T
MICHIGAN DAILY
-J
'U
VA
MAY 19, 20, 21, 22,19
FOUR DAYS
- - SIX CONCERTS
of the Festival.
FRDERICK STOCK,
Condctor of the Chicago Symphonly
Orchestra.
MAY FESTIVAL AVDIENCE
CONCERTS
THE MAY FESTIVAL
?iihg, May 19, S P. 1.
ete Ober, Contralto
ralto, Metropolitan
Company.
Whitehill,
tone, Metropolitan
Company
ty Choral Union
'mphony Orchestra
y, Frederick Stock,
luctors
Ring, May 20, 8 P. 1W.
e"-Wolf-Ferrari
>prano, Metro-
ompany
Soprano
larrison.
e WhoI
Choral Union
stia
3r
2 .3
s, Contralto.
onductor
Xy 21, 8 P. 31.
mncert
nack, Tenor
a Continents"
y Orchestra
onductor
May 22, 2:30
The May Festival has come to be as
inevitable an accompaniment -of that
lovely month as the old-fashioned mu-
sical conventions and religious reviv-'
als in New England seventy-five years
ago, and the analogies do not differ
when we remember that the conven-
tions are looked upon as a sort of mu-
sical town meeting, although the Fes-
tival is a gathering of rather mam-
moth proportions.
An article in the "Outlook" two
years ago, referring to the May Fes-
tival that year, was rather facetious
in referring to the fact that the farm-
ers hitched up their lumber wagons,
drawn either by horses or oxen, and
came to the Festival in much the same
way that they used to go to the Circus.
It is necessary to say that the article
was contributed by a very effete East-
erner, whose outlook must have been
rather limited, for, as a matter of fact,
the audience is metropolitan both in
size and character. On coming out
from one of the Evening Concerts, one
could very well fancy himself in a
large city, judging from the number!
of autos and street cars in w iting,
Naturally, when we realize that this
is the twenty-second year of the Fes-
tival, the question arises as to the rea-
son for its continued success, when it
is known that of all the festivals in
existence at the time of Ann Arbor's
first festival, all but two have perished
by the way. Judging from the sale of
tickets and the enthusiasm aroused
there is 'no indication of Ann Arbor's
festival dying from inanition.
The policy of the Festival Manage-
ment has always been to present'
works of great musical interest and
significance, and in the performance
to spare neither pains nor expense to
give such works adequate presenta
tion. That involves not alone the
preparation of the chorus for this
arduous function, but also the engage-
ment of an absolutely first-class con-
cert orchestra and soloists of emin-
ence. A comparison of the programs
offered and the artists iircluded in our
list for past years will prove conclu-
sively that no festival in the country
affords greater attractions. This should
be a matter of pride for the University,
for it is known all over the country,
and in other countries, as the Festival
of the University of Michigan, and
whatever credit accrues, becomes an
asset of that institution. As the Uni-
versity of Michigan is a state affair,
so this festival is an affair in which
the state is interested. The audience'
is composed not alone of students and
residents of Ann Arbor, but of groups
of various cities and towns of the
state, and from many surrounding
states, and although the ox team and
horse-power lumber wagon have not
yet been in attendance, it is also fair
to state that rural communities offer
their full quota of attentive liseners.'
This whole Fesival is an affair of
which the student body should be
proud, .for not only do the students
compose nearly the whole chorus, but
it has also been the policy of the Uni-
versity Musical Society to furnish mu-
sical entertainments of a metropolitan
order at country prices. A glance at
Hilt Auditorlium
Michigan's ti reatest Musical [vent
Two of the greatest Choral Work's by the
Choral Union and Supplementary Children's Choral.
Music by one of America's greatest Orchestras
ARTISTS-A galay of musical stars such as have
never before appeared at any one festival.-
"THE NEW LIFE"
Among the important choral works
produced during the last decade, "La
Vita Nuovo", which will be given at
the Thursday evening Festival con-
cert, ranks with the very best. It is in
many respects unique, for an ordinary
setting could not do justice to Dante's
immortal poem. It contains many un-
3 usual vocal effects and in the orches-
tra we meet many innovations, such
as the use of the pianoforte as an or-
chestral instrument and the employ-
ment of seven kettle drums to rein-
force the pizzicato of the contra-
basses, not as noise producers.
The soprano part really represents'
Beatrice, but is secondary to the won-
derful part of baritone (Dante). This
year Mr. Theodore Harrison will do
these difficult solos. He is particularly
qualified for this roe from the fact that
his vocal art is so thoroughly illus-
trative of the Bel Canto that he can
not only cope with the enormous tech-
nical difficulties of the part, but can
give the hard melodic phrases with
the proper interpretation. It is evi-
dent that all who listen to his per-
formance will realize that in him the
concert possesses an artist second to
none.
The part:borne by a large chorus of
boys is a most interesting feature of
the work and will win the hearts
of all.
Part II of this evening's program
will be given over to miscellaneous
numbers by Frieda Hempel, the dis-
tinguished coloratura soprano of the
Metropolitan Opera Company, who,
through a combination of circum-
stances fortunate for Ann Arbor, has
been added to the list of artists since
the publication of the Official Pros-
pectus.
tra is eloquent and in its delineation
of the strongly contrasting situation is
superb. The solo parts are fortunately
assigned. Miss Leonora Allen, a m'ag-
nificent young a.rtist, and Miss Olive
Kline, one of the foremost American
concert singers, take the parts of Allys
and Alain respectively. Mr. Lambert
Murphy, whose wonderful work in
"Caractacus," will be remembered is
the Narrator. Mr. Clarence Whitehill,
the greatest operatic baritone America
has yet produced, sings the parts of
"A Sailor" and "The Voice on High".
up-risings and down-sittings caused
sometimes through lack of local in-
terest or the inability to secure a suit-
able orchestra for the occasion.
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra,
under its matchless leader, Frederick
Stock, may be termed the King of Or-
chestras, and its annual itinerary
changes little. It has eliminated from
its list the festivals of smaller propor-
tions and least stability, and each year
now it starts out from Chicago with
.what is known as its "festival con-
tingent" of fifty men and covers the
territory as regularly as spring comes
round. Its itinerary this year is given
below, from which it will be seen that
most of these festivals, which by the
way rank among the greatest, provide
for two or three concerts, and in only
a few cases is this number exceeded.
Up to the Ann Arbor engagement but
fifty men are used as stated above,
but here, since the Festival has been
transferred to hill Auditorium, the
orchestra is augmented by twenty ad-
ditional men who come down from
Chicago for this particular festival.
It will be noted thmat none of the
festivals provide for more than five
concerts and the itinerary shows but.
this number for Ann Arbor, but it will.
be remembered that Hill Auditorium
contains what is found in none of the
buildings where the other festivals are
held, namely, one of the world's great-
est organs, and the sixth concert here
is devoted largely to an organ pro-
gram, making the only festival on the
list with this number of concerts and'
also the only one with the exception.
of the North Shore Festival, which
employs an orchestra of more than
fifty men.
April 26, evening, Omaha, Neb.
April 27, afternoon and evening.
Omaha, Neb.
April 28, afternoon and evening,
Sioux City, Iowa.
April 29, -afternoon and evening,
Boone, Iowa.
April 30, evening, Mt. Vernon, Iowa.
May 1,-afternoon and evening, Mt. Ver-
non, Iowa.
May 3, evening, Aurora, Ill.
May 4, afternoon and evening, Co-
lumbus, Ohio.
May 5, afternoon and evening, Co-
lumbus, Ohio.
May 6, evening, Ithaca, N. Y.
May 7, evening, Ithaca, N. Y.
May 8, afternoon and evening,
Ithaca, N. Y.
May 10, evening, Syracuse, N. Y.
May 11, afternoon and evening, Syra-
cuse, N. Y.
May 12, afternoon and evening, Syra-
cuse, N. Y.
May 13, evening, Buffalo, N. Y.
May 14, evening, Buffalo, N. Y.
May 15, evening, Buffalo, N. Y.
May 17, evening, Oberlin, Ohio.
May 18, afternoon and evening,
Oberlin, Ohio.
May 19, evening, Ann Arbor, Mich.
May 20, evening, Ann Arbor, Mich.
May 21, afternoon and evening, Ann
Arbor, Mich.
May 22, evening, Ann Arbor, Mich.
May 24, evening, Evanston, Ill.
May 25,evening, Evanston, Ill.
May 27, evening, Evanston, Ill
May 29, afternoon and evening, Ev-
anston, Ill.
COURSE 'TICKETS
Four Days-Six Concerts
MAIN FLOOR - $5.00 and $6.00
FIRST BALCONY - $5.00 and $6.00
SECOND BALCONY - $4.00 and $5.00
SINGLE CONCERTS
On Sale Al
MAIN FLOOR
FIRST BALCONY -
SECOND BALCONY
teir May 10
- - $2.00
" - $1.50
- - $1.00
Organ Concert
Margaret Keyes, Contralto
Festival Favorite
ore Harrison, Baritone
Master of Lieder"
rn L. Renwick, Organist
Splendid Organist"
ty Evening, May 22, 8 P.M.
ildren's Crusade"-Pierne
Leonora Allen, Soprano
Lished American Soprano
race Johnson, Soprano
Ann Arbor Favorite
ive Kline, Soprano
t-Class Festival Artist
tbert Murphy, Tenor
olitan Opera Company
ence Whitehill, Bass
olitan Opera Company
niversity Choral Union
al Children's Chorus
ago Symphony Orchestra
A. Stanley, Conductor-
gram announcements are
uch minor changes as may
the prices charged by other fesivals
will enforce the fact that the claim
put forth by the University of Michi-
gan that students are educated here at,
much less cost than at any other in-
stitution, applies to musical offerings,
as well.
"THE CHILDREN'S CRUSADE"
In a very interesting work, "The
Sunny Side of a Diplomat's Life," men-
tion is made of the young composers
in Rome' who were under the shadow
of Liszt's artistic wing. Among them
special mention is made of one Gabriel
Pierne, who was so very infantile in
appearance and naive in character that
he was called "The Baby." He had
progressed at that time sufficiently to
win the Grand Prix de Rome, which
accounted for his presence in the "City
by the Tiber." In spite of continued
progress in creative times he first at-
tracted the attention of the world by
his "Children's Crusade" which has
become the most popular work of the
last decade, and which will be given
at the closing Festival concert Satur-
day evening.
.Naturally the children's choruses of
which there are three, are prominent
in a setting of such a story, and this
accounts very largely for its vogue.
The melodies assigned them are cast
in old church modes and thereby ac-
quire a characteristic flavor, quite in
keeping with the period in which the
story occurs (13th century). But the
children have more difficult tasks as-
signed them than the singing of the
main melodies, for much of their music
is difficult. The mixed choruses are
full of grandeur and are also very dif-
ficult. But the real difficulties lie in
the male choruses which are in some
places all but impossible.
The principal solo parts are a Nar-
rator (Tenor), who relates the prog-
ress of events, at least of such as are
not taken by other soloists or the
chorus. Allys and Alain (Sopranos)
are two youths, Alain is blind and
depends on Allys for her guidance.
The work is divided into four parts:
"The Foresetting", "The Highway",
"The Sea", and "The Saviour in the
Storm".
In the third division we hear the
voice from on High (Baritone), who
comforts and hushes up the children,
some of whom are fearful. The orches-
AMERICAN FESTIVALS
In recent years it has become quite
the vogue for communities which felt
that they were musical, to establish
music festivals. This tendency has
been rather encouraged also by many,
struggling young orchestras in enter-
prising communities as well as by the
few really great orchestras, and owing
to this reason and other attendant
conditions, great emphasis has been
given to music throughout America,
and many isolated cities especially in
the West now hear,. at least once a
year, a certain amount of what might
be termed good music. Naturally many
of these enterprises have had their
ORCHESTRA
MAY FESTIVAL CHILDRENS' CHO