A serious conflict broke out in the Conservatoire between Tcherepnin and Palechek, in the course of which the former flew at the latter in a passion because his singers were said to have insulted the junior conductors, and one of the women singers had been rude to mild-mannered Tsybin yesterday. Palechek got very excited, his ears turned first red, then lilac and eventually blue, and I began to worry he might have a heart attach. Eventually it all calmed down and Tcherepnin, already visibly regretting his outburst, tried to make amends by himself playing the piano accompaniment for Aida. This suited me very well, as I was able to make a note of his tempi. There is a wonderful Amneris in Morenschild, who sung the title role in The Maid of Orleans last year. True, her voice has a certain artificiality, but the intonation is true and she has great dramatic gifts. The theme from Aida has been pursuing me all day, drivng me to distraction.