Music Trade Review

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
TIMELY TALKS ON TIMELY TOPICS.
From the announcements already made it looks
as though Sunday were to be turned into the busi-
est day of the week in the season which before
another month rolls around will be fairly open.
Sunday concerts have a good deal in their favor,
at the same time it seems hard to realize that
even New York can furnish so many Sunday audi-
ences. Carnegie Hall is a musical center and will
be engaged during the entire season on Sundays,
morning and afternoon.
That Mr. Arens has decided to present his
series of Peoples' Symphony concerts on Sunday
afternoon, since he must give them at Carnegie
Hall, is wise on his part as this may, in a meas-
ure, hold the clientele which he drew to these
concerts down in the lower part of the city. How-
ever, it will be a new audience that will face the
Peoples' Symphony Orchestra when the series is
opened November 4, at Carnegie.
That Cooper dnion Hall has been condemned
for musical entertainments is not strange, hut
why for musical entertainments only when the
political meetings hold forth just the same and
the lectures and general usage of the building?
New York needs a hall in the lower part of the
city, about as much indeed, as Brooklyn needs a
hall.
Walter Damrosch made such a place for him-
self last season that it will not t be astonishing to
see very large audiences attend the series of sym-
phony concerts that he will give with the New
York Symphony Orchestra beginning November
6 and continuing every second Sunday until Janu-
ary '12. There will be the customary soloists and
the attractive orchestral works that we have ac-
customed to hear at the hands of Mr. Damrosch.
A new series and one which will interest a
large number of music lovers as well as personal
friends of that extremely popular conductor, Vic-
tor Herbert, will begin October 9, when weekly
orchestral concerts will be inaugurated at the Ma-
jestic Theatre presenting the same sort of pro-
grammes in the afternoon that the Metropolitan
opera concerts offer in the evening. There will
bo soloists of the best class and the best music
will prevail. The Metropolitan concerts will be
given as usual and there is little doubt that if
Henry W. Savage sees that he stands a ghost of a
chance he will give Sunday night concerts too.
But what a boon for the soloists! There should
be great activity among them this season as the
orchestral concerts will keep some of them busy.
There has never been such a vast number of or-
chestral concerts offered as present themselves
this season and that the season leaves little to
be desired can hardly be doubted since Pado-
rewski is added to the pianists in the field al-
ready. This was a great surprise to everybody,
as the great Pole had no intention of coming
here until next year, but the war between Russia
and Japan has wrought that for us and is it not
something to rejoice in? His concert tour around
the world was to have brought him from Aus-
tralia, where he is now, to Japan and other points
in the Orient, but even the quiet of New York
seems more inviting than Japan at the present
time and to that we shall owe his presence.
Speaking of the war in the Par East brings to
'mind the fact that when the Russian Symphony
Society opens its season at Carnegie Hall, No-
vember 19, there will be an orchestra of nearly
one hundred pieces, and an interesting feature of
this is that a large number of the musicians will
be Russians. It is needless to say more—the
series will be interesting. It was so already last
year under direction of Modest Altschuler, who is
in the work heart and soul. The opening pro-
gramme will celebrate the centennial of the birth
of Glinka, and several of that great Russian's
works will be presented for the first time in this
country. It is understood that when Wassili
Safonoff arrives he will be invited to conduct one
of the concerts of the Russian Symphony Society,
and having been deeply interested in this organi-
zation upon his last visit to this country he may
accept.
A peculiarly inartistic thing in the way of con-
cert companies seems to have fastened itself upon
the artists who are touring the country in con-
cert. It is the size of the companies that they
take with them, and one might well add the qual-
ity. Melba and Van Hoose with a pianist, Blau-
velt with a couple of assistants, Campanari and
the same number of assisting artists would be
infinitely more acceptable than these artists with
a string of five or six people, especially in point
of the fact that when such large companies are
traveling they must take cheap people to come out
ahead. Cheap people are bad enough by them-
selves, but in contrast to a Melba, a Blauvelt, a
Campanari, they are very much worse, and such
concerts instead of being artistic are as far from
it as is possible to conceive. Patti set the pace.
But our artists forget that she had to do it as
she could not possibly carry a programme alone,
but these other people do not need such assistance
and instead of being additional attraction they
are detrimental—but here is where the strange
part comes in—if they were attractive they would
not be engaged, as any honors that are coming
the stars themselves can take care of.
a large number of lectures and there is no doubt
that he will be received with enthusiasm as his
personality is one that is calculated to make him
popular with the fair sex, especially the musical
minded.
Thomas Whitney Surette is well known
in this line of musical study and there is probably
no one of more importance than Dr. Henry G.
Hanchett whose pianism is much enjoyed by the
large audiences who hear him in his several
series with the Board of Education, where he has
a large number of engagements annually. There
are many more, and doubtless the coming season
v/ill bring forth new ones, however, since the time
is ripe for that sort of music study, it is well for
those gifted in that direction to make the best
of it.
EMILE FRANCES BATJEK.
CHURCH MUSIC REGULATIONS.
Gregorian Chants to Be Restored—Women Ban-
ished From Choirs—No Music Adapted From
Secular Sources to Be Used—Service, Not
Music, Emphasized.
The commission appointed by Archbishop Far-
ley, in accordance with the views of Pope Pius X ,
to consider the abuses which have crept into the
musical part of the liturgical functions of the Ro-
man Catholic Church, has made a report. This
report has been approved by the Archbishop and
will hereafter be the law for the archdiocese of
New York as far as the music in the churches is
concerned.
The need for a concert hall in Brooklyn seems
The commission says that it is evident from
more accentuated than ever in the face of such careful study of the instructions of the Holy
tremendous attractions as the Brooklyn Institute Father that he requires that Gregorian music be
offers. At the very best Association Hall is restored in every church to its high place of
dreary enough, but when it comes to accommodat- honor and that especially the proper of the mass
ing the audiences that will assemble to hear re- and the antiphons, etc., of the vespers be ren-
citals by such artists as Hofmann, D'Albert, dered according to the same. In the ordinary, or
Ysaye, Joseffy and Kreisler, it seems utterly im- common, of the mass, and for the Psalms of ves-
possible to understand what they will do with pers, while the Gregorian is to be preferred, the
them, and there is little doubt that many will Palestrinian or even the modern style of music
be turned away.
may be used, provided the latter be strictly reli-
The Baptist Temple, which must be used for gious and ecclesiastical in character and the mu-
the Boston Symphony concerts, throws a damper sic corresponds with the words of the liturgical
upon these great concerts, but it is not possible text without omissions, inversions or vain repeti-
to find another auditorium. Indeed, it seems as tions. Music adapted from secular sources must
though there were no city in the United States not be used at any service.
that needs a hall as badly as does Brooklyn.
The commission also finds it to be the wish of
Even if they had a town hall it might be used in-
the Pope that Catholic church music be such as
stead of a music hall when absolutely necessary
not to attract the attention of the hearers GO
as in the case in point. If only for the Brooklyn
much to itself as to become a source of distrac-
Institute alone, it would pay some one to build
tion from divine services and that boys take the
a concert hall. Where is the millionaire that
places of soprano and contralto singers in all
can see this?
Catholic church choirs.
The commission also recommends that sys-
Music of "Ye Antient Tyme" will be well repre- tematic teaching of music be required in all
sented in New York this season, as Sam Pranko Catholic schools and that if possible a conserva-
will again give his series of concerts which cer- tory of church music be organized under the con-
tainly rank among the most artistic concerts trol of diocesan authority, having professors for
given during the season. He will take them to the various branches of church music for the
Mendelssohn Hall this year, which cannot fail to training of organists and teachers.
work to the benefit of the concerts as Mendels-
The commission is composed of Fathers J. H.
sohn Hall is, after all, the only satisfactory con- McGean, J. F. Driscoll, Anthony Lammel, John
cert hall in New York for concerts of that size. A. Kellner, Joseph Bruneau, John J. Hughes and
Mr. Franko is a deep student, and the joys of J. B. Young, and organists James Ungerer, E.
his researches he takes pleasure in sharing with S. Hurley and B. E. Johnston. The Rev. Dr. John
others.
J. Kean is the secretary. This commission will
Mr. Dolmetsch, too, will be in the country with hereafter constitute a committee to prepare a
his quaint and all-but-forgotten instruments. catalogue of compositions for voice and organ in
These concerts have been highly instructive and accordance with the Pope's instructions.
instrumental in leading people into more inti-
The report of the committee was embodied in
mate study or the modern piano and its tremen-
a pastoral letter, issued by Archbishop Farley
dous possibilities. It has made a field for lec-
and read in all the Roman Catholic churches of
turers upon this topic and in general the last visit
the Archdiocese Sunday. In commenting on
of Mr. Dolmetsch was replete with interest.
the report the Archbishop said that the quality
of the music will not suffer by the exclusion of
The lecture-recital has become a very popular certain compositions so long in favor with many
institution and among those engaged in the work to the detriment of devotion.
are many people of note. Walter Damrosch is
the most important, as his understanding of his
KREISLER EXTENDED TOUR.
subjects is the understanding only possible to a
fine pianist, a good musician and a thoroughly
Fritz Kreisler will appear in an orchestral con-
grounded conductor. Mr. Damrosch is booked for cert when he returns to this country in January
a great number this season. Daniel Gregory next. He will also be heard in concerts with the
Mason who is well-known as the author of the New York Philharmonic, the Boston, Pittsburg,
very excellent piece of writing "From Grieg to Chicago, Philadelphia, and New York Symphony
Brahms" and many other essays that have ap- Orchestras. Kreisler's tour will extend to the Pa-
peared in the different magazines has booked for cific coast, and he will remain here until May.