music Y e ilirP Dlaiti SECTION TWO SUPPLEMENT ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN, SUNDAY, APRIL 2, 1941. Four-Day Lawrence Annual May Festival Will Begin May 7; Tibbett To Feature Opening Program Huge Crowds Are Expected To Attend All Six Concerts Dr. Charles Sink Predicts Capacity Audience From All Over Country Writes Appreciation Of GrandResponse All roads apparently will lead to Ann Arbor the week of May 5, and more specifically, to Hill Auditorium, according to Dr. Charles A. Sink, president of the University Musical Society. As usual, music-lovers will be com- ing from all over the United States to attend the Festival, Dr. Sink said, in predicting sell-out crowds for every President's Message The University Musical Society is grateful to a music-loving pub- lie, which, through its gracious, sympathetic and co-operative sup- port, has made possible the May Festival tradition of nearly half a century. The Society each year has en- deavored to present worthy pro- grams adequately performed by the leading musicians of the day. This alone, however, is not enough, A supporting audience of taste and discrimination,and of broad and liberal musical views is necessary. Ann Arbor provides such an audi- ence. Artists and other disting- uished authorities realize this, and throughout the world the musical reputation of Ann Arbor stands high. The University Musical Society recognizes and appreciates the lib- eral substantial support which has ever greeted its efforts. It also realizes that this support brings with it the commensurate re- sponsibility of ever striving, both to keep abreast of the times, and of ever bearing in mind the So- ciety's motto, adopted in 1879: "Ars longa vita brevis". For all this the Society is thank- ful. It desires to express sincere appreciation to its patrons and friends, to the press, and to the publi n general. -Charles A. Sink performance. An unprecedented en- thusiasm has greeted the announce- ment of artists and programs, result- ing in a huge pre-Festival sale of season and single-concert tickets. However, Dr. Sink added, there are still tickets available for single con- certs for which inquiry should be made at the Musical Society's offices in Burton Memorial tower. arrellStart Noted Baritone T ibbett Stands AtTop Of Musical Profession New Faces Of May, 1941 Has Made Brilliant Name In Operatic, Cinema, Record, Stage Worlds Acclaimed throughout the world as a musical genius whose rare talents entitled him to join the ranks of the. foremost singers of our time, Law- rence Tibbett, Metropolitan baritone, today stands at the top of his prof es- sin. Tibbett's life reads like a novel. He made his first public appearance at the age of six in the local church near Bakersfield, Calif., where he was born. At that time he had been scheduled to sing a hymn but, be- cause of stage-fright, he startled his Chinese Theatre in Hollywood where Rupert Hughes, the novelist, heard him and encouraged him to study even more seriously. Studied Under La Forge At the age of 25, with borrowed money, the young baritone came to New York to study under Frank La Forge. Six months later he came to the turning point of his career. He received two offers: one, to sing in musical comedy for $300 a week; the other, to sing with the Metropolitan Opera Company for $60 a week. Tib- bett, as is well-known, chose the lat- ter. Sang In 'Falstaff' Early in his second season at the Metropolitan he scored his first great triumph in the role of Ford in "Far- staff" which was being revived after a 15-year period. Antonio Scotti, then the leading baritone at the "Met" was singing the leading part. In , the second act Tibbett sang Ford's noted monologue in which he was able to reveal his great ability and when the curtain fell, the house burst into prolonged applause. It kept it up many minutes and in re- sponse, various of the principals ap- peared. Then Scotti and Tibbett came out together and received ova- tions. Afterwards, Scotti, as the star, took several bows alone. But the ap- plause continued louder than ever. At last it was evident that the aud- ience wanted Tibbett and none other, but Tibbett had already retired to his dressing room. The commotion grew and 'cries of "Tibbett" came from all points of the house. But there was no response. Finally the lights were lowered and the conductor raised his baton for the next scene to begin. He could not go on,.however;te audience was determined to hold the performance until Tibbett came before them. Fin- ally he appeared and, after an orgy of foot-stamping, hand-clapping, and shouts and whistles, the opera con- tinued. Tibbett had become a star. Tenor Worked His Way Through On 65 Odd Jobs When he worked his way through high-school and college, Charles Kull- man, Metropolitan tenor, engaged in no less than 65 different types of odd jobs, he claims. One summer he was offered the op- portunity to work for a railroad firm. He took it. Other jobs included post- al clerk, playground instructor, ap- prentice butcher, messenger boy, and numerous singing assignments which 'paid as little as five cents per per- formance with the choir at his local church in New Haven, Conn. 11 Soloists, Three Groups To Appear For Six Concerts Four Metropolitan Artists Will Make Local Debiti; Philadelphia Orchestra, Youth Chorus, Choral Union To Participate Lawrence Tibbett, leading American baritone, and The Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra led by Dr. Eugene Ormandy will open the 48th edition of Michigan's annual May Festival at 8:30 p.m., May 7, in Hill Auditorium. The four-day, six-concert affair, sponsored by the University Musical Society, this year is featuring a "happy balance between new faces and former favorites." During those six concerts 11 vocal and instrumental soloists, three ensemble groups and four conductors will make their appear- ance. Four artists will be making their local debut: Jarmila Novotna, so- prano; Suzanne Sten, mezzo-soprano; Charles Kullman, tenor; and Mark Harrell, baritone. Seven others, including Mr. Tibbett, will simply be renew- ---- - --- ---t--ing acquaintance with Ann Arbor SUZANNE STEN JARMILA NOVOTNA MACK HARRELL CHARLES KULLMAN audience with a rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner." Father Was Sheriff A year later his father, a sheriff, was killed by Wild Jim McKinney, one of the so-called "Bad-men" of the west, and the lad became the charge of his older sister who first encourag- ed him to sing. As he grew older he sold papers, and finally, when he went to Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles, he made his way by singing at churches and for social events. His first vocal lessons were given him by Joseph Dupuy in California, but it was Basil Ruysdael, the basso and radio announcer, whom Tibbett credits with first teaching him to sing naturally and use his voice with- out restraint. Singing under the assumed name of "Lawrence Mervil", Tibbett por- trayed "Iago" in his first professional' role. Later he received a position at Sid Graumann's then newlyopened' First Festival In The Nineties Came About Through Accident 1 r C a t I Conductor Johnson Has Had Full And Spectacular Career Harrell Starts t Music Career On U.S. Soil Mack Harrell, Metropolitan bari- tone who will come here for the May Festival, is just beginning his career on American soil. Since 1935, when he filled his first important public engagement as a soloist in a performance of "Snegour- otochka" with the New York Philhar- monic Symphony Orchestra at a Children's Concert, he has spent most of his time abroad. In 1937 he went to Europe for a tour of Amsterdam, The Hague, Vi- enna, Munich, Milan and Budapest. When he returned to the United States, he appeared twice as soloist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Serge Koussevitzky, and with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Rachmaninoff. Last year he participated in the "Metropolitan Opera Auditions of the Thor Johnson, the brilliant young4 Conductor of the University Musical Society and the May Festival con-1 certs, has had a full and spectacular career. He was born in Wisconsin Rapids June 10, 1913, the son of Reverend Herbert Bernhardt Johnson and Mrs. Johnson. He has toured extensively both in America and abroad. He has conduc- ted more than three hundred per- formances of the University of Mich- igan Little Symphony in 30 states; h asplayed in numerous southern cit- semble, a student organization of the University of North Carolina. He has travelled extensively in England, Belgium, France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia, with residences in Leipzig, Salzburg, and Prague. His professional activities have been strenuous and varied. He is Conductor of the University Musical Society and the May Festival con- certs, as well as the University Sym- phony Orchestra, the Little Sym- phony, and the Grand Rapids Sym- phony Orchestra. This latter organ- ization is of professional caliber, and each year appears in numerous public performances with audiences of three or four thousand people, and em- ploying the services of important musical soloists. He founded, and is Musical Direc- tor of, the Asheville Mozart Festi- val; founded the Carolina Salon En- semble; served as Associate Conduc- tor of the North Carolina Symphony Orchestra. During the summer of 1940 he appeared as Conductor of six of the Berkshire Center concerts with the Institute Orchestra at Len- nox, Massachusetts, a division of the Boston Symphony Orchestra summer school. In Ann Arbor he has also ser- ved as choir Director of the Congre- gational Church; and at Chapel Hill, The Ann Arbor May Festival harks back to the gay. nineties. The first May Festival took place in 1894. It came about somewhat as the result of accident. A disappointment arose in the cancellation of a concert engage- ment, and as the result, the Board of Directors of the University Musical Society capitalized adversity and de- veloped the Festival idea. For fifteen years, since 1879, the Society had an- nually provided a series of concerts, which for the preceding several years had been brought to a close by the appearance of the Boston Symphony Orchestra for a concert in May. In the fall of 1893, the usual appearance of the Boston Symphony Orchestra was announced for the following May, but through some inadvertence, the engagement could not be con- summated. At that period Boston also main- tained a special travelling orchestra known as the "Boston Festival Or- chestra." This organization was en- gaged as a substitute, but since the railroading costs had to be borne en- tirely by Ann Arbor, the Board of Directors decided that three con- certs should be given instead of one, thus saving much overhead. Accord- ingly, they not only announced the May Festival, but they boldly an- Met Indebted To Toscanit For Novotna Rated by New York musical critics as the most important recent addi- tion to the personnel of the Metro- politan Opera Company, Jarmila No- votna, soprano, will sing in Ann Arbor for the first time, when she appears at the May Festival this year. Recommended to the Metropolitan by Arturo Toscanini, noted conductor, she had become one of the musical luminaries of Europe, appearing at the Paris Grand Opera, the Vienna State Opera, the Warsaw Opera and under Toscanini at Salzburg. In addition to her operatic achieve- ments in Europe, Madame Novotna had been starred in a number of European motion pictures, including several of Max Reinhardt's major production, notably "Die Schoent nounced "The First Annual May Fes- tival." The event was a tremendous suc- cess. The newspapers publicized the widely. The railroads granted spec- ial rates. All this resulted in a huge migration to Ann Arbor. Since few took the precaution to purchase tic- kets in advance, many could not gain admission. To add to the confusion, there was a downpour of rain all day and nearly all night; and to make matters still worse, through a com- bination of circumstances, a special train which was to leave immediate- ly after the Saturday evening con- cert, was delayed in the yards in De- troit, and the railroad station was crowded with waiting passengers un- til nearly morning. This first Festival consisted of three concerts, given Friday evening, Sat- urday afternoon, and Saturday night. The next year the event was increas- ed to four concerts; a few years later to five; and in due course the present schedule of six concerts was worked out. For the first eleven Festivals the Boston Festival Orchestra jour- neyed to Ann Arbor. It was under the baton of Emil Mollenhauer. Then for thirty-one years the Chicago Sym- phony Orchestra, under Frederick Stock participated annually. Now for six years the Philadelphia Or- chestra has performed at all Festi- val concerts. Albert A. Stanley conducted the Choral Union in its performances un- til 1921. From that time until 1939, Earl V. Moore led the Chorus. At the Festival of 1940 Thor Johnson took charge. During these years practical- ly all of the oratorios and operas adaptible to concert performance, as well as many smaller works, have been performed. Principal symphonic com- positions have been played, and near- ly all of the major operatic and in- strumental soloists have been heard The University Choral Union, which (Continued on Page 3) Pianist Indicates Mechanical Bent Mechancal - minded Jose Iturbi who can repair his own piano o car, added a Howard five-seate plane to his personal belongings las year and favors it as his fondes r possession. e "Sonmepenople like to dance. some Negro Singer Reached Peak In Two Years Miss Maynor Got Audition From Dr. Koussevitzky To BeginRapid Rise Within two years Dorothy May- nor, soprano, has become one of the top-rank singers now touring the United States, to climax one of the most unusual stories in recent musi- cal history. Her career began fortuitously, when she attended the Berkshire Festival to hear the Boston Symphony Orches- tra, and won an audition from Con- ductor Serge Koussevitzky, who start- ed her sensational rise to fame. Impresses Koussevitzky Koussevitzky was so impressed by Miss Maynor's voice, that he request- ed her to sing the next day at the annual picnic which he gives for the members of his orchestra. She start- ed by singing difficult classic arias by Handel and Mozart, followed by a group of German lieder and the Wagnerian "Ho-Yo-To" from "Die Walkuere". Her professional audi- ence was quick to acclaim her vocal artistry. Her audition was followed by a series of engagements with the Bos- ton Symphony, New York Philha- monic, Chicago and Philadelphia Symphony orchestras as well as a group of recitals, including one at the May Festival here last year. Sang In Choir Daughter of a Norfolk, Va., minis- ter, Miss Maynor 'received her first musical training in the choir of her father's church. At 14 she entered the Mapton Institute, where she re- ceived her first vocal lessons. Following her graduation she ac- companied the Institute's famed Ne- gro chorus in a European tour, and later studied at the Westminister Choir School in Princeton, N.J. whose directer, Dr. John Williamson urged her to study to become a chor- al director. But she decided to per- sist in following a singing career and went to New York for three years to study under John A. Houghton. Philadelphia Hailed By Rachmanino f As Best Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra come: to Ann Arbor again for the May Fes tival with an imposing record in it 41 year history. Hailed by Rachman inoff as "the finest orchestra I hav ever heard any time or place in m whole life," the Philadelphia organ ization possesses overwhelming powe , and infinite variety by which it ha r made for itself a position in the worl d of music envied by all. t Organized in 1900, it has develope from a modest number of players t e its present eminence under four con audiences: Norman Cordon, bass; GregorPiatigorsky, violin-cellist; Jose Iturbi, pianist; Dorothy Maynor, so- prano; Jascha Heifetz, violinst; and Enid Szantho, contralto. To support these soloists the three ensemble groups that have become identified with the May Festival will return once more: the Philadelphia Orchestra led by Dr. Eugene Or- mandy, regular conductor, by Saul Caston, associate conductor, and by Mr. Iturbi, guest conductor; the Uni- versity Choral Union, led by Thor Johnson of the School of Music fac- ulty; and the Youth Chorus made up A full program of the six May Festival concerts is printed on the second page of this supplement. of boys and girls from local schools and directed by Miss Juva Higbee. The Choral Union will be heard in three works during the Festival: a short unaccompanied composition, "Alleluia", by Randall Thompson, a contemporary American composer; Brahms' "Requiem," and episodes from "Eugene Onegin" by Tschai- kowsky. The Youth Chorus will pre- sent d'Indy's "St. Mary Magdalene", and will sing a group of three songs by Gillett. Besides accompanying the soloists in the six concerts the Philadelphia Orchestra will present orchestral se- lections including Beethoven's Seven- th Symphony; Handel's "Concerto for Orchestra" arranged by Dr. Or- mandy; four excerpts from Wagner's "Die Meistersinger"; Wagner's Over- ture to "The Flying Dutchman"; Handel's Suite from "The Water Mu- sic"; Hindemith's Symphony, "Mathis der Maler" and Sibelius' Symphonies No.1 and No. 7 this latter as part of a commemorative all-Sibelius pro- gram on which Mr. Heifetz will play the Finnish composer's Concerto in D minor. Continuing a regular practice the Festival will offer for its last con- cert on Saturday night, May 10, a concert version of an opera, this time - , Tschaikowsky's "Eugene Onegin". Roles will be taken by Miss Sten, Miss Novotna, Miss Szantho, Mr. Harrell, Mr. Kullman, and Mr. Cordon. A large advance sale has indicated that all concerts will probably be sold out, Dr. Charles A. Sink, president of 7 the University Musical Society, de- clared yesterday in advising prospec- tive concert-goers to place their or- ders immediately with the Society's offices in Burton Memorial Tower. Singing Of National s Anthem Wins Job 'e When Charles Kullman, then a y striving young tenor who had given - up a career in surgery for music only r a few years previously, first appeared s for an audition before Otto Klemp- d erer in Berlin, he had been in Ger- many just two months and was not d solidly grounded in the language. o Klemperer was looking for a tenor - for "Butterfly." The American was