San Francisco

The concert lists for the week contain the name of that eminent Doctor of Laws, Jan Ignaz Paderewski. The University of Southern California has just conferred upon the famous Pole an honorary degree of legal science, presumably in celebration of his experiences as the Prime Minister of his native country. But, laws and premiership notwithstanding, Paderewski remains the ideal figure of a musician. During his present American tour he is seen in his most characteristic guise not so much in the formal parts of his program as in impromptu encores. During the applause after his last announced number, the lights on the stage go out, and in the shadow Paderewski takes his place at the piano. He plays simply and intimately, as though for a dozen friends lounging in a parlor. His great maned head, seen vaguely in the dusk on the stage, seems an inspired symbol of the spirit of music, as it bends and sways in moody thought.

The San Carlo opera season here moves blithely. This company is the sole representative of opera through great stretches of the country, and puts on extremely good performances for popular prices. It is constantly on the road from one end of the country to the other, plays to big houses, gets into no financial difficulties--makes, in fact, a great deal of money. This is quite extraordinary, when opera companies in the United States have an extraordinary record for losing heavily and going stranded. It can be safely said that the San Carlo troupe is the first opera venture in American history to make a good profit on its investment. The explanation is to be found largely in the personality of Fortune Gallo, owner of the company. He is an amazing fellow. He left Italy years ago, as he tells you, with nothing save a few dollars and his guitar. These he lost in a card game on the boat. In New York he began his career as an impresario by organizing political demonstrations on election day. He became a manager of brass bands, and finally secretary of the San Carlo Company. The troupe was doing poorly, and soon went stranded down in the Southwest Gallo bought out the owner for a small price, and immediately started the company toward success. He is very shrewd and a good showman has a genius for the handling of singers. He subdues these difficult persons, not by any show of authority and dignity, but with delightful effusions of South Italian blarney. Early in his career he adopted the policy of " small salaries, but sure," and after much display of diplomacy educated his singers to the notion that $100 a week is better when you get it than $500 a week when you don't get it.