Evening Star Newspaper, May 31, 1931, Page 87

THE -SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C.,; MAY 31, 1931, N editorial in the May 23 edition of the Musical Courier has this to say about what soon may be called “our” orchestra: “Next season a National Symphony Orchestra is planned for Washington, D. C. Hans Kindler, exoe!k nt musician, is to eonduct, and therefore the organization will be an artistic one and satisfactory performances may be. expected confidently. However, a symphonic body in our country's Capital should be ‘national’ in more than name only. The time has b:en ripe these many years for the Government to do something important in the way of fostering music in this land. and the establishment and endowment of a symphony orchestra would make a vital beginning in the right direction. If the Kindler enterprise succeeds and endures it may open the eyes of our national executives and legislators to a great artistic duty, and one which even some of the very small coun- tries have long been performing for the benefit of their musical-minded citizcns and for the eternal glovy of art.” HE suggestion of Government subsidy is a problem which continues to tickle the fancy of many musically-minded persons. Looking across the seas to the small states of Bavaria, and such like, where may be found eager opera companies and orchestras all handled by gov- ernmental strings and treasurers who provide them their bread and butter, one is conscious of the fact that this country takes little pride in its own artistic achievements. Ins‘ead of fostering the growth of native talent, the loudest cheers are given foreign artists, in opera, in concert, most everywhere, in fact, except per- haps in the orchestral field. In spite of such worthy projects as the recent festival-of mod- ern music sponsored by Dr. Howard Hanson at Rochester, it seems to be true that even when the capable and energetic Mrs. Coolidge pre- pares one of her music festivals here at the Library of Congress the artists are almost in- variably “outsiders” brought over frcm another country, when within the reaches of our coasts might be found similarly splendid institutions which haven't had the luck to be smiled on by @ publicity fortune. This business of “swapping” talent is, of eourse, necessary. One would soon tire of con- sistent streams of native talent and the flag- waving that would ensue over it. But since the land is combed during the year for our ablest young orator—if he is publicly extolled and smiled on by the country and the govern- mental gods—if he is news for the front page— photographed all over the country—taken abroad (all a worthy and highly commendable method of procedure), why, for instance, might not a similar method be adopted to encourage the honest but poor native musician—whose chances for coming out in the limelight are exceedlingly rare—who some day might stand before his brother foreigners and be head and shoulders above them all, and who might repre- sent his country in this form of the arts. HIS is not to suggest that the Government dig down into its pockets and undertake such a scheme, it is merely correlated to that eternal question of the blighted musician who lives and breathes unseen and who is lkely . only to achieve fame when his being has be- come a parcel of ashes, and who, if he were taken care of by a paternal government in such a way as, for instance, being assured a yearly income through a local opera company or-a local orchestra, might eventually educate himself and the masses not only to better music but to forgetting the now strange fact of not being recognized at home. LL of which reminds us of our own orches- tra again, which, the. Musical Courier suggests, may start the ball rolling, but which, according to our way of thinking; and many, many before us, will have an exceedingly hard time of it if the schedule as anncunced re- cently by Mrs. Wilson Greene’s: office goes through. Washington has proved that it does not want afternoon symphony concerts. Why Mr. Kindler insists on arranging for these in the late afteroon, when a great percentage of the city, tired from its daily work, must either miss some of the program (concerts are sched- uled for 4:30 p.m.. except for the first one) or all of it on account of an early evening meal, 15 a mystery. Even afier his triumphant tour of last Summer, when Toscanini, with Jlaurels of fame on his brow, editorials from every . country praising him as the first real orchestral conquerer of this century, first came to Con- stitution Hall this past season with his famed orchestra, he was not able to fill the hall at that untimely hour, or come anywhere near it. Competition with outside crganizations and amusements may be the basis on which this schedule is arranged. If, however, our or- chestra doesn’t think that it will be good enough to run the gantlet at the proper time and the proper place with these, then there shouldn’t be any orchestra. The late afternoon, except leisurely Sundays, is obviously not the right time. With the tapping of anxious aft- ernoon feet, the murmur of whispers and the rustling for watches, even the best symphony program may be turned into a social circus, which, heavin forbid, may nct be the fate of this embryonic and tenderly watched over orchestra. - Mery Templin, contralto, and Jack Irving, baritone, accompanied by the Navy Band, wil! sing two dueis today at the memoria] service to be held on board the U. 8. 8. Apache by the Department of the District of Columbia Auxil- jaries United Spanish War Veterans. This service will be held for all soiers, sailors and marines ‘who lost their lives at sea. One of the numbers, “Be Still and Know,” was written by Willlam T. Pierson, local ecomposer. Final Recitals of the Season at the Arts Club. Student Programs Featured During Weck. News of Local Musicians. A recent photograph of Amelita Galli-Curci, who. after a considerable absence, will sing here again in recital during the coming season. ME. AMELITA GALLI-CURCI, coloratura soprano, will be heard here in concert next season, according to an announcement made recently by Mrs. Wilson. Greene. Galli-Curei will be presented at Constitution Hall on Saturday evening, January 9, as one of the attractions of the Saturday evening concert series Mrs. Wilson-Greene will present there during the 1931-32 season. This is the concert series which opens on Saturday evening, November 21, with the re- turn engagement of the Don Cossack Russian Male Chorus, which achieved so phenomenal a popularity here last season. Other artists who will appear with Galli-Curci in this series are John McCormack on November 28; Grace Moore, soprano, December 5; John Charles Thomas, baritone, on February 13, and Jose Iturbi, Spenish pianist, on February 20. The -addition of -Mme. Galli-Curci to Mrs. Wilson-Greene's 1931-32 concert series means that Washington will hear next season two of the greatest coloraturas of the present day concert and operatic world—Galli-Curci and Lily Pons. The latter will be heard as an afternoon concert attraction at Constitution Hall on November 16, at which time she will inaugurate the artists’ series of afternoon con- certs there. Mme. Galli-Curci has not been heard in Washington since October, 1928, when she opened Mrs. Wilson.Greene's concerts that season with a recital at Poli's Theater. Since her last appearance here, Galli-Curci has re- newed her triumphs abroad in concert as well as in this country. HE Society for the Publication of American Music has announced that it is now re- ceiving manuscripts of chamber music com- positions by American composers for its Thirteenth Annual Competition for Publica- tion. The closing date for entering composi- tions is October 15. Programs of the Coming W eeck. N Flora McGill Keefer's student pro- gram this Tuesday evening at the Wwillard . Hotel Handel's “Oh, Rud- dier Than a Berry,” baritone solo, and the tenor aria, “Sweet Elysian Groves,” from “Alceste,” will be sung, also the contralio aria, “Plus Grand,” from “The Queen of Sheba,” and “At the Well,” by Hageman. Mildred Kolb Schulze will be at the piano. NN SUGAR, 11-year-old pianist, will give a recital at the Arts Club on Wednesday evening, under the direction of her instructor, Felian Garzia. Her prcgram will include Bach's “Prelude in C Sharp Minor”; Bee- thoven’s sonata, Opus 2, No. 1; Handel's “Har- monious Blacksmith”; Mendelssohn's “Scherzo,” Chopin’s “Fantasie Impromptu” and “Polo- naise,” C sharp minor, and the Mendelssohn “Concerto in G Minor” with second piano ac- companiment. THE Soloist Ensemble, from the Institute of Musical Art, directed by Otto T. Simon, with Ervine J. Stenson at the piano, will pre- sent Hamerik's “May Dance” at the concert of the Danish Society in the ball room of Me- ridian Mansions this Thursday evening. Dr. Christiani, president of the Danish Society, will direct the. institute orchestra, and Mary O'Donoghue will sing an aria from “The Hugue- nots,” by Meyerbeer. This “May Dance” was given by Mr. Simon at the Peabody Conserva- tory in Baltimore when Hamerik was director of that institution. - NOTHER interesting program at the Arts Club will be given this evening by Malton Boyce, pianist, and Bernhard Spille, tenor, with Hazel E. BrownPlers accompanying him. Mr. Spille, who is' tenor soloist at New York Ave- nue Presbyterian Church, and Mr. Boyce, who is organist at St. .Matthew's Church, are both well known to Washington musical audiences. RECITAL by the senior music pupils of St. Dominic’s School was presented Jast Tuesday evening. Among those who took part were J. Stanford, T. Henley, B. Donaldson, B. Paul, M. Hartnett, M. Chaput, R. Dermody, R. Rusmiselle, C. Knott, J. Hartnett, W. Bland, M. Clagett, D. Kines, M. Shireman, L. Nelson and C. Kunold. Rosemary Dermody phyed in place of E.-Rich, who was ill. Musigraphs T the last meeting of the German Literary Soclety, which was held at the home of Anita Schade Saturday evening, May 23, Kathrvn Beck, a member of the Washington Pianists’ Club, played two movements of the Schumann “Sonata, F Sharp Minor, Opus 11" - and a nocturne and valse by Chopin; Derothy Sinnott, contralto, sang Hugo Wolf's “Wi Gesang,” “Du Bist Die Ruh,” by Schubert, “Minnelied,” by Brahms, accompanied by Willa Semple at the piano, and Anita Schade gave some readings with piano accompaniments by Miss Semple. Helen Christine Merritt gave an organ recital at the Church of the Epiphany last Monday evening. Her progiam included the Bach “Short Prelude and Fugue in C Major”; Jarn- felt's “Berceuse,” Stainer's “Allegretto” and other interesting and varied selections by Dun- can, Lemaigre, George Vail, Nevin and Easthope Ma:tin, Oba Jan Gibson, lyric soprano, and Eula Alexander, accompanist, gave a costume pro- gram for the Washington chapter, Quarter- masier Association, at the Cosmos Club last Wednesday evening. At the evening service tonight at 8 pm. in Pirst Congregational Church, Tenth and G streets northwest, there will be a sp¢ 1a i aest program of music by the vested chorus choir of 60 voices under the direction of Ruby Smith Stahl. Dr. Allen A. Stockdale, rector of the church, will give a brief address on “Music- Made Moods.” Etta Schmid Wells has been presenting a series of individual piano recitals on each Wednesday afternoon during the past four weeks, the soloists for the past week being Frances and Margaret Osborn. The programs will continue until the closing recital, which is to be given toward the end of June. The American Guild of Organists will heold its final busness meeting for the season to- morrow evening at 8:15 in the choir room of Epiphany Church. Following the meeting Hazel Gibson Wood, soprano, and Eva J. Bright, contralto, will sing. Mary Park Clementis recently presented some of her pupils in two informal recitals at her studio, 1731 Connecticut avenue. The programs included both violin solos and ensemble num- bers. Those taking part were: Paul Bernet, Margaret Compton, David Epstein, Lelia Goss, Continued on Eighteenth Page Band Concerts. ENRY HADLEY'S overture “In Bohemia ™ Massanet’s “Scenes Alsaciennes” and Coleridge-Taylor's “Bamboula” are among the numbers to be presented at the Sylvan Theater Tuesday evening by the United States Navy Band, Lieut. Charles Benter, leader. Wednesday evening, at the Navy Yard, Lieut. Benter will perform his latest composition, “The Submarine Force,” dedicated to Rear Admiral F. B. Upham. Musician Birley Gardner, ecor- netist, will be heard in solos at each of these concerts. Other concerts by the Navy Band this week wil be Monday, 4 p.m., at the band stand, Navy Yard; Thursday, 2 p.m., at St. Elizabeth’s Hos- pital, and Friday, €:30 p.m., at Tubercullsis Hospital, Fourteenth and Varnum streets. HE activities of the United States Marine Band for the coming week will include the following: Monday, June 1, at 8 p.m., concert, Marine Bsarracks; Tuesday, June 2, 7:30 p.m., concert, Montrose Park; Wednesday, June 3, 7:30 p.m., concert, United States Capito); Thursday, June 4, 7:30 p.m. concert, Sylvan Theater; Friday, June 5, 2 p.m. econcert, St. Elizabeth's Hospital; Sunday, June 7, 3 p.m, memorial exercises, Confederate Veterans' As- sociation, Arlington National Cemetery. THe Wednesday night program includes the overture, “Cockaigne,” by Elgar, and “Ein Hel- denlcben,” by Richard Strauss. The soloist will be Musician Wilbur D. Kieffer, xylophonist. MUSICAL STUDIOS. T BESSIE N. WILD Voice Culture, Pi and Studio, 6824 :‘: st. .‘l‘-:l.-- g::l-...;’ PHONE G! KARL HOLER COMPOSER B 3803 13th COL. 556 * INS'ITIUTE ~OF MUSICAL ART C. E. Christiani, Pres. B. Frank Gebest, Dis, All Branches of Music Taught OPEN ALL SUMMER 831 isth St. N.W. o Met. 2611 C. E. CHRISTIANI SUMMER CLAGSES' NOW™ FORMING Institute of Musical Art 831 8th Rt N.W. Met. 2513 Armando Jannuzzi Grand Opera, Dramatic Tenmor Voice Specialist i Instructor of EDITH WALLACK Dramatic Soprame Italian Method From La Seala, Milan, Haly Col. 4608 3403 14th St. NW, -