Music Trade Review
Issue: 1900 Vol. 30 N. 18 - Page 3
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56 PAGES
With which is incorporated T H E KEYNOTE.
V O L . XXX. N o . 18.
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill at 3 East Fourteenth Street. New York, May 5,1900.
I T is not generally realized by the public
* that musicians are among the most
persistent and thorough-going of philan-
thropists. No other class of professional
workers devotes more time and labor to
the cause of charity, in its every aspect,
and yet it is probably the only class whose
generosity is not gratefully acknowledged
—if not immediately by the public at large,
at least to a reasonable extent by the
people directly benefited. As Mary Gaston
Laird well says: Musicians, like other
large-hearted people who have not much
money to offer for humanitarian purposes,
give of their art in the same manner as
would a doctor or a lawyer of his acquired
skill for the benefit of his fellow-men,
singly or collectively. They have done it
unostentatiously for so long now that the
public has come to consider itself entitled
to demand a certain proportion of the
time of every musical worker and to look
upon it as a right, not as a gift—much less
a charity—on the part on the musician.
We are not speaking of the great artists
of international reputation, who are noto-
riously generous in singing and playing in
the interests of a benevolence; but of the
average musician whose good deeds are
done in a corner, and who is dependent up-
on a local public opinion for his reward.
It may be claimed that true charity is
without expectation of reward, but few
people in this world would continue philan-
thropists if absolutely unencouraged by
gratitude, and a too literal rendering of
this truism may grow into—has already
grown into—the unreasonable expectation
that musicians shall habitually labor with-
out the compensation, universally accorded
to workers in other fields, and under cir-
cumstances where there can be no rightful
claim made upon them for charity.
The churches, great and small, and those
who labor for them offend noticeably in
this manner. They seem to feel that every
musician, however remotely known to
them, should be at their command, not
only for what might be called regular
church work, but also to assist in the cus-
tomary entertainments arranged for chari-
table purposes of every kind. The fact
that a musician is so often expected at a
social function to entertain the crowd for
the price of a cup of tea or a lunch, the
hostess being shocked beyond remedy if a
polite refusal is offered, leads Wilson G.
Smith to ask: ' 'Why are not doctors asked to
bring their medicines that they may diag-
nose and prescribe, in case the hostess or
some guest should need medical treatment,
in consideration for the hospitality ex-
tended to them? Why not discuss juris-
prudence at these same social functions
and thereby save the expense of legal ad-
vice? Why not ask a painter to bring his
palette and brushes to adorn a canvas,
furnished by the hostess to each guest as a
souvenir of the occasion? "
V/'OUNG Siegfried Wagner, who made no
* particular impression as a conductor
in Paris, spoke very frankly of his ambi-
tions at a banquet in his honor the other
day in Berlin. He said: " I am really
quite a simple person. I am not, as many
people believe, ambitious to outstrip my
father. As a musician, my aim is to emu-
late Karl Maria Von Weber. My endeavor
is to reproduce the simple and popular,
and I shall never make the slightest at-
tempt to follow the path trodden by my
father. That is beyond my power, and my
only wish is to be taken as I am. I ad-
vance no claims as being the son of a
great father, my only ambition being to
prove myself worthy of the good fortune
and honor of having such a father."
P R A N Z KALTENBORN is soon to re-
sume his summer night concerts at
the St. Nicholas Rink. There is no truth
that a similar series will be undertaken at
Carnegie Hall. It was never seriously
contemplated.
r
A N interesting volume by Prof. Jadas-
** sohn of the Leipsic Conservatory, en-
titled " A Practical Course in Ear Train-
ing," has just made its appearance. The
author states that early in his career as a
teacher of piano he found that only a few
of his pupils were able to distinguish even
the simplest intervals by the ear alone.
This led him to institute a course of ear-
training to which he allotted a few minutes
of every lesson. To his surprise and grat-
ification he found that in exercising the ear
in relative pitch many gained absolute
pitch. He differs from most authorities in
declaring that absolute pitch is not only a
gift of nature, but that it can be acquired
by any one, and that with no undue amount
of effort. In his opinion, if a student pos-
sess relative pitch to a certain degree—if
he can distinguish a unison from an inter-
SING&°COPIES Y ^^ENTS
val, a major chord from a minor chord, and
can sing two or three diatonic tones after
having heard them—systematic daily prac-
tice is the only requisite.
j*
DADEREWSKI'S reputation for ready
A
wit and quick repartee is familiar to
all those who have enjoyed his personal
acquaintance. An instance of his gift of
spontaneous humor occurred some time
ago on the eve of his departure for the
West. Paderewski, Walter Damrosch and
some other musical notabilities were enter-
tained at a luncheon. The host was one of
the foremost polo players of the Rockaway
Hunt Club, and his many silver trophies
adorned his side-board. Noticingthem, Mr.
Damrosch remarked to the eminent pianist:
" The difference between our host and you
is that he is a poloplayer, while you are a solo
player." " I t ' s more than that," was the
retort of Paderewski, '' I am a Pole play-
ing solo; he is a dear soul playing polo."
A LTHOUGH the time for entries for the
**• choral contests at the Paris Exhibition
has been extended, and competitors are no
longer bound to sing exclusively in French,
it is very doubtful whether any of the
leading English choirs will be tempted
across the Channel. A Welsh choir has, we
believe, entered, and there is talk of send-
ing a choir from the West of England.
But this is all. For one thing, the ex-
pense of taking a choir of fifty to eighty
voices to Paris at exhibition time will be
considerable; and for another there is little
to be gained by it. In 1878 Leslie's choir
visited Paris, of course at its own expense,
and very easily carried of the first prize
at the international competition. But the
honor was almost a barren one, and two
years later this famous choir was dis-
banded.
I T is estimated that when Mme. Sem-
* brich starts for her home in Dresden,
next month, she will take with her as
tangible evidence of the public's recogni-
tion of her art, a sum approximating $95,-
000.
This represents six months' work.
There is little rest ahead for Mme. Sem-
brich. She has engagements in St. Peters-
burg, Berlin, and Vienna, and is to return
here in December. It is safe to estimate
her European profits will bring the year's
total past the one-hundred-thousand-dollar
mark.
56 PAGES
With which is incorporated T H E KEYNOTE.
V O L . XXX. N o . 18.
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill at 3 East Fourteenth Street. New York, May 5,1900.
I T is not generally realized by the public
* that musicians are among the most
persistent and thorough-going of philan-
thropists. No other class of professional
workers devotes more time and labor to
the cause of charity, in its every aspect,
and yet it is probably the only class whose
generosity is not gratefully acknowledged
—if not immediately by the public at large,
at least to a reasonable extent by the
people directly benefited. As Mary Gaston
Laird well says: Musicians, like other
large-hearted people who have not much
money to offer for humanitarian purposes,
give of their art in the same manner as
would a doctor or a lawyer of his acquired
skill for the benefit of his fellow-men,
singly or collectively. They have done it
unostentatiously for so long now that the
public has come to consider itself entitled
to demand a certain proportion of the
time of every musical worker and to look
upon it as a right, not as a gift—much less
a charity—on the part on the musician.
We are not speaking of the great artists
of international reputation, who are noto-
riously generous in singing and playing in
the interests of a benevolence; but of the
average musician whose good deeds are
done in a corner, and who is dependent up-
on a local public opinion for his reward.
It may be claimed that true charity is
without expectation of reward, but few
people in this world would continue philan-
thropists if absolutely unencouraged by
gratitude, and a too literal rendering of
this truism may grow into—has already
grown into—the unreasonable expectation
that musicians shall habitually labor with-
out the compensation, universally accorded
to workers in other fields, and under cir-
cumstances where there can be no rightful
claim made upon them for charity.
The churches, great and small, and those
who labor for them offend noticeably in
this manner. They seem to feel that every
musician, however remotely known to
them, should be at their command, not
only for what might be called regular
church work, but also to assist in the cus-
tomary entertainments arranged for chari-
table purposes of every kind. The fact
that a musician is so often expected at a
social function to entertain the crowd for
the price of a cup of tea or a lunch, the
hostess being shocked beyond remedy if a
polite refusal is offered, leads Wilson G.
Smith to ask: ' 'Why are not doctors asked to
bring their medicines that they may diag-
nose and prescribe, in case the hostess or
some guest should need medical treatment,
in consideration for the hospitality ex-
tended to them? Why not discuss juris-
prudence at these same social functions
and thereby save the expense of legal ad-
vice? Why not ask a painter to bring his
palette and brushes to adorn a canvas,
furnished by the hostess to each guest as a
souvenir of the occasion? "
V/'OUNG Siegfried Wagner, who made no
* particular impression as a conductor
in Paris, spoke very frankly of his ambi-
tions at a banquet in his honor the other
day in Berlin. He said: " I am really
quite a simple person. I am not, as many
people believe, ambitious to outstrip my
father. As a musician, my aim is to emu-
late Karl Maria Von Weber. My endeavor
is to reproduce the simple and popular,
and I shall never make the slightest at-
tempt to follow the path trodden by my
father. That is beyond my power, and my
only wish is to be taken as I am. I ad-
vance no claims as being the son of a
great father, my only ambition being to
prove myself worthy of the good fortune
and honor of having such a father."
P R A N Z KALTENBORN is soon to re-
sume his summer night concerts at
the St. Nicholas Rink. There is no truth
that a similar series will be undertaken at
Carnegie Hall. It was never seriously
contemplated.
r
A N interesting volume by Prof. Jadas-
** sohn of the Leipsic Conservatory, en-
titled " A Practical Course in Ear Train-
ing," has just made its appearance. The
author states that early in his career as a
teacher of piano he found that only a few
of his pupils were able to distinguish even
the simplest intervals by the ear alone.
This led him to institute a course of ear-
training to which he allotted a few minutes
of every lesson. To his surprise and grat-
ification he found that in exercising the ear
in relative pitch many gained absolute
pitch. He differs from most authorities in
declaring that absolute pitch is not only a
gift of nature, but that it can be acquired
by any one, and that with no undue amount
of effort. In his opinion, if a student pos-
sess relative pitch to a certain degree—if
he can distinguish a unison from an inter-
SING&°COPIES Y ^^ENTS
val, a major chord from a minor chord, and
can sing two or three diatonic tones after
having heard them—systematic daily prac-
tice is the only requisite.
j*
DADEREWSKI'S reputation for ready
A
wit and quick repartee is familiar to
all those who have enjoyed his personal
acquaintance. An instance of his gift of
spontaneous humor occurred some time
ago on the eve of his departure for the
West. Paderewski, Walter Damrosch and
some other musical notabilities were enter-
tained at a luncheon. The host was one of
the foremost polo players of the Rockaway
Hunt Club, and his many silver trophies
adorned his side-board. Noticingthem, Mr.
Damrosch remarked to the eminent pianist:
" The difference between our host and you
is that he is a poloplayer, while you are a solo
player." " I t ' s more than that," was the
retort of Paderewski, '' I am a Pole play-
ing solo; he is a dear soul playing polo."
A LTHOUGH the time for entries for the
**• choral contests at the Paris Exhibition
has been extended, and competitors are no
longer bound to sing exclusively in French,
it is very doubtful whether any of the
leading English choirs will be tempted
across the Channel. A Welsh choir has, we
believe, entered, and there is talk of send-
ing a choir from the West of England.
But this is all. For one thing, the ex-
pense of taking a choir of fifty to eighty
voices to Paris at exhibition time will be
considerable; and for another there is little
to be gained by it. In 1878 Leslie's choir
visited Paris, of course at its own expense,
and very easily carried of the first prize
at the international competition. But the
honor was almost a barren one, and two
years later this famous choir was dis-
banded.
I T is estimated that when Mme. Sem-
* brich starts for her home in Dresden,
next month, she will take with her as
tangible evidence of the public's recogni-
tion of her art, a sum approximating $95,-
000.
This represents six months' work.
There is little rest ahead for Mme. Sem-
brich. She has engagements in St. Peters-
burg, Berlin, and Vienna, and is to return
here in December. It is safe to estimate
her European profits will bring the year's
total past the one-hundred-thousand-dollar
mark.
Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).