“Carmen,” and especially in Bizet’s use of the typical phrase, the Leitmotiv. Wagnerism had to be purged by time before Charpentier (shahr-pong-tee-ay) could triumph with “Louise,” and Debussy (day-boos-see´) with “Pelléas et Mélisande” (pale-lay-ahs´ ay may-lee-sahnd´), works in which the Wagnerian system is much more extensively and frankly used than in “Carmen.”

GEORGES BIZET—1838-1875

Composer of Carmen.

GUSTAVE CHARPENTIER

Composer of Louise.

CLAUDE DEBUSSY

Composer of Pelléas et Mélisande.

THE INFLUENCE OF WAGNER

French, German, Italian, Russian, and English composers have for half a century been under the domination of Wagner’s influence. In France and Italy he put a new spirit into opera; but the composers did not attempt to follow him slavishly in both practice and precept. In Germany, on the other hand, many of his disciples made the attempt and failed. Two only have created living works—Engelbert Humperdinck (hoom´-per-dingk) and Richard Strauss. The more interesting phenomenon of the two is presented by Humperdinck, who has not only applied Wagner’s theories to the musical score of his masterpiece, “Hänsel und Gretel” (hen´-zel oont gray´tel), but has extended their application to dramatic material.

HUMPERDINCK AND WAGNER

ENGELBERT HUMPERDINCK

Wagner held myth to be the best subject for the lyric drama; Humperdinck has extended the principle to include fairy tales, which, in a sense, may be said to be decayed myths. Taking the German form of the story of the Babes in the Wood, he has turned it into an opera which illustrates the methods Wagner employed in his great mythological tragedy, “The Nibelung’s Ring,” and has given the methods a peculiar charm by making his musical symbols (Leitmotiven) out of nursery jingles and tunes like them. Notwithstanding that he was thus hewing to a line drawn by another, the opera has a melodic fluency and freshness which have scarcely a parallel in modern opera. A later work “Königskinder” (Royal Children), though full of beauty, lacks the spontaneity and charm of its predecessor largely because its book is stilted in language, its symbolism too much in evidence and not sufficiently sympathetic, and its construction faulty.

RICHARD STRAUSS

RICHARD STRAUSS

Richard Strauss reflects the tendency of the times away from all ideal things. Physical, moral, and mental degeneracy are the subjects which he has attempted to glorify in “Salomé” and “Elektra,” and shameless immorality in “Rosenkavalier” (ro´-zen-kahv-ah-leer´). To the celebration of such things and to the promotion of his material interests he is prostituting the finest musical gifts possessed by any composer known to the present day.

Not all the men who deserve to be called makers of modern opera have been mentioned as yet. There are Frenchmen whose works have shown more vitality than those of Charpentier and