Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
the season brought us Ernest Von Doh-
nanyi, who achieved an instantaneous suc-
cess notwithstanding his arrival at a period
when the public was satiated with music.
The beautiful symmetrical performances
and lucid and eloquent exposition of his
numbers gave this young man a solid hold
on the affections of the musical public.
TELEPHONE NUMBER. 1745.-EK1HTEENTH STREET
He was a revelation to those accustomed
The musical supplement to The Review is to sensationalism in piano interpretation.
published on the first Saturday of each month. We are pleased to learn that he will be
with us again next season. Taken all in
VX7ITH the disappearance of April, a all the season was one of pleasure and
* ^ busy musical season in this city has profit.
come to an end. In the operatic field a
total of 102 performances were reached, T H E attitude of the cognate arts toward
the entire number of operas produced
* war shows a marked tendency toward
being thirty. Of that number, only three realism. Perhaps the most striking battle
were new to the repertory of the Metro- pictures of the decade have been those of
politan under its present management, Verestchagin; while even the illustrated
viz: "Don Pasquale," "The Merry Wives papers are beginning to give the prefer-
of Windsor" and "II Flauto Magico." Of ence to the photographic camera over sen-
the composers, Wagner, of course, led— sational drawings worked up at home from
some thirty-four performances of the great the rough sketches of artists on the spot.
German master's works having been given. From these and other facts one might be
Thanks to the visits of the Boston Sym- readily tempted to argue that the recent
phony Orchestra, the season has had its or- Spanish-American and now the Boer-
chestral delights. These musicians with British war would react in a similar
their catalogue of artistic virtues represent manner on music. Besides, is it not
the highest possible expression of orchestral true that all the great masters were
playing. Some of Mr. Gericke's readings realists? Did not Beethoven compose a
have been open to criticism, but the execu- Battle Symphony, and meditate a compo-
tion of his players has been at all times sition descriptive of the battle of Water-
faultless—an extraordinary combination of loo? Did not Handel imitate the hopping
technical facilities, tonal beauty and ex- of frogs and the pattering of hailstones,
pressive verity. Of the Philharmonic Or- Haydn the "flexible tiger" and other ani-
chestra some good words can be said— mals, Mendelssohn the braying of the don-
thanks to Emil Paur's vigorous leadership. keys? All this is indisputably true, but it
Long wedded to lethargy, it has seemed an must be also remembered that only in an
almost impossible task to quicken the spirit infinitesimal portion of their works did these
of this organization or bring about a renais- great masters resort to the dangerous de-
sance. Meanwhile, there were moments in vice, to borrow a critic's happy phrase, of
the season when Mr. Paur forced it to attempting to make people "see with their
overcome its inertia, and a few good per- ears." To quote Sir Hubert Parry, "un-
formances resulted. The third body of consciously the development of the musical
the noted orchestras, whose activity made world's sense of criticism tends to arrive
up the season, came from Pittsburg and at the truth, that though realism is ad-
was under the leadership of genial, buoy- missible as a source of suggestion, the ob-
ant and optimistic Victor Herbert. It was ject of the expressive power of music is
made up of young players, vigorous and not to represent the outward semblance of
talented, but lacking the necessary refine- anything, but to express the moods which
ment that comes only from years of en- it produces and the workings of the mind
semble work. The concerts given in this that are associated with them." As the
city furnished proof of the good results same authority observes, a little of the
achieved by Victor Herbert in a short realism permitted to himself by Beethoven
time. He has welded his heterogeneous in the Pastoral Symphony is often a help
body of men into a solid organization that to the composer, but it is a dangerous
is bound to give a good account of itself in weapon to handle, and "every one is con-
the artistic field. Its programs, moreover, scious in a moment if the subordinate rela-
have been essentially catholic and were tion of realistic to inward presentation is
freshened by the insertion of many clever exceeded."
compositions from the pens of new writers
in the orchestral field.
\ I 7 E read in a London paper of a com-
should say, rather difficult to describe on
the pianoforte. Then the lady takes us
through the negotiations—a sort of "Blue
Book symphony"—the march of the British,
and so forth; "the interim between the
Boer ultimatum and their declaration of
war," it seems, "ending with the simplest
musical cadence, suggestiag how easily
matters of dissension can of ten be settled."
If they could be settled as easily as writ-
ing a "symphony for the piano," war
would be a simple matter indeed.
Some of these days we will hear of a
genius in the realms of program music
composing the "Presidential Campaign
Symphony " for the piano. What glorious
opportunities for descriptive writing—the
countless bands, torch lights, the efforts of
the spell-binders, the enthusiasm—the en-
tire gamut, from the three pedals, fff, aid-
ed by two hands and ten fingers, to the
practice stop, f, could be run, thus produc-
ing enough of "color" to describe racial
peculiarities and have some spared '' to
paint the town red." The " deals " of the
wily "bosses" might be worked out in a
fugue, ending in a triumphal musical
shriek of admiration for the fellow '' who
gets there." The subject is a fascinating
one and is as far superior to the "Trans-
vaal War Symphony" as Wagner is to
Balfe. This is the age of combinations—
why not wed music—vividly descriptive
music, mark you—to politics ?
article appeared in a
A REFRESHING
late number of the Impressionist
wherein the matter of technique in connec-
tion with vocal and instrumental interpre-
tation is treated of in a manner that must
be pleasing to a wide constituency. The
following paragraph which we cull makes
plain the premises on which the writer has
built some very conclusive arguments:
"There is a text which should be
preached in the cathedral of music from
morn till eve and from eve till dewy morn!
It is this: The end of all technique is
tone. What shall it profit a man if he
play upon a violin a thousand notes where
another plays five hundred, if one hun-
dred of his thousand are out of tune ?
What shall it profit him if they be harsh in
quality, or thin and wiry, if the other
man's be round and noble ? Why should a
pianist pride himself that he can play
some work faster than any other living
artist or more softly than any one else ?
And what shall be the glory of a singer
who can sing a high C sharp and cannot
sing a simple air by Mozart ? For slowly
but surely the day is coming when the
poser, Miss Mary Louisa White, who true beauty of music will be an open book
In the pianistic world there were active * '
doings during the musical season. Pader- is now busily engaged upon a "Transvaal to the masses."
Those who have attended the concerts
ewski and De Pachmann met with their War Symphony" a description of the first
usual artistic and monetary successes. part of which she has obligingly issued. given in this city during the past season
Mark Hambourg was most fascinating in It closes, however, prematurely, with the must have been forced to the opinion that
his youthful impetuosity, brilliancy, viril- battle of Glencoe and a dirge for General soloists, and in fact many of our modern
ity and spontaneity. He lacked however Symons, so that there is a great deal more composers, conceive technique as the be-
the essential feeling, or musical soul, which to come, though how much more will, of ginning, middle and end of all things, not-
it is hoped will come with years. The sec- course, depend upon the British generals withstanding thte fact that the true beauty
ond of the new comers was Ludwig Breit- rather than upon the lady herself. "The of music and tone color is at least partially
ner, a conservative academic pianist whose symphony," we are told, "opens with an appreciated by a large proportion of concert
playing was sound, finished and musical earnest appeal to the British Empire to audiences in our day. Hence the willing-
in every way, but too cold. The close of pause before she strikes;" a matter, we ness of a great number to agree with the