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FRIDAY, APKIL ‘_"S;___ltub.-
BRILLIANT PERFORMANCE OF ‘AIDA’ THRILLS MATINEE CROWD
] |N
' . '
Martinelli, Amato, Ober and
Sparkes All Charm Hearers
.
With Splendid Work.
“AIDA™”
Opera in Four Acts and Seven Scenes
Boolk by A. Ghistanzoni
(In Italian) -
Wusic by Giuseppe Verdi,
The King .......... Basil Ruysdael
Amheris .....,i..... Margarete Ober
BAAB (oo nisiivnecnis Drances Alda
Radames ...... Giovanni Martinelli
BOWNAE oiiisenissveiss HORFS Sontt
Amonasro. ......... Pasquale Amato
A Messenger ........ Pietro Audisio
A Priestess ........ Lenara Sparkes
Conductor, Gaetano Bavagnoli
Stage Manager, Jules Specl
Chorus Master, Giulio Setti
Technical Director, Edward Niedle
Premiere Danseuse, Rosina Galli
Ballet Mistress, Pauline Verhoeven.
By CHARLES HENRY MELTZER.
Incredible as it may seem to
those who attended the remark
able performance of “Aida” yes
terday afternoon, that master
work of Verdi at first did not
draw the crowd at the Metropoli
tan.
Small houses were auite fre
auent on the early New York
nights of “Aida.”
But now it s more opuiar,
perhaps, thar anv o! in the
AMetropolitan repertoire.
Had Careaso been announced to
appear Radames there might
not hav wen more tha tande
fng room for sale at the Audito
m estarday But the publie
Lhie id pver knows that Aida.”
even halt ell sung, is always
re to bhe wort seeir and worth
\ % mi ould enjo- t for
W omi ud she demanded |
the opes T'he blind woul he
repaid /he price of seats by Ver
i's misic,
Thoag Verdi | oned
1 fi manner hen he wrots
this @era—the turning point had
come some years before, with the
prodiction of his “Don Carlos
pida”™ he gave mi evidence
« is conversion, once for a to
a pw style .
3 , With s m nt A
ot \Waznerites, that style owed
#y little to the Mpose] of
fristan and Isolde” and the
ibelung Tetralog 5 that ¢
reat Italian owed to Wagner was
t ample of earnestne
™n the oni of good
Verdi's Falstaf and “Otello
ran higher t ' Aida But
the L 1 OES DO » l¢
f n their appeal to the aver
‘ al fhan and womar Wf
. rld. The melodies § “ala
RIP leddn be t the r '
and rie irmonies Exot
ctures of great poeti
rpested k 3 et Great
& The rre } ot ong
noletic of the Suez Canal—
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" |8 TTLE | Uenish the “Blues™
i‘i RVER and relieve Constipation 4
f . he l."' ilng ) ‘avrv -t .
5 IHPILLS | ctiiiorn
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man. Of the princesses, one s
Amneris, the daughter of a king
unnamed, who rules over Egypt.
The other is Aida, whose father,
the wild and shaggy King of
Ethiopia, is taken captive (like
Aida). The man and hero in the
case is Radames. At the bidding
of her father, Amonasro, Aida, in
the wonderful third act, induces
‘Radames to renounce his country.
TFor this the lovers pay in the
last’ scene with their two lives.
And. like a]l operatic lovers, they
die singing.
Verdi's genius has enabled him
to illuminate the romantic plot
with power and charm. Few op
eras of the lsind called. “grand”
have such a wealth of beautiful
arias, marches, duos, ensembles
and dance numbers. At the very
outset, some five minutes after
the curtain has been drawn aside, .
the hero i 3 called upon to sing the
melodious tribute to his sweet
heart, known as “Celesta Aida.”
In quick succession we hear the
tar-famed solo of the heroine, “Ri
torna. Vincitor,” the languorous
chant of the unseen Priestess in
the Temple of Phta, the stirring
“March,” which introduces the
“Triumph of Radames” on his re
turn from war; the voluptuous
ballet numbers; the poetic lament
of Aida for her fatherland (“O,
patria mia”), and the ecstatic love
duo of Radames and the heroine.
While, as a final offering, Verdi
has given us the duo of the
doomed lovers in the dungeon be
neath the temple. .
Treasures of melody have been
)/u\'ished on the libretto. And in
the instrumentation the composer
has found new and marvelous
color.
1t pains me to be forced to say
such things; but no Oriental ever
would have dreamed of Verdi's
“Fasterner” harmonies. The real
East is not-what cump};sers make
it when they create ‘“grand” op
eras,
- - -
Apart from an occasional! lapse
of' Mme, Ober, the Amneris, and
M. Martinelli, the Radames, ves
terday's performance of “Aida”
was an uncommonly fine one.
There were times, too, when Mme,
Ober's splendid voice made full
amends for the artist's faulty
enunciation and wuncertainties as
to the pitch. In the opening act
and later, M. Martinelll sang
slightly flat. But he redeemed
himself by the glorious power and
quality of his tones in the duos
with Aida—more particularly the
rhapsodic love duos,
The Amonasro of M. Amato, the
y-unu}a& baritone, 'was vigorous
and impressive, M. Henri Scott
did bravely as the High Priest,
The lovely phrasing of Miss Le
nora Sparks, in the chant of the
Priestess, was a delight., And the
ensemble work ghroughout did in
| finite honor to Mr. Speck, the
. stage manager, and to Mr. Setti,
the chorus master.
The most noteworthy feature of
the performance, however, if 1 ex
cept the reading of the score by
} the orchestra under the direction
. of Maestro BPavagnoli, was the
Aida of Mme, Frances Alda.
Till yesterda®™ Mme, Alda had
not sung the part. For two long
vears, though, she had studied it,
l hoping against hope for an oppor
tunity of showing what she could
do with it.
It would be paying Mme. Alda a
poor compliment to suppose her
capable of baelleving that she was
perfect in her first struggle with
one of the most exacting roles in
opera. What she accomplished
showed, however, that ere long
she may be an admirable expo
nent, vocally and otherwise, of
the Ethiopian heroine. The beau
ty of her tones !n the “Ritorna
vincitor” of tbe first act was no
less pleaging than her smooth, fin
ished style and sustained breath
control,
In the nun L-rt. the demands
made by “O batria mia” seemed
rather trying to Mme. Alda. But
she put genuine rapture into the
succeeding love-duo and, by her
art, hid up some little weaknesses
due, possibly, to a slight cold or
nervousness,
The taste with which Mnfe.
Alda had composed her costumes
hejped largely —like her physical
atiractions—to suggest her as
sumed character,
I may add that the vast andi
ence showed its liking for the new
Alda by repeated and enthusiastic
curtain calis,
“Meistersinger” at
- dafurday Matinee
Though “The Mastersinger” is
an Bpe_ra by Wagner, it is far from 1
“Wagnerian” in its music. Writ- |
ten in 1868, after “Tannhauser”
and “Lohengrin,” it -preceded
Wagner's “Ring” series. The
composer had not begun to create
the revolutionary music-dramas
whose construction defied conven
tions and set the world clamoring
that he was mad. “Der Meister
singer” is a comedy, filled with
fun and satire, and set to music
so tuneful, so gay and lilting, that
it is difficult to believe it jas
written by the pen which after
ward created “Die Walkure” and
“Siegfried.”” The later works of
Wagner dealt with the mythical
gods of the Nibelungen legends.
“Der Meistersinger” presents hu
man men and women; plain
burghers, journeymen and ap
prentices of old Nuremberg, where
the Guild of Master Singers is of
fering its annual prize for the
best composition most beautifully
sung. About this competition and
the love affair of Walther and Eva
is built the story.
The opera introduces an un
usually large cast, nine bassos
and baritones, five tenors and two
sopranos having individual parts,
while the chorus, one of the great
features of this work, is larger
than usual and trained to the
most skillful work. The settings
given the opera by the Metropoli
tan are among the most beautiful
in its possession.
Enters Song Contest.
The first act opens on the inte
rior of a church, where Eva (so
prano), daughter of a goldsmith,
meets and loves Sir Walther von
Stolzing (tenor). Ile learns that
Eva’s hand has been promised to
the winner of the song contest
and resolves to enter the competi
tion. David, an apptentice (ten
oP) is in love with Magdalena (so
pranc). They discuss the contest
and the church fills with appren
tices. David explains to Walther,
in a humorous air, the intricate
requirements of the prize song,
which must be written by most
arbitrary rules. Beckmesser (bar
itone), the town clerk and a fool,
is in love with Eva, and deter
mines to defeat Walther. He is
himself chosen as “marker” to
Judge Walther's song. The pre
liminary test begins and Beck
~ messer gives Walther so many
~ bad merks that he is barred from
‘ the contest. Pogner (bass»), Eva's
) father, announces that her hand
will be the prize.
| The second act shows the
quaint medieval street, with Pog
l ner'’s home at one side and the
cobbler’'s shop of old Hans Sachs
I (basso) on the other. The cobbier
. takes a fancy to Walther and re
| soives to ald him. It s dusk, and
' Eva and her father approach
. their home. Hans Sachs, haunt
‘ ed by Walther's song, soliloquizes
i on its beauty.
| Eva and Walther plan to elope,
| but their departure from the
house is interrupted by the ap
| pearance of Beckmesser, who ap
! pears with a lute to sing a sere-
E nade benedth Eva's window.
' Sachs places his light so it will
shine upon the foolisn lover and
i as he begins his air the cobbler
! pounds lustily upon a shoe, sing
! ing at the top of his voice and
} drowning poor Beckmesser's at
| tempts. After a quarrel, he is
permitted te proceed, but he has
‘ become so woiried that he for
gets his air. places his accents
absurdly and makes a total faii
| wure. Sachs, with his hammer,
i pounds the shoe at every false
| mnote. Beckmesser discovers he
has been wasting his efforts be
| neath the wrong window, and Da
vid, believing the clerk is sere
| nading Magdalena, comes out
with & club, The whole neighbor
Special
Announcement
Mme. Frances Alda
Uses Exclusively the
Baldwin Piano
in All Her Recitals
Theßaldwin Piano Co., Inc.
Southern Headquarters
103 North Pryor Street
Our New Location
You Are Cordially Incited to l”',".v'
IHE ATLANTA GEORGIAN-
hood is aroused. Journeymen and
apprentices pour from their
houses. Windows go up and wom
en poke out nighteanped heads.
The confusion is almost a riot. It
is one of the most difficult en
sembles to stake known in the en
tire fleld of opera.
Tells of His Melody.
The third act shows the interior
of I‘lans.Sachs' shop, with David
and the old cobbler, Sachs sings
an air, “All the World’'s Mad,”
and Walther enters from an inner
chamber. He tells of a wonderful
melody which had come to him in
his dreams, a melody which sure
ly is worthy the prize competi
t'on. They write it down and
leave the manuscript on the table.
Beckmesser comes In and ques
tions Sachs about the air. The
cobbler offers to each him the song
and permit him to sing it in the
contest, for Sachs has an idea
which. may gain for Walther an
entrance to the competition.
Béeckmesser, overjoyed, falls into
the trap and depafts to learn the
song,
Eva, attired for the festival,
enters. She renews her flirtation
with old Sachs, whom she pre
tends she adores, but he laughs
at her. He calls in David and
Magdalena as witnesses and they
christen Walther's song. Here
occurs the famous Quintet.
The scene shifts to an open
meadow beside the river, where
are gathered all the Nuremberg
ers in festal attire. The scene is
a medieval pageant, a rainbow of
color. The orchestra plays the
famous “March of the Guilds™ as
the master tradesmen of the city
enter and take their places. Boats
are moving up and down the
stream and the apprentices, in
ribbons and plumes, welcome each
arrival on the scene. The guilds
march in, each singing its own
air—the bakers, the shoemakers,
the tailors. The master singers
march to their places up the
stage,
Hans Sachs, master of cere
monies, announces the contest
and the competition begins. Beck
messer, equipped with his new
song, but overcome with nervous
ness, ascends to the mound, takes
a-last peep at his manuscript and
begins the air which Walther had
written. He mixes his new mel
ody with the old one, forgets the
words and sings sheer nonsense.
The people hoot him off the’
mound and he cries that the song
was written by Sachs and if it is
foolish it is the cobbler's fault,
Sings “Prize Song.”
This is the opportunity for
which Sachs has waited. Rising,
he says the song was written by
Walther and conforms to all the
rules. He demands that Walther
be permitted to sing it to demon
strate its true merits. The mas
ter singers agree, and Walther,
taking the place of honor, begins
the great “Prize Song,” a favorite
with German tenors and even
more frequently the choice of con
cert violinists, He is acclaimed
the winner, and Eva gives him
her hand.
“Der Meistersinger” is a rather
lengthy work. Even with the nu
merous cuts made in the original
seore, it consumes fully four hours
in presentation,
It is difficult, in a prose story
of this opera, to point oat the
beauties of its score, for it has
few of the “set pieces” which
grace the Ital'an works. Its won
derful music is found from begin
ning to end, in the sonorous
recitatives of the bassos and bar
r itones, the frequent dialogues x
tenor and soprano and especial
in the superb handling of s
great ensembles. It ix to be loved
and admired as a whole rather
than for its “great moments,”
though these are many. .
‘ !
So insistent were the demands for
sgeats at the three oneras remaining of
the Atlanta season the Atlanta Music
Festival Association and the Metro-|
politan Company Friday announced |
that dollar seats, behind the slg‘n]
line, would be sold for “Martha,” “Dic-!
Meistersinger” and “La Roheme.” |
These seats are located in circle and
balconies so close to the stage that the
settings in the rear can not be seen.
However, most of the action in opera
occurs close to the footlights, and a
view of the singers can be had. As
for hearing, they are among the most
desirable locations.
These seats were not offered at the
beginning of the seaso because in the
past hundreds have purchased them
and then rushed over into such empty
seats near by as they could find, This
resulted in noise and confusion, spoil
|ing the first act of several operas. It
lis probable that no empty seats will
offer themselves this season, and the
illt)!lar patrons will be forced to re
imain where they are
{ It was announced that because of
| the extreme length of “Die Meister
singer,” at the matinee, the Saturday
{ night performance would begin at 8:13
| instead of 8 o'clock.
.
Plaza Committee
! .
y for Hear
. Busy for Hearing
| Dai meetings of the Plaza steering
committee of the Chamber of Commerce
have been inaugurated and will continue
until May 8, when it will be necessary
for the commitiee to have the neces
sary data before the Railroad Commis
| slon
| The hearing will come up before the
lu»n-n'i.\:hm on May 18, and the com
tmittee plans to have accompligshed
lenough to create an effective impres
i_\.(.'?
| Mavor Woodward attended the com
{ mittee meeting Thursday
, ———— ? »
-~ A 7 / d All charge purchases made 10-\ TP /¢ 7 =
i/ 4. morrow will \be rendered on Moy | (Rt FANL LA TV Rt
yé ‘ Statements, payable after the first —iy ‘4l»- :
7e| of June. 3 S(0 . :
=
s D
Children’s Dresses
¥ L
59c to 75¢ Vatues, 6 to 12-Year Sizes
Are on C lSat urda,\l LB
4 vY I t...- B
Sale at Oaly | %0 i) @
Your cholee from many different fi?’ 2)':‘%‘/'-.:: tt‘;«,\L: .
styles, in all leading colors and .-nml.:,\; ¥ !“ {SB /_l" pi‘
nations. Splendidly made and neatly \§§ gg\/ 17"
trimmed. Prettier dresses than moth- Ht "[4 i‘i'\\ ,f
ers can make, and at a price lower than [SHassiVENL | |1
the worth of the materials by the yvard ?%f{! 23
Truly exceptional values »’.’.’ _._
geN e R e
<
10° Huck Towels are
on Sale Saturday Only, Per Dozen
_\n ‘bi.l'uv n,'-" I's. ot more than one dozen to
|‘;l"h lllll'!‘ilfl\"l" \l'lil‘ \HYI! to -fn.‘o!- I's. 'rln‘
best 10¢ Huek Towel on the market, at the pre
ent approximate whols sale eost 18x36-Ineh
size, plain hemmed ends. Soft and absorbent
R i
- ’ .
Child’s Hats in Two Groups
At Greatly Reduced Prices
To $1.7595c To $3.0051 50
Values . Values .
Not a great many hats in each lot, but each hat shown is
markably good looking and altogether desirable, \ s stvle
and shapes, showing mu trimming types i all leading eol
ors. Hats for givls 2to 14 years of ag A e tvl i
resenting maxioum value at these newl educed price
R ey
|-< ? - c
14 Pairs 39°¢ Stockings for 95
l: Made with a 16. inch boot of highly lustrous art silk, up
[ | pers of a sheer lisle thread. Double soles and toes, higl
[ hllhi""' heels, Shown i black, white and colors Perfect
| qualities, in all sz Stockings ke some stores are quoting
[ am'.’nflv ‘-_.‘ll;lv 8. Our regular 39%¢ gqualities at 29¢ pair, 4
pairs, Hoe
B et
’ o o .
~ Women’s Knit Union Suits 25¢
S e L /4 )
R R 1\
| New “Unions” ‘{ i )\,
. at 50 mr
. ‘p
I » iin INy 250
| 29 B& 0%
! <. ¥ :
. i Leal e
Ald@ dirs Throng,
Says N.Y.American
The New York American loday
vublishes the following : J
ATLANTA, April 28 —Atlanta
received the Delilah of Margarete
Ober with appreciation of her art
and admiration of her scholarly
singing on the first night of tlie
opera season here, but it was not
until today that the great Ger
man contralto received her full
- measure of appreciaticn from the
Southern music lovers. Cast as
Amnerisn “Aida,” the old Verdi
favorite, she sang as Atlanta has
hever heard the part sung before,
though Atlanta has heard some of
the Metropolitan’'s most noted
contraltos, including the great
; Homer, She was given a tri
umphant ovation.
Martinelli, cagt as Radames and
Amato as Amonsaro shared equal
honors, both having to take re
peated curtain calls. Madame
Alda, who sang “Aida,” is an old
Atlanta favorite. Her hundreds
of friends gave her a rousing wel
come and she rose to the occa
sion and sang splendidly; in fact,
a quartet of stars never received
more generous tribute,
Brilliant Dinner-Dance.
Following the opera tonigiht, a
very brilliant dinner-dance was
given as the Druid Hills Country
Club., This event was one of the
lirgvst of the week and was at
t&nded by over a thousand of so
ciety's elect divided into numer- *
ous smatparties,
Among those entertaining were
Mr. and Mrs. H. M. Atkinson, Mr,
and Mrs. William Lawson Peel,
Colonel and Mrs, Roßert J, Low
ry, Mr. and Mrs. W. 3. Bryan in
hondér of Mr., and Mrs, Willlam
Randolph Hearst and their New
York party, consisting of Miss
Margaret Goodrich, Miss Hazel
Bliss and Miss Virginia Ireland.
In addilion to elaborate parties
given by the foregoing, the fol
lowing also entertained: Mr, and
Mrs. Forrest Adair, Mr. and Mrs.
Hugh Richardson, Mr. and Mrs,
W. A, Speer, Dr. and Mrs. Lewis
H. Beck, Dr. and Mrs. Floyd Me-
Rae, Governor and Mrs. John
Marshall Slaton, Mr. and. Mrs,
Edwin Johnson, Dr. and Mrs.
Phinizy Calhoun and many others.
Receptions at Clubs.
Friday night there will be re
Thrift Thought
Thrifty housewives man
age household affairs on a
€ e, ~ business basis. ;
ey Paying bills by check is
& ? bt an advantage. It records
'?f%fgu’,'_,’,éfi" s expenditures and insures
Rl :ljflm*' receipts
8 e R iy
o K 8 K @hles The efficient, courteous
51‘("”_!17 k ,'jlj service of this Bank is
21;&:%:} 2: 53_-}.}.5 cheerfully extended to every
fi’r,“;{':h n—gl (A, woman in the transaction of
u;‘a;-d_'»\t 5 0 j:}' her business matters.
L‘f‘\‘q?«t I%‘ , YOUR ACCOUNT INVITED,
f&f\fiifi;* 407 ;l 4 olnterest--1007; Safety
W o BWEE
L 2208 Central Bank s
N Ly £ ! >
YA Al
\. T »
o saves Crust Gorporation
CANDLER BUILDING, ATLANTA,
'BRANCH BANK CORMER MITCHELL&FORSYTH STS.
Teddy Bear Chemises and’
Plain Combinations
SI.OO, $1.25 to $1.50 Values |
i
Saturday C | Second g;.’ ' 3
Only Floor X 3
'»""‘f:"‘ 138 z
oot looking gunfents. of Nainsook, Lin Mé} 7
Perfectly made and finished, neatly trimmed | : /
with laces and ribbons, Shown in all regular ~
sizes., Our own good regular SI.OO to $1.50 b
' value s, on sale for the one day, Saturday ' /
only. Limit of 4 garments to each purchaser } l. \ /
! i 1
/_——_—-——-———\ ’ { ' :j! ']
(’ham Petticoats 45¢| | ]
am Petticoats 45¢| 7| T
1
Shown 1 neat "”I"‘ and \u‘in‘ w'zuy‘( 1
Well made, eut extra wide and the proper o
lengths, Finished with variously pleated F.
and ruffled flouneces, Y |
- i
\_—.————————-———J 1
To 75¢ House Dresses 55¢ -
The BEST House Dress value in all Atlanta. New fll’lo‘j
neatly fashioned and well put together. Variously of Gingd
hams, Pereales and Chambray, showing neat stripes, cheeks
and golid eolors, Trimmed with braids and solid colok mate
rinls. Shown in all regular sizes,
i , °
Men’s 25¢ Sox, 3 Pairs 65¢ i
Your choiee of all silk, or silk fiber, in all leading colors :
and black, First quality numbers from our own good regu
lar lines. Shown in all regular sizes, Exceptional valuds for
Suturday only. ]
- - -
Toi'et Goods Specially Priced
—Standard Brands, at extra value-giving Prices. Note this list: i
—All 26¢ Sanitol Preparations are —Lazell's Toilet Waters, 25¢ size,
reduced to 19¢. 21¢; 50c size, 42¢. g
Sanitol Tqlcum Powder, 10c. ~s.ounce bottles Peroxide of
3 cakes of Palmolive Toilet Hydrogen, full strength, 10c. ‘
Soep for 25¢. —Satin Sachet Bags, be. :
—Pure Castile Soap, 7c. —2s¢ bottie Smelling Salts, 15¢, .
50c Java Rice Powder, 3¢, ~Meliba Toilet Soap, 10c. :
~SPECIAL-Clean-up lot of Face Powders, standard 25¢
, kinds, 16c.
/ . -
$3 Long Kid Gloves $1.95|
wWhite o 4 16 Sutton length, of a fine guality kidskin, A very
tunate chance of trad ‘ sponsible for this remarkable offering. .
New Kid Gloves for Summer Wear \
k . " 3 i i the kinds most (h“.fl"l bt ".M
X ‘ s« the everstaple kinds, sre here In g
cading colors and combinations, Pricedies
L $1.25, $1.50, $1.75, $2.00 *
ATLANTA. ‘GA
ceptions at all of the clubs. Sat
urday night, following the opera,
a number of farewell parties will
be given, those at the Capital City
Club, the Piedmont Driving Club
and Druid Hills Club being e;feo
cially brilliant. Mr. ' and s,
William Randolph Hearst will
give a party to about 100 guesis
at the Georgian Terrace Hotel
following the opera Saturday eve
ning. There being two grand
opera performances cn Saturday,
a matinee and night perform
ance, social activities outside of
the opera will be largely sus
pended until the conclusion of the
night performance.
Atlanta has never before been
so brilliant socially as this week.
5