pristine purity of form, thanks to the admirable editions of the Bach und Haendel Gesselschaft.  When Mlle. Pelletan brought me into the work, the two Iphigenie had been published; Alceste was about to be, and Armide was ready.  In Armide Damcke had been entirely carried away by his zeal for “improvements”—­a zeal that can do so much harm.  It was time this was stopped.  Not only had he corrected imaginary faults here and there, but he had also inserted things of his own invention.  He had even gone so far as to re-orchestrate the ballet music, in the naive belief that he was bringing out the author’s real meaning better than he had done himself.  It took an enormous amount of time to undo this mischief, for I distrusted somewhat my own lights and Mlle. Pelletan had too high an opinion of Damcke’s work and did not dare to override his judgment.

That excellent woman did not live to see the end of her work.  She began the preparation of Orphee, but she died almost at once.  So I was left to finish the score alone without that valuable experience and masterly insight by which she solved the most difficult problems.  And there were real enigmas to be solved at every step.  The old engraved scores of Gluck’s works reproduced his manuscripts faithfully enough, but they bore evidence of carelessness and amazing inaccuracy.  They are mere sketches instead of complete scores.  Many details are vague and vagueness is not permissible in a serious edition.  It follows that the different editions of Gluck’s works published in the Nineteenth Century, however sumptuous or careful they may be, are worthless.  The Pelletan edition alone can be consulted with confidence, because we were the only ones to have all extant and authentic documents in the library at the Opera to set us right.  We had scores copied for actual performances on the stage and portions of orchestral parts of incalculable value.  In addition, we had no aim or preoccupation in elaborating this material other than to reconstitute as closely as possible the thought of the author.

* * * * *

Switzerland is a country where artistic productions are not unusual.  Every year we have reports of some grandiose performance in which the people take part themselves.  They come from every direction to help, even from a considerable distance, thanks to the many means of communication in that delightful land.  It is not surprising, therefore, to learn that a theatre has been built in the pretty town of Mezieres, near Lusanne, for the performance of the works of a young poet, named Morax.  These works are dramas with choruses, and the surrounding country furnishes the singers.  The work given in 1911 was Allenor—­the music by Gustave Doret—­and it was a great success.