CARUSO’S COSTUMES

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 222, 8 December 1927, Page 16

CARUSO’S COSTUMES

A VALUABLE GIFT GIVEN TO HIS SUCCESSOR Edward Johnson, tenor of the New York Metropolitan, has been, according to “Musical America,” the recipient of one of the most beautiful and costly gifts—sentimentally speaking—of any operatic singer in the world to-day. Mrs. Enrico Caruso has presented him with a generous number of operatic costumes from the wardrobe of

Enrico Caruso, among them most of those for the role of Des Grieux in “Manon,” for Samson and “Lodoletta,” and all of those for the part of Hadames. The latter were worn when Johnson sang in “Aida” during the recent Metropolitan season. These costumes are in themselves very beautiful, being made from costly old fabrics, satins and velvets. They are hand-sewn and hand-embroidered and many are heavily jewelled. Mrs. Caruso inquired of Johnson which of Caruso’s roles he was now taking up at the Metropolitan—or anticipated so doing—and then offered him Caruso’s robes and jewels for many of these parts. “Of course,” she added, “I would never part with the Canio costume for ‘Pagliacci,’ as I intend that our daughter Gloria shall have it as a priceless and justly famous operatic heirloom.”

A report from Australia, giving Dam< Nellie Melba's concert repertoire states that during the last 10 year: the songs she has sung most are “Willow Song” and “Ave Maria,”, fron Verdi’s “Otello”; Mimi’s “Addio,” fron

“La Boheme”; two arias from “Nozz' di Figaro”; and the lighter songs “Annie Laurie,” “Cornin’ Thro’ tlr Rye,” and “By the 'Waters of Minne tonka.”

Sir Thomas Beecham, famous English conductor, and Bernardo Molinari. Italian batonist, have been engaged < as guest conductors during the next' winter season of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. They will have several appearances each between the periods of leadership by Willem Mengelberg and Arturo Toscanini.