570 



MUSIC, PROGRESS OF, IN 1890. 



through his country King Harald Fairhair visits 

 Eric, and taking a fancy to Thorgrim makes 

 him " kingsman." Three years later, while 

 Harald is holding a council, Thorgrim meets 

 Olof, daughter of Jaii Thorir, and asks her in 

 marriage. But she is promised to Helgi, and, as 

 the king declines to interfere, Thorgrim declares 

 he will serve him no longer, and departs to seek 

 adventures as a Viking. But on the night of 

 the marriage he returns and his men extinguish 

 the lights, enabling him to carry off Olof, who 

 prefers him to the gloomy and pusillanimous 

 Helgi. The librettist has preserved and em- 

 phasized the pagan spirit in every detail, and 

 never displayed his mastery of the English lan- 

 guage so successfully as in the present instance. 

 The composer, having been provided with ample 

 opportunity for the exercise of his special gifts, 

 has made full use of these, and succeeded better 

 in the set pieces than in the purely dramatic epi- 

 sodes of the opera. The characteristics of 

 Scandinavian music are used sparingly to intro- 

 duce local color, chiefly in the first act, where the 

 purely picturesque element prevails. Mr. Cowen 

 makes scarcely any use of leading themes, and 

 his recitations are rather conventional ; but the 

 wealth of melody, excellent part writing, and 

 picturesque orchestration ought, in a large 

 measure, to compensate for the absence of other 

 desirable qualities. The presentation of the 

 opera by the Carl Rosa Company was very com- 

 mendable ; the cast was not only adequate in it- 

 self, but the artists seemed to be interested in 

 their work and appeared at their best. The im- 

 portant work for the chorus was all excellently 

 interpreted. 



" Onti-Ora," romantic opera, by Gustav Hin- 

 richs (Philadelphia, Grand Opera House, July 28). 



Comic Operas. In France and Belgium: 

 " Hilda," in one act, by Albert Millet, libretto by 

 Narrey and Michel Carre, the younger (Paris, 

 Opera-Comique, Jan. 15). 



" La Revanche de Sganarelle," by Leon Dubois 

 (Nantes, in April). " Les trois Souhaits," in one 

 act, by Georges Villain, who also wrote the li- 

 bretto (Paris, Bouffes-Parisiens, in April). 



" La Basoche," in three acts, by Andre Messa- 

 ger, libretto by Albert Carre (Paris, Opera-Co- 

 mique, May 30) ; the scene is laid in the time of 

 Louis XII. The plot is complicated, but full of 

 droll situations, to which the music is well 

 adapted ; the latter is interspersed with old, well- 

 known popular songs, which had to be repeated 

 in response to clamorous demands. 



" Le Printemps," in one act, by Alexandre 

 Georges, and " La Coupe et les Levres," in five 

 acts, by Gustave Canoby, libretto by Ernst 

 d'Hervi'lly (both at Rouen, Theatre des Arts, in 

 April). 



" Colombine," in one act, by Gustave Michiels, 

 libretto by Sarlin (Paris, Opera-Comique, Oct. 

 4). " Benvenuto Cellini," by Eugene Diaz, li- 

 bretto by G. Hirsch (ibid., Dec. 3). " L'Amour 

 venge," by Maupeau, libretto by Auge de Lassus 

 (ibid., Dec. 31). " Le Reitre," by Charles Me.lant, 

 libretto by Manuel Le Rouge and Andre Thomas 

 (Namur, in December). 



In Germany : " Der Page," in one act, text 

 and music by Gustav Kulenkampff (Bremen, 

 Stadttheater, Jan . 24), the composer's first dra- 

 matic effort, showing talent equal to greater 



tasks. "Der Prinz wider Willen," by Otto 

 Lohse, libretto by Rudolf Seuberich (Riga. Stadt- 

 theater, Feb. 27). "Die heirnliche Ehe," text 

 and music by Peter Gast (Dantsic. Stadttheater, 

 in March). " Der Dorfrichter," in one act, by 

 Hugo Kahn, text after Kleist's play " Der zer- 

 brochene Krug" (Breslau, Stadttheater, April 3). 

 " Der Weiberkrieg," in three acts, text and music 

 by Felix von Woyrsch (Hamburg, Stadttheater, 

 April 12). " Der Alkalde von Burgos," by Hans 

 Dutschke, libretto by R. Galle (Burg near Magde- 

 burg, in April). 



" Nachtliche Werbung," in one act, by Richard 

 Mandl, libretto by A. Larsonneur, German ver- 

 sion by Oscar Bergruen (Prague, Deutsches 

 Landestheater, April 16), given last year under 

 its original French title," Rencontre imprevue," 

 at Rouen. " Die Strassensangerin," in one act, 

 by Johannes Doebber, libretto by Julius Bach- 

 mann (Gotha, Hof theater, in April). " Die Fiirst- 

 in von Athen," in two acts, by Friedrich Lux, 

 libretto by Wilhelm Jacoby, after a comedy of 

 Aristophanes (Frankfort, Stadttheater, Oct. 31). 

 " Der Thurm mit sieben Pforten," in one act, by 

 A. Felkl, libretto by F. Schaumann (Prague, 

 Deutsches Landestheater, Dec. 13). " Des Kon- 

 igs Schwert," in three acts, by Theodor Hent- 

 schel, libretto by Franz Bittong (Bremen, Stadt- 

 theater, Dec. 25). 



In Italy : " La Regina Seinon," by Anacharsis 

 Prestreau, libretto by Jack Ferni, Italian version 

 by Golisciani (Naples, Teatro Sannazaro, in 

 April). " Le Damigelle di Saint-Cyr," by Cesare 

 Fachini, libretto after Scribe's comedy " Les 

 Demoiselles de Saint-Cyr" (Turin, Teatro Al- 

 fieri, during the summer). "Non toccate la 

 Re'gina," by Oronzio Scarano (Milan, Teatro 

 Manzoni, Aug. 30). " A Moira de Silves," in 

 three acts, by Joao Guerreiro de Costa (Lisbon, 

 Teatro de la Trinidad). 



In England : " Guinevere, or Love laughs at 

 Law," by Dr. Pinguer, libretto by Stanley Stevens 

 (London, Kilburn Town Hall, in March). " Joan," 

 by Ernest Ford (London, Opera-Comique The- 

 tre, in June). " Captain Therese," by Robert 

 Banquette, libretto by Bisson (London, Prince of 

 Wales Theatre, Aug. 25). The work is feeble 

 alike as to libretto and music ; the latter is trivial 

 and insipid, lacking even the qualities calculated 

 to please uneducated listeners, while the former 

 is a farrago of nonsense, quite unworthy of seri- 

 ous musical illustration. 



" The Black Rover," romantic opera, by Lus- 

 combe Searelle, who also wrote the libretto (Lon- 

 don, Globe Theatre, Sept. 23), lacks consistency, 

 as some portions of the work approach the style 

 of grand opera, while others are in the most ex- 

 travagant manner of opera bouffe. Several of 

 the melodies are pleasing enough, but the en- 

 sembles and the orchestration are amateurish in 

 the extreme. 



In the United States : " Robin Hood," by Regi- 

 nald de Koven, libretto by H. B. Smith (Chicago, 

 during the summer). "The Khedive," by Louis 

 and Miah Blake, libretto by Harry Edward and 

 Miah Blake (New Orleans, November or Decem- 

 ber). 



Operettas. German : " Der arme Jonathan," 

 in three acts, by Karl Millocker, libretto by Hugo 

 Wittmann and L. Bauer (Vienna, Theater an 

 der Wien, Jan. 4, and successively on many stages 





