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Show WANTS TO WRITE AMERICAN OPERA Noted Italian Composer to MaKe Tour of This Conn-"try Conn-"try to Get Ideas of American Ameri-can Life. NEW YORK, Oct. 3. With a new march called "Viva L'America" in his portmanteau, composed in commemoration commemora-tion of his visit to this country, Rug-giero Rug-giero Leoncavallo the composer of "I Pagliacci," "I Medici," and other operas, who is considered one of the greatest of living writers of musical musi-cal scores, arrived late yesterday afternoon after-noon on the Kaiser Wilhelm dcr Grosse. The "maestro," as be is known wherever Italian opera is heard, is to make a tour of the United States and Canada at the head of the Scala orchestra orches-tra of Milan. Mr. Leoncavallo is a democratic man, brimming over with good humor, and was lionized all the way over by the passengers. Speaking of his visit, he said: "My visit to America has nore significance sig-nificance to me than than a mere tour. It is my purpose while here to ;et the ! material for at least one opera based on American life. I want to go to the theaters, to see the people and mei-t and talk with them, to learn their idofts and ideals, and see if I can write them into words and music. I have not studied so much of the American literature lit-erature as I could wish, but believe after af-ter all that it will be better for me to learn at first hand by meeting the people." |