Music Trade Review

Issue: 1903 Vol. 37 N. 1

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
8
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
MUSIC IN THE PARK.
It seems so good, so very good to be
A part of all this joyousness to-day.
The air is full of subtlest melody-
Rossini, Liszt and Wagner. One might say
They sat with us, or we were guests of theirs
And heard the holy music of the spheres.
Such air! Such sky! -Such fragrance! What delight
Like this—to lie outstretched upon the green
And bathe one's soul in music, while the white,
Stray clouds creep onward, and a golden sheen
Enswathes the world, upon whose peaceful breast
The very shade lies, idle-winged, at rest!
-—Town and Country.
CAMPANARI IN THE EAST.
i UDGING from comments in the Boston
J papers, it is sincerely wished by many
musical Bostonians that Sig. Leandro
Campanari might see his way to come to
that city, but San Francisco had the fore-
sight to secure this distinguished orches-
tral conductor, and it must be some time
before he will be allowed to depart from
the Pacific Coast. Musical society has been
all stirred up, so to speak, by the Campan-
ari chamber music concerts, and it may
well be believed this eminent Italian musi-
cian has given new life to the leadership
of the symphonic works, and above all re-
vealed himself as a masterly conductor of
grand opera. Mr. Conried would do well
to remember Leandro Campanari in the
days to come.
We are of the opinion in view of the
famine in good conductors in New York
that Boston would spare us Campanari
should he decide to make his home in the
East.
K
THE NEXT GREAT COMPOSER.
ent parts of the work. Later composers
EDITH WALKER AT THE METROPOLITAN.
have followed his lead. Liszt's "sym- C D I T H W A L K E R , the contralto, who
phonic poem" may be set aside for the mo- ^ has been engaged for the Metropoli-
ment as a separate branch of form, but we tan next year, is a native New Yorker, al-
are all familiar with the programme note though she has been singing in Europe for
which tells us that the composer "in order a decade. Her career has so far been
to give the work organic unity has intro- passed at the Vienna Opera House, and
duced the theme of the opening move- she has appeared only at intervals in the
ment again in the finale." This is done German cities. There was always a
over and over in works in the sonata form. legend to the effect that she had been a
From the symphonic poem to the tone protege of Creed, the mine owner, who,
poem of Strauss and others is hardly a having heard her sing, became interested
step, yet there is a difference between the in her talents and made it possible for her
two. The change is in the direction of to develop them in Europe. She had the
imparting definite significance to themes, opportunity to remain three more years at
after the manner of the Wagnerian drama, Vienna, but she decided instead to come
and of exhausting the resources of the- back to the United States, as Mr. Conried
matic development in the expression of promised her as long an engagement here.
emotional movement and variation.
•6
All of these modifications of the simple
STILL THE PRODIGIES COME.
classic method of instrumental composi- T" 1 WO new juvenile prodigies have ap-
tion appear to the thoughtful observer to
peared in Europe. One is Pepito Ar-
be manifestations of the unsettled condi- viola, a little Spanish boy, six years of age,
tions of a period of transition. They ob- now living with Arthur Nikisch, at Leip-
viously have no finality. They do not come sic. He is a pianist, and has a wonderful
upon the mind with the conviction of in- gift for transposing. He can play from
evitableness. Something which music is memory preludes and fugues*aby Bach,
striving to reach lies above and beyond sonatas by Beethoven and Mc?i|rt in any
them. Even in the lyric drama, where the key named by his hearers. The other pro-
tremendous power of Wagner's majestic digy is a creole named Jean Renaud. At
works convinced us all that the problem four years of age he showed astonishing
had, at least for that department of the talent, and now at ten he is said to be an
art, been finally solved, there are evidences amazing 'cellist. He has been studying
of unrest, and the utter impracticability for some years with Hugo Becker.
of the Wagnerian system for general use
*
stands confessed.
WERE PROFESSIONALS EMPLOYED?
A T recent Saengerfest gatherings there
With music in this state it is not at all
was much talk as to the employment
remarkable that no great composer is in
sight, for when he comes he will be a of professional singers; it is hinted the
hewer of wood and a drawer of water. We good singing of some of the societies con-
shall unquestionably misunderstand him testing for the Kaiser prize was due to the
at first, for he will be ahead of us all. But presence of a number of professionals. It
when we come to read his message aright was asserted by some that such singers
we shall cry out, as Wagner did about were hired by the dozen. The matter was
Beethoven, "Let us then celebrate the brought to the attention of the delegates of
great pathfinder in the wilderness of the the Northeastern Saengerbund, but no ac-
tion was taken. The constitution of the
degenerated Paradise."
'"THERE is substantial ground for believ-
*• ing that the next composer who
shows genuine mastership and ascends by
divine right of genius to a seat in the
august senate of the lords of song will be
an opener of wholly new paths. The les-
sons of musical history cannot be disre-
garded. The polyphonic period, in which
the intensely intellectual abstraction of the
fugal principle was worked out to the lim-
organization is strict in its prohibition of
it of its fecundity, most certainly came to
W. J. HENDERSON.
the employment of professional singers.
an end with Bach. Fugues have been
TEACHERS
MEET
AT
ST.
LOUIS.
made since the day of the author of the
THE DREAM OF GERONTIUS IN LONDON.
music teachers of Missouri have
"Kunst der Fuge," but only over his pat- 'TTHE
" T H E other day London heard Edwin El-
1
been discussing the question of hold-
terns. Only Beethoven succeeded in
* gar's "Dream of Gerontius" for the
ing
a
world's congress of music teachers first time. The critics re-echoed all the
breathing a single semblance of individu-
ality into music of this type, and even his at St. Louis in 1904.
good things said about this great work,
Correspondence
between
Secretary- when it was first produced in New York.
work owes its power to its obedience to
Treasurer H. Edward Rice, of St. Louis, They wrote of it in the most enthusiastic
laws firmly established before his time.
and
chairmen of committees, and with sec- terms and declared the music to be full of
The writers of the classic period gave
retaries
of other associations in adjoining spirituality and fine religious romanticism.
us the fully developed sonata form, which
at
embodied within itself the fundamental States, indicates a general desire to as-
CELEBRATED FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY.
principles of harmonic, as distinguished semble the best teachers. It would be a
HE Philharmonic Society, of Budapest,
from polyphonic music. There is, to be great festival of concerted instrumental
has just been celebrating its fiftieth
sure, nothing to prevent future composers music in the piano and violin schools, for anniversary. Goldmark composed an over-
from using the classic sonata. For many the greatest of players are among the ture entitled "Zriny," for the occasion, and
high and inspiring purposes of musical teachers, though they keep in the back- Dohnanyi played, among others.
art it cannot be excelled. But it is not ground in order not to dim the luster of
ETTA EDWARDS, Vocal Instruction, Steinert Hall,
M RS. Boston,
Mass.
wholly suited to the proclamation of the their pupils' work.
The plan is to have a week of alternate
message, to the utterance of the individual
communication, which every composer papers, addresses, question boxes and con-
since Beethoven seems to think it the certs, thus in varying form presenting the
best thought of the men and women who
chief purpose of music to give forth.
Beethoven himself found it advisable to spread a love and knowledge of the fine
JL. U ±3 LJ JrCXT, I T . "3T,
make certain modifications in the out- art of playing.
•t
ward features of the form in order to give
All our Instruments contain the fun Iron tram* and
It is announced that Rudolph Aronson, patent
it a greater pliability. Schumann went
tuning pin. The greatest invention in tho history
•f
piano
making. Any radical changes in the climate, heat
still further in his union of all four move- of this city, has engaged the Belgian or dampness,
cannot affect the standing in tone of our te*
ments of the D minor svmphony and his 'cellist Loevensohn for a tour of the •truments, and therefor* challenge tho world that
Will excel an/ otfce*.
employment of the same themes in differ- United States to open in November.
T
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE
REVIEW
RUSSIAN PIANO MUSIC.
DLJSSIA now abounds in composers for
^ piano whose works are much too re-
cent to be widely known. It was not until
1850 that a man could support himself by
music alone in Russia, and even now the
best musicians are obliged to locate in
Moscow and St. Petersburg, the two great
musical centers of Russia. In this connec-
tion, Edith Lynwood Winn says you will
ascertain by study and reading that the
best Russian composers were obliged to
follow some other profession until they ac-
quired a sufficient competence to become
composers and to depend upon leisure
hours for their composition moods. A Bos-
ton teacher who has visited Russia de-
clares that most of the men of the new
Russian School of Music are millionaires.
That may be, but they certainly did not ac-
quire their wealth through the profession
of music, for music "does not pay," even
now, in Russia. It is difficult to gain a
hearing for native operas, although the
Russian loves the opera and the theater as
he loves his life. There are indeed only
six theaters in which native works can be
performed for the first time.
HEflR ZELDENRUST.wWHO WILL BE HEARD HERE NEXT SEASON ON THE BALDWIN PIANO.
MONUMENT TO BRAHMS.
from the report made by Mme. Melba, who
• A MONUMENT to Johannes Brahms has returned to Paris from her Australian
^
was unveiled over the grave of the tour. She had not only a royal reception
master in Vienna on his seventieth birth- at all points visited, but her first nine con-
day last month. It is executed in marble certs realized $105,000, and at the last con-
by a young woman named Use Conrat. cert the house was worth $13,000. These
The Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde sang are stupendous sums—sufficient, speaking
some of Brahm's part songs at the cere- metaphorically, to make the mouth of an
mony, and a poem by Max Kalbeck, the American manager water.
Viennese critic, was read.
HOPES TO RIVAL SOUSA.
ELLISON VAN HOOSE.
D E R L I N is now exploiting a policeman-
N our front page this week appears an
composer who bids fair to rival Sousa.
excellent portrait of Ellison Van Hoose, Fritz Teike was recently presented to the
the famous tenor, who will especially return Kaiser as the composer of the popular
from Europe to sing at the Worcester Festi- marches played by the Potsdam Band.
val in September, 1903. He will remain in Soon afterward all the bands in Germany
America for the months of October, Novem- began playing Teike's marches. The mu-
ber and December, appearing in a limited sical policeman's fame has even extended
number of concerts previous to his return to to England. Teike has been asked to send
Europe for an indefinite period to sing in a composition to England to be played by
opera.
the military bands there.
Ellison Van Hoose's magnificent work in
*
the leading oratorio performances and his
NEW MUSIC FOR ."MY COUNTRY."
successful appearances with most of the im-
HE Society of the Cincinnati has had for
portant orchestral organizations throughout
some time a standing offer of a gold
this country, and again through his recent medal for any composer producing acceptable
wonderful interpretation of Elgar's great music for "My Country 'Tis of Thee," which
work, "The Dream of Gerontius," which was for years has been sung to the same air as the
produced by the New York Oratorio Society national anthem of Great Britain. The medal
was awarded Wednesday to Prof. Arthur
under the direction of Frank Damrosch, Johnstone, of St. Nicholas avenue and 114th
March 26, 1903, in which Mr. Van Hoose street, conductor of the Amicitia Band, an
achieved a veritable triumph, has placed this amateur musical organization. The melody
sterling artist among the greatest tenors of has been played twice at a private concert at
the organization's rooms in Turn Hall, Lex-
the day.
ington avenue and Eighty-fifth street.
K
Prof. Johnstone will be the guest of honor
MELBA'S GREAT EARNINGS.
at the Fourth of July banquet of the Society
' T H E old proverb that "A prophet is not of the Cincinnati at Providence, R. I., when
'
without honor save in his own coun- his work will be heard for the first time at a
try" seems to have been falsified, judging general gathering.
T
The Russian presents a definite picture
in tone. One detects the influence of Liszt
and Wagner in piano music, while in or-
chestral works one more frequently finds
the strong influence of Schumann and
Chopin. Schumann reveals himself in im-
promptus, novelties and intermezzos, as
well as in larger forms. The young Rus-
sian composer finds salon music somewhat
more profitable than symphonies. The
great quantity of piano and chamber music
which he gives to us shows a prolific and
versatile mind. The new Russian likes
brilliant technical effects. He is also fond
of the Etude. In this respect he shows
the influence of Chopin. He also leans to
preludes, mazourkas, valses and the
scherzo, but he presents comparatively
few sonatas and concertos of worth.
•£
PAGANINI'S VIOLIN PLAYED.
A N impressive function that would prob-
ably be possible only in Italy has just
been repeated in Genoa. The treasured
Guarnerius violin that Paganini left to the
city has been ceremoniously removed from
its "crystal case" and played on by Huber-
mann—apparently the now adolescent in-
fant prodigy who aroused admiration and
regret here some years ago. For several
years after Paganini's death it was the
custom to give an annual concert at which
Sivori, a pupil of the great virtuoso, played
on the sacred instrument; but since he,
too, has died, the violin has had a long rest.
The young Hubermann played a piece by
Paganini and thanked the authorities for
the honor accorded him, which he re-
garded as one of the greatest of his life.
Various ceremonies were gone through
and documents executed, on replacing the
Guarnerius in its case. It was an artistic
event well calculated to furnish valuable
material to the press agent.
•6
The School of Musical Art is being organ-
ized with headquarters at 128 E. Twenty-
third street, with Chas. A. Kaiser, the popu-
lar tenor and soloist of St. Patrick's Cathe-
dral, as director. The faculty is an unusually
strong one.

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