Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol. 1, No. 5 (1927-02)

The Phonograph Monthly Review 209 **=> «■ 1 ■ ' accomplished during total blindness. The subject of one of his most popular zarzuelas, Gigantes y Cabezudos is the fiesta of the “Pilar Madonna.” The legend of the Virgen del Pilar is rather in- teresting: The Apostle St. James found himself one evening, during his travels about Spain, with his disciples on the banks of the River Ebro, under the walls of Caesar Augustus (Sara Gusta —Saragossa), and while kneeling in prayer, the Virgin appeared before him, seated upon a pillar of jasper. She commanded the Apostle to build a chapel on that very spot, for the worship of the Virgin, promising that for the future Sara- gossa would be distinguished for unprecedented devotion; also that the pillar upon which she sat should remain to the end of the world as tangible evidence of her coming. In the terrible struggle to defend the city against Napoleon, the “Pilar Madonna” proved to be a mighty bulwark. It was there that the “Maid of Saragossa,” immortalized by Byron, battled side by side with her lover and, snatching the howitzer cord from his hand as he fell, manned the battery in his stead. Today, in the Pilar Cathedral, Saragossa, is the image of the Virgin. There she stands on her jasper pillar, within a circle of marble col- umns, surmounted by a velvet canopy sprinkled with golden stars. Los Repatriados, (1) from Gigantes y Cabezu- dos, is a number for tenor with chorus, with an interesting and varied melody of considerable beauty. Another popular zarzuela by Caballero is El Cabo Primero (2). Francisco Asenjo Barbieri (Madrid, 1823- 1894) is another composer who did much to pre- serve in his music the rhythmic and melodic elements characteristic of the national folk-lore of the 18th Century, thus laying the foundation for a national school characteristically different from all others. The Romanza (3) from his zarzuela Jugar con Fuego demonstrates the charming quality of his music. He was the com- poser of 70 zarzuelas. Federico Chueca (Madrid, 1848-1908) might perhaps be called the Spanish Irving Berlin, he was so prolific a composer of music which the people liked. He had little knowledge of the technical side of music, and usually collaborated with Joaquin Valverde, to whom, I suspect, is often given the credit belonging to Chueca. De- spite this lack of knowledge, Chueca had great ability in inventing tunes; and it is said that no- body else ever got such results from a simple tonic and dominant system of harmony. His Gran Via went all over Europe and has, I be- lieve, been given in New York. Of the Jota de las Ratas (4) from this zarzuela, in which the pickpockets outwit policemen in various ways, the philosopher Nietzsche remarked: “The people that has produced this music is beyond salva- tion.” This number, and the Tango de la Mene- gilda (5), are two of the best in the score. (1) Victor 62274 (2) Victor 68008; Edison 60020 (3) Victor 63189 (4) Victor 62031 (5) Edison 60021 3IGV Record Albums for Storing, Filing, Making Up Sets of Phonograph Records Better Made Albums for 10 and 12 in. Records 10-12-17 and 24 Pockets at reasonable prices, gladly sent on approval. Improved Fiber Needles Better Quality Steel Needles for playing electrically recorded Records. o Spear Point Needles for better playing of old style recorded Records. Latest “Right Tone” Reproducers and Tone Arms for so immensely improving the tone of old style Phonographs To responsible people gladly sent on Trial. o For Records reviewed or wanted in this magazine write to me. Catalogue free. Records on approval. B. M. Mai 414 North State St. Chicago, 111. (Established in 1888) About Rupert Chapi (Villena, 1851-1909) there is a great divergency of views, some placing little value on his work, others ranking him high among Spanish composers. His works, how- ever, undoubtedly show talent, and should not be ignored. His Punao de Rosas has had consider- able popularity, the March (3) from this zarzuela even being in the repertory of some of our American bands. The outstanding feature of the music of Amadeo Vives (Catalonia) is clearness of con- struction and melody. One would go far to find a more attractive song than the beautiful Romanza (4) from Bohemios , one of his zarzue- las. Vives, besides several other short operettas, also wrote Maruxa, a lyric comedy in three acts. From this, El Golondron (5) is a number of de- cided originality, the voice at times having a sort of recitative, ending in a sudden rhetorical drop, and then picking up the melody again. Vitoria, a Basque city, claims Emilio Serrano, who commenced to write zarzuelas when very young. In one of them was introduced the jovial and spirited Alegria del Batallon (6), with its martial swing. Molinos de Viento is a well- known zarzuela by this composer. Gomez Rafael Calleja (Burgos, 1874 ) a composer and theatrical conductor, has given us Las Bribonas . The tientos from this zarzuela has already been commented on. (7) Calleja collab- (3) Edison 505$7 (4) Victor 63189 (5) Edison 6*0017 (6) Victor 65142 (7) Victor 62128