREUS Tenor

Celestial Phalanxes, Mystic .Choir,
Cherubs, Penitents, Wayfarers, Men-
at-arms, Huntsmen, Students, Citizens,
Populace, Townsmen, Witches, Wiz
ards, Greek Chorus, Sirens, Naiads,
Dancers, Warriors.

PROLOGUE

SCENE The Regions of Space

IN the realms of space, invisible an
gels and cherubim, accompanied by
celestial trumpets, are singing in praise
of the Ruler of the Universe. As in
Goethe's drama, Mefistofe!e> represent
ing the Evil One, converses with the

FARRAR AND MARTIN IN ACT II

PHOTO NUMA BLANC HLS, MONTE CARLO
MELBA AS HELEN

266

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Almighty, expressing his contempt for
"that small God of Earth who, like the
grass-hopper, pokes his head among the
stars only to fall back trilling into the
grass.'* The mystical choirs answer,
"Is Faust known to thee?," much as in
the Book of Job, which Goethe followed
with some faithfulness in this scene.
"The Lord said unto Satan , Hast thou
considered my servant Job^ that there is
none like him in the earth, a perfect and
an upright man^ one that fear eth God and
escheweth evil? " And as God, in the
Biblical narrative, permitted Satan to
influence Job, so Mefistofele is permit
ted to wager with Heaven that he can
lure Faust to his destruction.

ACT I

SCENE I A Square in Frankfort
Easter Sunday

THE aged philosopher, Faust, and
his pupil Wagner, while mingling
with the crowd, remark a Grey Friar.
Faust shortly observes that he "moves
slowly on in lessening circles; and with
each spiral, comes ever nearer and
nearer. Oh! as I gaze," he continues, "I
see his footsteps marked in fire!" To
Wagner this sounds like madness; he
can see nothing but a mendicant friar.
Dramatic necessity no doubt ob
liged Bo'ito to substitute a friar for
Goethe's "pudel," and in a note Boito
justifies the change on the ground that
in the old Faust legends it is a friar
and not a "water dog."

SCENE II The Studio of Faust

RETURNING to his studio, Faust
does not see the friar slip in be
hind and conceal himself in an alcove.
The aged philosopher delivers his solil
oquy, "Dai campi, dai prati" (From
the Green Fields), in which peaceful
and serene melody he speaks of his con
tentment, his love of God and his fel
low man. The melody is simple but

expressive throughout; the middle sec
tion is distinctly pastoral in character.
The friar suddenly stands forth, and
throwing off his disguise, he reveals
himself as Mefistofele, arrayed as a cav
alier. He offers his services to the phil
osopher on the same terms as in Gou
nod's work. But it is no mere passion
for Margaret that so allures Faust.
Boito follows Goethe. The terms of
the compact are that Mefistofele binds
himself to Faust's service here without
restraint. Eelow^ the condi tions will
be reversed. Faust,, always in pursuit
of greater knowledge, is willing to sac
rifice immortality to win it; but he, too,
imposes a condition:

If it chance that I say to the fleeting atom:
Stay I thou art beautiful! then may I die!

By this it will be seen that Faust un
dertakes to maintain his philosophic
disinterestedness in the quest of Truth
no matter into what temptations of
love andambition ofDeszre his
journey with Mefistofele may lead.
Failing in this, he is willing to sacrifice
eternity. The bargain is made, and
the two set forth on their adventures.

ACT II

SCENE I The Garden of Margaret

FAUST, now a handsome young man
known as Henry ', strolls in the gar
den with Margaret. Mefistofele^ as in
Gounod's version, makes ironic love to
Martha^ who here appears as Marga
ret's mother. As with Goethe, the
young girl wonders why so magnificent
a young man deigns to notice her.
Faust wishes to see the girl alone, and
hearing that she sleeps with her mother
he gives her a sleeping draught for the
old lady. He assures her this is harm
less. Then as the scene closes, Marga
ret surrenders to her love for Faust. "I
love thee! I love thee!" he cries as the
innocent girl surrenders.

267

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

SCENE II -The Summit of the Bracken

TV/TEFISTOFELE ^ now conducts
JLVJL Faust to a wild spot in the
Brocken mountains,, where, beneath the
moonlight, he may behold the people
over whom his companion reigns as
king. The wind is shrilling weirdly, and
flames dart forth from the jagged rocks
at each step as they climb. Once at
the summit, Mefistofele summons forth
his infernal subjects demons, witches,
wizards, goblins, imps who acclaim
him as King. They dance in joy when
he shatters a crystal globe to symbol
ize his power over the earth.

To this Saturnalia, Faust pays little
heed. He beholds a vision of Marga
ret > on her way to prison for the murder
of her babe and her mother. He is es
pecially horrified by a red stain about
her neck, like a crimson thread the
mark of the headsman's axe. But
Mefistofele bids him away. The act
closes with an orgy, in which, however,

THE VISION OF MARGARET

Faust takes no part. There is nothing
in this to tempt him to say "Thou art
beautiful!"

ACT III

SCENE The Prison of Margaret
AS in Gounod's opera, Faust and his
JL\. guide visit Margaret in prison
for drowning her babe and poisoning
her mother in a fit of madness. Faust
is torn with pity as the doomed girl re
calls the scenes of their love-making.
She believes the newcomers are her
jailers, come to take her to the scaffold.
Faust ) however, reassures her, and
urges her to fly with him. In this
scene is heard the remarkable "Lonta-
no, lontano" (Far Away).

Mefistofele , who has left them togeth
er to make arrangements for the girl's
escape, now returns and Margaret is
frantic with terror to behold him. She
refuses to leave the prison, where she
dies in Fausfs arms. Mefistofele cries
out "She is judged!" but a chorus of
celestial beings announces salvation.
Faust and his companion leave, just as
the headsman and jailers come to con
duct the girl to the scaffold. This
climax ends, by the way, Part I of
Goethe's poem.

ACT IV

The Night of the Classical Sabbath

THE next episode is the meeting of
Faust with Helen of Troy in the
classic groves of Greece. The scene
reveals an enchanting spot on the banks
of the Peneus, the moon shedding a
golden light upon Helen, Pantalis and
groups of Sirens. Faust and his de
mon-friend now enter, but Mefistofele
is uncomfortable amid such scenes of
loveliness and he steals away to the
Brocken. The meeting of Faust and
Helen has a deeper significance than the
mere temptation of Faust. "Helen
and Faust/' Boito tells us, "represent
Classic and Romantic Art gloriously
wedded, Greek beauty and Germanic

268

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

beauty gleaming under the same aureole,
glorified in one embrace, and gene
rating an ideal poesy, eclectic, new,
powerful. "

EPILOGUE
SCENE Faust's Studio

WITHERED and feeble, Faust has
returned to his studio. Mefistof-
ele stands behind him. "O songs! O
memories!" the philosopher cries, look
ing back on his past. "Thou hast de
sired, enjoyed, and desired again," says
Mefistofeley "nor hast yet said to the
fleeting atom: 'Stay, thou art beauti
ful? " But Faust is lost in his own
thoughts: "Reality was grief; and the
Ideal but a dream !" Yet to the last he
seeks the Ideal, and his swan-song is a
yearning desire to be "King of a peace
ful realm," where under wise laws he
may give happiness and fecundity to
the people. This finds expression in a
famous epilogue, the "Giunto sul passo"
(Nearing the End of Life) .

As he sings, the Celestial throngs
gather near, and the vision of heaven
becomes brighter with the approach of
death. As in the Prologue, celestial
Phalanxes cry their Aves to the Lord,
and bear upward to realms on high the
soul of the departed Faust. A shower
of roses falls upon the dead body.
Roses, too, are showered upon Meftstof-
ele, stifling him with their purity and
perfume. He disappears as the tri

umphant host cry out their Hallelujahs
against the strong, clear notes of silver
trumpets. So "the ideal hymn is
chanted in heaven."

NOTE " Mefistofele" quotations are made from
the Ditson libretto^ by permission. (Copyright,
lS8o y Oliver Ditson Company.)

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

PROLOGUE
AVE SIGNOR

(Hail, Sovereign Lord) FEODOR CHALIA-

PIN, Bass 981 10-in., $1.50

MARCEL JOURNET, Bass 915 10-in., 1.50

ACT I
DAI CAMPI, DAI PRATI

(From the Green Fields) BENIAMINO

GIGLJ, Tenor 644 10-in., 1.50

FAUST:

From the meadows, from the valleys, which

lie bathed in moonlight,

And where paths silent sleep, I come return
ing; my soul filled

With calmness, mysterious and deep,
The passions, the heart rudely trying,
In quiet oblivion are lying;
My spirit knows only its love for its fellows;
Its love for its God!

ACT III

L'ALTRA NOTTE

(They Threw My Child Into the Sea)
FRANCES ALDA, Soprano 6353 12-in., 2.00
LONTANO, LONTANO

(Away From All Strife) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano and EDMOND CLEMENT, Tenor

8020 12-in., 2.50
GIUNTO SUL PASSO ESTREMO
(Nearing the End of Life) BENIAMINO

GIGLI, Tenor 644 10-in., 1.50

BLACK LABEL RECORD

Vessellas ^^135512 12 in Si ?5

\ Forza del Destino Solenne in quest* ora Vessella's Band) ~ *'

/Mefistofele Selection .

269

WALTER:
The maid Elysian
I saw in vision,
She whom my heart doth choose I

(Meistersinger, Act III.)

270

DIE MEISTERSINGER

(THE MASTERSINGERS)

DIE MEISTERSINGER differs
from Wagner's other works
all of them except the imma
ture "Rienzi" in the circumstance
that the characters in the play all are
human. In fact, they are historical
personages. Foronce there are no
gods, no fairies, no magic potions, no
superhuman interference in men's af
fairs. Eva and Walter naturally fall
in love with each other without requir
ing any magical draught to awaken
their emotions as in the case of Tristan
and Isolde. And in the end, Walter
wins with his prize-song by sheer merit,
both in composition and presentment;
and he defeats Beckmesser fair and
square. In this he more likely gains
the sympathy of Anglo-Saxon audi
ences than in Lohengrin , (say), whose
victory over Telramund, thanks to the
magic of Monsalvat, is a foregone
conclusion. American audiences are
prone to cherish a sneaking sympathy
for the villainous Telramund in such an
uneven combat. The same holds true
with the young Siegfried, rather a du
bious "hero" without his magic assets.
The idea of a "high-born" hero with
magical embellishments is rather a
Teutonic than an Anglo-Saxon concep
tion, but in Walter (despite his knight
ly descent) we at least have an all-hu
man hero, and one, also, who commits
an occasional mistake. But it is Hans
Sachs, the chief of the Mastersingers,
who is the real hero. He is an histor
ical personage, as indeed was Beckmes
ser also, and Wagner beheld in him the
last of the Mastersingers, the true poet
and musician, the real and even sorrow
ful arbiter between Classicism and
Romanticism.

Mastersingers, it may be explained,
were the medieval successors to the
Minnesingers, and the Minnesingers

(of whom Tannhaitser was one) were
knightly poets and musicians analo
gous to the troubadours of France.
When Minne-singing fell into decay, the
burghers of the cities took up the good
work with their Guilds in which singers
worked up their way as"Scholars,"
"SchooImen,""Singers,""Poets"and
finally "Masters." The purpose of
the Guilds was to train the minds of
the young, to sustain the highest stand
ards of art, and encourage the develop
ment of genius. This was an excellent
purpose in itself, but not unnaturally,
the Mastersingers' Guild in time arro
gated itself an undeserved importance.
The "rules" grew irksome, and they
were too pedantically enforced.

This is the condition Wagner satir
izes in the opera, using the good Hans
Sachs ^ to typify the true artist's concep
tion, in which a sane respect for system-
prized principles really is balanced by
an open-minded tolerance of new de
velopments. Itiseasy to see that Hans
Sachs is (as it were) Richard- Wagner
himself, and Beckmesser the personifi
cation of his critics and of those com
posers who are tangled hopelessly in
the barbed wires of pedanticism. The
score is woven with a richness of counter
point which the scholastic followers
of Richter and Jadassohn could not
have equalled, had they sought to pro
duce such polyphony as an end in itself;
yet to Wagner this elaborately inter
woven musical texture is merely a
means of expression. How openly he
laughs at the tricks of the scholars
when, as an exhibition of that much-
vaunted contrapuntal device,"Diminu-
tion of the theme," he diminishes the
broad, pompous theme of the Master-
singers by having it played four times
as fast, and thus makes it do duty as a
theme for the "pert apprentices!"

271

VICTRQLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE OPE RA

OPERA in three acts. Text and
music by Wagner. First pro
duction in Munich, June 21, 1868.
Vienna, 1870; Berlin the same year;
Leipsic, 1872 ;< Milan, 1890. The first
performance in England took place
at Drury Lane, May 30, 1882; an Ital
ian version was given at Covent Gar
den in 1889, and an English production
by the Carl Rosa Company at Man
chester in 1896. In 1888 it was given
for the first time at Bayreuth; and the
first American production took place at
the Metropolitan Opera House, New
York, January 4, 1886, with Fischer,
Staudigl, Kemlitz, Kramer, Krauss and
Brandt. Some notable American pro
ductions occurred in 1901, with
de Reszke, Gadski, Schumann-Heink,
Dippel and Bispham; in 1905, with Van
Rooy, Acte and Burgstaller, and some
forty Metropolitan performances under
Gatti-Casazza, with various fine casts.

CHARACTERS

Die Meistersinger (My-ster-zing-er) , or
Master-Singers

HANS SACHS, cobbler Bass

POGNER, goldsmith Bass

VOGELGESANG, furrier Tenor

NACHTIGAL, buckle maker Bass

BECKMESSER, town clerk Bass

KOTHNER, baker Bass

ZORN, pewterer Tenor

EISSLINGER, grocer Tenor

MOSER, tailor Tenor

ORTEL, soap boiler Bass

SCHWARZ, stocking weaver Bass

FOLZ, coppersmith. .. r Bass

SIR WALTER VON STOLZING, a

young Franconian knight Tenor

DAVID, apprentice to Hans

Sachs Tenor

EVA, Pogner's daughter Soprano

MAGDALENA, Eva's nurse Soprano

272

Burghers of all Guilds, Journeymen,

Apprentices, Girls and People.

Scene: Nuremberg in the Middle of the

Sixteenth Century

ACT I

SCENE Interior of St. Katherine's
Church

THE good people of Nuremberg are
gathered in the church on the festi
val of St. John's day. Among them
are Eva, the daughter of the wealthy
goldsmith Pogner, and her maid Mag-
dalena. They are engaged in singing
the last verse of the last hymn, and, as
usual in German choirs, there is a brief
musical interlude between the lines of
the verse. Under cover of this, the
young knight, Walter von Stoking, is
secretly making an appointment with
Eva, with whom he is deeply in love.
Wagner has cleverly adapted the music
between the stately lines of the hymn
to picture the lover's mood. When the
service is over, and the congregation
leaves, Walter for the first time learns
that Evas father has a singular plan in
view: he intends to give his daughter
as bride to the winner of the song-con
test on the morrow, making it a rule
that none but a Master of the guild
may compete.

Walter promptly decides to become a
Master and win the contest, though he
has not the faintest idea what may be
the processes involved. Magdalena is
called in to assist, and she in turn calls
upon David, the young apprentice, who
on pain of his sweetheart's displeasure,
is to try and instruct Walter in the rules
of the Guild-master's art. As there is
to be a test immediately, David begins
instruction at once, while his brother
apprentices are arranging the body of
the church for the Guild meeting. His
efforts make an amusing feature, ill-
calculated to help the ardent Walter.

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

In due course the Masters arrive,
and, while they are surprised at his
boldness, they agree to give Walter a
hearing. A "Marker" is appointed.
This is none other than Beckmesser, the
Town Clerk. Beckmesser himself is
eager to wed Eva. He is a formidable
stickler for rules, and the result may be
imagined. The uninstructed Walter is
allowed to sing, but he is interrupted
by the scratching of the pencil on the
slate as the Marker notes down his er
rors. At the end of the rambling first
verse the Masters refuse to hear any
more. Hans Sachs alone is willing to
go further. Sachs > himself a Master of
true worth, has detected in the song a
touch of genuine inspiration. He ad
mits that it may disregard the "rules"
of the Guild, but he suggests that it
may be governed by other rules justi
fying its character. He is shouted
down, however, and the indignant
young knight is dismissed amid the
jeers of the 'prentices. Thus is in
novation received in the arts. But the
youthful Walter^
once more a type of
Wagner's own life and
his struggles against
classical andscholastic
p e dan try, is not
beaten, only for the
moment. He will go
far beyond his critics.

OTTO GORJTZ

AS HANS SACHS

ACT II

A Street in Nuremberg. The Houses
of Pogner and Hans Sachs Separated
from each other by a Narrow Alley ^ but
both Facing the same Broader Street^ which
is shown Sectionally on the Stage

IT is night in the city. The 'pren
tices are putting up the shutters.
They are disposed to ridicule David y
who has suffered Magdalenas ire as a
result of Walter s failure. Sachs drives
them away, whooshing David off to his
bed, but he first has his workman's
bench so placed that at the same time
he can work and watch the street. He
settles down to a long soliloquy. He
has been greatly moved by Walter's
song, for which he half suspects the in
spiration. This affects him the more,
since, as a middle-aged widower, he
dreams of winning Eva himself. In
this mood Eva appears. Despairing to
change her father's determination and
win Walter for a husband she half sug
gests that Sachs might be a welcome
suitor. She has known and loved him
from childhood, and is well aware of his
essential worth. But Sachs under
stands in his heart that she loves Wal-

BECKMESSER'S SERENADE
273

COPY'T DUPON r

FISCHER AS SACHS IN FIRST
AMERICAN PRODUCTION 1886

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ter y and she leaves him. He shakes his
wise head over the turn of events; he
observes Eva and Walter talking to
gether, and he half reveals his knowl
edge by means of a song whose words
have a meaning for the lovers alone.
They decide to elope, but Sachs "acci
dentally" places his lamp where the
light will fall upon them, and they are
deterred by fear of being seen. While
they debate, however, a stranger ap
pears and they draw back into the
shadow. It is Beckmesser, who has
come to serenade his mistress with the
song he hopes to sing on the morrow.
Sachs y hearing him tinkle on his lute,
breaks in with a lusty song of his own,
and Beckmesser is greatly discomfited.
He pretends he has come to inquire
about a pair of shoes, and Sachs, the
cobbler, declares he is working on them.
In the meanwhile, Magdalena^ wonder
ing what has happened to her mistress,
appears at the window, and Beckmesser
thinking her to be Eva y wishes to sing,
worse than ever. He pretends that he
wants Hans Sachs to criticise the song,
and Sachs agrees to act as "Marker,"

hammering on the shoe for every mis
take. In this way, Beckmesser pro
ceeds. In his agitation, however, his
song runs wild, and Sachs hammers
loudly. The thumping becomes more
and more vehement as the mistakes of
Beckmesser increase. The disturbance
arouses the neighbors. David also is
awakened, and seeing the Town Clerk
apparently serenading Magdalena^ who
is still at the window, he vows ven
geance. Dashing out, club in hand, he
proceeds to beat Beckmesser. Soon the
apprentices are out and the different
guilds clothiers, furriers, goldsmiths
and what-not are having a grand
free-for-all fight. During the distur
bance Hans Sachs draws Walter into
the cobbler's shop, and Eva slips away
home. The joyous riot lasts till the
approach of trie Night- Watchman, who
arrives after the traditional manner of
the police, when the show is all over.
Finding the street quiet, he gravely an
nounces the hour and bids the people
sleep in peace. The sound of his horn
is distantly heard as he wanders off,
staff and lantern, calling the hour.

COPY T DUPONT

HOMER AS MAGDALENA

COPY'T MISHKIN

WITHERSPOON AS POGNER

274

COPY T DUPONT

GADSKI AS EVA

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT III

SCENE I Interior of Sachs* Workshop

NEXT morning Sachs, still brooding
over the song and very conscious
of his fading romance, does not notice
when David enters with a basket of eat
ables. David has patched it up with
Magdalena and he is in consequence
happy; only David is fearful that his
part in last night's disturbance will
bring down a beating from his Master.
He begins to explain, declaring the
night before was just a "polterabend"
a night of merrymaking on the festi
val of St. John. Sachs appears not to
notice; but suddenly he bids the won
dering youth sing the song of the day
a carol of St. John. This tells the
quaint story of the child of a woman of
Nuremberg christened in the River
Jordan by Johannes, the saint, for
whom he was named; but on his return
to Nuremberg the name was abbrevi
ated to "Hans," and the festival is
therefore the name-day of Hans Sachs
himself. Sachs, though still preoccu
pied, understands the 'prentice's hopes
and desires, and he dismisses him
kindly.

Scarcely has he gone than Walter,
who has just awakened, enters from
another room. He is full of a wonder
ful dream he has had in which a mar
vellous poem and melody have sung
their way into his heart. Sachs desires
to hear it. He is struck with amaze
ment at its beauty and inspiration., and
he tactfully instructs the young poet-
composer in the technical requirements
necessary to make it satisfactory to the
judges. These instructions, by the
way, are so excellent that they are seri
ously quoted by Sir Charles Stanford in
his book on musical composition, as a
valuable exposition of Wagner's own
methods.

After they have written down the
poem, they leave the room. Beckmes-
ser enters, and believing the song to be

by Hans Sachs himself, after the man
ner of plagiarists the world over, pock
ets it, intending to make use of it him
self. When Sachs returns, the Town
Clerk scolds him for planning to enter
the contest. Sachs denies this so Beck-
messer produces the manuscript, and
Sachs, perceiving the man's mistake,
does not undeceive him. On the con
trary, he divines the fact that Beckmes-
ser desires the poem, and knowing the
Town Clerk incapable of making good
use of it, he gives it to him, promising
not to make known the real author.
Beckmesser leaves in high glee.

Eva next enters, in festival attire.
Her shoe pinches, and Sachs, knowing
well what is in her heart, fusses and
fumes in trying to adjust it. She
raises her pretty foot on a low stool,
and while Hans Sachs bends over it,
Walter enters. Sachs pretends not to
see. Walter, spellbound, gazes at his
adored one, and then softly sings the
last verse of his prize-song. Sachs 5s
deeply moved, and when it is over he
gravely gives the two his blessing. Eva,
weeping for joy, falls into his arms and
the kindly man comforts her as her own
father could not hope to. During this
moment of mingled tears and laughter,
David and Magdalena enter, also in gala
attire. Hans invites them to a christ
ening he seeks to name Walter s song,
a witness is needed, and as a 'prentice
will not suffice, the kindly cobbler, with
twinkling eyes, gives David his freedom
by making him a full journeyman-cob
bler, thus opening the way to his mar
riage with Magdalena. The boy can
hardly believe his ears, and the curtain
goes down on a scene of blent pathos
and comedy.

SCENE II A Field on the Shores of the
River Pegnitz

IN an open meadow on the banks of
the river, a great crowd of people is
assembling for the song-contest. There
is much merriment and jesting, which

275

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

DAVID: " Forgive me, Master, and
pardon the slip."

ceases, however, as Eva, in bridal array
attended by many maidens, arrives on
a gaily decked barge. Sachs, in an air
of nobility, announces to the various
Guilds the terms of the contest and the
contest begins then and there, with ex
ceeding pomp and circumstance. Be
cause of his years, Beckmesser is given
first opportunity. Still sore from his
beatingof the previous night, grievously
flustered, with his stolen song only
half-learned, he attempts to wed the
poem to his own serenade-melody. The
result is a hopeless jumble which first
excites the wonder, then the derision of
the audience. Beckmesser, enraged,
declares the song is not his own but is
the work of Hans Sachs. The Masters
believing this a spiteful joke, call upon
Sachs for an explanation. He then in
sists that the song is a good one if prop
erly sung, and persuades them to let it
be interpreted by the young knight,
Walter von Stolzing. After some argu
ment, the young man, whose handsome
appearance at once wins the favor of
the crowd, is permitted to sing his
great "Preislied," or Prize Song.

The beauty of this melody beggars
description. To an intense degree it

EVA AND SACHS ACT II

reflects all that is best in Wagner's most
inspired moments.

Eva, who has listened with rapt at
tention, now advances to the edge of
the platform and places on the head of
Walter a wreath of laurel and myrtle,
then leads him to her father, before
whom they both kneel. Pogner ex
tends his hands over them in benedic
tion and presents the emblem of the
Master's guild to the young knight.
But Walter , remembering his reception
of the day before, and conscious also of
his noble birth, refuses the honor.
There is consternation for a moment,
but Hans Sachs, grasping Walter s
hand, bids him not to disparage the
Master's ways, but to show respect for
art. In a splendidly dignified passage
he bids the young man forget his noble
birth, since he has fairly won his Mas
tership by his gifts as a poet and musi
cian^ Walter consents, and he leans on
one side of Sachs with Eva on the other,
while Pogner kneels as if in homage
before the group. And thus the
cobbler-musician and the two lovers
become symbols of Art and Life,
enshrined among music of incomparable
splendor.

276

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE VICTOR RECORDS

PRIZE SONG

(Preislied) JOHN McCoRMACK, Tenor

6209 12-in., #2.00

EVAN WILLIAMS, Tenor 6314 12-in., 2.00
MISCHA ELMAN, Violin 6090 12-in., 2.00

WALTER (who has ascended to the platform with

firm and proud steps) :
Morning was gleaming with roseate light,

The air was filled

With scent distilled

\Vhere, beauty-beaming,

Past all dreaming,
A garden did invite.
Wherein, beneath a wondrous tree
With fruit superbly laden,
In blissful love-dream I could see
The rare and tender maiden,
Whose charms beyond all price,
Entranced my heart
Eva, in Paradise!

Evening fell and night closed around;
By rugged way
My feet did stray
Towards a mountain,

Where a fountain
Enslaved me with its sound;
And there beneath a laurel tree,
With starlight glinting under,
In waking vision greeted me
A sweet and solemn wonder;
She dropped on me the fountain's dews,
That woman fair
Parnassus's glorious Muse!

(Jith great exaltation) :
Thrice happy day,

To which my poet's trance gave place!
That Paradise of which I dreamed,
In radiance before my face

Glorified lay.
To point the path the brooklet streamed:

She stood beside me,

Who shall my bride be,
The fairest sight earth ever gave,
My Muse, to whom I bow,
So angel sweet and grave.
I woo her boldly now,
Before the world remaining,
By might of music gaining
Parnassus and Paradise.

BLUE LABEL AND PURPLE LABEL RECORDS

(Prize Song Beatrice Harrison, Violoncellist ^^y 12-in

I Ave Maria (Schubert) Beatrice Harrison, f Cellist) ~ "

Prize Song In German Lambert Murphy, Tenor 70080 12-in.,

fMeistersinger Overture Part I Albert Coates and Symphony Orchestra\^^j^ 12 in

\Meistersinger Overture Part II Albert Coates and Symphony Orchestra) ~ *'

1.25
1.50

FIRST PROGRAM OF MEISTERSINGER,
MUNICH, 1868

277

MIGNON

CHARLES LOUIS AMBROISE
THOMAS, born at Metz in
1811, came honestly by his
creative genius,, as he was the son of a
musician. He wrote numerous oper
atic and other works. Like Gounod, he
was an artist, poet, writer in general,
a man of unusual and arresting versa
tility. His musical style is easy, fluent,
brilliant at times in the extreme. To
many persons "Mignon" is his mas
terpiece. Its overture, known the
world over for its grace and delicacy,
is a concert-piece which few orchestras
do not return to from time to time.
It is a typical example of that grace
and ease so characteristic of the French
school of operatic music, and by sum
ming up the chief themes of the opera,
including Fi Una's dashing "Polon
aise," it presents, in brief form, some
of the most significant utterances that
school has made to the world of

music.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Barbier and Carre, based upon
Goethe's Wilhelm Meister. Music
by Ambroise Thomas. First pro
duction at the Opera Comique, Paris,
November 17, 1866. In London at
Drury Lane, 1870. First New York
production November 22, 1872, with
Nilsson, Duval and Capoul. Re
vived at the Metropolitan in 1900,
with de Lussan, Adams, Selignac and
Plancon; by Oscar Hammerstein in
1907, with Bressler-Gianoli, Pinkert,
Bonci and Arimondi, and at the Metro
politan in 1908, with Farrar, Jacoby,
Abott, Plancon and Bonci.

CHARACTERS

MIGNON, a young girl stolen by
gypsies (Meen'-yohri)

Mezzo-Soprano

FILINA (Fil-lee'-naH)) an act
ress Soprano

FREDERICK, a young noble
man Contralto

WILHELM, a student Tenor

LAERTES, (Layr'-tayz) , an actor Tenor

LOTHARIO (Loh-tah'-ree-oh), an

Italian nobleman, Basso Cantante

GIARNO (Jahr'-noh)) a gypsy .... Bass

Townsfolk, Peasants, Gypsies,
Actors and Actresses

The Scene of Acts I and II is laid
in Germany; of Act III in Italy

ACT I

SCENE Courtyard of a German Inn

AMONG the wine tables, at which
a number of people are merrily
drinking, an old man wanders, harp in
hand, singing strange songs. It is
Lothario ', an Italian nobleman whose
memory has left him so that he knows
not even his own name. His condi
tion is told in the "Fuggitivo e tre-
mante" (A Lonely Wanderer).

Though he has forgotten her, he is
the father of Mignon, a young girl who
was stolen from her home in childhood
by gypsies and who is now forced by
the mercenary Giarno to dance in the
streets for a living. The gypsy band
appears, and Mignon, a singular, half-
boyish-looking figure, rebels when she
is bidden to dance for a troupe of act
ors in the balcony of the inn and for the
casual throngs in the courtyard. She
refuses and her master threatens to
beat her. Lothario intervenes but the
old man is powerless. Suddenly, how
ever, Wilhelm enters, and, grasping the
situation, he forces Giarno, with a pis
tol, to release the girl. For this he is
applaucjed by the actors, and one of
them is sent by Filina with the request

278

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

that he shall ^visit them. Filina is an
actress of designing temperament, who
succeeds in attracting Wilhelm s at
tention, much to the jealousy of
Frederick, a young nobleman. For
the present, however, Wilhelm is cu
rious about the girl he has rescued, and
he questions her regarding her child
hood. She remembers nothing, except
that she was captured by gypsies in a
country she describes with such elo
quence that Wilhelm guesses it must be
Italy. She tells of it in the "Connais-
tu^le pays?" " Kennst du das Land?"
"Non conosci il bel suol?" (Knowest
Thou the Land ?) . The opening passage:

gives an idea of the melody, one of the
loveliest in the entire range of opera.
The passionate longing of the orphan
child for the home of her infancy is
expressed in a superb climax:

Moved to pity, Wilhelm offers
Giarno money to "buy" the girl, and
he goes into the inn to complete the
bargain. Lothario, drawn by some
subtle bond of parenthood, comes to
bid her farewell, saying that he must
go south, following the swallows. A
sprightly duet ensues, "Les Hiron-
delles", "Leggiadre Rondinelle,"
(Song of the Swallows).

Filina is invited to go to the castle
of Prince Tieffenbach with the troupe
of players and any guests she may care
for. She promptly invites Wilhelm,
whom she desires to captivate, and he
is included as playwright of the com
pany. Wilhelm plans to leave Mignon
behind, being somewhat embarrassed
by his "purchase", but she begs so-

hard to go with him that finally she is
permitted to, disguised as a servant.
The gypsy girl is infatuated with her
new "master", and she causes him no
little uneasiness. His respectful atti
tude toward her, only makes her love
him the more deeply.

ACT II

SCENE I A Boudoir in the Tieffenbach

Castle

FILINA sits at her mirror, con
sidering her charms and laying on
cosmetics. She is thinking of Wilhelm,
who really has made a "great impres
sion". Presently he enters. With
him, however, comes Mignon, who is
greeted by the actress with civil yet
subtly "cattish" remarks. The poor
girl does not resent this, however, and
she apparently goes to sleep. Yet she
observes, under half-closed lids, that
Wilhelm is paying court to the actress,
to whom he has given a bouquet of
blooms presented to him by Mignon
herself. Presently Filina and Wilhelm
leave and Mignon, dreaming that she
may equal the actress's charm,, pow
ders her face and "tries on" one of
Filina s manifold gowns. At the en
trance of Wilhelm > followed by Fred
erick, however, she scurries into hiding.
The two men quarrel over Filina.
Swords are drawn, but Mignon inter
venes, and they separate. Finally,
left alone with Mignon, Wilhelm, in
the"Addio, Mignon" (Farewell, Mig
non), tells her he must leave her.

Mignon begins to weep, refuses the
money, and is about to say farewell.
At this juncture, however, enters
Filina. Observing the girl decked out
in borrowed raiment, she utters a few
things which raise a flush of anger in
Mignon s cheeks. The girl dashes
into an inner cabinet, where she tears
off the dress, reappears in her own
gypsy clothes, and finally runs out of
the room.

279

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

SCENE II The Gardens of the Castle

THE despairing Mignon, believing
her love for Wilhelm to be without
hope, decides to drown herself. She
is about to jump into the lake, when
she is stopped by Lothario, who listens
sympathetically to the angry girl's
talk of her desire for vengeance, and
her wish that fire and thunderbolts
might descend from heaven and burn
the castle. The half-crazed minstrel
starts curiously at the word "fire" and
goes off muttering to himself.

In the meantime, the performance
in the theatre having ended, the actors
and actresses and guests appear in the
garden. Filina has made a brilliant
success of it, and, still flushed with
triumph, she sings her dashing and
showy Polonese or Polacca (French
Polonaise), an exceptionally difficult
and showy coloratura soprano air, in
somewhat different mood from that
with which Chopin invested his won
derful polonaises for the piano.

"lo son Titania"(I 'm Fair Titania!)
sings she. Her brilliant and exacting
melody, with its fiery energy of
rhythm is a great favorite, not only in
the opera house but on the concert
platform too.

Mignon, arrives on the scene, and
Filina, enraged at sight of her, sends
the girl into the house to find a bou
quet she has lost. As Filina knows
the bouquet is made of flowers
gathered by Mignon for Wilhelm, there
is malice enough in her request; yet
Mignon goes without complaint. No
sooner has she gone, however, than the
word "Fire!" springs from everybody's
lips. The half-witted Lothario has
interpreted Mignon s wild talk only
too literally, and set fire to the castle.
Instantly there is great commotion.
Wilhelm, realizing that Mignon is in
danger, rushes off to her rescue. He
reappears with her in his arms as the
curtain descends. He places the un

conscious girl on a grassy bank, and she
lies there still clasping the bunch of
withered flowers.

ACT III

SCENE Count Lothario's Castle in
Italy

HEADING south, as if indeed with
the instinct of the swallow, Lo
thario has brought Mignon to the
neighborhood of an old castle in Italy,
which Wilhelm is half inclined to pur
chase. Wilhelm, who now realizes
that he loves Mignon, has followed
them hither. The young girl is re
covering from a dangerous illness, and
as Lothario watches, outside her sick
room he sings a beautiful berceuse or
lullaby, "Ninna nanna". Lullabies for
bass voices are rarities, and this is a
notable and delightful exception.

Wilhelm takes Lothario s place as
watcher, and tells of his new-found af
fection in a beautiful air, "Elle ne
croyait pas" (Pure as a Flower).

Mignon comes, with feeble step, to
the balcony, and seeing Wilhelm, she
becomes greatly agitated, fearing Fi
lina may be with him. He soothes her,
but she insists that only Lothario loves
her. Meantime, however, a strange
thing has happened. Having returned
to his home by some strange instinct
of the blind, Count Lothario* s memory
is restored, and he now reappears in
his rightful character. His only re
gret is the loss of his daughter, Sper-
ata. At sound of that name, the
floodgates of memory are opened in
Mignon s perturbed consciousness,
and when Lothario shows her the jew
els and prayerbook of his lost daughter
she not only recognizes them but she
unconsciously begins to sing the
prayers of her early childhood. In
this way, father and daughter are re
stored and reunited, and Wilhelm ad
mitted to the family circle, so that all
ends happily.

280

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE VICTOR RECORDS

ACT I
CONNAIS-TU LEPAYS?

(Knowest Thou the Land?) GERALDINE
FARRAR-FRITZ KREISLER, Violin. In
French 8024 12-in., 2.50

ERNESTINE SCHUMANN-HEINK, Con
tralto. In German 6367 12-in., 2.00

EMMY DESTINN, Soprano. In German

6085 12-in., 2.00

MIGNON:

Knowest thou yonder land where the orange

grows,

Where the fruit is of gold, and so fair the rose?
Where the breeze gently wafts the song of

birds,
Where the season round is mild as lover's

words ?
Where so calm and so soft, like Heaven's

blessing true,
Spring eternally reigns, with the skies ever

blue?
Alas, why afar am I straying, why ever linger

here?

Tis with thee I would fly!
Tis there! Tis there! my heart's love

obeying,

Twere bliss to live and die!
Tis there my heart's love obeying,
I'd live, I would die!

LES HIRONDELLES

(Song of the Swallows) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano and MARCEL JOUR-
NET, Bass. In French 8022 12-5n., 32.50

ACT II
POLONAISE, "IO SON TITANIA!"

(I'm Fair Titania!) AMELITA GALLI-
CuRCi 3 Soprano. In Italian

6133 12-in., 2.00
FILINA:

Yes; for to-night I am queen of the fairies!

Observe ye here, my sceptre bright;

(Raising the wand}

I'm fair Titania, glad and gay,

Thro '_ the world unfettered I blithely stray.

With jocund heart and happy mien,

I cheerily dance the hours away,

Like the bird that freely wings its flight.

Elfin sprites around me dance;

For I'm fair Titania!

My attendants ever sing,

The achievements of the god of Love!

On the wave's white foam,

'Mid the twilight grey, 'mid flowers,

I blithely do dance!

Behold Titania, glad and gay!

GAVOTTE

MAUD POWELL, Violinist
Philadelphia Orchestra

803
944

10-in.,
10-in.,

1.50
1.50

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

/Overture Part 1 Victor Concert Orchestra}-, 7QnQ irL -

lOverture Part 2 Victor Concert Orchestraf 17 ^ 1U - m '>

I Gems from Mignon Victor Opera Co\
"Awav Ye Friends" "Polonaise" Barcarolle, "Now On We Sail" Ur-m 19 : n
ttt-\ ' r->l J> t< T\ T^L IT T* 1 fJJJJl i^--in.,

"Pure as a Flower Dost Thou Know Finale
Gems from " Tales of Hoffmann" Victor Opera Co]

281

SCENE FROM MIKADO

THE MIKADO

COMIC opera in two acts; text
by W. S. Gilbert; music by Sir
Arthur Sullivan. First pro
duced at the Savoy Theatre, London,
March 14, 1885. First American
production at the Museum, Chicago,
July 6, 1885, followed by the pro
duction at the Union Square Theatre,
New York, July 20, 1885. AU star
revival by Messrs. Shubert and William
A. Brady at the Casino Theatre, May
30, 1910. Revived at the Majestic
Theatre by the Gilbert and Sullivan
Festival Company, 1913. The most
popular of all the Gilbert and Sullivan
operettas.

CHARACTERS

MIKADO of Japan Baritone

NANKI~POO, his son, disguised
as a minstrel, in love with

Yum- Yum Tenor

Ko-Ko,Lord High Execution
er of Titipu Comedian

POOH-BAH, Lord High Every
thing Else Bass

PiSH-TusH, a noble lord. . . . .Baritone

YUM-YUM, PlTTI-SlNG, PfiEP-

Bo, wards of Ko-Ko Soprano

KATISHA, an elderly lady, in

love with Nanki-Poo. . .Contralto
Schoolgirls, Nobles, Guards and
Coolies

Time and Place The Scene is laid
in Japan; Present Time

SO far as the plot is concerned, the
whole trouble begins with Nanki-
Poo, the son of the Japanese Mikado,
who has fled from thecourt,disguised as
a wandering minstrel, to avoid matri
mony with Katisha, a lady of equiv
ocal age but unequivocal temper.
Nanki-Poo arrives in Titipu, where
Ko-Ko is Lord High Executioner and
Pooh-Bah is Lord High Everything
Else. He has the temerity to fall in
love with the ward of Ko-Ko, the
lovely Yum-Yum. As Ko-Ko intends to
marry her himself, however, his wooing
is not a success. About this time, the
Mikado sends a note to Ko-Ko com
plaining of the lack of executions in

282

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Titipu, and adding that unless some
body is beheaded during the next
month, Ko-Ko will lose his position.
Pooh-Bah happens to come upon
Nanki-Poo as he is about to hang
himself for love of Yum-Yum. He
persuades the young man to consent
to be beheaded instead, his terms
being a month of wedded bliss with
Yum-Yum. To this he agrees, and
Ko-Ko is forced to add a somewhat
grudging consent.

At the opening of the second act,
Yum-Yum is preparing for the cere
mony, but a hitch occurs. It seems,
that according to law, when a married
man is executed, his wife also is buried
alive, and Yum-Yum^ though she loves
Nanki-Poo dearly, objects to "such a
stuffy death/' Ko-Ko is at first
elated, but news is brought that the
Mikado himself is approaching, to see
why his orders are unobeyed. Pooh-
Bah then ventures that as Nanki-
Poo insists on killing himself unless he
weds Yum-Yum y he had better be
allowed to marry her and depart with
his bride on condition that he consents
to be the" hero " of a wholly fictitious

execution.,- to be described to the
Mikado in great detail. Xanki-Poo
has no objection to this and a story is
appropriately "cooked up." The
Mikado duly arrives, with Katisha
in his train. He is delighted with the
account of the execution, but the lynx-
eyed Katisha has made out that
Nanki-Poo^ the supposed victim, is
none other than the Mikado's heir.
To save themselves from "boiling in
oil, or something lingering" the mis
creants are obliged to confess that
the execution has never taken place.
This involves another form of not-too-
sudden death for deceiving the Mikado,
but eventually, that great monarch,
made happy by the rediscovery of his
son, consents to pardon everybody,
even Ko-Ko, except that this very
gentle Lord High Executioner is con
demned to marry the formidable
Katisha, a circumstance which evokes
from him the ever-memorable lines:

"The flowers that bloom in the spring, tra-la,
Have nothing to do with the case;
IVe got to take under my wing, tra-la,
A most unattractive old thing, tra-la
With a caricature of a face. "

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

'Gems from "The Mikado' Part I ............ Victor Light Opera Co.

Quartet, "Behold the Lord High Executioner" Solo and Chorus
"The Flowers that Bloom in the Spring" Women's Trio, "Three
Little Maids" Solo, "Tit-Willow" Duet and Chorus, "He's Gone
and Married Yum Yum" Chorus, "With Joyful Shout"

Gems from "The Mikado" Part II ..... . ..... Victor Light Opera Co.

Chorus, "Gentlemen of Japan" Solo, "A Wandering Minstrel"
Solo and Quartet, *'A Song of the Sea" Solo, "Moon Song"
Duet, "Emperor of Japan" Solo and Chorus, "My Object All
Sublime "Chorus, " We Do Not Heed "

/Madrigal Brightly Dawns Our Wedding Day ........... Lyric

l Martha Good Night Quartet .................... Lyric Quartet

Mikado Selection No. 1 ........................ Victor Concert Orchestra

Entrance of Mikado, "Mi-Ya-Sa-Ma" "A Wandering Minstrel"
"Moon Song" Quintet, "Youth Must Have Its Fling" Trio,
"The Criminal Cried"

Mikado Selection No. 2 ........................ Victor Concert Orchestra

"Tit-Willow" "Three Little Maids" "He's Going to Marry Yum
Yum" "The Flowers that Bloom in the Spring" "Here's a State
of Things" Finale, "With Joyful Shout" (arr. by Tobani)

283

^35551 12 in. $1.25

in
1U m *

in'
1U " m *

MIREILLE

(MIRELLA

MIREILLE ACT I

MIREILLE, which came later
than "Faust" in order of pro
duction, is a pastoral romance
based on "Mireio," a poem by that
beloved poet of Provence, Frederic
Mistral. Gounod has drawn freely upon
Provencal folk-songs. The plot, there
fore, is less significant than the
" atmosphere," and the work indeed
is but a tale of simple peasant life.

The scene opens in a mulberry grove,
where the village girls are teasing
Mirella over her hopeless love for
Vincent^ a poor basket-maker. Tavena,
the fortune-teller, warns her that
Ramon, the girl's father never will
consent to the, union. Mirella accepts
the woman's help, but "soon forgets
her when Vincent arrives. The two
have a passionate love scene, and
they arrange to meet at a distant
shrine if anything goes wrong.

Mirella learns that her father plans
to marry her to the wild herdsman,
Ourrias, but when he arrives, Mirella

refuses him, and avows her love for
Vincent. Vincent' 's father attempts
to gain the consent of Mirella s
father to the union, but the latter
charges mercenary motives. A quarrel
ensues, and Mirella" s plans seem
spoiled forever. She therefore starts
on the journey across the desert to the
distant shrine.

The journey proves almost too much,
even though Tavena overtakes her and
assures her Vincent will be there. She
arrives so exhausted that her death
seems imminent. Vincent attempts to
revive her but without success. Her
father Ramon, however, who has fol
lowed, is so overcome by her distress
that he finally consents to the marriage
and Mirella recovers so that all ends
happily even under operatic law.

OPERA in five acts. Words by
M. Carre, from Mireio y Pro-
ven^al poem by Mistral; music
by Gounod. First version given at
Saint Remy-de-Provence, under the
direction of the composer, in 1863.
Produced in Paris March 19, 1864.
Reduced to three acts, with the addi
tion of the waltz, and reproduced
December 15, 1864. In London, in
Italian with five acts, as "Mirella" July
5, 1864. The first performance in
America was given by Mapleson, at
the Brooklyn Academy, December,

1884, with Nevada, Scalchi and Vicini.
Given at the New Orleans Opera,
January 29, 1885, in Italian. April 23,

1885, given at the Academy of Music,
New York, with Patti in the cast.
Revived at the Metropolitan Opera
House, New York, March 8, 1919.

VICTOR BLACK LABEL RECORD

/Mirella Overture Allegro Vessella's Italian

\ Puritani Quartet (Bellini] Vessella's Italian

284

10 .
12 ' m -*

THE DAGGER DANCE ACT II

NATOMA

NATOMA, the work of an Amer
ican composer and librettist,
with an American setting and
an American first production in Eng
lish, may be regarded as one of the
most successful American operas this
country has yet known. For this
reason alone it is a notable achieve
ment; at the same time, its intrinsic
merits ensure it the high regard of
music lovers of all races.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts; text by
Joseph D. Redding; music by
Victor Herbert. First produced by the
Philadelphia-Chicago OperaCom-
pany, at the Metropolitan Opera
House, Philadelphia, February 25, 1911.
First New York production February
28, 1911.

CHARACTERS

(With the Original Cast)
DON FRANCISCO DE LA GUERRA,

a noble Spaniard. .Bass (Huberdeau)
BARBARA, his daughter

Soprano (Grenville)

NATOMA (Nah-toh'-mati), an

Indian girl Soprano (Garden)

PAUL MERRILL, Lieutenant of
theU.S.Brig"Liberty"

Tenor (McCormack)

JUAN ALVARADO, a young Span
iard Baritone (Sammarco)

JOSE CASTRO, a half-breed

Baritone (Preisch)

FATHER PERALTA, Padre of the

Mission Church . . . Bass (Dufranne)

Pico; KAGAMA, Comrades of

Castro (Crabbe) (Nicolay)

American Officers, Nuns, Convent
Girls, Friars, Soldiers, Dancers, etc.

Scene and Period: California^ under the
Spanish regime ', 1820

ACT I

SCENE Hacienda of Don Francisco on
the Island of Santa Cruz

FROM his island home by the blue
waters of the Pacific, gazing toward
the mountains of California, faintly
penciled against a cloudless sky, Don
Francisco waits for the coming of his

285

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPE R A

daughter, Barbara^ whose school-days
at the convent are over. But there is
another watcher with less reputable
purpose. Aware that Barbara will
inherit her mother's vast estates, her
cousin, Aharado^ hopes to marry her,
and he, too, looks forward to her
arrival.

This expectancy is shared, if with
varied feelings, by the island, for the
lovely young girl is very popular.
None loves her more, how
ever, than Natoma y the
Indian girl, within whose
veins is to be found the
royal blood of distant
Aztec ancestors. Natoma
is deeply in love with
Lieutenant Paul Merrill^
of the U.S. Brig "Liberty,"
which lies at anchor in
the bay. He and she are
sitting on a hilltop over
looking the sea, and Paul
regards with interest an
amulet of abalone shell,
which Natoma wears
about her neck. She tells
him of its proud history,
and then proceeds to tell
with loving pride of Bar
bara,, whom she loves so
dearly. Paul is charmed
with this beautiful Indian
maid, whom he calls his "wildflower."

With the arrival of Barbara^ Ahara-
do at once urges forward his suit. The
young girl regards him with disdain,
however, for her heart is already given
to Paul. Her cousin at once plots with
Castro, a half-caste, to carry Barbara
off to the mountains the next day, when
there is to be a fiesta in honor of the
girl's coming of age and her accession
to the estates. The plot is overheard by
Natoma. That night, after the guests
depart, Barbara comes to the porch,
where under the blue light of the
southern moon she breathes to the

PHOTO WHITE

McCORMACK AS PAUL

stars her love for the young American.
Paul joins her, and soon his arms are
about her. But they are not unob
served, for Natoma from her window
sees all, and she learns that the man
she loves is not for her. Long into the
night she battles with herself. A word
from her, and the plot to kidnap Bar
bara may be thwarted and Barbara
saved for Paul! Silence on her part,
and her only rival is lightly removed.

ACT II

SCENE Plaza at Santa

Barbara

T is dawn. The Span
ish soldiers raise the
national flag in the Plaza
beside the mission Church,
while trumpeters and
drummers yield it a full
salute. Hither creeps Na
toma,, her problem still
unsettled. She prays alter
nately to the Great Spirit
of whom Padre Peralta has
taught her, and to Mani-
tou, the Mighty. Soon
the vaqueros and ranche-
ros arrive and the fiesta
begins. With the arrival
of Don Francisco and his
daughter the ceremonies
reach their height. The old
nobleman places upon his daughter's
head a woof of royal Castilian lace,
a pretty Spanish custom. Barbara^
full of love and happiness, sings the
delightful "Spring Song" (I List the
Trill of Golden Throat).

After this rich melody, with its
modern harmonies and delicate or
chestration, Paul arrives with a com
pany of armed sailors, to do official
honor to the representative of the race
which is responsible, through Co
lumbus, for the discovery of his own
land. The "Panuelo'\ or "dance of
declaration" follows, in which each

286

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

man places his hat upon the head of
the girl he loves. Alvarado places his
upon Barbara s^ but she gaily flicks
it into the crowd. The Spaniard is
infuriated, and the act excites comment.
Castro^ remembering the plan to kidnap
Barbara^ distracts attention by loudly
demanding that somebody shall dance
with him the fiery dagger dance. He
plunges his dagger into the ground and
dares any girl to throw another beside
it. Suddenly making up her mind,
Natoma responds, and throwing a
similar blade to the earth, she leaps
into the ring beside him. They dance,
to a wild and barbaric rhythm, the now
famous "Dagger Dance."

The crowd watches so intently that
nobody but Natoma sees Aharado^
with an Indian follower to help him,
suddenly throw a serape over Bar
bara s head. Snatching one of the
daggers, Natoma wildly rushes past
Castro and plunges the knife into the
heart of Aharado. Instantly the
startled crowd demands her blood, but
Paul y with his sailors, intervenes. In
this crisis the good Padre appears,
holding a cross on high. At sight of
him the people kneel in reverence,
and Natoma, dropping her weapon,
staggers toward the steps of the church
and falls at the good man's feet. The
right of sanctuary is claimed and im
plied. Beneath the Father's protec
tion the girl remains trembling as the
curtain falls.

ACT III

SCEICE Interior of the Church

NATOMA is seen kneeling at the
altar, invoking the Great Spirit
to yield her vengeance. The old Priest^
with wonderful penetration, at last
finds the "responsive chord" in her
heart her love for Barbara. He leaves
her kneeling at the altar. A word
to an acolyte and the Priest dons his
vestments; the church slowly fills with
people, including Paul and Barbara
in opposite pews. The Priest ascends
the pulpit, and the air is filled with
the chanting of monks and nuns.
Natoma remains kneeling. Presently
the singing stops, and the music of the
organ dies down to a pedal-note. The
air is tense with expectancy. Natoma
rises and walks down the aisle. Moved
by some strange impulse, Paul and
Barbara kneel in her path. From her
neck, Natoma takes the amulet of
abalone shell, and places it upon
Barbara^ whom she loves so dearly,
a sign of renuncia tion. Then with
uncertain steps she slowly makes her
way toward the con vent garden, and the
Priest raises his hands in benediction
as the doors of the cloister shut behind
her. Natoma will not leave them again.

THE VICTOR RECORD

SPRING SONG

(I List the Trill of Golden Throat)
ALMA GLUCK, Soprano 6147 12-in., $2.00

287

NORMA (proudly} : Then fulfil thy fate, and follow him ! (Act I.)

NORMA

BELLINI'S opera, "Norma", came
the year after "La Sonnambula' 1
had won exceptional favor, and
it was no less successful. The tech
nique of the work is that of the older
Italian Opera School, in which airs and
ensemble numbers, based on the sim
plest harmonic and melodic architec
ture, are plentiful enough. This does
not mean, however, that emotional
quality is absent, or even meager; and
such numbers as "Casta Diva" or the
duet in the final scene are remarkable
for their sincerity of emotional expres
sion, notwithstanding their clear sim
plicity of style. Those who weary of
declamatory modern opera, in which
the music is constantly changing in
agreement with the most swift and
subtle moods that emotion throws
upon the stage, at the expense of
clearly defined melody, will have no
quarrel with the simplicity of "Norma."

THE OPERA

OPERA in two acts. Book by
Felice Romani, founded on a
French tragedy by Soumet, pro

duced at the Theatre Frangais,at
Paris, about a year before the opera.
Score by Vincenzo Bellini. First pro
duction December 26, 1831, at Milan.
First London production at King's
Theatre, in Italian, June 20, 1833. In
English at Drury Lane, June 24, 1837.
First Paris production, Theatre des
Italians, 1833. First Vienna produc
tion, 1833; in Berlin, 1834. First New
York production, February 25, 1841,
at the Park Theatre. Produced at the
New Orleans Opera, December 31,
1842. Other American productions:
September 20, 1843, with Corsini and
Perozzi; October 2, 1854, with Grisi,
Mario and Susini, at the opening of the
Academy of Music; and December 19,
1891, at the Metropolitan, with Leh-
mann. Recently revived by the Bos
ton Opera Company.

CHARACTERS

NORMA, High Priestess of the
Temple of Esus Soprano

ADALGISA, a Virgin of the Tem
ple Soprano

CLOTILDE, Norma's attendant, Soprano

288

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

POLLIONE, a Roman proconsul
commanding the legions of

Gaul Tenor

FLAVIO, his lieutenant Tenor

OROVESO, the Arch-Druid,

father of Norma Bass

Priests and Officers of the Temple,
Gallic Warriors, Priestesses and Virgins
of the Temple, two children of Norma

and Pollione

Scene and Period: The Scene is laid in
Gaul, shortly after the Roman Conquest

ACT I

SCENE Sacred Grove of the Druids

THE opera has an overture, which
has been recorded. The first scene
is laid beneath the sacred Oak of Irmin-
sul, at the foot of which is a great Dru-
idical stone. It is night, and from be
hind the distant trees there sparkle the
torches of the Gallic army, which is
coming in procession to this rough altar.
They are followed by a procession of
priests, headed by Oroveso, the father of
Norma, the High Priestess. It is their
hope the prophetess Norma will bid
them rise against their Roman con
queror, and they plan to reassemble at
the altar within a short time. For the
present they disperse, and Pollione
enters cautiously with his lieutenant,
Flavio; these two Romans are enveloped
in their togas. Pollione^tho. secret lover
of Norma and the father of her two
children, now confides that he has
ceased to love her, as he longs for an
other maid, the Virgin Priestess, Adal-
gisa, whom he hopes now to meet.

The sacred Bronze is heard sounding,
and the two men withdraw as the Gauls
return singing a familiar march. Norma
appears in solemn state, warning her
followers against war with the Romans,
and dismissing them after the cere
mony of cutting the mistletoe. She
then invokes peace in the exquisite
"Casta Diva" (Queen of Heaven).

Pollione tempts Adalgisa to fly with

him to Rome, and the distraught girl,
not knowing of his previous romance,
carries her trouble to the High Priest
ess, Norma. Norma is disposed, in
memory of her own love, to release the
young priestess from her vows, but
when she asks the name of the lover,
she is confronted with Pollione, for
whom she herself has bet rayed her gods.
Normals soul is filled with the desire
of vengeance. Nearly frantic with
rage, she thinks to kill her husband and
children, and expiate upon the funeral
pyre her secret marriage with the nat
ural enemy of her race, for death is the
punishment laid upon any priestess
who dares break her vows of chastity.

ACT II

SCENE Interior of Norma s Dwelling

THE children of Norma lie sleeping
on a Roman couch covered with
bearskins. The crazed mother advances
upon them with uplifted dagger; but
the sight of her unsuspecting victims is
too much, and, with a piercing cry, she
falls upon her knees before them. Her
maid Clotilde enters, and Adalgisa next
is summoned. Norma then confides
her children to her rival, vowing that
she will die on the funeral pyre and
permit Adalgisa to wed Pollione. The
younger girl, deeply affected, pleads
with her not to seek this desperate end,
promising she will persuade Pollione to
return to his first love. Her generous
impulse is nobly expressed in an air
familiar to all opera-goers, the "Mira O
Norma" (Hear Me, Norma).

The effort is futile. Pollione refuses
to return to Norma and against her will
he attempts to seize Adalgisa. The
now infuriated Norma summons her
followers, to rouse them to battle with
the Romans. No sooner are the men
assembled than Pollione is discovered
in their midst, a spy. Norma claims
the right to kill him, and advances
against him with blade uplifted. She

289

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

has not the strength, however, to take
away the life of the man she continues
to love, and, declaring she wishes to
question the prisoner, she bids the
guards depart. She then tries to per
suade him to give up his guilty love for
Adalgisa^ death being the alternative.
This leads to the duet, "In mia mano"
(In My Grasp).

As "Pollione continues to refuse,
Norma strikes the sacred shield, and
again summons her hosts. Before
them she confesses a priestess has vio
lated her vows of chastity and that she

must suffer death. Pottione believes
she is about to denounce Adalgisa. But
Norma now is bent upon confession for
herself, and to the astounded gathering,
of whom her own father, Oroveso, is one,
she reveals her own fault and claims
purification by death upon the sacri
ficial pyre. Moved by her devotion,
Pollione finds his love returning, and
begs leave to share the flames. The
wish is granted. Norma confides the
two children to her father's care, and
the lovers, reunited, go out to meet
their death as the curtain falls.

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

/Mira o Norma (Hear Me Norma) Francis Lapitino,

\ LuciaPrelude Francis Lapitino, Harpist,

jOerture Arthur Pryor's

\ Oberon Overture (Weber} Arthur Pryor's Band.

_j n CQ 75
*'

u _ { L25

NORMA: Now, for your judgment, a new victim is offered I am guilty! (Act II, Scene IIL)

290

PHOTO MANUEL

THE ENCHANTED FOREST ACT I

OBERON

OR THE ELF-KING'S OATH

WEBER'S peculiar gift was to
interpret, through the opera,
the romance and beauty of
the Fairyland myths with which Ger
man literature is so enriched. In
"Oberon" he is especially successful,
and especially in this opera's Overture.
From the opening horn-call, answered
by the fairy-like tripping measure ^ of
the wood- wind, to the very end, which
refers to the famous air in the opera,
< 'Ocean, Thou Mighty Monster," we
are transported to the never-never land
of magical beauty which the most so
phisticated among us longs for in secret.
Weber took us there by melodies,
harmonies and orchestral effects ab

solutely new in style at the time he
wrote them. His pioneer-work, in this
direction, has affected all the leading
German composers; without it Men
delssohn would never have given us
the " Midsummer Night's Dream Over
ture" in its present form. Wagner,
especially, was indebted to Weber, and
in his great works, based on myths and
legends, he is the earlier composer's
natural successor. To anyone with
a musically historical sense, the im
portance and beauty of Weber's works
cannot be exaggerated, and it has been
well said that " the historian of German
music in the 19th century will have to
make Weber his starting-point."

TH E O PE RA

RDMANTIC fairy opera in three
acts. Text by James Robinson
Planche; music by Carl Maria von
Weber. First produced at Covent
Garden, London, April 12, 1826^in
English, under the personal direction
of the composer. Translated into
German by Theodor Hell, and given

in Leipsic, December, 1826; Vienna,
March 20, 1827; Berlin July 2, 1828.
First Paris production in German, in
1830, was a comparative failure. Re
vived at the Theatre Lyrique, trans
lation by Nuitter, Beaumont and
Chazot, with success, February 27,
1857. Revived in London, December

291

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

7, 1878. First American production,
New York, October 9, 1827. Revived
at the Academy of Music, March 29,
1870, in English, with Parepa-Rosa
and Mrs. Seguin. The opera was first
sung in Italian at Her Majesty's,
London, July 3 5 1860, with recitatives
by Benedict, and this version was
given in Philadelphia in 1870. Revived
in New York in 1912 and 1918.

THE opera opens 5n Fairyland,
where elves are dancing about the
form of the sleeping Oberpn, their King.
Oberon has quarreled with his Queen,
Titania y who vows never to be recon
ciled with him until he shall have found
two mortal lovers who remain constant
through trial and temptation. Oberon' s
" tricky spirit," Puck y believes he has
met with such a pair in Sir Huon de
Bordeaux and Rezia, daughter of
Haroun of Bagdad.

Sir Huon has killed the son of
Charlemagne, and he has been con-,
demned to travel to Bagdad to slay
the person who sits at Haroun s left
hand, and claim Rezia as his wife.
Having been permitted by Oberon to
see Rezia in a vision, Sir Huon at once
falls in love with her. He is presented

with a magic horn, which, when
sounded, will bring the forces of Fairy
land to his aid; thus armed, he sets
upon his difficult mission. Sir Huon is
transported to Bagdad accomplishing
his purpose and carrying off Rezia.
But trials await the lovers. They are
tossed about in a storm raised by
Oberon and then shipwrecked upon
a desert island. Rezia is abducted by
pirates and sold to the Emir of Tunis y
while Sir Huon y believing her dead, is
left on the beach. He is transported
by good fairies, however, to Tunis,
where he enters the very harem in
search of Rezia. The two are captured,
and sentenced to be burned alive. In
this desperate crisis Huon sounds the
fairy horn and Oberon^ with Titania^
comes to his rescue. The King of the
Fairies transports them to the court
of Charlemagne, where Huon is par
doned. Titania^ recognizing the de
votion of Sir Huon and Rezia y forgives
Oberon. All ends happily.

THE VICTOR RECORD

OVERTURE Parts I and II

Mengelberg and New York Philharmonic
Orchestra 6224 12-in., 22.00

BLACK LABEL RECORD

fOberon Overture ......................................... Pryors

l Norma Overture (Bellini} ................................. Prors

\
(Bellini} ................................. Pryors Band] >

10 .
12 " in ''

292

ELYSIUM ACT II

ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE

THOUGH produced in Vienna,
before Gluck's memorable pil
grimage to Paris as the prophet
of a new order of opera, "Orpheus and
Eurydice" was a forerunner of the
ideals which culminated in "Iphigenie."
"Orpheus" was composed among a group
of ballets and similar works written for
the lively court of Vienna. "Orpheus",
however, contains so many lovely airs
that it was a truer success, winning for
its composer an annuity of 6,000 francs
from Marie Antoinette, Dauphiness of
France a former pupil of his and his
most powerful supporter in Paris.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Book by
Ramieri De Calzabigi; music
by Gluck. First production in Vienna
October 5, 1762, Gluck conducting.
First Paris production, 1774, when
the role of Orpheus was transposed for
high tenor. Revived at Paris 1859,
when Pauline Viardot restored the
Italian contralto version. First London
production, Covent Garden, 1860.
Some notable revivals were during the

Winter Garden season of 1863; in 1885
(in German), by the Metropolitan
Opera; the English production in 1886
by the National Opera Company; the
Abbey revival in Italian in 1892; and
the Gatti-Casazza production of 1910,
with Homer, Gadski and Gluck.

CHARACTERS

ORPHEUS (Or-jay-us) Contralto

EURYDICE (U~ree-dee r -chay). ..Soprano

LOVE Soprano

A HAPPY SHADE Soprano

Shepherds and Shepherdesses, Furies
and Demons, Heroes, etc.

THE story concerns the Greek poet
Orpheus, who grieves so deeply
over the death of his wife Eurydice that
he finally declares he will enter the
realms of Pluto and search for her
among the spirits of the departed. The
god of Love appears and promises to
aid him, on condition that when he has
found Eurydice he will return to earth
without once looking at her.

The music accompanying this scene
is exquisite and the most familiar part
of it is the beautiful melody to be found

293

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

in the "Ballet Music" on Victor Rec
ords. In the orchestral number there is a
flute solo of the most profound pathos.

Orpheus now journeys to the Gates
of Erebus, where he so softens the
hearts of the Demon guards by his grief
and by the exquisite playing of his lyre,,
that he is permitted to enter. He finds
Eurydice and, without looking at her,
takes her by the hand and bids her fol
low. She obeys, but, failing to under
stand his averted gaze, upbraids him
for his apparent coldness and asks that
he shall look at her.

Orpheus, knowing that to cast a sin
gle look at his loved one means death,
at first keeps his face averted, but
finally, unable to endure longer the
reproaches of his wife, he clasps her
in his arms, only to see her sink down
lifeless. This scene includes the great
"Che faro senzaEuridice" (I Have Lost
My Eurydice).

"What have I done! Into what gulf
has my fatal love cast me?" cries the
hapless youth, and breaks into his
lovely and pathetic lamentation. Of
the many beautiful numbers in Gluck's

drama this lovely aria of mourning is
the most familiar. Orpheus is about
to kill himself when Love appears.
Eurydice is miraculously restored. The
spirit of the beautiful old tale is
violated, but the work reaches a happy
end.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

MELODIE

(From "Ballet Music") MAUD POWELL,

Violin 807 10-in., 1.50

MISCHA ELMAN, Violin 6090 12-in., 2.00

DANCE OF THE SPIRITS

("Ballet Music") PHILADELPHIA OR
CHESTRA 6238 12-in., 2.00

CHE FARO SENZA EURIDICE

(I Have Lost My Eurydice) LOUISE
HOMER, Contralto In Italian

6165 12-in., 2.00
ORPHEUS:

I have lost my Eurydice
My misfortune is without its like.
Cruel fatel I shall die of my sorrow.
Eurydice, Eurydice, answer me!
It is your faithful husband.
Hear my voice, which calls you.
Silence of death! vain hope!
What suffering, what torment, wrings my
heart!

HOMER AND GADSKI AS ORPHEUS AND
EURYDICE

294

FROM THE PAINTING BY BECKER

OTHELLO AND DESDEMONA

OTHELLO

SIXTEEN years after "Ajda" had
seemed to be the crowning glory
of Verdi's long musical career,
the great composer astonished the mu
sical world with "Othello." At the age
of seventy-four he showed, past all
doubt, that the fierce creative spirit
which burned within him was not only
alive, but, if anything, brighter than
ever. In that sixteen-year interval
Verdi had kept close touch with the de
velopment of modern music. "Othello/'
therefore, is essentially modern in spirit
and technique. The characterization is
marvellous, there are no set airs and
ensembles, the scenes fusing into each
other without a break. Its power and
almost youthful energy, set upon a life
time of practical musical and dramatic
experience, give the work a unique
place in music. Verdi, greatly daring,

measured skill with Shakespeare him
self, and he accomplished a success the
Elizabethan dramatist would have
been the first to applaud.

Six years later when Verdi was in
his eightieth year this incredible com
poser produced another great Shakes
pearian work in "Falstaff," triumph
antly bringing forth the most difficult
of all musical composition inspired
comedy. Almost any gifted composer
may, with a few gloomy chords, achieve
the semblance of tragedy, but comedy,
utterly devoid of burlesque, and of
Shakespearian breadth and humanity,
is quite another matter. The heart
somehow goes out to this intrepid old
soul, bidding good-bye to a world in
which he had had his full share of tri
umph and failure, with the strong
laughter of "Falstaff" as his Requiem.

295

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

TH E O PE RA

,PERA in four acts. Text by made. But he is doomed to disap-
Arrigo Bpito^ Music by Verdi, pointment, for the Moor, Othello, is

brought ashore in a small boat, and he

First production February 5, 1887,
at La Scala, Milan, with Tamagno.
First London production May 18,
1889; in English 1893. First American
production April 16, 1888, with Cam-
panini as Othello. Notable revivals oc
curred in 1894, with Tamagno and
Maurel; in 1902, with Eames, Alvarez
and Scotti; in 1908 at the Manhattan,
with Melba, Zenatello and Sammarco;
and in 1910 at the Metropolitan Opera.

CHARACTERS

OTHELLO, a Moor, general in the
Venetian army (Oh-tel-loh) . . .Tenor

IAGO (Ee-ak'-goh), his ensign. .Baritone

CASSIO (Cass'-ee-oh), his lieutenant

Tenor

RODERIGO (Roh-der-ee'-goh), a Vene
tian gentleman Tenor

LODOVICO (Loh-doh-vee'-koh], ambas
sador of the Venetian Republic . Bass

MONTANO, predecessor of Othello in
the government of Cyprus Bass

DESDEMONA, wife of Othello. .Soprano

EMILIA (Ay-mee f -lee-ah\ wife of lago

Mezzo-Soprano

Soldiers and Sailors, Venetians, Cyp
rians, an Innkeeper

Scene and Period: End of the Fifteenth
Century; a Seaport in Cyprus

ACT I

SCENE Othello's Castle in Cyprus

A STORM rages and the angry sea is
visible in the background. A num
ber of Venetians and soldiers watch the
vessel bearing the victorious Othello as
it struggles in the storm. They include
Cassio^ Othello's lieutenant, the villain
ous lago, and his co-conspirator, Roder
igo. lago privately expresses the
hope that the landing will never be

296

announces a complete victory over the
Turkish fleet, which has been sunk.
Othello enters his castle, to greet there
his beloved wife, Desdemona.

The soldiers begin drinking. lago^
bent on his plan to regain the power
which has fallen to Othello, induces
Roderigo (who desires Desdemona) to
help in plying Cassio with wine. Cassio
at first refuses, knowing his own partic
ular weakness; but when lago toasts
Desdemona, he is obliged to respond.
He soon is hopelessly befuddled, lago
helping on the process at the Brindisi,
"Inaffia 1'uoglia" (Drinking Song).

In this vigorous yet subtle air, the
shrewd cunning of lago is remarkably
portrayed. Cassio becomes hilarious,
finally quarrelsome. lago who has
watched every phase of the process
with^ feline cunning, now forces him,
adroitly enough, to pick a quarrel with
Montano. Swords are drawn, Montano
is wounded, and lago fans the disturb
ance into a small riot. This is put
down by the appearance of Othello
himself, enraged that the sleep of Des
demona should be disturbed by the
troops. The Moor deprives Cassio of
his command, exactly as lago has fore
seen. It is the first step toward the
downfall of Othello.

ACT II

SCENE A Room in the Castle

I AGO jplays subtler still upon foolish
Cassio. He advises him to beg Desde
mona to intercede with Othello to give
him back his command. Cassio goes
in search of her, and, well satisfied with
his work, lago, gazes after him. He
then sings his superb "Credo" (lago's
Creed).
This is a free adaptation of lago's

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

last speech with Cassio in Shakespeare.
Verdi has, with remarkable skill, made
his music reflect the vain and cynical
character of lago. lago affirms his
faith in a cruel God who intended him
for evil, and he declares his belief that
life ends with death.

As soon as lago sees Cassio in conver
sation with Desdemona, he seeks out
Othello and sows in the heart of the
Moor the first seed of jealousy, when he
bids him watch his wife. The Moor,
much troubled, finds Desdemona and
questions her. As she at once begins
to plead Cassio's cause, his suspicions
are more fully awakened; and when she

THE MURDER OF DESDEMONA (ALDA AND SLEZAK)

seeks to wipe his perspiring brow
with a handkerchief that was his
own first gift, he tears it from her.
It is picked up by Emilia, Desdemona s
maid and lago's wife. While Othello
roughly berates his alarmed Desde-
mona y lago forces Emilia to give him
the kerchief.

After the scene with Desdemona,
Othello grows more jealous and sus
picious than ever. He lets this be
known in a bitter soliloquy, the "Ora
. e per sempre addio" (And Now, For

ever Farewell) -farewell to peace of
mind, to ambition, to the glory of
conquest and to the love of Desdemona.
He cannot but believe his wife guilty.

lago now appears to pour fuel on the
flame of jealousy by avowing that he
has seen Desdemonas handkerchief in
Cassio s home. He also declares he
has heard the sleeping Cassio speak of
her in his dreams. Othello becomes
frantic with rage, and the act closes
with the great scene in which lago of
fers to help him to vengeance. They
swear an oath never to pause until the
guilty shall be punished. This is the
"Si pel del" (We Swear by Heaven and
Earth). It is a bit of tragedy.

ACT III

SCENE The Great Hall of the Castle

THE arrival of a galley bearing the
Venetian ambassador, Lodovico,
is announced to Othello ; but he has
no interest in anything now but his
own insane jealousy. He seeks his
wife, and he contrives an excuse to
borrow the handkerchief. She evades
him, sadly puzzled both to account
for its loss and to comprehend the
suspicious attitude of the sullen hus-
band she adores. After she has
gone, Cassio enters, bent only upon
forgiveness through the kindness of
Desdemona. Bidding Othello hide be
hind a pillar, lago contrives with
devilish ingenuity to keep up a half
audible conversation with the demoted
officer, taking care that the remarks
overheard by Othello shall be of a kind
to inflame the Moor's suspicions. Cas
sio also, in all innocence, produces the
fatal handkerchief, saying he has found
it in his room. Aside, to Othello,
lago jokes over it. Cassio , too, laughs.
After this, Othello goes mad with rage.
He asks lago to procure him poison
wherewith to kill Desdemona, swearing
he will himself attend to Cassio. lago,

297

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

not wishing to be involved, suggests
that she had better be strangled in the
bed she has dishonored, and Othello
grimly accepts the task.

The Venetian ambassador, Lodomco^
arrives in great pomp, informing Othel
lo that he has been called to greater
honors in Venice, while Cassio is ap
pointed Governor of Cyprus in his
stead. Desdemona also is present, but
every remark brings a rebuke from
Othello which does not escape the won
dering attention of Lodovico. Othello
announces his departure on the morrow,
but unable to contain his smouldering
anger, he publicly insults Desdemona
and flings her to the ground. Over
come with his feverish emotion, he, too,
falls to earth in a fit. Meantime, the
public outside, hearing that greater
honors have fallen to their hero, rush in
shouting "Hail to Othello!" Butlago,
standing erect, points with horrible tri
umph to the prostrate Moor, and cries,
"Behold your Lion of Venice!"

ACT IV

SCENE Desdemona s Bedroom

A TTENDED by Emilia, the heart-
JL\. broken Desdemona prepares to re
tire. She tells the wondering woman of
an old, sad song of her childhood, the
song of a maiden who waited in vain
for the return of her lover, and she
sings the pathetically beautiful "Sake,
Sake" {Willow Song).

Too little known to the general pub
lic, this number is really a little master
piece, not too deep but always simple
and obvious. Its tuneful phrases,
though they come haltingly, are ex
quisitely beautiful, perfectly express
ing the sadness of despair which is
deepening in the soul of Desdemona.

The faithful Emilia leaves her mis
tress, who kneels before the image of
the Madonna, and sings yet another
air, the "Ave Maria" (Hail, Mary).

Scarcely has this wonderful melody,
in its turn, died away, than the final
scene commences. Othello enters.
Finding his wife asleep, he stands for a
moment brooding over her couch. She
wakes, and he again charges her with
intriguing with Cassio. Denial is use
less. When Desdemona bids him bring
Cassio himself in witness, Othello de
clares the man's tongue has been si
lenced forever. Overcome with horror
the unhappy woman cries out for aid as
Othello takes her by the throat. Emilia
hears and knocks at the door. She is
admitted, but too late. In reply to her
shrieks, the people rush in, lago among
them. Othello then denounces the
woman he has killed. Others demur
and he exhibits the handkerchief in
proof, but Emilia tells how this murder
ous emblem of false evidence was taken
from her by lago, and Othello thus
learns of his false friend's duplicity.
The Moor is torn with remorse. Gaz
ing at^ the body of Desdemona^ now
lovely in death, he sings his last air, the
"Morte d'Otello" (Death of Othello).

Unseen by the mystified watchers,
Othello takes from his girdle a hidden
dagger. He stabs himself, then with a
last effort, strives to embrace the wo
man he has so cruelly wronged. But
death comes, and the miseries of Othello
are done.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)
ACT I

BRINDISI INAFFIA L'UGOLA

(Drinking Song) ANTONIO Scorn,
Baritone 6283 12-in., 32.00

CREDO ACT IT

(lago's Creed) PASQUALE AMATO,

Baritone 6042 12-in., 2.00

TITTA RUFFO, Baritone 6267 12-in., 2.00
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone 8045 12-in., 2.50

ORA E PER SEMPRE ADDIO

(And Now, Forever Farewell) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 505 10-in., 1.50

298

VICTRQLA BOOK OF THE OP ERA

ERA LA NOTTE SI PEL CIEL

(Cassio's Dream) TITTA RUFFO, Bari- & V * Swea J, b ? Heaven and Earth)

tone 6267 12-in P 00 ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor, and TITTA

RUFFO, Baritone 8045 12-in., 2.50

BLACK LABEL RECORD

/Fantasia (Brindisi Morte d'Otello) VesselMs Italian Eand\ * - , - Q t , 7 . c , , -

I Gioconda Prelude (Ponchielli) ^esse!/a's Italian Bandf***** 12 " m ' ^ L2:>

COPY'T MISHKIN

SCOTTI AS IAGO

299

LE THEATRE

ARRIVAL OF THE PLAYERS ACT I

PAGLIACCI

(PAILLASSE)

(French)

PAGLIACCI was one of the op
eras submitted in the same ope
ratic prize contest won by Mas-
cagniV'Cavalleria Rusticana." It was
disqualified, it is said, because it was
in two acts instead of the required one.
Nevertheless, the publisher Sonzogno
recognized its possibilities and pro
duced it at a time when the success of
Mascagni's work had created a demand
for brief operatic works of a direct and
passionate nature. Its success has
been overwhelming, and it is usually
presented in conjunction with Mas-
cagni's masterpiece to make up an
evening's entertainment, the two works
having an underlying kinship with
each other from the similarity of the
root idea in both works the vengeance
of a jealous husband.

"Paglia.cci" was composed, one might
say, in a fit of temper. Leoncavallo,
who had had good music training
at the Conservatory of Naples, had
rather a hard time in the world. An
early opera failed production because

(THE PLAYERS)

(English)

the impresario ran away with the funds
and left Leoncavallo in poverty. He
managed to exist by teaching and by
playing in cafes, but he arose out of
this drudgery as a concert pianist.
While touring over Europe, he outlined
a vast trilogy which was to do for
Italian music what Wagner's "Ring"
had accomplished for German. The
outline was accepted by a publisher
and Leoncavallo completed the score of
the first of the three dramas in a year.
No production followed, however, and
the composer waited for three years.
It was while enraged at this treatment
that he wrote "Pagliacci" for the rival
publisher's contest, impetuously com
pleting the whole work, libretto and
all, in five months. With the success
of "Pagliacci " the way was open
for his trilogy, but the first opera
failed, and he never completed the
other two parts. So long as Leonca
vallo lived there was always hope that
he might produce another such master
piece as "Pagliacci" but the divine

300

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

fire that had flamed in his blood when
he wrote this work afterwards seemed
to flicker and burn low. His sub
sequent works, such as "Chatterton"

and "Roland" (written at the invitation
of Kaiser Wilhelm to celebrate the
Hohenzollerns, 1904) came into varied
success, but it is doubtful if even the
recently-revived "Zaza" possessed the
compelling force of "Pagliacci."

Leoncavallo, the son of the Chevalier
Vincont, an Italian magistrate, was
born at Naples, 1858, and died in
1919. He combined literary gifts with
his musical abilities, not only writing
his own libretti but even, like Boito,
occasionally fulfilling that office for
others. The "play within a play"
which gives "Pagliacci" its peculiarly
ironic quality, is not new, and, as a
dramatic idea, is at least as old as
Shakespeare's "Hamlet." Other plays
similar to "Pagliacci" in theme have
also appeared, one by Catulle Mendes,
entitled "La Femme du Tabarin,"
being so much like it that the author
attempted to enjoin the performance
of "Pagliacci" at Brussels on the
ground that Leoncavallo had stolen his
plot. The Italian composer, however,
had no difficulty in proving that many
French and Spanish dramas existed
along similar lines, and he claimed
also that "Pagliacci" was based on an
actual incident of Italian village life
which came to his father's official
notice while serving as magistrate.

Musically speaking, Leoncavallo had
a very pretty talent for striking but
brief melodies, treating them with the
resources of modern harmony and
instrumentation, one of his principal
resources being a trick of startling
modulation or change of keys. This
is an admirable expedient in a brief
work like "Pagliacci," but as other
composers, including Edvard Grieg,
have proven, repeating the same tune

301

in a new and unexpected key is not the
same thing as genuine thematic de
velopment in which a melodic germ
undergoes a great number of symphonic
evolutions in the style Wagner used
so effectively. Hence the failure of
Leoncavallo to achieve the sustained
interest necessary for long works, and
the breakdown of his ambitious but fu
tile dream of rivalling Wagner.

THE OPERA

DRAMATIC opera in two acts;
libretto and music by Ruggiero
Leoncavallo. First performed at the
Teatro dal Verme, Milan, on May
21, 1892; in Vienna, September 17,
1892; in London, May 19, 1893; Dres
den, January 23, 1893; Paris, in French
December 17, 1902. First New York
production June 15, 1894, with Kron-
old, Montegriffb and Campanari. Some
famous casts of recent years at the
Metropolitan and the Manhattan
opera: Caruso, Farrar, Stracciari
Alvarez, Scheff, Scotti Farrar, Bars,
Scotti CavalJeri, Rousseliere, Scotti
Deveyne, Martin, Campanari, etc.

CHARACTERS

CANIO (Kah f -nee-oh) (in the play
"Pagliaccio" [Punchinello^) ,
master of the troupe Tenor

NEDDA (Ned f -dah) (in the play
"Columbine"), his wife Soprano

TONIO (Toh'-nee-oh) (in the play
"Taddeo")^ the clown Baritone

PEPPE (Pep'-pay) (in the play
"Harlequin') Tenor

SILVIO (Sil'-vee-oh)^ a villager..Baritone
Villagers and Peasants.

The Scene is laid in Calabria, near

Montalto^ on the Feast of the Assumption.
(The Italian name of the opera is

"Pagliacci," Pahl-yat'-chee; the

French name is "Paillasse/* Pah-yass).

THE plot of "Pagliacci" owes much
dynamic force to its simplicity of
construction. Canio, head of a group

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

of traveling players in Italy,, discovers
his wife, Nedda, in the arms of Silvio.,
planning an elopement for that night,
Nedda having been betrayed by the
clownish hunchback Tomo, himself a
base admirer of Nedda, who has scorned
him. Canio y however, fails to recog
nize Silvio, or to force his wife to be
tray his identity. That night, by
chance, the players give a play based
on the very same situation, Canto play
ing the role of a jealous husband, who
taxes his wife (in the role assumed by
Nedda) with her perfidy, and demands
the name of the other man. She hap-

Eens to repeat in the play the phrase he
as overheard her speak to her lover of
the morning, and this so enrages Canio
thatihe stabs her in the hope she may
cry out the name of her lover. The
dying girl calls for Silvio, who leaps to
her defense from his seat in the audi
ence. The jealous husband, however,
slays him with the same knife that
killed Nedda, yielding himself to jus
tice with the bitterly ironic comment,
'The comedy is finished." This clas
sic phrase, of course, is Dante's, and is
also said to have been almost the last

speech of Beethoven ^Plaudite, amid,
co-media finita est!") .

THE PROLOGUE

E'ONCAVALLO adopted an old
theatrical custom, dating back to
Greek drama, that of having a "pro
logue," one of the characters, step for
ward before the curtain and remind the
audience that the players are of like
flesh and blood with themselves, shar
ing their joys and sorrows, their
angers and jealousies, their love and
laughter. It is a charming touch when
Tonio steps from between the curtains
to sing his dramatic introduction,
worked into the. orchestral prelude, the
familiar "Prologo" (Prologue).

The first, or orchestral, part of the
Prologue is in itself a miniature over
ture, containing the three themes most
associated with the primary events of
the drama: The first is the motive
which always accompanies the appear
ance of the players, or pagliacci:

Virace

Q L _

COPY*T DUPONT

FARRAR AS NEDDA

302

COPY'T DUPONT

CARUSO SINGING
"VESTI LA GIUBBA"

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

The second theme represents Canio s
jealousy, a sombre strain suggesting
revenge :

JCa*0A>M<(J = 44)

4 J jjJ

The third represents the guilty love
of Nedda and Silvio:

This theme frequently appears
throughout 'the drama, not only in the
love-duet but in the last act when Ned-
da y even at the point of death, refuses
to betray her lover.

The statement of these themes is fol
lowed by the appearance of Tonio, who
in the traditional clown's costume now
peeps through the curtains. He pleads
for a hearing, and speaks of the author's
inspiration.

The beautiful andante which follows
this, a melody in broad, sweeping
style, is the most admired portion of
the aria, and it is indeed a noble strain.

The curtain now lifts and the orches
tra resumes the Pagliacci theme.

ACT I

SCENE The Entrance of a Village ^where
two Roads meet.

THE Italian sun smiles on a small
village of Calabria, where the peo
ple, determined to make the most of
the Feast of the Assumption, are in holi
day attire. They yield a special wel
come to the troupe of players, headed
by Canio i which comes down the road,
with its little tent, in a donkey-cart.
At the back of the cart is Nedda in the
gay costume of a Columbine; her hus
band, Canio ^ wears the familiar Pierrot
costume of Punchinello. The crowd sings
its welcome to the merrymakers
in a lively chorus: Opening Chorus
"Son qua!" (They're Here!).

The brisk rhythm and the changes of

key in this brilliant number are quite
familiar. We need but to quote the
opening phrase:

j S* 't ri I ^ '" C I rf> * ^ \ m ^J

SHE

Ev - ri- ' ilprm-a p..
Long life to him, the prince.

M* d*i

of a p- tfi w - cfc*!

The little troupe comes to a halt, and
the noise redoubles. Canto is given a
particular welcome as he bows ac
knowledgment from the top of the cart,
while Peppe, the Harlequin, and Tonio y
the misshapen clown, make hideous
music with a cracked trumpet and a
bass drum. Canto announces the per
formance will be at seven that evening,
and turns away to assist his wife from
the cart. Tonio, the clown, however,
is before him, and the crowd laughs
heartily at his maneuver. This does
not please the jealous Canio ^ who,
under the semblance of jest, gives the
fool a heavy blow. The crowd rocks
with laughter as Tonio slinks off, vow
ing vengeance. Fine sport, this! think
the laughing villagers.

Canio and Peppe go off with one of
the peasants for a friendly glass, and
the leader of the troupe calls Tonio to
go with them. But the clown declares
he must rub down the donkey. A vil
lager* remarks:

Careful, Pagliaccio!

He only stays behind thee

For making love to Nedda!

Canio makes a wry smile, but his
temper is going, and he shouts back a
caution to the jesters: "The stage and
life they are different!" Nedda., with
her guilty conscience, understands only
too well the black looks of her husband.
"What does he mean?" she asks. The
villagers, too, are somewhat puzzled
and they ask if he is serious. With an
effort, however, he rouses himself, say
ing lightly, "Not I I love my wife
most dearly," kissing her on the fore
head.

From the distance is heard the

303

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

wailing of bagpipes (the oboe), and Canio
leaves to join in the merrymaking.
Then follows the famous u Coro della
campane" (Chorus of the Bells), some
times called the "Ding Dong Chorus/'
because of the chiming bells which
mingle with it so effectively. The
measure dies away as the people wander
off to the village.

Left alone, Nedda falls to brooding
over Canio ^ jealous temper, wondering
if the man really suspects her. She
shakes off her gloom, however, and
gradually waking to the brightness of
the afternoon and the joyfulness of the
holiday spirit, she sings her delightful
ballatella, "Che vol d'augelli!" (Ye
Birds Without Number!). It is nota
ble for a tremolo in the strings, the pip
ing of birds and rustling of soft leaves
in musical onomatopoeia. Nedda sings,
though, of her mother, 'who was skilled
in interpreting bird-songs and the
sounds of nature.

Strf . do- no Us * fl,.
Tbr OB bigh th7 cry.

U
la

The number is really a sort of mod
ernized coloratura song, set against an
exquisite orchestral accompaniment.
It serves to make us better acquainted
with Nedda^ and to understand better,
too, the jealousy of Canio and the love
of Silvio, to say nothing of the ground
ling passion of Tonio., who now injects
himself into the scene. He begins his
lovemaking in a fashion that would jus
tify any woman's scorn. The scene
includes the "So ben che deforme" (I
Know That You Hate Me). .

The more Tonio persists, the louder
his inamorata's laughter. At last,
driven to madness by her beauty, Tonio
seizes Nedda and fights to kiss her. She
leaps away, striking him across the face
with her whip*

No sooner has Tonio gone, than a
new andmorewelcomelover approaches

by a secret path, lightly vaulting
over the wall and greeting her with a
laugh. It is Silvio , one of the villagers,
whom Nedda has met before on pre
vious visits and found much to her lik
ing. She is alarmed at the sight of
SihiOy but he reassures her by telling
how he has left Canio with Peppe at the
tavern, where they are drinking, and
likely to remain.

Nedda tells Silvio of the clown's
threats, bidding him be cautious; but
the young villager laughs at her fears,
and consoles her after the manner of
lovers the world over. He asks her to
fly with him, and the pair sing an im
passioned duet, the "De toi depend
mon sort' 1 (My Fate is in Thy Hands).
Nedda remains fearful, however, and
she is so charming when she implores
him not to tempt her,, that he only
grows worse. He reproaches the young
woman for her coldness, until at last,
throwing discretion to the winds, she
yields herself to the bliss of the moment
and consents to go. The music leads
into the "Pourquoi ces yeux" (Why
Those Eyes) .

It leads to its climax in another lovely
number, the music of which is based
on the melody first heard in the orches
tral Prelude. This is the "Nulla scor-
dai!" (Naught I Forget!).

OTEDIU rOerooma iD8 yielding)

but M* wlS mo . Moo......

At this climactic moment the lovers
are far too absorbed to remark the ap
proach of Canio, who has been warned
by the too-observant clown. He now
rushes forward, having heard Nedda s
parting words. He has not, however,
seen Silvio's face, and when the lover
makes a swift flight over the wall, AWAz
bars the way. Canio thrusts her
aside in fierce anger, and leaps over the
wall in pursuit. He is too late, for
Silvio knows a path hidden by the

304

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

brush, and Canto cannot find it. Tonio
laughs in glee, and Nedda rewards him
with a scornful "Bravo! Bravo! Well
done, Tonio!" The clown promises to
do better next time. Canio returns,
out of breath, exhausted, but maddened
with anger. From the orchestra we
hear the ominous motive of vengeance
and jealousy, the "Ride, Pagliaccio!":

^ outraged husband commands

his wife to pronounce the name of her
lover, but she proudly refuses. Clean
beside himself, Canio rushes upon her
with upraised knife, but he is withheld
by the others. "Restrain yourself,*'
cries Peppe, playing for time, "the fel
low will come back!" He warns them
it is time to dress, Nedda^ glad of an
excuse, disappears in the dressing tent,
while Peppe and Tonio also go on about
their business. Canio is left thinking,
and the stage, for the time, is his alone.

With bowed head, worn out by pas
sion and jealousy, Canio remains to
consider his betrayal, fanning, moment
by moment, the fires of vengeance now
at work in his soul.

The act closes with the "Vesti la
giubba" (On With the Play).

ACT II
SCENE Same as Act I

WE have an odd situation. Nedda
is loved by Canio ^ who as her hus
band has a right to love her; by Silvio,
who has no right to love her but does so
anyhow; and by Tonio^ the clown,
whose love is something less than love.
And now we are to behold the situa
tion closely paralleled in the play set
forth before the peasants.

When the curtain lifts, we find the
audience assembling, Tonio beating a
big drum at the entrance, and drown
ing the chatter of the men and women
from the village. Silvio arrives, to
feast his eyes on Nedda,, greeting his

CANTO SURPRISES THE LOVERS ACT II

305

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE O P E R A

friends as he takes his place near the
footlights. The orchestra sympatheti
cally reflects the bustle of the occasion
in a merry tripping measure:

Soon the play begins. On the little
stage, Nedda appears as Columbine.
She rises and looks out of the window,
announcing that her husband will be
late this evening. From beneath the
window comes the sound of a guitar,
cleverly imitated by the violins, pizzi
cato, and we hear the voice of Harlequin
(the Silvio of the play interpreted by
Peppe) in the extravagant "Serenata
d'Arlecchino" (Harlequin's Serenade).
Before Harlequin can enter, however,
Taddeo enters (the clownish role of
Taddeo being rightly enacted by Tonio)
bearing a basket. He sings a pompous
greeting, which brings a roar from the
assembled villagers: "E dessa!" (Be
hold Her!).

Mi taato ad th bullet cpwatflt)

Columbine's reply is to demand the
chicken he had been sent for, and Tonio
kneels before her, holding up the fowl
in grotesque devotion.

His buffoonery is cut short by Har
lequin, who enters and leads him out
by the ear to the high delight of the
village audience. In departing, the
clown leaves the lovers a mock bene
diction: " Versa il filtra nella tazza sua!"
(Pour the Potion inHis Wine) ad vises he.

With the clown banished the "lovers"
now make merry. Harlequin gives his
Columbine a little vial, saying:

Take this little sleeping-draught,
'Tis for Pagliaccio!
Give it him at bedtime,
And then we'll fly!

Columbine assents, but suddenly the

clown reappears, bawling out in mock
alarm:

Be careful! Pagliaccio is here!

Trembling all over, he seeks for weapons!

He has caught you, and I shall fly to cover!

The lovers simulate the greatest
alarm, the spectators applauding lust
ily. Harlequin leaps from the window,
and Columbine continues the scene by
repeating the lines which, by a strange
coincidence, are the very words she has
spoken to Silvio earlier in the day, over
heard by her husband:

Till to - night, *heal

This is almost too much for Canio,
who swears, forgetting for a moment
his role of Punchinello as he enters upon
the scene. In the lines of the play, he
charges her with having had a man
with her; but she insists that it was
only Taddeo, the clown, who, con
cealed in a closet, cries out "Believe
her, sir, she is faithful!" Punchinello
forgets his part for a moment and be
comes Canto: "Ah, they could never
lie, those lips .... !"

The audience applauds enthusiasti
cally, for the unhappy man touches
realism, condemned, as he is, to play a
role in public all-too-like that decreed
for him by the real events of the after
noon. Forgetting his part, he turns
fiercely on the woman, demanding her
lover's name. Nedda, still as Colum
bine, protests, but in alarm cries, "Pag
liaccio! Pagliaccio!" This reminder of
his actor's role only maddens the jeal
ous actor, and he finally throws off all
disguise, becoming now the jealous hus
band: "No, Pagliaccio non son!" (No,
Punchinello No More!) cries he.

The audience applauds heartily, still
unaware that anything more than com
edy is going on before them. For a
moment Canio recovers himself, but

306

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

not for long. He is no longer an actor
but a man quite probably honest and
sincere, if only in hate, whose feelings
have been outraged. His passion
yields to a softer strain when he speaks
of his love for Nedda^ his faithfulness
and sacrifice for hwsake. Then comes
the finale to the opera.

The audience, not knowing that this
has no part in the play, cries "Bravo !"
Some of the women begin to weep in
sympathy. Nedda is by this time
white with fear, but she courageously
faces her husband, striving with all her
power to continue the play. Canios
appearance now is alarming.

As she sings we hear the love motive
in the orchestra, triumphantly sound
ing above her voice:

This theme, heard at such a moment,
is reminder enough that the thought of
Silvio is in her heart, and that fears and
all, she will keep faithful unto death.

Canio suddenly hits upon the idea that
if he could but stab his wife, she might
call out the name of her lover. He
springs at her, knife in hand. Peppe
and Tonio rush forward to restrain him.,
and the audience crowds to help. The
shrieking women, struggling from their
seats, knock down the benches, only
hindering the men from getting at the
stage. The two actors are powerless
to hold Canto. He breaks away, and
stabs Nedda i

Take that!

Perhaps in death's last agony

You will speak!

Nedda falls, and with a last faint ef
fort calls, "Oh help me, Si/viol" With
drawn dagger, Silvio goes forward, but
Canio y crying "Ah, 'twas you!" stabs
him too. Out of the orchestra rises
the tragic motive of vengeance, jeal
ousy and death, booming forth with
terrible significance. Canto, as if stupe
fied, lets drop the knife and surrenders.
Then, with bitter irony, he declares^
"La Commedia e finita!" the Comedy
is ended. Down go both the curtains.

LE THEATRE

THE COMEDY TS ENDED!
307

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless noted.)

ACT I
PROLOGO

(Prologue) PASQUALE AMATO, Baritone

6039 12-in., 32.00
EMILIO DE GOGORZA, Baritone

899 10-in., 1.50

Ladies and gentlemen!

Pardon me if alone I appear.

I am the Prologue I
Our author loves the custom of a prologue to

his story,,
And as he would revive for you the ancient

He sends me to speak before ye!

But not to prate, as once of old,

That the tears of the actor are false, unreal,

That his sighs and the pain that is told,

He has no heart to feel!

No! our author to-night a chapter will borrow

From life with its laughter and sorrow!

Is not the actor a man with a heart like you?

So 'tis for men that our author has written,

And the story he tells you is true!

PROLOGO

(Prologue) (Complete in two parts)

Part 1 Si puo? (A Word) TITTA RUFFO,
Baritone _ 6268 12-in., 2.00

RENATO ZANELLI, Baritone

881 10-in., 1.50

Part 2 Un nido di memorie (A Song of
Tender Memories) TITTA RUFFO,
Baritone 6268 12-in., 2.00

RENATO ZANELLI, Baritone

881 10-in., 1.50

A song of tender memories

Deep in his list'ning heart one day was ringing;

And then with a trembling hand he wrote it,

And he marked the time with sighs and tears.

Come, then;

Here on the stage you shall behold us in human

fashion.

And see the sad fruits of love and passion.
Hearts that weep and languish, cries of

rage and anguish,
And bitter laughter!
Ah, think then, sweet people, when ye look

on us,

Clad in our motley and tinsel,
For ours are human hearts, beating with

passion.
We are but men like you, for gladness or

sorrow.

Will ye hear, then, the story,

As it unfolds itself surely and certain!

Come, then! Ring up the curtain!

BALLATELLA, "Che volo d'augelli!"
(Ye Birds Without Number!) LUCREZIA

BORI, Soprano 6048 12-in., 2.00

ALMA GLUCK, Soprano 6148 12-in., 2.00
NEDDA:

Ah, ye birds without number!

What countless voices!

What ask ye? Who knows?

My mother, she that was skillful at telling

one's fortune,

Understood what they're singing,
And in my childhood, thus would she sing me.
VESTI LA GIUBBA

(Air de Paillasse) (On With the Play)
ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor 6001 12-in., 2.00
GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

736 10-in., 1.50
EDWARD JOHNSON, Tenor

64840 10-in., 1.00

BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor 643 10-in., 1.50
CANIO:

To play! When my head's whirling with mad
ness,
Not knowing what I'm saying or what I'm

doing!

Yet I must force myself!
I am not a man,
I'm but a Pagliaccio!
The people pay you, and they must have their

fun!

If Harlequin your Columbine takes from you,
Laugh loud, Pagliaccio!
And all will shout, well done!
******

Laugh Pagliaccio, for the love that is ended!

(Sobbing}-.

Laugh for the pain that is gnawing your heart!

ACT II
SERENATA D'ARLECCHINO

(Harlequin's Serenade)
TITO SCHIPA, Tenor 828 10-in., 1.50'

NO, PAGLIACCI NON SON!

(No, Punchinello No More!) ENRICO

CARUSO, Tenor 6001 12-in., 2.00

CANIO:

No, Pagliaccio, I'm not!
If my face be white,
Tis shame that pales it
And vengeance twists my features!

I am that foolish man

Who in poverty found and tried to save theel

He gave a name to thee,

A burning love that was madness!

(Falls in a chair overwhelmed^

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VICTRQLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

CANIO (recovering himself)*. Go! Thou'rt not worth my grief,

All my life to thee I sacrificed with gladness? thou abandoned creature!

Full of hope and believing far less in God than And now, with my contempt,

thee! I'll crush thee under heel!

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

(Prologue (In Italian) Reinald Werrenrath^ Baritone}
Carmen Chanson du Toreador (In French) Reinald If*errenrath\55Q6S 12-in^ 31.50
and Victor Chorus]

fVesti la eiubba (On With the Play) (In Italian] Paul Atthouse, Tenor\ - ft -- m . t m

\ Tosca E lucevan le stelle (The Stars Were Shining] . .Paul Althouse, Tenorf* 1U ~ m '> l ' w

fVesti la giubba (On With the Play) Pietro, Accordionist\YJ^\ \Q.' m 75

I Cavalier ia Rustic ana Intermezzo Pie fro' s Accordion Quartet > "*

Gems from "Pagliacci" Victor Opera Co'

Bell Chorus, "Ding Dong" Solo, "This Evening at Seven" Solo,
"Ye Birds Without Number" Solo, Pagliacci's Lament "Vesti
la giubba" Duet, "Just Look, My Love" Chorus, "See, They
Come"
Gemsjrom Cavalleria Rusticana Victor Opera Co,

309

COPY'T PACK BROS., N. Y.

THE TEMPLE OF THE GRAIL

PARSIFAL

PARSIFAL has long occupied a
singular position in the world
of music, partly because of its
inherently semi-religious, mystical
character, partly because of its sheer
musical beauty.

Its history is interesting. As every
body knows, Wagner, after a long
career of tribulation, found at the
court of Ludwig II of Bavaria the
sympathy and encouragement which
were rightly his due. At Bayreuth he
fashioned his own theatre, producing
his works in a manner befitting their
worth, permitting free play to his
marvellous and imaginative skill in
stage craft; for in addition to his being
critic, poet, conductor, master-com
poser, who revolutionized the develop
ment of the opera, this astounding
man was also a stage-manager and

producer who exercised a profound
influence upon the theatre of our own
time. "Parsifal" was the last of his
works. He began to compose the
music in, his sixty-fifth year, (1878) the
poem,long planned, already having been
completed. Interrupted by illness, the
work was not finished and produced
until 1882, a year before Wagner's
death. It was therefore his swan-song.
During these years of Wagner's life,
Bayreuth became the Mecca of musi
cians and music-lovers the world over,
but after his death his disciples were
to be found in all countries, and per
formances of "The Ring," "Tristan,"
"Meistersinger" were given in all the
leading operatic centres, not infre
quently better than at Bayreuth itself.
Actuated partly by sentimental reasons,
his prudent and remarkable widow,

310

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Frau Cosima Wagner, daughter of
Franz Liszt, beheld in "Parsifal" a
means of maintaining the Wagnerian
tradition and the prestige of Bayreuth.
By simply enforcing the copyright
law, performances of the work were for
bidden anywhere but in Bayreuth,
Frau Wagner's justification being in
Wagner's known wishes.

The Grail legend, which is said to
have originated in pre-Christian \Yales,
became known to \Yagner through a
medieval poem by W T olfram Von
Eschenbach. The legend itself is a
Christian adaptation of a very ancient
talismanic myth. The "Grail' 7 is
usually identified with the chalice used
at the Last Supper, also the basin said
to have received Christ's blood from
the Cross. It is analogous to the cup
of Hermes of the Egyptians, the basket
of the Greek, Dionysia, the vase or
basin of the Druid's used to contain
the blood of the sacrificial victim, and
similar 'European or Oriental mystical
vessels. Similarly the Holy Spear of
Amfortas,, supposed to be the spear
with which Christ was wounded on the
Cross in Christian legend, has been
identified with the "bloody spear " of
the Celts, upon which they swore
hatred and eternal enmity to their
persecutors. The tendency of the
primitive Church to adapt the myths
of pagan converts to its own purposes
is familiar to students of Christian
symbolism and heathen mythology.

Wagner's philosophy, which is taken
very seriously by some, and reduced
to terms of bathos by others, funda
mentally is the doctrine of renunciation,
In the opera "Parsifal 7 ' (as in the
legend) the wounded Amfortas^ who
typifies suffering humanity, can be
redeemed only by a "guileless fool, 77
Parsifal, who resists the temptations of
the sorceress Kundry (a reincarnation
of Magdelena, Herodias, Gundryggia
for the lady figures in many myths

under various names). Parsifal^ after
many privations and considerable self-
sacri'fice, becomes the head of that
mystical body of knights who per-

Eetuate the observances of the Last
upper in the legendary domain of
Monsalvat. In his music-drama,
Wagner draws obviously upon the
rites of the Last Supper, the Mass of
the Apostolic Church, and the cere
monies of the Christian Masonic
Order of Knights Templars in the
second scene of the first act. There
is also a thinly veiled reference to the
life of Christ, in the baptizing of
Kundry in the last act. To some, this
employment of religious themes for
dramatic purposes may savor of open
sacrilege, but it was the essence of
Wagner's teaching that the Stage
should be restored to its place beside
the Church in the exposition of religion
and ethics. The quasi-religious char
acter of "Parsifal 7 ' has been partly
responsible for the awe in which the
work has so long been held in Europe.
As regards the music, for a time, this
opera was held as Wagner's master
piece, even by the most discerning of
critics. Modern commentators, how
ever, less blinded by partisanship,
detect in it, they declare, a note of
senility. The score is even more
complicated than those of his previous
musical works, but has behind it less,
perhaps, of the driving inspiration of
"Die Meistersinger", "Tristan" and
"Siegfried. 77 Some of the vocal parts
are practically unsingable, which was
rarely the case in the most difficult of
his earlier works. W^agner seems
always lucid in these even when most
complicated; but here, it is changed,
he often is needlessly obscure. Never
theless, there are passages of unequivo
cal grandeur, especially in those
themes, so familiar to orchestra concert
goers, represented in the Prelude and
in the "Good Friday Music. 77 Here

311

VICTROLA BOOKL OF THE OPERA

at least, Wagner's genius is supreme.
It is interesting to compare this last
and most mature work of the great
composer with the earlier "Lohengrin."
He now has won complete mastery
over the means of expression for which
he was striving in the earlier "Grail"
opera. He does not disdain to quote
some of the "Swan" music in the
later work, but references to "Lohen
grin" have been scant, from the contra
dictions in the two works. Lohengrin y
we learn, in the earlier work is the son of
Parsifal., who is necessarily childless

in "Parsifal" ! The theme which Wagner
borrowed from the Dresden "Amen"
(an old ecclesiastical cadence) and
used tentatively in "Tannhauser" and
"Lohengrin,"'here appears as the
"Grailmotiv." It is developed with
stupendous skill, both in the Prelude
and later m the second scene of the
first act. The orchestration is superb,
and the work as a whole must be
conceded to be a towering achievement
even in the life of a master accustomed
as Liszt said, to accomplishing the im
possible. If ever, it has been done here.

TH E O PE RA

FESTIVAL drama in three acts.
Music and libretto by Richard
Wagner; based on the famous Grail
Legend. First produced at Bayreuth,
July 28, 1882, but not elsewhere
until 1903, when the work was
given at the Metropolitan Opera, in
spite of the determined opposition of
Mme. Wagner. A production in Eng
lish was afterward given by Henry
W. Savage. The copyright expired in
1913 and productions at Berlin, Paris,
Rome, Bologna, Madrid and Barcelona
followed.

CHARACTERS

TITUREL, a Holy Knight (Tee-

too-rel) Bass

AMFORTAS, his son (Ahm-for-

tas) Baritone

GURNEMANZ, a veteran knight
of the Grail (Goor-neh-
mantz) Bass

PARSIFAL, a "guileless fool"

(Pahr'-see-fahl) Tenor

KLINGSOR, an evil magician

(Kling-sohr) Bass

KUNDRY (Koon-dree) Soprano

Knights of the Grail; Klingsor's Fairy
Maidens

ACT I

SCENE I A Forest near Monsahat

IN the "world of long-ago" there
stands a dream-citadel, its pinnacles
rising high from a mountain top,
surrounded by gardens of trees and
flowers that cannot fade because they
are watered by the tears of repentant
sinners. Within the Citadel is the
shrine of the Holy Grail, that blessed
cup in which flowed the Blood of the
Saviour. Night and day it is guarded
by the knights of the Grail, and once
every year there descends a dove from
heaven giving these a new spiritual
strength to carry on their task. For
many years the chief of these knights
was Titurel^ but old age has claimed
him, so that he can no longer conduct
the sacred rites and the charge has
fallen upon his son Amfortas.

There is a recreant knight, a kind
of Satan expelled from this earthly
Paradise, an evil genius and magician
known as K lings or , who covets the
power of Titurel. He has built a castle
over against Monsalvat, where, with
his magic, it is a pastime of his to
entice the Grail Knights to their
destruction. In his gardens of beauty

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VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

+ -y,

A FRAGMENT OF WAGNER S PARSIFAL MSS.

there lurk strangely wonderful
damsels, _who so tempt the knights
with their peculiar charms that the
strength of these becomes as water.
One woman, in particular, is a creature
of ineffable beauty, a reincarnation of
the great temptresses of the past.
She is known as Kundry. With her
aid the magician once lured Amfortas
to his gardens, and when the knight
weakly surrendered himself to the
lure of the temptress, Klingsor stole
from him the Sacred Spear,, that which
was held by Longis, the Roman soldier
who pierced the side of Christ upon
the Cross. Rousing himself, Amfortas
sought to do battle with Klingsor y
but the magician smote him with the
spear. Amfortas returned to Monsalyat
grievously stricken with a wound which
could not be healed except at the
touch of the Sacred Spear. The Spear,
so ran the rede, could be recovered
only by a "guileless fool," a young man
without wisdom, without sin, who
should withstand the temptations of
Klingsor s bower, and with pity and
self-denial atone for the sin of Amfortas.
For many years, Amfortas, deeply
repentant, has suffered untold agonies,
and his knights ransack the world for
healing herbs and ointments, but
without success. Kundry , who after
the tempting of Amfortas loathes the

tasks imposed upon her by the
magician Klingsor , is wont to appear
in the grounds of Monsalvat as a
strange woman who asks humbly to
serve the knights. But even she can
find no cure.

As the curtain rises upon the gardens
of Monsalvat, we find Gurnemanz^ an
old knight of the Grail, with two
novices who sleep under a tree until
the time shall come to assist Amfortas
in the daily bath with which he seeks
to cleanse his wound and assuage his
intolerable sufferings. A trumpet call
from the castle announces the coming
of Amfortas , and after kneeling in
prayer the two squires proceed to their
task. Two knights who enter, report
that the ointment brought by Sir
Gawaine has failed to heal the wound,
and Gurnemanz, who alone knows
what the cure must be, shakes his head.
The squires beg for information, but
he bids them tend the bath.

They note a horseman wildly riding
toward them. It is Kundry > a gypsy-
like creature, her dark eyes blazing
between the locks of her wild black
hair, and her garments gathered about
her waist with a long snakeskin. She
brings yet another lotion for the
wound o>{ Amfortas. A procession
enters, bearing Amfortas upon a litter.
He stops to receive the ointment,

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VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

COPY T PACK BROS.

PARSIFAL, KUNDRY AND GURNEMANZ ENTERING THE CASTLE ACT III

groaning with the pain of his wound,
for which he thanks Kundry^ who now
rests wearily upon the ground, stirring
uneasily at his words. The procession
passes on, and the squires seek to
drive Kundry away, but Gurnemanz
bids them leave the strange woman
alone. Her ways are strange, but harm
always comes to Monsalvat when she
is absent. The youths depart to tend
Amfortas.

A dead swan with an arrow in its
breast, falls at the feet of Gurnemanz,
who is outraged at this wanton work,
the deed, it transpires, of a youth
who now appears. It is Parsifal^ but
in answer to Gurnemanz" 's questions he
is unable to give either his name or
his origin. He lives with his mother
alone in the woods, and he has fol
lowed a train of knights to the hill.
Kundry supplies information. He is the
son of a knight slain shortly before
his birth, and his mother has now
died for grief at her son's departure.

Believing that here at last may be the
"guileless fool" so long desired, Gurne
manz bids the youth come with him.
The scene now miraculously changes
to the interior of the castle; it is effected
in the opera by a scene moving
behind Gurnemanz, so that the two
seem to be walking slowly along, at
first through the forest, then into a
rocky gallery which ascends to the
Castle. This device was first used at
Bayreuth and afterward used in the
American representations.

SCENE II The Castle Hall

THE two arrive at last in a great
hall, so high that the dome through
which streams the illumination is lost
to view. Bells are heard. At the back
of the hall is a couch spread beneath a
gorgeous canopy. Around the sides
is the table where the knights are
seated during the ceremonies, its long
surface bearing cups or chalices. In
the centre is an altar-like table with

314

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

COPY'T PACH BROS.

GURNEMAN7/S HERMITAGE ACT II!

a marble top. The Knights of the Grail
enter in solemn procession, the bells
pealing from the heights above the
dome, and the Knights and Squires
chanting solemn liturgies. Parsifal
gazes upon the scene with wonder.
Soon the Holy Vessel is produced. It
is draped in purple-red cloth. Amjortas
then is borne in upon a litter and laid
upon his couch. In an agony of suffering
he begs to be spared the task of con
secration, but the voice of the aged
Titurel from a tomb-like chapel beyond,
bids him continue. Amjortas then
proceeds, and a blinding light mirac
ulously streams in from the dome, as
the knights partake of the Wine and the
Bread. As the ceremony progresses,
Amjortas attains to a certain rapturous
exaltation which subsides as the light
fades. Then the wound breaks out
afresh. He is borne off in the litter,
and the knights depart. Gurnemanz y
believing that Parsifal is a mere dolt,
opens a side door and turns him
out. "Thou art nothing but a Fool,''
declares the Knight: "Begone

Leave all our swans in future alone,
and seek thyself, gander, a goose."

ACT II

SCENE Klingsors Magic Castle

ON the ramparts of his castle sits
the magician Klingsor, awaiting
the approach of Parsifal. He gloats
over the boy's arrival, knowing his des
tiny, and believing that by enticing him
with the flower-damsels, he may at last
win the coveted office. He lights a
brazier of incense, which immediately
fills the lower part of the castle with
a bluish vapor, amid which can be seen
the necromantic implements of his call
ing. He summons Kundry y who arises
ghostlike from the mist, and who utters
a dreadful wail, as if she had been
awakened from a deep sleep into unim
aginable horrors. Her master informs
her that one more task of seduction
awaits, and she vainly protests against
it. He reminds her that whoever
spurns her in reality sets her free, and
he bids her try her fate with the ap
proaching youth Parsifal.

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VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

With a last cry of anguish Kundry
returns into the vapor. The tower itself
sinks beneath the earth, and the scene
is transported, as it were, to Klingsors
magic garden. Marvellous flowers and
plants arise in the sunlight. On the
wall of the garden stands Parsifal,
looking down with astonishment upon
the strange scene. From all sides, from
the garden and the palace, the beauti
ful denizens of the place come forth,
first singly, then in numbers. Their
robes are hastily flung about them as
if they had been awakened from sleep.
They are in alarm, having discovered
that some of their lovers have been
slain by an unknown foe. They accuse
Parsifal, who admits victory, declar
ing, in all innocence, that had he
not conquered he never could have
approached their lovely domain.

They soon accept him as a friend;
they dance about him, touching his
cheeks with their soft hands, and
seeking to arouse him to a sense of
their beauty. But one greater and
more lovely than any of them now
approaches. Beholding Kundry, fair
beyond the dreams of men, they
depart, laughing gently, as Parsifal

fows angry and tries to flee. But
undry calls, "Parsifal, tarry," and
the astonished boy remembers that
once when dreaming his mother had
called him by that name. Kundry
tells him that she it was who gave him
that name, an inversion of the Arabian
"Fal parsi," or "guileless fool/' She
further tells him of his father, the
knight Gamuret, of his mother, Her-
zeleide, or "Heart's Affliction," and
of the mystery of his birth and life in
the woods. This is the number "Ich
sah das Kind" (I Saw the Child).

Parsifal is greatly affected, his re
sistance melts, and he sinks in distress
at Kundry s feet. She embraces him
tenderly, seeking ever to conquer him
with her feminine charm. Parsifal

thinks it is again his mother whose gen
tle embraces he is receiving. Believing
that he is fast becoming enslaved
Kundry presses her lips upon his mouth.

But the kiss has a startling effect.
It thrills him indeed, but not with the
pangs of love. He starts up suddenly
with a gesture of terror; his face is
filled with a look of anguish and he
presses his hands to his heart as if in
pain. "Amfortas!" he cries. "The
spearwound the spearwound!" With
heart of pity he suffers themortal
anguish of the Knight of the Grail and
recalls the solemn festival held before
his wondering eyes in the citadel of
Monsalvat. He feels for a moment the
sensuous thrill of love-longing, but he
conquers it, and finally in an agony,
sinks to his knees in despair.

He pushes Kundry away, and the
woman, knowing that he has dis
covered her, makes one last terrible
effort to awaken Desire in his heart.
But he repels her with growing firm
ness, and as she seeks once more to
embrace him, thrusts her away.

"Hither!" she cries at last in despair.
"Hither I Oh help! Seize on the caitiff!
Oh help!" Klingsor approaches in
haste and the damsels rush forth in
terror. Klingsor cries out in scorn.

He flings the Holy Spear of Amjortas
at the youth, but lo! a miracle happens.
The Spear leaps from his hand, but
stays in mid-air, halted in the blank
above Parsifal. The youth seizes it,
and makes with it the sign of the Cross.

As with an earthquake, the castle
falls to ruins, the flowers are consumed
and the garden withers like a desert;
the damsels lie like shrivelled blossoms
strewn upon the ground. Kundry
sinks to the earth with a dreadful
cry, andParsifal departs quickly.
Before he leaves, however, he turns
to the temptress, saying enigmatically:

"Thou know'st
Where only we shall meet again!"

316

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT III

SCENE A Spring Landscape in the

Grounds of Monsahat. At the

back a Small Hermitage

MANY years elapse before we
again find ourselves at Monsalvat.
Gurnemanz, now an aged man, dressed
as a hermit but still wearing the tunic
of a Knight of the Grail, emerges from
his hut and listens. He goes to a
thicket and finds Kundry there, seem
ingly dead, but she revives under his
ministrations. Kundry appears as in
Act I, and she proceeds as before to
take up, about the grounds, the humble
tasks of a serving maid.

A knight in black armor, bearing a
spear, is now discovered. Gurnemanz
warns him that no armed warrior is
allowed in the sacred environs of
Monsalvat, especially on this day,
Good Friday. Without a word, how
ever, the knight plunges the spear in
the ground; then removing his helmet,
he kneels in prayer. Only then does
Gurnemanz recognize him and point
him out to Kundry. Parsifal rises, and

gazing calmly around, he recognizes
Gurnemanz, and puts forth a hand in
greeting. He is questioned well. On
learning of his wanderings, Gurnemanz
at length is assured it is Parsifal, the
redeemer of sins to the Grail brother
hood. He informs the young knight
how dmjortas yet suffers, and that
Titurel has just died. Gloom reigns
at the citadel, and the knights long
for his return and their own deliver
ance. Parsifal, believing these mis
fortunes due to his long delay, is deeply
affected. He staggers and would fall
but for the hermit's support. He
finally sinks down on a grassy knoll,
where Kundry bathes his tired feet
and dries them with her long hair.
Parsifal asks Gurnemanz, who by his

Kure life has become worthy, to anoint
5m with the water of purification,
and the contents of the golden vial,
which Kundry produces from her
bosom. Gurnemanz then performs
his devotional act, bestowing on Parsi
fal the title of Prince and King of the
Grail. Parsifal now looks with deep
compassion upon Kundry, baptisingher.

COPY T MISHKIN

MATZENAUER AS KUNDRY

COPY'T MISHKIN

WITHERSPOON- AS GURNEMANZ

317

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Then comes the wonderful "Charfrei-
tagszauber," or Good Friday Spell.

Gurnemanz explains that the beauty
of the woods and fields is caused by
the fact it is Good Friday, and that
the flowers and trees, watered by the
tears of repentant sinners, express in
their luxuriousness the redemption ^ of
mankind. Kundry> who has sat with
bowed head, now looks up beseechingly
upon Parsifal, who in great compas
sion, kisses her upon the
brow.

Distant bells are
heard, pealing softly at
first but gradually swell
ing into majestic power.
Wagner here uses the
aame famous bell-motiv
heard in the first act
but in minor mode as
befits the hour's greater
sadness and solemnity.
The moment has come,
and the old hermit
places upon Parsifal a
coat of mail and the
mantle of a Grail-
Knight. As before, the
landscape gradually
changes, and Parsifal.,
grasping the Sacred
Spear, follows Kundry
and Gurnemanz. Once
more the woods disap
pear, and as they approach the rocky
galleries, a procession of Knights in
mourning garb is seen. Here devel
ops, to the deep tones of the bells of
Monsalvat, the "Processional of the
Knights of the Holy Grail.' 7
*At last the whole immense hall
reappears as in the first act, but with
out the tables. The light is faint.
Fiom the doors on one side, Knights
-appear, bearing the coffin of Titurel.
From another door Amjortas is borne
on his litter, preceded by the covered
shrine of the Grail. The bier is erected

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fur die Mitfllieder dcs Palronal-Verans,

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PARSIFAL

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ORIGINAL PROGRAM OF PARSIFAL
(BAYREUTH, 1882)

in the centre of the hall; behind it is
the canopied couch where Amjortas is
set down. Then is heard Amfor-
tas' Gebet, "Mein Vater!" (Amfortas'
Prayer, "My Father").

All have shrunk back in awe, and
Amjortas stands alone in fearful ecstasy.
Parsifal, accompanied by Gurnemanz
and Kundry) has entered unperceived.
He now steps forward with the Spear,
and before the wondering knights, he
touches the wound of
Amfortas with its point.
The face of the stricken
man shines with holy
rapture, his wound is
miraculously healed and
he knows in verity
"peace after pain."
Gurnemanz supports
him as he steps away
and gives place to the
" guileless fool " who has
now become the chief
guardian of the Grail.
Parsifal stands intent,
holding the Spear aloft,
and gazing upon its
gleaming point he bids
the squires open the
shrine. Parsifal takes
from it the Grail, and
kneels in devotion.
The Sacred Vessel glows
with a strange light,
and a halo of glory pours down from
above. Titurel) for the moment re
stored to life, raises himself from his
coffin, lifting his hands in benediction.
From the dome descends a white dove,
which hovers above the head of Par
sifal) who lifts the Grail for the adora
tion of the Knights. Kundry, her task
accomplished, and her redemption
assured, sinks in death to the ground.
Amfortas and Gurnemanz kneel in
homage before Parsifal,, and the cur
tain falls upon this most extraordinary
of all operatic works.

318

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in German)
ACT II

ICH SAH DAS KIND

(I Saw the Child) MARGARETE
MATZENAUER, Contralto

6327 12-in., 2.00

KUNDRY:

I saw the child upon its mother's breast;

Its infant lisping laughs yet in my ear:

Though filled with sadness,

How laughed then even Heart's Affliction,

When, shouting gladness,

It gave her sorrow's contradiction 1

In beds of moss 'twas softly nested,

She kissed it till in sleep it rested:

With care and sorrow

The timid mother watched it sleeping;

It waked the morrow

Beneath the dew of mother's weeping.

All tears was she, encased in anguish,

Caused by thy father's death and love:

That through like hap thou shouldst not lan
guish,

Became her care all else above. ^

Afar from arms, from mortal strife and^riot,

Sought she to hide away with thee in quiet.

All care was she, alas I and fearing:

Never should aught of knowledge reach thy
hearing.

Hear'st thou not still her lamenting voice,

When far and late thou didst roam?

For days and nights she waited,

And then her cries abated;

Her pain was dulled of its smart,

And gently ebbed life's tide;

The anguish broke her heart,

And Heart's Affliction died.

ACT III

CHARFREITAGSZAUBER

(Good Friday Spell Part II) (Du siehst,
das ist nicht so,) HERBERT WITHER-
SPOON, Bass 6330 12-in., 32.00

GURN'EMANZ:

Thou see'st, that is not so.

The sad repentant tears of sinners

Have here with holy rain

Besprinkled field and plain,

And made them glow_ with beauty.

All earthly creatures in delight

At the Redeemer's trace so bright

Uplift their prayVs of duty.

To see Him on the Cross they have no power:

And so they smile upon redeemed man,

Who with dread no more doth cower,

Through God's love made clean and pure;

And now perceives each blade and flower

That mortal foot to-day it need not dread;

For, as the Lord in pity man did spare,

And in His mercy for him bled,

All men will keep, with pious care,

To-day a tender tread.

Then thanks the whole creation makes,

With all that flow'rs and fast goes hence,

That trespass-pardoned Nature wakes

Now to her day of Innocence.

AMFORTAS* GEBET, "MEIN VATER."

(Amfortas* Prayer, "My father")
CLARENCE WHITEHILL, Baritone

74406 12-in., 31-50

AMFORTAS (raising himself on his couch)\

My father I

Highest venerated herol

Thou purest, to whom once e'en the angels
bended!

Oh! thou who now in Heavenly heights

Dost behold the Saviour's self,

Implore Him to grant that His hallowed blood,

He pour upon these brothers.
SEVERAL KNIGHTS (pressing forward):

Uncover the shrine 1

Do thou thine office!
AMFORTAS ( (in a paroxysm of despair)-.

No! No more!

I bid ye to slay me!

(Tears open his dress.)

Behold me! the open wound behold!

Here is my poison my streaming blood.

Take up your weapons!

Kill both the sinner and all his pain:

The Grail's delight will ye then regain!

BLUE LABEL RECORD

fCharfreitagszauber (Good Friday Spell-Part I) Mein erstes Amt verricht' 1

ich so Karl Jam, Tenor, Jean Mutter, Bass\ SSQ6l n _-

1 Charfreitaeszauber (Good Friday Spell-Part II) Du siehst, das is t nicht so
( Jb'rn-Mullen

319

PHOTO WHITE

BUNTHORNE AND THE LOVE-SICK MAIDENS

PATI E N C E

COMIC opera by Gilbert and
Sullivan. First produced at
the Opera Comique, London,
April 23, 1881. First American pro
duction at the Standard Theatre, New
York, September 23, 1881.

PATIENCE is Gilbert's famous
satire on the esthetic craze of the
early '80s, which did not long survive
the witty ridicule this gifted librettist
aimed at it.

In the first act twenty love-sick
maidens are singing plaintively of their
love for Eunthorne. Patience, & buxom
milkmaid, ridicules them, telling them
the Dragoon Guards are expected
shortly; but though the maidens doted
upon the Dragoons a year ago they
scorn them now. The Guards arrive,
also Eunthorne, followed ^ by the fair
twenty, who pay no attention^whatever
to the Dragoons who leave in a rage.
Patience appears, and the poet makes
love to her. She is frightened and
runs to Lady Angela, who tells her it is
her duty to love some one. Patience
thereupon declares she will not per
mit the day to go-by without falling
in love.

Grosvenor, the idyllic poet, and an

old playmate of Patience, enters, and
she promptly falls in love with him,
but he remains indifferent. Eunthorne,
unable to decide between the maidens,
puts himself up as the prize in a lottery,
but Patience interrupts the drawing
and announces that she will be his
wife. She is accepted, whereupon^the
fickle maidens transfer their affections
to Grosvenor.

In the second act we see a rather
ancient damsel, Jane, mourning be
cause of the maidens' desertion of
Eunthorne, who is content with a
milkmaid. Grosvenor, followed by
Patience, who tells him that she still
loves him, and Eunthorne, with Jane
clinging to him, enters. Finally, Eun
thorne in a jealous rage at Patience s
regard for the rival poet, exits with
Jane. Now the maidens grow tender
to the Dragoons, and the poets quarrel.
Eunthorne asks Grosvenor how to
make himself less attractive, and he
is told to dress himself in a more com
monplace manner. When the maidens
find he has given up esthetics they
find suitors among the Dragoons;
Patience deserts Eunthorne for Grosve
nor, and Jane goes over to the Duke,
leaving Eunthorne disconsolate.

320

COPY'T WHITE

SCENE FROM ACT II AT THE METROPOLITAN*

PESCATORI DI PERLE

(LES PECHEURS DES PERLES) (THE PEARL FISHERS)

(French)

NOT until the success of "Carmen* *
did the world ask, too late for
him to hear, what other operas
this brilliant composer might have
produced. "The Pearl Fishers" had
previously met with little success, but
once disinhumed, it revealed a wealth
of unregarded, almost unsuspected
beauty. Based on an oriental theme,

(English)

it is picturesque and colorful, even
though it lacks the electric thrill, the
dash and the tragic sense of "Carmen. "
The melodies in it are lovely, and
they are coming into the better ap-

greciation they deserve. In especial,
izet's gifts as a composer for the
orchestra are well revealed in the
beautiful Prelude.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Carre and Cormon. Music by
Georges Bizet. First production at
the Theatre Lyrique, Paris, September
29, 1863. First London production,
entitled "Leila," at Covent Garden,
April 22, 1887; and as Pescatori di Perle^
May 18, 1889. Recently revived^ at
Covent Garden for Tetrazzini. First
performance in America occurred at

Philadelphia, August, 1893, in English.
First New York production (two acts
only) January 11, 1896, at the Metro
politan Opera House, with Calve. Re
vived at the Metropolitan in 1916, with
Caruso, Hempel and de Luca. It is
interesting to recall that Caruso and
de Luca sang together in this opera
twenty years ago in Genoa, at the very
beginning of their operatic careers.

321

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

CHARACTERS

LEILA, a priestess (Lay'-lah} . . .Soprano
NADIR, a pearl fisher (Nah-deer) Tenor
ZURGA, a chief (Zoor'-gah) . . . Baritone
NOURABAD, high priest (Noo-

rah-bad) Bass

Priests, Priestesses, Pearl Fishers,
Women, etc.

Scene and Period: Ceylon; Barbaric
Period

(The original French name of the
opera is pronounced Lay Pay-shur-
day Pair/; the Italian, Pes-kah-toh r -
ree dee Pair-leJi).

ACT I

SCENE The Coast of Ceylon

THE time has come to select a
new chieftain in the little world
of the Cingalese fishermen, who gather
together for a ceremonial dance and
festival, before their ancient pagoda.
The choice falls on Zurga> who accepts
the office. Scarcely has he been inaugu
rated than a long lost friend of his
youth appears. Nadir. They greet
each other with affection, and speak
of the days when they were foolish
enough to quarrel over a beautiful
girl, a priestess in the temple of Brahma,
known to them as Leila. Of her they
sing the duet "Del tempio al limitar"
(In the Depths of the Temple), one of
Bizet's finest inspirations. It is begun
by Nadir y who describes the scene
impressively. Believing themselves now
cured of their old infatuation, they
swear eternal friendship, pledging
themselves to remain blood-brothers
to the end.

A fisherman announces the arrival
of a mysterious veiled priestess whose
custom it is to come once a year, in a
boat from the sea, to pray for the suc
cess of the fishermen, who look upon
her as their guardian. No one dares
approach the place of her devotions,

upon the rocks above the village, but
all treat her with veneration. She in
variably comes among them close-
veiled, and as she goes toward the
temple the folk sing a chorus of prayer
in which she herself joins, the * 4 Brah
ma gran Dio" (Divine Brahma).

Before she enters the temple, Zurga
adjures her to pray for the people
night and day, promising that if she
keeps her oath of chastity she shall
receive a pearl of great price. If she
breaks it, however, death will be her
portion. She is about to swear when,
with a start, she observes Nadir. The
High Priest, Nourabad, reminds her
that even now she may revoke her
vows, if she desires it, but she refuses,
entering the temple. Nadir, left alone,
is shaken by the discovery that the
veiled woman is none other than
Leila; more than this, he realizes he
still loves her. In a lovely air, he re
calls his memories of the first time he
beheld her, the "Mi par d'udire
ancora" (I Hear as in a Dream).

Nadir decides he must tell Zurga.
Meanwhile, he is somewhat weary, and,
throwing himself on the ground he falls
asleep. As he lies there, returning
priests build a fire on the rocks, where
Leila sings a song of prayer to Brahma.
Nadir awakens, and calls to her softly.
She subtly answers in her song with
out awakening the suspicions of the
priests. Under cover of the growing
darkness. Nadir forgets Zurga, hasten
ing to the side of his lost love.

ACT II

SCENE A Ruined Temple

NEAR an ancient, ruined temple,
Leila begins her lonely watch,
Nourabad reminding her of her oath
her renunciation of marriage and her
devotion to her people. She tells him
of a vow she made when a child to
protect a fugitive, who implored her

322

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

to save his life. Even though a dagger
was held to her breast by his enemies,
she kept her vow., and he escaped,
leaving her, as remembrance, a golden
chain. This story is told in the
number "Siccome un di caduto" (A
Fugitive, One Day).

The priest reminds her of the
punishment which is certain to over
take her should she now violate her
oath. "Shame and death shall be
thy portion!" warns the harsh and
bitter old man. So she is left alone
with her thoughts, the mysterious
night-sounds of the jungle for her
-only companionship. Bound by her
oath, yet conscious of her love for
Nadir, she sinks down in an agony of
despair. She is roused by the voice
of her lover, who comes to the Temple,
his heart awake in passionate longing.
Nadir sings the beautiful "De mon
amie" (My Love).

Rushing to her, the priestess's lover
implores her to defy the priests, her
oath to Brahma, and to fly with him.
She refuses, but the love in her heart
is too strong, and she soon finds
herself in his arms. Then follows the
"Non hai compreso un cor fedel"
(You Have Not Understood).

Now begins the tragedy. Unknown
to the lovers, Nourabad has been
watching. He alarms the people, tell
ing them Leila has proven faithless.
The fishermen advance toward the
couple with drawn knives, demanding
death as their punishment. Zurga
steps forward, and orders them to be
gone. As they go, Nourabad tears the
veil from the girl's face, and thus
reveals to the astonished Zurga that
she is none other than Leila, the
woman Nadir has sworn with him to
forget forever. Enraged at what he
regards as his friend's betrayal, he
orders both to death. Nadir ; is carried
off in chains, and the priests lead
away Leila.

ACT III

SCENE I The Camp of Zurga

BEFORE the tent where Leila is
held under guard, Zurga stands
brooding over the impending death of
his friend and of the woman he loves,
Leila comes to the entrance of the
tent, and calls softly. She begs him to
dismiss the guards and talk to her
awhile, and he does so. Then Leila
pleads for Nadir in an aria of great
dramatic power, the "Temer non so
per me" (I Fear Not).

Zurga declares his love, and openly
reveals his jealousy of Nadir; but the
girl scorns him; she is too proud to
sue for her own life. Her refusal
angers him. Nourabad comes to
announce the forthcoming sacrifice,
and to him she gives the chain of the
fugitive, imploring him to send it to
her mother.

. SCENE II The Place of Execution

IN a wild part of the jungle, the
funeral pyre has been set up, and
hither are brought Leila and Nadir.
As they mount the pyre a red glow is
seen in the sky, which is heralded by
the people as the dawn. Then Zurga
enters to warn them that what they
have seen is not the dawn, but the red
glow of their burning homes, and they
fly to save their children and their
household goods. The two prisoners
and Zurga remain, secretly watched
by Nourabad, who thus hears Zurga
explain that he has kindled the fire
to save them both. With a great
battle-axe, Zurga smashes the chains
that bind them. They speak their
gratitude in a splendid trio, "Fascino
etereo."

The lovers praise the generosity and
greatness of Zurga, who for the sake of
friendship has done a deed which may
cost him his own life. They depart
as the voices of the enraged Indians,

323

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

returning for vengeance, draw nigh.
With his knife, Zurga holds them off
until Nadir and Leila are seen from
afar, high among the rocks. Zurga
then is overpowered, and forced to
mount the funeral pyre. As the flames
roar about him, it is seen that the
forest itself is on fire, and reading
in this last catastrophe the anger
of Brahma himself, the people pros
trate themselves, as the flames envelop
them too. In this tremendous "suttee"
the community perishes with the lovers.
In this fashion is consummated one
of the most remarkable tragedies in
French opera, a tragedy set to music
of extremely high and original power.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French unless otherwise noted)

ACT I
DEL TEMPIO AL LIMITAR

(In the Depths of the Temple) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor and MARIO ANCONA,
Baritone In Italian 8036 12-in., 32.50
EDMUND CLEMENT, Tenor and MARCEL

TOURNET, Bass 8017 12-in., 2.50

JE CROIS ENTENDRE ENCORE
(I Hear as in a Dream) ENRICO CARUSO,

Tenor f 6026 ^ 12-in., 2.00

DMITRI SMIRNOV, Tenor In Italian

6105 12-in., 2.00
ACT II
DE MON AMIE

(My Love) ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

513 10-in., 31.50
COMME AUTREFOIS

(As in Former Times) AMELITA GALLIC
CURCI, Soprano 6124 12-in., 2.00

COPY'T WHITE ZURGA:

"Hold you I Mine alone is the right to judge 1" Act II

324

LA PERLE DU BRESIL

(THE PEARL OF BRAZIL)

ERICAL drama in three acts.
Words by Gabriel and Sylvain
Saint Etienne; music by
Felicien David. First produced at the
Theatre Lyrique, Paris, November 22,
1851. Revived at the same theatre
March, 1858, with Mme. Miolan-
Carvalho; and at the Opera Comique,
1883, with Emma Nevada.

CHARACTERS

(With the Original Cast)

ZORA Mile. Duez

LORENZ, her lover Soyer

ADMIRAL SALVADOR Bouche

Sailors, Brazilians, etc.

EL PERLE DU BRESIL, (Pairldu
Breh-zeel') was David's first dra
matic work. It is the story of Lorenz, a
sailor, and Zora, a young girl found by
Admiral Salvador in Brazil, and whom
he jntends to educate and eventually
to marry.

They set sail from South America, but
Salvador soon finds that Zora has a
lover, Lorenz, a young lieutenant, who
has disguised himself as a sailor and
is on board in order to be near his
sweetheart. A storm arises and the ship
is compelled to seek shelter in a harbor
of Brazil. The natives attack the ship
and almost overpower the sailors, when
Zora chants a hymn to the Great Spirit,
and the Brazilians, recognizing ^their
compatriot, make peace. In gratitude
for the young girl's act, which has

saved the lives of all on board, the
Admiral gives his consent to her
marriage with Lorenz.

The "Charmant oiseau" is, perhaps,
the most beautiful number in David's
opera. It is one of the most famous
of coloratura airs, and one of which
sopranos are very fond, as it exhibits
their art to perfection, especially in
the duet with the flute.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French)

CHARMANT OISEAU

(Thou Charming Bird) With Flute
obbligato. LUISA TETRAZZINI, Soprano

6343 12-in., 32.00

AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

6124 12-in., 2.00

Delightful bird of plumage glowing

With sapphire and with ruby dyes,

'Mid the shade his rare beauty showing

Before our wonder-stricken eyes;

When on the branch with blossoms trembling,

He poises swinging gay and bright,

His checkered pinions' gleams resembling

A many-colored prism of light.

How sweet is he, the Mysolil

When day appears his joyful singing
Awakes the dawn's enchanted rest;
When evening falls his notes are ringing,
While fiery day fades from the west.
A-down the grove the silence doubles,
As now his plaintive dulcet lay,
That breathes of love's ecstatic troubles,
From out the tulip tree dies^ away.
How sweet is he, the Mysoli!

From Ditson edition Copy't Oliver Ditson Co.

325

H. M. S. PINAFORE

OR THE LASS THAT LOVED A SAILOR

KiCENT revivals of this opera
have proven that it has lost
nothing of its original charm
and wit, though both librettist and
composer have passed away, together
with the noble lord satirized by Sir
Joseph Porter. Strangely, this most
successful of all light operas was not
accepted with favor at its first pro
duction in London. It owed its
success to Americans who found it a
genial satire upon English officialdom
which could be applied to human
nature generally. Sullivan's sparkling
melodies soon were universally whistled
and the American success was repeated

in London, actually leading up to the
establishment of the Savoy Theatre
and a long string of delicious operettas
such as "The Mikado," "The Pirates
of Penzance" and "Patience." W. S.
Gilberts death, which occurred in
1911, was a Gilbertian affair in itself,
the librettist, well advanced in years,
leaping into a shallow ornamental
lake to save a lady from drowning, of
which in fact she was in no danger!
Sullivan's "Pinafore" music was com
posed while the composer was suffering
acute gastric trouble, much of it being
written in bed. At that, its humor
and brilliancy did not suffer a whit.

TH E O PERA

COMICopera in two acts. Text
by W. S. Gilbert; music by Sir
Arthur Sullivan. First produced at
the Opera Comique, London, May 28,
1878. First American performance
occurred in New York in 1878, but
was unauthorized, and was followed by
the first important production at the
Boston Museum, in November, 1879.
Successfully revived in New York in
1911 and again in 1912.

CHARACTERS

RT. HON. SIR JOSEPH PORTER,
K. C. B., First Lord of
the Admiralty Baritone

CAPTAIN CORCORAN, Com
manding "H. M. S. Pina
fore" Baritone

RALPH RACKSTRAW, able sea
man Tenor

DICK DEADEYE, able seaman Bass

BILLY BOBSTAY, boatswain's

mate Bass

BOB BECKET, carpenter's man

TOM TUCKER, midshipmite

SERGEANT OF MARINES

JOSEPHINE, the Captain's

daughter Soprano

HEBE, Sir Joseph's first

cousin Mezzo-Soprano

LITTLE BUTTERCUP, a bum-
boat woman Contralto

First Lord's Sisters, his Cousins and
Aunts, Sailors, Marines.

Time and Place: The Scene is laid on the
Quarterdeck of "H. M. S. Pinafore 7 '
Time, 1878

ACT I

THE sailors on "H. M. S. Pinafore "
are busy scrubbing the decks for
the expected arrival of Sir Joseph
Porter, K. C. B. The ship is in the
harbor, and Portsmouth is seen in the
distance. Little Buttercup, a bumboat
woman who is by no means as small as
her name would imply, comes aboard
with the stock of " snuff and tobaccy

326

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

and excellent jacky," not to mention
the "excellent peppermint drops/*
It transpires that a handsome young
sailor, Ralph, is in love with the
Captain's daughter, Josephine, and
aside from the difference in their
station, Josephine is to be betrothed
to Sir Joseph Porter, who duly arrives,
attended by his "sisters and his
cousins and his aunts." In the mean
time, Ralph plans to elope with
Josephine, the crew assisting. The
plot is overheard by Dick Deadeye, the
lugubrious boatswain.

ACT II

CAPTAIN CORCORAN, in dis-
\^t grace for using a "big, big D"
in public, sings to the moon, (ac
companied by a mandolin) and Little
Buttercup reveals her affection for him.
He tells her, however, that he can only
be her friend, and she hints darkly that
a change is in store for him "Things
are seldom what they seem." Sir
Joseph then enters complaining that
Josephine does not favor his suit, when
the Captain comforts him by averring
she is awed by his lofty station^ and

suggesting that he plead his cause on
the ground that love levels all rank.
Josephine does not respond, being
naturally determined to marry Ralph.
Dick Deadeye now reveals the elope
ment plans and he and the Captain
lie in wait for the crew, "Carefully on
tip-toe stealing." The elopers are
captured, and the Captain is so ex
asperated that he actually swears,
using a "big, big D" which is over
heard by Sir Joseph Porter. For this
serious breach of morals, a horrible
example of depravity before the whole
crew, the Captain is ordered to his
cabin. Affairs are interrupted by
Little Buttercup, who discloses her
secret, telling how the Captain and
Ralph had been accidently exchanged
while they were both babies. Where
upon, Sir Joseph, revealing the crown
ing absurdity of Gilbert's plot, sends
for Ralph, giving him command of the
ship and reducing the Captain to
Ralph's humble grade of "able
seaman." Sir Joseph nobly consents
to the marriage of Ralph and Josephine,
and the Captain consoles himself with
Little E utter cup.

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

Gems from "Pinafore" (Part I) Victor Light Opera Company

Opening Chorus, "We Sail the Ocean Blue/' "A Maiden Fair to
S ee " "I am Monarch of the Sea" "I'm Called Little Buttercup"
"Captain of the Pinafore" Finale, "His Foot Should Stamp"

Gems from "Pinafore" (Part II) Victor Light Opera Company

"The Gallant Captain of the Pinafore" "When I Was a Lad"
"The Merry Maiden and the Tar" -"Carefully on Tip-Toe Stealing"
"Baby Farming" "Farewell, My Own" "For He is an Englishman" .

Pinafore Selection (Part I) Victor Concert Orch.

"Now Give Three Cheers for the Sailor's Bride" "A Maiden Fair
to s ee _<vVe Sail the Ocean Blue" "I'm Called Little Butter
cup" "Admiral's Song" "When I Was a Lad"

Pinafore Selection (Part II) Victor Concert Orch.

"Fair Moon" "Carefully on Tip-Toe Stealing" "Refrain, Auda
cious Tar" "He is an Englishman"

35386 12-in., 31.25

18176 lain., .75

327

PIQUE DAME

(THE QUEEN OF SPADES)

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Modeste Tschaikowsky, the
composer's brother, taken from
Puschkin's novel of the same name.
Music by Peter Ilyitsch Tschaikowsky.
First production at St. Petersburg,
December, 1890; in Vienna, under
Gustav Mahler, 1902; at La Scala,
Milan, 1905-6; Berlin, 1907, with Des-
tinn, Goetz, Griswold and^ Griming.
First American production at the
Metropolitan Opera House, New York,
March 5, 1910, in German, under
Mahler, with Destinn, Slezak and
Alma Gluck. This was the first pro
duction in America of any of Tschai-
kowsky's operas, an odd fact in view
of the great popularity of his concert
music, although "Eugen Onegin" had
previously been given In concert form.

Time and Place: St. Petersburg;
Eighteenth Century

story of "Pique Dame" is a
JL melodramatic story, filled with
superstition and tragedy. The Queen
of Spades (Pique Dame), is an elderly
countess who possesses the secret of
the three fateful cards which bring
luck at the gaming table. Her grand
daughter, Lisa, betrothed to Prince
Jehtski) is deeply in love with Her-
mann y a young officer, who is seek
ing a way to make a fortune that he
may marry the young girl. Lisa gives
her lover the key to her grandmother's
rooms, where he goes at night in an
effort to extract from the old Countess
the secret of the three cards. The
Countess will not listen to his plead
ings and she orders him from her apart
ment. When he draws his pistol in an
effort to compel her to reveal to him

the names of the cards, she falls dead
from terror.

The next scene shows Hermann in
his barrack room. As the funeral of
the Countess passes the barracks, a gust
of wind blows the window open, and
the ghost of the Queen of Spades ap
pears, declaring, "Your fate is sealed!
These are the cards ace, seven,
three." She vanishes, and the officer
goes out to meet Lisa, who is waiting
for him on the banks of the Neva. The
young girl fails in her effort to prevent
Hermann from carrying out his de
termination to go to the gambling
house, and as he leaves her she throws
herself into the Neva. In the last act
Hermann is gambling madly with the
Prince. He has won on the first two
cards, but when the third card, the
queen of spades, turns up, he loses all.
The spectre of the Countess appears,
and Hermann, imagining she has come
for his life, stabs himself.

Tschaikowsky has written much
beautiful music for this work, but the
gems of the opera are probably the
delightful duet for Lisa and Pauline in
the second scene of Act I, which re
minds one somewhat of the lovely
Tales of Hoffman "Barcarolle"; the
solo of Lisa in Act III, given as she
waits on the banks of the Neva for her
lover Hermann; and the duet from the
Carnival Scene, Act II, sung by
Daphnis and Chloe in the little pastoral
given for the amusement of the guests.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

ACT II

O VIENS MON DOUX BERGER
(My Dear Shepherd) EMMY DESTINN,
Soprano and MARIA DUCHENE,
Soprano In French 8017 12-in., 32.50

328

THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE

COMIC opera in two acts. Text by
Sir W. S. Gilbert; music by Sir
Arthur Sullivan. First per
formance on any stage, New York,
December 31, 1879, under the super
vision of the authors. Produced at
the Opera Comique, London, April 3,
1880. Occasional amateur productions.

Time and Place: The Scene is laid on
the Coast of Cornwall; time

^ I A HIS little opera is a satire on
JL British respectability and the ex
aggerated moral sense of the Victo
rian era. In this it is a triumph.

In Act I, the Pirates celebrate
the twenty-first birthday of Frederic,
whose apprenticeship is ended. He
wishes to give up his calling, though he
has to berate the Pirates for a soft
hearted lot, through their tenderness
with orphans. Being orphans them
selves, they feel compelled to be kind
to other orphans, and, as the fact is
known, all their victims claim exemp
tion upon the ground of common
orphanhood. Ruth, a "female pirate,"
Frederic's nurse in childhood, who got
him into this scrape by binding him
'prentice to a pirate instead of a pilot,
expects now to marry him. Frederic
never has seen any other woman, and
consents, while suspecting that younger
women may have more charm. His
suspicions are confirmed when General
Stanley's daughters arrive. He con
ceals himself behind a rock, but as the
ladies decide to paddle in the water his
modesty obliges him to step forth
when each of the girls has removed one
shoe. He thus meets Mabel, who con
sents to reform him from his piratical
ways. The Major-General himself

arrives, just as the Pirates capture the
girls. In order to save them and him
self he tells them he is an orphan, and
the tender-hearted Pirates are com
pelled to release their captives.

In the second act, the General
laments his deception as to his having
been an orphan, and he is brooding
in misery beside the tombs of his
ancestors, whom he feels he has dis
graced. Frederic tries to console him
with the thought that he only bought
the place a year ago, ancestors and all.
But the General is not convinced; he
bought the ancestors along with the
place, and no matter whose ancestors
they were, they are now his! The
Police arrive to help Frederic" jug "
the Pirates, and Frederic bids Mabel
goodbye. The Pirate King and Ruth,
however, interfere with his plans by
informing him that he was bound
apprentice to the Pirates until his
twenty-first birthday, and since he
happened to be born on the 29th of
February, he has yet had but five
birthdays and consequently is still
a member of the band for some sixty-
four years. His sense of duty compels
him to return to the Pirates, and to
inform them that the General was not
really an orphan after all. The Police
attack the Pirates and are defeated.
The Police, however, arrest them in
the name of Queen Victoria, and at
the mention of this august monarch
the Pirates reverently yield themselves
up. It is discovered, then that the
Pirates are themselves all English
noblemen gone wrong, and the Police
at once respectfully release them, on
condition that they give up their
piracy. They willingly do so, and
Frederic is thus free to marry Mabel.

329

PHOTO WHITE

PRINCE IGOR DEPARTS FOR THE WAR ACT I

PRINCE IGOR

A THOUGH Borodin wrote many
symphonic works, "Prince Igor"
was his only opera, and even
this was not finished when he died in
1887, although begun twenty years
earlier. It was completed by the com
poser's friends, Rimsky-Korsakoff and
Glazounoff. The Italian version, writ
ten by Antonio Lega and Giulio Setti,
was used in the American production.
The music is wild, free, and whether
completed by Borodin or his friends, it
is highly original. The ballet music
frequently has been danced by the
Ballet Russe and its successors.

THE OPERA

OPERA in a prologue and three
acts. Libretto by the composer
and his friend, Vladimir Stassoff, based
on "The Epic of the Army of Igor,"
an old historical Russian chronicle,
supposed to have been written by a
literary monk in the twelfth century.
Music by Alexander Porphyrievich
Borodin. First production at Imperial
Opera House, St. Petersburg, October
23, 1890. First American production

in New York, December 30, 1915, with
the cast given below.

CHARACTERS
PRINCE IGOR SVIATOSLAVITCH

(Ee-gohr f Svee-aht-oh-$lav r -itcK)

Pasquale Amato
PRINCESS JAROSLAVNA, his wife

(Ya-roh-slav-nah) . . . Frances Aid a
VLADIMIR IGOREVITCH, his son

(Ee-gohr-ay* -vitcK) . . Paul Alt house
PRINCE GALITZKY AND KONTCHAK
(Gah-litts-kee and Kohnt-chak)

Adamo Didur

KONTCHAKOVNA, his daughter
(Kohnt-cha-kohv r -nah)

Flora Perini

OVLOUR (Ohv-ioor) .... Pietro Audisio
SCOULA (Skoo-lah) .Andrea de Segurola
EROCHKA (Ay-roch-kati) . .Angelo Bada
A YOUNG GIRL. .Raymonde Delaunois

IN the Prologue, which takes place
in a square in Poutivle, Prince Igor
and his expedition are about to depart
for battle with an Oriental tribe. An
eclipse occurs, which overawes the
people, but Igor refuses to heed the
warnings of his wife and departs with

330

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

his son Vladimir, after entrusting the
care of his wife to his brother, Prince
Galitzky, whose ambition it is to usurp
Igors place, and who bribes the rogues,
Scoula and Erochka, deserters from
Igor's army, to give him their support.

Act I shows feasting and carousing
in the courtyard of Galitzky' s house.
Young girls bewail the fact that one of
their number has been abducted and is
kept a prisoner in Galitzky' s hold. They
ask for her return, but the Prince, who
is actually the abductor , frightens
them and they run away. Jaroslavna,
brooding over the absence of her hus
band, is appealed to by the girls, but
on the appearance of Galitzky they
flee in terror. Jaroslavna reproaches
her brother, but he defies her. Worse
troubles are in store for her, however,
as a delegation of Boyars appears to
tell the Princess that Igor is wounded
and a prisoner, together with his son,
in the enemy's camp. Distant flames
are seen, and the people cry that
the enemy is advancing.

As the curtain rises on the second
act it is evening in the enemy's camp,
where Prince Igor and Vladimir are
prisoners. A chorus of girls is singing,
among them Kontchakovna, daughter of
Kontchak, the Oriental chief. Prince
Vladimir, who has fallen in love with
Kontchakovna, enters and tells the
young girl that Igor disapproves of his
attachment to the daughter of his
enemy, but she says that her father

will consent to their union. Igor ap
pears, lamenting his predicament, but
when Odour, who is on guard, offers him
ahorse as a means of escape, he refuses.
Kontchak promises Igor his freedom if
he will agree never to fight again.
The slaves are ordered to dance for his
diversion, and the actends with a ballet.

The third act shows another part of
the enemy's camp, where Kontchak' s
triumphs over the Russians are being
celebrated. Igor is supposed to make
his escape, while Kontchak orders his
soldiers not to pursue.

The last act shows the city walls and
public square in Poutivle. Jaros/avna y
grieving for her absent husband, sud
denly sees two horsemen approaching,
and is overjoyed to recognize her hus
band and Odour. Jaroslavna and Igor
go into the citadel, while the rascals,
Scoula and Erochka, who have been
drinking, enter and sing a song ridi
culing Igor and praising Galitzky. Sud
denly they perceive Igor in the door of
the citadel, and tremble for fear of
punishment. "Ring the town bell,"
says the resourceful Scoula, and they
pull the rope lustily. This brings the
townspeople, who greet their king with
much rejoicing. And all ends well.

THE VICTOR RECORD

ACT I
SONG OF PRINCE GALITZKY

FEODOR CHALIAPIN, Bass 558 10-in., 1.50

BLUE LABEL RECORD

ICoro di donne (Chorus of the Tartar Women, Act II) (In Italian)
Metropolitan Opera Chorus
Coro e Danza (Chorus of Slaves, Act II) (In Italian)
Metropolitan Opera Chorus)

lfL -
1LWn '>

331

J SCHUMANN-HEINK
AS FIDES

LE PROPHETE

(THE PROPHET)

THIS opera ^was one of the last of
Meyerbeer's works, representing
thereforethe finalchange of
style in a curiously changeable com
poser. Meyerbeer seems to have
applied a special method for each
work. The general public, expecting
another "Huguenots," was at first
somewhat disappointed; but "Le Pro-
phete"soon established itself, for all
its gloomy and tragical character, the
gorgeous pageantry of the Cathedral
scene, the brilliant ballet and excellent
music serving to compensate for the
lack of love-interest and the mixed
character of the "hero" who redeems
himself at the end only by blowing up
a castle with himself and his enemies.
A thin but tragic love-romance gleams
through the work, but the chief love-
interest really is that of a mother for
her son, a most unusual main theme

in opera. The plot is based on the up
rising of the Anabaptists of the six
teenth century. This was a semi-
religious, semi-social movement char
acteristic of the early Renaissance
period. It knew some qualities which
appealed to the downtrodden masses,
but it was badly marred by the
charlatanry of its leaders, including
John of Leyden, whose character
appears to be the foundation for the
Prophet of the present work. The
music was completed with most lavish
care by Meyerbeer, and it includes
some of his best-known arias and
concerted numbers, such as "Ah, mon
fils," and the familiar "Coronation
March" the latter still recognized as
one of the great processional marches
and frequently used in European state
functions, not to speak of its popularity
among us here in the United States.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in five acts. Text by
Scribe. Music by Giacomo
Meyerbeer. First presented in Paris,
April 16, 1849. First London pro
duction July 24, 1849. First Ameri
can production at the New Orleans
Opera, April 2, 1850. First New York
production November 25, 1854. Re
vived in 1898 at the Metropolitan with
Brema, de Reszke and Lehmann; in
1903 with Alvarez and Schumann-
Heink; in 1909 at the Manhattan
Opera with d'Alvarez, Lucas and
Walter- Villa; and in 1918* with Caruso,
Muzio, Matzenauer and Didur.

CHARACTERS

JOHN OF LEYDEN (Ly'-den), the
Prophet, chosen leader of
the Anabaptists Tenor

BERTHA, his sweetheart Soprano

FIDES (Fee'-dayz) y mother of

John of Leyden . . . Mezzo-Soprano

COUNT OBERTHAL, ruler of the

domain about Dordrecht. . .Bass

ZACHARIAH 1 three f Bass

JONAS 1 Anabaptist J Tenor

MATHISEN J preachers [ Bass

Nobles, Citizens, Peasants, Soldiers,
Prisoners

Scene and Period: Holland and Germany;

in 1543^ at the Time of the Anabaptist

Uprising

(The original French name of the
opera is "Le Prophete," Leh Pro-jeht;
the Italian, "II Profeta," EelPro-fay'-
tah).

333

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT I
SCENE A Suburb of Dordrecht

JOHN OF LEYDENMs the son of
Fides, a widowed innkeeper of
Leyden, a man of strange mystical
character. He is about to wed "Bertha,
an orphan girl of great beauty. But
as the girl is a vassal of Count Oberthal,
and her home in Dordrecht, Bertha is
obliged to seek the Counfs consent
to her wedding. She and Fides go to
the castle at a moment when a group
of peasants, armed with sticks and
staves, are about to start a riot, invoked
by the preaching of three Anabaptists.
The trouble is easily suppressed on
the appearance of the Count, his
followers, and his soldiers, who tend
to make merry over it. ThzCount
hears the girl's plea, but is so im
pressed with her beauty that he
desires her for himself, and he has her
and Fides cast into the dungeons of
his castle. Such was ancient justice.

ACT II

SCENE The Inn of Fides in the Suburbs
of Ley den

DRIVEN from the castle, the three
Anabaptists enter the inn of
Fides, where they meet John. They
are much struck with his resemblance
to the portrait of the guardian saint,
David, at Munster, and recognizing
him as a possible tool, who might pass
with the crowd as a reincarnation, they
try to persuade him into becoming a
leader in their movement. He tells
them of a dream he has had. In this
he was venerated by a crowd of
people in a great cathedral; the Ana
baptists eagerly strive to use this
dream, to work upon Johns feelings.
But he refuses because of his approach
ing marriage to Bertha. The girl her
self, however, having escaped from
the castle, suddenly appears with news
of the Count's dastardly act. She is
concealed by John as the Count's

COPY'T WHITE

CARUSO AS THE PROPHET

COPY'T WHITE, N. Y.
CARUSO AND MATZENAUER AS JOHN AND FIDES

334

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

soldiers rush in to recapture her.
'John refuses to betray her. He is told
that unless he yields her up, his own
mother will suffer death. In the
struggle between two desires, his
filial loyalty prevails, and he yields
his betrothed. Fides is released and
sings her gratitude in one of the most
pathetic of airs, the "Ah, mon fils!"
"Ach, mein Sohn!" (Ah, My Son!).

Left by his mother to his bitter
reflections, John now hears the Ana
baptists in the distance, and he resolves
to join them as a means of vengeance
against the Count. A compact with
the three conspirators is soon made,
and they depart, leaving bloodstained
garments to make Fides believe her
son has been slain by the Count's

assassins.

ACT III

SCENE Camp of Anabaptists

AIDED by Johns mystical zealotry
jf\ and his resemblance to the saint,
the Anabaptists have no difficulty in
persuading the rabble that he is
indeed the Prophet. Under his leader
ship, the uprising has been partly
successful, and the rebels now stand
before the walls of Munster. An at
tempted attack on the city has failed,
and the rebels are for the moment out
of hand. Johns vigorous preaching,
however, restores them. He makes
them kneel and pray for victory. They
chant the Miserere, and John sings
his noble hymn: "Re del cielo e dei
bead" (Triumphal Hymn, "King of
Heaven").

ACT IV

SCENE I A Public Square in Munster

'TPHE insurgents have captured the
J_ city, but the Prophet is received
with mixed feelings, some denouncing
him as an impostor, despite the plain
fact his leadership has won victory.
John is in fact weary of the bloodshed

he has caused. He has led the insur
gents mainly because he has known
ftertha is in the city. Now, for his part
in the fighting, John is to be solemnly
crowned King. But on the same day
his mother, in beggary, arrives at
Munster intending to buy masses to
be said for the soul of the son whom
she believes dead. She meets Bertha,
and tells her that John is dead. Bertha
believes that his death was caused by
the Prophet and goes out swearing
vengeance on the Prophet himself!

SCENE II The Munster Cathedral

GLITTERING pageantry, gorgeous
decoration, supplemented by peal
ing of bells, solemn chants and the
stately Coronation March, have made
justly celebrated this scene of John's
enthronement.

As John, in processional pomp, is led
Into the church, Fides appears from
behind a pillar and, in a transport of
joy, greets him as her son. To ac
knowledge this would be to deny the
divine origin imputed to the Prophet,
and John is compelled to repudiate it.
To save her from death, he pro
nounces his mother insane and obliges
her to kneel before him; then standing
over her with hands upraisedand
magnetic fire in his eyes he bids the
soldiers slay him if she should answer
to his question that she is his mother.
Poor Fides, alarmed for him, at once
answers "no," and all exclaim, "a
miracle," believing her miraculously
cured of her insanity. Fides is then
carried away to prison, and John
regains his power.

ACT V

SCENE I The Crypt of the Palace

BEING certain that her son will
contrive to see her, the old woman
awaits John in her prison cell. She at
first denounces the "Prophet's" con
duct, but later, with magnificent elo-

335

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

COPY'T WHITE JOHN:

"May God the choice determine!
Upon your head fall the lightning of his curse!"

quence, prays for his penitence and
redemption. This, of course, is the
great "Prison Scene/'

An officer enters, announcing the
arrival of the Prophet, and her sorrow
is transformed to joy. When John
enters, Fides denounces the bloody
deeds of the Anabaptists, and she
calls on her son to repent and put off
his false robes. His hands are reeking
with the blood of those he has de
ceived by his blasphemous assumptions.
He acknowledges the truth of what he
is hearing, and just as a faithful officer
enters to tell him that his associates
have betrayed him to the Emporer's
forces, he renounces his apostacy and
kneels to receive the blessing of his
mother. The Emperor's troops are
marching on the city.

In a moment, Bertha enters through
a secret passage revealed to her by
her grandfather, once keeper of the
palace. She is bent on slaying the
Prophet. But on discovering him to
be her former betrothed, she is torn

between irreconcilable emotions. Un
able to bear the strain of love and hate
combined, she stabs herself, collapsing
into the arms of Fides. John plans
a terrible vengeance, in which all shall
go to death together, including himself.

SCENE 117^ Great Hall of the Palace

FTER the Emperor's troops have
forced an entrance, John orders
the gates closed. Count Oberthal, the
source of all his troubles and one of the
leaders of the Emperor's forces, now
comes to him saying, "You are my
prisoner." But John answers "Nay,
ye are all my captives!" He has
secretly had the cellars filled with
gunpowder, and even as he speaks a
terrific explosion takes place; the
walls fall and flames leap on every side.
Amid the lurid scene of death and
destruction, a woman with dishevelled
hair rushes through the ruins into
John's arms. "My mother!" he cries.
She has indeed come to pardon him and
to share his death. "Welcome, sacred

336

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

flame/' they chant together as the fire
mounts about them and the curtain
falls.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

ACT II
AH, MON FILS!

(Ah, My Son!) ERNESTINE SCHUMANN-
HEINK, Contralto In French

6279 12-in., 32.00
FIDES:

Ah, my sonl Blessed be thou!

Thy loving mother to thee was dearer

Than was Bertha, who claim'd thy heart!

Ah, my sonl For thou, alas,

Thou dost give for thy mother more than life,

For thou giv'st all the joy of thy soul!

Ah, my sonl now to heav'n my pray'r ascends

for thee;
My son, blessed be forever morel

From Operatic Anthology, by permission
of G. Schirmer, (CopyVl899)

ACT V
PRISON SCENE PART II

ERNESTINE SCHUMANN-HEINK,

Contralto In French 6279 12-in., 2.00

FIDES (alone] i

O! my cruel destiny! Whither have TOO led

me?
What, the walls of a prison! they arrest my

footsteps.

I am no longer free.
Bertha swore my son's death, he denied his

mother;

On his head let the wrath of Heaven fall!
(Her wrath subsides.}
Though thou hast abandoned me a
But my heart is disarmed,
Thy mother pardons thee.
Yes, I am still a mother.
I have given my cares that thou may'st be

happy,

Now I would give my life.
And my soul exalted, will wait for thee in

Heaven!

FIDES (joyfully):

I shall see him, delightful hope!
Oh, truth! daughter of heaven,
May thy flame, like lightning,
Strike the soul of an ungrateful son.
Celestial flame restore to him calmness!
Restore, blessed Heaven, his guardian angel 1

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

{Coronation March Fessellas Italian Band'

\ Carmen Selection (Bizet) Vessettas Italian Band.

{Coronation March Arthur Pryor's Band\^ (

\ Wedding March (Sousa) Sousa's Band)

12-in., 1.25
12-in., 1.25

JOHN DENYING HIS MOTHER ACT IV

337

I PURITANI

(THE PURITANS)

I PURITANI was the last of Bel
lini's operas, and with it his all-
too-brief career came to a glori
ous end. Bellini, like Chopin, Mendels
sohn, Weber, Mozart and Schubert, died
in "the fatal thirties"
(1801-1835), being but
thirty-fourwhen attacked
by an insane delirium on
a visit to England shortly
after "I Puritani" had
been the success of the
London season. His bi
ographer asserts that his
end was hastened by his
habit of sitting at the
piano playing feverishly
day and night until he
was "obliged forcibly to
leave it." The actual
cause of death was prob
ably hastened by the pri
vations of a life which,
despite his many suc
cesses, really was spent
in hardship and poverty.
He received pitifully
small sums for his
numerous operas.

Directly after his
death, on the eve of his
funeral, "I Puritani" was produced
in Paris. Not many hours after this
successful but dolorous event the
singers were repeating the melodies
but using the words of the Catholic
service for the dead. As this is not,
perhaps, a cheerful introduction to the
opera, we may point out, not without
thankfulness, that "I Puritani" de
parts from the usual run of operas
in its having a happy end.

The music of the work is essentially
melodious, and the c< mad scene"
especially vies in popularity with that
of Donizetti's * 'Lucia." Perhaps,
however, the best airs are written for

COPY T VICTOR GEORG

GALLI-CURCI AS ELVIRA

the tenor role, but these lie so . high
that few can sing them effectively.
They were designed for Rubini , a
tenor with an exceptional range. And
most of them died with Rubini.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts.
Book by Count Pe-
poli; music by Vincenzo
Bellini. First presented
at the Theatre Italien^
Paris, January 25, 183S,
with a famous cast
Grisi, Rubini, Tambu-
rini and Lablache. First
London production.
King's Theatre, May 21,
1835, under the title of
Puritani ed I Cavalieri.
First New York produc
tion, February 3, 1844.
Produced at the New Or
leans Opera, March 3,
1845; and at the Metro
politan Opera in 1883
with Sembrich. Revived
in 1906 at the Manhat
tan Opera, with Pinkert,
Bonci and Arimondi; in
1908 with Tetrazzini,
Constantino and de Segurola; Galli-
Curci at the Chicago Opera; and at
the Metropolitan in 1918, with Barri-
entos, Lazaro and de Luca.

Scene and Period: England^ near Ply
mouth^ in the Reign of Charles I
(The Italian name of the opera is
pronounced Ee Poo-ree-tah'-nee).

ACT I

SCENE I Exterior of a Fortress,
near Plymouth

IT is a time of Civil War in ^ England,
when the conflict of Puritans and
Cavaliers has arrayed brother against

338

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

brother, father against son, and shat
tered even the ranks of the nobility
upon the rocks of divergent ideas. We
find ourselves in the grounds of the
Fortress held at Plymouth by the
Puritans. Sir Richard Forth has
learned that his adored Elvira has no
mind to marry him; and rather than
urge her into a union she does not de
sire, her father has consented to her
marriage with Lord^ Arthur Talbot, one
of the hated Cavaliers. He is so torn
with anguish and jealousy that he
little heeds the invitation of Bruno to
become one of the Puritan leaders.

SCENE II Elvira's Room in
the Castle

MEANTIME, Elvira, the daughter
of Lord Walton, the Puritan
Governor-General, learns from her
uncle, Sir George, that he has per
suaded her father to consent to her
marriage with the man of her choice.
Trumpets sound a shrill blast of wel
come, and to her surprise, entrance is
permitted her Cavalier lover for the
express purpose of the marriage. She
greets Lord Arthur rapturously when he
enters, attended by squires and pages.

SCENE III A Fast Armory of
Gothic Architecture

THE wedding festivities are has
tened. Already the pages bring in
the nuptial gifts, including a splendid
white veil, which is soon to play an
important part in the drama. Vil
lagers and soldiers arrive and toast the
betrothed pair, after which Elvira,
Arthur, Sir George and Lord Walton,
sing the famous quartet, CC A te o cara"
(Often, Dearest).

A somewhat mysterious lady is in
troduced to Lord Arthur, who subse
quently discovers, in a brief scene
alone with her, that she is the widow
of Charles I, Queen Henrietta, under
sentence of death. As a loyal Cavalier,

he is naturally horrified, and seeks a
way to aid her escape. At this mo
ment Elvira enters, in all her charm
and gaiety. She is already dressed in
bridal array, wearing the veil given
her by Lord Arthur, and in sport she
insists on placing the veil over the head
of the unhappy prisoner, who smiles
wanly. To Lord Arthur this opens a
way of escape, and when Elvira leaves
the room, he suggests that under coyer
of the veil, the Queen may depart with
him from the castle. To carry out the
plan will mean the sacrifice of his mar
riage to Elvira, but to the royalist
Cavalier this is nothing more than
honorable. The Queen is persuaded,
and they are about to leave when Sir
Richard Forth enters, bent on ven
geance. Swords are drawn, but the
Queen intervenes. In doing so her
veil is disarranged, and Forth recog
nizing her and guessing the plan of
escape, bids them depart, perceiving
that the union of Elvira and Lord
Arthur at once becomes impossible.

The escape is soon discovered, and
Lord Arthur is denounced. The effect
on the unhappy Elvira, who supposes
her lover has deserted her on her
wedding day, is madness.

ACT II

SCENE The Pilgrim Camp

IN the camp of the Puritans, Sir
George Walton announces that Par
liament has decreed the death of Lord
Arthur for his part in aiding the escape
of the Queen. Elvira enters, a pathetic
figure, to sing her famous air, somewhat
resembling the"Mad Scene" in"Lucia,"
"Qui la voce" (In Sweetest Accents).
Her father and Forth try vainly ^ to
appease Elvira, and her uncle, hoping
that the sight of her lover may restore
her, begs Forth to pardon the young
man. Forth consents provided Arthur
comes helpless and at his own peril
to the camp; but if he comes bearing

339

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

arms against the Puritans he must die.
Sir George agrees to this and they
pledge themselves to fight together for
their country.

ACT III

SCENE A Garden near Elviras House

IN accordance with the plan, Arthur,
fleeing from the enemy, enters the
grounds of the castle
in hope to see Elvira
before leaving Eng
land forever. She
issues from the castle,
pensively singing an
air which he himself
has sung to her in
days gone by. The
young man is touched
to the heart. She
recognizes Arthur,
and better than this,
comprehends his ex
planation that his
acts were inspired by
loyalty to his Queen.
She is overjoyed and,
temporarily at least,
sane. They sing the
lovely duet, <c Vieni
fra queste braccia"
(Come to My Arms).

COPY T WHITE

SIR GEORGE AND SIR RICHARD-I PURITAN!

Forgetting present danger, they think
only of their love and the conscious
ness they are once more in each
other's arms. But the sound of a
drum reawakens the delirium which
afflicts Elvira. She cries out for
help, believing in her madness that
Arthur wishes to leave her. Her
cries have an evil result. Soldiers rush
in, Arthur is recog
nized, captured and
sentenced to death
on the spot.

Just as the exe
cution is about to
take place, however,
a messenger arrives,
bearing news that
the Stuart forces
have been defeated,
and that Cromwell
has granted pardon
to all captives.
Elvira's reason at
last returns, and the
lovers are united. In
this case, all is well.
Few operas end so
happily, a circum
stance well worth
remembering in a day
of numerous operas.

GIUSEPPE

ACT I
AH PER SEMPRE

(To Me Forever Lost)

LUCA, Baritone 6080 12-in., 32.00

O TE, O CARA, AMOR TALORA
(To Thee, Oh Dearest) MIGUEL FLETA,

Tenor 948 10-in., 1.50

POLONAISE SON VERGIN VEZZOSA
(With Joy My Heart is Bounding) AME-
UTA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

6432 12-in., 2.00
ACT II
QUI LA VOCE

(In Sweetest Accents) AMELITA GALLI-
CURCI, Soprano

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)
ELVIRA:

It was here in accents sweetest,
He would call me he calls no more!
Here affection swore he to cherish,
That dream so happy, alas! is o'er!
We no more shall be united,
I'm in sorrow doomed to sigh,
Oh, to hope once more restore me,
Or in pity I die! (Her mood changes,)
'Tis no dream, by Arthur, oh, my love!
'Ah, thou art smiling thy tears tho'u driest,
Fond Hymen guiding, I quickly follow!
(Dancing toward Richard)
Come to the altar!

6128 12-in., 2.00

BLACK LABEL RECORD

'Quartet from Puritani Vessella's Italian

. Mirella Overture Allegro (Gounod) Vessella's Italian Band.

340

1Z ~ m '>

REGINA DI SABA

(THE QUEEN OF SHEBA)

MOSENTHAL'S story tells of
the struggle vi Assad, a court
ier of Solomon, against fleshly
temptation, and of his final victory
which involves the sacrifice of the hap
piness of his betrothed, Sulamith.

For this text Goldmark has written
some of the most beautiful and original
music in the entire range of opera,
and it is an interesting detail that after
he had finished his work and had sub
mitted it to the Imperial Opera, Vienna
it was not accepted on the ground that
it was too "exotic"! Later, through
the influence of Princess Hohenlohe, it
was presented, and it became a success.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. Text by
Mosenthal, founded upon the
Biblical mention of the visit of the
Queen of Sheba to Solomon. Music
by Goldmark. First production 1875,
in Vienna. In New York, December
2, 1885, with Lehmann and Fischer.
English version given by the National
Opera Company in 1888. Given No
vember 29, 1889, at the Metropolitan
with Lehmann, which was the last New
York production until the revival in
1905, with Walker, Rappold, Knote
and Van Rooy.

CHARACTERS

KING SOLOMON Baritone

HIGH PRIEST ^ Bass

SULAMITH (Soo-lah-mif), his

daughter Soprano

ASSAD (Ahs-sadd), Solomon's

favorite Tenor

QUEEN OF SHEBA Mezzo-Soprano

ASTAROTH (Ahs-ta-rohf), her

slave (a Moor) .' . Soprano

Priests, Singers, Harpists, Bodyguards,

Women of the Harem, People.

SCENE Jerusalem and Vicinity.

THE wisdom and fame of Solomon
havingreachedevendistant Arabia,
the iuen of Sheba decides to visit him,
and a favorite courtier, Assad, has been
sent to meet her and escort her to the
city. When Assad arrives with the
Queen, his betrothed, Sulamith, is as
tonished to find him pale and embar
rassed, and trying to avoid her. Assad
afterward confesses to Solomon that he
has met a beautiful woman at Lebanon
and has fallen in love with her. When
the Shieen of Sheba arrives and removes
her veil, Assad is astounded to recog
nize in her the mysterious woman who
has captured his senses. Involuntarily
he rushes toward her, but she coldly
repulses him and passes on with the
King.

In Act II, the Queen discovers that
she loves Assad, and seeing him in the
garden, bids her maid attract his atten
tion with a weird Oriental song. Assad
starts when he hears the mysterious air,
as it seems to bring back memories of
the night at Lebanon. He sings his
beautiful air, "Magiche note" (Magic
Tones !)

The Queen and Assad soon meet and
confess their love for each other, but
are interrupted by the arrival of the
night guard.

'In the next scene the Court assem
bles for the wedding of Sulamith and
Assad, but Assad insults his bride and
declares his love for the Queen. He is
banished from Jerusalem and finally
dies in the arms of Sulamith, who is
crossing the desert on her way to a
convent. This is a fascinating opera.

THE VICTOR RECORD

MAGICHE NOTE

(Magic Tones) ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

In Italian

520 10-in., $1.50

341

PHOTO REMBRANDT

SOLOMON RECEIVING THE QUEEN ACT I

LA REINE DE SABA

(QUEEN OF SHEBA)

E REINE DE SABA is one of the
four operas which Gounod com
posed between his "Faust"
(1859) and "Romeo" (1867). Text
by Jules Barbier and Michel Carre.
Music by Gounod. First performed
at the Opera, Paris, February 28, 1862.
An English version called Irene, by
Farnie, was given in London at the
Concert Palace, August 12, 1865. First
American production at the New
Orleans Opera, January 12, 1889.

CHARACTERS

KING SOLOMON Bass

BALKIS (Bahl-kees), Queen of

Sheba Soprano

ADONIRAM (Ah-don-ee-rahm)^

a sculptor Tenor

BENONI (Ben-ohn-ee), his assist
ant . . . . Tenor

PHANOR 1 fBaritone
AMRU \ workmen j Tenor
METHUSALL] ( Bass
SARAHIL, maid to the Queen . Contralto
SADOC Soprano

The Action takes place in Jerusalem

ACT I

/ 1 ^HE curtain rises, disclosing the
JL sculptor at work on an important
group of statuary. Benoni enters and
informs him that the King desires his
presence, as the ^ueen of Sheba is ex
pected to arrive at any moment. As
Adoniram prepares to leave the studio
his workmen demand higher wages, but
he refuses them and they go out mut
tering threats.

Adoniram^ said to be descended from a
divine race, the "Sons of the Fire,"holds
in contempt all earthly greatness, and
treats the King as the son of a shepherd.

342

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

The works which earned for Solomon
the surname "the Wise" are supposed
in reality to have been executed by
Adoniram.

The Queen arrives and is welcomed
by King Solomon and the people.
The Queen has promised to marry King
Solomon, and gives him a ring. When
Adoniram is presented to her as one of
Palestine's great artists, she seems
greatly impressed by the handsome
young sculptor, and begins to regret
her engagement. To please her Adoni
ram, by sorcerer's signs, collects a vast
army of workmen from every point in
the city, and his great influence alarms
even the King himself.

ACT II

KING SOLOMON and the Queen
have promised to come and see
the final casting of Adoniram s master
piece, and he is preparing for this event
singing the "Prete moi ton aide" (Lend
Me Your Aid), invoking the spirits of
his forefathers to bless the work, when
Benoni enters hurriedly and reveals a
plot of the workmen who have stopped
the channels so that the melted bronze
cannot flow. His information comes
too late, and the molten mass over
flows, apparently ruining the statue.

ACT III

ADONIRAM meets the Queen of
jLA. Sheba and she soon confesses her
love for him. He is at first inclined to
repel her advances, but soon falls under
the spell of her fascinations and clasps
her in his arms. He tells her that he
also is of her race, the Nimrod. The
faithful Benoni hurriedly enters in
search of Adoniram, telling him that
despite the plot of the workmen, the
statue has been successful.

ACT IV

ADONIRAM is received by Solo-
\. mon and the Court and he is pro
claimed the greatest sculptor of the

time. All leave the hall except Solo
mon and the Queen, who gives a sign to
her maid, Sarahil, to bring a draught
which she presents to Solomon. He
soon falls asleep at the feet of the
Queen, who takes the ring from his
finger and leaves the Palace.

ACT V

ADONIRAM and the Queen have
JL\. planned to fly together. They
already approach the meeting place,
when three of Adoniram 's discontented
workmen, bent on revenge, inform
Solomon of the secret meetings be
tween Adoniram and the Queen, and he
decrees that the sculptor must die. As
they set out together for Jerusalem
they are overtaken by the messengers
of the King, who set upon and stab
Adoniram. The Queen hurries to his
side and falls on his body, cursing his
murderers and Solomon^ while the dying
man offers a last protestation of his
love, and expires in her arms.

THE VICTOR RECORD

PRfeTE-MOI TON AIDE

(Lend Me Your Aid) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor In French 6035 12-in., $2.00

Lend me your aid, Oh race divine,

Fathers of old to whom I've pray'd,

Spirits of pow'r, be your help mine,

Lend me your aid, Fathers of old

To whom I've pray'd, O lend your aid!

Oh grant that my wild dream be not vain.

That future time shall owe to me

A work their bards will sing in their strain,

Tho* Chaos still an iron sea!

From the caldron the molten wave

Soon will flow into its mould of sand,

And ye, sons of Tubal Cain,

Fire, Oh fire my soul, and guide my hand!

Lend me your aid, Oh race divine,

Fathers of old to whom I've pray'd,

Spirits of pow'r, be your help mine.

Lend me your aid!

343

FERD. JLBEKE

FASOLT:

Should we not find

The Rheingold fair and red,

Freia is forfeit!

(Rheingold, Act L)

344

DAS RHEINGOLD

(THE RHINEGOLD)

MUSIC-DRAMA in four scenes.
Words and music by Richard
Wagner. First produced at
Munich, September 22, 1869. First
American production January 4, 1889,
with Fischer and Alvary. Annual per
formances given at the Metropolitan
in recent years with many famous
artists: Soomer, Reiss, Jorn, Goritz,
Burrian, Ober, Fremstad, Ruysdael,
Witherspoon, Matzenauer, Homer, etc.

CHARACTERS

Gods

WOTAN (Vo'-tahn) Baritone

DONNER (Dohn'-ner) Bass

FROH (Froh) Tenor

LOGE (Loti-geh) Tenor

Giants

FASOLT (Fah-zohlt) Bass

FAFNER (Fahf-ner) Bass

Nibelungs (Gnomes)

ALBERICH (Ahl f -ber4cK) Baritone

MIME (Mee'-meh] Tenor

Goddesses

FRICKA (Frik'-ah) Soprano

FREIA (Fry'-ati) Soprano

ERDA (Air'-daK) Contralto

Nymphs of the Rhine

WOGLINDE (Vog-lm-deK) Soprano

WELLGUNDE (7 ell-go on f -deti) . .Soprano
FLOSSHILDE (Floss-hill f -deh) .Contralto

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Dass Rine'-goldt).

THE OPERA

SCENE I The Bottom of the Rhine

WITH extraordinary skill, Wagner
makes a listener feel that the
Rhine is the source of all German
legend. Wishing to picture this mighty
giant of rivers in a peaceful mood,

symbolical of the quiet that reigned
before the rape of the Gold, he gives
us a prelude which begins on a single
note a low E flat (usually supplied
by a pipe-organ), above which the
chord of E flat is allowed to grow in
wave-like rhythms with gradually in
creasing intensity for a long period.
The chord is in fact maintained for
136 bars, the only case on record of a
chord held so long without monotony.
When the curtain rises we behold a
strange world below the surface of
the water, where in the submarine
gloom the three Rhine maidens swim
about the huge rock on which the gold
is stored, singing their quaint and
beautiful song.

MOTIVE OF THE RHINE MAIDENS

They have a visitor in Alberich y a
hideous dwarf of the race of Nibelungs
or gnomes, who dwell in the dark caves
beneath the mountains. Alberich pas
sionately desires the maidens, who
swim elusively into his grasp and away
before he can seize them. Suddenly,
a beam from the rising sun pierces the
waters, making the gold shine with a
singular glow (marvellously portrayed
in the music), and Alberich learns that
whosoever will renounce the love of
women, and fashion some of the gold
into a ring, can be master of the world.
The maidens believe that the lovesick
dwarf is so amorously inclined that
the gold is in no danger; but, knowing
that he is powerless to win ^ their love,
he suddenly changes love into ambi
tion, and renouncing Woman forever,
he seizes the gold and bears it away.
The maidens bewail their loss with har
monies of incredible pathos, swimming

345

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

half-blindly now in the green darkness
which follows the loss of the treasure.
The dwarfs mocking laughter is their
only reply.

SCENE II A Mountain Top, Showing
the Castle of Walhalla

MEANWHILE, there is trouble in
the heavens. Egged on by Loge,
the god of fire, Wotan, the father-god
of all, has had the giants, Fafner and
Fas oh, build for him, in a single night,
the great castle of Walhalla. The
price of this is to be Freia, the goddess
of youth and beauty, from whose gar
den the gods must each day eat an
apple lest they perish. The darkness
of the previous scene is gradually il
lumined till we discover ourselves near
a grassy eminence, where Wotan and
his wife, Fricka, lie sleeping. In the
distance is the towering new castle.
Wotan awakens rejoicing; but Fricka
is alarmed for Freia* Wotan tries un
successfully to calm her, telling how
he has sent Loge to earth, in hope to
find a substitute there. Suddenly
Freia enters in deep distress, followed
by the giants, and by her brothers
Donner and Froh. The giants demand
pay for their labor. Wotan tries vainly
to laugh them out of it, uneasily
"playing for time" till Loge shall re
turn. After a long discussion, Loge
appears. He has scoured the earth,
and has found but one soul willing to
renounce the love of women for the
sake of treasure. That is Alberich, who
now rules the underworld by virtue
of the ring he has fashioned from the
Rhinegold. The giants at length con
sent to accept the treasure in place of
Freia. They take Freia away as host
age, and the gods, deprived of their
golden apples, at once become languid
and faint. Wotan then proceeds with
Loge to the domain of Alberich, passing
through the sulphurous crevices of the
rocks. The dwarf must be made to pay.

SCENE III Alberich 9 s Cave

NOW master of the underworld,
Alberich develops into a tyrant.
With a scourge he forces Mime to
make him a magic cap or helmet,
known as the Tarnhelm, which has the
property of making invisible him who
wears it, or of converting him into
some other animal at will. Mime has
hoped to wear it himself and thus
escape his cruel master, but Alberich
is too quick and too powerful through
the magic aid of the Ring, so he places
the helmet on his own head. Now
unseen he administers to Mime a ter
rific beating, and he departs, chuckling,
to terrify his workers afresh with the
fear of an invisible master, forever
watching over them. While he is ab
sent, Wotan an.d Loge appear, and
Loge soon learns from Mime of the
Tarnhelm s magic properties, rep
resented by a "leit-motiv" or theme
in the music:

v ^ vb

*M-

3=SF

=3F*

Alberich soon returns, and through
the flattery of Loge is persuaded to ex
hibit the powers of the magic helmet.
Loge, also, has his leit-motiv, a strangely
flickering chromatic passage, typifying
fire. First, for the entertainment of
his visitors, Alberich converts himself
into a huge serpent, whereat Wotan
and Loge simulate fear. Asked if he
can turn himself into a small animal
also, Alberich becomes a frog. Wotan
quickly puts his foot on the frog and
seizes the helmet. Thus robbed, Alber
ich returns to his normal shape but
remains in the power of the gods.
As the price of his freedom they de
mand the Rhinegold. And Alberich
pays. Later, the rest of his world shares
in the payment. A strange story,
strange in music and action, unfolds.

346

VICT R OLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

SCENE IV Same as Scene II

WOTAN and Loge bring the hap
less dwarf into the upper world,
and they hold him fast while his myr
midons bring forth the treasure gold
of his caves. Alberlch entreats to be
set free, but Wotan demands the Ring
also. ^ And he is inexorable. Before
yielding the Ring, however, the dwarf
lays a frightful curse upon it, predict
ing that it will bring misery and death
to each new possessor until it comes
back again to the Nibelungs. The
"curse" theme plays a great part in
the subsequent dramas, combining
with others, indeed, to make new
themes.

through which she still is visible. This
can be filled only by the ring itself, and
Wotan^ knowing its magic properties,
refuses to part with it, desiring it for
himself and fearing its power in the
hands of the giants. Fajner and Fasoh
seize Freia once more, and Erda> the
goddess of the earth, arises from the
slumbering valley to warn Wotan of
danger if he persists in refusing. Fricka
*'nags" too, and Wotan Is compelled to
yield it. No sooner do the giants take
the Ring than the Curse begins to
work. They fight over the treasure,
and Fasolt, to the horror of the gods,
is slain by Fajner^ who departs with
the gold. Donner then, in a great
storm (which is marvellously sug
gested in the music), makes a rainbow
bridge to the castle of Walhalla and
the gods then enter in state, the Wal
halla theme being heard in all its glory:

WALHALLA- MOTIVE

Wotan wastes little attention upon
the curse, putting on the Ring, and
gazing at it with admiration. The
giants, who have taken Freia as hos
tage for the treasury, now demand pay
ment, stipulating that the gold shall
be piled about her until she is com
pletely covered. The gold is stacked
until only a small chink remains,

BLUE LABEL RECORDS

'Alberich steals the gold. The dawn over Valhalla (Scene II) Vocalist
Robert Radford Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates

The descent to Nibelheim, Capture of Alberich (Scene III) Vocalists
Robert Radford-Edith Furmedge

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates.

Entry of the Gods into Valhalla Part I 1

The Royal Albert Hall Orchestra Conducted by Sir Landon Ronald\

Entry of the Gods into Valhalla Part II [

The Royal Albert Hall Orchestra Conducted by Sir Landon Ronald}

55203 12-in., 31.50

12-in., 1.50

347

GALLI-CURCI

AS GILD A

RIGOLETTO

GREATLY desiring a newlibretto
for the Venice Opera, Verdi re
quested Piave to adapt Victor
Hugo's play, "Le Roi s 'Amuse/'
which, in spite of its morals, was recog
nized by the composer to possess oper
atic possibilities. A libretto was soon
written., the suggestive French title
being changed to "La Maledizione."
The work was urgently needed, and
dismay followed the flat refusal of the
police to grant permission for the per
formance of a work in which a king was
shown in such dubious character. It
will be remembered that Venice was
then in Austrian hands, and but a
short time previously, 1848-49, there
had been an Italian insurrection. As
Verdi refused to consider any other
plan, the management was in despair.
Help arrived from an unexpected quar
ter, for the Austrian police chief, Mar-
tello, was an ardent musical and dra
matic enthusiast, and a great admirer of
Verdi. He perceived that by substi
tuting the Duke of Mantua for Francois
/, and by changing the title to "Rigo-
letto" and arranging that all the curses
should fall upon the duke of a small
town, the work could be presented

without any material changes in the
original dramatic situations. Verdi was
reasonable over all but fundamental
things, and accepted thechanges.
He went to Busseto, near his birth
place in the mountains, and came back
within six weeks with the completed
score. The situation was saved, and a
brilliant success was the result.

Though it precedes "II Trovatore"
and "La Traviata" by two years, "Rigo-
letto" is generally classed with them as
representing one, if not the final, high
water mark in the master's development.
These works established Verdi's Euro
pean reputation as an operatic composer
of the first rank, for they possessed
beauties of melody, harmony and or
chestration, and subtleties in the pre
sentment of character, somewhat be
yond his previous works.

They would have established him
"for all time," even though they had
not been succeeded by such achieve
ments as "Un Ballo in Maschera,"
"La Forza del Destino," "Don Carlos,"
and the tremendous "Alda," not to
mention his greatest works of all,
"Otello" and "FalstarT," the fruit of his
old age.

TH E O PERA

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Piave, adapted from Victor
Hugo's drama Le Roi s* Amuse. Music
by Giuseppe Verdi. First produced
in Venice, March 11, 1851. First Lon
don production at Covent Garden,
May 14, 1853; at the Italiens^ Paris,
January 19, 1857. Produced at the
New Orleans Opera March 19, 1860,
and in New Orleans on February 6,
1861, Patti sang in the opera for the
first time. First New York produc
tion November 2, 1857, and since that
time the opera has seldom been absent

from the American stage.^ Clara Louise
Kellogg made her debut in opera, Feb
ruary 26, 1861, as Gilda, at the old
Academy of Music, New York; Ma-
retzek was the conductor and Theo
dore Thomas played first violin in
the orchestra. A notable performance
occurred November 23, 1903, at the
Metropolitan Opera House, when
Caruso made his American debut.
November 4, 1912, RuflFo made his
debut in the United States at the
Metropolitan Opera House, Philadel
phia, as Rigoletto.

349

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

COPY'T DUPONT

CARUSO AS THE DUKE

CHARACTERS

RIGOLETTO (Ree-g^oh-let'-toK)) a

hunchback, jester to the

Duke ................. Baritone

DUKE OF MANTUA,, a titled prof

ligate .................... Tenor

GILDA (Jeel'-dah), daughter of

Rigoletto ............... Soprano

SPARAFUCILE (Spahr~ah-foo-chee-

leti) y a hired assassin ........ Bass

MADDALENA (Mad-dah-lay'-nah)

his sister .............. Contralto

COUNT MONTE RONE (Mon-ter-

oh'-nay) ............... Baritone

COUNT CEPRANO (Chay-prah f -noh). Bass
Courtiers, Pages, Servants

Scene and Period: Mantua and Vicinity;
Sixteenth Century

ACT I

SCENE I Ballroom in the Duke's
Palace

A FETE is in progress at the Ducal
Palace, where the cynical and
licentious Duke confides to a courtier
that he is pursuing a lovely unknown
whom he has seen in church, every
Sunday during the past three months.
She lives in a remote part of the city,
where a mysterious man visits her
nightly. His interest in this romantic

COPY T MISHKIN

RENAUD AS RIGOLETTO

adventure, however, does not prevent
him from admiring the Countess Ceprano,
who is dancing near them. His
listener warns him that the Count
might hear, but the Duke shrugs his
shoulders indifferently. He gives^vent
to his philosophy of such matters in his
first air: "Questa o quella," "Qu'une
belle" (Mid the Fair Throng) .

It is a smooth, flowing melody which
in itself is a clue to the Duke's charac
ter. It is gay, yet there flows through
it an undercurrent of irony.

The Duke dances with the Countess,
but is watched by Ceprano; the fervent
manner in which he kisses her hand is
not lost upon the jealous husband.
Nor does it escape the hunchback Rigo-
letto, who discharges a bit of raillery at
Ceprano* s expense. The Duke goes off,
and Ceprano follows. Rigoletto also
disappears, and the courtiers listen to
the gossip MaruIIo, who tells them
Rigoletto is in love, and that he pays
nightly visits to his sweetheart. There
is much laughter over the hunchback,
pander to the Ducal romances, turned
Cupid. The Duke returns with Rigo
letto , Ceprano still following, and some
thing like a scene develops as Rigoletto,
under cover of the Duke's protection,
talks satirically of Ceprano.

The courtiers long have chafed, as it

350

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

happens, under the immoralities of the
Duke, abetted by Rigoletto., and so
Ceprano plans vengeance. Matters
come to a head, however, with the en
trance of Monterone> an aged courtier
whose wife was first a victim of the
ducal passions, and afterwards his
daughter. He protests with such vigor
that Rigoletto steps between him and
the Duke, with the flippant "Ch'io le
parli" (I Will Speak to Him).

Rigoletto coarsely ridicules the old
man, which enrages him beyond all
reason. He utters a fearful curse, a
father's malediction, against the Duke
and his hunchback. This creates a pro
found sensation among the courtiers.
Even the Duke is scared, so he orders
the man arrested. The old Count is
taken put, but Rigoletto in his own
turn, is genuinely terrified. Like
many of no conscience he is profoundly
superstitious, where his daughter is
concerned; for the "sweetheart" Mar-
ullo speaks of is in truth his own child,
whom he keeps secluded against harm.
He is, above all, suspicious of the Duke.
And well he need be, for the girl whom
the Duke has remarked at Church is
none other than Gilda y the hunchback's
beautiful daughter.

SCENE II A Street. Rigoletto 's

Cottage on one side^ opposite the

Palace of Count Ceprano

THE jester steals away to the house
where Gilda lives concealed. He
is deeply oppressed by Mont er one* s
malediction. In the street he is ac
costed by Sparafucile, a professional
bravo, who offers to make him rid of
the enemy, if he has one. The assassin
confides that his method of work is to
lure people to his home on the out
skirts of the town, through his charm
ing sister, there to make away with
them with his trusty knife. Rigoletto

6-omises to bear the rascal in mind,
e dilates to himself on the re

semblance of their two methods, for
while Spara/ucile stabs men with a
dagger, Rigoletto uses, with equal skill,
his poisonous tongue, and it is hard to
say which is the more deadly. This
soliloquy is the famous "Monologo
Pari siamo" (We Are Equal),
Rigoletto's Monologue.

Rigoletto s affection for Gilda seems
the one redeeming feature in his black
character. When he enters the court
yard of his house, the girl runs out
to meet him, and the scene between
them is touching in its display of
genuine affection. Gilda> who is lonely,
and knows nothing of her origin, asks
him of her mother, and a pathetic duet
follows, the "Deh non parlare al
misero" (Recall Not the Past).

Rigoletto embraces her tenderly, but
recalling the curse, he solemnly enjoins
her to remain strictly within the house
and never to venture into the town.
He even questions her to know if any
body has followed her to church, but
Gilda keeps silent regarding the man
whom she has met there. Even while
they converse, the Duke, disguised as
a student, slips into the courtyard under
cover of the increasing darkness and
hides behind a tree, throwing a purse
to Giovanna, the maid.

Soon as Rigoletto has departed, the
Duke comes forward. Gilda, alarmed,
bids him begone; but he knows well
how to calm her fears, and soon a love-
duet is heard, the "E il sol dell'amma"
(Love is the Sun).

After a tender farewell, the Duke
leaves her, first declaring his name is
Walter Malde. Gilda remains pensive,
and when he is gone, she dreams of her
wonderful lover in an air that will
always remain a favorite, the cc Caro
Nome" (Dearest Name).

This lovely melody, with its delicate
accompaniment and flute passages, is
one of the most exacting of coloratura
arias, calling for extraordinary skill if

351

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

its fioriture are to be performed with
the grace they demand.

But while she is yet singing, there is
a conspiracy at work. Night has
fallen, and a band of masked courtiers,
led by Ceprano^ sets out for vengeance.
Rigoletto^ unexpectedly returning, runs
across them. He is much alarmed to
find them in his neighborhood. His
fears, however, are somewhat calmed
when they declare they are bent on
stealing Ceprano's wife, for their good
friend, the Duke. He points out
Ceprano's house, and offers help. They
insist that he must be disguised, and
they contrive to give him a mask which
covers his eyes and ears. Then they
lea'd him in a circle to his own balcony,
giving him the ladder to hold. Gilda
is seized, her mouth is gagged with a
handkerchief, and she is carried away.
Left alone, Rigoletto suddenly becomes
suspicious, and, tearing off his mask, he
finds himself at his own balcony. On
the ground he sees Gilda s kerchief.
Frantic with fear he rushes into the
house, finds his daughter gone, and falls
in a swoon as the curtain descends.
"Ah!" he cries, "The curse!"

ACT II

SCENE A Hall in the Dukes Palace

AFTER leaving the house of the
jL\ hunchback, the Duke returns
only to find the bird flown. He is now
back at the palace, mourning for her
with such eloquence that we are almost
disposed to pity.

The Duke's melancholy musings are
changed to joy, however, when the
courtiers enter and apprise him they
have captured Rigoletto' s "mistress."
He is amused at the details of the
capture, laughing at the brilliant idea
that makes Rigoletto himself a party to
the abduction. He learns that Gilda
is in the next room, and he hastens to
her. No sooner has he gone than
Rigoletto enters, pitifully striving to
conceal his deep distress under a
laughing exterior.

"Povero Rigoletto" (Poor Rigo
letto!) sing the courtiers, enjoying his
discomposure at the loss of one they
still believe to be only his mistress. A
page enters, but is told the Duke can
not be disturbed. The Jester hunch
back, all attempts at concealment

PHOTO HALL

MONTERONE DENOUNCES THE JESTER- ACT I

352

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE -OPERA

breaking down, declares the girl his
daughter. He attempts to force an
entrance, but the courtiers bar his
efforts. Then follows one of the most
remarkable scenes in any opera,
the "Cortigiani, vil razza dannata"
(Vile Race of Courtiers). Giving way
freely, he rages like a mad man among
the Dukes followers. Soon follows
abjectness, collapse, abasement. The
courtiers first laugh, then they grow
indifferent. Into the midst of this
enters Gilda. The courtiers, now
somewhat abashed, leave the hunch
back and his daughter together,
and she then tells of the lover who
followed her from church: "Tutte le
feste al tempio" (On Ev'ry Festal
Morning) .

Rigoletto does his best to comfort the
ruined girl, clasping her to his bosom
with a tenderness and love that does
much to atone for his vileness. Then
follows the very beaut if ul" Pi angi
fanciulk;' (Weep, My Child).

By a singular chance, Count Monter-
one passes through the hall, under
guard. He pauses before the Duke's

Eortrait, exclaiming, "No thunder
om Heaven yet hath burst down to

strike thee!" As he passes on, Rigoletto
watches him grimly. Her father's

stern demeanor frightens the girl, and
he vows a terrible vengeance upon the
Duke.

ACT III

SCENE A Ruined Inn at a Lonely
Spot on the River Mincio

FROM the luxurious grandeur of
the Ducal Palace to this desolate
harbor of crime, leads on the story of
Rigoletto" s vengeance. We are taken to
the abode of Sparafucile^ the assassin.
It is an ancient inn, so ruined that one
may see the broken staircase which
leads to the loft from the ground floor,
and even a couch within the loft itself.
Near the inn rolls the river; beyond,
the towers of Mantua reach toward the
scudding clouds. Sparafucile is indoors
seated by the table polishing his belt,
unconscious that Rigoletto and his
daughter are without, the latter
dressed as a young cavalier, for it is her
father's intention that she shall leave
the city disguised as a boy.

The hunchback asks Gilda if she still
dreams of the Duke y and she is obliged
to confess that she still cherishes in

THE ABDUCTION OF GILDA

353

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

her heart her love for the student who
came to her so full of romantic pro
testations. He startles her by leading
her to the inn. The Duke appears,
disguised as a soldier, calling loudly
for wine. While Sparafucile is serving
him he sings one more song of the love
of women. Gilda learns her lover's true
character at first hand. This song is
the well-known "La donna e mobile*'
(Woman is Fickle).

The air needs only a brief quota tion
to be readily recognized:

It portrays, clearly as words and
music may, the indolently amorous
young noble and his views of women
kind, whom he charges all and sundry
with his own worst failings.

The murderous innkeeper brings the
wine and knocks upon the ceiling, when
his young sister descends. She laugh
ingly evades the caresses of the Duke.

All this is part of Rigoletto's plan for
vengeance, as Sparafudle has been
engaged to kill him.

Then follows the Quartet, which with
the "Sextet from Lucia," enjoys the
greatest popularity of all operatic con
certed pieces, " Bella figliadelFamore"
(Fairest Daughter of the Graces).

Those who love this masterpiece for
the sheer charm of its melody, the
blending of the voices, the masterly
development of the climax, have only
a slight conception of its true beauty.
It expresses, simultaneously, the rap
ture of the Duke^ the sensuous charm
of the girl who coquets with him, the
dismay of the heartbroken Gilda, who
now sees with her own eyes the perfidy
of her seducer, and lastly the lust for
vengeance of Rigoletto, who beholds,
at last, the Duke within easy grasp.

Rigoletto bids his daughter observe
what is going on within.

The Duke ascends the rickety stairs
to his bedroom and is soon asleep.
Rigoletto bids his daughter go with all

THE QUARTETACT III

354

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

speed to Verona, where he plans to
follow. Once gone, he pays Sparafudk
half his assassin's fee, the remainder
being due when the Dukes body is de
livered to the hunchback at midnight.

Rigoletto would have done better
had he listened more closely to the
Dukes plaint that " women are fickle/'
for no sooner does Rigoletto vanish
than the assassin's sister, Maddalena^
who has fallen in love with the Duke^
delicately suggests he should kill
Rigoletto instead. The honor said to
exist among thieves apparently in
cludes murderers too, for Sparafudle
declares that he has never yet failed
in his duty toward an employer.
Maddalena pleads, however, and finally
he agrees that if another guest shall
arrive before midnight, he will slay
him instead of the Duke, so that
Rigoletto will at least have a corpse for
his money.

A storm bursts, adding to the
tragedy the wailing of the winds and
the long rush of rain. As the first
drops fall, Gilda creeps back to the inn,
for she would learn more of what is
going on. The storm develops, and
its characteristic number is sung, the
"Tempesta Somi'gliaun Apollo" (He's
Fair as Apollo) . The tragedy moves on.

While Gilda expresses horror, 'Madda
lena sings in praise of her Apollo-like
lover. Sparafucile bids her repair the
sack which is to hold the dead man's
body. Add to this the wailing of a
chorus behind the scenes, humming in
parallel minor thirds chromatically up
and down the scale to suggest the
winds, and you have the contents of an
impressively dramatic record!

Gilda y hearing the extraordinary
agreement of brother and sister, sees a
way to preserve her lover and to end
her own sorrows at one blow. Summon
ing up her last despairing courage, she
knocks at the door, and thus receives
the assassin's stroke.

Rigoletto returns. He pays off the
assassin and receives the sack with
its gruesome contents. The murderer,
fearing discovery, offers to throw the
body into the river; but this is to be
the revengeful Jester's own special
privilege. He bids Sparafudle begone.

Left alone he gloats horribly over
his vengeance:

He is there, powerless! Ah, I must see him!
Nay, 'twere folly I 'tis he surely! I feel his spurs

here.

Look on me now ye courtiers!
Look here, and tremble,
Here the buffoon is King!

' He is about to drag the body to the

SPARAFUCILE'S DEN ACT HI
355

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

river, when he hears a sound that
makes his blood run cold. It is the
voice of the Duke, in the inn, making
fresh love to the charming Maddalena.
At once he begins to tear at the sack,
and, holding wide his mouth, he dis
covers the crumpled form of Gilda.

Though unconscious she is not yet
quite dead, and she revives under the
night air, just enough to bid him a
last farewell. The duet which closes
this strangely powerful work is a
noble piece of music, the "Lassu in
cielo" (In Heaven Above).

ACT I

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless noted)

CARO NOME

QUESTA QUELLA

('Mid the Fair Throng) ENRICO CARUSO,

Tenor 500 10-in., 31.50

GIOVANNI MARTI NELLI, Tenor

731 10-in., 1.50

JOHN McCoRMACK,Tenor 767 10-in., 1.50
DUKE:

'Mid the fair throng that sparkle around me,

Not one o'er my heart holds sway;
Though a sweet smile one moment may

charm me,
A glance from some bright eye its spell

drives away.
All alike may attract, each in turn may please;

Now with one I may trifle and play,
Then another may sport with and tease
Yet all my heart to enslave their wiles
display.

MONOLOGO PARI SIAMO

(We Are Equal) TITTA RUFFO, Baritone

6263 12-in., $2.00

RlGOLETTO:

Yon assassin is my equal

He stabs in darkness,

While I with a tongue of malice

Stab men by daylight!

(He thinks of Monterone's curse.}

He laid a father's curse on me

(Continuing in a burst of rage.}
Oh hideous fate! Cruel nature!
Thou hast doom'd me to a life of torment.
I must jest, I must laugh,
And be their laughing stock!
Yonder the Duke, my master,
Youthful and brilliant, rich and handsome,
Tells me, between sleeping and waking:
* "Come, buffoon, I would laugh now!"
Oh shame, I must obey him!
Oh life accursed! How I hate ye,
Race of vile and fawning courtiers!

(Dearest Name) LUISA TETRAZZINI,

Soprano 6344 12-in., $2.00

NELLIE MELBA, Soprano 6213 12-in., 2.00
AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

GILDA:

6126 12-in., 2.00

Carv'd upon my inmost heart

Is that name forevermore

Ne'er again from thence to part,

Name of love that I adore,

Thou to me are ever near,

Ev'ry thought to thee will fly,

Life for thee alone is dear,

Thine shall be my parting sigh!

(Gilda enters the house,, but reappears on the

balcony?}

Oh, dearest name!

(She disappears, but can still be heard}
Oh! name beloved!
Dear name, within this breast,
Thy mem'ry will remain!
My love for thee confess'd,
No power can restrain 1
Carved upon my inmost heart
Is that name forevermore..
Ev'ry thought to thee will fly,
Thine shall be my parting sigh,
Oh Walter mine!

ACT II

PARMI VEDER LE LAGRIME

(Each Tear That Falls) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor 6016 12-in., $2.00

POVERO RlGOLETTO

(Poor Rigoletto) PASQUALE AMATO,
Baritone with BADA, SETTI and
Metropolitan Opera Chorus

6041 12-in., 2.00

CORTIGIANI, VIL RAZZA DANNATA
(Vile Race of Courtiers) PASQUALE
AMATO, Baritone 6041 12-in., 2.00

356

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

RlGOLETTO:

Race of courtiers, vile rabble detested,

Have ye sold her, whose peace ye molested ?

Where is she? do not rouse me to madness

Though unarm'd, of my vengeance beware,

For the blood of some traitor 1*11 pour!

(Again making/or the door.)

Let me enter, ye assassins, stand back!

That door I must enter!

(He struggles again with the courtiers but is

repulsed and gives up in despair.)
Ah, I see it all against me have pity!
Ah, I weep. before ye, Marullo, so kindless?
Others' grief never yet saw thee mindless,
Tell, oh tell where my child they have hidden,
Is't there? say in pity thou'rt silent 1 alas!
(In tears.)

Oh, my lords, will ye have no compassion
On a father's despairing intercession?
Give me back my belov'd only daughter,
Have pity, oh give me back my child,
In pity, oh hear me implore!
TUTTE^LE FESTE AL TEMPIO
(On Every Festal Morning) AMELITA

GALLI-CURCI, Soprano 6432 12-in., 32.00

PIANGI FANCIULLA

(Weep, My Child) AMELITA GALU-
CURCI, Soprano and GIUSEPPE DE
LUCA, Baritone 3027 10-in., 2.00

ACT III
LA DONNA 6 MOBILE

(Woman is Fickle) ENRICO CARUSO,
Tenor 500 10-in., 1.50

GIOVANNI MARTIXELLI, Tenor

735 10-in., 1.50
MIGUEL FLETA, Tenor 94S 10-in., 1.50

DUKE:

Woman is fickle, false altogether,
Moves like a feather borne on the breezes;
Woman with guiling smile will e'er deceive you,
Often can grieve you, yet e'er she pleases,
Her heart's unfeeling, false altogether;
Moves like a feather borne on the breeze,
Borne on the breeze, borne on the breeze!
Wretched the dupe is, who when she looks

kindly,

Trusts to her blindly. Thus life is wasted!
Yet he must surely be dull beyond measure,
Who of love's pleasure never has tasted.
\Voman is fickle, false altogether,
Moves like a feather, borne on the breeze!

QUARTETTE BELLA FIGLIA DELL'
AMORE

(Fairest Daughter of the Graces)

AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, FLORA PERINI,
ENRICO CARUSO and GIUSEPPE DE
LUCA 10000 12-in., 3.50

LUCREZIA BORI, Soprano; JOSEPHINE
JacoBY, Mezzo-Soprano; JOHN Mc-
CORMACK, Tenor; REINALD WER-
RENRATH, Baritone 10006 12-in., 3.50

PARAPHRASE DE CONCERT

(Liszt) ALFRED CORTOT, Pianist

6064 12-in., 2.00

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

/Rigoletto Quartet Victor Opera Quartet}

I Lucia Sextette Victor Opera Sextette}

/Rigoletto Quartet

\ Trovatore Selection (Home to Our Mountains) .

/Rigoletto Quartet Accordion

I Light Cavalry Overture Accordion .

, . Kryfs Bohemian .
Vessellas Band.

/Rigoletto Quartet Brown Bros. Saxophone Sextette}^^

\ Passion Dance (C. M. Jones) ... . . Brown Bros. Saxophone Sextette)

/E il sol dell'anima (Love is the Sun) . . .Pereira and de Gr^ono\ 6n35

IDeh non parlare (Recall not the Past) Pereira and Maggil

fComrne la plume (Woman is Fickle) (In French) . ..Leon Campagnola, T**0rU sll8 10 _ in>>
IQu'une belle (Mid the Fair Throng) (In French) . . ..Leon Campagnola, Tenor!

Gems from "Rigoletto" - - - - - Victor Opera Company}

"Pleasure Calls Us" "Carved Upon My Heart Sun of the boul [35731 12-in.,
"Woman is Fickle" Quartet, "Fairest Daughter" "Away Disturber.

Gems from " Faust" Victor Opera Company]

12-in., 3L50

12-in., 1.25

.75

LOO

1.25

RINALDO

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Adam Hill; Italian text by
Rossi, founded on the episode
ofRinaldo and Armida in Tasso's Geru-
salemme Liberata. Music by George
Frederick Handel.

"Rinaldo" was produced at a time
when Italian music had become the
fashion in London, and the composer
followed the plan then in vogue, to
write the dialogue in recitative form.
This opera was written by Handel in
the amazingly brief time of fourteen
days, and first performed at Queen's
Theatre, February 24, 1711. The work
was put on to signalize the coming of
Handel to London, and it was a magnif
icent production for that period. Only
the year before, the composer had been
induced to leave the Court of Hanover
for that of England; and upon his
arrival in London, Mr. Aaron Hill, the
enterprising manager of the new Hay-
market Theatre, engaged him to supply
an^Italian opera. Hill planned
"Rinaldo," Rossi wrote the Italian
libretto and Handel hurriedly dashed
off the music.

The opera ran for fifteen consecutive
nights an unprecedented feat for that
age and it was mounted with a splen
dor then quite unusual. Among other
innovations, the gardens of Armida
were filled with living birds, a piece of
realism hardly outdone even in these
days.

CHARACTERS
RINALDO, a knight (Ree-nahl r -

doh) Soprano

ARMIDA, an enchantress (Ahr-

mee'-daK) Soprano

ALMIRENA, Godfrey's daughter

(Ahl-mee-ray'-nah) Soprano

ARGANTE, a Pagan king (Ahr-

gahn'-teh} Bass

GODFREY, a noble Bass

EUSTAZIO (Yoo-statts'-ee-oh) Alto

The Action takes place in Palestine at
the Time of the Crusade

RINALDO is a Knight Templar who
loves Almirena, daughter of God
frey. The enchantress, Armida, also
loves Rinaldo, and in a jealous rage
seizes Almirena and conceals her in a
magic garden. Armida s lover, a
Pagan King named Argante, compli
cates matters by himself falling in love
with Almirena. Rinaldo finally rescues
Almirena , and the sorceress and her
lover are captured and converted to
Christianity.

Among the many arias of great
beauty with which the score abounds
is the "Lascia ch'io pianga", in which
Almirena laments her capture by the
sorceress. This air is one of the finest
bequeathed to us by the grand old
composer of "The Messiah." Handel
liked it so well that he used it in no less
than three of his works. It appears
first as a Sarabande, used as a dance
to accompany some Asiatics in the
ballet scene in the last act of " Almira."
"Almira" was the first of Handel's
operas, and was produced in Hamburg,
1795, the composer then being only
nineteen years of age. Later the
melody was used in "II Trionfo del
Tempo," and finally as "Lascia ch'io
pianga" in another opera, "Rinaldo."

THE VICTOR RECORD

LASCIA CH'IO PIANGA

(My Tears Shall Flow) GIUSEPPE DE
LUCA, Baritone In Italian

6081 12-in., 32.00

358

ROBERT LE DIABLE

(ROBERT THE DEVIL)

OPERA in five acts; words by
Scribe; music by Meyerbeer.
First presented in Paris, No
vember 22, 1831; in London, in English,
at Drury Lane, 1832; in Italian, May 4,
1847 (first appearance of Jenny Lind).
First American production, New York,
April 7, 1834. Revived at the Astor
Place Theatre, 1851, and 1857, with
Formes in the cast; and in 1875 with
lima di Murska. The first Metro
politan production occurred in the
'80s under Henry E. Abbey's manage
ment.

R3BERT, Duke of Normandy,
who was called Robert the Devil
because of his courage in battle and
his successes in love, is banished by his
subjects and goes to Sicily, where he
continues to struggle with an Evil
Spirit, which seems to tempt him to
every kind of excess. Alice y his foster
sister, suspects that his supposed
friend Bertram is in reality this evil
influence. At the close of Act I Robert^
led on by Bertram, gambles away all
his possessions, and failing to attend
the Tournament, loses the honor of a
knight and greatly displeases the
Lady Isabella^ whom he loves.

The second act shows the entrance
to the Cavern of Satan, and a company
of Evil Spirits. Then is heard the
"Valse Infernal," "Ecco una nuova"
(I Have Spread My Toils) when
Bertram promises the Demons that he
will complete the ruin of Robert. The
fiends rejoice at the prospect of adding
another soul to their company.

Alice ^ who has come to the vicinity
of the cave to meet her lover, over
hears this infernal bargain and deter
mines to save him. Robert^ dejected

over the loss of his wealth and honor,
meets Bertram^ who promises that all
shall be restored if he will have the
courage to visit the ruined abbey and
secure a certain magic branch,
which has the power to convey wealth,
power and immortality. The next
scene shows the ruins, where Bertram
invokes the aid of the buried nuns.
The spectres arise, and when Robert
appears they dance around him and
lead him to the grave of St. Rosalie,
where he is shown the branch. Over
coming his fears, he grasps it, and by
its power defeats the demons. In the
next scene Robert uses the branch to
become invisible, and he goes to Lady
Isabella s room to carry her off. But
moved by her entreaties, he breaks the
branch, thus destroying the spell.

In the last act Bertram renews his
efforts to induce Robert to sign an
eternal contract. Tired of life, he is
about to yield when Alice appears and
tells him of the last words of his mother
warning him against the Fiend \ who
is in reality Robert's father. The
clock strikes twelve, and the baffled
Fiend disappears, while the cathedral
door opens displaying the Princess
waiting for the reformed Robert.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

VALSE INFERNAL ECCO UNA NUOVA
PREDA

(I Have Spread My Toils) MARCEL
JOURNET, Bass, with Opera Chorus
In French 6176 12-in., 32.00

ACT III

INVOCATION NONNES, QUI REPOSEZ
(Ye Slumb'ring Nuns) POL PLANQON,
Bass. In French 6371 12-in., 32.00

359

PHOTO WHITE

SCENE FROM ROBIN HOOD ACT II

ROBIN HOOD

COMIC opera in three acts. Li-
bretto by Harry B. Smith;
music by Reginald de Koven.
First performance in Chicago, June 9,
1890, by the Bostonians, who sang the
opera more than four thousand times.

CHARACTERS

(With Original Cast)
ROBERT OF HUNTINGTON, known as

Robin Hood. .Edwin Hoff, Tenor
SHERIFF OF NOTTINGHAM

Henry Clay Barnabee, Bass
SIR GUY OF Gis BORNE, his ward

Peter Lang, Tenor
LITTLE JOHN, outlaw

W. H. Macdonald, Baritone
WILL SCARLET, outlaw

Eugene Cowles, Bass
ALLAN-A-DALE, outlaw

Jessie Bartlett Davis, Contralto
FRIAR TUCK, outlaw

George Frothingham, Bass
LADY MARIAN, afterwards Maid

Marian. . . .Marie Stone, Soprano
DAME DURDEN, a widow

Josephine Bartlett, Contralto
ANNABEL, her daughter

Carlotta Maconda, Soprano

Villagers, Milkmaids, Outlaws, King's
Foresters, Archers and Peddlers

Time and Place: Nottingham^ England^
in the Twelfth Century

AT the beginning of the opera a
merrymaking is in progress at
the marketplace in Nottingham. The
three outlaws Little John, Will Scarlet
and Friar Tuck, enter and sing of their
free life in the Forest of Sherwood, and
finally the handsome, dashing Robin
Hood appears, declaring that he is the
Earl of Huntingdon, and demanding
that the Sheriff shall so proclaim him.
The Sheriff^ however, protests that the
youth has been disinherited by his own
father, who before the birth of Robin
Hood was secretly married to a peasant
girl, who died when her child was an
infant. The child is Sir Guy of Gis-
borne, the rightful heir to the earldom
and the Sheriffs ward, whom he is
planning to marry to Lady Marian,
ward of the Crown. However, the
young girl and Robin already are deeply
in love and exchanging vows of eternal
faith to the indignation of Sir Guy.
Lady Marian protests against her mar-

360

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

riage, hoping that on the return of the
King from the Crusades she will be
released, while Robin Hood plans with
the help of the King to prove his right
to the earldom. The outlaws sympa
thize with ^the pair and invite 'Robin
Hood to join them, promising him he
shall be their king and rule them under
the Greenwood Tree to which pro
posal Robin Hood at length agrees.
In the last act the dashing king of

the outlaws brings the message saving
Maid Marian from Sir G?~and the
opera ends amid general rejoicings at
the triumph of Robin Hood and the
gentle Maid over the plotting Sheriff
and his ward. The finale is lively.

THE VICTOR RECORD
OH, PROMISE ME

LOUISE HOMER, Contralto

680 10-in., ?1.50

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

Gems from "Robin Hood" Part I Victor Light Opera Co.'

"Hey, for the Merry Greenwood" " Brown October Ale"" "Come
Dreams So Bright" "Tinkers' Chorus" "Oh, Promise Me"
"Come Away to the \Voods"

Gems from "Robin Hood" Part II Victor ^ Light Opera Co. ^35413 12-in., 51,25

"Ho, Ho, Then for Jollity" "Ye Birds in Azure Winging" "Ar
morer's Song" "A Hunting We'll Go" "Ah! I Do Love You"
"Sweetheart, My Own Sweetheart" "Love, Now We Never More
Will Part" ,

/Oh, Promise Me Elsie Baker > Contraho\, 7QA/C m .

I In the Gloaming Elsie Baker, Contralto} 11 *^ 1U ~ m -' J:>

/The Cross Bow Imperial Male t\* 7Q7 ^ in . 7C

I Way Down Yonder Imperial Male fJ L/ *'* lu - ln ' " /5

/Oh, Promise Me Lewis James> Tenor\,* Q , in - 7C

l Sing Me to Sleep Elsie Baker, Contralto! 1 1U ~ m '> * 75

/Oh, Promise Me Alan Turner.. Baritone\ 71 on in . 7C

I Dearie Elsie Baker, Contralto} 1 1(kn -> 7S

/Oh, Promise Me Violin- Cello-Harp Venetian Tn*01 17Q1 x ir , 7C

I Silver Threads Among the Gold Neapolitan Trio! UbLb 1U " m ' 5 '^

fFavorite Airs from the Opera , Pryor's -^^Ai^io in 75

I Prince of Pihen Selection (Luders] Sousa's Band) ~ m " }

/Armorer's Song Wilfred Glenn,, Bass\* 70/CQ in - 7 ^

I Till The Sands of the Desert Grow Cold Wilfred Glenn, Bass! LU 1U ' m ' J '^

PHOTO WHITE

SCENE FROM ROBIN HOOD ACT III

361

LE ROI DE LAHORE

(THE KING OF LAHORE)

THIS is an early work of Mas
senet's, though it is highly char
acteristic. It is especially noted
for its brilliant ballet, which deals with
an Eastern paradise.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts. ^Libretto by
Jules Gallet; music by Jules
Massenet. First produced Grand
Opera, Paris, April 27, 1877; Covent
Garden, Royal Italian Opera, June
28, 1879; New York, February 29,
1924.

CHARACTERS

ALIM, King of Lahore (Ah-leem^ Rwah

du Lah-ohr) Tenor

SCINDIA, his minister (Seen-dee-ah}

Baritone

TIMUR, a priest (Tee-moor) Bass

INDRA (In-drah) Bass

SITA (See-taK) Soprano

KALED, confidant of the King

(Kah-led) Mezzo-Soprano

Time and Place: India; the Eleventh

Century > during the Mussulman

Invasion

SITA, niece of the high priest and
the namesake of a Brahmanical
goddess, is beloved by Alim^ King of
Lahore. His own minister and rival,
Scindia^ accuses her of profaning the
Temple. She is condemned to death,
but she is saved by the King, who asks
her hand in marriage. Alim> at war
with the Mussulmans, is betrayed by
his false minister, who seizes the throne
and carries away Sit a.

Alim is transported to the heavens,
but he is not contented, and he begs
the gods, headed by Indra^ to permit
him to return to earth. He is granted
the power, provided he does not re
sume his rank, and that he returns

when Sita dies. On his return he dis
covers the true condition of affairs.
He declares himself but is denounced
as an impostor. He takes flight, Sita
with him, and as they are about to be
captured she kills herself. Alim^ ful
filling his vow, perishes also, and the
lovers are united in celestial realms.
A mystical feeling prevails throughout.
One of the most famous of all the
opera's numbers is the beautiful "Pro-
messe de mon avenir,"in Italian
"O Casto Fior," and in < English "Oh,
Promise of a Joy Divine." This is
sung by Scindia when, his evil victory
accomplished, he dreams of the beau
tiful Sita. It is a marvellous aria.

THE VICTOR RECORDS
ACT IV

O CASTO FIOR

(Oh, What Promise of a Joy Divine!)
TITTA RUFFO, Baritone In Italian

6265 12-in., 32.00

MATTIA BATTISTINJ, Baritone In Italian

6046 12-in., 2.00
SCINDIA :

The Sultan's barb'rous horde, who had so
gladly riven

From us fair Lahore,

By our own might have from the field been
driven.

From care my people free,

Loudly sound forth my praises!

O promise fair of joy divine, Sita,

Thou dream of all my life,

O beauty torn from me by strife,

At last, thou shalt be mine! O Sita!

O fair one, charm my loving heart,

And ne'er again from me depart!

Sita, my queen thou soon shalt be!
To thee the world its glory offers,
To thee a king his crown now proffers;
Come, Sita, O come! ah! be mine!

(From the English translation by Dudley
Buck, from the Schirmer "Operatic Anthology"
(Copyright, G. Schirmer), given here by per
mission).

362

THE STATUE OF SAINT CORENTIN WARNING KARNAC ACT II

LE ROI D'YS

OPERA in three acts and five
tableaux; text ,by Edouard
Blau; music by Edouard Lalo.
First production at the Opera Comique,
Paris, May 7, 1888. The opera made a
great success and was awarded the
Academic prize. It had its hundredth
representation in 1889, and is still in
the repertory of the Opera Comique.
First American production at the New
Orleans Opera, January 23, 1890, with
Furst, Balleroy, Geoffrey, Rossi,
Leavinson and Beretta.

CHARACTERS

THE KING OF Ys (Luh Rwah Deece)
MARGARET; ROZENN, his daughters
MYLIO, a Knight
PRINCE OF KARNAC, at war with the

King

People, Soldiers, Gentlemen of the

Court, Ladies, Horsemen,

Retainers

Time and Place: Armorica (Ancient
Brittany}; Middle Ages

BLAU'S libretto is based on an old
legend about the flooding of the
ancient Armorican city of Is, or, as
Blau called it, ^Ys/' The King o/Ys
is at war with his neighbor, the Prince
of Karnac. His daughters, Margaret
and Rozenn, both have loved a Knight

Mylio, but he is supposed to have died
in battle. The King has bargained
with Karnac, proposing that he shall
wed Margaret, and thus end the ex
hausting war. The Princess does not
relish the thought of this alliance, and
when Mylio proves to be still alive she
decides to wed him even at the cost of
her father's kingdom. Karnac is en
raged at the insult and challenges
Mylio to a duel. The King agrees to
give his other daughter, Rozenn, to
the victor. Mylio wins and Margaret,
furious that her sister should possess
Mylio, induces Karnac to flood the
city by opening the sluice-gates which
keep out the sea. When the water
begins rising the King and his family
flee to high ground, Karnac taking the
reluctant Margaret with him. As they
watch the floods begin to destroy the
city and drown the inhabitants, the
Princess, remorseful, confesses her
guilt and precipitates herself into the
flood. Her sacrifice saves the city, how
ever, as Saint Corentin rises from the
sea and commands the waters to recede.

THE VICTOR RECORD

VAINEMENT, MA BIEN AIM&E
(In Vain, Beloved) EDMOND CLEMENT,

Tenor In French 6062 12-in., 2.00

BENIAMINO GIGLJ, Tenor In French

906 10-in., 1.50

363

COPY'T DUPONT

FARRAR AS JULIET

COPY*T INTERNATIONAL FILM SERVICE
GALLI-CURCI AS JULIET

PHOTO REUTLINGER

ALDA AS JULIET

ROMEO ET JULIETTE

(ROMEO AND JULIET)

A TER "Faust," "Romeo and
Juliet" is the most popular of
Gounod's many operas, the most
of them forgotten. It has been called,
and not unjustly," a love duet with
occasional interruptions," and it con
tains many melodies of great beauty,
the most famous of which is the waltz,
in the first act. The opera follows
very closely the action of Shakespeare's
drama, though the interruption of the
balcony scene will come as a surprise
to many. What artistic purpose is
served by this is doubtful; at any rate it
serves the practical purpose of lending
variety, increasing "suspense "and giv
ing the singers a chance to breathe. Sev
eral of the Shakespearian personages
have been omitted from the opera cast
by the librettists, arid a new one added
the page, Stephana^ who precipitates
the fight in the third act. These changes,

however are but natural. It takes
longer to sing through a drama than
it does to talk, and a play so lavish
with words as Shakespeare's must
needs go through some process of
reduction. As far as possible the
authors appear to have stuck to
Shakespeare's text, but here again
operatic necessities have had to be
considered. The steady metre of
Shakespeare's verse had to be cut up
to afford the composer a supply of
lyrics, and. a variety of rhythms;
otherwise he would scarcely have
escaped monotony. If it is borne in
mind that Shakespeare's English first
had to be turned into French, the
French turned into Opera-librettese,
and that again translated into English
so as to fit Gounod's music, it is likely
that the verses used in the English
libretto of the work will offer a few

364

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

r *~ ^ / 1 T>->

L^i M i

,4 . M <' 1

FROM A PAINTING

ROMEO AND JULIET IN THE FRIAR S CELL

surprises to the Shakespearian student.
Those who desire, however, a more
poetic version of the world's greatest
love-drama know well where to find
one 1

THE OPERA

OPERA in five acts. Words by
Barbier and Carre, after Shakes
peare's drama. Music by Charles Gou
nod. First produced at the Theatre
Lyrique^ Paris, April 27, 1867. First
London production July 11, 1867. First
Milan production at La Scala, Decem
ber 14, 1867. Presented in America,
1868, with Minnie Hauk.

Some famous American productions :
1890, with Patti, Ravelli, del Puente
and Fabri; 1891, with Eames (debut),
the de Reszkes and Capoul; 1898, with
Melba, Saleza, de Reszke and Plangon;
more recently with Galli-Curci as
Juliet; New York, 1922.

CHARACTERS

JULIET, daughter of Capulet. .Soprano
STEPHANO (Stef'-ah-noh), page

to Romeo Soprano

GERTRUDE, Juliet's nurse

Mezzo-Soprano

THE MARRIAGE

ROMEO Tenor

TYBALT (Tee-bahl r ), Capulet's

nephew Tenor

BENVOLIO (Ben-voh'-Iee-oti)

friend of Romeo Tenor

MERCUTIO (Mer-kew'-shee-oh)

friend of Romeo Baritone

PARIS (Pah-ree f ), Capulet's

kinsman Baritone

GREGORIO, Capulet's kinsman Baritone

CAPULET(C^>-&~M');, a Veron
ese noble. Basso

FRIAR LAURENCE Bass

THE DUKE OF VERONA Bass

Guests, Relatives and Retainers of the

Capulets and Montagues.
The Action takes place in Verona
(The original French name of the op
era Is "Romeo et Juliette, " Zhoo4ee-et' \
the Italian is "Romeo e Giulietta,"
Joo-lee-et'-tah).

ACT I

SCENE Ballroom in Capulet's House

CAPULET, a Veronese noble, is
V_> giving a masked ball in honor of
his daughter Juliet's entrance into
society. The young girl is presented

365

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

to the guests by her father, and he
calls on his guests to make merry.
They leave for the banqueting-hall,
Juliet leaning on the arm of Paris, to
whom she has been betrothed at the
wish of her father, and Tybalt, who is
also her admirer and a friend of Paris.

No sooner are they gone than
Romeo and a half dozen of his friends
enter, including Mercutio. As rep
resenting the rival house of Montague,
their visit is a bit of audacity likely to
cost their lives. While they are laugh
ing over their prank, however, Juliet
returns and they scarcely have time to
hide before she appears, calling for
her nurse, Gertrude. When Gertrude
has gone, Juliet gives expression to her
happiness in the charming "Valse"
(Juliet's Waltz-Song).

She is about to return to the banquet,
when Romeo enters. It is a case of
love at first sight, which is not so rare
as many might suppose. Juliet with
delicious coquetry refers to his costume
which is that of a pilgrim or palmer.
The duet "Ange adorable" (Lovely
Angel), ensues. Love travels fast. But
the tete-a-tete is interrupted by the
entrance of Tybalt, who is indeed a
hot-headed member of the Capulet
faction. He recognizes Romeo through
his mask, and denounces him. There
is a scene of course, as some of the
other guests enter. Romeo is for
drawing sword, but an open quarrel is
avoided by the entrance of Capulet,
who is loath to have the festivities
spoiled. Romeo and his friends are
permitted to go in peace.

ACT II

SCENE Capulef s Garden; Juliet's
Apartment Above

IT is night. With a rope-ladder,
Romeo ascends to the balcony where
Juliet waits, and the long love-duet
begins. The scene is taken almost as
it stands from Shakespeare, save that

Gregorio and a company of servants,
warned of a trespasser in the grounds,
enter and make a search for the invader.
Romeo is well concealed, and they de
part vowing vengeance on the person
who sent them on such a wild-goose
chase. Nothing now interrupts the
lovers, who soon are breathing their
ecstasy to the stars. There is another
lovely duet, "O nuit divine, je t'
implore" (Night All Too Blessed).

It is interrupted by Juliet *s nurse,
who calls to them the hour grows late,
so they indulge the sweet sorrow of
parting with a lingering farewell, "Ne
mis encore" (Linger Yet a Moment).

ACT III

SCENE I The Cell of Friar Laurence

THE secret marriage of Romeo and
Juliet takes place in the cell of
Friar Laurence., who sees in the union
a chance to reconcile the futile enmity
of the Montagues and the Capulet s.
Juliet returns home with Gertrude.

SCENE II A Street in Verona

ROMEO'S impudent page, Stephano,
having come in search of his
master, sings an impertinent song be
fore the Capulet house, which brings out
Gregorio. Soon there is a fight, and
things begin to look bad for the ven
turesome youth; but he is joined by
others of the Montagues, including
Mercutio, while Tybalt comes to the aid
of Gregorio. Mercutio and Tybalt
quarrel. Coming suddenly upon them
Romeo tries to stop the fighting; it is
impossible to quarrel now with the
relatives of his bride. He is unsuccess
ful, however, and the fight is resumed.
The Capulets and Montagues swarm out
on either side and the trouble becomes
general. Mercutio is wounded. Be
lieving him dead, Romeo can no longer
refrain from avenging his friend, and
he sets-to against Tybalt. Tybalt is
mortally wounded, and falls into the

366

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

arms of Capulet himself. Tybalt's last
prayer is for vengeance, and the head
of his house now swears that vengeance
shall be done.

Suddenly the Duke of Verona enters.
On learning the cause of the trouble,
he sentences Romeo^ to instant banish
ment, sparing his life only because he
has fought honorably.

ACT IV

SCENE Juliefs Room

"OOMEO finds a way into Capulefs
J\.house, at imminent risk of death,
bent on saying farewell to his bride and
winning her pardon for the death of
Tybalt. This is readily granted. After
a tender farewell he departs. Friar
Laurence enters, to tell the girl that
it was Tybalfs dying wish that she
should marry Paris, and that the
wedding is to be hastened. Juliet is
in despair, but Friar Laurence counsels
patience. He then gives her a potion,
telling her to drink it when the

marriage ceremony is about to com
mence. It will throw her into a death
like trance for forty-two hours, after
which she may escape from her tomb
and fly with Romeo.

With the departure of the kindly
priest, Capulef enters with Paris , and
the wedding is about to take place.
She therefore drinks the potion, and
sinks, apparently dead, before them.

ACT V

SCENE The Tomb of Juliet

IN the silent vault of the Capulets^
Juliet lies pale as marble in her
trance. Having failed to receive
Friar Laurence's message, Romeo forces
in the door, to gain one last glimpse
of the bride he believes dead. After
a tender farewell he drinks in turn a
deadly poison. No sooner has he
swallowed it than he is startled to be
hold signs of life in the body of Juliet.
Too late! They have but time to say
farewell. On learning that he has

DEATH OF THE LOVERS

367

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

slain himself, Juliet upbraids him for
drinking all the poison:

Ah! thou churl

To drink all ! No friendly drop

thou'st left me
So I may die with thee!

She has, however, a dagger con
cealed among her grave-garments, and
with this she stabs herself. Well
content to face eternity together,
Romeo and Juliet, in one another's
arms, enter into their eternal sleep.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French except as noted)

ACT I
VALSE

(Juliet's Waltz Son^) LUISA TETRAZZINI,

Soprano In Italian 6345 12-in., $2.00
LUCREZIA BORI, Soprano 542 10-in., 1.50
AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

6133 12-in., 2.00

JULIET:

Song, jest, perfume and dances.
Smiles, vows, love-laden glances
All that spells or entrances
In one charm blend
As in fair dreams enfolden
Born of fantasy golden.
Sprites from fairyland olden,
On me now bend.
Forever would this gladness
Shine on me brightly as now,
Would that never age or sadness
Threw their shade o'er my brow!

ANGE ADORABLE

(Lovely Angel) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano, and EDMOND CLEMENT,
Tenor 8020 12-in., 32.50

ACT II
AH! LfeVE-TOI SOLEIL

(Arise, Fair Sun) FERNAND ANSSEAU,

Tenor 6348 12-in., 2.00

AH! NE FUIS PAS ENCORE!

(Ah! Linger Yet a Moment) LUCREZIA
BORI, Soprano and BENIAMINO GIGLI,
Tenor 3027 10-in., 2.00

BLACK LABEL RECORD

("Romeo and Juliet Selection ........ ............... Arthur Pry or' s Eand\

I Introduction to Act I, "The Capulets' Ball" Interlude, Act IV
Capulet's Solo, "The Altar is ^ Prepared" Ballet-Nuptial Procession.
I Samson and Delilah Selection (Saint-Saens] ........... Arthur Pry or* s Band)

19 :
iZ " ln ' 5

BENQUE, PARIS
JEAN AND EDUARD DE RESZKE AS ROMEO AND FRIAR LAURENCE

368

DELILAH: Come, dear one, follow me.

To Sorek, the fairest of valleys!

SAMSON AND DELILAH

DESPITE his extraordinary bril
liance and the early success of
his first works as a composer,
Saint-Saens had some difficulty in find
ing a way for his biblical opera, "Sam
son and Delilah." These difficulties
were largely due to factional disturb
ances in musical Paris, springing up
largely around the then revolutionary
musical doctrines of Richard Wagner.
Men of the older generation prized^their
authority; and in fighting tradition,
Saint-Saens but shared the lot of Mas
senet, Bizet, Chabrier, Godard and
others. It is interesting to note, by the
way, that Saint-Saens relinquished

some of the opinions he held at that
time, himself growing more conservative
as the years increased. In the seventies
of the last century, however, he was re
garded as quite an iconoclast. With the
completion of "Samson and Delilah/' a
powerful friend carne to his aid in the
person of generous Franz Liszt, who
never missed an opportunity to give
genius a hearing. The young man was
invited to Weimar, where the work was
produced with a success which made
other productions inevitable, and today
it is regarded as one of the great clas
sics of the opera stage. Saint-Saens has
composed many operas, none of which

369

COPY'T WHITE

SAMSON (Caruso):

Lord, thy servant remember now.
For one moment make him strong!
(Softly, to the boy}
Toward the marble columns,
My child, guide thou my steps!

(Act III)
370

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PHOTO WHITE

DANCE OF THE PHILISTINE MAIDENS

has equalled it in popular esteem, the
nearest approach to it being "Henry
VIII." No doubt a work bearing so
closely upon the history of his race
made its own special appeal. The score
is a magnificent piece of work, with its

Hebrew chants vividly contrasted with
the sensuous music of the pagan Orient,
and reaching its highest levels in the
ever popular airof Delilah, "Mon coeur
s'ouvre a ta voix," and in the Baccha
nal music. The opera deserves to live.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Ferdinand Lemaire; music by
Camille Saint-Saens. First produc
tion at Weimar under Liszt, Decem
ber 2, 1877. In France at Rouen,
1890. Performed at Covent Garden
in concert form, September 25,
1893. First American production at
New Orleans, January 4, 1893, with
Renaud and Mme. Mounier. First
New York production February, 189S,
with Tamagno and Mantelli (one per
formance only). Revived by Oscar
Hammerstein, November 13, 1908,
and again in 1911, with Gerville-
Reache, Dalmores and Dufranne. Pro

duced at the Metropolitan in 19 IS,
with Caruso, Matzenauer and Amato.

CHARACTERS

DELILAH Mezzo-Soprano

SAMSON Tenor

HIGH PRIEST OF DAGON Baritone

ABIMELECH, Satrap of Gaza First Bass

AN OLD HEBREW Second Bass

PHILISTINE MESSENGER Tenor

Chorus of Hebrews and Philistines

Time and Place: 1150 B. C.; Gaza in

Palestine

(The original French name of the

371

VICTRO-LA BOOK OF THE OPERA

opera is "Samson et Dalila," Sahn-
sohn' (nasal) ay Da-lee-laK).

ACT I

SCENE A Public Square in Gaza

THE opera has no overture; we are
plunged at once into the great
scene where the Hebrews mourn in
bondage, before the very gates of the
temple of Dagon in Gaza. Samson, in
the fervor of religious prophecy, bids
them find new courage; but without
arms, without leadership, they are de
spondent. Abimelech^ the satrap of
Gaza, enters with many warriors be
hind him, imperiously mocking the
captive Israelites. Samson, exasper
ated, attacks him. With heaven-born
strength he seizes AbimelecKs sword and
lays him dead, warding off the hosts
that press against him. It is the signal
for revolt, and the fight becomes general.
The Philistines are pressed back by the
Israelites under the fanatical leadership
of Samson, and soon the stage is
empty but for the body of Abimelech,
slain by his own law of violence.

The gates of Dagon's Temple are
thrown open, and the High Priest steps
forth, attended by guards and fol
lowers. He bids his men avenge the
stricken Abimelech, but their blood is
turned to water. Messengers come
announcing the defeat of the Philis
tines, and in despair, the High Priest
curses the Israelites. He and his fol
lowers are forced to flee with the body
of Abimelech, as the victorious Hebrews
return headed by their aged men,
chanting hymns of praise. It is Sam
son s great hour, and his followers en
joy their deliverance.

Once more the gates of the temple of
Dagon are flung apart, but for a differ
ent scene. Delilah comes at the head
of a company of women, bearing gar
lands of flowers for the victors. She is
lovely, and her wisdom is not that of
the temple, but of the world. Con

scious of her power and charm, she
approaches Samson, singing the beau
tiful "J e viens celebrer la victoire" (I
Come to Celebrate Victory).

'"I come to celebrate the victory of
him who reigns in my heart," coos
Delilah to the conqueror of the Philis
tines soft words upon her lips but
guile in her fair bosom. Samson prays
for divine power to resist her, but in
spite of himself he is forced to gaze at
the beautiful creature as she dances
withhermaidens. Anoldmanamongthe
Hebrews warns him. But in the hands
of Delilah^ Samson s will is water. The
three voices each pleading its own cause",
Delilah and the old man with Samson,
and Samson with his God, blend in rich
harmony in this trio. As the young
girls dance, Delilah sings to Samson the
lovely song of Spring, "Printemps qui
commence" "Der Fruhling erwachte"
(Delilah's Song of Spring).

So in the hour of his triumph, as it is
written, the heart of Samson is shaken
within him, and as the curtain Jails, he
is Delilah' s and Delilah knows it.

ACT II

SCENE Delilah's Home., Valley of Sorek

NIGHT is descending upon the
valley, and Delilah, more sump
tuously clad than ever, waits outside
her dwelling for the approach of Sam
son. She calls upon Love to aid her, in
another lovely song, the "Amour viens
aider" (Love, Lend Me Thy Might).

The High Priest of Dagon comes to
Delilah, enjoining her not to fail in her
purpose. After he has gone, Samson
himself appears, impelled by irresist
ible temptation, past principle, past
conscience, past hope. Fearing she
may even now have lost him, Delilah
exercises her peculiar powers to the
limit, in the "Mon coeur s'ouvre a ta
voix" (My Heart at Thy Sweet Voice).

During this exquisite melody a storm
has gathered, the swift pattering of the

372

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

COPY'T WHITE

SAMSONT: Sore my distress, my guilt and anguish,
Have pity, Lord, in misery I languish!

(Act III)

rain being suggested in the accompani
ment. Delilah strives her utmost to
persuade Samson to betray his plans,
the increasing fury of the storm serving
as the appropriate background for the
turmoil of emotions. Delilah is anx
ious, imperative; Samson, drawn to
ward her, yet resisting. He finally re
fuses, praying for strength with a ve
hemence that threatens Delilah's own
safety. She leads him into the house
and calls for help. Her cry is answered
by the Philistines, who rush in and
overpower Samson , just as the storm
reaches a climax with a violent crash
of thunder.

ACT III
SCENE I A Prison at Gaza

SIGHTLESS and chained, his heavy
locks shorn away, the mighty

Samson slowly and painfully treads
round and round, a heavy mill which is
grinding corn for the Philistines. Near
by is a group of Hebrew captives. Out
of the depths of his misery, Samson
calls upon the Lord to pity him, offer
ing his "poor, bruised soul" to the Al
mighty whose mandates he has disre
garded for the sake of the false Delilah.
His prayer is echoed by the wretched
prisoners, a few of whom, however, are
pitilessly scornful. "Vois ma misere
helas" (Sore My Distress, Alas!), sings
the broken hero.

SCENE II A Magnificent Hall in the
Temple of Dagon

THE High Priest and the Philistines
are having a great feast, and re
joicing over the downfall of their
enemies, This is a wonderful scene ?

373

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

with a remarkable "Chorus and
Bacchanale."

They send for Samson to provide
sport. When he appears, Delilah ap
proaches him, to taunt the man with
his weakness. She offers him wine,
and with malignant irony she repeats
to him sensuously cruel words of love.

Samson cannot reply* He prays

with bowed head. When all have
wearied of their sport he begs a youth
to lead him to the great pillars which
uphold the Temple. He offers a last
prayer for strength to overcome the
wretches, then straining at the roof
pillars, he overthrows them. The
Temple crashes down amid shrieks and
groans.

ACT I

JE VIENS CLBRER LA VICTOIRE

(I Come to Celebrate Victory) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor, LOUISE HOMER, Con
tralto and MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

10010 12-in., 33.50

PRINTEMPS QUI COMMENCE

(Delilah's Song of Spring) ERNESTINE
SCHUMANN-HEINK, Contralto In
German 6280 12-in., 2.00

LOUISE HOMER, Contralto 6164 12-in., 2.00

DELILAH:

Spring voices are singing,

Bright hope they are bringing,

All hearts making glad.

And gone sorrow's traces,

The soft air effaces

All days that are sad.

The earth glad and beaming,

With freshness is teeming.

In vain all my beauty:

I weep my poor fate!

(She gazes fondly at Samson.)

When night is descending,

With love all unending,

Bewailing my fate,

For him will I wait.

Till fond love returning,

In his bosom burning

May enforce his return!

ACT II

AMOUR VIENS AIDER

(Love, Lend Me Thy Might) LOUISE
HOMER, Contralto 6165 12-in., 32.00

DELILAH:
O Love! in my weakness give power!.

Poison Samson's brave heart for me!
'Neath my soft sway may he be vanquished;
Tomorrow let him captive be!

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French except as noted)

Ev'ry thought of me he would banish,

And from his tribe he would swerve,
Could he only drive out the passion

That remembrance doth now preserve.
But he is under my dominion;

In vain his people may entreat.
'Tis I alone that can hold him

I'll have him captive at my feet!

MON COEUR S'OUVRE A TA VOIX

(My Heart at Thy Sweet Voice) LOUISE
HOMER, Contralto 6164 12-in., 32.00

JULIA CULP, Contralto 568 10-in., 1.50

GABRIELLA BESANZONI,

Contralto In Italian 541 10-in., 1.50

ERNESTINE SCHUMANN-HEINK, Contralto
In German 6280 12-in., 2.00

DELILAH:

My heart at thy sweet voice opens wide like

the flower

Which the morn's kisses waken!
But, that I may rejoice, that my tears no more

shower,

Tell thy love still unshaken!
O, say thou wilt not now leave Delilah again!
Repeat thine accents tender, ev'ry passionate

vow,
O thou dearest of men!

(Copy't 1892, G. Schirmer.)

ACT III
VOIS MA MIS&RE H^LAS

(Sore My Distress, Alas!) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor and Metropolitan

Opera Chorus

6026 12-in., 32.00

SAMSON:

Look down, look down on me, have pity on me,
Have mercy, Lord, have mercy upon me!
I turned away from Thy most righteous path
And now I suffer justly from Thy wrath.

374

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

My poor bruised soul to Thee now do I offer,
I who deserve but the jeers of the scoffer.
On sightless eyes doth the light of day fall,
Now is my soul steeped in bitterness and gall.
CHORUS:
Samson, why hast thou betrayed thy brethren?

SAMSON:

Alas; Israel, still in chains!

From heav'n God's vengeance descending

Ev'ry hope of return now ending,

Now only suffering remains.

Grant us again, Lord, the light of Thy favor,

Deign but once more, Lord, Thy people to aid.

Withhold Thy wrath, though Thou hast been

betray'd,
Thou art our God and Thy love doth not waver.

BACCHANALE

Philadelphia Orchestra

6241 12-in., 2.00

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

/Spring Flowers (In English) .................... Victor Women s Chorus\-, 7/ -^ in

t TrovatoreAnvil Chorus (In English) ............. Victor Male Chorusl 1 '* 1U " m -'

(Samson and Delilah Selection ...................... . ....... Pryor's Eand\
"The Breath of God," Act I Chorus of the Philistines, Act III UC?<M 10;*,
1 1 TV IT TT T>I n TT" A TT IJJ&JT: l^-ln..

"My Heart at Thy Sweet Voice, Act II ,

Romeo and Juliet Selection (Gounod) ...................... Pry or s Band)

/My Heart at Thy Sweet Voice .......... .......... Michele Rinaldi, Cornet\

t Farewell to the Forest (Mendelssohn) ............. Victor Brass Quartet!

1n .
LU ~ m ->

COPY'T MISHKIN

GERVILLE-REACHE AS DELILAH

375

TEATRO DEGOLLADO, GUADALAJARA, MEXICO TEATRO JUAREZ, GUANAJUATO. MEXICO

COLON THEATRE, BUENOS AIRES

MOSAIC CURTAIN OF THE NATIONAL THEATRE, MEXICO

SEMI KAMI DE

SEMIRAMIDE is perhaps the
finest of Rossini's serious operas,
but although it was a great
success in its day, its splendid overture
and the brilliant Bel raggio are about
the only reminders of it which remain.
The story is based on the classic
subject of the murder of Agamemnon
by his wife, called Semiramis in the
Babylonian version. It is a work
which the composer completed in the
astonishingly short time of one month,
but which exhibits his peculiar art at
its ripest and best.

THE OPERA

opera in two acts. Text
JL by Rossi; music by Gioachino
Antonio Rossini. It is founded on
Voltaire's tragedy Semiramis. First
produced at the Fenice Theatre, Venice,
February 3, 1823; in London at the
King's Theatre, July 15, 1824. In
French, as Semiramis , it appeared in
Paris, July 9, 1860, First American
production occurred in New York,
April 25, 1826. First New Orleans
production May 1, 1837. Some nota
ble American revivals were in 1855
with Grisi and Vestvali; in 1890 with
Adelina Patti as Semiramide; and in
1894 with Melba and Scalchi.

CHARACTERS

SEMIRAMIDE (Say-mee-rah'-mee-day}
or SEMIRAMIS, Queen of Baby
lon .................... Soprano

ARSACES or ARSACE (Ahr-sah'-chay}
commander in the Assyrian
army, afterward the son of
Ninus and heir to the throne

Contralto

THE GHOST OF NINUS or NINO

(Nee-noK) Bass

OROE, chief of the Magi Bass

ASSUR, a Prince of the blood royal Bass

AZEMA, Princess of the blood
royal Soprano

IDRENUS, of the royal household . Tenor

MITRANES, of the royal house
hold Baritone

Magi, Guards, Satraps, Slaves

^ I A HE action takes place in Babylon;
JL S emir amide ^ the Queen, assisted
by her lover Assur, has murdered her
husband, King Ninus^ who, in the
second act, rises in spirit from the
tomb and prophesies the Queen's
downfall.

The Eel raggio^ a favorite cavatina
with all prima donnas, and a brilliant
and imposing air, occurs in the first
act. Its particular scene shows the
Temple of Belus, where a religious
festival is in progress. Semiramide is
about to announce a successor to the
throne and has secretly determined
to elect Arsaces^ a young warrior, with
whom she has fallen in love, unaware
that he is in reality her own son.

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

/Semiramide Overture Part I ................ Victor Symphony Orchestra\

ISemiramide Overture Part II .............. Victor Symphony Orchestral

(Overture ................................. Police Band qf'Mexico City}

\ Marche Slave (Op. J/) (Tschaikowsky} .............. Arthur Pryor's Band}

lrL -
lu - m '

19
iz ~ m ''

377

FROM THE PAINTING BY DELITZ SIEGFRIED AND THE DRAGON

378

SIEGFRIED

MUSIC-DRAMA in three acts.
Words and music by Wagner.
First produced at Bayreuth,
August 16, 1876. It was given in
French at Brussels, June 12, 1891, and
subsequently at the Opera in Paris.
In London (in English) by the Carl
Rosa Company , ( in 1898. First Ameri
can production in New York, Novem
ber 9, 1887, with Lehmann, Fischer,
Alvary and Seidl-Kraus.

CHARACTERS

SIEGFRIED (Zeeg' -freed] Tenor

MIME (Mee'-meh) Tenor

THE WANDERER (WOTAN) (Voh'-tan)

Baritone

ALBERICH (Ahl r -ber-icK) Baritone

FAFNER (Fahf-ner) Bass

ERDA (Air'-dah} Contralto

BRUNNHILDE (Bruen-hill'-deti)

Mezzo-Soprano

ACT I

Scene A Forest. At One Side a Cave

THE birth of Siegfried has been
followed by the death of his mother
Sieglinde, and the child has been
brought up by Mime^ who has hoped,
through him, to win back the treasure
of the Nibelungs. But Mime hasunder-
taken no light task, for Siegfried has
grown into a fearless young hero, a
magnificent creature, powerful and
beautiful, with nothing but contempt
for the wretch who has undertaken to
play both father and mother. Mime
is now at work upon a sword for his
master, certain it will be no more en
during than the last.

Suddenly Siegfried himself appears,
in forest dress, a horn hung about his
young neck, leading a huge bear with
a halter. With this he terrifies Mime
half to death, laughing aloud as the
hideous and cowardly dwarf shrinks
away. This pleasantry over, he frees

the bear, and seizes the new sword
Mime has forged. He beats it on the
anvil, where it breaks, the pieces fly
ing about. Siegfried complains bitterly
of "this silly switch." Mime,, who has
fled, protests, from a distance, against
this ingratitude. He finally brings
food, however, as a peace-offering;
but Siegfried still grumbling over
the sword, declares he will get his own
meals. Mime appears to be hurt,
wailing loudly as he speaks of his
wasted efforts to please. Siegfried,
somehow wondering why he so dis
likes the dwarf when every other living
thing in the forest is his friend, ques
tions Mime about his birth, and there
by learns, for the first time, of Si eg-
linde his dead mother. He also hears
of the shattered sword of Siegmund,
his father, and commands Mime to re
pair it. He then runs off into the woods.
While Mime is still brooding over
this impossible task, Wotan appears
disguised as a Wanderer. Mime is ap
palled as the one-eyed warrior with
his huge spear, looms above him, espe
cially when the Wanderer carelessly
touches the earth with his long spear
and a soft crash of thunder follows.
The Wanderer offers to answer at the
price of his life any three riddles Mime
can propound. After successfully an
swering three questions regarding the
Nibelungs, the giants and the gods, he
asks .three himself at the same price.
Mime successfully answers the first
two, regarding the birth of Siegfried;
but is terrified when the last question
is asked as to how the sword may be
repaired. This is, of course, the one
thing he desires to know believing
that with the sword Siegfried will slay
Fafner, who guards the treasure of the
Nibelungs, when his own wits may
cozen the treasure from Siegfried; but
as he cannot reply to the Wanderer^

379

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

his life is forfeit. The Wanderer then
tells him that the sword can be re
paired only by one who knows no fear.
He then departs.

Siegfried returns demanding his
sword, is told that it can be re
paired only by one who knows no fear.
He is much interested in this new
thing, fear. What is Fear? Mime
tries to explain by describing the
dragon Fafner, and Siegfried, growing
impatient to see the creature, essays
to mend the sword himself. Before
Mime's wondering eyes he forges it
anew, and once whole to the dwarf's
terror and amazement, he strikes with
it a mightly blow upon the face of the
anvil, which splits in pieces. Siegfried
swings his weapon as the curtain falls.

ACT II

SCENE The Dragon's Cave in the Forest

FAFNER, the "giant-who-is-now-a-
dragon," drowses over his wealth
in Hate-Cavern, while Alberich, hoping
yet for a chance to secure the ring,
watches nearby. The Wanderer^ cau
tions Alberich that Siegfried, with no
other aid than his own youthful
strength, will overcome the dragon
and win the gold. But Alberich has a
plan of his own, and he warns the
dragon of Siegfried's approach. Fafner
makes light of the danger. As the day
dawns, Mime creeps out behind with
Siegfried, and leaving the hero, girt
with the sword, at the dark entrance
of Hate-Cavern, reconnoitres awhile,
returning to describe the beast to
Siegfried, who laughs at him for his
pains. While Mime is absent, Sieg
fried listens to the murmurings of the
trees and the awakening of life about
him, and is disappointed when he fails
to reproduce the song of the birds on
a pipe which he cuts from a reed with
his own new sword. In this scene. oc
curs some of the loveliest nature-music

in existence.

Fafner IB aroused; and his lizard-like
form proceeds from the cave to a spot
near Siegfried. He utters a thunderous
yawn, which fails to frighten Siegfried,
who replies with laughter. Soon the
combat begins when Siegfried succeeds
in driving the sword, Nothung, into
the heart of the dragon. The dying
Fafner, realizing that the Curse of
Alberich has descended upon him too,
endeavors to warn Siegfried with his
dying breath. Siegfried pays little
heed. He draws the sword, Nothung,
from the breast of the monster, and in
doing so its blood soils his hands. In
stinctively, he licks the blood away,
when at once he becomes aware that he
has thus gained a mystical power to
understand the language of birds. The
lovely woodland music returns, and
from his new friends he learns that
he must seize the ring and the
Tarnhelm, which he does, ignoring the
rest of the treasure. He does not know
the value of his possessions.

Mime now steals forth, doing his
best to wheedle Siegfried into giving
him the Ring and the Tarnhelm;
Alberich looks on amused. Siegfried
watches Mime tolerantly enough, but
after a time he grows annoyed, for his
new power makes clear to him the
inner purpose of Mime s deceitful talk.
He makes one pass at him with his
sword, and Mime falls dead. He
throws the corpse into the cave, stuf
fing up the entrance with the body of
Fafner. Then his friends the birds
tell him of a marvellously beautiful
woman who lies sleeping behind a
mysterious veil of fire, and who can
be won only by a man who knows no
fear. Siegfried laughs with delight,
saying, "Why, this stupid lad who
knows not fear it is I!" So saying
he follows the bird, which flies ahead,
guiding him, turn by turn and slope
by slope, to Brunnhildes sleeping-
place.

380

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT III

SCENE A Wild Region at the Foot of a
Rocky Mountain

IN the meantime, the Wanderer^
Wotan y doubtful of the future, goes
to consult his earth-wife, the earth-
goddess Erda, hoping to learn if de
liverance may come, for the gods,
through the union of Siegfried and
Brunnhilde' but Erda is puzzled. She
can give him no determinate answer,
and she asks to be allowed to sleep.
Wotan fears that with the coming of
Siegfried his power must end, and with
it, forever, the power of the gods.

Siegfried approaches, his bird-guide
having disappeared. He demands right-
of-way from the stranger who bars his
path. Wotan questions him good-
humoredly and learns of the death of
Fafner. He asks, too, whence comes the
sword, and Siegfried answers he has
forged it from a broken weapon. And
whence come the broken pieces? pur
sues Wotan. But Siegfried answers that
he cares not since a broken sword
is useless until it is repaired. Wotan
again- laughs, but Siegfried becomes
insistent to know the way to the fiery
couch of Brunnhilde, the bird that
directed him thither having flown. He
is insistent, being young, sans fear.
Wotan then confesses that he himself
has driven off the bird, and he tells

Siegfried how the spear he holds has
shattered the sword in the grasp of
his father. Siegfried at once decides
that this fierce-looking one-eyed war
rior must be his father's enemy, and
so his own. The spear of Wotan con
fronts him, but with a mighty blow he
severs the haft m twain. Wotan knows
now that he is beaten by the son he
has reared to save himself, and that
destiny pursues him for his wrong
doing. The end of the gods is near. He
makes way for Siegfried. Soon a great
fire surrounds the young hero, who,
nothing daunted, pursues his way, as
sured at last that he is on the right
track. The flames vanish, and the
smoke they leave behind lifts clear, so
that all is fresh and spring-like. Upon
a grassy mound, covered with a great
shield, lies a human form. Siegfried
takes the shield, and removes the ar
mor and stands wondering before the
sleeping Brunnhilde. With a kiss he
awakens her. Love stirs within him,
so that the blood in his veins runs
feverish. Brunnhilde slowly revives.
Manhood comes to the young hero,
and the path of destiny opens before
him as the curtain descends upon the
third of the dramas of The Ring. With
the last one, Destiny awaits its fulfil
ment, the Twilight of the Gods being
at hand. Its premonitions, to those
who know the music, are heard in it.

Introduction: Wotan invokes Erda (Act III) Vocalist Clarence Whitehiir
Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates

Siegfried's ascent to the Valkyrie rock (Act III) Vocalists Clarence White-
hill and Tudor Davies . . Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates.
Siegfried forges the broken sword Finale, (Act I) Vocalist Tudor Davies s
Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates

The forest bird warns Siegfried (Act II) Vocalists Tudor Davies, Syd
ney Russell, Florence Austral

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Eugene Goossens,

'Siegfried follows the forest bird Finale, (Act II) Vocalists Tudor Davies
and Bessie Jones Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates

6436 12-in., 2.00

55209 12-in., 1.50

55210 12-in., 1.50

Brunnhilde hails the radiant s'un (Act III) Vocalists Florence Austral

and Tudor Davies Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Percy Pitt.

Brunnhilde recalls her Valkyrie d'ays (Act III) Vocalists Florence Austral

and Tudor Davies Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert C ates \$$2\\ 12 in 1 50
Brunnhilde yields to Siegfried (Finale of Opera) Vocalists Florence Austral | "'

and Tudor Davies Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates)

fForest Murmurs Part I Percy Pitt and Symphony Orchestral 55^3 \2-\n 1 50

\Forest Murmurs Part II Percy Pitt and Symphony Orchestral ' *'

381

SISTER ANGELICA

OPERA in one act. Text by
Gioachino Forzano; music by
Giacomo Puccini. First pro
duction at the Metropolitan Opera
House, New York, December 14, 1918.

CHARACTERS

(With Original Cast. )
SISTER ANGELICA (An-jay-lee-kah)

Geraldine Farrar
THE PRINCESS, her Aunt. .Flora Perini

THE ABBESS Rita Fornia

THE SISTER MONITOR, Marie Sundelius
THE MISTRESS OF THE NOVICES

Cecil Arden
SISTER GENOVEVA (Jen-oh-vay-vah)

Mary Ellis
SISTER OSMINA (Os-mee-nah)

Marguerite Belleri
SISTER DOLCINA (Dol-chee-nah)

Marie Mattfeld

Scene and Period: An Italian Convent;
Seventeenth Century

SISTER ANGELICA, daughter of a
Florentine noble, was forced by
her family to enter a convent after a
youthful love affair. Seven years have
elapsed, when the Abbess announces a
visitor, who proves to be the Princess^
Sister Angelica s aunt. She has come
for the signature of her niece to a legal
document, necessary before the mar
riage of a younger sister. The Princess
tells Angelica of the death of her boy
two years before, and, unmoved by
the grief of the girl, tells her that her
only course is one of long expiation.
In despair the girl swallows poison,
and as she is dying the Virgin appears
on the threshold of the church, lead
ing a little child. She gently pushes
the boy into his mother's arms, and
as the choir of nuns and angels
chant, forgiveness, Sister Angelica
passes away. By reason of its short
ness, the opera is frequently given with
CC I1 Tabarro."

IL TABARRO

(THE CLOAK)

OPERA in one act. Text by
Giuseppe Adami,based on
^Didier Gold's "La Houp-
plande"; music by Giacomo Puccini.
First production, Metropolitan Opera
House, New York, December 14, 1918.
Usually given with preceding opera.

scene of "II Tabarro" is Mi-
JL cheles barge on the Seine. Michele
suspects that his young wife, Giorgetta^
is in love with Luigi, his assistant. He
discovers that she is planning to meet
Luigi that night, and he decides to

lay in wait for him. When Luigi ap
pears he is attacked by the husband,
who forces a confession of his love for
Giorgetta^ and then strangles him.
Hearing his wife approaching, Michele
conceals the dead body under his cloak
and when she appears, terrified at the
sounds of the scuffle, she asks if he
does not want her to come rest under
his cloak. He throws open the gar
ment, and she screams in horror as
the body of her dead lover rolls at her
feet. The opera, though brief, is con
ceived in genuinely tragic spirit.

382

SNEGOUROTCHKA

SNEGOUROTCHKA (The Snow
Maiden), abounds in picturesque
scenes, representing Winter and
Spring, and the poetic little story is
supposed to take place in the happy
country of Berendey,an unknown prov
ince of an imaginary Russia, ruled by
a benevolent old Czar who has devoted
his life to the happiness of his people,
governing his kingdom by the law
of love.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts and a prologue.
Text by Ostrovsky, based on the
old folklore tale of the Snow Maiden.
Music by Nicolai Andreyevich Rimsky-
Korsakoff. First production St. Peters
burg, March, 1882. Produced at the
Private Opera, Moscow, 191 1. In
Paris, at the Opera Comique, June,
1908. Metropolitan Opera, 1922.

CHARACTERS

SNEGOUROTCHKA, the Snow Maiden
(Snyay-goo-rotch-kaK) .... Soprano

MISGUIR, her lover Baritone

SHEPHERD LEHL (Lay!) . . . .Contralto

CZAR BERENDEY Tenor

BOBY Bass

BOBYLYCKA, his wife Soprano

KOUPAVA, betrothed to Misguir

Contralto

The Scene is laid in Berendey, an
Imaginary Province of Russia

THE beautiful, unknown Snegou-
rotchka^ daughter of old Winter
and the fairy Spring^ is found one cold
morning by some villagers, abandoned
in the forest, and the old drunkard,
Eoby^ and his wife, Bobylycka, adopt
her without knowing her parentage.
Misguir, a merchant, falls in love with
her, abandoning his sweetheart, Kou-
pava, but Snegourotchka^ as her name

indicates, is made of ice, and her cold
ness and indifference discourage all the
young men who are infatuated with
her beauty. Even the handsome
Shepherd Lehl> who sings such wonder
ful songs, gives up in despair and offers
his heart to Koupava. The old Czar
is grieved that this coldness has entered
his kingdom, and offers the hand of
the Snow Maiden and a handsome gift
besides to any one who can win her
love. Sneg&urotchka finds it impos
sible to love, and appeals to her
mother, the fairy Spring^ who invokes
the aid of the flowers the carnation
lending its grace, the rose its heart and
the jasmine its languor. This influ
ence gradually touches the heart of
the Snow Maiden, and she finds her
self falling in love with the handsome
Misguir. They both attend the fes
tival of lovers and present themselves
to the good Czar as a betrothed couple.
But, alas, at the first kiss from her
lover the little snowflake melts and
disappears, while Misguir, in despair,
throws himself into the river.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

PROLOGUE JE CONNAIS, JE CONNAIS,
MA MfeRE

(I Know the Song of the Lark) LUCREZIA
BORI, Soprano In French

542 10-in., 31.50

ACT III
ALLER AU BOIS

(Go to the Forest) ALMA GLUCK, So
prano In French 647 10-in., 1.50

DANCE OF THE TUMBLERS.

STOKOWSKI and Philadelphia Orchestra

6431 12-in., 2.00

SONG OF THE SHEPHERD LEHL

ALMA GLUCK, Soprano In English

647 10-in., 1.50

383

FAMOUS OPEIVA HOUSES OF EUROPE

LA SONNAMBULA

(THE SOMNAMBULIST)

OUR grandfathers and grand
mothers regarded this opera
with the greatest favor, and as
one reviews its tuneful melodies, its
simple, natural story, one grows dis
posed to congratulate them on their
good sense. The opera was much be
loved among debutantes, both Albani
and Adelina Patti using it for their first
appearances in England. In the 30's
it was a novelty by a young and gifted
composer; by 1850 it was part of every
opera season, shining through a halo of

Ereat casts Malibran, Pasta, Jenny
ind, Gerster, Campanini, Grisi, and
it continued to be popular until the
Wagnerian era brought a revulsion
of feeling against the simplicities of
the Bellini school. Early in the twen
tieth century, however, this very sim
plicity proved its charm once more,
and came as a refreshing draught from
the bubbling spring of "pure" melody
in an operatic era which was to cul
minate with the "Salome" of Richard
Strauss, and even more complex works.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. Libretto
by Felice Romani; music by
Vincenzo Bellini. Produced at the
Teatro Carcano, Milan, March 6, 1831;
Paris, October 28, 1831; and at the
King's Theatre, London, July 28th
of the same year. At Drury Lane in
English, under the Italian title, May 1,
1883. First performance in New York
in English, at the Park Theatre, No
vember 13, 1835, withBrough, Richings
and Mr. and Mrs. Wood. First New
Orleans performance, January 14, 1840.
First performance in Italian in New
York, Palmo's Opera Company, May
11, 1844. Revived in 1905 at the
Metropolitan with Caruso, Sembrich
and Plangon; at the Manhattan Opera,

1909, with Tetrazzini, Trentini, Parola
and de Segurola.

CHARACTERS

COUNT RUDOLPH^ lord of the vil
lage Bass

TERESA (Tay-ress-sah) y miller-
ess Mezzo-Soprano

AMINA (Ah-mee f -nah\ orphan
adopted by Teresa, be
trothed to Elvino Soprano

ELVINO (El-vee'noti), wealthy

peasant Tenor

LISA (Lee~sati), inn-keeper, in

love with Elvino Soprano

ALESSIO (Al-les-shee-o), peasant,

in love with Lisa Bass

Peasants and Peasant Women

The Scene is laid in a Swiss Village

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Lah Son-nahm r -boo-la).

ACT I

SCENE A Village Green

THE charming Amina is about to
marry Rhino ^ and the friendly vil
lagers have made the event an occasion
to celebrate. This is not agreeable to
Lisa, who had hopes of winning Elvino
herself; her bitter reflections find voice
in a melodious air.

Alessio offers himself to Lisa for
consolation, but she is not receptive.
They are interrupted when Amina and
her friends enter, followed by Elvino,
for the signing of the marriage con
tract. Elvino places a ring on the fin
ger of his future bride as a sign of their
betrothal, and they sing a charming
duet, "Prendi 1' anel ti dono" (Take
Now This Ring).

The celebrations are interrupted by
the sound of horses* hoofs, and a hand-

385

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

some and distinguished stranger ar
rives, asking the way to the castle.
Finding it some distance off, he decides
to remain at the inn. He looks around
him, seeming to recognize the scene,
and he sings the air: "Vi rawiso" (As
I View These Scenes).

Inquiring the reason for the festivi
ties, the stranger is introduced to the
pretty bride, in whom he is much in
terested rather to Rhino's annoyance.
He tells the peasants that in his child
hood he lived with the lord of the castle,
and he now brings news of the lord's
only son, who disappeared some years
since.

The night approaches, and Amina s
mother, Teresa, declares it is time to go
indoors lest the "phantom" appear.
The stranger is told of a spectre that
has much been seen of late, and when
he scoffs at the story, the peasants de
scribe the ghostly visitant in the chorus
"Ah! fosco del!" (When Daylight's
Going).

The stranger, desiring rest, retires to
his room. Amina and Elvino remain;
the young man reproaches his sweet
heart for her unseemly interest in the
guest. At sight of her tears, however,
he repents of his jealous temper, and
begs forgiveness, the act closing with
a duet by the reconciled lovers.

ACT II

SCENE The Apartment of the Stranger

THE guest reflects that he might
have done worse than stay at this
little inn the people are courteous,
the women pretty, and the accom
modations quite good. Lisa enters
to see if he is comfortable, addressing
him as "my lord," and thus betraying
the fact that the villagers suspect
him of being Count Rudolph.

The Count takes it in good part, in
spite of being somewhat annoyed by
his recognition, but his mood changes
into amusement when he tries to flirt

with the buxom landlady, and she coyly
slips away, dropping her veil in the
process.

A surprise is now in store for him.
Amina calmly walks in through the
window, saying " 'Elvino , dost thou re
main jealous? I love but thee." The
Count quickly perceives that she is
walking in her sleep. Lisa peeps into
the room, and runs off scandalized, for
the unconscious Amina has by now
begun to disrobe. The embarrassed
Count not knowing quite what to do,
finally goes out by the window. Amina^
however, repeats in her dream the
marriage ceremony of the afternoon,
entreating Elvino to believe that she
loves him. She finally throws herself
on the bed.

By the time Lisa arrives with Elvino
and the villagers, they find her calmly
sleeping in the Count's room. She
wakes at the noise, bewildered, and
runs to Elvino y but he repulses her
roughly. She is met with cold looks
on all sides, and she sinks down in de
spair, weeping bitterly. Rousing her
self, she again protests her innocence,
but Elvino spurns her, and none will
believe her except her mother, to
whose arms she flies as Elvino rushes,
in anger, out of the room.

ACT III

SCENE I A Shady Valley near the
Castle

BELIEVING that the Count alone
may clear her good name, Amina
goes there with her mother. On the
way they meet Elvino^ and they again
plead with him. But they meet only
reproaches, and in his bitterness Elvino
roughly takes the betrothal ring from
the girl's finger and departs.

SCENE II A Street in the Village

ISA is informed that Elvino has
^ transferred his affections to her,
and is therefore overjoyed. When

386

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Elvino himself arrives, they depart for
the church. But on their way they are
met by the Count, who assures them of
Amina s innocence. Elvino flatly re
fuses to listen, bidding Lisa follow him.
He is stopped once more, however, by
Teresa, who, having heard of his pro
posed marriage, now shows him Lisas
veil, found in the Count's room. "De
ceived again!" cries the thoroughly per
plexed bridegroom, asking if any wo
men are to be trusted. The Count
again assures him viAmina's innocence.
"But where is the proof?" cries Elvino
"There 1" cries the Count suddenly.

He points to ward the roof of the mill,
upon which, to everybody's astonish
ment, Amina is seen in her night-dress,
carrying a lamp, and quite evidently
walking in her sleep. All watch,
breathlessly, fearing she will fall. She
climbs down to the bridge, over the
wheel, and descends the stairs. As she
makes the hazardous descent, she sings
the lovely air, "Ah! non credea mirarti"
(Could I Believe).

It opens with a tender cantabile in
minor key, its pathos fully in keeping
with Amina s plight, discarded by her
lover, doubted by her friends, and
mourning for her short-lived dream of
happiness.

Elvino can restrain himself no longer,
and he rushes toward the girl. She
wakes to find him kneeling at her feet,
and uttering a cry of delight, she raises
him and falls into his arms. Since
there is nothing now to mar their hap
py union, and even the mystery of the
"ghost" has become clear, the opera
closes with a joyous, bird-like air, in
keeping with the pastoral scene and the

mood of innocent happiness. This is
the "Ah, non giunge" (Oh, Recall Not
One Earthly Sorrow).

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT I
COME PER ME SERENO

(Oh! Love, for Me Thy Power) AMELITA
GALLI-CURCI, Soprano 6125 12-in., 52.00

SOVRA IL SEN

(While My Heart its Joy Revealing)
AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano

633 10-in., 1.50

VI RAVVISO

(As I View These Scenes) FEODOR
CHALIAPIN, Bass 981 10-in., 1.50

ACT III
AH! NON CREDEA MIRARTI

(Could I Believe) AMELITA GALLI-CURCI,

Soprano 6125 12-in., 2.00

AMINA;

Ah! must ye fade, sweet flowers,

Forsaken by sunlight and showers,
As transient as lover's emotion

That lives and withers in one short day!
But tho' no sunshine o'er ye,

These tears might yet restore ye,
But estranged devotion

No mourner's tears have power to stay!
From the Ditson Edition

AH! NON GIUNGE

(Oh, Recall Not One Earthly Sorrow)
LUISA TETRAZZINI, Soprano

6345 12-in., 2.00
AMINA:

Do not mingle one human feeling

With the rapture o'er each sense stealing;

See these tributes, to me revealing

My Elvino, true to love.

Ah, embrace me, and thus^ forgiving,

Each a pardon is now receiving;

On this bright earth, while we are living,

Let us form here a heaven of love!

387

STRADELLA

COMIC opera in three acts. Li
bretto adapted from Bonnet-
Bourdelet's Histoire de la Mu-
sique et de ses Effefs, published in Paris
in 1715. Music by Friedrich von Flotow.
First written as a lyric drama, "Stra
della" was produced at the Palais Royal,
Paris, in 1837, but was subsequently
rewritten and given at Hamburg, De
cember 30, 1844. Slight changes were
made in the English version by Bunn,
and the opera brought out in London,
June 6, 1846, as Alessandro Stradella.
Produced at Niblo's Garden, New
York, in 1856; at Academy of Music,
December 8, 1860; at the German
Opera House on Broadway, September,
1864; at Mrs. John Wood's Olympic,
February, 1867; revived at Thalia
Theatre, 1887; at the Metropolitan
Opera House, February 4, 1910, with
Gluck, Slezak, Goritz and Reiss.

CHARACTERS

ALESSANDRO STRADELLA, singer
(Ahl-lay-sahn 1 -droh Strah-del'-
lah) Tenor

BASSI, a wealthy Venetian

(Bahs'-see) Tenor

LEONORA, his ward (Lay-oh-noh '-

rah) Soprano

BARBARiNol bandit J Tenor

MALVOLIO J \ Baritone

Pupils, Peasants, etc.

Time and Place: Venice and the Vicinity
of Rome; about 2658

IN the opera Stradella^ having come
to Venice to write music, takes for
a pupil the ward of a rich Venetian.
He falls in love with, and finally elopes
with her. Bassi, the girl's guardian,
intending to marry her himself, is furi
ous when he discovers the affair. Bent
on revenge, he secures the services of
two bandits, Malvolio and Barbarino.
These worthies conceal themselves in
the singer's home, while Stradella and
Leonora are on their way to the church
to be married. On their return the
groom sings such a charming ballad
that the bravos decide to spare his life.

Bassi, however, when he learns that
his rival still is alive, calls them
cowards, and by increasing the amount
of the reward, induces them to consent
to carry out the plot. The three con
spirators go to the home of their victim
to await his return. Stradella appears
and begins to rehearse a hymn which
he is to sing at church on the morrow.
As he commences the bandits steal out
to stab him, but are so affected by his
singing of the beautiful hymn that
they are overcome with repentance,
and fall at his feet imploring forgive
ness. When Leonora appears Bassi
blesses their union, as the people ar
rive to pay homage to Stradella.

The Overture is one of the most ap
preciated works of Flotow, and it seems
to have taken a permanent place
among the "standards."

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

[Stradella Overture VesselWs Italian Band}

j Morning, Noon and Night in Vienna Overture (von Suppe) L

< Vessella's Italian Band]
/Stradella Overture Pietro

Morning, Noon and Night in Vienna Overture (von Suppe) 135276 12-in., 21-25

j - - _ - J. t*/ i/j sj.n,vr tti-i/ff.i'jt 1/3 C^AC 10' IOC 1

X Bridal Rose Overture (Lavallee) Pietro, Accordionist r^^ i^-m., 1.25

388

PHOTO WHITE

LEGEND OF KLEINZACH

TALES OF HOFFMAN

(CONTES D'HOFFMANN)

(French)

["AKE haste, make haste to
mount my piece," cried the
dying Offenbach to Car-
valho the producer, "I am in a hurry
and have only one wish in the world
to see the premiere of this work."
No doubt M. Carvalho did his best,
but he was too late, the composer
dying before he was ready. Offenbach
(whose real name was Levy), was born
at Offenbach-on-Main, 1819, the son of
a Jewish cantor. Like our own fore
most composer of light opera, Victor
Herbert, he began his career as a
'cellist, but soon gave it up to write
light operas, many of which he pro
duced himself. He was not a profound
musical scholar, but he had a pretty
gift for melody and a sense of rather
ironic humor, by which he rose into
great popularity. It may be remem
bered what a furore attended his visit

to America in 1875. It was said of
him that he had more wit than knowl
edge (le savoir-faire vaut mieux que le
savoir), and Grove's Dictionary sol
emnly laments that of his works "noth
ing will remain." This is premature,
for "The Tales of Hoffman" has re
gained some of its former popularity
and the Barcarolle will, apparently,
never be forgotten. The "Tales" was
his greatest work, and he lavished many
years upon it in the intervals of his
busy career. Unhappily he died be
fore he had completed even the scoring
and the work was revised and finished
by Guiraud. Offenbach died of cardiac
gout, at Paris, on October 5, 1880,
and a The Tales of Hoffman" was
only produced there February 10,
of the following year, so he missed
by four months the fulfilment of
his wish.

TH E O PE RA

OPERA in three acts, with prologue
and epilogue. Text by Jules
Barbier. Music by Offenbach. First
performance in Paris, February 10,

1881. First United States produc
tion October 16, 1882, at Fifth Avenue
Theatre, by Maurice Grau's French
Opera Company on their first appear-

389

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ance in America. Revived at the
Manhattan Opera House, New York,
November 27, 1907, and by the Metro
politan Opera Company in 1911, with
Hempel, Bori, Fremstad, de Segurola,
Ruysdael and Rothier.

CHARACTERS

THE POET HOFFMAN. Tenor

NICLAUS, his friend Soprano

OLYMPIA, GIULIETTA, ANTONIA, .
STELLA the various ladies
with whom Hoffman falls

in love Sopranos

COPPELIUS |

DAPERTurromis opponents.. .Baritone

MIRACLE J

(These three roles are usually
sung by the same artist)

LUTHER, an innkeeper Bass

SCHLEMIL, Giulietta's admirer. . . .Bass

SPALANZANI, an apothecary Tenor

COUNCILLOR CRESPEL, father of

Antonia. . . , Bass

THE PROLOGUE

SCENE Interior of the Tavern of Martin
Luther in Nuremberg

A GROUP of noisy students are
drinking quantities of light beer,
at the tavern of one facetiously named
Martin Luther^ who shares, however,
few of the characteristics of the great
reformer. Weary of their own stale
jokes, they are glad to welcome Hoff
man, a poet who has many gay songs
at the tip of his tongue. For their
entertainment he sings the "Legende
de Kleinzach" (Legend of Kleinzach).
It is a merry song, but it is not
completed, the poet falling off into
dreamland. A woman he has seen
that night at the theatre has awakened
old memories. His companions rally
him, but the lights go out. In comes
Martin Luther with a flaming bowl of
punch, over which the students make
merry. They soon fall to sentimental
ising over their own love affairs, when

Hoffman breaks in on them, by telling
of his own three loves. Scenting a
story, they gather around the poet,
who, sitting on the corner of the table,
begins, "The name of the first was

Olympia "

The curtain falls, and we see enacted
the story of his first love.

ACT I

SCENE A Physician's Room,, Richly
Furnished

HE tells of one Spalanzani^ a wealthy
and rather malicious citizen with
a mania for making automatons, mar
vellous mechanical dolls so lifelike that
one is almost deceived into believing
them human. One of these, named
Olympia y \it pretends to be his daughter.
Hoffman, it seems, has been provided
by him with a pair of magical glasses,
and to the amusement of his comrades
he falls in love with Olympia^ thinking
her genuine flesh and blood "C'est
elle" ('Tis she!) he sings.

His friend Nicholas endeavors his
best to prevent Hoffman from making
a fool of himself. But the guests, who
politely marvel at the wonder, are
thought by Hoffman to be in earnest,
and when he can snatch a word with
the doll, in private, he is thrilled by the
automatic "yes" that issues from her
clock-work throat.

The great event of the evening is
when Olympia is made to dance for the
guests' amusement. As 1 she dances,
also she sings, to the wonder of the
company and the enravishment of
Hqffman:"Do\\ Song Les oiseaux dans
la charmille." In this clever number
the rigid rhythm admirably suggests
the stiff movements of the doll and
there is a touch of comedy introduced
when she "runs down" with a life
like gasp and has to be rewound!

She dances and Hoffman dances
with her. Unfortunately she pirouettes
out of the room. In the excitement

390

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PHOTO WHITE

THE VENETIAN SCENE AT THE METROPOLITAN OPERA

Hoffman s glasses are knocked off, so
that when he, with the excited inventor
rush into the room where she had gone
he sees but a broken doll. "An
automaton!" he cries in despair, while
the guests roar with laughing at his
disillusion.

ACT II

SCENE Venice^ a Room in a Palace on
the Grand Canal

TO the radiant beauty of Venice
we are transported on the sway
ing rhythms of the Barcarolle, the
"Belle Nuit"- (Oh Night of Love).

The exquisite loveliness of this
melody, its enchanting rhythm and
rich orchestration (in which the 'cellos
superbly ring out), will never be for
gotten.

From Ditson Edition Copy't 1909

To the soft swaying of this melody
comes the Lady Giulietta^ a Venetian
coquette who is next, in the work of
Fate, to capture the heart of the

amorous Hoffman. No magic spec
tacles pervert the poet's gaze this time,
and he boasts to his friend Nathaniel
that neither is he to be blinded by any
mist of romance whatsoever. His
boast is overheard by Dapertutto^ the
lady's lover, and the malignant in
fluence which prevails in all three
romances, appearing as Spalanzani in
the first episode and Dr. Miracle in the
third. Dapertutto lays a wager with
Hoffman that he, too, will fall a victim
to the charms of Giulietta as Schlemil^
another young man, has fallen. In
token of conquest he is to give the girl
his reflection from a mirror! Giulietta
practices her art with such success
that when, a little later, Dapertutto
shows him a mirror which fails to
reflect his visage he is astonished. But
he is too deeply enmeshed now to care,
an easy victim to Dapertutto 1 s designs.
Giulietta is made to advise him that
Schlemil has the key to her room, and
that he has but to secure it to win her.
Schlemil appears and the two men
fight; Schlemil is killed. But when
Hoffman looks for Giulietta he sees her
sailing off in a gondola in the arms
of Dapertutto. Nathaniel^ the ever-

391

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

present protective influence, warns
him the police approach. Once more
he is disillusioned!

ACT III

SCENE Munich: the Home of
Antonio,

IN the humble home of Crespel,
a magic influence works. The wife
of Crespel has been done to death by
the vampire-like Dr. Miracle, and now
he seeks the daughter, Antonia, though
the father is striving his utmost to
shield her. The poor girl is con
sumptive, yet she possesses a mar
velous voice which she can use only
at the cost of her vitality. Hoffman
comes to see her, enamoured once more,
and she sings for him, greatly weaken
ing her little store of energy. Then
Dr. Miracle appears, and after mes
merizing her father commands her to
sing yet again. The dying girl protests,
but the portrait of her mother miracu
lously becomes suffused with light, and
the spirit voice commands her to sing:
Her response is the "Romance Elle a
fui" (The Dove Has Flown!)

With this number the unfortunate
maiden literally sings herself to death.
Her father endeavors to prevent her.
Hoffman rushes in and Crespel,, beside
himself, desires blood for her pale

cheeks when Dr. Miracle pronounces
her dead. He rushes at Hoffman,
knife in hand, but once more Nathaniel
arrives in the nick of time. So ends
the third romance.

THE EPILOGUE

SCENE Same as Act I, the Various

Characters in same Position as at

end of Act I

"npHERE is the history of my
JL loves/' cries the poet Hoffman,
still seated on the table. The students
applaud vigorously at the dramas-
within-a-drama which reveal the dis
illusionment, in turn, of the ^worship
of mere beauty, sensuous passion, and
the affection that springs from the
heart, with Olympia smashed, Antonia

dead and Giulietta ?

"Oh for her," laughs Hoffman" the
last verse of the song of Kleinzach."
So the party ends in merriment, and
the students leave. But Hoffman
does not go with them. He sits in a
dream, and presently a vision comes
to him of his poetic Muse, appearing
in an aureole of light. She alone is
faithful and her alone must' he, the
poet, serve with all his heart and soul.
She disappears. Stella, the woman
at the play who had stirred his old
memories comes in and finds him

PHOTO WHITE

THE BARCAROLLE ACT HI

392

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

asleep. "No," says his friend Nicholas ,
"dead drunk. Too late, madame!"
She goes off with the counselor 'Lindorf>
an admirer, but as she goes she stops

GARRISON AS THE DOLL

his

to look at Hoffman, throwing at
feet a flower from her bouquet.

The sleeping poet pays no heed.

More sweet than love, more accept
able than fame, is oblivion.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in French except as noted)

ACT II

DOLL SONG LES OISEAUX DANS LA
CHARMILLE
MABEL GARRISON, Soprano

6135 12-in., 32.00

ACT III
BARCAROLLE BELLE NUIT

(Oh, Night of Love) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano and ANTONIO SCOTTI, Baritone

3025 10-in., 2.00

ALMA GLTJCK, Soprano and LOUISE
HOMER, Contralto

3010 10-in., 2.00

JOHN McCoRMACK, Tenor and FRITZ
KREISLER, Violinist In English

3019 10-in., 2.00

Beauteous night, O night of love,
Smile thou on our enchantment;
Radiant night, with stars above,
O beauteous night of love!
Fleeting time doth ne'er return
But bears on wings our dreaming,
Far away where we may yearn,
For time doth ne'er return.
Sweet zephyrs aglow,
Shed on us thy caresses

ACT IV
ROMANCE ELLE A FUI

(The Dove Has Flown) LUCREZIA BORI,
Soprano 6049 12-in., 2.00

Lucy Marsh and Marguerite Dunlap\*c<+
Song. Lucy Marsh)

35337

10-in.,
12-in.,

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

f Barcarolle In English

\ Naughty Marietta Italian Street

Gems from "Tales of Hoffman" Victor Opera Company

Chorus, "Our Good Host" Solo, "Song of Olympia" Chorus,
"Hear Him His Tales Disclose" Solo, " Ah, Now Within My Heart"
Barcarolle, "Oh, Night Divine" Chorus, "See She Dances" Finale,
"Fill Up Our Glasses''
Gems from "Mignon" Victor Opera Company,

/Barcarolle Waltz (For Dancing) Victor Military Band\

\ Passing of SalomeWaltz Victor Military Band)

/Barcarolle Vlctor> Concert Orchestra\ m \\

I Cavalleria Rustic ana Intermezzo Victor Concert Orchestra)

/Venetian Scene with Barcarolle Vessella's Italian Band\

\ Slavonic Dance (Dvorak) Vessella's Italian Band)

/Barcarolle Shannon ^^13375 10-in.,

IMighty Lak' a Rose Shannon Quartet)

393

1.25

1Q .
*'

.75
1.25

.75

FROM A PAINTING BY K.NIELE

TANNHAUSER AND VENUS

TANNHAUSER

THE characters in this great opera
are not wholly imaginary. There
was a Landgrave of Thuringia,
named Hermann^ who held court in
the Wartburg. Wolfram von Eschenbach
was a minstrel knight who wrote the
"Quest of the Holy Grail" from which
Wagner took the story of "Parsifal.''
Tannhduser himself derives, in part,
from a knight-minstrel of that name
who served at the court of Duke Fred
erick II of Austria, early in the thir
teenth century, dying a penitent after a
somewhat top hilarious life. He has
been the subject of many folk-ballads
of Germany, and of a carnival play by

Hans Sachs (of Meistersinger fame).
Tannhduser was a Minnesinger (or
knight-minstrel) while the bourgeois
Hans Sachs was a Meistersinger (or
burgher minstrel) and many find a con
nection between Wagner's two operas
owing to this circumstance, combined
with a song-contest with a maiden's
hand in marriage as the prize. The
Elizabeth in the present opera seems to
be a Wagnerian adaptation of the origi
nal St. Elizabeth, of Austria, estimable
lady who is also the heroine of Liszt's
oratorio of the same name, which was
unsuccessfully presented as an opera a
few years ago. The contest of song in

394

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

which participated most of the knightly
minstrels mentioned in the above cast,
also is historical, and one Heinrich von
Ofterdingen (whom some writers iden
tify with Tannhauser) was saved from
a violent death by the Landgravine
Sophia, who threw her cloak over him.
This provides Wagner with the chief
incident of his second act. Many popu
lar ballads recount the story of Tann
hauser and the Venus of the Wartburg,
also that of the Pope's refusal to give
absolution to the penitent sinner and
the subsequent flowering of the papal
staff, as a mark of divine pardon.

"Tannhauser ' 'was produced at Dres
den while Wagner, as Hofkapellmeister,
was enjoying comparative luxury on a
salary of about twelve hundred dollars
a year. His "Rienzi" and "Flying
Dutchman" had already given him a
reputation of sorts, but "Tannhauser"
was not wholly successful in Dresden.
"You are a man of genius," said Mme.
Schroeder-Devrient, the Venus of the
occasion, "but you write such eccentric
stuff it is hardly possible to sing it."
The march in the second act was ad
mired, but critics found fault with its
"lack of form," and the Intendant of
the Theatre, like a modern movie-im
presario, objected to the unhappy
ending "why shouldn't Tannhauser
marry Elizabeth?" he querulously asked.
Nevertheless, the work attracted at
tention. Liszt, prompt as ever in the
recognition of genius, had the overture
performed at Weimar, 1848, and he
produced the entire work four months
later; and other leading German opera
houses followed. The comments of
contemporary musicians make sport
for the present generation. Spohr, an
older composer, disposed to admire the
newcomer, nevertheless wrote, "The
opera contains much that is new and
beautiful . . . also several ugly at
tacks on one's ears." Moritz Haupt-
mann, a great man in his day, pro

nounced the overture (now the most
popular of all overtures) "quite atro
cious, incredibly awkward, long and
tedious." Mendelssohn, then in his
heyday, patronizingly admired "a ca
nonical answer in the adagio of the sec
ond finale" which "had given him
pleasure." The generous and warm
hearted Robert Schumann, however,
wrote to Dorn, "I wish you could see
'Tannhauser;' it contains deeper, more
original, and altogether an hundred
fold better things than his previous
operas at the same time a good deal
that is musically trivial. On the whole
Wagner may become of great impor
tance and significance to the stage."
Thus prophesied the musician whose
judgment again revealed itself a little
later when he hailed the young Brahms
with his memorable "Hats off; a
genius!"

To many persons "Tannhauser " is the
greatest of all operas. It represents a
period in Wagner's life before he had
abandoned the opera-form for the
music-drama. Its music is of noble
character throughout. 1 1 does not, like
the "Ring of the Niebelungen", deal
chiefly with the sins and the weaknesses
of pagan gods, but with those of as
piring, suffering, self-defeated human
ity. To those who look for the "moral
lesson" in a work of art, there is no dis
appointment; for the whole opera, with
its magnificence of structure and its
richness of detail, at bottom only typi
fies the struggle between the good and
the baser elements in the human soul.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. Words
and music by Richard Wagner.
First presented at the Royal Opera,
Dresden, October 19, 1845; at the
Opera, Paris, March 13, 1861; in
Italy, at Bologna, 1872. First London
production at Covent Garden, in Ital
ian, May 6, 1876. First American

395

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

production at the Stadt Theatre, New
York, April 4, 1859, in German. First
production in Italian at the New
Orleans Opera in 1877.

CHARACTERS

HERMANN, Landgrave of Thur-

ingia ................ . ..... Bass

TANNHAUSER

( Tahn r -hoy-zer) Tenor

WOLFRAM VON

ESCHENBACH

WALTHER VON DER

VOGELWEIDE
BITEROLF
HEINRICH DER

SCHREIBER
REINMAR VON

ZWETER
ELIZABETH, Niece of the Land

grave .................. Soprano

VENUS ..................... Soprano

A Young Shepherd .......... Soprano

Four Noble Pages . . . Soprano and Alto

Minstrel
Knights

Baritone

Tenor
Bass

Chorus of Thuringian Nobles and

Knights, Ladies, Elder and Younger

Pilgrims, Sirens, Naiads, Nymphs,

Bacchantes

Scene and Period: Vicinity of Eisenach;
Beginning of the Thirteenth Century

Overture to "Tannhauser,"
JL which has been recorded, sums up in
miniature the whole story of the opera,
and really its whole theme. It con
trasts the solemn and beautiful "Pil
grims' Chorus' ' with the weird abandon
of the Venusberg music. It is so com
plete in form and so rich in material
that it has become, through the long
passage of years, perhaps the best-be
loved of all operatic overtures. Liszt
called it a "poem upon the same sub
ject as the opera," and he considered it,
in its way, just as comprehensive. It
contains enough musical ideas to keep
busy a score of lesser composers for the
whole of their respective lifetimes.
It begins with the "Pilgrims' Chorus"

COPY'T MISHKIN

WITHERSPOON AS THE
LANDGRAVE

PHOTO GERLACH

GADSKI AS ELIZABETH

PHOTO GERLACH

FARRAR AS ELIZABETH

396

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

itself, in horns and deep woodwinds,
softly at first, but repeated with a
growing fortissimo, against a smashing
triplet-rhythm.

The chant returns very softly, break
ing off before the first voluptuous rush-
ings of the Venusberg music:

This flying motive is developed and
redeveloped with ever-increasing vehe
mence. At its climax, it gives way be
fore the knightly, swinging "Hymn to
Venus," later sung by Tannhauser in the
opera. The hymn never ends twice in
the same fashion. Heard twice in the
overture, the first time it dissolves,
after a series of abortive half-climaxes,
into the Venusberg music, as if be
neath some new spell of the goddess,
whose most exquisite love-motive next
is heard, very softly, first in the clarinet
against shimmering strings.

The hymn is repeated, this time
with a triumphant end, before the tale
is again swallowed up in the riot of the
bacchanale music. The "Pilgrims' Cho
rus" returns, this time in4/4 time, thun
dered out majestically by trombones
and trumpets, the strings working
against it a new, swift, subtle Venus
berg theme, very softly, as though the
last echoes of the place were dying out.
Near the close there is a high horn
counter-melody which is one ^of the
finest inspirations, perhaps, in the
whole overture.

There are two versions of "Tann
hauser." In the original, the overture
comes to an end and the first act begins
as a separate musical entity. ^ In the
so-called "Paris" version, revised to
meet the demands of the French Grand
Opera for ballet music, the overture

does not close, but rushes directly into
the music of the first scene.

ACT I

SCENE I Within the Hill of Venus
Nymphs , Sirens, Na'iads and Bacchantes
Dancing or Reclining Luxuriously upon
Undulating Banks. In a Distant Lake.,
Naiads are Bathing

IN the foreground of this scene, in
which the attendants of Venus are
disporting themselves, Venus reclines
upon a couch, gazing at Tannhauser.
The minstrel knight is in a dejected
attitude, weary of this life of the senses
which, now that experience has brought
repletion, has grown so revolting.
Venus chides him, when he rouses him
self to sing her praises anew. But his
words are forced, and in the end he
confesses that he yearns once more for
the earth he has left. The outraged
Venus^ after vainly striving to recall
him from himself, finally bids him be
gone, predicting his ultimate return.
The scenemiraculouslychanges. Venus
and her host have disappeared, and
Tannhauser suddenly finds himself in a
beautiful sunlit valley.

SCENE 11^ Valley

IN this lovely vale, whose calm and
sunny serenity is in such contrast
with the scenes he has just left, Tann
hauser finds himself near a wayside
shrine, before which he kneels in prayer
and repentance. From a nearby hill a
shepherd pipes his lay, and the tinkling
of sheep-bells is heard. A company of
Pilgrims pass, singing their chant as
they journey to Rome, and the shep
herd ceases piping to beg that they
shall say a prayer for him. The scene
is one of extraordinary beauty, and has
been recorded.

The beauty and the peace of the
earth brings balm to the soul of the
erring but repentant knight, and, fall
ing to his knees, he gives thanks to the

397

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Almighty in a splendid noble phrase.
While he is thus engaged, the Land
grave and his minstrel-knights enter,,
and perceiving a strange knight so de
voutly at his orisons, are moved to
wonder. They recognize him with
astonishment, and call him by the
name by which he was formerly known
to them, "Henry!" At first they are
in doubt as to whether his visit is
friendly or otherwise, but Wolfram, his
old friend and minstrel rival, comes to
him with outstretched hands. He
gives indirect replies to their wondering
questions as to where he has been dur
ing the past years. The Landgrave
urges him to come back with him, and
as an inducement, Wolfram tells how
much Elizabeth, the niece of the Land
grave*, longs for the return of the knight
whose minstrelsy has won their tro
phies in the past. Tannhauser joyfully
consents to return and promises to
compete in the forthcoming Tourna
ment of Song, the prize for which is to

be the hand of Elizabeth. The remain
der of the Landgrave's hunting train
arrives in time to greet the minstrel-
knight, and the curtain closes upon a
grand finale.

ACT II

SCENE The Great Hall of Song in the
Castle of Wartburg

OVERJOYED at the return of
Tannhauser,, Elizabeth greets the
hall of song with a rapturous hail to the
memories of the minstrel's former
triumphs there. This is the "Dich,
teure Halle" (Hail, Hall of Song).

Tannhauser enters and kneels at the
feet of Elizabeth^ who in confusion bids
him arise. A long scene follows be
tween the lovers; in the midst of it,
Wolfram enters, only to realize that his
own hopes of Elizabeth are done. His
grave and dignified self-forgetfulness
form a curious contrast to the rapture
of Tannhauser and Elizabeth.

It is the day of the Contest, and the

BRAND, BAYREUTH

THE HALL OF SONG ACT II

398

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Minstrels and Courtiers enter to a
great processional march, acclaiming
the Landgrave and wishing him a happy
reign. The Landgrave replies with
beautiful dignity, and the contest be
gins. Four pages, who have drawn
lots from a cup, announce that Wol-
fram will sing first upon the subject of
Love. He sings with power and elo
quence of a Love that is pure and free
from stain. Tannhauser^ with memo
ries of his life in the Venusberg, shows
impatience at this praise of a love that
is chaste but tepid. He at length
breaks in to exalt a more earthly type
of love. Comment and dismay follow,
and Biterolf^ a hot-headed knight, rises
and challenges to mortal combat the
unfortunate Tannhauser^ who as ex
citedly returns that such a grim wolf as
Biterolf knows little of the delights of
love. In wild exultation, he then breaks
into his blasphemous"Praise of Venus."
All is confusion, and the knights rush
from their seats with drawn swords.

Elizabeth, who has listened with
horror and amazement to her lover's
impious chant, now casts herself be
tween the knights and Tannhauser.
She now begs for his life, in phrases,
and in music, of sublime beauty. The
Landgrave pronounces judgment, de
claring Tannhauser banished from the
realm. He suggests that the knight
may journey to Rome with a band of
Pilgrims about to start for that city.
In the distance is heard the c< Pilgrims'
Chant," and the strains thrill^the peni
tent soul of the erring knight. "To
Rome," he cries, "to Rome!" and^ so
leaves the despairing but pitying
Elizabeth.

ACT III

SCENE The Valley Beneath the Wart-
burg. At one side a Shrine

IT is a year later. Elizabeth waits at
the shrine for the returning Pilgrims.
Hardly daring to hope for Tannhauser s

return, she kneels in prayer. Certain
that he will find her before the shrine,
Wolfram approaches down, a woodland
path. He notes with grief -her changed
appearance and muses on his own hope
less love. The song of a band of Pil
grims is heard in the distance, and
when they draw near, Elizabeth eagerly
scans their faces for that of the missing
Tannhauser. He is not among them,
and the despairing maid kneels again at
the shrine, offering her prayer to the
Virgin. This Is the wonderful "Elisa
beths Gebet" (Elizabeth's Prayer).

Its solemn and pathetic beauty has
made it familiar to all music lovers; it
often is heard in the concert-room.

For a long time she remains kneeling,
then rises as one entranced. Wolfram
now approaches. She bids him by
gesture not to speak, but he begs leave
to escort her safely homeward. Eliza
beth again, by a beautiful gesture, sig
nifies that her way leads to Heaven
alone. She slowly ascends the height
and disappears from view.

Night draws its soft veil about the
scene, but Wolfram^ lost in his dream,
lingers beside the shrine. His harp is
near, and taking it in hand he begins to
preludize upon it. The evening star
appears, and his mood finding inspira
tion in its pale lustre, he sings the ten
der and beautiful "O du mein holder
Abendstern" (The Song to the Evening
Star).

Yet even while Wolfram s fingers
still pluck idly at the strings, a stranger
appears clad in the raiment of a Pil
grim, his face wild and drawn. It is
Tannhauser^ who supports his weary
limbs with a Pilgrim's staff. Wolfram
greets him with profound emotion, and
learns that he has failed to win the for
giveness of the Pope, who vowed never
to forgive him till the barren papal
staff should again put forth leaves and
blossoms. In despair, Tannhauser is
determined to return to the Venusberg;

399

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

as he voices the old desire, once more
are heard the wild strains of the Venus-
berg music. The mountainside opens,
the Goddess herself appears as in a
vision, beautiful, open-armed, sing
ing her delirious and seductive melody.
Wolfram struggles for a long time with
Tannhauser; finally it occurs to his tor
mented consciousness to mention the
name of Elizabeth. The unhappy
Tannhauser^ in sudden repentance,
sinks to his knees. As the dawn slowly
disperses the darkness, minstrels are
seen approaching. They carry between
them a bier upon which lies the body of

Elizabeth^ whose prayers have saved
the soul of the repentant sinner at the
cost of her own life, for even while
Tannhauser kneels beside her body, a
procession of Pilgrims is seen on the
heights above, announcing how, shortly
after Tannhauser had left, the papal
staff had miraculously brought forth
green leaves. Tannhauser has been
redeemed through the prayers of Eliza
beth. Supported by Wolfram^ he looks
once upon her face, and while the Pil
grims sing their praises to the Lord, he
kneels beside her body and gives up the
ghost.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

ACT II
DICH, TEURE HALLE

(Oh, Hall of Song) MARIA JERJTZA, So
prano In German 688 10-in., 31.50
OVERTURE Parts I and II

STOKOWSKI and Philadelphia Orchestra

6244 12-in., 2.00
OVERTURE Part III

STOKOWSKI and Philadelphia Orchestra

74768 12-in., 1.50

ACT III
ELISABETHS GEBET

(Elizabeth's Prayer) EMMY DESTINN,

Soprano In German 6085 12-in., 2.00
MARTA JERITZA, Soprano In German

6172 12-in., 2.00
ELIZABETH:

Oh, blessed Virgin, hear my prayer!
Thou star of glory, look on me!
Here in the dust I bend before thee
Now from this earth, oh, set me free!
Let me, a maiden pure and white,
Enter into thy kingdom bright!
If vain desires and earthly longing
Have turn'd my heart from thee away,
The sinful hopes within me thronging,
Before thy blessed feet I lay;

I'll wrestle with the love I cherish'd,
Until in death its flame hath perish'd.
If of my sin thou will not shrive me,
Yet in this hour, oh grant thy aid!
Till thy eternal peace thou give me,
I vow to live and die thy maid.
And on thy bounty I will call,
That heav'nly grace on him may fall!

DU MEIN HOLDER ABENDSTERN

(The Evening Star) EMILIO DEGoooRZA,

Baritone In German 6352 12-in., 32.00
WOLFRAM:

Like Death's dark shadow, Night extended! .
Her sable wing o'er all the vale she bendeth;
The soul that longs to tread yon path of light,
Yet dreads to pass the gate of Fear and Night,
I look on thee, oh, star in Heaven the fairest,
Thy gentle beam thro' space thou bearest;
The hour of darkness is by thee made bright,
Thou lead'st us upward by pure light.
ev'ning star; thy holy light
Was ne'er so welcome to my sight,
With glowing heart, that ne'er disclos'd;
Greet her when she in thy light reposed;
When parting from this vale of vision,
She rises to an angel's mission.
(He continues to play, his eyes raised to
Heaven)

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

ITannhauser Overture Part I ................ Victor Symphony Orchestra\^^

ITannhauser Overture Part II ................ Victor Symphony Orchestral^ /l/

ITannhauser Overture Part III ............... Victor Symphony Orchestral

ITannhauser Fest March Act II .............. Victor Symphony Orchestral

fLied und Chor der Pilger (Shepherd's Song and Pilgrims' Chorus) (Part I) ]

{ (In German) ........................ Gertrude Runge and Nebe uartete\6 < ttt$l

iLied und Chor der Pilger (Part II) ...... Gertrude Runge and Nebe Quartete)

400

*~ .
u ~ m '>

* -
1 ^" ln *>

- c
L25

12-in., 1.25

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

/Selection from Tannhauser Arthur Pryor's Band]

\ Madame Butterfly Selection, No. 2 Arthur Pry or' s ~

/The Evening Star Rosario Bourdon, 'Cellistl* x- Q1 /

I Last Rose of Summer Elizabeth Wheeler, Soprano) ^ U

Pil

/The Evening Star (In English) Alan Turner y Baritone\^4A,-

\ The Rosary (Nevin) Alan Turner^ Baritone!

/Pilgrims' Chorus Pry or' s Band}

\ Lohengrin Coro delle nozze (Bridal Chorus) (In Italian) . . . , La Scala Chorusl

{

rims' Chorus ................................. Victor Brass

on Carlos Grand March (Verdi) ....................... Sousa's Band

/Pilgrims' Chorus
I Trov afore Anvil

(In English) Victor Male Chorusl^*,*

Chorus (In English) Victor Male Chorus)

{Dich, teure Halle (Hail, Hall of Song) (In German) . . . .Louise Voigt, Soprano}
Freischiitz Leise, leise^fromme Weise (Agatha's Prayer] (In German) ?68473

Louise Voigt) Soprano*

Fantasia on Tannhauser (Dream of Wagner) Pry or' s Band

Prelude, Act II Air for Venus, Act I Duet, Elizabeth and

10-in.,
10-in.,
10-in.,
10-in.,
10-in.,

12-in,,

.75

.75
.75
.75

1.25

Tannhauser, Act II Bacchanale, Act I Tannhauser's Air, Act I

Reminiscences of Verdi Sousa's Band

Excerpts from "Rigoletto" "Trovatore" "Traviata"

35230 12-in., 1.25

SETTING OF ACT III AT THE METROPOLITAN

401

THAIS

THIS opera was composed by
Massenet with a view to provide
the American singer, Sybil San
derson, with a role worthy or her tal
ents. After its successful production
in Paris, the composer went to Milan to
supervise the performance at La Scala,
where, as he records in his memoirs, he
for the first time met Enrico Caruso.
Since the Hammerstein production,
"Thais" has been perhaps the most
popular of Massenet's worksin America,
largely due to the beautiful Meditation.

THE OPERA

OPERA in three acts. Libretto
by Louis Gallet, based on the
novel of Anatole France; music by
Jules Massenet. First production at
the Opera Comique, Paris, 1894, and
the opera has since been given in nearly
every music capital of Europe. First
American production November 25,
1908, at the Manhattan Opera House,
New York. Revived at the Metro
politan Opera House, 1917.

CHARACTERS

THAIS, actress and courtesan

(Tah-ees') Soprano

ATHANAEL, a Cenobite monk. Baritone
NICIAS, a wealthy Alexandrian . .Tenor
PALEMON, an aged Cenobite monk. Bass
ALBINE, an abbess .... Mezzo-Soprano
CROBYLE I i , c

MYRTA LE } slave S irls Sopranos

Monks, Nuns, Citizens, Servants,

Dancers, etc.

Time and Place: Alexandria and the
Egyptian Desert. Early Christian Era

ACT I

SCENE I The Camp of the Cenobites
near the Nile

IN a time when Alexandria is
wrapped in luxury and profligacy,
Thais-) a priestess of Venus, is recog

nized as the loveliest of all women.
Athanael) a Cenobite monk, who has
been to the city in an effort to preach
the gospel, returns to his devout as
sociates with strange stories of Alex
andria's subtle wickednesses. Wearied
from his journey, but stirred by his
own recital, he falls asleep, when a
vision comes to him of Tha'is herself,
posing in the Alexandrian Theatre
before a great throng which is in
rapture over her beauty. He is deter
mined to "reform" her, and against
the advice of the good Palemon, he sets
out upon this mission.

SCENE II The House of Nicias
at Alexandria

IN Alexandria, Athanael has a
friend of his former unregenerate
days in Nicias, whose palace occupies
a commanding situation in Alexandria.
As Athanael looks down from the ter
race upon the wonderful yet wicked
city beneath him, he reflects, in a mys
terious air, upon its alluring but un
hallowed beauty: "Voila done la ter
rible cit6" (That Awful City I Behold).
Nicias greets his old friend with
courtesy, but is moved to laughter at
his apparently whimsical notion of re
forming the lovely Tha'is, upon whom
Nicias himself has squandered a for
tune. Willing to help for old time's
sake, however, he has his household
slaves array Athanael in rich robes,
concealing his monkish habit. When
at last Tha'is herself arrives she is at
first repelled by this austere visitor,
but her curiosity is awakened, none the
less. Athanael tells her that he has
come to bring her to the only God,
whose humble but jealous servant he
stands before her. Thais' s reply is
characteristically pagan she believes
in the joy of living; but she is none
the less impressed. dthanael leaves,

402

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

shocked by the preparations for an orgy,
which he beholds going on about him.

ACT II

SCENE I The Apartments of Thais

IN her room lies Tha'is, weary of
her world, for the moment wearied
with luxury, and stirred to an un
usual soberness by memories of the
monk who has come to reform her.
Nearby is a figure of Venus, whose
priestess and votarist Tha'is remains;
before it burns incense. The floor is
covered with precious rugs of Byzan
tium, and many an exotic odor is blown
in from the rich blossoms in vases of
agate. Athanael comes to her, and
she answers his singular admoni
tions lightly. But one fear lurks in
the heart of Thais; she knows that in
time her beauty must fade as the
blooms around her. Yet Athanael
speaks to her of life everlasting, of an
eternal beauty of the spirit. Gradually
the vision of a new and higher life
comes to the pagan priestess, half
frightened, half defiant. Athanael
leaves her, confident she must repent.
"On thy threshold till dawn I shall
await thy coming," declares the in
exorable Athanael) who longs to lead
her to a convent in the desert.

SCENE II A Street in Alexandria

TRUE to his word Athanael main
tains vigil Sounds of revelry
come to him from an adjacent house,
where Nicias keeps the night hours.
Towards dawn, Thais appears, worn
and repentant after a night of emo
tion, ready now to follow her holy
guide into the wilderness. She leaves
everything behind her, only begging
that she may bring with her a small
statue of Eros (Cupid) which has been
given her by Nicias. This Athanael
casts to the ground, shattering it into
a thousand fragments. He then goes

into her palace to set fire to her mani
fold treasures. Thais accepts her sac
rifice without demur. As soon as they
are gone, Nicias appears, having won
heavily at the games. He orders fresh
dancing, wine and music, and a scene
of luxury is revealed in the awakening
day. Thais enters, in the robes of a
penitent, followed by her lamenting
women, and accompanied by the stern
monk. The attendants of Nicias are
enraged at the prospective loss of
Thais^ and the firing of the palace.
They seek to hang Athanael. To save
him, Nicias throws gold coins among
them, and as the crowd scrambles for
the money, Athanael and Thais de
part for the desert and a life of
repentance.

ACT III

SCENE I A Desert Oasis

npORTURED by lack of water, and
JL weary with her long journey, Tha'is
almost faints though the end of the
journey is in sight. Athanael remorse
lessly drives her on, and she goes will
ingly. But the monk is moved to pity
as he notes her sufferings. He permits
her to lie down while he bathes her
feet, and he gives her fruit and water.
An exquisite scene follows, "D'acqua
aspergimi" (With Holy Water Anoint
Me).

Thais now seems uplifted, beyond
the dominion of flesh, into great spir
itual exaltation; she is glad when the
Abbess Albine and the White Sisters
come to lead her to a cell in the con
vent, a short way off. At last she has
found that peace for which her soul
has craved. Only Athanael is troubled.

SCENE II The Cenobites' Camp

BACK among the brethren, Athanael
is compelled to confess to the aged
Palemon ' that he has saved Tha'is at
the cost of his own soul Passionately,
raging at himself, he strives to cast out

403

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

of his mind the memories of her human
weakness and of her intoxicating
beauty. He longs for her, and cannot
now put down the desires that have
sprung up within his tortured and
struggling consciousness. In sleep, a
vision comes to him of Thais ^ lovely,

PHOTO WHITE

ATHANAEL: "Courage, oh, my sister!
The dawn of rest begins.*'
(Act II, Scene II)

self-sure, mocking, as he first beheld
her in Alexandria; then the vision
changes and he sees her differently, her
face illumined with the white fervor
of religious mysticism as she lies dying
in the convent. Awakening in terror

he rushes out into the darkness to seek
her retreat.

SCENE III The Convent of the White
Sisters

THAIS, worn with repentance and
self-denial, is dying; upon her
worn eyelids there falls, in truth, the
"peace that passeth understanding."
Athanael comes to her, shaken and
distraught. He implores her to return
with him to Alexandria. There is no
reply. She sees the gates of Heaven
before her and hears the sweet and
powerful beating of angels' wings as
the life slips away. Athanael^ cheated
by himself, falls to the ground in
despair.

The lovely "Meditation" symbolizes
the conversion of Thais ^ "Thy word
has remained in my heart as a balm
divine." It is first heard between the
acts, a violin solo accompanied by
harp and strings. But it recurs again
in the scene in the oasis of the desert,
and is at last triumphantly heard at
the end, as Thais lies dying, enriched,
ennobled, and with the melodies sung
by the repentant sinner and the con
current voices of the orchestra.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

INTERMEZZO

(Meditation Religiease) (Te souvient-il
du lumineux voyage) GERALDINE
FARRAR, Soprano In French

6111 12-in., #2.00

FRITZ KREISLER, Violinist 6186 12-in., 2.00
MISCHA ELMAN, Violinist 6100 12-in., 2.00

BLACK LABEL RECORD

(Intermezzo (Meditation) Maximilian Pi/zer,

\ Humoresque (Dvorak) Maximilian Pi!zer> Violinist

12-in., 31.25

404

TOSCA AND SCARPIA ACT II

TOSCA

AFTER the romantic charm of
l\ "La Boheme," Puccini turned
JL. \~ to the gruesome play of Sardou
for a source of inspiration. "La Tosca"
was the fifth of his works, coming
between "Boheme" and "Butterfly."
The story is "tense" and even sensa
tional, so much depending upon the
action that Puccini's musical oppor
tunities were limited. "Tosca"has
been called a play with incidental
music, but this hardly does justice to
the skilful characterization which Jie
reveals throughout, especially with
Scarpia. The opera might as well
have been called "Scarpia" as "Tosca,"
for this sinister gentleman dominates
the whole of the action.

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Illica and Giacosa after Sardou's
drama. Music by Giacomo Puccini.
First produced at the Constanzi The
atre, Rome, January 14, 1900. First
London production at Cpvent Garden,
July 12, 1900. Given in Constanti
nople and Madrid in 1900. During
1901, brought out in Odessa, January
1st; Lisbon, January 29th; Santiago,
July 29th; Cairo, November 26th.
First in Germany at Dresden, October
21, 1902; in France, at Paris, October
13, 1903, in French, and October 31,
1904, in Italian. Given at Budapest,
May 10, 1906; Berlin, January, 1907;
Vienna, October 26, 1909. First pro
duction in the Americas at Buenos

405

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Aires, June 16, 1900; in the United
States, February 4, 1901, at the Metro
politan, the cast including Ternina,
Cremonini, Scotti and Gilibert. Also
produced in English by Henry W.
Savage. The opera has become a fix
ture in the American opera repertoire,
and more than fifty performances have
been given at the Metropolitan since
1908, besides those by the Chicago
Opera Company and various traveling
companies.

CHARACTERS

FLORIA TOSCA (JFloh'-ree-ah Toss 1 -

kah) a celebrated singer . . Soprano
MARIO CAVARADOSSI (Mah'-ree-oh

Cav-a-rah-doss'-ee} a painter,Tenor
BARON SCARPIA (Scar'-pee-ah) chief

of the police Baritone

CESARE ANGELOTTI (Chay-zahr'-ay

Ahn-jeUot'-tee) Bass

A SACRISTAN Baritone

SPOLETTA (Spo-let f -tah) a police

agent Tenor

SCIARRONE, a gendarme (Shar-rohn f -

nay] Bass

Judge, Cardinal, Officer, Sergeant,

Soldiers, Police Agents, Ladies,
Nobles, Citizens

Scene and Period; Rome, June, 1800

ACT I

SCENE Interior of the Church of
St. Andrea

npHERE is no overture or prelude.
JL As the curtain rises we hear the
three chords of Scarpia thundered out,
and we behold the high-vaulted in
terior of the church. Angelotti enters,
pale, dishevelled, panic-stricken, in
prison garb. He looks hurriedly around,
soon discovering the key or the At-
tavanti chapel hidden for him by his
sister. The escaped prisoner has barely
had time to conceal himself before the
Sacristan appears, with Cavaradossi's

paint-brushes, which he has been
cleaning. As the Sacristan approaches
the platform on which the painter has
been standing to decorate the church,
the Angelus is heard and he sinks to
his knees. In this reverent position
he is found by Cavaradossi, returning
to work. Cavaradossi has been paint
ing a fair-haired, blue-eyed Madonna,
using for his model an unknown wor
shipper in the church, whose beauty
has amazed him. She is the sister of
his friend Angelotti, but he is not aware
of it. His interest in the portrait is
purely artistic, as we learn from the
charming melody in which he discusses
the more or less technical question of
its contrasted colors. This is known
as "Recondita armonia" (Strange
Harmony).

Eager to continue work, he dismisses
the Sacristan, who departs after a
covetous glance at a neglected basket
of food for the painter, which has been
left on the platform. Cavaradossi has
said he is not hungry, but the Sacristan
does not share his lack of appetite.
Scarcely has the man left him than the
painter is startled to hear the sound of
a key, turning sharply the lock of the
chapel-door. Angelotti appears, wild-
eyed at the sight of a stranger. His
look changes to one of relief as he
recognizes an old friend, Cavaradossi.
He makes known his condition, and
the painter promises every aid. Giv
ing him the basket of food, he advises
him to hide in the chapel, as the voice
of a woman is heard without, calling
to Cavaradossi, "Mario! Mario!" This
is La Tosca, the beautiful singer, the
betrothed of Cavaradossi. With a few
hurried directions, the painter dis
misses Angelotti, who takes with him a
woman's dress, belonging to his sister,
who has left it in the church along with
the key.

When Tosca enters, she is enraged
that Cavaradossi has kept her waiting.

406

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

LE THEATRE

TOSCA AND MARIO INT THE CHURCH ACT I

She is suspicious of his confusion, too,
believing she has heard him talking to
a woman. The painter consoles her
jealousy in lover-like fashion, but her
anger breaks out afresh when she dis
covers that he is painting a fair-haired
Madonna. Her own hair is dark and
her eyes coal-black. He again quiets
her jealous fancies, and she departs,
arranging to meet him again that
evening after the brief part she has to
take in a cantata to be sung to the
queen.

After Tosca has gone Angelotti re
turns. He is directed to a place of
escape, to await Cavaradossi later.
Even as the men converse the sound
of cannon is heard booming out the
announcement that a political prisoner
has escaped. Angelotti rushes off in a
frenzy of fear, knowing that his im
placable enemy, the chief of police,
Scarpia, already has taken up the trail.
Mario goes with him to point a further
way to escape.

The Sacristan returns, is surprised
to find Mario Cavaradossi has gone.
With him are members of the choir,
brought to prepare for a festival, news
of Bonaparte's defeat having arrived.
The excitement is hushed, however,
when the dreaded Scarpia with his
assistant Spoletta and the police enter
the church, infuriated at Angelotti s
escape. The prisoner has been traced
to the sacred building, and Scarpia
savagely questions the Sacristan. The
empty food-basket and the key to the
chapel are discovered, and a fan be
longing to Angelotti 's sister. Hearing
that La Tosca has been to the church,
Scarpia resolves to use the fan to
arouse her jealousy, as lago used
Desdemona's kerchief in his plot
against Othello. Still doubting her
lover, Tosca returns, and Scarpia loses
little time in setting his plan into ef
fect. He approaches her, courteously
enough, in the familiar aria, " Tosca
Divina" (Divine Tosca!).

407

VJCTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PHOTO BOYER

THE TE DEUM ACT I

At first she ignores his man's atten
tions, but Scarpia^ with considerable
skill, insinuates that she is not like
other women who come to the church
to distribute their favors. Then he
exhibits the fan. The excitable singer
soon is wrought to a high pitch of
jealousy regarding Mario. She leaves
the church weeping, just as the pro
cession enters for the festival Te Deum
in honor of the victory. Scarpia bows
low to the Cardinal, concealing be
neath an attitude of respectful rever
ence, a spirit busy with ugly and mani
fold plans. There is then heard the
"Te Deum" which has been recorded.

The tolling of the bells, and the
chanting of the choir above a ground-
bass in the orchestra, form a striking
background for Scarpia s monologue.

ACT II

SCENE A Room In Scarpia s Apart
ments in the Farnese Palace
ABOVE the apartments of the queen
in the palace are Scarpia' s own
chambers. The table is laid for supper,

but the chief of police is too restless
and excited to eat. He awaits with
impatience the reports of his men re
garding Cavaradossi and Angelotti.
Hearing Tosca's voice in the apart
ment below, where the cantata is in
progress, he sends her down a message
declaring he has received word of her
lover. He knows only too well what
the effect will be. He exults over his
imminent conquest, for he desires
even above worldly power to make
Tosca his victim. In a famous solilo
quy he repeats his creed of life. Scarpia
loves such a victory as this no tender
vows by moonlight for him ! Whatever
Scarpia desires, he wins for himself by
force; when wearied he is ready for
more. God has made divers wines and
many; kinds of beauty, and he intends
to enjoy them all.

Spoletta returns with the exasperat
ing news that Angelotti is still in con
cealment. Scarpia blazes with anger;
he is consoled, however, by the news
that Cavaradossi has been taken. The
painter is brought before him, but

408

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

when questioned he refuses all infor
mation. He is consigned to the torture-
chamber adjoining just as Tosca
appears.

Then begins that tremendous scene
where Scarpia^ soft as a cat with a
mouse, plays upon the girl's emotions
to find out where Angelotti is hidden.
He greets her with horrible courtesy,
and, when he thinks the time is ripe,
lets her know bluntly that her lover is
undergoing torments next door, and
that for every denial he makes a twist
is given to the wire about his head.
She hears Mario steadily refuse, and
Scarpia opens the door to the chamber
so that she may hear his stifled cries.
He even permits her to look in and
see her lover's anguish. Even the
hardened Spoletta gives utterance to
a horrible prayer at sight of such
abominable double-torture. A scream
of pain from Cavaradossi at last weak
ens the girl's resolution and she tells
Scarpia where Angelotti is hidden.
Cavaradossi is brought in and placed,
fainting, on a couch. "Did I betray

him?" he asks in anguish; and Tosca
answers "No." But he hears Scarpia
whip out directions to his men, and
he knows that Tosca has given up the
information. Weak, faint, like to die,
he denounces the singer.

News now arrives that the reported
victory over Napoleon is a mistake,
and that Bonaparte has won the battle
of Marehgo. Scarpia. stands abashed,
but Cavaradossiy weak as he is, lets
forth with a cry of Victory, a hail of
freedom from the tyrannical Scarpia.
Tosca does everything she can to with
hold her lover, but in vain. The words
pour forth, and the maddened Scarpia
finally orders Cavaradossi to prison
and to death.

When Cavaradossi has been taken
away, the chief of police resumes his
lovemaking. He tells the singer he
has long adored her, and sworn to
possess her. This declaration is made
in the famous "Cantabile Scarpia"
(Scarpia's Air).

It is notable for a curious accom
paniment in a rhythmic figure which

FARRAR AS TOSCA

COPY'T DUPONT

CARUSO AS MARIO ACT I

409

COPY'T DUPONT

EAMES AS TOSCA

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

persists beneath long-drawn veritably
"Cantabile" phrases and heroic high
notes, somehow suggesting both the
uprise of Scarpia s anger at news of
Napoleon's victory and the unholy
passion that now rages in his heart.

Tosca s spirit is broken, and she
pleads with him, weeping for shame.
She tells, in the beautiful " Vissi d'arte
e d'amore" (Love and Music), how
her life has been devoted to art and
to music.

What has she done, she asks, that
Heaven should so forsake her? The
melody is infinitely tender, sympa
thetic harmonies in minor key murmur
a soft accompaniment. But Scarpia
stands unmoved. The drums, order
ing out the escort for the condemned
prisoner, break in ominously upon
Toscas pleading, and at last she yields,
stipulating, with bowed head, that she
and Mario shall the next day be given
a safe-conduct. Scarpia is overjoyed.
He informs her that a mock execution
is necessary, and summoning Spoletta y
he gives this worthy some instructions
which he understands only too well.

When Spoletta has gone, Scarpia
returns to his desk to write. The ex
hausted Tosca fills a glass of wine, and

drinks it. She sees a sharp knife on
the table, seizes and conceals it.
Scarpia advances, inflamed with pas
sion and the consciousness of tri
umph. He takes her in his arms.
But in that first unholy embrace the
now maddened Tosca drives the knife
into his body. Thus, she cries, will
Tosca yield her kisses.

As the life passes out of Scarpia^ she
washes her hands in a bowl on the
table, and with strange reverence lays
out the body, placing candles at the
head and a cross upon the bosom.
Thus she leaves him. As the curtain
descends, we hear once more the
ominous three chords usually associ
ated with Scarpia,

ACT III

SCENE A Terrace of San Angela Castle ',

Outside the Prison of Cavaradossi.

A View of Rome by Night

AMOVING picture of the awaken
ing dawn is presented by the
orchestral Prelude.

An accompaniment of bells is heard;
first but the sheep-bells of the dis
tant hillsides, but afterward the giant
clang of those in the church-tower.

THE MURDER OF SCARPTA ACT II

410

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

Mario is brought out from his cell,
and shown the official death-warrant,
being told that he has but an hour to
live. He sings a touching farewell to
his dreams of art, and of the loved one
he never hopes to see again. This is
known as "E lucevan le stelle" (The
Stars Were Shining).

Mario recalls the former meetings of
the lovers on starlight nights in quiet
gardens, crying out his passionate
agony in a melodic phrase that strikes
poignantly to the heart of the most
indifferent listener.

Mario receives a shock when To sea
herself comes, bringing joyful news.
She tells him of the death of Scarpia^
and he commends the gentle hands
that struck the blow, however much
regretting they should have to foul
themselves with a scoundrel's blood.
He sings the lovely "O dolci mani"
(Oh, Gentle Hands).

Tosca then explains that his execu
tion is to be a mock affair. She directs
him to fall when the volley is fired,
and she exhibits to him the officially-
sealed safe-conduct to a haven of safety
and a future with some promise in it:
"Amaro sol per te m'era il morire"
(The Bitterness of Death).

As their love duet closes, the soldiers
enter. The shots are fired and Mario
falls. Tosca, waiting till the^firing
party has gone, bids him rise. "Now,
Mario, all is safe," she cries, but _ he
does not answer. She rushes to him,
only to find that the dead hand of

Scarpia has struck back. The firing
squad had done its work, and Mario is
no more. She throws herself upon
his body in an agony of grief, but is
roused by Spoletta^ who, with the
soldiers, comes rushing in with the
news of Scarpia s murder. They at
tempt to arrest the girl, but she still
has one alternative. She leaps from
the castle wall to freedom and death.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)
ACT I

RECONDITA ARMONIA

(Strange Harmony) ENRICO CARUSO,

Tenor ' 511 10-in., 31.50

GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

731 10-in., 1.50
BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor 646 10-in., 1.50

ACT II
CANTABILE DI SCARPIA

(Scarpia's Air) ANTONIO SCOTTI, Bari
tone 6284 12-in., 2.00
VISSI D'ARTE E D'AMOR

(Love and Music) NELLIE MELBA, So
prano 6220 12-in., 2.00
GERALDINE FARRAR, Soprano

6110 12-in., 2.00

EMMY DESTINN, Soprano 6086 12-in., 2.00
FRANCES ALDA, Soprano 6037 12-in., 2.00
MARIA JERITZA, Soprano 687 10-in., 1.50

ACT III
ELUCEVAN LE STELLE

(The Stars Were Shining) ENRICO CA
RUSO, Tenor 511 10-in., 1.50
GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

733 10-in., L50

BENIAMINO GIGLI, Tenor 942 10-in., 1.50
DOLCI MANI

(Oh, Gentle Hands) BENIAMINO GIGLI,
Tenor 942 10-in., 1.50

BLUE LABEL RECORD

rElucevanlestelle Paul Althouse, Tenor^^^

{ PagUacciVesti la glubba Paul Althouse> Tenor}

10 _-

411

FARRAR AS VIOLETTA ACT III

LA TRAVIATA

OPERA in three acts. Text by
Piave, founded on Dumas'
"Lady of the Camellias," but
the period is changed to the time of
Louis XIV. Score by Giuseppe Verdi.
First presented in Venice, March 6,
1853; London, May 24, 1856; Paris, in
French, December 6, 1856; in Italian
October 27, 1864. First American
production December 3, 1856, with
Brignoli and La Grange. Recent pro
ductions at the Metropolitan with
Caruso, Melba, Tetrazzini, Lipkowska,
McCormack and Sammarco. Many
notable productions in America in re
cent years, among the most recent be
ing the Metropolitan production of
1905, for Caruso and Sernbrich; that
of 1908 (debut of Amato) and 1909
(debut of Lipkowska); the Hammer-
stein revivals for Tetrazzini and Melba;
and the recent Metropolitan produc
tion with Hempel. Always considered
a "test" opera for coloratura sopranos.

CHARACTERS

VIOLETTA VALERY, a courtesan

(Vee-oh-let-tah Vah-lay-ree) y Soprano

FLORA, friend of Violetta

Mezzo-Soprano

ANNINA, confidante of Violetta

Soprano

ALFREDO, (ALFRED) GERMONT, lover
of Violetta (Ahl-fray-do Zhair-
mon f ) Tenor

GIORGIO GERMONT, his father

(Jor-jo) Baritone

GASTONE, Viscount of Letorieres

(Gahs-tohri) Tenor

BARON DOUPHOL, a rival of Alfred
(Doo-fohT) Baritone

DOCTOR GRENVIL, a physician. . .Bass

GIUSEPPE, servant to Violetta

(Joo-zep'-peh) Tenor

Chorus of Ladies and Gentlemen,
Friends of Violetta and Flora.

Mute Personages: Matadors, Picadors,
Gypsies, Servants, Masks, etc.

Scene and Period: Paris and Environs,
about the year 1700

(The name of the opera is
nounced Lah Trah-vee-ah'-tah}.

pro-

412

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT I

SCENE Drawing-Room in the
House of Violetta

^ I A HE salon of the coquettish Vio-
JL letta is the meeting place of the
gayer element of Parisian society. To
night a lively entertainment is taking
place. Alfred has been introduced to
Violetta as another one of her admirers,
and at her own request he sings a
jovial drinking song, in which Violetta
joins, and the guests in chorus. This
is the famous "Libiam nei Keti calici"
(A Bumper We'll Drink).

The energy and rhythmic beauty of
this number place it among the finest
of the many operatic drinking-chorus
ensembles.

The dance begins and all go into
the ballroom. But Violetta is attacked
with a sudden faintness, an ominous
forewarning of consumption. She begs
the guests to proceed; more con
cerned for their own amusement than
for the welfare of a somewhat notori
ous lady, they do all except Alfred.
Violetta is more than touched by
this anxiety for her well-being and
in the beautiful duet, "Un di Felice'*
(Rapturous Moment) their mutual love
is told.

After the guests have gone and
Alfred has followed them, Violetta
dreams of the new influence this love
has brought into her life. It is ex
pressed in the "Ah, fors e lui" (The
One of Whom I Dreamed) and the
"Sempre libera" (The Round of
Pleasure).

These two (really one) o,f the most
brilliant of coloratura arias, appear in
the repertoire of every singer gifted
with a voice capable of interpreting
brilliant vocal display passages. It is
preceded by the soliloquy "E Strano"
('Tis Strange) in which she is wonder-
struck at finding herself the object of
pure love.

ACT II

SCENE I Interior of a Country House,
near Paris

SO sweet is this new love, that
Violetta yields herself up to it
wholly, going with Alfred to a little
home near the city. Poet that he
is, Alfred is enraptured by his good
fortune in finding in Violetta a true
mate after his somewhat wild youth.
He tells her so inthe"Deimieibollenti
spirit!" (Wild My Dream).

But the practical affairs of life insist
upon obtruding, and Alfred is much
astonished to learn from the maid that
Violetta has quietly sold all her jewels
to maintain the little menage in the city.
He is deeply ashamed, as he ought
to be. Then, without warning, Violetta
departs for Paris to obtain funds.

Returning to the little home she is
surprised to find him absent. She is
more surprised when she is visited by
Germont, the father of Alfred. The
older man has been greatly distressed
at what he conceives to be a boyish
entanglement, and he is none too polite
in his greetings. Violetta^ however,
maintains such dignity that he is both
charmed and abashed, especially when
he learns that, far from being depend
ant upon Alfred, she has sold her
property to support him. He abandons
his former attitude, and throws him
self wholly upon her mercy. Alfred
has, it seems, a younger sister, whose
marriage to a young noble will be
jeopardised if Alfred's mesalliance is
made known. Her character is described
in"Purasiccome unangelo" (Pure as an
Angel). Violetta at first refuses to give
up Alfred, but realizing that her char
acter has* been destroyed, and that this
must ultimately react to Alfred's
disadvantage, she finally yields. Two
numbers continue the scene: the"Dite
alia giovine" (Say to Thy Daughter),
and "Imponete" (Now Command Me).

413

VICTROLABOOKOFTHE OPERA

In these Violetta, having resolved
upon the sacrifice, places herself un
reservedly at Germonfs commands.
He is deeply grateful, and he weeps as
he enfolds the girl in his arms.

Soon as Germont has gone, the un
happy Violetta writes a note of fare
well to Alfred and makes ready to
leave for Paris. Alfred returns, mysti
fied by her con
fusion. But she
contrives to get
away, bidding
him fare well with
such tenderness
that he is deeply
m o ve d. He
awaits his father,
when a servant,
however, brings
him Violetta s
note. Just as he
sees Germont ap
proaching him in
the garden, he
learns that Vio
letta has left him
forever.

Alfred's de
spair is dreadful;
he is not to be
aroused, even
when his father
enters and vainly strives to console
him. He sits down at a table, covering
his face with his hands. It is then that
Germont endeavors to stir him with the
memories of his home by singing the
ever-lovely "Di provenza il mar" (Thy
Home in Fair Provence).

In this touching appeal he asks his
son to return to his home and to his
father's heart.

The appeal is not successful. Be
lieving Violetta has wilfully duped him
Alfred rushes past Germont, and he is
soon on his way to Paris. Violetta,
though not forgotten, is put, as nearly
as may be, out of memory.

GALLI-CURCI AS VIOLETTA

SCENE II A Richly Furnished Salon

in Flora s Palace

A FTER leaving Alfred, Violetta, it
jT\ becomes known, has gone to Paris
and attached herself to her admirer,
Baron DouphoL She is expected with
this new admirer at a gambling party
given by her friend Flora. She is ill,
physically and spiritually worn, dis
inclined for such
a life, but she
knows it is the
only way to con-
vince Alfred
their ways di
vide, and she has
taken it to fulfil
her agreement
with Germont.

To this party
now comes Al
fred, who re
marks with as
sumed indiffer-
ence that he
knows nothing of
Violetta s where-
a b o u t s. He
begins to gamble,
winning heavily.
When Violetta
arrives with the
Baron, she is hor
rified to see Alfred, but he pretends
not to remark her, and he challenges the
Baron to a game. He wins extrava
gantly, and the excitement runs high.
Supper is announced, however, and all
leave the room. Violetta returns, fol
lowed by Alfred. She implores him to
leave the house, now horrified at the
prospect of a duel between the two
men. He refuses, bitterly, and charges
her with falseness, asking her if she
loves the Baron. Poor Violetta, re
membering her promise to Germont, is
compelled to answer yes, and Alfred
then loses self-control. He flings wide
the folding doors and summons back

414

VI CTRQ L A BOOK OF THE OPERA

the astonished guests, who crowd
into the room. Before tKem all
he denounces her in the "Questa
donna conoscete" (Know Ye All This
Woman?).

He completes the insult by throwing
at her feet a small portrait of herself
which she has given him, together with
the money he has won. Violetta faints
in the arms of Flora and a Doctor who
is present. At this moment, Germont
enters, to be horrified at his son's
scurvy treatment of the woman whose
self-sacrifice he has himself brought
about. Then follows the great finale,
"Alfredo, di questa core" (Alfred, Thou
Knowest Not).

ACT III

SCENE Violetta s Apartment. She is
Asleep on the Couch

act has a prelude. Then the
story resumes.
The illness with which Violetta has
been afflicted from the first, has been
intensified by these new developments,
and she now lies upon what is to be
her death-bed. The Doctor comes with
reassuring words, but they do not de
ceive her, and the Doctor confesses to
the maid that she has not long to live.
Left alone, she again reads a letter
she has received from Germont:

"You have kept your promise. The duel
took place, and the Baron was wounded, but is
improving. Alfred is abroad. Your sacrifice
has been revealed to him by me, and he will
return to you for pardon. Hasten to recover;
you deserve a bright future." Germont.

"Alas! it is too late," is her com
ment, and she sings her beautiful and
pathetic farewell, "Addio del passato."

She has not long to wait for Alfred^
who arrives in repentance. He is
speedily forgiven, and Violetta^ for
getting, or seeming to forget her ill
ness, plans with him to leave Paris for
ever. For the moment, like so many
others in the shadow of disaster, they

are happy. They sing the "Parigi O
cara" (Far From Gay Paris).

The shock of their meeting, however,
is too much for Violetta s strength.
The end _is very near now, and she
collapses into her lover's arms. Not
ing her pallor, he sends for the doctor.
Germont enters with the physician.
The scene is an affecting one, and Ger
mont blames himself for having brought
all the troubles upon his son and
Violetta. But Violetta no longer feels
pain. She rouses herself with a strange
accession of strength. "Ah! Yes!"
she cries, "I live! I have again re
turned to life." And with this she
falls back upon the couch dead.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless noted)

ACT I
LIBIAM NEI LIETI CALICI

(A Bumper We'll Drain) ALMA GLUCK,
Soprano, ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor and
Metropolitan Opera Chorus

3031 10-in., 32.00
AH, FORS' 6 LUI

(The One of Whom I Dreamed) AMELITA

GALLI-CURCI, Soprano 6126 12-in., 2.00
LUISA TETRAZZINI Soprano

6344 12-in., 2.00
NELLIE MELBA, Soprano 6213 12-in., 2.00

How wondrous!

His words deep within my heart are graven!

No love of mortal yet hath moved me.

Shall I dare disdain it,

And choose the empty follies^that surround me r

Ah, was it he my heart foretold, when in the

throng of pleasure,
Oft have I joy'd to shadow forth one whom

alone I'd treasure.
He who with watchful tenderness guarded my

waning powers,

Strewing my way with flowers,
Waking my heart to love I
What folly! what folly!
For me there's no returning!
In ev'ry fierce and wild delight.
I'll steep my sense and die!

SEMPRE LIBERA

(The Round of Pleasure) AMELITA
GALLT-CURCI, Soprano 627 10-in., 1.50

415

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT II

DEI MIEI BOLLENTI SPIRITI

(Wild My Dream of Youth) GIOVANNI
MARTINELLI, Tenor 6212 12-in., 32.00

DITE ALLA GIOVINE

(Say to Thy Daughter) AMELITA GALLI-
CURCI, Soprano and GIUSEPPE DE
LUCA, Baritone 8025 12-in., 2.50

IMPONETE

(Now Command Me) AMELITA GALLI-
CURCI, Soprano and GIUSEPPE DE
LUCA, Baritone 8025 12-in., 2.50

DI PROVENZA IL MAR

(Thy Home in Fair Provence) PASQUALE
AMATO, Baritone 6042 12-in., 2.00

GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

6079 12-in., 2.00
GERMONT:

From fair Provence's soil and sea.

Who hath won thy heart away?

From thy native sunny clime,

What strange fate caus'd thee to stray?

Oh, remember in thy woe

All the joy that waits for thee,

All the peace thy heart would know.

ACT III

ADDIO DEL PASSATO

(Farewell to the Bright Visions)
LUCREZIA BORI, Soprano

543 10-in., 31.50
AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, Soprano .

627 10-in., 1.50

VIOL ETTA:

Farewell to the bright visions I once fondly
cherish'd,

Already the roses that dec.k'd me have per-
ish'd;

The love of Alfredo is lost, past regaining,

That cheer'd me when fainting, my spirit sus
taining.

Pity the stray one, and send her consolation.

Oh, pardon her transgressions, and send her
salvation.

The sorrows and enjoyments of life will soon
be over,

The dark tomb in oblivion this mortal form
will cover!

PARIGI O CARA

(Far From Gay Paris) LUCREZIA BORI,
Soprano and JOHN McCoRMACK, Tenor

10006 12-in., 3.50

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

/Ah, fors' e lui (One of Whom I Dreamed) Lucy Marsh, Soprano

\ Parla va/se (Arditi) Lucy Marsh, Soprano

Gems from "Traviata," Part I Victor Opera Co.

Chorus, "Drinking Song" Duet, "The One of Whom I Dreamed"
(Ah, fors' e lui) Solo, "Thy Home in Fair Provence "(Di Provenza)
Solo, "I'll Fulfill the Round of Pleasure" (Sempre libera) Chorus of
Matadors

Gems from "Traviata" Part II Victor Opera Co.

Chorus of Matadors Duet, "May He Be Spared the Anguish "(Cono sea
il Sacrifizio) Solo, "Farewell to the Bright Visions" (Addio) Duet,
" Far from Gay Paris " (Parigi o cara) Chorus, Finale

[Traviata Selection Arthur Pry or' s Band}

I "Bacchanal Chorus" "Far from the Busy Throng," Finale "Death UCYVT/: 10-

ofVioletta" 35076 12 - in '>

Trovatore Selection Arthur Pry or' s Band]

/Prelude Victor Symphony Orchestral * r 71 7 1

(Casse Noisette (Waltz of the Flowers) Victor Symphony Orchestra]^' * ' U ~ m '>

1/ ' m *>

35433 12-in., 1.25

i or
US

416

TRISTAN AND ISOLDE

OPERA in three acts. Words
and music by Richard Wagner.
First presented in Munich, June
10, 186S. First London production
June 20, 1882. First American perform
ance in New York, December 1, 1886,
with Lehmann, Brandt and Fischer.
Produced at the New Orleans Opera
December 21, 1895. Some notable
American productions were: in 1895
with Sucher, Alvary, Brema and
Fischer; in 1896 with the de Reszkes,
Nordica and Brema; in 1901 with
Ternina and Van Dyck; and in 1910
with Homer, Fremstad, Knote and
Van Rooy, this being Gustav Mahler's
American debut as a conductor.

CHARACTERS

TRISTAN, a Cornish knight,
nephew of King Mark
(Triss'-tan] Tenor

KING MARK of Cornwall Bass

ISOLDE, Princess of Ireland

(Ee-sohl'-deh) Soprano

KURVENAL, Tristan's devoted

servant (Koor* -vee-nahf) Baritone

MELOT, one of King Mark's

courtiers Tenor

BRANGANE, Isolde's friend and

attendant(Brahn-gay-neh) Soprano

A Shepherd, a Steersman, a Sailor Lad;
Chorus of Sailors, Knights,
Esquires and Men-at-Arms

Time and Place: Legendary Cornwall

TRISTAN has been sent to Ireland
by King Mark of Cornwall to fight
Morold, a recalcitrant knight who
refuses to pay tribute, and to bring
back Isolde as the King's bride.
Morold is slain and Tristan badly
wounded. He is nursed by Isolde,
Morold' s betrothed, who does not
know it is he who has slain Morold.

Tristan, however, is loyal to King
Mark and brings her with him to
Cornwall. During the voyage, he
keeps clear of Isolde, but as they
approach the coast, the anguished
Isolde, longing for vengeance and
death, and loathing her fate, begs him
to drink with her a cup of poison.
Tristan, knowing that he owes his
life to her nursing, is honorably dis
posed to yield her the life she has
spared, and he takes the potion with
her. The maid, Brangdne, however,
has substituted in its place a love-
philtre, so that, as the ship comes to
anchor, the two are lovers in each
other's arms. The all-over-powering
love of the pair causes them to meet
after Isolde is married to the Cornish
King. Their tryst is suspected by
Melot, himself in love with Isolde.
He warns the King, and the guilty
couple are discovered. Tristan., who
fights but half-heartedly, is wounded
and he departs to his castle in Brittany.
There, in mortal agony, he yearns for
Isolde, and King Mark, having learned
about the love-potion, brings her to
him, forgiving all; but it is too late.
She arrives just as Tristan expires, and
after singing her marvellous " Death-
Song" she, too, dies beside him.

The Prelude, which has been re
corded, is founded on the following
theme, which is used continuously
throughout the opera, in various forms,
to express the love and longing, and
the suffering of the two lovers:

GP~fl 1

H~A .

p r *

q r^-

-^fT"

It will be noticed that the theme in the
upper stave is "two-voiced," the upper
notes being used to suggest love
and longing, and the lower ones to
indicate pain and suffering. Some-

417

ISOLDE:

Tristan! Traitor beloved!
TRISTAN:

Isolde! Woman divine!

(Tristan and Isolde, Act I.)

418

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

times heard together, sometimes sepa
rate, and in all manner of forms they
recur again and again. A peculiarity
of the Prelude also, is that it contains
no " cadence" or halting-place where
dissonant chords resolve into con
sonance. Though for concert-use the
Prelude comes to an end, in the opera
it continues right through to the
lifting of the curtain and beyond.
There is in fact no full "cadence"
until the end of the Act, the hearer's
attention being kept continually at
high pitch and his expectancy led on
by dissonances that do but resolve
into fresh dissonances. The same
principle obtains through the following
acts, and it is typically Wagnerian.
The various themes of the work are
made to recur in countless different
forms and the whole score becomes
really symphonic in its intricacy.
This accounts for the fact that a first
performance attempted in Vienna was
abandoned after fifty-four rehearsals
between November, 1862, and March,
1863, the work being regarded as
''impossible." In spite of its elabora
tions, however, the music is surpris
ingly lucid, and the simple amateur,
provided he loves good music, can
yield himself up to it in perfect
certainty that, with a reasonable
knowledge of the plot, he can follow the
themes and realize to the full the
depth and beauty of the tale, and
the varied qualities of human emotion
that furnish it material.

In concert performances, it is cus
tomary to follow up the yearning
Prelude with the ecstatic "Liebestod"
(Love-Death) at the end, and the
available Victor records make this
course possible with the Victrola. It
will be noted how the " yearning"
theme at the opening of the Prelude
is heard at the very last in extended
form, resolving exquisitely into perfect
consonant harmony.

ACT I

SCENE On Board the Vessel, nearing
the Cornish Coast

ON the deck of a great ship has
been set up a pavilion richly
hung with tapestry. Within it Isolde
lies on a couch, her face buried in
cushions. Her maid, Erangdne, hold
ing open a curtain, peers over the side
of the vessel. The voice of a young
sailor is heard from the masthead
trolling out a sea-song. It is a bold
tune, yet it strangely suggests the
lonesomeness of the ocean. The
words, however, bear upon the present
voyage, and Isolde,, looking up suddenly
from her couch, construes them as
an insult. She calls Erangdne, who
reports that land is already in sight.
The passionate Isolde gives way to fear
and anger; this frightens the maid and
she is compelled to open the pavilion
for air. The whole length of the ship is
seen, clear to the stern, where Tristan
stands apart among his knightswhilehis
henchman Kurvenal reclines at his feet.

The sight of Tristan brings back to
Isolde a flood of recollection. He has
remained aloof from her during the
voyage, determined to bring her safely
to his uncle, King Mark. She attrib
utes this to her undeclared lover's
cowardice and her love for him is
turned to hatred. She bids Erangdne
go fetch him, and the maid, unwilling
enough, departs. Always solicitous
for his charge, Tristan receives her
courteously enough. But he excuses
himself on theground that they arenear-
ing shore and it is his duty to attend the
ship. Kurvenal, a sturdy soldier, a plain-
spoken man of no diplomacy, finds this
a good time to gloat over Tristan s vic
tory over Morold, killing the Irish
knight, and bringing Ireland's tribute
to Cornwall, and Isolde to boot.

His vainglorious song is loudly
taken up by the knights. Isolde is

419

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

inflamed with anger. Alone with
Erangane, the curtain again drawn
tight, her wild brain repeats the story
of Tristan's "treachery," how she
nursed him without recognizing him
under the pseudonym of "Tantris,"
how she found a piece of the sword
which slew Morold, her betrothed,
exactly fitted the wounded man's
weapon; how she took the sword and
sought to slay the knight in his bed;
how his weakness and suffering brought
pity to her heart; how she nursed him
back to health; and how, finally, he
had repaid her kindness by bringing
her aboard this ship as the bride of the
hereditary enemy of her race, and one
whom she had never seen, King Mark
of Cornwall! Images of these scenes
inflame the wild brain of Isolde and
lend greater wildness to her speech.
JBrangdne, much astonished at this
recital, tries to comfort her mistress
with the notion that Tristan seeks to
repay her by making her a queen,
but Isolde only cries upon Death to
ease her sufferings. The horrified
maid seeks to dissuade her, but is
commanded to bring a certain mysteri
ous casket of herbs and drugs. Eran-
gane tries to induce Isolde to take a
soothing balm, but Isolde choosessome-
thing ofknown deadly qualities. Atthis
moment cries to reduce sail indicate
that the journey's end is near and
Kurvenal y entering boisterously, bids
them prepare to land. Isolde^ with
open scorn, bids him direct Tristan to
attend her. In due course the hero
enters, pausing respectfully at the door
way. After taking him to task for his
ill manners in remaining away so long,
Isolde offers him the cup. Tristan^
who has kept a chivalrous aloofness
throughout, accepts the cup, knowing
well the contents are deadly. He tries
to drink it to the dregs, but Isolde
snatches it from him, determined to
end her own life too.

The effect is not what they expected.
They stand for a long time facing
each other, dazed, but with growing
wonder. Unknown to them, Brangane
has substituted a love potion for the
death draught, and the hatred of
Isolde and the indifference of Tristan
are turned to overpowering love.
They fly to each other's arms, while
Brangane^ wringing her hands, looks
on in despair. She at last arouses
them to the fact that King Mark's
followers are near at hand. Isolde
puts on her royal robe. The curtains
of the pavilion are thrown back, so
that the officers and crew are seen
pointing to the shore, and heard
shouting their loyal greetings: "Hail
to King Mark! Cornwall, hail!"

ACT II

SCENE A Garden before Isolde's

Chamber: Summer Night
INCE Isolde's marriage to King
Mark,, her beauty has attracted
y a knight of the court, whose

TRISTAN AND ISOLDE

ISOLDE: "Ah, look again! it hath the grace of
dawn, the stars are flushed with crimson, and
the sky holds some new light I know not I*'
(Tristan and Isolde Act II)

420

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

suspicions, quickened by jealousy,
arise round Tristan and Isolde. He
persuades King Mark to pretend to
go off on a night hunt with the nope
that, returning unexpectedly, they
may find the guilty lovers together.

When the curtain rises, there are
heard the horn calls of the departing
huntsmen, blended with the music of
Isolde's longing, against the enchanting
tone-picture of a warm and lovely
summer evening. A lighted torch
burns before Isolde's chamber, warning
Tristan not to approach until it is put
out. Brangane is suspicious, but
Isolde, after a lengthy talk with her,
finally seizes the torch and throws
it to the ground, waving her kerchief
as a signal to her lover to come to
her. He appears, like one in a dream.

The long duet follows, setting forth
with amazing musical eloquence the
passionate ecstasy of the lovers, their
joy and faith in each other. Through
out the night they rest in one another's
arms, oblivious of all things save only
the magic spell of their love. Brangane
has confessed to the love potion, but
heedless alike of honor and of danger,
they glory in her mistake.

They do not hear Brangane' 's warn
ing, even when, with a piercing cry,
she announces the return of the hunts
men. Kurvenal rushes in with his
master's sword, but is followed almost
immediately by King Mark, Melot
and their followers who regard the
scene astounded. Tristan makes no
move, only to draw his cloak about the
girl in his arms. Dawn breaks, and
Tristan notes that "the dreary day
its last time comes/' Melot grows
voluble; he has proven his charges.
King Mark) deeply moved and with
trembling voice, then addresses the
pair. His utterances to his trusted
friend and nephew, the bravest knight
of his court, on his black treachery,
are full of dignity and nobility,

especially where he reminds Tristan
that it was upon his counsel that
Isolde was brought from Ireland. He
offers Tristan banishment with Isolde
who is only too willing to follow. But
such leniency does not suit Melot who
rushes forward sword in hand. Tristan
draws in turn, and reproaches Melot.
But Tristan has no real intention of
fighting; he only seeks death with
honor, so he drops his guard and
receives a terrible stroke from his
adversary. Isolde throws herself upon
the breast of her wounded lover, and
the King restrains Melot as the curtain
descends. What next will follow?

ACT III

SCENE In the Garden of Tristan s
Castle in Brittany y overlook
ing the Sea

HpRISTAN lies delirious^ Kurvenal
JL beside him bowed with grief.
From beyond comes the strange and
melancholy piping of a shepherd boy,
who, when he has finished comes to
Kurvenal. Other peasants appear, to
look with sadness upon their stricken
lord. They depart shaking their heads.
Kurvenal bids the shepherd scan the
horizon for a sail, for he knows that

COPY T DUPONT

GADSKI AS ISOLDE

421

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

none can cure his master save the
''lady-leech'* who has been the cause
of his plight. The shepherd sees no
sail, but he promises to play a livelier
strain should one appear upon the
golden horizon.

Tristan comes back to momentary
consciousness, and Kurvenal tells him
how he has been brought hither. The
wounded man soon relapses into delir
ium, pining for Isolde. The scene is a
prolonged one, but at length the
shepherd's pipe takes a joyful turn.
Kurvenal \ crying out that Isolde is at
hand, rushes off. Tristan is overcome
with joy, and in his feverishness he
rises to his feet, tearing away the
bandages from his wounds, and madly
rejoices to see the red blood flow.
He staggers forward, but the effort is
his last and soon he crashes to the
ground. Isolde arrives, but too late!
The dying Tristan can but turn
eloquent eyes upon her before he
expires and Isolde sinks senseless upon
her lover's body.

King Mark and his followers follow
hard behind, the King all forgiveness,
having learned of the fatal love-potion.
Kurvenal does not know this, and
seeing Melot he draws his sword and
slays the man. But he is himself mor
tally stricken in the process.

All of these painful scenes only lead
on to the sublime and terrible climax
of the work.

Isolde returns to consciousness.

Then begins that marvellous, ecstatic
Liebestod, or "Love-Death, " which
brings the drama to its close. The
following is the melody upon which
the music is based:

This "theme" is carried through a
prolonged and exquisitely beautiful
series of modulations, or changes of
key, the sequences rising and falling
and rising again until from them is
evolved with almost superhuman skill
the great crescendo which leads to
Isolde s ecstatic death. Words cannot
convey the extraordinary effect of this
crescendo, rising ever higher and
higher in pitch, semitone by semitone.
On the basis of an impassioned melody,
Wagner builds a mighty climax of
bitter-sweet dissonances which seem
ever about to resolve into restful
harmony, yet which never rest until
they reach at length their gloriously
impassioned climax. Without question
this is the greatest, the most ecstatic
love-song in the whole realm of music.
As Isolde falls at length upon the body
of her lover, the orchestra, with
heavenly serenity after long storm
and stress, plays an extended form of
the unutterably sweet theme of longing
with which the Prelude commenced,
now resolving at the last into a concord
of almost intolerable beauty.

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

(Isolde's Liebestod (Isolde's Love-Death) Victor Herbert's Orchesra\^^^

I Traume (Dreams] (Wagner} Victor Herbert's OrchesfraP^* 1

(Prelude La Scala Orchestra\so^ir\ 10 i * r

llsolde's Love-Death La Scala Orchestral^ 21 12 - m '' l 2S

10 . fff rn
12 ' m - ? LSO

422

IL TROVATORE

(THE TROUBADOUR)

NEARLY two years after "Rigo-
letto," "II Trovatore" was pro
duced at Rome, and a month
later <( La Traviata" at Venice. "II
Trovatore" was a success from the
first, and it has been popular ever since.
Naturally! for it is full of melody
from start to finish, and the action, if
blood-curdling, is swift and plentiful.
There are more technical things that
are equally admirable. The harmonies
are rich and varied, though a little
trite in comparison with the newer
style already coming into vogue with
Berlioz, Liszt and Wagner. The or
chestration is masterly rich and son
orous. There is even considerable
character-analysis in the role of Azu-
cena^ who, to many, is, in truth, even
more human and convincing than the
Wagnerian Brunnhilde, the gradual
wane of her vindictive fury as death ap
proaches, and the last flare of ven
geance being especially touching. "II
Trovatore" preaches no moral and it
cloaks no muddy philosophy. It aims
only to tell a thrilling story of a gypsy's
vengeance in straightforward fashion,
and the most hardened playgoer cannot
deny that it succeeds admirably.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts.. Words
by Salvatore Cammanaro, the
story being suggested by a Spanish
drama of the same name. Music by
Giuseppe Verdi. Produced at the Tea-
tro Apollo, Rome, January 19, 1853; at
the Theatre desltaliens, Paris, December
23, 1854; at the Opera, Paris, as Lc
Trouvere, January 12, 1857; at Covent
Garden, London, May 17, 1855; in
English as The Gypsy's Vengeance,
Drury Lane, March 24, 1856. First
New York production, in Italian, April
30, 1855, with Brignoli, Steffanone,

Amodio and Vestvali. First Phila
delphia production at the Walnut
Street Theatre, January 14, 1856, and
at the Academy of Music, February 25,
1857. Produced at the New Orleans
Opera, April 1 3, 1857. A German
version was given at the Metropolitan
Opera House in 1889. Some notable
revivals occurred in 1908, with Caruso,
Eames and Homer; and again, in 1914,
with Destinn, Ober, Martinelli, Amato
and Rothier.

CHARACTERS

LEONORA (Lay-oh-noh 1 -raJi) ^ a
noble lady of the Court of an
Aragon Princess Soprano

AZUCENA (Ahz-you-chay'-nah), a
wandering Biscayan gypsy

Mezzo-Soprano

INEZ (Ee'-nez), attendant of Le
onora Soprano

MANRICO (Man-ree'-koK), a
young chieftain under the
Prince of Biscay, of mysteri
ous birth, and in reality a
brother of Count di Luna Tenor

COUNT DI LUNA (dee LoQ'-naK),
a powerful young noble of the
Prince of Aragon Baritone

FERRANDO, a captain of the
guard and under di Luna Bass

Ruiz, a soldier in Manrico's

service '. Tenor

AN OLD GYPSY Baritone

Also a Messenger, a Jailer, Soldiers,
Nuns, Gypsies, Attendants, etc.

Scene and Period: Biscay and Aragon ;
Middle of the Fifteenth Century

ACT I

SCENE I Vestibule in Aliajeria Palace

AT the outset we plunge into an at
mosphere of mystery and ro
mance. The retainers of Count di
Luna,, awaiting the arrival of their

423

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

master, are beguiled by Ferrando with
the history of the Count's childhood,
and the supposed loss of his brother.
The brother, as a baby, came under the
evil eye of a witch, condemned to the
stake. This woman, however, had a
daughter who was determined to
avenge her mother's death. After the
capture of her mother the child
disappeared. Nothing was absolutely
known of its fate, but among the
charred embers about the stake where
the witch-woman had been burned
were discovered the bones of a child.
Suchjs the circumstance that Ferrando
tells in the "Abbietta zingara" (Swar
thy and Threatening). The story is
set to a melody with a strong, almost
fierce rhythm that gives it peculiar
force.

The hearers are much affected; in
their comments they declare the witch
appears in ghostly shape. They are
interrupted by the clock, striking
twelve, and they disperse with cries of
"Cursed be the witch infernal!"

SCENE II The Garden of the Palace

IT is evening. In the garden of the
Palace, Leonora, a noble lady of
great beauty, is walking with her faith
ful companion, Inez, to whom she con
fides her interest in an unknown knight
she has seen at a Tournament. This
unknown hero has since serenaded her
hence his descriptive title, "// Trova-
tore The Troubadour" She sings of
him in the "Tacea la notte placida"
(Peaceful Was the Night).

The melody has a wistful tenderness
that is actually grateful after the
stormy first scene.

The ladies go into the house, just as
the Count dl Luna, himself bent on sere
nading the lovely Leonora, comes to her
window. But he has barely taken his
station before the mysterious Trouba
dour appears upon the same errand.
The Count hides, and listens to the song
of Manrico, which is so effective that
Leonora comes out to greet her lover.
She is met by the Count, too; and the
Count is in a fine rage. Manrico defies

COPY'T MC INTOSH

HOMER AS AZUCENA

COPY'T DUPONT

MARTIN AS MANRICO

COPY T MISHKIN

SLEZAK AS MANRICO

424

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

him, and unable to restrain their jeal
ous passions, the two men rush at one
another with drawn swords. Leonora,
fearing the death of her lover, swoons
away as the curtain descends. What is
to be the next development?

ACT II

SCENE I A Gypsy Camp in the Biscay
Mountains

THE sun rises uponagypsy encamp
ment, where the men are already
beginning the business of the day,
hammering lustily as they sing the fa
miliar Anvil Chorus: "La Zingarella."

The swinging tune, accompanied by
blows on the anvil swelling the rough
voices of the men, is justly famous.
The rhythm is broad and sweeping, and
there are few who listen to it without
being carried away.

Among these workers, however, is a
wild woman of fierce aspect and violent
passions, Azuccna. It was she who
stole the infant, as told by Ferrando,
and she now repeats the story for the
benefit of Manrico, who is supposed to
be her son. He was wounded in the
duel with the Count, but she has nursed
him back to health. The story is told
in the "Stride la vampa" (Fierce
Flames Are Soaring).

In this wild air, so well adapted to
its grim recital, through which the
changing tones of the contralto voice
are so powerfully brought into play,
Azuccna lives over again the dreadful
scene of her mother's burning at the
stake. Questioned by Manrico, she
tells how her mother's last unearthly
cry for vengeance led her to steal the
child of the present Count di Luna's
father, intending to throw it on the
flames which had consumed her mother.
She discovered, however, that in her
frenzy she had destroyed her own in
fant, preserving the child of her enemy.

The story sets Manrico thinking.
"If your son perished," he asks, "whose

child am I?" But the gypsy woman^
with a born instinct for prevarication,
avoids the question, claiming him as
her son. She changes the subject by
reminding him how she had nursed him
back to life after the almost fatal
wound received in the duel with the
Count. Manrico at once tells of his
violent struggle with his rival, in which,
by an irresistible impulse, he had
spared the man's life after felling him
to the ground in the first rush.

The air, "Mai reggendo all'aspro
assalto" (At My Mercy Lay the Foe),
is in martial vein, yet smooth and flow
ing. Azucena brings a more agitated
feeling into the music as she bids her
foster-son never to allow an enemy to
escape, but to kill without hesitation.
This leads to a powerful, intensely
rhythmic climax, in which both voices
are strikingly blended.

SCENE II The Cloister of a Convent

SINCE the duel, Leonora has heard
no more of her Troubadour lover,
and she believes him dead. She now
decides to enter a convent. Count di
Luna, however, is determined that be
fore this may happen he will carry her
away by force, and so has come to the
walls of the convent with a body of
troops. His deep love for her finds
expression in a remarkable number, the
"II balen del suo sorriso" (The Tem
pest of the Heart). It is a genuine
and heartfelt tune, one of the finest
in the operatic baritone anthology.

As its last cadenza comes to an end,
the convent bell is heard tolling as a
signal for the final rites which will re
move Leonora from the outward world.
The Count, in a passion, declares she
must be taken before she reaches the
altar. This gives way to the vigorous
"Per me ora fatale" (This Passion that
Inspires Me). The Count and his fol
lowers conceal themselves among the
trees, and the chanting of the nuns is

425

VI CT R O LA BOOK OF THE OPERA

heard, the "Ah! se Terror t'ingombra"
('Mid the Shades of Error).

The women sing in pure, sweet har
monies of Leonora 's abstraction from
the world of desire and unhappiness.
From their place of hiding the Count
and his men discuss their coming
triumph.

The nuns issue from the chapel, es
corting the penitent. They are terri
fied when the Count and his troops rush
forward to seize Leonora. But just as
they are about to carry the girl away,
they are confronted by Manrico, who
manages to protect her, and gain at
least a short-lived victory. His followers
contrive to fend off the followers of
the baffled Count. Leonora is saved.

ACT III

SCENE I The Camp of di Luna

\ ZUCENA has fallen into the hands
-Zx of a scouting party sent out by
the Count, and she is led before him as
a possible spy: "Giorni poveri vivea"
(In Despair I Seek My Son), she sings,
vainly enough.

Questioning brings out the story of
her past life, and her connection with
the episode of the Count's childhood.
Fernanda swears she is the murderess of
di Luna's long-lost brother. Azucena
in her ^ extremity, cries out the name of
Manrico, and the Count, on finding she
claims the Troubadour as her son, vows
upon her a double vengeance. She is
bound and dragged away.

SCENE II Manrico s Castle

BEFORE the final catastrophe, Man
rico and Leonora enjoy a brief res
pite in which to avow their love. An
attack by the Count di Luna is hourly
expected, and Manrico is forced to sing
a tender farewell before departing to
repel the assault. This is the "Ah, si
ben mio" (The Vows We Fondly
Plighted). It is a lyrical number, ten-

426

der and wistful, a relief from the
stormy scenes that have passed, and a
preparation for that which is to come.

The quiet of the lovers is interrupted
by news of Azucena s capture. Already
the faggots are being piled about the
stake at which she is to be burned, as
her mother was before her. Manrico
still believes the gypsy woman to be his
own mother, and he is maddened by the
news. ^ He prepares to rush to her aid
and sings a fiery air, the "Di quella
pira^ (Tremble, Ye Tyrants).

This is led up to by a powerful intro
ductory passage, and the high notes at
the end, delivered in robust tones, and
rising to the high tenor C, never fail of
their musical and dramatic effect.

ACT IV

SCENE I Exterior of the Palace of
Aliaferia

DEFEATED by Count di Luna and
_ his men, Manrico has been taken
captive, and he is languishing in a dun
geon with Azucena. To the castle, Leo-
nora ^also wanders, and outside its
frowning battlements sings the first
plaintive melody of what may almost
be considered the greatest scene in
Italian opera, the "D'amor sull'ali
rosee" (Love, Fly on Rosy Pinions).

As she sings, the chanting of the
priests is heard, and a solemn bell tolls
out announcement of her lover's im
pending doom. She hears, too, the
voice of Manrico, from his prison. This
is set forth in the ever-famous
"Miserere" (I Have Sighed to Rest Me).
Quite apart from its dramatic signifi
cance, the music of this scene is extra
ordinarily impressive. It begins with
the chanting of priests. This leads to
a strange accompaniment for the or
chestra, shuddering chords in slow but
irresistible reiterated rhythm which
sound like the veritable approach of
doom. Then comes a lovely, passion-

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

LEONORA: What voices of terror!

For whom are they praying?

ately sorrowful minor melody for
Leonora.

In upon this breaks the exquisite air
of ManricO) from within the prison
walls, followed by a joyful cry from his
beloved.

These passages, heard separately at
the beginning, are combined and inter
woven into the marvellously impres
sive ensemble which makes the scene
perhaps, the best-known and the best-
beloved of all operatic situations. It
comes to an end when the Count ap
proaches to enter the castle. Leonora
begs mercy for Manrico > but he refuses,
almost gloating over his triumph. As a
last resource she offers to marry the
Count if her lover may go free, though
she never intends, in her heart, to be
his actual bride. His manner changes,
and Leonora so far forgets her own fate
as to rejoice over the safety assured
Manrico: "Vivra! Contende il giub-
ilo" (Oh, Joy, He's Saved), cries his
beloved one.

The Court fs rapture is well expressed
in this number, and he does not hear
the words of Leonora, as the scene

changes and she proceeds to enter the
tower and set free Manrico: "Thou
shalt possess but a lifeless bride."

SCENE II The Prison Cell of Manrico

AZUCENA lies on a pallet of straw.
With the second-sight of her race
she is predicting her own end. Manrico,
believing her his mother, strives to
comfort her, and they sing an exquisite
duet, the "Ai nostri monti" (Home to
Our Mountains).

No longer is Azucena a wild and
vengeful gypsy; she is but a poor old
woman very near to death, longing for
that peace and rest which only the hills
of her childhood may restore.

Into this touching scene comes Leo
nora with the news of Manrico' s free
dom. His joy at the news, however,
is turned to desperation as he learns the
price to be paid. In a sudden frenzy
he accuses Leonora of betraying his
love: "Ha quest 1 infame" (Thou Hast
Sold Thyself), he shouts.

In this vivid number, Leonora pro
tests to Manrico, and-dzucena, who
cares nothing for their love, counsels

427

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

flight, singing her everlasting "Home
to Our Mountains" through the music
of the lovers. But the end comes.
Leonora has already taken, from its
concealment in a finger-ring, the poison
which is to be her bane, and she falls at
the feet of her lover, who now realizes
the full degree of her sacrifice. He is all
contrition, and he pleads for the for
giveness the dying girl is only too will
ing to give.

At this juncture, Count di Luna en
ters. Perceiving that Leonora has

cheated him by dying, he orders Man-
rico to instant execution.

The guards at once lead him out.
Azucena^ half-mad with excitement,
drags the Count to the window where
he sees his own sentence carried out.
Now is the moment of the gypsy's final
vengeance before she too must die.
With her ancient fire, the last effort of
her passionate soul, she shrieks, "You
have killed your brother I" Di Luna,
with a wild cry, falls at her feet. The
gypsy at least has had revenge!

FROM AN OLD DRAWING

THE DEATH OF LEONORA

428

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian unless noted)

ACT I
ABBIETTA ZINGARA

(Swarthy and Threatening) MARCEL
JOURNET, Bass 6176 12-in., 32.00

FERRANDO:

With two sons, heirs of fortune and affection,

Liv'd the Count in enjoyment;

Watching the younger for his safe protection

A good nurse found employment.

One morning, as the dawn's first rays were
shining,

From her pillow she rose,

Who was found, think ye, near the child re
clining?

(Impressively)

Sat there a gypsy-hag, witch-like appearing;

Of her dark mysteries, strange symbols wear
ing.

O'er the babe sleeping with fierce looks
bending,

Gaz'd she upon him, black deeds intending!

Horror profound seized the nurse;

And the dark intruder was soon expelled.

Soon they found the child was failing,

The hag's dark spell enthrall'd him I

(All appear horrified?)

Sought they the gypsy, on all sides turning,

Seiz'd and condemn'd her to death by burning.

One child, accursed, left she remaining.

Quick to avenge her, no means disdaining.

Thus she accomplished her dark retribution!

Lost was the Count's child; search unavailing;

But on the site of the hag's execution

They found, 'mid the embers,

The bones of a young infant,

Half consumed and burning!

ACT II
STRIDE LA VAMPA

(Fierce Flames Are Soaring) LOUISE

HOMER, Contralto 678 10-in., J51.50

GABRIELLA BESANZONI, Contralto

541 10-in., 1.50
MARGARETE MATZENAUER, Contralto

999 10-in., 1.50

Upward the flames roll; the crowd presses

fiercely on,

Rush to the burning with seeming gladness;
Loud cries of pleasure from all sides re-echoing!
By guards surrounded forth comes a woman!
While, o'er them shining, with wild, unearthly

glare,
Dark wreaths of flame curl, ascending to

heaven!

MAL REGGENDO ALL' ASPRO ASSALTO
(At My Mercy Lay the Foe) LOUISE
HOMER, Contralto and ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 8013 12-in., 32.50

IL BALEN DEL SUO SORRISO

(The Tempest of the Heart) EMILIO DE

GOGORZA, Baritone 6069 12-in., 2.00
GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

593 10-in., 1.50
COUNT:
Of her smile, the radiant gleaming

Pales the starlight's brightest reflection,
While her face with beauty beaming,

Brings me fresh ardor, lends to my affection.
Ah! this love within me burning,

More than words shall plead on my part,
Her bright glances on me turning,

Calm the tempest in my heart!

ACT III
AH, SI BEN MIO

(The Vows We Fondly Plighted) ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 6002 12-in., $2 00

MANRICO:

Tis love, sublime emotion, at such a moment

Bids thy heart still be hopeful.

Ah! love; how blest our life will be

Our fond desires attaining,

My soul shall win fresh ardor,

My arm new courage gaining.

But, if, upon the fatal page

Of destiny impending,

I'm doomed among the slain to fall,

'Gainst hostile arms contending,

In life's last hour, with fainting breath,

My thoughts will turn to thee.

DI QUELLA PIRA

(Tremble, Ye Tyrants) ENRICO CARUSO,

Tenor 512 10-in., 1.50

ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor 3031 10-in., 2.00
GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor

732 10-in., 1.50

MANRICO:

Ah! sight of horror! See that pile blazing
Demons of fury around it stand gazing!
Madness inspiring, Hate now is raging
Tremble, for vengeance on y>u shall fall.
Oh! mother dearest, though love may claim me,
Danger, too, threaten, yet will I save thee;
From flames consuming thy form shall

snatch'd be,
Or with thee, mother, I too will fall!

429

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT IV

D'AMOR SULL' ALI ROSEE

(Love, Fly on Rosy Pinions) LUISA
TETRAZZINI, Soprano 6346 12-in., 32.00

LEONORA:

In the dark hour of midnight

I hover round thee, my love!

Ye moaning breezes round me playing,

In pity aid me, my sighs to him conveying!

On rosy wings of love depart,

Bearing my heart's sad wailing,

Visit the prisoner's lonely cell,

Console his spirit failing.

Let hope's soft whispers wreathing

Around him, comfort breathing,

Recall to his fond remembrance

Sweet visions of his love;

But, let no accent reveal to him

The sorrows, the griefs my heart doth move!

MISERERE

(Pray that Peace May Attend a Soul)
ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor, FRANCES
ALDA, Soprano and Chorus of the
Metropolitan Opera 8042 12-in., 32.50
EMMY DESTINN, Soprano, GIOVANNI
MARTINELLI, Tenor and Metropolitan
Opera Chorus 6190 12-in., 2.00

AI NOSTRI MONTI

(Home to Our Mountains) LOUISE
HOMER, Contralto and ENRICO
CARUSO, Tenor 8013 12-in., 2.50

ERNESTINE SCHUMANN-HEINK., Con
tralto and ENRICO CARUSO, Tenor

8042 12-in., 2.50

BLACK LABEL RECORDS

Trovatore Selection Arthur Pry or s Band"\

Introduction, Act III " Fierce Flames," Act II Introduction, I

Act I "At My Mercy," Act II f

Traviata Selection Arthur Pry or' s Band)

[Miserere (In English) Olive Kline, Soprano; Harry Macdonough, Tenor]

\ m and Victor Chorus \3 5443

(Home to Our Mountains Marguerite Dunlap, Contralto; Harry Mac donough]

/Anvil Chorus (In English) Victor Male Chorus}* 7C/C<2 1n . 7e

l Tannhauser Pilgrims' Chorus (In English) Victor Male Chorus] 1/i6j 1U ~ m '> ' /b

f Anvil Chorus (In English] Victor Male Chorus\ ]7 ^, - n .

\ Samson and Delilah Spring Flowers Victor Women's Chorus) lU-in.,

/Anvil Chorus Arthur Pryor's Band\i 7 ~~* in .

\ Forge in the Forest (Michaelis) Arthur Pry or s Band] U ^ 1 1U " m ''

/Home to Our Mountains Vessella's Italian Band\~ H, 19-

I Rigoletto Quartet (Verdi) KryFs Bohemian Band]* L * J l--m.,

/Tempest of the Heart (In English) Alan Turner, Baritone}, , C01 in . --

\ CarmenToreador Song (In English) Alan Turner, Baritone}^ 11 1U ' ln<} J5

n <M or
12-in., ?l.2S

12-in., 1.25

.75

12-in., 1.25

430

DIE WALKURE

(THE VALKYRIE)

MUSIC-DRAMA in three acts.
Text and music by Richard
Wagner. Completed in 1856
but not given until June 25, 1870, at
Munich. First London production, m
English, at Covent Garden, October 16,
189S. First New York production at
the Academy of Music, April 2, 1877,
with Mme. Pappenheim, Canissa,
Listner, Bischoff, Blum and Preusser.
Not heard again in New York until
January 30, 1885, when Dr. Leopold
Damrosch revived the work at the
Metropolitan, with Brandt, Schott and
Materna. Since that time the work
has seldom been absent from the Met
ropolitan. Among the artists who have
appeared in the opera during the past
thirty years may be mentioned the
following: as Sieglinde Fremstad,
Ternina, Nordica, Morena, Saltz-

mann-Stevens, Osdorn-Hannah; as
Erunnhilde Ternina, Gadski, Walker,
Leffler-Burckhard, Matzenauer, Nor
dica, Litvinne, W 7 eidt; as Siegmund
Burrian, Burgstaller, Dalmores, Urlus,
Kraus; as Wotan Van Rooy, Gris-
wold, Whitehall, Feinhals and Goritz.

CHARACTERS

SIEGMUND (Zeeg'-moond) Tenor

HUNDING (Hoond'-ing) Bass

WOTAN (Voh'-tahri) Baritone

SIEGLINDE (Zeeg-lin'-deh] Soprano

BRUNNHILDE (Bruen-hilV deK) . Soprano

FRICKA (Frik'-ah) Soprano

VALKYRIES Gerhilde, Ortlinde, Wal-
traute, Schwertleite, Helmwige, Sieg-
rune, Grimgerde, Rossweise.

(The name of the opera is pro
nounced Dee Vahl-kuer-reh).

TH E O PE RA

ACT I

Interior of Hunding" s Hut in the Forest

a Large Tree rises through

the Roof

A TERRIBLE storm is raging. Sieg-
JT\. mund) weaponless, wounded,
spent, finds his way into the house
of Hunding, where he is received and
comforted by Sieglinde. When Hund
ing returns he perceives an extraor
dinary likeness between the two, and
learns that the stranger was brought up
by his father Wolsung in the woods,
whither they had fled after their home
had been ravaged, and his infant sister
carried off by the Neidungs. Knowing
now that he entertains a mortal enemy,
Hunding out of hospitality permits
Siegmund to remain for the night, but
declares that on the morrow, he shall

die. Sieglinde is dismissed, but she
glances significantly at the ash-tree,
the pillar of the hut, where the hilt of a
sword is visible. She mixes with Hund
ing s night-draught a potion to make
him sleep soundly. W T hen all is quiet
she returns to Siegmund^ telling him of
the sword, which has been stuck into
the tree, at the time of her wedding, by
a one-eyed warrior, whom Siegmund
recognizes to have been his own father,
Wolsung. The storm clears, and when
the door is opened a wonderful spring-
night is revealed. The two compare
stories, and find that beside being lovers
they are also brother and sister.
Their love-song is one of the most beau
tiful of melodies.

The mating of Siegmund with^ Sieg
linde has awakened bitter criticism.
But it is well to remember such ,mat-

431

PAINTED BY J> ELI TZ ""*" '""'"""" ->_ ^.^,^_^ ^.^ . _: ,

BRUNNHILDE BEARING A WOUNDED WARRIOR TO WALHALLA

432

VICfROLA BOOK OF THE 'OPERA

ings are common in mythology Ori
ental, Greek, Roman, as. well as Teu
tonic, and it is absolutely essential that
the race founded by Wotan shall be
of immortal strain through earthly
parents. It supplies one of the
greatest love-scenes in music. Toward
its close Siegmundy with a mighty
effort, draws the sword Nothung from
the tree and the lovers escape into
the woods. The sword-theme, which
plays such an important part in this
scene, is heard frequently in subse
quent dramas. Derived from theRhein-
gold-Fanfare, it will make new themes
in turn:

ACT II

SCENE A Wild and Rocky Pass

WOTAN, the one-eyed father-god
chief of the immortals, the Jupi
ter of Rome, the Zeus of the Greeks,
and the Indra of Brahmanism, confers
with his daughter Brunnhilde y com
manding her to protect Siegmund in the

forthcoming combat. Brunnhilde is one
of nine daughters of Wotan and Erday
goddess of the earth, whose mission is
to bring the souls of heroes to Walhalla
for protection against Fafner. The
Valkyrie warns him that his plan will
offend his wife Fricka^ the protector
of the Neidungs and the goddess
who specially protects the marriage
institution. Arrayed from head to
foot in armour, and mounted on
her steed Grani, Brunnhilde then
goes off" shouting her weird battle-
cry: "Ho, yo, to, ho!" (Briinnhilde's
Battle-Cry).

This wild and technically difficult
number is founded on the battle-cry
which plays so significant a part in the
"Ride of the Valkyries" from the third
act. It is hard to sing with the re
quired force and accuracy, from the
leaping width of its intervals and the
unusual harmonies upon which it is
founded. It ascends to "high C."

H-yo> U> ho.. . . Ho -yo - ta I

PHOTO MATZENE

WHITEHIU. AS WOTAN

COPY T DUPONT

GADSKI AS BRUNNHILDE

PHOTO BERT

JOURNET AS

PAINTED BY DELITZ

WOTAN S FAREWELL
434

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

No sooner is Brunnhilde gone than
Fricka approaches on her chariot
drawn by two rams. She is furious at
the injustice done to Hunding^ in the
illicit union of Siegmund and Sieglinde.
Wotan, for once no god but only a hus
band, explains his purpose, whenFricka
shrewdly points out that his children
are in fact himself, and that his protec
tion virtually amounts to a breach of
his contract with Fafner which may
lead to the downfall of the gods. Forced
to agree, he finally swears that Sieg
mund shall be punished. Fricka then
triumphantly recalls Briinnhilde> who
is dismayed when Wotan revokes his
order. Wotan explains, at great length
of the circumstances told in "Das
Rheingold," and she departs to warn
Siegmund of his approaching doom.
Wotan , at parting, enjoins obedience.

Brunnhilde discovers Siegmund and
Sieglinde still fleeing from Hunding and
his hounds. While Sieglinde sleeps,
the Valkyrie warns Siegmund of his
fate, and in some of the noblest music
ever conceived, she promises him hap
piness in Walhalla. When Siegmund
learns, however, that Sieglinde may not
join him there, he spurns all hope of it,
defying Wotan himself. Brunnhilde
is deeply moved. She knows that
Wotan loves these fearless children of
his, and she herself is struck with Sieg
mund' s indomitable courage. The
scene grandly unfolds. Brunnhilde,
more than half human, disobeys the
divine command, promising help to
Siegmund in the forthcoming struggle.
Hunding arrives, and the fight takes
place, Brunnhilde hovering above the
hero, who trusts fearlessly in the sword
from the ash-tree. But Wotan has
learned of Briinnhildes disobedience
and through the riven skies he comes
raging upon his wild steed. He fends
off the sword with his own spear, shat
tering it into fragments. Siegmund is
felled by Hunding; then the outraged

god, having accomplished the will of
Fricka , contemptuously slays Hunding
with a motion of the spear. Brunn
hilde has already escaped with Sieg
linde^ but Wotan^ bent on punishment,
rides into the skies in full pursuit.

ACT III

SCENE The Summit of a Rocky
Mountain

THE meeting place of the Valkyries,
and their wild ride through the
skies is pictured by Wagner in an
orchestral prelude of thrilling power,
the so-called "Ride of the Valkyries/'

This is possibly the most imagina
tive of all orchestral compositions; cer
tainly nothing approaching It for wild
and savage energy has ever been writ
ten into any opera. Several themes
work out simultaneously; a trilling
theme, the neighing of the Valkyries*
horses; a "snorting" theme over the
musical interval of a fourth; a gallop-
theme, and the motive of the "Walk-
iir-enrittes," or the ride itself, bandied
about, like a minor bugle -call, between
trombones and trumpets, finally em
phasized by the tuba. In the midst of
it appears the Valkyries' shout, later
sung by the eight Valkyries in their
heroic garb, with great winged helmets,
shields and spears. As the Valkyries
one by one alight upon the great rock
where they congregate, they behold
Brunnhilde, their favorite sister, ca
reering toward them, bearing not a
dead hero but a woman at her saddle
bow. Alighting, she runs from one to
the other, asking protection, but none
dares offer it. Brunnhilde gives to
Sieglinde the pieces of the broken
sword, bidding her flee to the woods
where Fafner dwells; there she may
give birth to her child who shall be
come the inheritor of the world.

The Valkyries hurriedly conceal
Brunnhilde in their midst as the out-

435

FEKD. LEEKE

BRUNNHILDE:

Was it so shameful, what I have done,
That for my deed I am scourged?

(Walkiire, Act III)

436

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

raged Wotan springs from his horse.
Brunnhilde is compelled to come forth.
The other Valkyries separate with cries
of woe. Left alone, Brunnhilde pleads
with Wotan. Was it such a dreadful
thing to do, knowing his love for his
mortal children, and the deceit prac
ticed on poor Siegmund"w\t\i the sword?
She pleads with tender eloquence, and
Wotan is deeply moved. But he re
mains inexorable. She must lose her
power as a goddess, put off divinity and
lapse into a mere earthly woman; she
must sleep, to become the bride of any
one who awakens her. The shame of
this rouses Brunnhilde ^ and she pleads
at least that she be surrounded with
fire so that only a hero may break
through. This is granted her, and
Wotan bids her farewell in music of un
exampled power and almost heart
breaking pathos, the great "Wotan's
Abschied" (Wotan's Farewell).

Brunnhilde sinks rapt and transfig
ured upon Wotan s breast, and he holds
her in a long embrace. She throws her
head back, gazing with solemn emotion
into her father's eyes.

As Wotan kisses her godhood away,
Brunnhilde sinks back into her long
sleep. He assists her to lie upon a low,
mossy bank, closes her helmet and
covers her over with her great steel
shield. Slowly moving off, he touches
a rock with his magic spear, and sum
mons Loge y the God of Fire. A stream
of answering flame issues from the rock,
surrounding Wotan and leaping wildly
and touching the skies to a red volcanic
glow. This scene is the thrilling "Ma
gic Fire Spell."

It begins with the end of "Wotan's
Farewell/' and develops one of the
most amazing passages of tone-painting
ever imagined by mortal musician.
The leaping, whistling flames writhe
up before one's very eyes, subsiding as
peace enfolds the sleeping woman.

There is heard the motive of the

Twilight of the Gods a kind of pre
monition; Brunnhilde s godhood lost,
others will inevitably follow, through
the working out of the Curse placed by
Alberich upon the stolen gold of the
Rhine. The farewell is heartrending
but sorrow, like all sorrow, is deeper
and finer than joy. The cruelty of
this parting seems dramatically unnec
essary; but as its consciousness steals
over the listener, there is heard as
Wotan disappears, the stern three-note
motive of the Decree of Fate it is
Fate working, Fate which is stronger
than life or death, stronger than joy or
suffering, Fate which was stronger yet
than the will of the gods. This is one
of Wagner's sublimest scenes. As with
the"Ride of the Valkyries,' ' a number of
motives are worked out together: al
most the last is the heroic theme of
Siegfried Guardian of the Sword, or, as
many call it, Siegfried the Inheritor of
the World, which trumpets magnifi
cently through the dying mazes of the
Fire-music. Had Wagner never writ
ten another scene, this would have
sufficed to yield him place among the
greatest three composers of the modern
world.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in German)

ACT II
HO, YO, TO, HO!

(Briinnhilde's Battle Cry) EMMA GADSKI,
Sopnmo 904 10-in., 551.50

BRUNNHILDE:

Ho-yo-to-ho! Ho-yo-to-ho! Hei-aha!

But listen, father! care for thyself;

For a storm o'er thee will break;

Fricka, thy busy wife, approacheth in her ram-
impelled car.

Ha! how she swings her golden whip!

The frighten'd goats are fainting with fear,

Wheels" rattling and rolling whirl her here to
the fight.

At such a time away I would be,

Tho' my delight is in scenes of war!

Take heed that defeat be not thine,

For now I must leave thee to fate!

437

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

ACT III
RTDE OF THE VALKYRIES

12-in., 32.00
12-in., 2.00

Philadelphia Orchestra 6245
OLGA SAMAROFF, Pianist 6270
FORT DENN EILE

(Fly Then Swiftly) MARGARETE MATZEN-

AUER, Contralto 904 10-in., 1.50

BRUNNHILDE:

Fly then swiftly, and speed to the east!

Bravely determine all trials to bear.

The highest hero of worlds hidest thou, O

wife,

In sheltering shrine!
(She produces the pieces of Siegmund' s sword

and^ hands them to Sieglinde.)
For him these shreds of shattered sword-blade;
From his father's death-field by fortune I saved

them:

Anon renewed this sword shall he swing;
And now his name I declare Siegfried, of

vict'ry the son!
WOTAN'S ABSCHIED

(Wotan's Farewell, Part I) CLARENCE

WHITEHILL, Baritone 64278 10-in., 1.00
Parts 1 and 2 CLARENCE WHITEHILL

and Symphony Orchestra

In English 6435 12-in., 2.00

WOTAN:

Farewell, my brave and beautiful child!

Thou once the light and life of my heart!

Farewell! Farewell! Farewell!

Loth I must leave thee; no more in love

May I grant thee my greeting;

Henceforth my maid no more with me rideth,

Nor waiteth wine to reach me!

When I relinquish thee, my beloved one,

Thou laughing delight of my eyes,

Thy bed shall be lit with torches more brilliant

Than ever for bridal have burned!

Fiery gleams shall girdle the fell,

With, terrible scorchings scaring the timid

Who, cowed, may cross not Briinnhilde's

couch

For one alone freeth the bride;
One freer than I; the god!

WOTAN'S FAREWELL AND MAGIC FIRE
MUSIC

STOKOWSKI and Philadelphia Orchestra

6245 12-in., 2.00

Finale of Opera CLARENCE WHITEHILL
and Symphony Orchestra
In English 74857 12-in., 1.50

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS

/Ride of the Valkyries Vessellas Italian

I Gotterdammerung Siegfried's Funeral March Vessella's Band j

/Magic Fire Spell (Feuerzauber) Vessellas Italian Band

\ Rienzi Overture (PVagner) Arthur Pry or' s Band

/Magic Fire Spell (Feuerzauber) Julius L. Schendel, Pi

\ ^ Rustle of Spring (Sinding) (2) Papillon (Grieg) Julius Sch

fSiegmund's Love Song Violin- Cello-Piano Tollefsen Trio\ 17740

1 Romance (Rubinstein) Violin- Cello-Piano Tollefsen Trio)

Prelude: Siegmund seeks shelter from the storm Act I 1

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates {

Siegmund sees the sword hilt in the tree Act I Vocalist Tudor Davies
. t Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Eugene Goossens}

'Siegmund greets the Spring night Act I Vocalist Tudor Davies

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Eugene Goossens ~ r
Siegmund draws out the sword Finale, Act I Vocalist Tudor Davies

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Eugene Goossens
Introduction: Briinnhilde's battle cry Act II Vocalists Florence Austral)

and Robert Radford . . . Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates I .
Wotan warns Briinnhilde not to disobey Act II Vocalists Florence Austral r ^

and Robert Radford. Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Eugene Goossens]
Briinnhilde foretells Siegmund's death Act II Vocalists Florence Austral 1

and Tudor Davies Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates\

Introduction: Ride of the Valkyries Act III |

. Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates]

Briinnhilde gives Sieglinde the broken sword Act III

Vocalists Florence Austral, Edith Furmedge and Edward Halland
_ , M Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Albert Coates

Brunnhilde implores the protection of fireAct III
Vocalists Florence Austral and Robert Radford

Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Eugene Goossens

438

12-in.,
12-in.,
12-in.,
10-in.,

1.25

.75

I SS2M

12-in.,

1.50

>55205

12-in.,

1.50

[55206

12-in.,

1.50

1^5207
v

12-in.,

1.50

55208 12-in., 1.50

WERTHER

ERIC drama in four acts and five
tableaux. Libretto by Edouard
Blau, Paul Milliet and George
Hartman, founded upon Goethe's story
of his own life, The Sorrows of Werther.
Music by Massenet. First produced
Imperial Opera House, Vienna, Feb
ruary 16, 1892, with Van Dyck and
Renard. Paris, Opera Comique, Janu
ary 16, 1893, with Mme. Delna. Milan,
December, 1894. New Orleans Opera,
November 3, 1894. First American
production, the Metropolitan Opera
House, April 20, 1894, with Eames,
Arnoldson and Jean de Reszke. Re
vived at the New Theatre by the
Metropolitan Opera Company, 1910,
with Farrar, Clement, Gluck and Dinh-
Gilly; Boston Opera, 1913,

CHARACTERS

WERTHER (Wair-tair) Tenor

ALBERT, the bailiff Baritone

SCHMIDT! , c , \ Bass

T Mils fnendsi -r ^

JOH ANN j [ 1 enor

CHARLOTTE, his daughter. . . .Soprano
SOPHIE, her sister Mezzo-Soprano

Time and Place: In the Vicinity of
Frankfort, Germany , 7772

CHARLOTTE, surrounded by her
\^t brothers and sisters, is preparing
the noonday meal. Werther > a serious-
minded and romantic young man,
comes to the house with Albert^ who is
betrothed to Charlotte. Werther falls
in love with the young girl. Charlotte
returns his affection, but feels it her
duty to marry Albert to fulfill a promise
made to her mother, and so begs
Werther to leave the village.

After Charlotte and Albert are mar
ried Werther tells Charlotte that he still
loves her. She entreats him to spare
her and go away forever. Werther
then writes to Albert ^ telling him he
has resolved to go on a long journey,

and asking him for his pistols. Char
lotte^ alarmed, follows Werther. It is
Christmas Eve, nearing midnight, and
the snow almost blinds her. The scene
changes to a tiny room, and reclining
on a chair in the lamplight is Werther^
mortally wounded. Charlotte arrives
too late, and he dies in her arms.
Overcome with grief, she faints on the
body of her lover, while the pealing of
bells and the joyous voices of little
children singing Christmas carols are
heard in the distance. The gem of
the opera is Werther s love-dream,
"Do Not Waken Me."

THE VICTOR RECORDS

AH! NON MI RIDESTAR!
POURQUOI ME REVEILLER (French)
(Why Awake Me?) MATTIA BATTISTINI,

Baritone In Italian 6045 12-in., 32.00
GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor In

French 735 10-in., 1.50

EDMOND CLEMENT, Tenor In French

902 10-in., 1.50
DMITRI SMIRNOV, Tenor In French

912 10-in., 1.50

NATURE, PLEINE DE GRACE

(Invocation to Nature) FERNAND ANS-
SEAU, Tenor In French 6104 12-in., 2.00

FARRAR AS CHARLOTTE IN WERTHER

439

THE OATH (AL FRESCO PRODUCTION IN SWITZERLAND)

WILLIAM TELL

(GUILLAUME TELL)

(French)

WILLIAM TELL, outlining
the story of the liberation of
Switzerland, was composed
in the twenties of the last century,
at a time when Europe was recov
ering from the Napoleonic wars, and
many theories of liberty were finding
voice. Schiller, the German poet, had
attracted considerable notice in Paris
following the translation of some of his
works into French, and it was but natu
ral that Rossini should have turned to
his splendid drama for an operatic
subject.

_ Notwithstanding "HBarbiere,"" Wil
liam Tell" is usually regarded as the
greatest of Rossini's works, from a mu
sical standpoint. Rossini is known to
have been interested in the works of
Beethoven at that time, the death of
that great master in 1827 having per
haps called special attention to his
works. As a ^ result "William Tell"
was a revolutionary departure from
Rossini's usual style of composition.
This is the more remarkable when one
reflects that Rossini was then the fore
most dramatic composer in Europe,

having a long list of successful works to
his credit. A lesser man would have
thought he had nothing left to learn.
Though at times careless enough in his
workmanship, Rossini was unerring in
his artistic judgment of others, as
shown by his frank acknowledgment of
the genius not only of Beethoven but
of Haydn (whose string quartets he
studied very closely) and Mozart. In
many of his now forgotten operas he
frequently pleased the public by in
cluding airs of whose banalities he was
perfectly well aware; but in "William
Tell" he lavished the utmost pains,
showing, in addition, an amazing fresh
ness of inspiration. Not only are the
melodies exquisite and appropriate in
themselves, but the harmonies are re
markably original for the period, and
the orchestration a marked improve
ment on anything yet produced by
Italian composers. The Overture of
"William Tell" is noteworthy in this
respect, and it was truly described by
Berlioz (who usually loathed Rossini
and all his works) as a "symphony in
four parts." The quintet for 'cellos at

440

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

the opening is quite unique for the
period, and the horn passages in the
hunting chorus of the Second Act is
also remarkable. As usual with Ros
sini, the vocal writing throughout is
well-nigh perfect.

"William Tell" was the last of his op
eras. Just why a composer of genius
who lived to be seventy-six should have
ceased writing operas in his thirties, at
the zenith of his fame, and with all the
opera-houses of Europe open to his
works, will ever remain a mystery. He
was, to be sure, decidedly lazy, though
he could display amazing energy when
the fit seized him. Political and do
mestic disturbance may in some degree
account for his long lethargy and his
spasmodic working methods. The fact
remains that he lived many years, his
salon the chief meeting place of the
most brilliant people in Paris, his influ
ence in music of the highest impor
tance yet produced practically nothing.
After "William Tell" the only significant
work was the sacred cantata, "Stabat
Mater." He took some interest in the
piano, describing himself (probably
with accuracy) as a fourth-rate pianist,
and writing trivial pieces for the instru

ment, some of which he cynically ded
icated to his parrot. His wittier say
ings were quoted on all sides, but his
criticism treated with respect, none the
less, his creative genius expended itself
for the most part in inventing new
salads, for he was an admirable cook !

"William Tell" was a popular success,
but the management of the Opera was
given to presenting the work with
elaborate cuts, reducing the five acts to
three, and occasionally giving only one
act at a time, using it as a curtain-
raiser or as an accompaniment to the
ballet. One day the Opera Director
met Rossini on the street, and said: "I
hope you won't be annoyed, but to
night we play the second act of 'William
TellV\ "What, the whole of it/" asked
Rossini in simulated astonishment.
His wit made many enemies. His
most bitter critics were perhaps Berlioz
and the painter Ingres. But his admir
ers included Schubert, who called him
"a rare genius," Schumann, who spoke
of his "real, exhilarating, clever music,' '
and Mendelssohn, who allowed none to
disparage his work. With these masters,
the musical world now generally agrees,
especially as regards "William Tell."

TH E OPERA

OPERA in four acts; text, by
Jouy, Bis and Marast taken
from Schiller's drama. Music by
Rossini. First presented at Paris,
August 3, 1829. First London produc
tion, 1830. Produced at the New Or
leans Opera, 1842. Revived at the
Academy of Music by Leonard Grover's
Opera Company, with Carl Formes.
Produced at the Metropolitan 1888,with
Fischer, and 1890, with Tamagno. Cen
tury Opera 19 14, Metropolitan, 1922-23.

CHARACTERS
WILLIAM TELL, Swiss Patriot .... Bass

ARNOLD, suitor 1 fTenor

of Matilda 1 Swiss Patriots |
WALTER FURSTJ [Bass

MELCTHAL, Arnold's father Bass

GESSLER, Governor of Schwitz

andUri Bass

LEUTHOLD, a shepherd Bass

MATILDA, daughter of Gessler. . Soprano

HEDWIGA, Tell's wife Soprano

JEMMY, Tell's son Soprano

Scene and Period: Switzerland; Thir
teenth Century

(The French name of the opera is
Guillaume (Gee-ohm), G hard, and the
Italian, Guglielmo (Gool-yel-moK) Tell).

441

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

THE Overture is a lengthy and im
posing work, frequently heard in
our concert rooms. It is in four parts:
The Dawn, The Storm, The Calm, The
Finale. It seems to be designed to fur
nish the "atmosphere" of the drama,
the Swiss background, to suggest the
beauties of nature in a land of moun
tainous beauty and sudden storms. The
opening Andante is peaceful and se
rene, with a lovely, chant-like passage
for 'cellos after the slowly-climbing
figure at the opening:

The tranquil mood of the opening
breaks up in turmoil as the rustling
strings suggest the distant mutterings
of a storm which finally bursts with
tremendous power. After a furious
crescendo, it dies away, a few liquid
notes from the flute seeming to suggest
the birds, restirring in the trees when
the sun breaks through. Then comes
a delightful pastoral melody for the
English Horn, originally assigned by
Rossini to an obsolete instrument of
this type known as the oboe di caccia.
y As the pastoral dies away, trumpet
calls introduce the vigorous gallopade
with which the Overture closes, a
splendid and stimulating quick-step
usually played very swiftly, and leading
to a magnificent finale with which the
work comes to an end.

ACT I

SCENE A Village in the Canton
of Uri

IN the year 1207, when the events are
supposed to take place, Switzerland
suffers beneath the German yoke, the
tyrant Gessler ruling over the unhappy
people with uncalled-for ferocity. Not
withstanding this, the people strive to

carry on life with calmness, and the
curtain ascends upon a peaceful scene.
William Tell and his family are at work
in the fields; nearby a group of fisher
men are about to set out on the lake.
William Tell is disturbed by their ap
parent indifference to the political
tyranny beneath which they suffer, and
he listens with grim patience when a
fisherman sings a delightful barcarolle
in keeping with the sunny quiet of the
day. This is the "Accours dans ma
nacelle" (Come, Love, in My Boat).

A horn sounds. It is the signal to
open the annual Shepherds' Festival,
at which three marriages are to be cele
brated by Melcthal^ the patriarch of the
village. Melcthal rejoices in the task
and he regrets that his son Arnold,, is
not among the betrothed. Arnold^
however, though he dares not admit it,
is in love with Matilda^ the daughter of
the tyrannical Gessler. William Tell
has seen that the youth no longer
seems to share the general hatred of the
Swiss for their oppressors, and he
chides him, half guessing the reason.
Arnold then confesses to him his love
for the girl, in the aria,"Ah, Matilde, io
t'amo" (Matilda, I Love Thee).

Arnold is finally persuaded that his
country stands first in the matter of
duty, and he agrees to set aside his
private wishes. He and Tell together
join the peasants in their festivities.

While these are at their height, a
sound of horns is heard across the val
ley, proclaiming that Gessler and his
followers are near by, and intruding an
ominous note into the general merri
ment. Suddenly the weddings are
interrupted by Leuthold, a fugitive,
crying "Save me, from the tyrant."
He has slain one of Gessler s followers
for attacking his daughter, and the
hunters are out on his trail. He begs
the fishermen to convey him across the
lake into safety, but as it would mean
crossing some dangerous falls, they re-

442

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

PASTORAL SCENE IN THE SWISS OUTDOOR PRODUCTION OF WILLIAM TELL

fuse. William Tell, however, comes to
the rescue, and they put off just as the
pursuers appear. The baffled Gessler
then orders the village to be put to the
flames, and the fields devastated. Mel-
cthal is seized and slain, and the curtain
descends upon a scene of desperate ruin.

ACT II

SCENE A deep Galley in the Alps. On

the left the Lake of the Four Cantons.

Twilight

MATILDA waits for her sweet
heart, Arnold, but, when he
joins her it is only to tell her of his de
termination to remain with his people.
She is deeply distressed, but both of
them are deeplier shocked when William
Tell brings in the news that Arnold's
father is dead and the village burnt
down in reprisal after Leuthold's escape.
Arnold's desire for vengeance now
overpowers even his love for Matilda^
and it is in lament that he rejoins
William TelL Soon the men from the
Cantons, or districts, gather and swear
vengeance. William Tell,, the best
archer and strongest swimmer among

them, is naturally their leader, and he
longs for action. Yet for the moment
he advises caution.

ACT III

SCENE The Grand Square of Altdorf
Gessler s Castle in the Background. In
the Foreground a Pole Surmounted by

a Cap

ESSLER, after the manner of his
kind, overlooks none of the "re
finements of cruelty" which are often
more bitterly resented than flagrantly
brutal acts. It is a holiday, and he
sits, enthroned, before the conquered
people. As a final insult, he has had
erected a pole with a cap on it, as the
symbol of his "might, majesty and do
minion." It is his august will that the
Swiss people shall bow before the pole;
as they approach it, he watches them
do so with grim pleasure. Meanwhile,
there are games and entertainments,
set to the "William Tell Ballet Music/'
Among those who come to the fair is
William TV/, with his little son, Jemmy.
Disgusted at this fresh outrage, ^///^w
Tell refuses to bow before the ridicu
lous symbol of power. He is promptly

443

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

captured, and, with Jemmy, brought
before Gessler. When the tyrant learns
that Jemmy is his only son, the fiend
ish idea occurs to him that he may
test the prisoner's reputed ability as a
bowman by having him shoot an apple
from the boy's head. If he refuses,
both shall suffer instant death. Having
no option, Tell is forced to consent, his
hand being none the more firm because
of Jemmy's confidence in his powers.
They stand the boy before a tree, plac
ing an apple on his head. They offer
to bind him, but Jemmy refuses, crying
"Father, remember your skill! Fear
not, I will not move."

Tell selects not one arrow but two,
hiding the first in his cloak. He sends
a fierce look at the tyrant, then aims
with great care and looses a flying
arrow. The shot is successful, despite
the long range. When he realizes that
the boy is safe, Tell faints away; as he
sinks down, the second arrow falls from
beneath his short cloak. "For whom
was the second arrow?" asks Gessler,,
when he recovers. "For you, tyrant,
if I had harmed my child!" is the
answer. Gessler then orders them both
put to death, but Matilda, who has
entered and who has seen the whole
ghastly business, boldly demands the
child's life and takes him under her
protection. Tell is borne to prison
amid the curses of the Swiss.

ACT IV

SCENE I The Ruined Village of Act I
\ RNOLD, who knows nothing of
/~X Telfs capture, has come to his
native village to bid farewell to the
home of his boyhood. He gazes at the
desolate cottage and sings his charm
ing and pathetic air, "O muto asil," or
"Asile hereditaire," (O Blessed Abode).
Swiss patriots enter hurriedly and
acquaint Arnold with the recent events
at Altdorf. He calls on them to follow
him to the rescue of Tell, and they depart.

SCENE II Lake of Four Cantons. A
Storm is Gathering

T ELL'S wife is resting here on her
way to demand of Gessler her
husband and son. Suddenly she hears
her son's voice and is overjoyed to see
him brought to her by Matilda. She
clasps the boy in her arms, and
anxiously inquires for her husband.
Matilda says that Tell has been re
moved from Altdorf Prison, and taken
across the lake. She has no sooner
spoken than Tell appears, having
escaped from the boat and sent an
arrow through the tyrant's heart.
Arnold and the patriots appear, rejoic
ing that Gessler has been slain and that
the Swiss are free once more.

The storm breaks, and as if to
announce liberty to Switzerland the
sun bursts forth, revealing the glitter
ing, snowy peaks of the Alps in all
their dazzling beauty. An invocation
to Freedom swells from every throat.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT I
AH, MATILDE, 10 T'AMO E AMORE

(Matilda, I Love Thee) GIOVANNI MARTIN EL LI,
Tenor and MARCEL JOURNET, Bass

10009 12-in., 3.50

ACT II
SELVA OPACO

(Deep Shaded Forest) FRANCES ALDA,

Soprano 537 10-in., 1.50

TRONCAR SUOI DI

(His Life Basely Taken) GIUSEPPE DE
LUCA, Baritone; JOSE MARDONES,
Bass; GIOVANN! MARTINELLI, Tenor

10009 12-in., 3.50

ACT III
RESTA IMMOBILE

(Flinch Not, Nor Stir a Limb) GIUSEPPE
DE LUCA, Baritone 596 10-in., 1.50

ACT IV
O MUTO ASIL

(Oh, Blessed Abode) GIOVANNI MAR
TINELLI, Tenor 6212 12-in., 2.00

444

VICTROLABOOK OF THE OPERA

ARNOLD:

I will ne'er abandon my resolve,

My heart's thirsting for revenge!

William the tyrant has in chains imprison'd!

The hour of battle I impatiently wait!

What silence in this lone place doth reign;

I listen my own steps alone I hear!

Oh! bless'd abode, within whose walls

Mine eyes first saw the light,

Once so belov'd, yet now thy halls,

Bring mis'ry to my aching sight.

In vain I call; no father's greeting,

Which fancy now to me's repeating,

Will ere again these ears be meeting,

Then home once lov'd, forevermore, farewell!

BLACK LABEL AND BLUE LABEL RECORDS
OVERTURE

THE

f Part IAt Dawn Victor Concert Orchestra

IPart ~~

II The Storm Victor Concert Orchestra} 17815 10 "" in '

/Part
\Part

Part
IPart

/Part
IPart

/Part
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/Part
IPart

IllThe Calm Victor Concert Orchestra}, Qm ~

IV Finale Victor Concert Orchestra] 1 ^ 11

1A .
10 - m '

/Part IAt Dawn Arthur Pryors Band\~tm 10 .

IPart II -The Storm Arthur Pryor's W/ 35120 12 ~ m ->

-The Calm Arthur Pryor's Band\^^ -n n

Finale Arthur Pry or* s Bandr* Ul U " ln ' 5

III The Calm
IV

I At Dawn ........................................ Pry or* s

II-The Storm ...................................... P/yor's

III The Calm ...................................... Pryor's

IV-Finale ....................... .................. Pfyor's

.75
1.25
1.25

in
10 - m '>

TELL REFUSES TO BOW TO THE TYRANT

445

ZAZA

ZAZA had to wait a long time,
in America at least, for any
thing like recognition. Rug-
giero Leoncavallo himself wrote the
words, according to his custom, adapt
ing the opera from the well-known
play of Berton and Simon. It did
well in Europe, and it was actually
given in America as early as 1903, ^but
only in 1920, when the Metropolitan
Opera Company presented it, did the
quality of the work reveal itself.

THE OPERA

OPERA in four acts; libretto and
music by Ruggiero Leoncavallo.
First production in Milan, 1900. First
American production at the Tivoli,
San Francisco, 1903. Excerpts given
at Leoncavallo Festival, New York,
1906. Revived in San Francisco, 1913,
under Leoncavallo himself. Notable
performances during 1920 with the
Metropolitan Opera Company, New
York.

CHARACTERS

ZAZA (Tsah-tsaJi) . .A concert hall singer
NATALIE (Na-tah-lee r -aJi) . .Zaza's maid
MILIO DUFRESNE (Mee-lee~oh Doo-

frayn') A wealthy Parisian

SIGNORA DUFRESNE His wife

CASCART (Cas-cahr) A concert hall singer

BUZZY A journalist

Actors, Singers, Dancers, Scene Shift
ers, Firemen, Property Men, etc.

Time and Place: Paris; the Present Time

THE first scene represents a stage
divided into two sections. At one
side is the dressing-room of Zaza^ while
the other represents the rear of a stage
setting. Zaza, a concert-hall singer,
has taken a fancy to Milio Dufresne^
and she openly boasts to Buzzy, a
"journalist," who is despised yet

feared by the stagefolk, that she will
have Milio 's love. She puts forth all
her feminine powers, and Dufresne
succumbs. It is during ^ this scene
that Zaza and Cascart sing the "II
Bacio" (The Kiss), from the rear of
the actual stage, in front of the imagi
nary audience whence they return,
flushed with triumph. The duet is a
cleverly artistic parody of the music
hall style; " catchy " but remarkably
well-written.

In the second act, the love affair is
well under way. Zaza is told by
Dufresne, in her own country house,
that he must go away on a business
trip. The singer takes this much for
granted, until Cascart enters, hinting
that Dufresne may have other reasons
than business for his departure. Zaza s
suspicions rise, and she follows him to
Paris.

The third act shows a room in Du
fresne' s Paris house. Zaza enters, ac
companied by Natalie. Discovering
there a letter addressed to Signora
Dufresne,, she thereby discovers, to
her astonishment, that her lover al
ready is married. His child enters,
finally Signora Dufresne herself, who
is equally astonished at this visitor.
Zaza declares she has entered the wrong
house. Her explanation is accepted,
and she leaves.

The scene of the last act again is
Zaza s suburban house. Cascart^ who
is really a good sort of fellow, goes
there and pleads with her to give up
Dufresne. His two numbers, "Buona
Zaza, del mio buon tempo" and "Zaza,
piccolo Zingara" (Zaza, Little Gypsy),
have been recorded. Zaza^ however,
only laughs at the idea. When Cascart
leaves, Dufresne himself is announced.
He greets Zaza in the old affectionate
manner, but she informs him she knows
of the marriage though, woman-like

446

VICTROLA BOOK OF THE OPERA

she forgives his deception. She de
clares, nevertheless for Zaza is rather
a mixture that she has told Signora
Dufresne of their intimacy. In a rage
he curses her and throws her to the
floor, and her love for him is suddenly
cured. She then assures him that her
first story was untrue, that Signora
Dujresne knows nothing of the affair,
and the shallow Dufresne leaves her.

In the original version of the play,
Zaza returns, logically, to her stage
life. As given in the United States, it
had an added act, in which Zaza>
"purified by suffering," became a
great actress, and returned to philoso
phize with, and confute, Dufresne.
More accurate French and Italian dra
matic sense and clearer discernment of
character simply returned her to the
music hall.

Whatever Zaza s fate is, or should
have been, the opera, like the original
play, is a study in human character.

THE VICTOR RECORDS

(Sung in Italian)

ACT I
IL BACIO

(The Kiss) GERALDINE FARRAR, Soprano
GIUSEPPE DE LUCA, Baritone

625 10-in., 31.50
fe UN RISC GENTIL

(Tis a Gentle Smile) GIOVANNI MAR-
TINELLI 736 10-in., 1.50

ACT II

BUONA ZAZA, DEL MIO BUON TEMPO.
(Dear Zaza) TITTA Rurro, Baritone

824 10-in., 1.50

ACT III

MIO PICCOLO TAVOLO INGOMBRATO
(My Desk, Like My Heart, is Encum
bered with Care GIOVANNI MARTI-
NELLI, Tenor 6194 12-in., 2.00

MAMMA USCIVA DI CASA

(Mother Has Gone) GERALDINE FARRAR,
Soprano 625 .10-in., 1.50

ACT IV
ZAZA, PICCOLA ZINGARA

(Zaza, Little Gypsy) TITTA RUFFO,

Baritone " 824 10-in., 1.50

RENATO ZANELLI, Baritone

882 10-in., 1.50

DUFRESNE DENOUNCING ZAZA ACT IV

447

Victor Talking Machine Company, Camden, New Jersey
Printed June, 1924

1 04 097

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