Verkaufte Braut," ""Die Lustigen Weiber von Windsor" and "Fidelio" which marked the season at Covent Garden in January, when Franz Schalk, Eugène Ysaye, Leopold Reichwein and Arthur Nikisch were the conductors.

A few weeks later the so-called "grand" season opened, on April 30, with the first cycle of "Der Ring des Nibelungen" under Hans Richter, who directed the German opera. Among those who appeared were Ernst Kraus and Fleischer-Edel, Clarence Whitehill, Bechstein and Ellen Gulbranson. A superb interpretation of "Die Meistersinger" likewise marked this season, Von Rooy, Carl Jörn, Frieda Hempel, Knüpfer, Bechstein and Geis forming one of the most brilliant casts seen in this opera in London. Heinrich Knote as Tannhäuser, Peter Cornelius as Lohengrin and Siegmund, and Emmy Destinn as Senta, were among many who made substantial marks on the season's German opera. In June, Ponchielli's once favourite opera "La Gioconda" was revived after a very prolonged rest, and Catalani's "Die Lorelei," which met with somewhat doubtful acceptance, was the sole novelty. Melba, Caruso, Bonci, Scotti, Donalda also sang in the Italian opera and Campanini, Panizza and Pitt were the conductors.

After the summer recess, in October, that is, a third (Italian) season was opened, and brought with it but one new work, Franchetti's "Germania." The remainder of the repertory was thoroughly familiar. But it served to introduce several singers new to London in Edith de Lis, Miranda, an Australian, John McCormack, and on November 2 Luisa Tetrazzini. The immediate and phenomenal success of the lastnamed high soprano reminded the older frequenters of opera of the historical Jenny Lind fever. Never in recent years has a singer created so great a furore. In the holiday time between the last-mentioned seasons, the Moody-Manners Company visited the Lyric Theatre and also brought forward but one novelty in H. Löhr's "Sarenna," which, however, cannot be accounted a success. John Coates appeared as Lohengrin, but there was nothing of a particularly striking nature in the season. On Boxing Day the Carl Rosa Company opened at Covent Garden and gave some admirable performances of familiar operas; a record should be made of the beautiful presentation of Offenbach's "Les Contes d'Hoffman" under Fritz Cassirer at the Adelphi in the spring.

Turning now to concerts, three important provincial festivals were held, namely (that of the Three Choirs) at Gloucester, Cardiff and Leeds. At the first named the programmes were composed chiefly of wellknown works, those of British origin being Elgar's "Apostles" and "The Kingdom" (without which no similar function nowadays seems complete), Hubert Parry's "The Love that casteth out fear," and Granville Bantock's new cantata, "Christ in the Wilderness." At Cardiff, on the other hand, there were no less than eight novelties in the scheme. Of these pride of place belongs to Hubert Parry's symphonic poem, "A Vision of Life," a composition that for its humanness deserves to stand at the head of the long list of the Oxford professor's works. Arthur Hervey's tone-poem, "Summer," Hamilton Harty's "Ode to a Nightingale," Cowen's " He giveth His beloved sleep," Brewer's "Sir Patrick Spens," Ralph Vaughan Williams's brilliant "Norfolk Rhap

sodies," David Evans's "The coming of Arthur," and the second part of Bantock's "Omar Khayyam," were one and all performed. In friendly rivalry Leeds followed with six new works, of which Stanford's "Stabat Mater" aroused by far the most widespread interest. R. Vaughan Williams also scored a success with his setting of Walt Whitman's "Toward the Unknown Region," and perhaps a record should be made of Bantock's employment in his serious work, "The Sea Wanderers," of a fog-horn, a very modern addition to the orchestra. A great success, too, was achieved by Rutland Boughton's clever vocal arrangements, and Arthur Somervell and Herbert Brewer were also represented. Thus it cannot be said that British music was not greatly encouraged at the festivals.

In London itself the concert-world was at least as busy as in the preceding year. Novelties were produced to an almost embarrassing extent, and concert followed concert until the critics became so bewildered that a senior member of the fraternity actually drew public attention to the serious amount of illness from nervous disorders among his colleagues, due entirely to the stress of too much music. Yet in spite of the prodigious number of public performances, it is doubtful if their quality was commensurate with their quantity. There can be no doubt that the present is the age of splendid technical attainment, but as far too great stress is laid upon the purely mechanical side of musical interpretation, so the development of the greater artistic qualities and notably of temperament suffers accordingly. The London Philharmonic celebrated its ninety-fifth birthday, but failed to satisfy the modern demands, and was compelled at the close of its season partially to reorganise.

As if coming events were casting their shadows the opening concert was conducted by Edouard Colonne from Paris, though the remaining performances were once again in F. H. Cowen's charge. The season was not ear-marked by any remarkable addition to the country's much less to the world's music, but a large number of the principal instrumental and vocal soloists appeared. These included among the former, Sophie Menter, Teresa Carreño, Johann Stockmarr, Lady Hallé, Mischa Elman, de Pachmann, and among the latter Marie Brema, Clara Butt, Amy Castles, Felix Senius and Rumford. At the close of the Philharmonic season the necessity was felt for an attempt at some rejuvenation of the machinery which had, its seems, become a little antiquated in its capacity for attraction. And in consequence, though Dr. Cowen, who had laboured long on its behalf, was left still in supreme charge, Nikisch, Richter and Henry J. Wood were with him appointed conductors of the concerts in the ninety-sixth season.

The London Symphony Orchestra under various conductors gave a number of performances of the highest class. Chief among their concerts was that which they volunteered in honour of Hans Richter, commemorating his thirty years' work in England. Two concerts were directed by the Russian Wassili Safonoff, who uses no baton, but his hands only, and a new violin suite by Sir A. C. Mackenzie was produced under their auspices. Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Orchestra gave its usual number of symphony concerts likewise at which one or two of the soloists were Fritz Kreisler, Buhlig, Carreño and Pugno.

Educationally, of more value than any of these were the Promenade Concerts, of which again Henry Wood was in charge. Indeed there can be no doubt that from the point of view of the encouragement of native creative as well as interpretative talent and of the development of an audience these concerts easily take pride of place in London. Beginning on August 17, the Promenades lasted ten weeks. A feature of them worthy of note as showing the aforesaid development was the production to crowded houses of Beethoven's nine symphonies and pianoforte concertos in chronological order. No less than eighteen novelties by British composers were accorded a hearing, of which record should be made of Frederick Austin's rhapsody "Spring," Frederick Delius's "Pianoforte Concerto," Quilter's "Serenade" and Harty's "Comedy" overture. Later in the year the name of Delius came much before the public, a somewhat belated recognition in his native land of a Bradford musician whose name is entirely familiar in German and French musical circles. On May 1, Sir Charles Santley's Jubilee was celebrated in the Albert Hall, and subsequently a cheque was presented to him for 2,160. London was visited during the year by the magnificent choir of students from Upsala University, and as if to show to metropolitans how poor is their own choral singing the Blackpool Glee and Madrigal Society, conducted by Herbert Whittaker, gave a concert at Queen's Hall on March 5, and visits were received from the Leeds Philharmonic and Sheffield Festival Choirs.

Young England was again to the fore in town in the persons of Joseph Holbrooke and Thomas Dunhill, each of whom organised serial concerts of Chamber music mostly of British origin. In the summer there was held at the Crystal Palace a so-called festival performance of "Elijah" under Cowen's direction, with Agnes Nicholls, Ada Crossley, Ben Davies, and Charles Santley as soloists, and subsequently the Tonic Sol-Fa Association celebrated its jubilee.

Arthur Fagge and his London Choral Society added one more season to their rôle, but owing to some malevolent fortune they scored but very small success with the new works they produced, of which Enrico Bossi's "Paradise Lost" was the most important in point of size. The Royal Choral Society under Sir Frederick Bridge, and such societies as the Bach Choir, the Mozart, Handel, Royal Amateur and Stock Exchange Orchestral, and the excellent Oriana and Magpie Madrigal Societies all accomplished a sound year's work in London.

Of course there was no end to the visits of foreign musicians. Chief perhaps among them must be placed those of the Joachim quartet, albeit their concerts, announced for April, had to be postponed till June, when owing to Joachim's ill-health, Carl Halir took his place. Of "home" quartets who gave performances were the Wessely, Walenn, Petherick, Brodsky (Manchester) and Hambourg (new) Associations.

Already a number of distinguished foreigners have been mentioned among the English visitors of the year. But no record would be complete that did not include the names of such singers as Julia Culp, Tilly Coenen, Elena Gerhardt (who scored an immediate, unusual and emphatic success at her débût here with Arthur Nikisch as pianoforte accompanist in April), Hélène Staegemann, Sven Scholander, a lutenist

and singer of rare accomplishment; or violinists as Audrey Richardson, Voorzanger, Adolf Rebner, Szigeti, Antonietti, Von Vecsey (grown out of the prodigy state), Worth, Kubelik, and Macmillen; or pianists, Paderewski, who returned after a prolonged absence in June, Seguel, Chaminade, Galston, Breitner, Sapellnikoff, Godowsky, Sauer, and Pintel. Conductors, too, were numerous and, as events proved, clever. Thus Max Fiedler, who created a profound impression in June, Birnbaum, and Emil Mlynarski (better known previously as a violinist) were all welcomed warmly, and a record should be made of the visit of Charles Harriss, who has worked so well for Canadian music.

Death was busy among musicians as among others, and though no great creative artist died, the loss of Edvard Grieg was a very real one. No composer since Mendelssohn had become so much a household word in his music as the Norwegian master, who, if the epithet "great" can hardly be applied to him, was yet a most important factor in national music. The musical world, too, is the poorer by the death of Joseph Joachim, a violinist who though long past the zenith of his ability, was yet one of the pre-eminent players, and in point of style remained to the last a type of all that is noble and distinguished.

ROBIN H. LEGGE.

OBITUARY

EMINENT PERSONS DECEASED IN 1907.

JANUARY.