Music Trade Review
Issue: 1897 Vol. 25 N. 19 - Page 3
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
48 PAGES.
HIE
With which is Incorporated THE KEYNOTE.
VOL. XXV.
N o . 19.
siNG&°°copiEs, E it CENTS.
Published Every Saturday, at 3 East Fourteenth Street. New York, November 6,1897.
PROQRAJl nUSIC DISCUSSED.
I once read somewhere an ingenious
defence of program music. The plea put
forward was that it is not worse for a com-
poser to give you a printed description of
what he means to express, than it is for a
painter to give a long description of his
picture in a catalogue; and it was also
pointed out that many pictures would be
quite unintelligible if they lacked an ex-
planatory title. That sounds very plausible,
says Edward Baughan in Music (London),
but, to begin with, though a painter should
not require a long printed description to
explain his picture, it is not as the com-
poser's program, inasmuch as, descrip-
tion or no description, a picture actually
presents the outward semblance of life,
whereas music cannot,and does not. So that
in the one case,the description is merely ex-
planatory, but in the other, is an arbitrary
labeling of certain musical phrases. The
mistake the modern program composer has
made is that he has not confined his music to
the description of feeling,but has attempted
to illustrate material events and actions,
which, as a rule, are outside the power of
music to express. Most of us believe that
music had its origin in the desire to ex-
press emotion, though there are those who
hold that it originated in a wish to con-
struct patterns of musical sound. I well
remember arguing the point with a well-
known musical critic at Covent Garden,
and he, the better to convince me, drew
some hieroglyphics on the nice clean
wall with a very black lead-pencil, much
to the disgust of one of the atten-
dants. The hieroglyphics did not con-
vince me, and I still believe that music
had its origin in the desire to express feel-
ing.
If you hold with that critic why you
must admit the art has been developing
since Beethoven on quite the wrong lines,
whereas if you are of my opinion you will
agree that the expression of feeling must
be its aim, if the art is to remain a form of
human utterance. And that is all the
program I demand. That the composer
should express feeling, either his own or
what he may imagine someone else would
feel, as the song-writer has to do, for in-
stance. But the "tone-fools" want to do
more than this, and by their absurdities
they are bringing about a reaction which
will stop the growth of the popularity of
the art. For if our musicians, in disgust,
go back to the beautiful pattern-music of
Mozart and express nothing but music, the
art will lose its hold on the public and will
only attract cultivated musicians. It is
precisely because modern music (especially
Wagner's) is human and expresses feeling
that our musical audiences have increased
so much of late. The days when the man
in the street was frightened of music be-
cause he did not understand it are passing
away, and he is gradually learning that
Beethoven was not a dry, scientific musi-
cian, but, in most of his compositions, a
tone-poet. The man in the street could be
made to see Bach in the same light, too.
o
11LLE. RACHEL HOFFttANN.
The young Bel-
gian pianist, Mile.
Hoffman, who is to
tour America this
winter, is one of the
y o u n g e s t of the
world's brilliant pi-
anists, and hereto-
fore in Europe, and
particularly in her
own country, has
carried enthusiasm and success with her,
eliciting the highest praise.
Mile. Hoffmann is a pupil of the famous
Conservatory of Music at Brussels, and
from her entrance at the age of eleven
years, attracted general notice because of
her markedly artistic nature. In 1889
August Dupont, the late great professor
of the piano, presented his pupil, Rachel
Hoffmann, to the Concours and the young
pianist not only carried off the first prize,
but by her playing awoke such enthusi-
asm, in both the jury and the public, as to
cause the same to be recorded as a "musi-
cal furore" by the Belgian journals. Mile.
Hoffmann won afterwards five more first
prizes and competed with the greatest suc-
cess for the "Grand Diploma de Capacite,"
the highest award that the Conservatory of
Brussels can give. On this occasion she
was decorated by the King of Belgium
with the Gold Medal of Leopold II.
Mile. Hoffmann, who is only twenty-
three years old and of a decidedly prepos-
sessing appearance, will be heard in a very
extensive and well selected repertory, in-
cluding the Concerto in F minor by
Dupont, of whom Mile. Hoffmann was the
preferred pupil. This interesting work,
very brilliant and full of poetry, receives
but infrequent revivals,
o
GRAND OPERA PLANS.
Regarding his plans for grand opera dur-
ing the season of 1898-9, Maurice Grau, who
returned from Europe for a brief stay on
Saturday last, said he had not definitely
outlined any plans as yet, but had many
elaborate ideas in mind. "I am in
hopes," he said, "of giving as great, if not
a greater, season than ever known before
in the history of this country. I have done
considerable traveling in many parts of
Europe in search of some new operas since
I left here, thinking it might be possible
to secure a novelty suitable for the Metro-
politan Opera House, but it must be said
out of the seventeen operas I heard in fif-
teen days not one would suit the public
here. On my return to Europe I will make
another effort, by going through France,
Italy, and Germany."
Mr. Grau was most emphatic in saying
that the season would be divided as hereto-
fore between German, French and Italian
opera. There will be no special season of
Wagner. "Parsifal" will not be given, and
arriving at this decision Mr. Grau appreci-
ates that the surroundings of the Metro-
politan are not adapted to this opera. Van
Dyck has been engaged and will relieve
Jean de Reszke of some of his labors.
Melba and Calve will also be with the com-
pany. The production of "Sappho" is the
only novelty Mr. Grau is prepared to an-
nounce.
©
One of the London "stores" has on its
price list a "composer" who can be hired
at two guineas a night. Military bands,
too, are on the list, numbering from ten to
forty performers, at $5 to $10 a man. The
system of appealing for private engage-
ments is due to the fact that English army
bands are maintained chiefly at the cost of
the regimental officers, the government pay
and allowances being absurdly inadequate.
Were not the players allowed to accept pri-
vate work, the already heavy contributions
of the officers to the band fund would be
enormously increased.
48 PAGES.
HIE
With which is Incorporated THE KEYNOTE.
VOL. XXV.
N o . 19.
siNG&°°copiEs, E it CENTS.
Published Every Saturday, at 3 East Fourteenth Street. New York, November 6,1897.
PROQRAJl nUSIC DISCUSSED.
I once read somewhere an ingenious
defence of program music. The plea put
forward was that it is not worse for a com-
poser to give you a printed description of
what he means to express, than it is for a
painter to give a long description of his
picture in a catalogue; and it was also
pointed out that many pictures would be
quite unintelligible if they lacked an ex-
planatory title. That sounds very plausible,
says Edward Baughan in Music (London),
but, to begin with, though a painter should
not require a long printed description to
explain his picture, it is not as the com-
poser's program, inasmuch as, descrip-
tion or no description, a picture actually
presents the outward semblance of life,
whereas music cannot,and does not. So that
in the one case,the description is merely ex-
planatory, but in the other, is an arbitrary
labeling of certain musical phrases. The
mistake the modern program composer has
made is that he has not confined his music to
the description of feeling,but has attempted
to illustrate material events and actions,
which, as a rule, are outside the power of
music to express. Most of us believe that
music had its origin in the desire to ex-
press emotion, though there are those who
hold that it originated in a wish to con-
struct patterns of musical sound. I well
remember arguing the point with a well-
known musical critic at Covent Garden,
and he, the better to convince me, drew
some hieroglyphics on the nice clean
wall with a very black lead-pencil, much
to the disgust of one of the atten-
dants. The hieroglyphics did not con-
vince me, and I still believe that music
had its origin in the desire to express feel-
ing.
If you hold with that critic why you
must admit the art has been developing
since Beethoven on quite the wrong lines,
whereas if you are of my opinion you will
agree that the expression of feeling must
be its aim, if the art is to remain a form of
human utterance. And that is all the
program I demand. That the composer
should express feeling, either his own or
what he may imagine someone else would
feel, as the song-writer has to do, for in-
stance. But the "tone-fools" want to do
more than this, and by their absurdities
they are bringing about a reaction which
will stop the growth of the popularity of
the art. For if our musicians, in disgust,
go back to the beautiful pattern-music of
Mozart and express nothing but music, the
art will lose its hold on the public and will
only attract cultivated musicians. It is
precisely because modern music (especially
Wagner's) is human and expresses feeling
that our musical audiences have increased
so much of late. The days when the man
in the street was frightened of music be-
cause he did not understand it are passing
away, and he is gradually learning that
Beethoven was not a dry, scientific musi-
cian, but, in most of his compositions, a
tone-poet. The man in the street could be
made to see Bach in the same light, too.
o
11LLE. RACHEL HOFFttANN.
The young Bel-
gian pianist, Mile.
Hoffman, who is to
tour America this
winter, is one of the
y o u n g e s t of the
world's brilliant pi-
anists, and hereto-
fore in Europe, and
particularly in her
own country, has
carried enthusiasm and success with her,
eliciting the highest praise.
Mile. Hoffmann is a pupil of the famous
Conservatory of Music at Brussels, and
from her entrance at the age of eleven
years, attracted general notice because of
her markedly artistic nature. In 1889
August Dupont, the late great professor
of the piano, presented his pupil, Rachel
Hoffmann, to the Concours and the young
pianist not only carried off the first prize,
but by her playing awoke such enthusi-
asm, in both the jury and the public, as to
cause the same to be recorded as a "musi-
cal furore" by the Belgian journals. Mile.
Hoffmann won afterwards five more first
prizes and competed with the greatest suc-
cess for the "Grand Diploma de Capacite,"
the highest award that the Conservatory of
Brussels can give. On this occasion she
was decorated by the King of Belgium
with the Gold Medal of Leopold II.
Mile. Hoffmann, who is only twenty-
three years old and of a decidedly prepos-
sessing appearance, will be heard in a very
extensive and well selected repertory, in-
cluding the Concerto in F minor by
Dupont, of whom Mile. Hoffmann was the
preferred pupil. This interesting work,
very brilliant and full of poetry, receives
but infrequent revivals,
o
GRAND OPERA PLANS.
Regarding his plans for grand opera dur-
ing the season of 1898-9, Maurice Grau, who
returned from Europe for a brief stay on
Saturday last, said he had not definitely
outlined any plans as yet, but had many
elaborate ideas in mind. "I am in
hopes," he said, "of giving as great, if not
a greater, season than ever known before
in the history of this country. I have done
considerable traveling in many parts of
Europe in search of some new operas since
I left here, thinking it might be possible
to secure a novelty suitable for the Metro-
politan Opera House, but it must be said
out of the seventeen operas I heard in fif-
teen days not one would suit the public
here. On my return to Europe I will make
another effort, by going through France,
Italy, and Germany."
Mr. Grau was most emphatic in saying
that the season would be divided as hereto-
fore between German, French and Italian
opera. There will be no special season of
Wagner. "Parsifal" will not be given, and
arriving at this decision Mr. Grau appreci-
ates that the surroundings of the Metro-
politan are not adapted to this opera. Van
Dyck has been engaged and will relieve
Jean de Reszke of some of his labors.
Melba and Calve will also be with the com-
pany. The production of "Sappho" is the
only novelty Mr. Grau is prepared to an-
nounce.
©
One of the London "stores" has on its
price list a "composer" who can be hired
at two guineas a night. Military bands,
too, are on the list, numbering from ten to
forty performers, at $5 to $10 a man. The
system of appealing for private engage-
ments is due to the fact that English army
bands are maintained chiefly at the cost of
the regimental officers, the government pay
and allowances being absurdly inadequate.
Were not the players allowed to accept pri-
vate work, the already heavy contributions
of the officers to the band fund would be
enormously increased.
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