Identifier: grandoperasinger02lahe (find matches)
Title: The grand opera singers of to-day : an account of the leading operatic stars who have sung during recent years, together with a sketch of the chief operatic enterprises
Year: 1912 (1910s)
Authors: Lahee, Henry Charles, 1856-1953
Subjects: Putnam Griswold. Singers Opera
Publisher: Boston : L. C. Page
Contributing Library: Harold B. Lee Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Brigham Young University

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cave of the dragon. Hewas superb, too, in the episodes between Erdaand Siegfried. Griswold is a fine artist and arich prize for any great opera-house to pos-sess. For many years the nation has been lookingfor an American Grand Opera. Since the daysof W, H. Fry there have been several attemptsto produce grand opera written by Americans,both in this country and abroad. Damroschs Scarlet Letter was an opera on an Ameri-can subject. Nevins Poia, produced inGermany some few years ago, was an Indianstory and therefore more like what the idealAmerican opera should be. Louis A. Coernes Zenobia, produced in Berlin, was Americanin that the composer was educated in and aresident of America. The most successfulAmerican opera is The Girl of the GoldenWest, an American story set to music by anItalian,and most successfully sung by a polyglotcompany, which included Emmy Destinn,Amato, etc. Victor Herberts Natoma,mentioned elsewhere, is founded on an Indianstory. Horatio Parker has sought out a story
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Copyright by Mishkin Studio, New York PUTNAM GRISWOLD The Metropolitan Opera-House 341 of ancient Britain. In all the discussions thathave taken place regarding the expected Ameri-can opera it has not yet been clearly definedwhat constitutes an American opera. Whetherthe story must be American in subject, writtenby an American, as well as the music, or whetherit is necessary only that the composer shouldbe an American. In reviewing operas ofother nations we conclude that the only es-sential is that the composer should be a nativeAmerican. We have, for instance, amongItalian operas, Lucia di Lammermoor, astory by Sir Walter Scott, set to music by anItalian; we have Bigoletto, a story by aFrenchman, set to music by an Italian; wehave Madame Butterfly, a story by anAmerican about the Japanese, set to music byan Italian, and one could continue indefinitely.In regard to an American opera it remainsa fact that no American composer has yetreached the point of writing an opera contain-ing the

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