Richard Mansfield (1857 - 1907) Believed by some to be the greatest actor of his era. As a member of D'Oyly Carte in 1879 he was the Major-General in the premiere of The Pirates of Penzance. In 1887 he starred as both Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in the London play, one year after Robert Louis Stevenson's novella appeared. (He was so believable that Scotland Yard was asked to investigate whether he might also be Jack the Ripper, who was terrifying London at the time.) In America, he maintained his own independent theatrical production company. He introduced Americans to Cyrano de Bergerac and numerous plays by George Bernard Shaw and Henrik Ibsen, as well as playing the great Shakespearean roles.
Jekyll/Hyde photo by Henry Van der Weyde (1838-1924; London, England), from Ask.com/Wikipedia; Henry V(?) and Peer Gynt from http://www.wayneturney.20m.com/mansfieldrichard.htm and http://www.josephhaworth.com/richard_mansfield.htm For press coverage and discussion of Mansfield's Jekyll/Hyde go to http://www.casebook.org/ripper_media/book_reviews/non-fiction/cjmorley/124.html |
Christian Science The Church of Christ, Scientist was founded in 1879 in Boston by Mary Baker Eddy (1821 - 1910). Her Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (1875) is the central text, along with the Bible. . MARY BAKER EDDY, founder of CHRISTIAN SCIENCE; 1906 expansion of THE MOTHER CHURCH in Boston, founded 1879.THE ORIGINAL BUILDING, AT THE RIGHT, IS IN THE FORM OF A CROSS, AND THE IMMENSE "ANNEX," WITH ITS DOME, IS SUPPOSED TO REPRESENT A CROWN, THE TWO BUILDINGS THUS FORMING THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE SEAL—THE CROSS AND CROWN - McClure's Magazine, May 1908, article actually written by Willa Cather, McClure's assistant www.gutenberg.org/files/17663/17663-h/17663-h.htm |
The Welte-Mignon reproducing piano In 1904, the firm of Michael Welte und Söhne in Freiburg-im-Breisgau, southern Germany, "developed an experimental piano playing device,"... "with the aim of reproducing the recorded performances of the finest pianists of the day." It was based on electromechanically generated ink traces, subsequently used to guide the punching of music rolls. "The Welte-Mignon was originally called, quite simply, the Mignon, an essentially French word meaning both small and pleasing, to distinguish it from the firm's other [orchestrions], which were all considerably larger." http://www.pianola.org/reproducing/reproducing_welte.cfm |
Sat Mar 9
Rose undertook the washing, so I cleaned up the flat and worked hard till 12. Swallowed a hasty luncheon, in order to get to Mrs. C.'s by 2, only to find that I was too tired to sing a single decent tone. So after a half hour of futile effort we stopped. Mother was dreadfully nervous all morning, and simply deaf to all reasoning. She lay abed all day. Church service at 5. I got there early and seized the opportunity of showing Leop. the silhouette. He thought it a most curious coincidence, and laughed heartily at his "poetic'' face. But somehow I gained a flash impression of his personality which disappointed. It seemed to me that there was a shallow note somewhere, which for one moment was struck; and which made me suspect that the man underlying the musician is not as broad and sympathetic a nature as I had fancied. I may be mistaken, but I do wonder.
Sun Mar 10
Mother up and well all day. It snowed steadily from morning to night, and was very stormy. Mr. Duras had written (by type!) that he would try to come in to N.Y. and go to church with me, but the trains probably did not run as he did not appear, (and I did not weep!). Mr. Beddoe was also snowed up somewhere out west so instead of Bach's Passion Music we sang from the Redemption. No sermon this afternoon which was delightful as we got out at 4.45. Finished "Scarlet Letter'', a gloomy story, but well written. All of us were reading about the fire and went to bed at 10.30. Am still having fun at church with Leo's silhouette.
Mon Mar 11
Mother started at seven and kept up her talking till 10.30. Then, half crazed with nervousness, I tore off the bedclothes and forced her to dress. She grew a little more quiet but was badly all day, so that I begin to fear that she is worse all the time. Went down for theory at one, and afterward the day was so fine that Ella and I walked till four and made all our plans for renting a studio and living there till June. We were quite serious but I suppose nothing will come of it, as usual. Had a good lesson with Miss Thursby and in the evening, I saw Mansfield in "Peer Gynt'' He did some fine work and I liked the play but was a little disappointed in Addie. She sang well, but her acting is quite without inspiration.
Tue Mar 12
Mother started in badly again so that Mila determined to stay home and consult a doctor. And as we concluded that the physicians had done her absolutely no good, Mila telephoned to Mrs. Montg. to come and talk to Mother about Christian Science. She came and talked some to Mother and left some books; but Mother stayed abed all day and was quite hysterical at times. I went to Italian lesson and afterward heard the "Welte-Mignon" records of Paderewsky-Shevinne-Gabrilowitch - a most marvelous instrument, which perfectly reproduces the nuances and even pedaling with absolute purity of tone.
Wed Mar 13
Studied till 11.30, then had a fine lesson with Mrs. C. The chief difficulty now is for me to realize that in the small tone lies the large one, and to begin with a pointed attack. That is why my piano tones and diminuendos are bad. She gave me five silhouettes and I spent most of the afternoon arranging it for his Leo-ship. And I should have been doing harmony. Alas! woman is a weak vessel. And this when I am not sentimentally inclined. I wonder what I would do if I had it as badly as Ella! In the evening he gave the 4th recital -- Wagner -- Palestrina --the most successful of all. He played the "Parsifal'' Prelude exquisitely well, but not the Walk\"{u}renatt which is ill suited to an organ.
Thurs Mar 14
A very bad day musically. Mother was ill, but quiet and at 11.30 Mrs. Montgomery paid her second visit. I talked with her afterwards, and the principles of Christian Science are interesting enough to be worth looking into. She seemed to do Mother some good, although any visitor seems to bring her self-control out. I tried to sing a little but somehow the piano tones won't come, or at least not in the right place. Had a very bad lesson with Miss Thursby - seemed to close up my throat completely. But after I got home I sang "Hear Ye" quite easily. I cannot understand my own mental attitude! Felt very weary and fagged-out. Edith Sev. was over in the evening.
Fri Mar 15
I fear I have Spring fever, for in spite of it's being a heavenly day, I feel sleepy and a little depressed. Made at least a 1000 mistakes in the Mozart Sonata, and Mrs. Q. said I am too elaborate in my "nuances'' - that Mozart demands simplicity of style. The Tapper lecture, tho' full of paradoxes, was, of course, fine. He spoke especially of make our music a subjective personal thing, with which we can readily express ourselves, and not a thing which we practise so many hours a day, and then when called upon to sing or play, we find some excuse from, because we are "hoarse'' or "have no music with us.'' Those are what Leop. calls "paper-musicians''. He says that since our specialty is music, we must learn to think in tone and speak in it and learn to recognize the mode of musical speech of the great masters in their idioms. It is a life-work, of course, but then, why not?
