THE MICHIGfAN DXTLY

Koussevitsky To Return



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Here With Boston Symphony


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Serge Koussevitzky, Russian-born
conductor of the Boston Symphony
Orchestra which plays the 1941 Chor-
al Union Concert at Hill Auditorium,
made his debut in the musical world
as a virtuoso of the double bass.
It was merely by chance that ther
now world-famous maestro even un-
dertook the study of the unwieldy
instrument. As a boy, penniless and
alone, he applied at the Philharmonic!
School in Moscow and was allowed
to enter under 'a scholarship which
happened to be open at the time-
a scholarship forcing him to make
a Study of the double bass.
However, Koussevitzky was not for
long satisfied with such a limited
outlet for his musical sensitivity, and
therefore he organized his own sym-
phony orchestra which gained fame
throughout the country.
This year the Boston Symphony
Orchestra is celebrating its sixty-
first season. It has increased its
membership in these years from 90
to 107 artists, andf changed its con-
ductors nine times. Koussevitzky took
over his post after it was relinguish-
ed by Pierre Monteux, French music-
ian, and has held it for more than 25
years,
Russian Immigrant
The present maestro came original-
ly from Russia, where he had organ-
ized two great symphony orchestras
and established them in Moscow and
St. Petersburg. In Paris, he organ-
Ravel's Work
is Discussed
By Casadesusa
French Pianist Describes
Modesty Of Composer
Who Hated Honors
Interviewed before his recent per-,
formance of the Ravel concerto for
Left Hand alone under John Bar-
birolli, with the New York Philhar-
monic Symphony, Robert Casadesus
spoke movingly of the composer
whom he admired profoundly and
who had been his friend. Casadesus
--himself not only a pianist but a
composer whose last big work, his
Second Piano Concerto, bore the op-
us number '50-is equipped on two
scores to judge the music of a man
still too close to'his contemporaries
to have found, his ultimate place.
"Ravel and I, we shared the same
God-Mozart," ! says Casadesus.
He considers the Ravel Concerto
for Left Hand "one of the great
works-worthy to rank with the 'Da-
phnis and +Chloe'. I n time," he pre-
dicts, '"it will be fully appreciated."
This concerto was of particular
interest to Casadesus to play because
it was Ravel's "swan song", his last
major work before he was incapaci-
tated by the illness which, finally
claimed his life.

ized the Concerts Koussevitzky,
which enjoyed an unprecendented
vogue. Upon taking over the Boston
Symphony, Koussevitzky continued
his policy of introducing new com-
posers to his audiences, and was one
of the first to popularize Debussy,
Ravel, Prokofieff, Honneger, Rous-
sel, Berg, and Stravinsky.
Koussevitzky has expressed his con-
viction about the importance of mu-
sic in these words: "Great music is a
necessity of life. Nothing less-a ne-
cessity." His behavior at rehearsals
is in line with this belief, for he is
a strict taskmaster and works for
hours with his musicians to achieve
exact and perfect interpretation of
the great composers.

Noted Tenor,

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Basso To Sing
In Ann Arbor
Martinelli Presents Unique
Personality; To Appear
With Pinza Nov. 18
The vigorous personality of Gio-
vanni Martinelli, who will be heard
in recital here on Nov. 18 with Ezio
Pinza, basso, fascinates you themo-
ment you see him. His robust phy-
sique and handsome face radiate the
warmth of a man with whom you feel
happily at ease, and in his manner
of speech, the famous singer capti-
vates his listeners by his simplicity
and directness. There is nothing of
ceremony in Martinelli. After a min-
ute's conversation with him, you feel
that you have known him for years,
and that hemhas known you fora.just
as long a time.
The tenor sat with his back to the
window of his apartment overlooking
upper C:ntral Park. His magnificent
head with its mass of iron-gray hair
was cocked in characteristic fashion,
and his kindly eyes peered from a
face whose strong lines were temper-
ed by an almost delicately shaped
mouth.
Recalls Debut
Martinelli .was discussing opera.
He recalled his debut at the Met-
ropolitan in 1913 as Rodolfo, the
poet, in Puccini's "La Boheme," and
derives much pleasure from the fact
that he has completed twenty-eight
seasons with the Met. At his debut,
Martinelli's colleagues in the haunt-
ingly beautiful work were Frances
Alda as Mimi, and Scotti, Didur and
de Segurola as his Bohemian con-
freres. The tenor waxed reminiscent
and harked back to his appearance
in 1915 at Covent Garden in London
where he sang Rodolfo to the immor-
tal Mimi of the great Nelli Melba.
Probably the highlight of his oper-
atic eareer at the Metropolitan was
his assumption of the role which
Caruso relinguished with his untimely
death-that of Eleazar in Halevy's
"La Juive." Eleazar is Martinelli's
favorite role, for in that operatic
character lies a wealth of opportun-
ity for dramatic expression, which
the tenor has remarkably utilized.
Likes Rhadames Role
Next to the old Jew in "La Juive,"
the singer is especially fond of the
part of Rhadames in Verdi's oft-
celebrated "Aida." "The music of the
Egyptian officer," explained Mr.
Martineeli, "is a blend of power and
beauty which grows in intensity
throughout the unfolding of the op-
era."
There are other roles which ap-
peal to him immensely, but these
are the two outstanding. No tenor
of today can sing and act Eleazar or
Rhadames as Martinelli can. In this
category may be.put the tragic Can-
io of "Pagiacci," the heroic Manrico
of "Trovatore," tlie noble Cavara-
,dossi of "Tosca," "Otello" his new-
est role, and other characterizations
which the art of this tenor has
graced.
Know Acting,
Advises Pinza


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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22

4

GRACE MOORE

Soprano

. . . 0 0 0 * 0 0

)k

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30
EMANUEL FEUERMANN

Violoncellist

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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 9 (Afternoon)
CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
Artur Rodzinski, Conductor
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18
GIOVANNI MARTINELLI, Tenor, and

EZIO PINZA, Bass .

. .In Joint Recital

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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 30

(Afternoon)

CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

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Frederick Stock, Conductor

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10
BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Serge Koussevtzki, Conductor
MONDAY, JANUARY 19

ROBERT CASADESU S..

s. .."Pianist

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3
MINNEAPOLIS SYMPHONY ORHCESTRA
Dimitri Mitropoulos, Conductor
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19

Joseph Szigeti
Attacks Tears'
Of Good Music
It is the "fear complex" which
prevents great music from having
great audiences, according to Joseph
Szigeti, the famous violinist who will
play here on Feb. 19. Szigeti elabor-
ates this statement as follows:
"Music must take you unawares.
People stay away because they fear
they will not 'understand' it. That
is the wrong attitude, but quite ex-
plicable because of the technical
tradition that. has walled in music-
classical music.
"We must leave people's minds
free from a lot of jargon about what
they should hear when listening to a
certain work. Leave them receptive
for what comes to theirs ears and
their'sensibilities. When a man goes
to a concert let the music sing into
him, and let him have his own per-
ception of it. Let him be satisfied
with his own perception. Don't let
him think there is but one approach
to it. And, above all, he mustn't fear
that he is missing just that ap-
proachl
"I think music is something the
average man sets apart from his daily
life, mainly because music lacks the
propaganda that art and philosophy
and history get in the daily newspap-
ers., Through columns of book re-
views, columns of expression of opin-
ion by prominent men, columns of
news of the great doings of the
world, literature, philosophy, history
are projected into a man's daily life
without him being aware of it ... So
he reads a book, or listens to a speech
or goes to museums ever so much
oftener than he goes to a concert.
To some degree radio broadcasting
supplies this deficiency of daily ex-
perience of music.
"If only people got the 'music hab-
it' as they have the reading, the
theatre or the museum habit! .
That is what I meant with the 'test'
-which, of course, is impossible to
realize-of taking a huge audience of
a boxing match or any other assem-
blage unawares. letting great music

JOSEPH SZIGETI.

. . . . . . . Violinist

TUESDAY, MARCH 3
VRONSKY and BABIN

Pianists

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OVER-THE-COUNTER SALE

of

TI CKETS

Opera
Singers

Today
Who

Requires
Can Act

"A singer who can act has a better
chance in opera today than the sta-
tic variety of singers of the old
school."
So says Ezio Pinza, handsome bas-
so of the Metropolitan Opera who
is coming here.
"Formerly)' continued Pinza, "art-
ists gave thought to little else except
singing. They just stood and sang,
or at most made exaggerated and
stereotyped gestures with the arms.
Today this is not sufficient. After
all, even if one sings beautifully, why
be on . the opera stage if that's
all one does? No matter how marvel-
ous the voice, an artist who fails
through lack of acting ability to con-
vey the character that the composer
had in mind fails to give a good per-
formance."
"Let us suppose that there are
ten so-called 'vacant' measures dur-
ing which the singer has nothing to
say. Once upon a time he just re-

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Begins Monday (tomorrow) Morning at 8:30 a.m.
BURTON MEMORIAL TOWER

Ticket Prices Include Tax

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Season
Single

Tickets:
rickets:

$1320
$ .75.

$1100
$ 220

$80
$65

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