Music: The Orchestras Begin

(See front cover.)

Last week saw U. S. symphonies definitely launched on a new season, saw conductors back from Europe with new music and sharpened batons, saw stormy rehearsals and brilliant first nights. Many bridges had been crossed since last spring. Orchestras had been left leaderless, some penniless. Deficits had been threateningly announced; in a few dire cases, cleared. New leaders had been imported, borrowed. The situation:

In Manhattan. For 49 years a Damrosch has been host at the New York Symphony*— for seven years Leopold, its founder; for the last 42 Walter, the son. But at the first of the golden anniversary concerts given last week Walter Damrosch was not in his usual place, sat instead in the centre box and led the applause for Fritz Busch. Guests followed his lead, kept their eyes courteously to the front, applauded a respectful, uneventful performance of the Beethoven Fourth, the Brahms First. Five guest conductors are listed this season for the “one-man” orchestra: Fritz Busch of the Dresden Opera for the first half season, then Ossip Gabrilowitsch of the Detroit Symphony, Walter Damrosch himself, Maurice Ravel, coming from France, and Enrique Fernandez Arbós of the Madrid Symphony.

The Philharmonic Orchestra, with its second program, fitted an exquisite bit into its season’s mosaic. Mme. Wanda Landowska was soloist, played to Josef Willem Mengelberg’s accompaniment the Mazort Concerto in E flat, the Finale of his Harpsichord Concerto in D. Critics sat enthralled, spent their dearest words, said nothing worthy of so unique an artist.

The new Beethoven Symphony Orchestra, Georges Zaslawsky, conductor, made its debut as a permanent organization, gave an excellent first program, surprised critics of last year.

The Society of the Friends of Music, Arthur Bodanzky conducting the Metropolitan Opera House Orchestra, announced Beethoven’s Misso Solemnis for its first concert, Oct. 30, promised nine others for alternate Sunday afternoons, beginning Nov. 6.

The Boston Symphony, opened its fourth season under Serge Koussevitzky, gave two worthy catholic programs — Stravinsky, Debussy, Brahms, Berlioz, Bach-Schonberg, Richard Strauss, de Falla. “This year,” read a foreword in the program book, “owing to increased expenses the deficit is likely to be $85,000, and we ask all those who are anxious to see these concerts continue to subscribe towards the deficit.” Figures showed the operating expenses increased by $32,696; the gross income $717,886; the gross expenditure $762,183.

The Philadelphia Orchestra began with Fritz Reiner of the Cincinnati Symphony for guest the first half season. Sir Thomas Beecham (England), Ossip Gabrilowitsch (Detroit), Josef Willem Mengelberg (New York Philharmonic), Pierre Monteux (France) and Frederick Stock (Chicago) are possibilities for portions of the last half. Conductor Leopold Stokowski (whose arm is lamed) sailed last week for Europe and the Orient, to be away a year looking for new, unusual music.

The Rochester Philharmonic, Eugene Goossens, conductor, announced an all-Wagner concert for its first, Nov. 10. The theatre orchestra, established by George Eastman, will again be augmented by faculty members of the Eastman school, their expenses met by the Eastman Theatre Subscribers Association.

The Detroit Symphony started its season Oct. 13 with a festive program led by Ossip Gabrilowitsch: Debussy’s “Fetes” & “Nuages,” Berlioz’s'”Roman Carnival,” Duka’s “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” the Cesar Franck Symphony.

In Cleveland, the Orchestra began its tenth season under Nikolai Sokolov, its first and only conductor, under Adella Prentiss Hughes, its first and only manager. Twenty pairs of concerts were announced with such famed soloists as Josef Hofmann, Harold Samuel, Ossip Gabrilowitsch, Paul Kochanski, Albert Spalding. Maurice Ravel will be guest conductor, Jan 26 & 27.

In Cincinnati, Conductor Victor de Sabata of the Monte Carlo Opera made his debut at a concert given for the delegates to the American Public Health Association. Each concert, it was announced, will be dedicated to a Cincinnati institution, those in the first half season to be led by Conductor de Sabata, after Jan. 6 by Fritz Reiner, now in Philadelphia on leave of absence. Vladmir Bakaleinikov will lead the popular and young people’s concerts.

In St. Louis last spring, the Symphony gasped and nearly snuffed out. Conductor Rudolph Ganz resigned. The future was dark. Last week was announced a sufficient guarantee for three years, 16 pairs of concerts to begin Nov. 4; 16 pairs of popular Sunday concerts; 10 young people’s concerts; 5 in the public schools. Conductors, for the regular series, all guests, will be Emil Oberhoffer (Minneapolis), Willem Van Hoogstraten (Portland, Ore.), Eugene Goossens (Rochester), Bernardino Molinari (Rome), Karl Schuricht (Weisbaden). Ethel Leginska and Frederick Fischer, associate conductor, will lead some of the popular concerts.

The Chicago Symphony, threatened some weeks ago (TIME, July 25) by the musicians’ demand for pay increase, announced that three citizens—Chairman John J. Mitchell of the Illinois Merchants Trust Co., George Lytton and Mrs. Kellog Fairbank—have given the $30,000 symphony fund, of which each musician will receive $10 weekly. Twenty-eight subscription concerts were announced for Fridays and Saturdays, 12 for Tuesday matinees, 16 popular concerts, 12 children’s. Conductor Frederick Stock is in command; Maurice Rave, guest conductor.

The Minneapolis Symphony announced a fresh guarantee of more than $175,000 to assure its existence for the next three years Henri Verbrugghen will conduct the 16 concerts at home, the same series in St. Paul, will lead on Nov. 4 the identical program given 25 years before with Soprano Dusolina Giannini, the soloist, instead of her teacher, Marcella Sembrich.

In Portland, Oregon, Conductor Willem Van Hoogstraten began rehearsals, for the season to begin the second week in November. Ten concerts were announced for Monday nights, seven for Saturday mornings. The orchestra, its repertoire, have been increased.

In Los Angeles, Georg Schneevoigt stepped into the post left vacant by the death of Walter Henry Rothwell for his first concert, Oct. 27. A Finn, 53, he has an enviable European reputation, is known in the U. S. only for a short guest appearance with the Boston Symphony in 1924.

San Francisco was treated to the announcement that the symphony begin its 17th season free of debt, with the strongest personnel in its history, the largest advance sale. Credit was given the 640 guarantors who comprise the Musical Association of San Francisco, whose individual gifts ranging from $100 to $5,000 make possible the 70 concerts with soloists as famed as Beniamino Gigli, Harold Bauer, Edward Johnson, Albert Spalding, Maurice Ravel. To Conductor Alfred Hertz the glory and the honor for his splendid stewardship.

Thirteen years ago the Boston Symphony, superb under Karl Muck, visited San Francisco, and stirred civic-minded Westerners to shame for the flickering, undernourished group of players that went by the name of the San Francisco Symphony. They made big appropriations, swept clean, ousted Conductor Henry Hadley, called Alfred Hertz from New York. Then 43, there were as many gold stars on his record as there were hairs in his beard, stars that went all the way back to his earliest days in Frankfort, when, a square little Hessian boy in skirts, he pulled himself up onto the music piano stool and walked his fingers up and down the keyboard until the neighbors poked their heads out the windows and shook threatening fists. He was a baby then, just a pianist. At six he was composing; at 19 he was a conductor and his neighbors forgave him, went way to Halle to hear him lead the opera there. He took his training in one German opera house after another, washed himself in Wagnerian fire, came in 1902 to Manhattan’s Metropolitan Opera House.

He was a startling figure—bulky, halt, not a hair to disturb the glassy smoothness of his pate, and a bush for a beard.

He stayed at the Metropolitan through the “Golden Age” when Gadski, Nordica, the de Reszkes, David Bispham and Schumann-Heink were making German music, when Fritzi Scheff was the bait for tired starched magnates, when berthas and hourglass figures were the fashion.

“So that his imagination might not be blurred, his initiative eventually retarded” he left the Metropolitan, took over the San Francisco Orchestra for $10,000 a year. There followed months of strife. Friends of the Hadley régime refused to accept him, called him “pro-German,” made others suspect. He saw, heard, spoke no evil, swung his great bulk onto the platform, turned his back, hung his cane on the rail before him and made big music till the Cort Theatre was too small and his neighbors forgave him. Now at 55 he has the energy of a man of 30.

*The New York Symphony is next oldest to the New York Philharmonic in the U. S. It has introduced to the U. S. such famed composers as Tchaikovsky, Sibelius, Stravinsky, Elgar, Rimsky-Korsakov; introduced such artists as Paderewski, Kreisler, Saint-Saens, Sarasate, Lilli Lehmann and Hans von Bulow. It has toured some 400,000 miles, played to 8,000,000. Harry Harkness Flagler is the sole guarantor.