|
The Mapleson Cylinders - Program Notes
|
The Missing Cylinders
From the documentation surrounding the surviving cylinders, it is
possible to reconstruct a partial list of those that are now lost. A first
category comprises those still extant in 1938, when Glackens and Bishop
inventoried the collection acquired by Seltsam from the Mapleson estate. Among
those described in the inventory with some precision were: a 1902
"Toréador Song" from Carmen, with either Scotti
or Journet (see Side 4/ Band 2); the third Sembrich Traviata
cylinder (see Side 5/Band 4); from Huguenots,
the Act III Finale on January 24, 1903--the same music as Side 2/ Band 3,
recorded at the same performance as Side 2/Bands 2 and 5; an unspecified
excerpt from Act I of Isidore De Lara's Messaline,
which received its American premiere at the Met on January 22, 1902 with
Calvé, Alvarez, Scotti, Journet, and Flon conducting, and was repeated
with the same cast on January 25 (matinee) and February 7; an undated "Magic
Fire Music" from Walküre, already broken in 1938;
a second cylinder from the "Dance of the Hours" (see Side 12/ Band 7); "mixed
titles" by Campanari (described as "Quite loud, & surface good. Female
voice at opening--then a baritone & cho. Can not identify. Maybe
Huguenots"); the Tannhäuser "Venusberg Music"
from the same performance as Side 9/ Bands 3 and 4; the "Pilgrim's Chorus" from
the same work, on "January 25" (presumably 1902), conducted by Damrosch; and
the Act II Finale from Bohéme on February 13,
1903, with a cast including Sembrich as Mimì, Scheff as Musetta, Dani,
Campanari, Journet, and Gilibert as the Bohemians, and Mancinelli conducting.
Some of these may still survive among the unidentified or unplayable recordings
in the Mapleson Music Library group.
A second category comprises recordings for which containers or slips
still survive, but for which the corresponding cylinders were probably already
missing when Seltsam received this collection--indeed, may have been
shaved and reused by Mapleson years earlier. One of the Aida
cylinders (Side 5/Band 10) was in a container on which "closing scene
Gotter-Ternina" had been crossed out, and "Aida" written in. More specific are
two other containers on which the Götterdämmerung
markings have been crossed out: "March 22, 1901 Brünnhilde at bier
of Siegfried, final scene" (Ternina/Damrosch), and "March 6, 1901, fast [
i.e., recording speed] Closing scene of opera with
destruction of Hall of the Gods" (Nordica/ Damrosch). The container now holding
Side 5/ Band 8 has a reference to the Verdi Requiem, a
work performed six times during the Mapleson years, beginning with a memorial
performance for the recently deceased composer on February 17, 1901: Nordica,
Schumann-Heink, Salignac, and Plançon sang, and Mancinelli conducted
(Gadski, Homer, Edouard De Reszke, Journet were among the soloists at later
performances). The container of the Melba "Jewel Song" is labeled "No. 2."
suggesting that the "Roi de Thulé" aria may also have been recorded, and
the "Su, del Nilo" from Aida is similarly marked.
Another box refers to Campanari singing Faure's Charité, from a concert on March 2, 1902 (see Side 12/Band 7). And
a crossed-out reference to "Noble signor Gad.- Homer-1901 (?)" creates
still another Mapleson mystery, for there was no Huguenots
performance, in 1901 or later, in which the cast included both Gadski and
Homer; when Homer sang Urbain, Bréval was always the Valentine.
