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diff --git a/32248-8.txt b/32248-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..54c8fa2 --- /dev/null +++ b/32248-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,9833 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Standard Cantatas, by George P. Upton + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Standard Cantatas + Their Stories, Their Music, and Their Composers + +Author: George P. Upton + +Release Date: May 4, 2010 [EBook #32248] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STANDARD CANTATAS *** + + + + +Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Charley Howard and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net +(This file was produced from images generously made +available by The Internet Archive) + + + + + + + + + + + THE + Standard Cantatas + THEIR STORIES, THEIR MUSIC, AND THEIR COMPOSERS + + + _A Handbook_ + + By GEORGE P. UPTON + AUTHOR OF + "THE STANDARD OPERAS," "THE STANDARD ORATORIOS," "WOMAN IN MUSIC," ETC. + + CHICAGO + A. C. McCLURG AND COMPANY + 1888 + + Copyright + By A. C. McClurg and Co. + A.D. 1887 + + + + + PREFACE. + + +The "Standard Cantatas" is the third of the series in which the "Standard +Operas" and "Standard Oratorios" have been its predecessors. Of +necessity, therefore, the same method has been followed in the +arrangement and presentation of the author's scheme. As in the works +above mentioned, short sketches of the music and stories of the cantatas +are presented, together with biographies of their composers, some of +which are reproduced from the other volumes with slight changes, the +repetitions being necessary for the sake of uniformity. The sketches are +prefaced by a comprehensive study of the cantata in its various forms, +from its early simple recitative or aria style down to its present +elaborate construction, which sometimes verges closely upon that of the +opera or oratorio. + +The word "cantata" is so flexible and covers such a wide area in music, +that it has been a work of some difficulty to decide upon the +compositions that properly come within the scheme of this volume. During +the past two centuries it has been variously applied to songs, like those +of the early Italian school; to ballads, like those of the early English +composers; to concert arias, like those of Mozart, Beethoven, and +Mendelssohn; to short operettas, dramatic scenas, cycles of ballads, and +even to oratorios, whose subjects are more or less dramatic. It is +believed, however, that the most important of the modern cantatas are +included in the volume, and with them will be found several works, such +as the "Damnation of Faust" and the "Romeo and Juliet" vocal symphony and +others, which, though not in the strict cantata form, are nevertheless +compositions belonging to the concert-stage for voices and orchestra, +performed without scenery, costumes, or stage accessories. + +The author has paid particular attention to cantatas by American +composers, and has selected for description and analysis those which in +his estimation rank the highest in musical merit. It would be manifestly +impossible to include in a volume of the present size all the +compositions by Americans which have been called cantatas, for their +number is well-nigh "legion." Those have been selected which are +creditable to American musical scholarship and are making a name for +American music. It is possible some have been omitted which fulfil these +conditions; if so, it is only because they have not come within the +author's observation. The Appendix has been a work of great care, labor, +and research, and wherever it was practicable the date of each cantata +was verified. + +Like its two predecessors, the "Standard Cantatas" has been prepared for +the general public, which has not the time or opportunity to investigate +such matters, rather than for musicians, who are presumed to be familiar +with them. On this account the text is made as untechnical as possible, +and description takes the place of criticism. The work is intended to +answer the purpose of a handbook and guide which shall acquaint the +reader with the principal facts and accomplishments in this very +interesting form of composition. The favor so generously accorded to the +"Standard Operas" and "Standard Oratorios" leads the author to hope that +this volume will also be welcome to music-lovers, and will find a place +by the side of its companions in their libraries. + + G. P. U. + +Chicago, September, 1887. + + + + + CONTENTS. + + + + + PAGE + PREFACE 3 + THE CANTATA 13 + BACH 29 + Ich Hatte viel Bekümmerniss 31 + Gottes Zeit 33 + Festa Ascensionis Christi 37 + Ein' Feste Burg 38 + BALFE 44 + Mazeppa 45 + BEETHOVEN 48 + The Ruins of Athens 49 + The Glorious Moment 53 + BENEDICT 56 + St. Cecilia 57 + BENNETT 62 + The May Queen 64 + The Exhibition Ode 66 + BERLIOZ 68 + Romeo and Juliet 70 + The Damnation of Faust 74 + BRAHMS 82 + Triumphlied 83 + BRUCH 86 + Frithjof 87 + Salamis 92 + Fair Ellen 93 + Odysseus 95 + BUCK 101 + Don Munio 103 + Centennial Meditation of Columbia 106 + The Golden Legend 109 + The Voyage of Columbus 114 + The Light of Asia 117 + CORDER 123 + The Bridal of Triermain 124 + COWEN 128 + The Sleeping Beauty 129 + DVORÁK 134 + The Spectre's Bride 136 + FOOTE 140 + Hiawatha 141 + GADE 143 + Comala 144 + Spring Fantasie 146 + The Erl King's Daughter 147 + The Crusaders 149 + GILCHRIST 153 + The Forty-sixth Psalm 154 + GLEASON 156 + The Culprit Fay 157 + The Praise Song To Harmony 161 + HANDEL 163 + Acis and Galatea 166 + Alexander's Feast 173 + L'Allegro 178 + HATTON 186 + Robin Hood 187 + HAYDN 191 + The Seven Words 194 + Ariadne 198 + HILLER 201 + Song of Victory 203 + HOFMANN 205 + Melusina 206 + LESLIE 209 + Holyrood 210 + LISZT 215 + Prometheus 217 + The Bells of Strasburg 221 + MACFARREN 226 + Christmas 228 + MACKENZIE 232 + The Story of Sayid 233 + Jubilee Ode 237 + MASSENET 241 + Mary Magdalen 242 + MENDELSSOHN 246 + The Walpurgis Night 248 + Antigone 254 + Oedipus at Colonos 259 + As the Hart Pants 262 + The Gutenberg Fest-Cantata 263 + Lauda Sion 265 + MOZART 268 + King Thamos 270 + Davidde Penitente 274 + The Masonic Cantatas 276 + PAINE 280 + Oedipus Tyrannus 281 + The Nativity 286 + The Realm of Fancy 288 + Phoebus, Arise 289 + PARKER, H. W. 291 + King Trojan 292 + PARKER, J. C. D. 295 + The Redemption Hymn 296 + RANDEGGER 298 + Fridolin 299 + RHEINBERGER 303 + Christophorus 304 + Toggenburg 306 + ROMBERG 308 + Lay of the Bell 309 + SCHUBERT 313 + Miriam's War Song 314 + SCHUMANN 317 + Advent Hymn 319 + The Pilgrimage of the Rose 321 + The Minstrel's Curse 322 + SINGER 324 + The Landing of the Pilgrims 325 + SMART 327 + The Bride of Dunkerron 328 + King René's Daughter 330 + SULLIVAN 332 + On Shore and Sea 334 + The Golden Legend 335 + WAGNER 338 + Love Feast of the Apostles 340 + WEBER 342 + Jubilee Cantata 344 + Kampf Und Sieg 346 + WHITING 348 + The Tale of the Viking 349 + APPENDIX 353 + INDEX 365 + + + + + THE STANDARD CANTATAS. + + + + + THE CANTATA. + + +The origin of the cantata is a matter of controversy, but it is clear +that it had its birth in Italy. Adami, an old writer, attributes its +invention to Giovanni Domenico Poliaschi Romano, a papal chapel-singer, +who, it is claimed, wrote several cantatas as early as 1618. The same +writer also asserts that the Cavalier da Spoleto, a singer in the same +service, published cantatas in 1620. Hawkins asserts in one chapter of +his "History of Music" that the invention is due to Carissimi, +chapel-master of the Church of St. Apollinare in Rome, who unquestionably +did an important service for dramatic music by perfecting recitative and +introducing stringed accompaniments; but in a subsequent chapter the +historian states that Barbara Strozzi, a Venetian lady contemporary with +Carissimi, was the inventor, and assigns the year 1653 as the date when +she published certain vocal compositions with the title "Cantate, Ariette +e Duetti," prefixed by an advertisement setting forth that having +invented this form of music, she had published them as an experiment. +Burney takes notice of the claim made for Romano and Da Spoleto, but does +not think it valid, and says: "The first time that I have found the term +'cantata' used for a short narrative lyric poem was in the _Musiche varie +a voce sola del Signor Benedetto Ferrari da Reggio_, printed at Venice, +1638." This, as will be observed, disposes of the Venetian lady's claim, +as it is antedated twenty years, and Burney states his facts from +personal investigation. He mentions several cantatas written about this +period, among them a burlesque one describing the leap of Marcus Curtius +into the gulf. He concedes to Carissimi, however, the transfer of the +cantata from the chamber to the church, and on this point nearly all the +early writers are agreed. + +The cantata in its earliest form was a recitative, which speedily +developed into a mixture of recitative and melody for a single voice, and +was suggested by the lyric opera. Burney says:-- + + "The chief events were related in recitative. In like manner they + received several progressive changes during the last century previous + to their perfection. First, they consisted, like opera scenes, of + little more than recitative, with frequent formal closes, at which the + singer, either accompanied by himself or another performer on a single + instrument, was left at liberty to show his taste and talents." + +The form then changed to a single air in triple time, independent of the +recitative, and repeated to the different verses as in a ballad, the +melody being written every time, as the _Da Capo_ was not then in use.[1] +Choron defines the cantata as follows:-- + + "It is a little poem, which, considered in a literary sense, has no + very determinate character, though it is usually the recital of a + simple and interesting fact interspersed with reflections or the + expression of some particular sentiment. It may be in all styles and + all characters, sacred, profane, heroic, comic, and even ludicrous, + representing the action or feeling of either a single or several + persons. It even sometimes assumes the character of the oratorio." + +As applied to recitative, the new form was variously called "recitativo," +"musica parlante," or "stilo rappresentativo," one of the first works in +which style was "The Complaint of Dido," by the Cavalier Sigismondo +d'India, printed in Venice in 1623. The mixture of recitative and air was +eventually called "ariose cantate;" and with this title several melodies +were printed by Sebastian Enno at Venice, 1655.[2] + +The seventeenth century witnessed the rapid perfecting of the cantata in +its early forms by the Italian composers. The best examples are said to +have been those of Carissimi, of whom mention has already been made. +Several of them are preserved in the British Museum and at Oxford; among +them, one written on the death of Mary Queen of Scots. Burney says:-- + + "Of twenty-two of his cantatas preserved in the Christ Church + collection, Oxon., there is not one which does not offer something that + is still new, curious, and pleasing; but most particularly in the + recitatives, many of which seem the most expressive, affecting, and + perfect that I have seen. In the airs there are frequently sweet and + graceful passages, which more than a hundred years have not impaired." + +Of the thirteenth in this collection the same authority says:-- + + "This single air, without recitative, seems the archetype of almost all + the _arie di cantabile_, the adagios, and pathetic songs, as well as + instrumental, slow movements, that have since been made." + +Fra Marc Antonio Cesti, in his later life a monk in the monastery of +Arezzo, and chapel-master of the Emperor Ferdinand III., was a pupil of +Carissimi, and devoted much attention to the cantata, the recitative of +which he greatly improved. One of his most celebrated compositions of +this kind was entitled, "O cara Liberta," and selections from it are +given both by Burney and Hawkins. He must have been one of the jolly +monks of old, for all his cantatas are secular in character, and he was +frequently censured for devoting so much time to theatrical instead of +church music. Luigi Rossi was contemporary with Cesti, and has left +several cantatas which are conspicuous for length and pedantry rather +than for elegance or melodious charm. Giovanni Legrenzi of Bergamo, the +master of Lotti and Gasparini, published twenty-four cantatas in Venice +between 1674 and 1679, which were great favorites in his time. The +celebrated painter Salvator Rosa not only wrote the words for many +cantatas by his musical friends, but it is known that he composed both +words and music to eight. The texts of these works have preserved for +posterity pictures more graphic than any he could paint of his +misanthropical character; for when he is not railing against his mistress +he is launching satires against Nature and mankind in general. In one of +these he complains that the earth is barren and the sun is dark. If he +goes out to see a friend, it always rains. If he goes on shipboard, it +always storms. If he buys provisions at the market, the bones outweigh +the flesh. If he goes to court-- + + "The attendants at my dress make sport; + Point at my garb, threadbare and shabby, + And shun me, like a leper scabby." + +His only wealth is hope, which points to nothing better than "workhouse +or a rope." In the heat of summer he has to trudge in winter clothes. He +cannot even run away from misfortune. In a word, nothing pleases the poor +painter, as is evident from the gloomy moral which "adorns the tale":-- + + "Then learn from me, ye students all, + Whose wants are great and hopes are small, + That better 'tis at once to die + Than linger thus in penury; + For 'mongst the ills with which we're curst, + To live a beggar is the worst." + +In 1703 Giambatista Bassani, of Bologna, published twelve cantatas +devoted to the tender passion, and all of them set to a violin +accompaniment,--a practice first introduced by Scarlatti, of Naples, who +was one of the most prolific writers of his day. The cantata was +Scarlatti's favorite form of composition, and hundreds of them came from +his busy pen, which were noted for their beauty and originality. The +accompaniments were written for the violoncello as well as for the +violin; those for the first-named instrument were so difficult and yet so +excellent that those who could perform them were often thought to have +supernatural assistance.[3] Contemporary with Scarlatti was Francesco +Gasparini, a Roman composer and harpsichord player of such eminence that +Scarlatti sent his son Domenico, who afterwards became famous by his +musical achievements, to study with him. Gasparini wrote twelve +cantatas,--not so scholarly but quite as popular as those by Scarlatti. +As a return for the compliment which Scarlatti had paid him, +Gasparini sent him a cantata, which was the signal for a lively +cantata-correspondence between them, each trying to outdo the other. +Following Gasparini came Bononcini, whose contentions with Handel in +England are familiar to all musical readers. He was the most prolific +cantata-writer of all the Italians next to Scarlatti, and dedicated a +volume of them, in 1721, to the King of England. He also published in +Germany a large number which show great knowledge of instrumentation, +according to the musical historians of his time. Antonio Lotti, his +contemporary, wrote several which are particularly noticeable for their +harmony. His pupil Benedetto Marcello, the illustrious psalm-composer, +excelled his master in this form of music. Two of his cantatas, "Il +Timoteo" (after Dryden's ode) and "Cassandra," were very celebrated. He +was of noble family, and is famous even to this day by his masses, +serenades, and sonnets, and by his beautiful poetical and musical +paraphrase of the Psalms, which was translated into English, German, and +Russian. The Baron d'Astorga, whose "Stabat Mater" is famous, wrote many +cantatas, but they do not reach the high standard of that work. Antonio +Caldara, for many years composer to the Emperor at Vienna, published a +volume of them at Venice in 1699. Porpora, who was a rival of Handel in +England as an opera composer, published and dedicated twelve to the +Prince of Wales in 1735 as a mark of gratitude for the support which he +had given him in his disputes with the testy German.[4] After Pergolesi, +who made himself famous by his "Stabat Mater," and published several +cantatas at Rome, and Handel, who wrote many, which were eclipsed by his +operas and oratorios, and are now hardly known, this style of the cantata +languished, and gradually passed into the form of the concert aria, of +which fine examples are to be found in the music of Mozart, Beethoven, +and Mendelssohn. After the death of Pergolesi, Sarti and Paisiello made +an attempt to revive it, and in so doing prepared the way for the cantata +in its beautiful modern form. In the latter's "Guinone Lucina," written +for the churching of Caroline of Austria, Queen of Naples, and in his +"Dafne ed Alceo" and "Retour de Persée" the melody is intermixed with +choruses for the first time. + +Thus far the Italian cantatas have alone been considered; but it must not +be supposed that this form of composition was confined to Italy. In +France it was also a favorite style in the early part of the eighteenth +century. Montclair, Campra, Mouret, Batistin, Clerambault, and Rousseau +excelled in it. M. Ginguené, in the "Encyclopćdia Methodique," says of +these composers and their works:-- + + "They have left collections in which may be discovered among all the + faults of the age, when Italian music was unknown in France, much art + and knowledge of harmony, happy traits of melody, well-worked basses, + and above all recitatives in which the accent of declamation and the + character of the language are strictly observed." + +In Germany, however, the cantata at this time was approximating to its +present form. Koch, a celebrated musical scholar of the early part of the +present century, says:-- + + "The cantata is a lyrical poem set to music in different, alternating + compositions, and sung with the accompaniment of instrumental music. + The various melodies of which the whole is composed are the aria, with + its subordinate species, the recitative or accompaniment, and the + arioso, frequently also intermixed with choruses." + +Heydenreich, another writer of the same period, says:-- + + "The cantata is always lyrical. Its distinctive character lies in the + aptitude of the passions and feelings which it contains to be rendered + by music. The cantata ought to be a harmonious whole of ideas + poetically expressed, concurring to paint a main passion or feeling, + susceptible of various kinds and degrees of musical expression. It + sometimes may have the character of the hymn or ode, sometimes that of + the elegy, or of a mixture of these, in which, however, one particular + emotion must predominate." + +The church cantata, according to Du Cange, dates back to 1314; but +subsequent writers have shown that the term prior to the seventeenth +century was used indiscriminately and without reference to any +well-defined style of vocal music, and that as applied to church +compositions it meant the anthem such as we now have, although not as +elaborate. The noblest examples of the sacred cantata are those by +Sebastian Bach, three hundred and eighty in all, over a hundred of which +have been published under the auspices of the Bach-Gesellschaft. They are +written in from four to seven movements for four voices and full +orchestra, usually opening with chorus and closing with a chorale, the +intermediate movements being in the form of recitatives, arias, and +duets. The text of these cantatas is either a literal transcription of +the Gospel or of portions of it. In the latter case the Gospel of the +Sunday for which the cantata was written is introduced entire in the body +of the work as the nucleus around which the great composer grouped the +remaining parts. For instance, the cantata for Sexagesima Sunday turns +upon the parable of the sower, and this being the Gospel for the day is +made its central point. In like manner the cantata for the fourteenth +Sunday after Trinity has for its subject the story of the ten lepers, +which is introduced in recitative form in the middle of the work. The +astonishing industry of Bach is shown by the fact that for nearly five +years he produced a new cantata for each Sunday, in addition to his +numerous fugues, chorales, motets, magnificats, masses, sanctuses, +glorias, and other church music. The artistic sincerity and true genius +of the old master also reveal themselves in the skill with which he +finished these works for the congregation of St. Thomas,--few of whom, it +is to be feared, had any conception of their real merit,--and in the +untiring regularity with which he produced them, unrewarded by the +world's applause, and little dreaming that long years after he had passed +away they would be brought to light again, be published to the world, and +command its admiration and astonishment on account of their beauty and +scholarship.[5] Before passing to the consideration of the cantata in its +present form, the following abridged description of those written by +Bach, taken from Bitter's Life of the composer, will be of interest:-- + + "The directors who preceded Bach at Leipsic used to choose the cantatas + or motets to be sung in the churches quite arbitrarily, without any + regard to their connection with the rest of the service. But Bach felt + that unless these elaborate pieces of music were really made a means of + edification, they were mere intellectual pastimes suitable for a + concert, but an interruption to divine worship; and he thought that + they could best edify the congregation if their subjects were the + themes to which attention was specially directed in the service and + sermon of the day. He therefore made it a rule to ascertain from the + clergymen of the four churches the texts of the sermons for the + following Sunday, and to choose cantatas on the same or corresponding + texts. As most of the clergy were in the habit of preaching on the + Gospel of the day, the service thus became a harmonious whole, and the + attention of the congregation was not divided between a variety of + subjects. The clergyman of highest standing at Leipsic, Superintendent + Deyling, a preacher of great eloquence and theological learning, + co-operated heartily with Bach in this scheme. A series of cantatas for + every Sunday and festival for five years--about three hundred and + eighty in all--was composed by Bach, chiefly during the first years of + his stay at Leipsic. Unfortunately many of these are lost; but one + hundred and eighty-six for particular days, and thirty-two without any + days specified, still remain. Their music is so completely in character + with the subject of the words as to form a perfect exposition of the + text. In some the orchestral introductions and accompaniments are made + illustrative of the scene of the text; as for instance in one on + Christ's appearing to His disciples in the evening after His + resurrection, the introduction is of a soft, calming character, + representing the peacefulness of evening and of the whole scene. + Another, on the text 'Like as the rain and snow fall from heaven,' is + introduced by a symphony in which the sound of gently-falling rain is + imitated. In others the instrumental parts and some of the voices + express the feelings excited by meditation on the words. Sometimes, in + the midst of a chorus in which the words of the text are repeated, and, + as it were, commented on, a single voice, with the accompaniment of a + few instruments, breaks off into some well-known hymn in a similar + strain of thought or feeling." + +Handel in his younger days wrote many cantatas for the church, though +they are now but little known. The entire list numbers one hundred and +fifty. On his return from England to his post of chapel-master at Hanover +in 1711 he composed twelve, known as the Hanover cantatas, for the +Princess Caroline, the words written by the Abbé Hortentio Mauro, to +which no objection was offered by Handel's master and patron, +notwithstanding he was a Lutheran prince. Several written in England are +still preserved in the royal collections. On Holy Week of the year 1704, +the same week in which Reinhardt Kaiser brought out his famous Passion +oratorio, "The Bleeding and Dying Jesus," Handel's Passion cantata was +first produced. Kaiser's work had been denounced as secular by the +pastors, because it did not contain the words of Holy Scripture. Handel's +was founded on the nineteenth chapter of St. John, and thus escaped the +pulpit denunciation. This cantata is sometimes called the First Passion +Oratorio, the second having been written at Hamburg in 1716.[6] In 1707 +Handel was in Florence, where he wrote several cantatas, and thence went +to Rome, where he produced some church music in the same form, notably +the "Dixit Dominus," for five voices and orchestra; "Nisi Dominus," also +for five voices; and "Laudate pueri," for solos and full orchestral +accompaniment. The famous anthems written for the private chapel of James +Brydges, Duke of Chandos, familiarly known as the Chandos Anthems, are in +reality cantatas, as each one is preceded by an overture and in its +structural form comprises solos, choruses, and instrumentation for full +band and choir. It is also noteworthy that it was during Handel's +residence at the Duke's palace at Cannons that he wrote his first English +oratorio, the legitimate successor of the Chandos Anthems, and the +precursor of the great works destined to immortalize his name. + +The cantatas left by Haydn are mainly secular in character; but it may +well be imagined that during the days of his early married life, when his +fanatical and termagant spouse was forcing him to write so much music for +the priests and monks whom she entertained so sumptuously below-stairs +while he was laboring above, more than one cantata must have come from +his pen, which would have been preserved had he not reluctantly parted +company with them to pacify his wife. + +The term "cantata," as it is now used, is very elastic, and covers a +range of compositions which are too large to be considered as dramatic +arias or ballads,--though ballads are sometimes written for various +voices and orchestra,--and too small to be called operas or oratorios. It +can best be defined, perhaps, as a lyric narrative, sacred, didactic, or +dramatic in character, set to music for the concert stage only, being +without _dramatis personć_ in the theatrical acceptation of those words. +Its general form is that of the oratorio, being for solo voices, usually +the quartet, full chorus, and orchestra, though its shortness as compared +with the oratorio adapts it to performance by a small chorus, and +sometimes with only piano accompaniment. Among the most perfect forms of +the modern cantatas are such works as Mendelssohn's "Walpurgis Night," +Sterndale Bennett's "May Queen," Max Bruch's "Odysseus" and "Frithjof's +Saga," Cowen's "Sleeping Beauty," Gade's "Comala," Hiller's "Song of +Victory," Romberg's somewhat antiquated "Song of the Bell," Sullivan's +"Golden Legend," Randegger's "Fridolin," and Dudley Buck's "Don Munio" +and "Light of Asia." But besides such as these there are numerous other +works, not usually classed as cantatas, which clearly belong to the same +musical family; such as Berlioz's "Damnation of Faust," Brahms's +"Triumphlied," Mendelssohn's settings of various Psalms, Handel's "Acis +and Galatea" and "Alexander's Feast," Hofmann's "Melusina," Liszt's +"Prometheus," Rheinberger's "Toggenberg," Schubert's "Song of Miriam," +Schumann's ballads and "Advent Hymn," and Weber's "Kampf und Sieg." These +and others of the same kin are drawn upon as illustrations and for +analysis in the pages which follow. + +Considering the possibilities of the cantata, its adaptability to every +form of narrative, and the musical inducements it holds out, particularly +in these days, when a new opera or oratorio must be of extraordinary +merit to suit the public, it is somewhat remarkable that no more of them +are written. Mr. Charles Barnard has made this point very aptly and +forcibly in a short article printed in the "Century" for January, 1886, +in which he urges the cantata form of composition upon our writers, and +makes many excellent suggestions.[7] It is certainly an inviting field, +especially to American composers, among whom but three or four have as +yet produced works of this kind possessing real merit. + + +[1] Its first use is to be found in the opera of "Enea," performed at + Genoa in 1676. Before 1680 it was universally adopted. + +[2] It is noteworthy that in this volume occur for the first time the + musical terms "adagio," "piu adagio," "affetuoso," "presto," and + "allegro." In the "Cantate da Camera a voce sola," published at + Bologna (1677) by Gio. Bat. Mazzaferrata, the terms "vivace," + "largo," and "ardito" are also found for the first time. + +[3] Geminiani used to relate that Franceschelli, a celebrated performer + on the violoncello at the beginning of this century, accompanied one + of these cantatas at Rome so admirably, while Scarlatti was at the + harpsichord, that the company, being good Catholics, and living in a + country where miraculous powers have not yet ceased, were firmly + persuaded it was not Franceschelli who had played the violoncello, + but an angel that had descended and assumed his shape.--_Burney's + History_, vol. iv. p. 169 (1789). + +[4] Doctor Arbuthnot, in a humorous pamphlet called out by the operatic + war, entitled "Harmony in an Uproar," calls Handel the Nightingale, + and Porpora the Cuckoo. + +[5] It is curious to remember that the sacred cantatas were not composed + for universal fame or for a musical public, but for the use of + congregations who probably looked on them as a necessary part of the + service, and thought little about the merits of their composition. In + those days art-criticism was in its infancy, and they were scarcely + noticed beyond the walls of Leipsic till after the composer's + death.--_Bitter's Life of Bach_. + +[6] Handel's Second German Passion, as it is now generally called, + differs entirely from the earlier Passion according to St. John, and + bears no analogy at all to the Passion Music of Sebastian Bach. The + choruses are expressive or vigorous in accordance with the nature of + the words; but none exhibit any very striking form of contrapuntal + development; nor do they ever rise to the grandeur of the Utrecht Te + Deum or Jubilate.--_Rockstro's Life of Handel_. + +[7] The following list of cantatas by Americans hardly sustains Mr. + Barnard in his assertion that there are but a few of them: Baker, B. + F., "Burning Ship;" "Storm King."--Bechel, J. C., "Pilgrim's + Progress;" "The Nativity;" "Ruth."--Bradbury, W. B., + "Esther."--Brandeis, F., "The Ring."--Bristow, G. F., "The Pioneers;" + "No More."--Buck, Dudley, "Don Munio;" "Centennial;" "Easter + Cantatas;" "The Golden Legend;" "Light of Asia;" "Voyage of + Columbus."--Butterfield, J. A., "Belshazzar;" "Ruth."--Chadwick, G. + W., "The Viking's Last Voyage."--Damrosch, Leopold, "Ruth and Naomi;" + "Sulamith."--Foote, A., "Hiawatha."--Gilchrist, W. W., "Forty-sixth + Psalm;" "The Rose."--Gleason, F. G., "God our Deliverer;" "Culprit + Fay;" "Praise of Harmony."--Hamerik, A., "Christmas + Cantata."--Leavitt, W. J. D., "The Lord of the Sea;" "Cambyses; or, + the Pearl of Persia."--Marsh, S. B., "The Saviour;" "King of the + Forest."--Paine, J. K., "Oedipus Tyrannus;" "The Nativity;" "Phoebus, + Arise;" "Realm of Fancy."--Parker, J. G., "Redemption Hymn."--Parker, + H. W., "King Trojan."--Pratt, S. G., "Inca's Downfall."--Root, G. F., + "Flower Queen;" "Daniel;" "Pilgrim Fathers;" "Belshazzar's Feast;" + "Haymakers;" "Song Tournament;" "David."--Singer, Otto, "Landing of + the Pilgrim Fathers;" "Festival Ode."--Trajetta, Philip, "The + Christian's Joy;" "Prophecy;" "The Nativity;" "Day of + Rest."--Whiting, G. E., "Dream Pictures;" "Tale of the Viking;" + "Lenora;" and many others. + + + + + BACH. + + +Johann Sebastian Bach, the most eminent of the world's organ-players and +contrapuntists, was born at Eisenach, March 21, 1685, and was the most +illustrious member of a long line of musicians, the Bach family having +been famous almost from time immemorial for its skill in music. He first +studied the piano with his brother, Johann Christoph, and the organ with +Reinecke in Hamburg, and Buxtehude in Lübeck. In 1703 he was court +musician in Weimar, and afterwards was engaged as organist in Arnstadt +and Mühlhausen. In 1708 he was court organist, and in 1714 concert-master +in Weimar. In 1718 he was chapel-master to the Prince von Köthen, and in +1723 was appointed music-director and cantor at the St. Thomas School in +Leipsic,--a position which he held during the remainder of his life. He +has left for the admiration of posterity an almost endless list of vocal +and instrumental works, including cantatas, chorales, motets, +magnificats, masses, fugues, sonatas, and fantasies, the "Christmas +Oratorio," and several settings of the Passion, of which the most famous +are the "St. John" and "St. Matthew," the latter of which Mendelssohn +re-introduced to the world in 1829, after it had slumbered an entire +century. His most famous instrumental work is the "Well-tempered +Clavichord,"--a collection of forty-eight fugues and preludes, which was +written for his second wife, Anna Magdalena Bach, to whom he also +dedicated a large number of piano pieces and songs. His first wife was +his cousin, Maria Barbara Bach, the youngest daughter of Johann Michael +Bach, a composer of no common ability. By these two wives he had +twenty-one children, of whom the most celebrated were Carl Phillipp +Emanuel, born in 1714, known as the "Berlin Bach;" Johann Christoph +Friedrich, born in 1732, the "Bücheburger Bach;" and Johann Christian, +born in 1735, who became famous as the "London Bach." Large as the family +was, it is now extinct. Bach was industrious, simple, honest, and +God-fearing, like all his family. He was an incessant and laborious +writer from necessity, as his compensation was hardly sufficient to +maintain his large family, and nearly all his music was prepared for the +service of the church by contract. The prominent characteristics of his +work are profound knowledge, the clearest statements of form, strength of +logical sequences, imposing breadth, and deep religious sentiment. The +latter quality was the outcome of his intense religious nature. Upon +everyone of his principal compositions he inscribed "S. D. G.," "to the +glory of God alone." He died July 28, 1750, and was buried at Leipsic; +but no cross or stone marks the spot where he lies. His last composition +was the beautiful chorale, "Wenn wir in höchsten Nöthen sein," freely +translated, "When my last hour is close at hand," as it was written in +his last illness. The only record of his death is contained in the +official register: "A man, aged sixty-seven, M. Johann Sebastian Bach, +musical director and singing-master at the St. Thomas School, was carried +to his grave in the hearse, July 30, 1750." + + + Ich hatte viel Bekümmerniss. + +The cantata with the above title, best known in English as "My Heart was +full of Heaviness," was the first sacred piece in this form which Bach +wrote. Its date is 1714, in which year he was living at Weimar, and its +composition grew out of a difficulty which he had with the elders of the +Liebfrauenkirche at Halle, touching his application for the position of +organist. It occasioned him great sorrow, and it was while in this sad +plight that he wrote the cantata. It was composed for the third Sunday +after Trinity, June 17, and consists of eleven numbers,--an instrumental +prelude, four choruses, three arias, a duet, and two recitatives. + +The prelude, which is brief and quiet in character, introduces the +opening chorus ("Deep within my Heart was Sorrowing and great +Affliction"), which in turn leads to the first aria ("Sighing, Mourning, +Sorrow, Tears waste away my troubled Heart"), a tender and beautiful +number for soprano, with oboe and string accompaniment. It is followed by +the tenor recitative and aria, "Why hast Thou, O my God, in my sore Need +so turned Thy Face from me?" in which the feeling of sorrow is +intensified in utterance. The chorus, "Why, my Soul, art thou vexed?" a +very pathetic number, closes the mournful but beautiful first part of the +cantata. + +The second part is more tranquil and hopeful. It opens with a duet for +soprano and bass, the two parts representing the soul and Christ, and +sustaining a most expressive dialogue, leading up to a richly harmonized +chorus ("O my Soul, be content and be thou peaceful") in which a chorale +is introduced with consummate skill. A graceful tenor aria with a +delightful and smoothly flowing accompaniment ("Rejoice, O my Soul, +change Weeping to Smiling") follows and leads to the final number, which +is based on the same subject as that of the "Hallelujah" in Handel's +"Messiah." All the voices give out the words, "The Lamb that for us is +slain, to Him will we render Power and Glory," with majestic effect; +after which the solo bass utters the theme, "Power and Glory and Praise +be unto Him forevermore," introducing the "Hallelujah," which closes the +work in a burst of tremendous power, by voices and instruments. + + + Gottes Zeit. + +During the first half of the period in which Bach resided at Weimar, +occupying the position of court and chamber musician to Duke Wilhelm +Ernst, he wrote three cantatas in the old church form which are notable +as being the last he composed before adopting the newer style, and as the +most perfect of that kind extant. The first of these, "Nach dir, Herr, +verlanget mich," is based upon the first two verses of the Twenty-fifth +Psalm. The second, "Aus der Tiefe rufe ich," includes the whole of the +One hundred and thirtieth Psalm and two verses of the hymn "Herr Jesu +Christ, du höchstes Gut." The third and most famous of the trio, "Gottes +Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit" ("God's time is the best of all"), is +generally known as the "Actus Tragicus," and sometimes as the "Mourning +Cantata." Of its origin Spitta says:-- + + "Judging by its contents it was designed for the mourning for some man, + probably of advanced age, to whom the song of Simeon could be suitably + applied. No such death took place in the ducal house at this time, for + Prince Johann Ernst died when a youth, and also when Bach's style of + composition had reached a different stage. Possibly the cantata has + reference to Magister Philipp Grossgebauer, the rector of the Weimar + school before its reorganization, who died in 1711; at least, I can + find no other suitable occasion. The contrast between the spirit of the + Old and New Testaments,--between the wrath of an avenging God and the + atoning love of Christ,--which had already appeared in the One hundred + and thirtieth Psalm, is the germ and root of this cantata to such a + degree that it is evident that Bach had fully realized by this time how + fertile a subject for treatment it was. It contains no chorus of such + depth and force as those of the One hundred and thirtieth Psalm. Its + character is much more entirely individual and personal, and so it has + a depth and intensity of expression which reach the extreme limits of + possibility of representation by music. The arrangement of the poetic + material is most excellent; it does not wholly consist of Scripture + texts and verses of hymns; and in several fit and expressive thoughts, + which are freely interspersed, we can almost recognize Bach's own hand. + If such be the case, the whole arrangement of the poetry may with + reason be ascribed to him." + +The introduction to the work is a quiet, tender movement in sonata form, +written for two flutes, two viol-da-gambas and figured bass, which gives +out some of the themes in the middle of the cantata. The opening chorus +("God's own Time is the best, ever best of all. In Him we live, move, and +have our Being, as long as He wills. And in Him we die at His good Time") +is very descriptive in character, opening with a slow and solemn +movement, then passing to a quick fugue, and closing with phrases of +mournful beauty to suit the last sentence of the text. A tenor solo +follows, set to the words, "O Lord, incline us to consider that our Days +are numbered; make us apply our Hearts unto Wisdom," and accompanied by +the flutes, leading into a mournful aria for the bass, which forms the +second part of the tenor solo ("Set in order thine House, for thou shalt +die and not live"). The choir resumes with a new theme ("It is the old +Decree, Man, thou art mortal"), in which the lower voices carry a double +fugue, the soprano sings alone ("Yea, come, Lord Jesus"), and the +instruments have the melody of the old hymn:-- + + "I have cast all my care on God, + E'en let Him do what seems Him good; + Whether I die, or whether live, + No more I'll strive. + But all my will to Him will give." + +Of this effective movement and its successor Spitta says:-- + + "The design is clear. The curse of death has been changed into blessing + by the coming of Christ, and that which mankind dreaded before, they + now stretch out entreating hands to; the bliss of the new condition of + things shines out in supernatural glory against the dark background of + a dispensation that has been done away. This is the idea of the + concerted vocal parts; and the fact that thousands upon thousands have + agreed in the joy of this faith is shown by the chorale tune now + introduced; for to the understanding listener its worldless sounds + convey the whole import of the hymn which speaks so sweetly of comfort + in the hour of death, sounds which must recall to every pious heart all + the feelings they had stirred when, among the chances and changes of + life, this hymn had been heard,--feelings of sympathy with another's + grief or of balm to the heart's own anxiety." + +The alto voice follows with the words spoken on the cross ("Into Thy +Hands my Spirit I commend"), to which the bass replies in an arioso +("Thou shalt be with Me to-day in Paradise"). The next number is a +chorale ("In Joy and Peace I pass away whenever God willeth") sung by the +alto, the bass continuing its solo at the same time through a portion of +the chorale. The final chorus is the so-called fifth Gloria:-- + + "All glory, praise, and majesty + To Father, Son, and Spirit be, + The holy, blessed Trinity; + Whose power to us + Gives victory + Through Jesus Christ. Amen." + +The "Actus Tragicus" was one of the youthful compositions of Bach, but it +has always attracted the notice of the best musical critics. It was a +great favorite with Mendelssohn. Spitta says:-- + + "It is a work of art well rounded off and firm in its formation, and + warmed by the deepest intensity of feeling even in the smallest + details." + +Hauptmann writes to Jahn:-- + + "Yesterday, at the Euterpe concert, Bach's 'Gottes Zeit' was given. + What a marvellous intensity pervades it, without a bar of + conventionality! Of the cantatas known to me, I know none in which such + design and regard are had to the musical import and its expression." + + + Festa Ascensionis Christi. + +The cantata beginning with the words, "Wer da glaubet und getauft wird" +("Whoso believeth and is baptized"), commonly known as the Ascension +cantata, was written for four voices, with accompaniment of two oboes, +two violins, viola, and "continuo,"--the latter word implying a bass +part, the harmonies indicated by figures from which the organist built up +his own accompaniment. The original score has been lost; but it has been +reconstructed from the parts, which are preserved in the Royal Library at +Berlin. + +The cantata is in five numbers. A short prelude of a quiet and cheerful +character introduces the stately opening chorus ("Who believeth and +obeyeth will be blest forever"). Another brief prelude prepares the way +for the brilliant tenor aria ("Of Love, Faith is the Pledge and Token"), +which leads up to the chorale, "Lord God, my Father, holy One," based +upon the old chorale, "Wie schön leucht uns der Morgenstern" ("How +brightly shines the Morning Star"), which has always been a favorite in +the church service, and which more than one composer has chosen for the +embellishment of his themes. The chorale is not employed in its original +form, but is elaborated with all the contrapuntal skill for which Bach +was so famous. The next number is a short recitative for the bass voice +("Ye Mortals, hear, all ye who would behold the Face of God"), and leads +to a stately bass aria ("Through Faith the Soul has Eagle's Pinions"). +The cantata closes, after the customary manner of Bach, with a strong, +earnest chorale ("Oh, give me Faith, my Father!"), in plain, solid +harmony, for the use of the congregation, thus forming an effective +devotional climax to the work. + + + Ein' Feste Burg. + + "A safe stronghold our God is still, + A trusty shield and weapon; + He'll help us clear from all the ill + That hath us now o'ertaken. + The ancient Prince of Hell + Hath risen with purpose fell; + Strong mail of craft and power + He weareth in this hour. + On Earth is not his fellow. + + * * * * * + + "And were this world all devils o'er, + And watching to devour us, + We lay it not to heart so sore, + Not they can overpower us. + And let the Prince of Ill + Look grim as e'er he will, + He harms us not a whit; + For why? His doom is writ, + A word shall quickly slay him." + +There is now but little question that Martin Luther not only wrote the +words but the music of the grand old hymn, the first and third stanzas of +which, taken from Carlyle's free and rugged translation, are given above. +Sleidan, a contemporary historian, indeed says that "Luther made a tune +for it singularly suited to the words and adapted to stir the heart." The +date of its composition is a matter of controversy; but it is clear that +it must have been either in 1529 or 1530, and most writers agree that it +was just before the Diet at Augsburg, where it was sung. Niederer, in a +work published at Nuremberg, 1759, fixes the date as 1530, and finds it +in Preussen's psalm-book, printed in 1537. Winterfeld observes it for the +first time in the "Gesangbuch" of the composer Walther, a friend of +Luther. Its usual title is, "Der XLVI. Psalm: Deus noster Refugium et +virtus, pp. D., Martin Luther." It matters little, however, the exact +year in which the sturdy old Reformer wrote the hymn which has stirred +the human heart more than any other. It is indissolubly connected with +his name, and every line of it is a reflex of his indomitable and +God-fearing nature. Heine and Carlyle have paid it noble tributes. The +German poet says:-- + + "The hymn which he composed on his way to Worms,[8] and which he and + his companions chanted as they entered that city, is a regular + war-song. The old cathedral trembled when it heard these novel sounds. + The very rooks flew from their nests in the towers. That hymn, the + Marseillaise of the Reformation, has preserved to this day its potent + spell over German hearts." + +Carlyle still more forcibly says:-- + + "With words he had now learned to make music; it was by deeds of love + or heroic valor that he spoke freely. Nevertheless, though in imperfect + articulation, the same voice, if we listen well, is to be heard also in + his writings, in his poems. The one entitled 'Ein' feste Burg,' + universally regarded as the best, jars upon our ears; yet there is + something in it like the sound of Alpine avalanches, or the first + murmur of earthquakes, in the very vastness of which dissonance a + higher unison is revealed to us. Luther wrote this song in times of + blackest threatenings, which, however, could in no sense become a time + of despair. In these tones, rugged and broken as they are, do we hear + the accents of that summoned man, who answered his friends' warning not + to enter Worms, in this wise: 'Were there as many devils in Worms as + these tile roofs, I would on.'" + +It was the battle-song of the Reformation, stirring men to valiant deeds; +and it did equal service in sustaining and consoling the Reformers in +their darkest hours. "Come, Philip, let us sing the Forty-sixth Psalm," +was Luther's customary greeting to Melanchthon, when the gentler spirit +quailed before approaching danger, or success seemed doubtful. In music +it has frequently served an important purpose. Not only Bach, but other +composers of his time arranged it. Mendelssohn uses it with powerful +effect in his Reformation symphony. Nicolai employs it in his Fest +overture. Meyerbeer more than once puts it in the mouth of Marcel the +Huguenot, when dangers gather about his master, though the Huguenots were +not Lutherans but Calvinists; and Wagner introduces it with overwhelming +power in his triumphal Kaiser March. + +Bitter, in his Life of Bach, says:-- + + "The bicentenary Reformation Festival was celebrated in October and + November, 1717, and at Weimar especially it was, as an old chronicle + tells us, a great jubilee. Bach composed his cantata, 'Ein' feste + Burg,' for the occasion. In this piece it is clear that he had passed + through his first phase of development and reached a higher stage of + perfection." + +Winterfeld is inclined to the same belief; but Spitta, in his exhaustive +biography of Bach, argues that it must have been written either for the +Reformation Festival of 1730, or for the two hundredth anniversary of +Protestantism in Saxony, May 17, 1739. The former date would bring its +composition a year after the completion of his great Passions music, and +four years before his still more famous "Christmas Oratorio,"--a period +when he was at the height of his productive power; which favors the +argument of Spitta, that in 1717 a chorus like the opening one in the +cantata was beyond his capacity.[9] In the year 1730 Bach wrote three +Jubilee cantatas, rearranged from earlier works, and Spitta claims that +it was only about this period that he resorted to this practice. Further, +he adds that "the Chorale Chorus [the opening number], in its grand +proportions and vigorous flow, is the natural and highest outcome of +Bach's progressive development, and he never wrote anything more +stupendous." + +The cantata has eight numbers, three choruses and five solos. The solo +numbers are rearranged from an earlier cantata, "Alles was von Gott +geboren" ("All that is of God's creation"), written for the third Sunday +in Lent, March 15, 1716. The opening number is a colossal fugue based +upon a variation on the old melody and set to the first verse of the +Luther hymn. It is followed by a duet for soprano and bass, including the +second verse of the hymn and an interpolated verse by Franck,[10] who +prepared the text. The third and fourth numbers are a bass recitative and +soprano aria, the words also by Franck, leading up to the second great +chorale chorus set to the words of the third stanza of the hymn, + + "And were the world all devils o'er," + +of which Spitta says:-- + + "The whole chorus sings the _Cantus firmus_ in unison, while the + orchestra plays a whirl of grotesque and wildly leaping figures, + through which the chorus makes its way undistracted and never misled, + an illustration of the third verse, as grandiose and characteristic as + it is possible to conceive." + +The sixth number is a recitative for tenor followed by a duet for alto +and tenor ("How blessed then are they who still on God are calling"). The +work closes with a repetition of the chorale, set to the last verse of +the hymn, sung without accompaniment. The cantata is colossal in its +proportions, and is characterized throughout by the stirring spirit and +bold vigorous feeling of the Reformation days whose memories it +celebrated. + + +[8] This assumption, repeated by others, grows out of the similarity of + sentiment in the third stanza to that of Luther's famous reply when + he was urged not to attend the Diet of Worms. + +[9] There is yet a fourth rearrangement, which we may assign to 1730. The + assertion is no doubt well founded that in this year the celebration + of the Reformation Festival was considered of special importance, and + kept accordingly; and it is evident that the cantata "Ein' feste + Burg" must have been intended for some such extraordinary + solemnity.--_Spitta_, vol. ii. p. 470. + + The Reformation Festival had no doubt a very distinct poetical + sentiment of its own; and when any special occasion took the + precedence, as in 1730 and 1739, the years of Jubilee, it would be + misleading to seek for any close connection between the sermon and + the cantata. Thus the cantata, "Ein' feste Burg," may very well have + been connected with the sermon in 1730; still, it is possible that it + was not written till 1739.--_Ibid._, vol. iii. p. 283. + +[10] Salomo Franck, a poet of more than ordinary ability, was born at + Weimar, March 6, 1759. He published several volumes of sacred lyrics. + + + + + BALFE. + + +Michael William Balfe was born at Dublin, Ireland, May 15, 1808. Of all +the English opera-composers, his career was the most versatile, as his +success, for a time at least, was the most remarkable. At seven years of +age he scored a polacca of his own for a band. In his eighth year he +appeared as a violinist, and in his tenth was composing ballads. At +sixteen he was playing in the Drury Lane orchestra, and about this time +began taking lessons in composition. In 1825, aided by the generosity of +a patron, he went to Italy, where for three years he studied singing and +counterpoint. In his twentieth year he met Rossini, who offered him an +engagement as first barytone at the Italian opera in Paris. He made his +début with success in 1828, and at the close of his engagement returned +to Italy, where he appeared again on the stage. About this time +(1829-1830) he began writing Italian operas, and before he left the +country had produced three which met with considerable success. In 1835 +he returned to England; and it was in this year that his first English +opera, "The Siege of Rochelle," was brought out. It was played +continuously at Drury Lane for over three months. In 1835 appeared his +"Maid of Artois;" in 1837, "Catharine Grey" and "Joan of Arc;" and in +1838, "Falstaff." During these years he was still singing in concerts and +opera, and in 1840 undertook the management of the Lyceum. His finest +works were produced after this date,--"The Bohemian Girl," in 1843; "The +Enchantress," in 1844; "The Rose of Castile," "La Zingara," and +"Satanella," in 1858; and "The Puritan's Daughter" in 1861. His last +opera was "The Knight of the Leopard," known in Italian as "Il +Talismano," which has also been performed in English as "The Talisman." +He married Mademoiselle Rosen, a German singer, whom he met in Italy in +1835. His daughter Victoire, who subsequently married Sir John Crampton, +and afterwards the Duc de Frias, also appeared as a singer in 1856. Balfe +died Oct. 20, 1870, upon his own estate in Hertfordshire. + + + Mazeppa. + +The cantata of "Mazeppa," the words written by Jessica Rankin, was one of +the last productions of Balfe, having been produced in 1862, a year after +"The Puritan's Daughter," and several years after he had passed his +musical prime. The text is based upon the familiar story as told by Byron +in his poem of the wild ride of the page of King Casimir, "The Ukraine's +hetman, calm and bold," and of the + + "noble steed, + A Tartar of the Ukraine breed, + Who looked as though the speed of thought + Was in his limbs." + +The main incidents in the story--the guilty love of the page Mazeppa for +the Count Palatine's Theresa, his surprise and seizure by the spies, her +mysterious fate, the wild flight of the steed with his wretched load +through forest and over desert, and the final rescue by the Cossack +maid--are preserved, but liberties of every description are taken in the +recital of the narrative. It is but a feeble transcript of Byron's +glowing verse, and in its diluted form is but a vulgar story of ordinary +love, jealousy, and revenge. + +The cantata comprises twelve numbers. The first is a prelude in triplets +intended to picture the gallop of the steed, a common enough device since +the days when Virgil did it much better without the aid of musical +notation, in his well-known line,-- + + "Quadrupedante putrem sonitu quatit ungula campum." + +It leads to a stirring chorus which is followed by still another, based +upon a very pleasant melody. The third number is a solo for barytone, in +which the Count gives expression to his jealousy, which brings us to the +heroine, who makes her appearance in a florid number. The next is a duet +for Theresa and Mazeppa, followed by a solo for the tenor (Mazeppa) which +is very effective. The chorus then re-enter and indicate the madness of +the Count in words, the following sample of which will show their +unsingableness:-- + + "Revenge fires his turbulent soul; + No power his boundless rage can control." + +The eighth number is another duet for the Countess and Mazeppa in the +conventional Italian style. It is followed by a graceful aria for tenor, +which leads up to the best number in the work, a trio in canon form. A +final aria by the Count leads to the last chorus, in which the repetition +of the triplet gallop forebodes the ride into the desert and the +punishment of the page. As might be inferred from the description, the +cantata is like Hamlet with _Hamlet_ left out. There is very little of +Mazeppa and his Tartar steed in the work, but very much of the jealousy +and revenge which lead up to the penalty. + + + + + BEETHOVEN. + + +Ludwig von Beethoven was born Dec. 16, 1770, at Bonn, Germany. His father +was a court-singer in the Chapel of the Elector of Cologne. The great +composer studied in Vienna with Haydn, with whom he did not always agree, +however, and afterwards with Albrechtsberger. His first symphony appeared +in 1801,--his earlier symphonies, in what is called his first period, +being written in the Mozart style. His only opera, "Fidelio," for which +he wrote four overtures, was first brought out in Vienna, in 1805; his +oratorio, "Christ on the Mount of Olives," in 1812; and his colossal +Ninth Symphony, with its choral setting of Schiller's "Ode to Joy," in +1824. In addition to his symphonies, his opera, oratorios, and masses, +and the immortal series of piano sonatas, which were almost revelations +in music, he developed chamber music to an extent far beyond that reached +by his predecessors, Mozart and Haydn. His symphonies exhibit surprising +power, a marvellous comprehension of the deeper feelings in life, and the +influences of nature, both human and physical. He wrote with the deepest +earnestness, alike in the passion and the repose of his music, and he +invested it also with a genial humor as well as with the highest +expression of pathos. His works are epic in style. He was the great +tone-poet of music. His subjects were always lofty and dignified, and to +their treatment he brought not only a profound knowledge of musical +technicality, but intense sympathy with the innermost feelings of human +nature, for he was a humanitarian in the broadest sense. By the common +consent of the musical world he stands at the head of all composers since +his time, and has always been their guide and inspiration. He died March +26, 1827, in the midst of a raging thunder-storm,--one of his latest +utterances being a recognition of the "divine spark" in Schubert's music. + + + The Ruins of Athens. + +The most important compositions by Beethoven in 1811 were the music to +two dramatic works written by the poet Kotzebue to celebrate the opening +of the new theatre at Pesth, Hungary. One of these was a prologue in one +act with overture and choruses, entitled "König Stephan,[11] Ungarn's +erster Wohlthäter" ("King Stephen, Hungary's first Benefactor"); the +other, an allegorical sketch, called "The Ruins of Athens," the subject +of which is thus concisely stated by Macfarren:-- + + "Minerva has been since the golden age of Grecian art, the glorious + epoch of Grecian liberty, for some or other important offence against + the Olympian tribunal, the particulars of which I am unable to furnish, + fettered with chains of heaven-wrought adamant by the omnipotent + thunderer within a rock impenetrable alike to the aspirations of man + and to the intelligence of the goddess, a rock through which neither + his spirit of inquiry could approach, nor her wisdom diffuse itself + upon the world. The period of vengeance is past; Jove relents, and the + captive deity is enfranchised. The first steps of her freedom naturally + lead Minerva to the scene of her ancient greatness. She finds Athens, + her Athens, her especially beloved and most carefully cherished city, + in ruins, the descendants of her fostered people enslaved to a + barbarous and fanatic race; the trophies of her former splendor, the + wrecks of that art which is the example and the regret of all time, + appropriated to the most degrading purposes of vulgar householdry; and + the frenzied worshippers of a faith that knows not the divine presence + in its most marvellous manifestation, the intellect of man. Here is no + longer the home of wisdom and the arts; so the liberated goddess + proceeds to Pesth, where she establishes anew her temple in the new + theatre, and presides over a triumphal procession in honor of the + Emperor, its patron, under whose auspices the golden age is to prevail + again." + +After the opening performances the music to "King Stephen" was laid aside +until 1841, when it was given in Vienna; but the after-piece, "The Ruins +of Athens," was presented again during Beethoven's lifetime upon the +occasion of the opening of a theatre in that city. The new text, which +was prepared for it by Carl Meisl, was entitled "Die Weihe des Hauses" +("The Dedication of the House"), and Beethoven wrote for it the overture +which is now so famous, solos for soprano and violin, and a final chorus +with dances. + +The music to the "Ruins of Athens" comprises eight numbers. The overture +is very light and unpretentious, and by many critics, among them +Ferdinand Ries, Beethoven's pupil, has been deemed unworthy of the +composer. Thayer says:-- + + "When the overture was first played at Leipsic, people could hardly + trust their ears, could hardly believe it to be the work of the author + of the symphonies, of the overtures to 'Coriolan,' 'Egmont,' and + 'Leonore' (Fidelio)." + +The opening number is a chorus ("Daughter of mighty Jove, awake!"), which +is followed by a beautiful duet ("Faultless, yet hated"), voicing the +lament of two Greek slaves for the destruction of their temples and the +degradation of their land. The duet is very pathetic in character, and +the melody, carried by the two voices, leaves an impression of sadness +which cannot be resisted. The third number is the well-known chorus of +Dervishes sung in unison by tenors and basses, thus forming a kind of +choral chant. The melody is a weird one, and full of local color, but its +powerful effect is gained by the manner of treatment. It begins +pianissimo and is gradually worked to the extreme pitch of true Dervish +delirium, culminating in the exclamation, "Great Prophet, hail!" and then +gradually subsiding until it dies away, apparently from the exhaustion of +such fervor. It is followed by the familiar Turkish march, founded on the +theme of the Variations in D, op. 76, very simple in construction, +Oriental in its character throughout, and peculiarly picturesque in +effect. After an instrumental movement behind the scenes, a triumphal +march and chorus ("Twine ye a Garland") is introduced. The seventh number +is a recitative and aria by the high priest with chorus, which lead to a +beautifully melodious chorus ("Susceptible Hearts"). An adagio aria for +bass ("Deign, great Apollo") and a vigorous chorus ("Hail, our King") +bring the work to a close. The piece was first brought out in England by +Mendelssohn in 1844 at one of the Philharmonic Society's concerts; and +ten or twelve years later an English version of it was performed at the +Prince's Theatre, when the Royal Exchange and statue of Wellington were +substituted for the Pesth Theatre, and Shakspeare took the place of the +Emperor of Austria, concerning the good taste of which Macfarren pithily +says:-- + + "Modifications admirably adapted to the commercial character and the + blind vainglory that so eminently mark the British nation." + + +[11] Born in the year 977 at Gran, and known in Austrian and Hungarian + history as Saint Stephen. + + + The Glorious Moment. + +In September, 1814, the same year in which the Allies entered Paris, the +Vienna Congress met to adjust the relations of the various European +States. It was an occasion of great moment in the ancient city,--this +gathering of sovereigns and distinguished statesmen,--and the magistracy +prepared themselves to celebrate it with befitting pomp and ceremony. +Beethoven was requested to set a poem, written by Dr. Aloys Weissenbach, +of Salzburg, in cantata form, which was to be sung as a greeting to the +royal visitors. It was "Der glorreiche Augenblick," sometimes written +"Der heilige Augenblick" ("The Glorious Moment"). The time for its +composition was very brief, and was made still shorter by the quarrels +the composer had with the poet in trying to reduce the barbarous text to +a more inspiring and musical form. He began the composition in September, +and it was first performed on the 29th of the following November, +together with the "Battle of Vittoria," and the A major (Seventh) +symphony, written in the previous year. The concert took place in the +presence of the sovereigns and an immense audience which received his +works with every demonstration of enthusiasm, particularly "The Glorious +Moment,"--a moment which all hailed as the precursor of a happier epoch +for Europe, soon to be freed from Napoleonic oppression. The occasion was +one of great benefit to the composer at a time when he was sorely in need +of assistance. The distinguished foreign visitors thronged the salon of +the Archduke Rudolph to pay him homage. Handsome gifts were lavished upon +him so that he was enabled to make a permanent investment of 20,000 marks +in shares of the bank of Austria. Brilliant entertainments were given by +the Russian ambassador, Prince Rasoumowsky,[12] in his palace, at one of +which Beethoven was presented to the sovereigns. The Empress of Russia +also gave him a reception and made him magnificent presents. Schindler +says: + + "Not without feeling did the great master afterwards recall those days + in the Imperial Palace and that of the Russian Prince; and once with a + certain pride remarked that he had allowed the crowned heads to pay + court to him, and that he had carried himself thereby proudly." + +The stern old republican, however, who could rebuke Goethe for taking off +his hat in the presence of royalty, spoke such sentiments jocosely. He +expresses his real feelings in a letter written to the attorney, Herr J. +Kauka, of Prague:-- + + "I write nothing about our monarchs and monarchies, for the newspapers + give you every information on these subjects. The intellectual realm is + the most precious in my eyes, and far above all temporal and spiritual + monarchies." + +The cantata itself, while not one of the most meritorious of the +composer's works, for reasons which are sufficiently apparent, still is +very effective in its choruses. The detailed parts do not need special +description; they are six in number, as follows: No. 1, chorus ("Europa +steht"); No. 2, recitative and chorus ("O, seht sie nah und näher +treten"); No. 3, grand scena, soprano, with violin obligato and chorus +("O Himmel, welch' Entzücken"); No. 4, soprano solo and chorus ("Das Auge +schaut"); No. 5, recitative and quartet for two sopranos, tenor, and bass +("Der den Bund im Sturme festgehalten"); No. 6, chorus and fugue ("Es +treten hervor die Scharen der Frauen"), closing with a stirring "Heil und +Gluck" to Vindobona, the ancient name of the city. In 1836, nine years +after the composer's death, the cantata appeared with a new poetical +setting by Friedrich Rochlitz, under the title of "Preis der Tonkunst" +("Praise of Music"), in which form it was better adapted for general +performance. + +Among other compositions of Beethoven which assimilate to the cantata +form, are Op. 112, "Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt," for four voices, +with orchestra accompaniment; Op. 121, "Opferlied," for soprano solo, +with chorus and orchestra accompaniment; and Op. 122, "Bundeslied," for +two solo voices, three-part chorus, and accompaniment of two clarinets, +two bassoons, and two horns. + + +[12] Prince Rasoumowsky, who was the Russian ambassador at the Austrian + Court for twenty years, was himself a thorough musician, and ranked + as one of the best players in Vienna, of the Haydn and Beethoven + quartets. His instrument was the second violin. + + + + + BENEDICT. + + +Sir Julius Benedict, whose name is so intimately connected with music in +England, was born at Stuttgart, Nov. 27, 1804. After a short period of +study with Hummel at Weimar he became a pupil of Weber. He progressed so +rapidly that at the age of nineteen he conducted operatic performances in +Vienna, and a few years afterwards was leader at the San Carlo in Naples, +where he produced his first opera, "Giacinta ed Ernesto." In 1835 he went +to Paris and thence to London, where he remained until his death. In 1836 +he led the orchestra at the Lyceum Theatre, and was also conductor at +Drury Lane during the memorable seasons in which the best of Balfe's +operas were brought out. It was during this period also that he produced +two of his own operas,--"The Brides of Venice" and "The Crusaders," which +are ranked among his best works of this class. In 1850 he accompanied +Jenny Lind on her memorable tour through this country. On his return to +England he was engaged as conductor at Her Majesty's Theatre, and +afterwards at Drury Lane. In 1860 he produced the cantata of "Undine;" in +1862 the opera "Lily of Killarney;" in 1863 the cantata "Richard Coeur de +Leon;" in 1864 the operetta "Bride of Song;" in 1866 the cantata "St. +Cecilia;" and in 1870 the oratorio "St. Peter." In 1871 he received the +honor of knighthood, and in 1873 brought out a symphony which met with +great success. In 1874, the occasion of his seventieth birthday, he was +made Knight Commander of the orders of Francis and Joseph and of +Frederic, Austrian and Wurtembergian decorations. Nearly every sovereign +in Europe had thus honored him. He was also conductor of the London +Monday Popular Concerts for many years, and directed many chamber +concerts. He died full of honors in June, 1885. + + + St. Cecilia. + +The legend of St. Cecilia for two centuries has inspired the poet and +composer, and the custom of celebrating her festival has obtained in +nearly all European countries during the same period. The earliest +observance was at Evreux, France, in 1571. The first celebration in +England of which any record remains was that of 1683; though it is clear +from the accounts of musical writers in the seventeenth century that the +custom had been practised many years prior to that date. From 1683 to +1750 St. Cecilia festivals were given annually in London, and for these +occasions an ode was written and set to music.[13] In the latter year the +distinctive name of the festival fell into disuse, though large musical +festivals were frequently held after that year on the saint's day. In +France regular entertainments were given on St. Cecilia's Day from 1573 +to 1601, when the record terminates. In Italy the anniversary of the +saint has not been celebrated except as a church festival. In Germany the +custom prevailed as early as the sixteenth century; and in the next +century Cecilia festivals were quite common in Spain. Prior to Benedict's +work the most modern composition having the legend for its basis was a +cantata by Van Bree, of Amsterdam, written in 1845. + +These preliminaries will enable the reader the better to understand the +introduction which Mr. Chorley has written to the text of the cantata by +Benedict, composed for the Norwich Festival of 1866. Mr. Chorley says:-- + + "It has long been a favorite fancy of mine to treat the legend of St. + Cecilia for music with a view to the possible revival of such + celebrations as were held in gone-by years, when English sympathy for + the art was more limited in every respect than at the present time. It + is true that the names of Dryden and Addison among the poets, and of + Handel among the musicians, who have made 'divine Cecilia's' praise + immortal, might be thought to deter anyone from dealing with the + subject. But theirs were merely votive odes indirectly bearing on the + power of the art of which Cecilia is patron saint. This cantata of mine + sets forth her story, which, so far as I am aware, has not been done + before in any of the works produced for the Cecilian festivals in + England. All who are familiar with the accepted legend, as told in the + 'Legenda Aurea' of Jacobus Januensis, Archbishop of Genoa, will + perceive that I have treated it with a certain liberty. Some of the + minor incidents--such as the conversion and martyrdom of Tiburtius, the + brother of Valerianus--have been omitted with a view of avoiding the + introduction of secondary persons, and of concentrating the main + interest in the martyr heroine. Further, the catastrophe which (to cite + Dryden's known line in defiance of its original import) + + "Raised a mortal to the skies," + + has been simplified. The legend narrates that after the agony of slow + fire, which failed to kill the Christian bride, the sword ended her + days. A literal adherence to this tradition might have weakened the + closing scene by presenting two situations of the same character. + Others must judge how far I have been indiscreet, or the reverse, in + its omission." + +The story of the cantata is strikingly similar to that which forms the +theme of Donizetti's opera "Il Poliuto," though the manner of the +conversions differs. In the former it is Valerianus, the lover of +Cecilia, who is turned from heathenism by the angelic vision. In the +latter it is Paulina, the wife of the Roman convert Polyutus, who +witnesses the divine illumination and hears the celestial harps, which +induce her to abjure the worship of the gods and join her husband in +martyrdom. It is in fact the old, old story of the persecutions of a new +faith by the old. Cecilia, though married to Valerianus, hears the divine +call summoning the bride away from her lover until he shall have been +converted. She appeals to Heaven in his behalf. A vision of angels +appears to him and their songs win his soul. The infuriated prefect, who +has but just performed the rites of their marriage, orders their +death,--Valerianus to be beheaded, and Cecilia to die by the slow +martyrdom of fire. The tragedy of the former is left to the imagination. +Cecilia dies surrounded by the angels and hears their voices:-- + + "Before mine eyes, already dim, + Doth heaven unclose the gate; + I hear the choiring seraphim + Around the throne that wait. + To join the song of that bright choir + Thy mercy sets me free; + And so I triumph o'er the fire, + And rise, O Lord, to Thee." + +The work contains thirteen numbers, and the solos are divided as follows: +Cecilia, soprano; Valerianus, tenor; the Prefect of Rome, bass; a +Christian woman, contralto. The remaining numbers are assigned to +choruses of Roman citizens, Christians, and angels. A tender and +sorrowful prelude, foreshadowing the tragedy, introduces a bright and +joyous wedding chorus ("Let the Lutes play their loudest"), which in its +middle part is divided between male and female choir, returning to +four-part harmony in the close. The next number is an ecstatic love-song +for Valerianus ("The Love too deep for Words to speak"), which leads up +to a scena and duet for Valerianus and Cecilia ("O my Lord, if I must +grieve you"), which is very dramatic in its texture. The conversion +music, including an obligato soprano solo with chorus of angels ("Praise +the Lord"), recitative and air for tenor with choral responses ("Cease +not, I pray you"), and an animated chorus of angels ("From our Home"), +follows, and closes the first part. + +The second part opens with the curse of the prefect, a very passionate +aria for bass ("What mean these Zealots vile?"), following which in +marked contrast is a lovely aria for contralto ("Father, whose Blessing +we entreat"). The next number, a quartet with full choral accompaniment +("God is our Hope and Strength"), is one of the most effective in the +work, and is followed by the trial scene, a duet between Valerianus and +the prefect, the latter accompanied by chorus. A short funeral march +intervenes. Valerianus and Cecilia bid each other farewell; the former is +borne away, and Cecilia sings her dying song ("Those whom the Highest One +befriends") amid the triumphant hallelujahs of the angels. + + +[13] The Ode for St. Cecilia's Day in 1683 was written by Christopher + Fishburn and set to music by Purcell. The most famous odes of the + next hundred years were as follows: "A song for St. Cecilia's Day, + 1687," by John Dryden, originally composed by Draghi, afterwards by + Handel; ode by Thomas d'Urfrey, music by Dr. Blow, 1691; "Alexander's + Feast," by Dryden, original music by Jeremiah Clark afterwards + composed by Handel, 1697; ode by Joseph Addison, composed by Purcell, + 1699; "Hymn to Harmony," by Congreve, composed by John Eccles, 1701; + ode by Pope in 1708, set to music in 1757 by William Walond; an ode + by Christopher Smart, composed by William Russell, 1800. + + + + + BENNETT. + + +William Sterndale Bennett, one of the most gifted and individual of +English composers, was born at Sheffield, April 13, 1816. His musical +genius displayed itself early, and in his tenth year he was placed in the +Royal Academy of Music, of which in his later years he became principal. +He received his early instruction in composition from Lucas and Dr. +Crotch, and studied the piano with Cipriani Potter, who had been a pupil +of Mozart. The first composition which gained him distinction was the +Concerto in D minor, written in 1832, which was followed by the Capriccio +in D minor. During the next three years he produced the overture to +"Parisina," the F minor Concerto, and the "Naďades" overture, the success +of which was so great that a prominent musical house in London offered to +send him to Leipsic for a year. He went there, and soon won his way to +the friendship of Schumann and Mendelssohn. With the latter he was on +very intimate terms, which has led to the erroneous statement that he was +his pupil. In 1840 he made a second visit to Leipsic, where he composed +his Caprice in E, and the "Wood Nymphs" overture. In 1842 he returned to +England, and for several years was busily engaged with chamber concerts. +In 1849 he founded the Bach Society, arranged the "Matthew Passion" music +of that composer, as well as his "Christmas Oratorio," and brought out +the former work in 1854. The previous year he was offered the +distinguished honor of the conductorship of the Gewandhaus concerts at +Leipsic, but did not accept. In 1856 he was appointed conductor of the +Philharmonic Society, and filled the position for ten years, resigning it +to take the head of the Royal Academy of Music. In the same year he was +elected musical professor at Cambridge, where he received the degree of +Doctor of Music and other honors. In 1858 his beautiful cantata "The May +Queen" was produced at the Leeds Festival, and in 1862 the "Paradise and +the Peri" overture, written for the Philharmonic Society. In 1867 his +oratorio, or, as he modestly terms it, "sacred cantata," "The Woman of +Samaria," was produced with great success at the Birmingham Festival. In +1870 he was honored with a degree by the University of Oxford, and a year +later received the empty distinction of knighthood. His last public +appearance was at a festival in Brighton in 1874, where he conducted his +"Woman of Samaria." He died Feb. 1, 1875, and was buried in Westminster +Abbey with distinguished honors. + + + The May Queen. + +"The May Queen," a pastoral cantata, the libretto by Henry F. Chorley, +was first performed at the Leeds Festival of 1858. The solo parts are +written for the May Queen (soprano); the Queen (contralto); the Lover +(tenor); and the Captain of the Foresters, as Robin Hood (bass). The +opening scene pictures the dressing of the tree for the spring festivity +on the banks of the Thames, and the preparations for the reception of the +May Queen. A despondent lover enters and sings his melancholy plight as +he reflects upon the fickleness of the May Queen, interrupted at +intervals by the merry shouts of the chorus:-- + + "With a laugh as we go round + To the merry, merry sound + Of the tabor and the pipe, + We will frolic on the green; + For since the world began, + And our royal river ran, + Was never such a May Day, + And never such a Queen." + +The lover continues his doleful lamenting, which is at last interrupted +by the entrance of the May Queen herself, who chides him for his +complaints and argues her right to coquet on such a day. As their +interview closes, a band of foresters enter with their greenwood king, +Robin Hood, at their head, who after a rollicking hunting-song makes open +love to the May Queen. The enraged lover resents his impertinence, and at +last strikes him a blow, which by the laws exposes him to the loss of his +hand. Before he can make his escape there is a flourish of trumpets, and +the Queen enters and demands the reason for the brawl. The revellers +inform her that the lover has struck the forester. She orders his arrest, +whereupon the May Queen intercedes with her for her lover's release and +declares her affection for him. Her appeal for mercy is granted. The +forester is banished from the royal presence for lowering himself to the +level of a peasant girl, the May Queen is ordered to wed her lover on the +coming morn, and all ends happily with the joyous chorus:-- + + "And the cloud hath passed away, + That was heavy on the May; + And the river floweth fair, + And the meadow bloometh green. + They embrace, no more to part, + While we sing from every heart, + A blessing on the bridal! + A blessing on the Queen!" + +The music of the cantata is divided into ten numbers, which are +characterized by exquisite refinement and artistic taste. The solos, +particularly No. 2, for tenor ("O Meadow, clad in early Green"), No. 4, +the obligato soprano ("With the Carol in the Tree"), and No. 6, the +forester's lusty greenwood song ("'Tis jolly to hunt in the bright +Moonlight"), are very melodious, and well adapted to the individual +characters. The concerted music is written in the most scholarly manner, +the choruses are full of life and spirit, and the instrumentation is +always effective. There are few more beautiful cantatas than "The May +Queen," though the composer was hampered by a dull and not very inspiring +libretto. Poor words, however, could not affect his delightful grace and +fancy, which manifest themselves in every number of this little pastoral. +It is surprising that so excellent a work, and one which is so well +adapted to chorus singing and solo display, without making very severe +demands upon the singers, is not more frequently given in this country. + + + The Exhibition Ode. + +The music for the opening of the International Exhibition at London, +which occurred in May, 1862, was of unusual excellence. Auber sent a +composition which, though called a march, was in reality a brilliant +overture. Meyerbeer contributed an overture in march form, in which three +marches were blended in one, the whole culminating in "Rule Britannia." +Verdi wrote a cantata, which was rejected by the Commissioners because by +the side of the national anthem he had introduced the revolutionary +Marseillaise and the Italian war-song called "Garibaldienne." Its +rejection not only caused great indignation in the musical world, but at +once made it famous; and it was afterwards publicly performed, +Mademoiselle Titiens taking the soprano solos, Sir Julius Benedict +conducting. + +The prominent feature of the musical programme, however, was the Ode +which the poet laureate and Bennett conjointly furnished. Never before +were Mr. Tennyson's verses more completely united with music. The work is +divided into three parts, all choral, linked by recitatives. The first +number is a hymn to the Deity ("Uplift a thousand Voices full and +sweet"), written as a four-part chorale, which is very jubilant in style. +The next movement,-- + + "O silent father of our kings to be, + Mourned in this golden hour of jubilee, + For this, for all, we weep our thanks to thee," + +eloquently referring to the Prince Consort, is set in the minor key, and +is one of the most pathetic musical passages ever written. Then follows a +descriptive catalogue of the industries represented,--"harvest tool and +husbandry," "loom and wheel and engin'ry," and so on, through which the +music labors some, as might have been expected; but in the close it once +more resumes its melodious flow, leading up to the final chorus, in which +the theme of the opening chorale is borrowed and developed with peculiar +originality and artistic skill into a movement of great richness in +effects and beauty in expression. It is unfortunate for the popularity of +such an excellent work that it was composed for a special occasion. + + + + + BERLIOZ. + + +Hector Berlioz, one of the most renowned of modern French composers, and +an acute critic and skilful conductor as well, was born, Dec. 11, 1803, +at La Côte St. André, in France. His father was a physician, and intended +him for the same profession. He reluctantly went to Paris and began the +study of medicine; but music became his engrossing passion, and medicine +was abandoned. He entered the Conservatory as a pupil of Lesueur, and +soon showed himself superior to all his masters except Cherubini, which +aroused a strong opposition to him and his compositions. It was only +after repeated trials that he took the first prize, which entitled him to +go to Italy for three years. On his return to Paris he encountered +renewed antipathy. His music was not well received, and he was obliged to +support himself by conducting at concerts and writing articles for the +press. As a final resort he organized a concert-tour through Germany and +Russia, the details of which are contained in his extremely interesting +Autobiography. At these concerts his own music was the staple of the +programmes, and it met with great success, though not always played by +the best of orchestras, and not always well by the best, as his own +testimony shows; for his compositions are very exacting, and call for +every resource known to the modern orchestra. The Germans were quick in +appreciating his music; but it was not until after his death that his +ability was conceded in France. In 1839 he was appointed librarian of the +Conservatory, and in 1856 was made a member of the French Academy. These +were the only honors he received, though he long sought to obtain a +professorship in the Conservatory. A romantic but sad incident in his +life was his violent passion for Miss Smithson, an Irish actress, whom he +saw upon the Paris stage in the _rôle_ of Ophelia, at a time when Victor +Hugo had revived an admiration for Shakspeare among the French. He +married her, but did not live with her long, owing to her bad temper and +ungovernable jealousy; though after the separation he honorably +contributed to her support out of the pittance he was earning. Among his +great works are the opera, "Benvenuto Cellini;" the symphony with chorus, +"Romeo and Juliet;" "Beatrice and Benedict;" "Les Troyens," the text from +Virgil's "Ćneid;" the symphony, "Harold in Italy;" the symphony, "Funčbre +et Triomphe;" the "Damnation of Faust;" a double-chorused "Te Deum;" the +"Symphony Fantastique;" the "Requiem;" and the sacred trilogy, "L'Enfance +du Christ." Berlioz stands among all other composers as the foremost +representative of "programme music," and has left explicit and very +detailed explanations of the meaning of his works, so that the hearer may +listen intelligently by seeing the external objects his music is intended +to picture. In the knowledge of individual instruments and the grouping +of them for effect, in warmth of imagination and brilliancy of color, and +in his daring combinations and fantastic moods, which are sometimes +carried to the very verge of eccentricity, he is a colossus among modern +musicians. He died in Paris, March 8, 1869. + + + Romeo and Juliet. + +"Dramatic symphony, with choruses, solos, chant, and prologue in choral +recitative" is the title which Berlioz gives to his "Romeo and Juliet." +It was written in 1839, and its composition commemorates an interesting +episode in his career. In the previous year he had written his symphony +"Harold in Italy," the subject inspired by Byron's "Childe Harold." +Paganini, the wonder of the musical world at that time, was present at +its performance, and was so pleased with the work that he sent Berlioz an +enthusiastic tribute of applause as well as of substantial +remembrance.[14] The composer at that time was in straitened +circumstances, and in his gratitude for this timely relief he resolved to +write a work which should be worthy of dedication to the great violinist. +His Autobiography bears ample testimony to the enthusiasm with which he +worked. He says:-- + + "At last, after much indecision, I hit upon the idea of a symphony, + with choruses, vocal solos, and choral recitatives, on the sublime and + ever novel theme of Shakspeare's 'Romeo and Juliet.' I wrote in prose + all the text intended for the vocal pieces which came between the + instrumental selections. Émile Deschamps, with his usual delightful + good-nature and marvellous facility, set it to verse for me, and I + began.... + + "During all that time how ardently did I live! How vigorously I struck + out on that grand sea of poetry caressed by the playful breeze of + fancy, beneath the hot rays of that sun of love which Shakspeare + kindled, always confident of my power to reach the marvellous island + where stands the temple of true art! Whether I succeeded or not it is + not for me to decide." + +The work opens with a fiery introduction representing the combats and +tumults of the two rival houses of Capulet and Montague, and the +intervention of the Prince. It is followed by a choral recitative for +four altos, tenors, and basses ("Long smouldering Hatreds"), with which +is interwoven a contralto solo ("Romeo too is there"), the number closing +with a passionate chorus ("The Revels now are o'er"). A beautiful effect +is made at this point by assigning to the alto voice two couplets ("Joys +of first Love") which are serious in style but very rich in melody. A +brief bit of choral recitative and a few measures for tenor--Mercutio's +raillery--lead up to a dainty scherzetto for tenor solo and small chorus +("Mab! bright Elf of Dreamland"), and a short choral passage brings this +scene to a close. + +The second scene, which is for orchestra only, an impressive declamatory +phrase developing into a tender melody, representing the sadness of +Romeo, set in tones against the brilliant dance music in the distance +accompanying the revel of the Capulets, is one of the most striking +effects Berlioz has accomplished, and illustrates his astonishing command +of instrumentation. The third scene represents Capulet's garden in the +stillness of night, the young Capulets passing through it, bidding each +other adieu and repeating snatches of the dance music. As their strains +die away in the distance the balcony scene between Romeo and Juliet is +given by the orchestra alone in a genuine love-poem full of passion and +sensuousness. No words could rival the impassioned beauty of this +melodious number. The fourth scene is also given to the orchestra, and is +a setting of Mercutio's description of Queen Mab. It is a scherzo +intensely swift in its movement and almost ethereal in its dainty, +graceful rhythm. The instrumentation is full of subtle effects, +particularly in the romantic passages for the horns. + +In the fifth scene we pass from the tripping music of the fairies to the +notes of woe. It describes the funeral procession of Juliet, beginning +with a solemn march in fugue style, at first instrumental, with +occasional entrances of the voices in monotone, and then vocal ("O mourn, +O mourn, strew choicest Flowers"), the monotone being assigned to the +instruments. It preludes a powerful orchestral scene representing Romeo's +invocation, Juliet's awakening, and the despair and death of the +lovers.[15] The finale is mainly for double chorus, representing the +quarrel between the Montagues and Capulets in the cemetery, which is +written with great dramatic power and conceived on the large scale of an +operatic _ensemble_ both in the voice parts and instrumentation, and the +final reconciliation through the intercession of Friar Laurence, whose +declamatory solos are very striking, particularly the air, "Poor Children +mine, let me mourn you." The work is one of almost colossal difficulty, +and requires great artists, singers and players, to give expression to +its daring realism. Among all of Berlioz's programme-music, this +tone-picture of the principal episodes in Shakspeare's tragedy stands out +clear and sharp by virtue of its astonishing dramatic power. + + +[14] My dear Friend,--Beethoven is dead, and Berlioz alone can revive + him. I have heard your divine composition, so worthy of your genius, + and beg you to accept, in token of my homage, twenty thousand francs, + which will be handed to you by the Baron de Rothschild on + presentation of the enclosed.--Your most affectionate friend, + Nicolo Paganini. + Paris, Dec. 18, 1838. + +[15] Composer's Note. The public has no imagination; therefore pieces + which are addressed solely to the imagination have no public. The + following instrumental scene is in this case, and I think it should + be omitted whenever this symphony is given before an audience not + having a feeling for poetry, and not familiar with the fifth act of + Shakspeare's tragedy. This implies its omission ninety-nine times out + of a hundred. It presents, moreover, immense difficulties of + execution. Consequently, after Juliet's funeral procession a moment + of silence should be observed, then the finale should be taken up. + + + The Damnation of Faust. + +The "Damnation of Faust," dramatic legend, as Berlioz calls it, was +written in 1846. It is divided in four parts, the first containing three, +the second four, the third six, and the fourth five scenes, the last +concluding with an epilogue and the apotheosis of Marguerite. It was +first produced in Paris in November, 1846, and had its first hearing in +this country Feb. 12, 1880, when the late Dr. Leopold Damrosch brought it +out with the assistance of the New York Symphony, Oratorio, and Arion +Societies. + +Berlioz has left in his Autobiography an extremely interesting account of +the manner in which he composed it. Though he had had the plan of the +work in his mind for many years, it was not until 1846 that he began the +legend. During this year he was travelling on a concert-tour through +Austria, Hungary, Bohemia, and Silesia, and the different numbers were +written at intervals of leisure. He says:-- + + "I wrote when I could and where I could; in the coach, on the railroad, + in steamboats, and even in towns, notwithstanding the various cares + entailed by my concerts." + +He began with Faust's invocation to Nature, which was finished "in my old +German post-chaise." The introduction was written in an inn at Passau, +and at Vienna he finished up the Elbe scene, Mephistopheles' song, and +the exquisite Sylph's ballet. As to the introduction of the Rákóczy +march, his words deserve quoting in this connection, as they throw some +light on the general character of the work. He says:-- + + "I have already mentioned my writing a march at Vienna, in one night, + on the Hungarian air of Rákóczy. The extraordinary effect it produced + at Pesth made me resolve to introduce it in Faust, by taking the + liberty of placing my hero in Hungary at the opening of the act, and + making him present at the march of a Hungarian army across the plain. A + German critic considered it most extraordinary in me to have made Faust + travel in such a place. I do not see why, and I should not have + hesitated in the least to bring him in in any other direction if it + would have benefited the piece. I had not bound myself to follow + Goethe's plot, and the most eccentric travels may be attributed to such + a personage as Faust without transgressing the bounds of possibility. + Other German critics took up the same thesis, and attacked me with even + greater violence about my modifications of Goethe's text and plot; just + as though there were no other Faust but Goethe's, and as if it were + possible to set the whole of such a poem to music without altering its + arrangement. I was stupid enough to answer them in the preface to the + 'Damnation of Faust.' I have often wondered why I was never reproached + about the book of 'Romeo and Juliet,' which is not very like the + immortal tragedy. No doubt because Shakspeare was not a German. + Patriotism! Fetichism! Idiotcy!" + +One night when he had lost his way in Pesth he wrote the choral refrain +of the "Ronde des Paysans" by the gaslight in a shop; and at Prague he +arose in the middle of the night to write down the Angels' Chorus in +Marguerite's apotheosis. At Breslau he wrote the Students' Latin Song, +"Jam nox stellata velamina pandit;" and on his return to France he +composed the grand trio in the work while visiting a friend near Rouen. +He concludes: + + "The rest was written in Paris, but always improvised, either at my own + house, or at the café, or in the Tuileries gardens, and even on a stone + in the Boulevard du Temple. I did not search for ideas, I let them + come; and they presented themselves in a most unforeseen manner. When + at last the whole outline was sketched, I set to work to re-do the + whole, touch up the different parts, unite and blend them together with + all the patience and determination of which I am capable, and to finish + off the instrumentation, which had only been indicated here and there. + I look upon this as one of my best works, and hitherto the public seems + to be of the same opinion." + +This opinion, however, was of slow growth, for of the first performance +of the work he says:-- + + "It was the end of November, 1846; snow was falling; the weather was + dreadful. I had no fashionable cantatrice to sing the part of + Marguerite. As for Roger, who did Faust, and Herman Léon, who took the + part of Mephistopheles, they might be heard any day in this same + theatre; moreover, they were no longer the fashion. The result was that + Faust was twice performed to a half-empty room. The concert-going + Parisian public, supposed to be fond of music, stayed quietly at home, + caring as little about my new work as if I had been an obscure student + at the Conservatoire; and these two performances at the Opéra Comique + were no better attended than if they had been the most wretched operas + on the list." + +The opening scene introduces Faust alone in the fields at sunrise on the +Hungarian plains. He gives expression to his delight in a tender, placid +strain ("The Winter has departed, Spring is here"). It is followed by an +instrumental prelude of a pastoral character, in which are heard +fragments of the roundelay of the peasants and of the fanfare in the +Hungarian march, leading up to the "Dance of Peasants," a brisk, +vivacious chorus ("The Shepherd donned his best Array"), beginning with +the altos, who are finally joined by the sopranos, tenors, and basses in +constantly accelerating time. The scene then changes to another part of +the plain and discloses the advance of an army to the brilliant and +stirring music of the Rákóczy march.[16] + +The second part (Scene IV.) opens in north Germany and discloses Faust +alone in his chamber, as in Gounod's opera; he sings a soliloquy, setting +forth his discontent with worldly happiness, and is about to drown his +sorrow with poison, when he is interrupted by the Easter Hymn ("Christ is +risen from the Dead"), a stately and jubilant six-part chorus, in the +close of which he joins. As it comes to an end he continues his song +("Heavenly Tones, why seek me in the Dust?"), but is again interrupted by +the sudden apparition of Mephistopheles, who mockingly sings, "Oh, pious +Frame of Mind," and entraps him in the compact. They disappear, and we +next find them in Auerbach's cellar in Leipsic, where the carousing +students are singing a rollicking drinking-song ("O what Delight when +Storm is crashing"). The drunken Brander is called upon for a song, and +responds with a characteristic one ("There was a Rat in the Cellar +Nest"), to which the irreverent students improvise a fugue on the word +"Amen," using a motive of the song. Mephistopheles compliments them on +the fugue, and being challenged to give them an air trolls out the lusty +_lied_, "There was a King once reigning, who had a big black Flea," in +the accompaniment of which Berlioz makes some very realistic effects. +Amid the bravas of the drunken students they disappear again, and are +next found in the flowery meadows of the Elbe, where Mephistopheles sings +a most enchanting melody ("In this fair Bower"). Faust is lulled to +slumber, and in his vision hears the chorus of the gnomes and sylphs +("Sleep, happy Faust"), a number of extraordinary beauty and fascinating +charm. Its effect is still further heightened by the sylphs' ballet in +waltz time. As they gradually disappear, Faust wakes and relates to +Mephistopheles his vision of the "angel in human form." The latter +promises to conduct him to her chamber, and they join a party of soldiers +and students who will pass "before thy beauty's dwelling." The finale of +the scene is composed of a stirring soldiers' chorus ("Stoutly-walled +Cities we fain would win") and a characteristic students' song in Latin +("Jam nox stellata"), at first sung separately and then combined with +great skill. + +The third part begins with a brief instrumental prelude, in which the +drums and trumpets sound the tattoo, introducing a scene in Marguerite's +chamber, where Faust sings a passionate love-song ("Thou sweet Twilight, +be welcome"), corresponding with the well-known "Salve dimora" in +Gounod's garden scene. At its close Mephistopheles warns him of the +approach of Marguerite and conceals him behind a curtain. She enters, and +in brief recitative tells her dream, in which she has seen the image of +Faust, and discloses her love for him. Then while disrobing she sings the +ballad "There was a King in Thule." As its pathetic strains come to a +close, the music suddenly changes and Mephistopheles in a characteristic +strain summons the will-o'-the-wisps to bewilder the maiden. It is +followed by their lovely and graceful minuet, in which Berlioz again +displays his wonderful command of orchestral realism. It is followed by +Mephistopheles' serenade ("Why dost thou wait at the Door of thy +Lover?"), with a choral accompaniment by the will-o'-the-wisps, +interspersed with demoniac laughter. The last number is a trio ("Angel +adored") for Marguerite, Faust, and Mephistopheles, wonderfully +expressive in its utterances of passion, and closing with a chorus of +mockery which indicates the coming tragedy. + +The fourth part opens with a very touching romance ("My Heart with Grief +is heavy"), the familiar "Meine Ruh' ist hin" of Goethe, sung by +Marguerite, and the scene closes with the songs of the soldiers and +students heard in the distance. In the next scene Faust sings a sombre +and powerful invocation to Nature ("O boundless Nature, Spirit sublime"). +Mephistopheles is seen scaling the rocks and in agitated recitative tells +his companion the story of Marguerite's crime and imprisonment. He bids +him sign a scroll which will save him from the consequences of the deed, +and Faust thus delivers himself over to the Evil One. Then begins the +wild "Ride to Hell," past the peasants praying at the cross, who flee in +terror as they behold the riders, followed by horrible beasts, monstrous +birds, and grinning, dancing skeletons, until at last they disappear in +an abyss and are greeted by the chorus of the spirits of hell in a +tempest of sound, which is literally a musical pandemonium ("Has! Irimiru +Karabras," etc.) in its discordant vocal strains and in the mighty +dissonances and supernatural effects in the accompaniment. A brief +epilogue, "On Earth," follows, in which Faust's doom is told, succeeded +by a correspondingly brief one, "In Heaven," in which the seraphim plead +for Marguerite. The legend closes with "Marguerite's Glorification," a +jubilant double chorus announcing her pardon and acceptance among the +blest. + + +[16] This march, though the best known of all Hungarian airs, is liable + to be confounded with others bearing the same name. It forms one of + the group of national patriotic melodies called into existence by the + heroism of the Transylvanian prince Franz Rákótzy, who at the + beginning of the last century fought with rare valor, though little + success, against the dominating power of Austria. Who composed it + remains as unknown as the authorship of its less familiar companions; + but though the origin of the tune, like that of so many others which + nations cherish, is veiled in mystery, the march has enjoyed an + enviable prominence. It was proscribed by the Austrian Government in + the bad days when Hungary was treated as a conquered appanage of the + Hapsburgs; its performance was a criminal act, and the possession of + printed or written copies, if suspected, brought down domiciliary + visits from the police.--_Albert Hall Programmes_, 1874. + + + + + BRAHMS. + + +Johannes Brahms, one of the most eminent of living German composers, was +born at Hamburg, May 7, 1833. His father was a double-bass player in the +orchestra in that city, and devoted his son at a very early age to his +own profession. His first piano teacher was Cossell; but to Edward +Marxsen, the royal music director, he owes his real success as a +composer. Brahms remained in Hamburg until 1853, when he went upon a +concert-tour with Reményí, the eccentric and somewhat sensational +Hungarian, who has been a familiar figure upon the American +concert-stage. He remained with him however but a very short time, for in +October of that year they parted company. Brahms had attracted the notice +of Liszt and Joachim, and it may have been through their advice that the +musical partnership was dissolved. In any event, soon after leaving +Reményí he went to Düsseldorf and visited Schumann, who announced him to +the musical world in a very enthusiastic manner. The next year (1854) +appeared his first works,--three sonatas, a trio and scherzo for piano, +and three books of songs. After a visit to Liszt at Weimar he settled +down as chorus-conductor and music-teacher at the court of Lippe-Detmold, +where he remained a few years. After leaving Detmold he successively +resided in Hamburg, Zürich, and Baden-Baden, though most of his time has +been spent in Vienna, where he has directed the Singakademie and the +concerts of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde. Among his most famous +compositions are a funeral hymn for chorus and wind-band; the "German +Requiem;" "Triumphlied," for double chorus and orchestra; +"Schicksalslied," for chorus and orchestra; six symphonies; variations on +a theme of Haydn, for orchestra; the "Tragic" and "Academic" overtures; +besides several trios, quartets, quintets, sextets, concertos, and +sonatas. + + + Triumphlied. + +"Triumphlied" ("Song of Triumph") was written by Brahms in commemoration +of the victories of German arms and the re-establishment of the Empire, +and is dedicated to "the German Emperor Wilhelm I." It was first +performed at the fifty-first festival of the Lower Rhine at Cologne in +1873. The text is a paraphrase of certain verses in the nineteenth +chapter of Revelation, and reads as follows:-- + + "Hallelujah, praise the Lord! Honor and power and glory to God! + + "For in righteousness and truth the Lord giveth judgment. + + "Glory be to God, all ye His servants, and ye that fear Him, all both + humble and mighty. + + "Hallelujah, for the omnipotent God hath exalted His kingdom. + + "O, be joyful, let all be glad, to Him alone give honor. + + "Behold, the heavens opened wide, and yonder a snow-white horse, and on + him sat one called Steadfast and Faithful, who warreth and judgeth all + with righteousness. + + "And he treads the wine-press of wrath of the Lord God Almighty. + + "Lo! a great name hath he written upon his vesture and upon his girdle. + + "A King of kings and Lord of lords! Hallelujah! Amen!" + +The scriptural selections are divided into three movements, written for +double chorus (with the exception of two short barytone solos), +orchestra, and organ, and are introduced by a brief instrumental prelude +of a solemn but animated and exultant character, in the closing measures +of which both choirs break in with jubilant shouts of "Hallelujah! praise +the Lord!" The theme of the movement is the stirring old German song +"Heil dir im Siegerkranz,"[17] which is worked up with consummate skill. +The first part closes with a climax of power and contrapuntal effect +hardly to be found elsewhere outside the choruses of Handel. + +The second movement ("Glory be to God!") is of the same general character +as the first. After the opening ascription, a short fugue intervenes, +leading to a fresh melody alternately sung by both choruses. + +The third movement, after a very brief but spirited orchestral flourish, +opens with an exultant barytone solo ("And behold then the Heavens opened +wide"). The choruses respond with animation ("And yonder a snow-white +Horse"). Again the barytone intervenes ("And lo! a great Name hath He +written"), and then the choruses take up the majestic theme, "King of +Kings and Lord of Lords," each answering the other with triumphant shouts +that gather force and fire as they proceed, and closing with a mighty +hallelujah in which voices, orchestra, and organ join with fullest power +to produce one of the grandest harmonies ever written. The work is one of +extreme difficulty, as the two choirs are treated independently and their +harmonies are complicated, though blended in general effect. Neither +choir receives assistance from the other. In fact, each rank of voices is +required to perform music of the most exacting kind, so that a perfect +performance of this great jubilee hymn requires singers of trained skill +and more than ordinary intelligence. When thus given, few choruses of +modern times reveal such artistic richness and symmetrical proportions. + + +[17] A German national song, written by Heinrich Harries, a Holstein + clergyman, for the birthday of Christian VII. of Denmark. It was + originally in eight stanzas, but was reduced to five and otherwise + slightly modified for Prussian use by B. G. Schumacher, and in this + form appeared as a "Berliner Volkslied" in the _Spenersche Zeitung_ + of Dec. 17, 1793.--_Grove's Dictionary_. + + + + + BRUCH. + + +Max Bruch, one of the most successful choral composers of the present +time, was born at Cologne, Jan. 6, 1838. His father was a government +official, and his mother a singer of more than ordinary ability. He +received his early instructions, under her watchful supervision, from +Professor Breidenstein, at Bonn. In 1852 he continued his studies with +Hiller, Reinecke, and Breuning, at Cologne; and at this time began to +produce compositions which gave unusual promise. In 1865 he was musical +director at Coblenz, and subsequently at Berlin, where he conducted the +Singakademie. In 1867 he was appointed chapel-master to the Prince of +Schwarzburg-Sondershausen,--a post which he held until 1870. Since that +time he has also been honored with a call to the directorship of the +Liverpool Philharmonic Society. For some years past he has lived at Bonn +and Berlin, and devoted himself exclusively to composition. His first +public appearance as a composer was in connection with the performance of +his operetta, "Scherz, List und Rache," set to Goethe's words; following +which he produced several chamber compositions, among them a trio (op. +5), two string quartets (op. 9, 10), Capriccio (op. 2) for four hands, +Fantasie (op. 11) for two pianos, the G minor and D minor violin +concertos, besides two symphonies. He has also written an oratorio, +"Arminius," and two operas, "Loreley," to the text which the poet Geibel +wrote for Mendelssohn, and "Hermione," an adaptation of Shakspeare's +"Winter's Tale." His greatest successes, however, have been made with his +works in the cantata form, as he is a recognized master in writing for +large masses of voices and instruments, though many of his solo melodies +possess great beauty. In this class of his compositions the most +conspicuous are "Scenes from the Frithjof-Saga," familiarly known as +"Frithjof," "Flight of the Holy Family," "Roman Triumph Song," "Roman +Obsequies," "Salamis," "Fair Ellen," "Odysseus," and "Rorate Coeli." + + + Frithjof. + +The story of the old Norse hero Frithjof is told with exceeding spirit +and beauty in the "Frithjof's Saga" of Esaias Tegnér, Bishop of Wexiö, +Sweden, which has been translated into almost every European language, +and to which music has been adapted by Crusell, Hedda Wrangel, Boman, +Sandberg, Zanders, Caroline Ridderstolpe, Panny, Silcher, and other +Scandinavian and German composers. It was Bishop Tegnér's Saga from which +Bruch derived the incidents of his musical setting of this stirring Norse +theme.[18] + +To make the text of the libretto intelligible, the incidents leading up +to it must be briefly told. Frithjof was the son of Thorstein, a friend +of King Bele of Baldershage, and was in love with Ingeborg, the king's +daughter and his foster sister. Bele died, and left his kingdom to his +two sons. When Thorstein passed away, he bequeathed to his son his ship +"Ellida" and his gold ring. Soon thereafter Frithjof sailed across the +fiord to demand the hand of Ingeborg. Her brothers Helge and Halfdan +scorned his suit, whereupon Frithjof swore they should never have help +from him. King Ring, a neighboring monarch, hearing of the trouble +between them, improved the opportunity to menace their kingdom. The +brothers appealed to Frithjof for aid, but he turned a deaf ear; and when +they took the field against Bele, he returned to Baldershage and made +love to Ingeborg, with whom he exchanged rings. Helge and Halfdan were +defeated by Ring, and as part of the indemnity he demanded Ingeborg's +hand. Finding upon their return that Frithjof had been there without +their permission, they required him as a penalty to go to the Orkneys and +collect the tribute which the islanders had neglected to pay since the +death of Bele. Frithjof sailed away in "Ellida." Meanwhile the brothers +resorted to witchcraft to raise a storm that should destroy his vessel, +burned his barrow, and married the lamenting Ingeborg to Ring. + +It is at this point that the text of the cantata begins. The first scene +pictures the return of Frithjof and his joy at the prospect of seeing +Ingeborg, whose hand the false brothers had promised him if he were +successful. Learning what had occurred in his absence, Frithjof goes to +the temple where the kings are sacrificing, hurls the tribute in Helge's +face, fires the edifice, and hurries to the sea, pursued by his enemies. +The hero sails away again in "Ellida," and becomes a sea-rover. The text +closes with this incident. In the Saga, after gaining great fame, +Frithjof returns and goes disguised as a salt-burner to Ring's palace. +The king recognized him, and moved by his sad story became his friend and +appointed him guardian of his heir. Ring died soon after, and Frithjof +married Ingeborg. Helge and Halfdan made war against him, Helge was +killed, and Halfdan became his vassal. + +The cantata opens with an animated instrumental introduction, "Frithjof's +Return," leading to the barytone recitative and aria ("How bravely o'er +the Flood so bright"),--a very expressive song, interspersed with the +tender, graceful chorus of his companions ("O, 'tis Delight when the Land +far appeareth"). The second scene is preluded with a wedding march, whose +blithe measures are in marked contrast with the bridal chorus ("Sadly the +Skald walks before the Train"), and Ingeborg's song ("My Heart with +Sorrow overflowing"), which describes her grief over her unhappy destiny. +The third scene ("Frithjof's Revenge"), for barytone, chorus, and +orchestra, is one of great power in its dramatic and descriptive +character, as well as in its masterly instrumentation. It begins with a +chorus of priests ("Midnight Sun on the Mountain burns"), gradually +accelerating until it is interrupted by Frithjof's cry ("Go to Helas' +dark Abode"). Three bars of chorus intervene ("Woe! O wicked Deed"), when +Frithjof, after a short recitative, sings a spirited aria ("Where my +Father rests"). At its close, as he rescues Ingeborg's ring and fires the +temple, the chorus resumes ("Woe! he tugs with all his Might at the +Ring"). The choral finale of this scene, with its effective +instrumentation, is a masterpiece of dramatic music, worthy to rank with +the highest work of its kind in opera. After the storm, the calm. In that +calm occurs a melodical episode of an extraordinary character. The melody +itself is so unlike anything which precedes or follows it that it must +have been interpolated. In grateful contrast with the revenge of +Frithjof, the burning of the temple, and the curses of the infuriated +priests, comes the fourth scene, "Frithjof's Departure from the +Northland,"--a solo quartet for male voices ("Sun in the Sky now mounteth +high"), of exquisite harmony, leading up to and accompanying a barytone +solo which has rarely been surpassed in the tender beauty of its melody +or the majestic sonority of its style:[19]-- + + "World's grandest region, thou mighty North! + From thy dominions I am driven forth; + Within thy border I lov'd to dwell; + Midsummer sun, farewell, farewell. + Thou mighty North, farewell. + My love is foiled, my roof-tree rent, + Mine honor soiled, I in exile sent! + Cheerless is my soul within me, + Hopeless I must bear my lot. + Ye rugged mountains, where heroes dwell, + And Thor commandeth clouds and winds; + Ye azure lakes, that I love so well, + Ye woods and brakes, farewell." + +The fifth scene is Ingeborg's lament for her lost lover ("Storms wildly +roar"),--a soprano solo, which, if not as dramatic as the music assigned +to Frithjof, is nevertheless full of beautiful sentiment. The work closes +with a delightful chorus, with short phrases for Frithjof ("Now he +crosseth the Floods of the salt desert Waste"), supposed to be sung on +board the hero's good ship "Ellida" as they sail off for conquest and the +enjoyment of the booty he has promised his companions. + + +[18] An admirable translation of the Saga was made by George Stephens, + published in London and Stockholm in 1839. It includes besides the + Saga, a life of Tegnér, by Bishop Franzén of Hernösand, Sweden; the + Frithjof literature; description of Ingeborg's Arm Ring, by + Hildebrand, the Royal Antiquarian of Sweden; Crusell's songs; and + numerous notes and illustrations. + +[19] In the original Saga the "Farewell" has six verses, the first, + second, and sixth of which are thus literally translated:-- + + "Heimskringla's forehead, + Thou lofty North! + Away I'm hurried + From this thine earth. + My race from thee goes, + I boasting tell; + Now, nurse of heroes, + Farewell! Farewell! + + "Farewell, high-gleaming + Walhalla's throne, + Night's eye, bright-beaming, + Midsummer's sun! + Sky! where, as in hero's + Soul, pure depths dwell, + And thronging star-rows, + Farewell! Farewell! + + * * * * * + + "My love insulted, + My palace brent, + My honor tarnished, + In exile sent, + From land in sadness + To the sea we appeal, + But life's young gladness, + Farewell! Farewell!" + + + Salamis. + +"Salamis, Triumphal Hymn of the Greeks" was written in 1862. It is a +composition mostly for male chorus, and is admirably adapted for festival +purposes. The poem, which celebrates the defeat of Xerxes, is by H. +Lingg, and runs as follows:-- + + "Adorn the ships with Persian trophies! + Let the purple sails be swelled! + Joy floats about the masts! + Evoe, the mighty foe, is vanquished! + We broke, O sea, we broke the bond, + Which the Persian Prince threw around thy neck. + Thou rollest now unfettered, no longer embittered + By the hateful trampling of the horses, + Which thy waving surface, + Thy bridge-fettered wrath, bore reluctantly. + Fate overtook Xerxes + And achieved a Hellenic victory on the waves. + To the tyrant, to the arbitrary master, + Did not succumb the people that dwell by the sea, + For the old ruler of the sea filled his beloved race + With boundless courage for the sea-fight. + All around, the waves with delight + Hear many an Ionic song; + They roar and join the pćan + After the splendid struggle + There arise dithyrambic days of liberty!" + +The instrumental introduction to the work is written in massive style, +its grand chorus being elegantly interwoven with runs by the wood +instruments, preparing the way for the festive adorning of the ships,--a +very beautiful allegro movement. This is followed by a slower movement +which pictures the breaking of the bond, the rolling of the sea, and the +trampling of the horses with all that vividness for which the composer is +famous. It is succeeded by a passage which is very stately, particularly +in the basses ("Fate overtook Xerxes"), leading up to the grand climax +("All around, the Waves with Delight"), when the orchestra and voices are +in splendid accord. After a short repetition of the opening allegro the +hymn closes. It would be hard to find a more admirable musical setting of +a poem than this, whether in the strength and beauty of its vocal parts, +or in the color, vigor, and general effectiveness of the instrumentation. + + + Fair Ellen. + +The heroic defence of Lucknow by its British garrison in 1857, during the +Sepoy rebellion, is one of the most memorable events in the English +administration of India. The world is familiar with the story of the +disaffection of the native troops, the failure of Sir Henry Lawrence, who +was in command, to overcome the mutiny, the stubborn defence which the +brave little garrison made against the repeated assaults of the native +troops, their temporary assistance from Outram and Havelock, who cut +their way into the city, and the final relief which was brought to them +by Sir Colin Campbell. Of all the stirring incidents of the siege, +however, not one has made such a strong impression as the fanciful story +of the Scotch girl who heard the slogan of the MacGregors far away and +knew the Highlanders were coming to their rescue. + +It is this incident which Bruch has used as the theme of his cantata +"Schön Ellen" ("Fair Ellen"). The story is identical with the one so +often told in prose and poetry, but the _dramatis personć_ differ. +Instead of General Lawrence we have Lord Edward, and instead of familiar +Jessie Brown we have "Fair Ellen." The text of the libretto is weak and +spiritless as compared with that of the poetical versions. The salient +point of the story is thus versified in the former:-- + + "The Campbells are coming, I told you true; + I hear the bugle blowing: + The pibroch is borne adown the wind, + The tones on the breezes quiver; + 'Neath the tread of battalions that hurry along + Afar the plains do shiver." + +Compare the above with the corresponding verses from Robert Lowell's fine +poem:-- + + "The Highlanders! O dinna ye hear + The slogan far awa? + The MacGregors? Ah! I ken it weel; + It's the grandest of them a'. + + * * * * * + + "Then Jessie said, 'The slogan's dune, + But can ye no hear them noo? + The Campbells are comin'! It's nae a dream; + Our succors hae broken through." + +Weak as the text may be, the strong healthy music of the cantata makes +ample compensation. It is quite brief, there being but two solo parts, +"Fair Ellen" (soprano) and Lord Edward (barytone), and five short chorus +numbers. The former are vigorous and somewhat declamatory in style, but +the choruses are very melodious and stirring. The instrumentation is +unusually effective, and a fine point is made in the climax by the +interweaving of the familiar air, "The Campbells are Coming," with the +orchestral score. It lends spirit and color to the finale, and closes up +the work with a fine burst of powerful effect. Short as it is, "Fair +Ellen" will always be a favorite with popular audiences. + + + Odysseus. + +The cantata of "Odysseus," like that of "Frithjof," is made up of +detached scenes, in this case selected from the Odyssey and arranged by +William Paul Graff. The work was first produced in 1872, and has met with +great success in Germany, England, and the United States. It is divided +into two parts, the first containing four, and the second, six scenes. +The characters are as numerous as those of a grand opera, and include +Odysseus, barytone; Penelope, alto; Alcinoos, King of the Pheaces, bass; +Arete, his consort, alto; Nausicaa, their daughter, soprano; the +Helmsman, bass; Pallas Athene, soprano; Leucothea, soprano; Spirit of +Tiresias, bass; Spirit of Anticlia, Odysseus' mother, alto; and Hermes, +tenor. In performance, however, the parts of Arete and the Spirit of +Anticlia, as well as of Nausicaa and Pallas Athene, are usually doubled. +The choruses, which are a very important feature of the work, are +assigned to Odysseus' companions, Spirits of the Departed, Sirens, +Tritons, Nymphs of the sea, Pheaces, Rhapsodes, boatmen and people of +Ithaca. + +In the first scene Odysseus is discovered on Calypso's enchanted island +longing for home. Hermes, the messenger of the gods, appears to him and +announces that the Immortals, touched by his sorrow, will rescue him and +restore him to Penelope. In the next scene the wanderer has reached the +abysses of Erebus, "where, loud thundering, the flood of Cocytus pours +its black wave into Acheron's tide." Here he invokes the world of shades. +The spirits of children, brides, youths, and old men successively appear +to him and narrate their mournful stories. Then Tiresias the bard warns +him of the Sirens, and Anticlia his mother bids him hasten to Penelope. +In the third scene he passes the isles of the Sirens, and escapes their +wiles through the firmness of his companions. The fourth scene describes +the storm at sea, the wreck of the vessel, and Odysseus' rescue by +Leucothea, who gives him the veil the Immortals have woven, and bids the +Oceanides and Tritons guide him safely to land; and the first part closes +with our hero peacefully sleeping on the flowery shore of the island of +Pheacia. + +The second part opens with the lament of Penelope and her prayer to the +gods to restore her husband to her. The sixth scene changes to the island +again, and discloses Odysseus awakened from his slumbers by the sports +and dances of Nausicaa and her joyful maidens. He appeals to her for help +and refreshment, and is bidden to partake of their hospitality. In the +next scene a sumptuous banquet is spread for him, at which he reveals his +identity and asks that he be allowed to return to his home. The fair +Nausicaa, though suddenly enamoured of the handsome stranger, conceals +her passion and expedites his departure. The eighth scene gives us a +sketch of Penelope weaving the garment, the _ruse_ by which she kept her +suitors aloof. + + "This garment by day I weave in my sorrow, + And ravel the web in the still hour of night; + Thus wearying long, yet my tears greet the morrow, + Hope vanishes as the long years take flight." + +The ninth scene opens with the arrival of Odysseus at Ithaca. The +sleeping wanderer is borne ashore by his comrades, and upon awaking from +his slumbers fails to recognize his own country until Pallas Athene +appears to him. The goddess convinces him that he is at home once more, +and then discloses the plot of the suitors, who are revelling in his +palace, to compel Penelope to select one of them that day in order that +they may gain possession of his property, as well as their conspiracy for +his destruction, from which she promises to protect him. The final scene +describes the glad acclamations of the people as they recognize Odysseus, +and the joy of Penelope as she welcomes him home once more. + +The orchestral introduction is very free and flowing in character, and +its themes are taken from the duet of Odysseus and Penelope, which occurs +later on. The opening chorus of Calypso's nymphs ("Here, O Hermes, in +midst of the Island") is very graceful in its movement and is set to a +most delightful accompaniment. It is followed by Odysseus' lament ("Flow, +ye Tears, since Days are hateful"), at first tender in its character, +then changing to passionate utterances as the remembrance of Penelope +comes to him, and closing with a hopeful strain after the promise of help +from Zeus. In the second or Hades scene the music changes from its bright +color to a gloomier minor tone. It opens with a male chorus ("The Bounds +we have reached of the deep flowing Ocean"), pianissimo, gradually +increasing in intensity and accompanied by remarkable effects in +tone-color as the orchestra describes "the thundering of the flood +Cocytus" and "the surging aloft of the shadows of the departed." It is +followed by semi-choruses of the shades, and closes with a very spirited +and dramatic male chorus ("Dread on Dread! Lo, surging aloft, the +numberless Hosts of Departed"). The third scene opens with a fresh and +characteristic male chorus ("Our Sails to the Breezes"), followed by the +graceful and alluring chorus of the sirens ("Come, great Odysseus, Hero +of Might"). The last scene is almost entirely choral and very dramatic in +its effect, especially the opening number for the Oceanides and Tritons +("Hark! the Storm gathers from afar"), with its vigorous instrumental +description of the tempest, and the closing number for full chorus +("Yonder beckons the wood-crested Harbor"), which in its tenderness and +joyousness forms a striking contrast to the earlier part of the scene. + +The second part is introduced with a dignified and sombre recitative +("Thou far-darting Sun"), followed by an aria of the same character ("Oh! +Atritone") in which Penelope bewails the absence of Odysseus. In the next +scene the music changes to a bright and tripping strain, the chorus of +Nausicaa's maidens ("On the flowery Mead, girt by the dimpling Tide"), +which closely resembles that of Calypso's nymphs in the first scene. +After Odysseus' fervent appeal ("Hark to me! Queen, or heaven-dwelling +Goddess") the banquet scene occurs. It begins with an animated chorus of +the Pheacians ("Be welcome, Stranger, to Pheacia's Land"), followed by an +exquisite unison chorus of the Rhapsodes ("Ten Years now are past since +Troy in the Dust was laid"), set to an accompaniment of harps. A simple +and tender melody ("Let me then depart in Peace"), sung by Odysseus, in +which the chorus singers gradually join, closes the scene. The eighth +scene contains the most expressive solo number of the work, Penelope's +aria ("This Garment by Day I weave in my Sorrow"), with a characteristic +descriptive accompaniment. The gems of the ninth scene are Odysseus' +passionate aria ("O my Fatherland! blest Remembrance!") and his furious +revenge song ("Miscreant! woe to Thee"). The last scene opens with a +joyous chorus of the people ("Say, have ye heard the Tidings of Joy?"), +followed by a fervent duet between Odysseus and Penelope ("Omnipotent +Zeus! we call on thy Name"). The final chorus begins in chorale style +("In Flames ascending"), and after repeating the melody of Odysseus' song +in the seventh scene ("Nowhere abides such Delight"), closes with a fine +fugued passage ("Slayer of Darkness"). + + + + + BUCK. + + +Dudley Buck, one of the most eminent of American organists and composers, +was born March 10, 1839, at Hartford, Conn., where his father was engaged +in the mercantile business. He studied both the piano and organ, the +latter with such success that at the age of sixteen he was appointed +organist at St. John's Church in his native city. In 1858 he went to +Europe and entered the Leipsic Conservatory, where he studied the piano +with Plaidy and Moscheles, and composition with Hauptmann and Richter. +After remaining there a year and a half he went to Dresden and began the +study of Bach's music with Johann Schneider. A year and a half later he +went to Paris, and there acquainted himself with French music and +musicians. He returned to this country in 1862, and accepted the position +of organist at the Park Church, Hartford, but after the death of his +parents removed to Chicago, where he obtained the position of organist at +St. James's Episcopal Church, and also devoted much of his time to +teaching and composition. In that city his home became a musical centre. +His library, fine organ, and music-room were great attractions, and he +had laid the foundation of a brilliant musical career, when the great +fire of 1871 swept away his entire property, including many manuscript +compositions. Like many other musicians at that time he left the city, +seeing no prospect of advantage to him where it would require a long time +to recover purely material losses. He went with his family to Boston, +where his fame was already established, and obtained the position of +organist at St. Paul's Church, as well as the charge of the large organ +in the Music Hall. After remaining a short time in that city he removed +to New York, where he has since resided. His life has been a very busy +one, and he has had an important influence, both personally and in +connection with Theodore Thomas, upon the progress of music in this +country. It is not extravagant to say that there are few Protestant +churches whose music has not been dignified and improved by his +contributions, particularly of anthems and Te Deums, as well as of +compositions for the organ, of which he is a consummate master. Singing +societies are also indebted to him for many elegant four-part songs. +Among his larger works are the cantata "Don Munio" (1874); the +"Centennial," written for the Centennial at Philadelphia; "The Nun of +Nidaros" (1878); "The Golden Legend," which was the prize cantata at the +Cincinnati Festival of 1880; an Easter cantata; the Forty-sixth Psalm, +written for the Boston Handel and Haydn Society; two volumes of sacred +songs and motets; "Marmion," a symphonic overture, and other works for +orchestra; the cantatas "Voyage of Columbus" (1885) and the "Light of +Asia" (1886). The last two cantatas were issued in Europe, the one in +Germany and the other in England, and thus came to this country bearing a +foreign imprint,--a novelty for an American composer. + + + Don Munio + +"Don Munio," a dramatic cantata for solos, chorus, and orchestra, was +written in 1874. The story of it is taken from Washington Irving's +Spanish papers, and the scene is laid in the period of the wars with the +Moors. While hunting one morning, Don Munio de Hinojosa captures a +cavalcade which is escorting the Moorish Prince, Abadil, and his +betrothed, Constanza, on the way to their wedding. The Prince, all escape +being cut off, seeks to purchase the good-will of Don Munio with his gold +and jewels, and implores him not to separate him from his affianced. The +Don, touched by their unfortunate condition, invites them to spend a +fortnight at his castle, promising that the nuptials shall be celebrated +there, and then they shall be released. The lovers accept, and Don Munio +is faithful to his promise. Shortly after their departure he is ordered +by the king to join in the expedition to Palestine. In one of the +encounters of this crusade he is killed by Abadil, who does not recognize +his former benefactor with his visor closed. His death is greatly mourned +in Spain, but they are consoled when Roderigo, a messenger from +Palestine, arrives and tells them that one evening while strolling near +the Holy Sepulchre he saw seventy Christian knights riding in ghostly +procession, with the late Don Munio at their head. This is regarded as an +assurance that all is well with him. _Requiescat in pace._ + +These are the incidents which Mr. Buck has chosen for musical treatment, +and he has done the work excellently well. After the orchestral +introduction follows a spirited hunting-song for male chorus. The next +scene opens in the chamber of Donna Maria, wife of Don Munio, who laments +his absence in a minor strain, to which succeeds a rondo movement. The +third is religious in character, marked "Evening. Close of vesper service +in the chapel of the castle. Escobedo, the chaplain, with the women, and +such retainers as have not followed Don Munio on his expedition." It +begins with a prelude closing with full orchestra and organ, and leading +to barytone solo and chorus, and a short exhortation to prayer by +Escobedo. The next number is an Ave Maria for full chorus, which is very +beautifully harmonized. In the next scene we encounter Don Munio in the +forest, and are treated to the conventional hunting-song. The next number +hints at the approach of the Moors, which is soon disclosed by a pretty +three-part chorus of "the females of the Moorish cavalcade as they +journey." The eighth scene contains some powerful chorus work, divided +between the furious Spaniards and the frightened women, and set to a very +vigorous accompaniment. After the tumult ends, Abadil very melodiously +appeals to Don Munio, followed by a brief arioso in which the latter +makes his terms, and a spirited chorus of gratitude to the Don, which +close the first part. + +After a short prelude, the second part opens with a tenor aria for Abadil +("O, thou my Star") which is very refined in sentiment. It is followed by +the chorale "Jesu, dulcis Memoria," sung by the chapel choir. A duet +ensues between the two lovers on the castle terrace, which is very +Italian in its flavor, and one of the most effective numbers in the +cantata. The next two numbers furnish the wedding music,--a happy bridal +chorus, and a charming bolero for orchestra. These lead to an +unaccompanied quartet between Don Munio, Donna Maria, Abadil, and +Constanza ("It is the Lot of Friends to part"). In the next scene occurs +a vigorous duet between Don Munio and his wife, in which he informs her +of his speedy departure for Palestine, followed by a stirring battle-hymn +for male chorus. The next scene, "The chapel of the castle, choir +chanting the dirge for the dead," is in strong contrast with the +preceding. Mr. Buck has rarely written anything better in his sacred +music than this beautiful requiem. In the next two numbers the messenger +describes the manner of Don Munio's death, and the ghostly vision at the +sepulchre, and at the end of his message the requiem changes to a +jubilant chorus of gratitude ("In thankful Hymns ascending"). "Don Munio" +is one of the most powerful and spontaneous of American compositions, and +needs but little more amplification to deserve the name of opera. + + + The Centennial Meditation of Columbia. + +The National Centennial celebration at Philadelphia was inaugurated May +10, 1876, with a special musical programme, in which the cantata with the +above formidable title occupied a prominent place. The ode was written by +Sydney Lanier, of Georgia, a poet who prior to that time had made +considerable reputation by two poems printed in "Lippincott's Magazine." +The national idea was satisfied by assigning the music to Dudley Buck, at +that time living in Connecticut. It must be acknowledged that the work +did not make a deep impression, although it contains some excellent +musical writing, and for two sufficient reasons. First, it is not a work +of musical genius or inspiration, as it was ordered by a commission for a +popular show. It was not singular in this respect. The "Centennial +March," written by Richard Wagner, for the same occasion, is page after +page of sound and fury, executed for a most exorbitant remuneration. To +ascertain its real want of inspiration one has but to place it by the +side of the "Kaiser March," with its massive chords, its grand thematic +treatment, and its stately movement, the outcome of patriotic fervor and +national triumph. Second, the stilted and unmusical lines furnished by +Mr. Lanier must have hampered the composer in every verse. This is all +the more remarkable because Mr. Lanier himself was a practical musician. +He had been for some time a violinist in the Peabody orchestra at +Baltimore, under that accomplished leader, Asgar Hamerik. It is +remarkable, therefore, that he should not have recognized the +difficulties he was placing in the way both of the composer and the +performers. + +The ode has sixty-one lines, divided into eight stanzas of unequal +lengths. It sketches the past and present of the nation, the powers which +opposed its progress and hindered the development of its freedom, and the +elements which at last produced success, closing with cheering auguries +for the future, and a welcome to the world. All this might have been set +to smooth and fluent verse, which would readily have adapted itself to +music; but what composer could have treated successfully such verses as +these?-- + + "Mayflower, Mayflower, slowly hither flying, + Trembling westward o'er yon balking sea, + Hearts within, 'Farewell, dear England,' sighing, + Winds without, 'But dear in vain,' replying, + Gray-lipp'd waves about thee shouted, crying, + 'No! it shall not be!' + + "Jamestown, out of thee-- + Plymouth, thee--thee, Albany-- + Winter cries, 'Ye freeze; away!' + Fever cries, 'Ye burn; away!' + Hunger cries, 'Ye starve; away!' + Vengeance cries, 'Your graves shall stay!' + + "Hark! + Huguenots whispering 'Yea' in the dark, + Puritans answering 'Yea' in the dark! + 'Yea,' like an arrow shot true to his mark, + Darts through the tyrannous heart of Denial. + Patience and Labor and solemn-souled Trial, + Foiled, still beginning, + Soiled, but not sinning, + Toil through the stertorous death of the Night, + Toil, when wild brother-wars new-dark the light, + Toil, and forgive, and kiss o'er, and re-plight." + +Even in the last verse, where the composer must make his climax, and the +singers must be most effective, they are confronted with this unsingable +line:-- + + "And wave the world's best lover's welcome to the world." + +The only musical verse is the reply of the angel to Columbia in the midst +of her ragged and cacophonous meditation, which the composer selected as +a solo for bass voice:[20]-- + + "Long as thine Art shall love true love, + Long as thy Science truth shall know, + Long as thine Eagle harms no Dove, + Long as thy Law by law shall grow, + Long as thy God is God above, + Thy brother every man below, + So long, dear Land of all my love, + Thy name shall shine, thy fame shall grow." + +The prelude for orchestra determines the motive of the whole cantata, and +is very spirited; for here, at least, the composer was not hampered by +words. The opening verse,-- + + "From this hundred-terraced height," + +is set very effectively in chorale form; but the next two verses, already +quoted, are arranged for semi-chorus and full chorus, and close in a +vocal stretto quite as hysterical as the words. Then follows the +whispering of the Huguenots and Puritans, commencing _sotto voce_, and +gradually increasing to a _forte_ at the close. A few bars for the horn +lead to the bass solo, "Long as thine Art," with horn obligato,--a very +impressive and dignified aria, and one which would speedily become a +favorite in the concert-room if adapted to the words. The final number +("Music from this Height of Time") begins in full choral harmony and +closes with a vigorous and well-written fugue. + + +[20] Sung upon that occasion by Mr. Myron D. Whitney. + + + The Golden Legend. + +"The Golden Legend" was written in competition for the prize of one +thousand dollars, which the Cincinnati May Festival Association offered +in 1879 for the best work of a native composer. The judges were Theodore +Thomas, Otto Singer, Asgar Hamerik, Carl Zerrahn, and the late Dr. +Leopold Damrosch. Their award was made to "The Golden Legend," and it was +first performed at the Festival of 1880, with Miss Annie B. Norton as +Elsie, Mr. Frederick Harvey as Prince Henry, Mr. J. F. Rudolphsen as +Lucifer, and Mr. M. D. Whitney as Friar Paul. + +The text of the cantata is composed of a prologue, epilogue, and twelve +scenes taken from Longfellow's Episode in "Christus" by the same name. +The medićval story is a very simple one. Prince Henry of Hoheneck, +stricken down with an incurable ailment, after vainly seeking a remedy, +is visited by Lucifer disguised as a physician, who tempts him to adopt a +remedy prescribed by a doctor of Salerno; namely, the blood of a maiden +who will voluntarily offer herself as a sacrifice. Elsie devotes her life +to the Prince, and they journey together to Salerno, where her death must +take place. Arrived at the spot, the Prince, touched by her magnanimity, +entreats her to forego her purpose; but she insists upon it, bids him +farewell in the school, and enters an inner apartment with Lucifer +disguised as a friar. Before the tragedy can be consummated, the Prince +bursts open the door, with the aid of his followers, and rescues her. The +pair return to the castle on the Rhine, where of course the rapidly +convalescing Prince marries Elsie, and the story closes with an epilogue +reciting the discomfiture of Lucifer and the triumph of good over evil. + +Out of this material the composer has constructed his work, eliminating +from and adding to the original matter to suit his musical scheme, but at +the same time preserving the general spirit of the story. After a very +spirited and energetic prelude, the prologue begins with the fruitless +attempt of Lucifer to pull down the cross on the spire of Strasburg +cathedral, the protests of the spirits of the air (first and second +sopranos), the defiance of the bells (male chorus) as each attempt fails, +and the final disappearance of the spirits amid the chanting of the +majestic Latin hymn, "Nocte surgentes," by full chorus in the church, +accompanied by the organ. The second scene opens in Prince Henry's +chamber in the tower of the Vautsberg castle, and reminds one of the +opening scene of "Faust," as set by Gounod. After an expressive +declamation of his melancholy and his longing for rest and health ("I +cannot sleep, my fervid Brain calls up the vanished Past again"), Lucifer +appears in a flash of light, dressed as a travelling physician, and a +dialogue ensues, the purport of which has already been told, which closes +with an ingenious and beautifully-written number for the two voices, +accompanied by a four-part chorus of mixed voices and a small semi-chorus +of sopranos and altos ("Golden Visions wave and hover"). The fourth scene +is an unaccompanied quartet, "The Evening Song," sung by Elsie, Bertha, +Max, and Gottlieb in their peasant home in the Odenwald, as they light +the lamps ("O gladsome Light of the Father"). It is a simple, tranquil +hymn, but full of that sacred sentiment which this composer expresses so +admirably in music. The fifth scene, Elsie's prayer in her chamber ("My +Redeemer and my Lord"), in its calm beauty and religious feeling makes a +fitting pendant to the quartet. In the next number, the orchestra is +utilized to carry on the action, and in march tempo describes the +pilgrimage to Salerno with stately intervals, in which is heard the +sacred song, "Urbs coelestis, urbs beata," supposed to be sung by the +pilgrims "moving slowly on their long journey with uncovered feet." The +seventh scene is laid in the refectory of the convent of Hirschau, in the +Black Forest, where Lucifer enters the gaudiolum of monks, disguised as a +friar, and sings the rollicking Latin drinking-song, "Ave color vini +clari," which Mr. Edmund C. Stedman versified for this work as follows:-- + + "Hail! thou vintage clear and ruddy! + Sweet of taste and fine of body, + Through thine aid we soon shall study + How to make us glorious! + + "Oh! thy color erubescent! + Oh! thy fragrance evanescent! + Oh! within the mouth how pleasant! + Thou the tongue's prćtorius! + + "Blest the stomach where thou wendest! + Blest the throat which thou distendest! + Blest the mouth which thou befriendest, + And the lips victorious! + + Chorus of Monks. + + "Pour the wine, then, pour it! + Let the wave bear all before it! + There's none to score it, + So pour it in plenty, pour it!" + +The next number is for orchestra only, and once more the instruments are +used for a continuance of the action by a description of the carousal of +the monks in a characteristic allegro bacchanale, the abbot testifying +his indignation through the medium of the trombone and the use of the +Gregorian melody. The sentiment of the latter is expressed by the +following verse:-- + + "What mean this revel and carouse? + Is this a tavern and drinking-house? + Are you Christian monks or heathen devils, + To pollute this convent with your revels?" + +The ninth scene changes to Genoa. Elsie, on a terrace overlooking the +sea, sings a charming aria ("The Night is calm and cloudless"), with a +choral refrain of "Kyrie Eleison." The tenth is a graceful barcarolle for +orchestra, but it is somewhat in the nature of an interpolation, and is +only connected with the movement of the story by a thin thread, as will +be seen from the verse which gives its motive:-- + + "The fisherman who lies afloat, + With shadowy sail in yonder boat, + Is singing softly to the night. + A single step and all is o'er; + And thou, dear Elsie, wilt be free + From martyrdom and agony." + +The eleventh scene is a spirited and beautifully-written male chorus of +sailors ("The Wind upon our Quarter lies"). The twelfth reaches the +climax in the scene at the college of Salerno between Lucifer, Elsie, and +the Prince, with accompaniment of attendants, and is very dramatic +throughout. It is followed by a tender love-duet for Elsie and the Prince +on the terrace of the castle of Vautsberg, which leads to the epilogue, +"O Beauty of Holiness," for full chorus and orchestra, in which the +composer is at his very best both in the construction of the vocal parts +and the elaborately worked-up accompaniments. + + + The Voyage of Columbus. + +"The Voyage of Columbus" was written in 1885, and first published in +Germany. The text of the libretto was prepared by the composer himself, +extracts from Washington Irving's "Columbus" forming the theme of each of +the six scenes, all of which are supposed to transpire at evening, and +are therefore styled by the composer "night-scenes." Their arrangement, +which is very skilfully accomplished, is as follows:-- + +Scene I. In the chapel of St. George at Palos, Aug. 2, 1492. "The +squadron being ready to put to sea, Columbus, with his officers and crew, +confessed themselves to the friar, Juan Perez. They entered upon the +enterprise full of awe, committing themselves to the especial guidance +and protection of Heaven." + +Scene II. On the deck of the Santa Maria. "Eighteen years elapsed after +Columbus conceived his enterprise before he was enabled to carry it into +effect. The greater part of that time was passed in almost hopeless +solicitation, poverty, and ridicule." + +Scene III. The Vesper Hymn. "In the evening, according to the invariable +custom on board the admiral's ship, the mariners sang the Vesper Hymn to +the Virgin." + +Scene IV. Discontent and Mutiny. "In this way they fed each other's +discontent, gathering into little knots, and fomenting a spirit of +mutinous opposition ... finally breaking forth into turbulent clamor." + +Scene V. In distant Andalusia. "He compares the pure and balmy mornings +to those of April in Andalusia, and observes that they wanted but the +song of the nightingale to complete the illusion." + +Scene VI. Land and Thanksgiving. "As the evening darkened, Columbus took +his station on the top of the castle or cabin, on the high poop of his +vessel, ranging his eye along the horizon, and maintaining an intense and +unremitting watch." + +The cantata opens with a brief orchestral prelude of a sombre character +begun by the trombone sounding the Gregorian intonation, and leading to +the barytone solo of the priest ("Ye men of Spain, the Time is nigh"), +appealing to the crew to commit themselves to Heaven, to which the full +male chorus responds with ever-increasing power, reaching the climax in +the "Ora pro nobis." Twice the priest repeats his adjuration, followed by +the choral response, the last time with joy and animation as the flag of +Castile is raised and they bid farewell to the shores of Spain. A short +allegro brings the scene to a close. + +The second scene is a bass aria for Columbus ("Eighteen long Years of +Labor, Doubt, and Scorn"), of a vigorous and spirited character, changing +to a solemn adagio in the prayer, "Lord of all Power and Might," and +closing with a few spirited phrases in the opening tempo. It is followed +by the Vesper Hymn, "Ave Maris Stella," a number in which the composer's +eminent ability in sacred music is clearly shown. Its tranquil harmony +dies away in the softest of pianissimos, and is followed by an agitated +prelude introducing the furious chorus of the mutinous crew "Come, +Comrades, come," which gathers intensity as it progresses, voices and +instruments uniting in broken but powerful phrases, sometimes in full +chorus and again in solo parts, until the climax is reached, when +Columbus intervenes in brief solos of great dignity, to which the chorus +responds, the scene closing with the renewal of allegiance,--a stirring +bass solo with choral accompaniment. + +The fifth scene is a tenor recitative and love-song of a most graceful +character, and one which will become a favorite when it is well known:-- + + "In Andalusia the nightingale + Sings,--sings through the live-long night; + Sings to its mate in pure delight: + But, ah me! ah, my love! + Vanished and lost to my sight + In distant Andalusia." + +The final scene is very elaborate in its construction, and brings the +work to a sonorous and stately close. It opens with a very dramatic +recitative by Columbus ("The Night is dark, but many a Sign seen through +this Day proclaims the Goal at Hand"), at the close of which there is a +short orchestral prelude, which serves to introduce a trio ("Here at your +Bidding") for Columbus and two officers (first tenor and first bass). At +the cry of a seaman, "Land ho!" the chorus responds with animation. +Columbus bids his crew join him "in prayer and grateful praise." The +answer comes in a splendidly-written "Hallelujah," which is fairly +majestic in its progression, reaching its close in full broad harmony, +with the accompanying strains of trumpets. + + + The Light of Asia. + +Mr. Buck's latest cantata, "The Light of Asia," well-nigh reaches the +dimensions of an opera or oratorio. It was written in 1886 and first +published in England. Its name reveals its source, and the composer has +made compensation for the privilege of using Mr. Edwin Arnold's beautiful +poem, by a graceful dedication of the work to him. The libretto was +prepared by the composer himself, who has shown great skill in making his +selections in such manner as not to disturb the continuity of the story. +The purely philosophical portions are omitted, and only those are +retained which have a human interest. In this manner he has avoided the +obstacle which the lack of human sympathy in the poem, beautiful as it +is, would otherwise have placed in his way. The text, as will be +remembered, has no definite metre, much of it being in blank verse, and +does not readily lend itself to musical expression; but it will be +conceded that the composer has also overcome this difficulty in a very +remarkable manner. The cantata is divided into four parts,--Prologue, the +Renunciation and Temptation, the Return, and Epilogue and Finale. + +The first part has nine numbers. A brief prelude leads to the opening +chorus:-- + + "Below the highest sphere four regents sit, + Who rule the world; and under them are zones + Nearer, but high, where saintliest spirits dead, + Wait thrice ten thousand years, then live again." + +It begins with a fugue, opened by the basses, simple in its construction +but stately in theme and very dignified throughout. It is followed by a +bass solo of descriptive character ("The King gave Order that his Town +should keep high Festival"), closing with a few choral measures, _sotto +voce_, relating that the King had ordered a festival in honor of the +advent of Buddha, and how a venerable saint, Asita, recognized the +divinity of the child and "the sacred primal signs," and foretold his +mission. The third number is the description of the young Siddârtha, set +in graceful recitative and semi-chorus for female voices, with a charming +accompaniment. The fourth is a spring song ("O come and see the Pleasance +of the Spring"), begun by tenors and basses and then developing into full +chorus with animated descriptive effects for the orchestra, picturing +"the thickets rustling with small life," the rippling waters among the +palms, the blue doves' cooings, the jungles laughing with the +nesting-songs, and the far-off village drums beating for marriage feasts. +A recitative for bass ("Bethink ye, O my Ministers"), in which the King +counsels with his advisers as to the training of the child, leads to a +four-part song for tenors and basses ("Love will cure these thin +Distempers"), in which they urge him to summon a court of pleasure in +which the young prince may award prizes to the fair. Then + + "If one or two + Change the fixed sadness of his tender cheek, + So may we choose for love with love's own eye." + +The King orders the festival, and in the next number--a march and +animated three-part chorus for female voices--Kapilavastu's maidens flock +to the gate, "each with her dark hair newly smoothed and bound." Then +comes the recognition, briefly told in soprano recitative. Yasôdhara +passes, and "at sudden sight of her he changed." A beautiful love-duet +for soprano and tenor ("And their Eyes mixed, and from the Look sprang +Love") closes the scene. The next number is a bass solo narrating the +triumph of Siddârtha over all other suitors, leading to a jubilant and +graceful wedding chorus ("Enter, thrice-happy! enter, thrice-desired!"), +the words of which are taken from the "Indian Song of Songs." + +The second part opens with a soprano solo describing his pleasure with +Yasôdhara, in the midst of which comes the warning of the Devas:-- + + "We are the voices of the wandering wind, + That moan for rest and rest can never find. + Lo! as the wind is, so is mortal life,-- + A moan, a sigh, a sob, a storm, a strife." + +This number is a semi-chorus, set for female voices, interspersed with +brief phrases for tenor, and after a bass solo, relating the King's dream +and the hermit's interpretation, which induces him to doubly guard +Siddârtha's pleasure-house, leads up to a beautiful chorus, divided +between two sopranos, alto, two tenors, and two basses:-- + + "Softly the Indian night sunk o'er the plain, + Fragrant with blooms and jewelled thick with stars, + And cool with mountain airs sighing adown + From snow-flats on Himâla high outspread. + The moon above the eastern peaks + Silvered the roof-tops of the pleasure-house, + And all the sleeping land." + +The next scene opens with a soprano solo ("Within the Bower of inmost +Splendor"), in which Yasôdhara relates her dream of the voice crying "The +Time is nigh," to Siddârtha, and closes with a tender duet for soprano +and tenor. The next number is a brief chorus ("Then in her Tears she +slept"), followed by the tenor solo, "I will depart," in which Siddârtha +proclaims his resolve "to seek deliverance and the unknown light," and +leading to a richly-colored and majestic chorus: + + "There came a wind which lulled each sense aswoon + Of captains and of soldiers: + The gates of triple brass rolled back all silently + On their grim hinges; + Then, lightly treading, where those sleepers lay, + Into the night Siddârtha passed, + While o'er the land a tremor spread, + As if earth's soul beneath stirred with an unknown hope, + And rich celestial music thrilled the air + From hosts on hosts of shining ones." + +A tenor solo describes the six long years of wandering, followed by a +characteristic chorus of voices of earth and air bidding him pass to the +tree under whose leaves it was foretold that truth should come to him for +the saving of the world. A short bass recitative leads to a vigorous +descriptive chorus relating the temptations of Siddârtha, in which the +orchestra is used with masterly effect. A brief soprano solo, the +apparition of Yasôdhara among the wanton shapes floating about the tree, +imploring him to return, and the tenor response, bidding the shadow +depart, intervene; and then the chorus resumes with increased vigor, +reaching a furious climax as the legions of hell tempt him, but dying +away in the close to phrases of tender beauty:-- + + "Radiant, rejoicing, strong, Buddha arose, + And far and near there spread an unknown peace. + As that divinest daybreak lightened earth, + The world was glad." + +The third part (the Return) opens with a soprano solo of a slow and +mournful character, relating the sorrow of Yasôdhara and the visit of her +damsels, who announce the arrival of merchants with tidings of Siddârtha. +They are summoned, and tell their story in a short chorus, which is +followed by a brief soprano solo ("Uprose Yasôdhara with Joy"), an +exultant chorus ("While the Town rang with Music"), and another brief +phrase for soprano, leading to a fine choral outburst ("'Tis he! +Siddârtha, who was lost"). The next number, a bass solo describing the +King's wrath when he learns that Siddârtha has returned as a yellow-robed +hermit instead of with "shining spears and tramp of horse and foot," is +very sonorous as well as dramatic, and is followed by a tenor and bass +dialogue developing into a trio of great beauty ("Thus passed the Three +into the Way of Peace"). The final number is a masterpiece of choral work +both in the elaborateness of its construction and the majesty of its +effect, and brings the cantata to a close with the mystic words:-- + + "The Dew is on the Lotus! Rise, great Sun! + And lift my leaf and mix it with the wave. + The Sunrise comes! the Sunrise comes! + The Dewdrop slips into the shining sea. + Hail, High Deliverer, Hail!" + + + + + CORDER. + + +Frederick Corder, the English composer and conductor, was born at +Hackney, London, Jan. 26, 1852. He was a student at the Royal Academy of +Music in 1874, and in the following year gained the Mendelssohn +scholarship. From 1875 to 1878 he studied at Cologne with Hiller, and in +1879 returned to London, where he engaged for a time in literary +pursuits. His abilities as a writer are very clearly shown in the +librettos to his works. In 1880 he was appointed conductor of the +orchestra at the Brighton Aquarium, and since that time he has devoted +himself to teaching and composition. His principal works are "In the +Black Forest," an orchestral suite, and "Evening on the Seashore," idyl +for orchestra (1876); the opera "Morte d'Arthur" (1877); the one-act +opera "Philomel" (1879); cantata, "The Cyclops" (1880); "Ossian," a +concert overture for orchestra, produced by the London Philharmonic +Society (1882); the cantata "Bridal of Triermain" (1886); and the opera +"Nordisa," founded upon a Norwegian subject and brought out with great +success in January, 1887 by the Carl Rosa opera troupe. Mr. Corder is one +of the most ambitious and promising of all the younger English composers, +and his music shows in a special degree the influence of Wagner. That he +has also literary talent of a high order is evinced by his contributions +to periodical literature and the librettos of his last two works,--"The +Bridal of Triermain" and "Nordisa." + + + The Bridal of Triermain. + +"The Bridal of Triermain" was written for the Wolverhampton (England) +Festival of 1886, and was one of the most notable successes in the +festival performances of that year. The subject is taken from Walter +Scott's poem of the same name. The adaptation has been made in a very +free manner, but the main incidents of the poem have been carefully +preserved. Sir Roland's vision of the "Maid of Middle Earth;" the bard +Lyulph's recital of the Arthurian legend, which tells of Gyneth's +enchantment in the valley of St. John by Merlin, where she must sleep + + "Until a knight shall wake thee + For feats of arms as far renowned + As warrior of the Table Round;" + +the magic wrought by Merlin in the valley to delude Roland and thwart his +effort to rescue Gyneth; his daring entrance into the palace grounds; the +discovery of the Princess in the enchanted hall, and her final rescue are +the themes which the composer has treated. In arranging his libretto he +has, as has been said, made a free adaptation of the poem, sometimes +using verses entire, at other times changing the text and rearranging it +to suit the composer's musical demands, even at the expense of the +original beauty and symmetry of the work. + +The cantata has no overture, but opens with a choral introduction ("Where +is the Maiden of Mortal Strain?"). An orchestral interlude in the form of +a tender graceful nocturne follows, leading up to the tenor solo, "The +Dawn of an autumn Day did creep," in which the Baron relates the +apparition he has seen in his dream. A short bass recitative by Lyulph +the bard introduces the Legend, which is told in an effective number for +soprano solo, bass solo, and chorus ("In Days e'en Minstrels now +forget"). The next number, a very dramatic dialogue for soprano and +tenor, gives us the conversation between Arthur and Gyneth, and leads to +an energetic full chorus with very descriptive accompaniment, picturing +the bloody tourney and its sudden interruption by the appearance of +Merlin the enchanter. The first part closes with a charming number +("'Madmen,' he cried, 'your Strife forbear'") arranged for bass solo, +quartet, and chorus, in which is described the spell which Merlin casts +upon Gyneth. + +The second part, after a short allegro movement for orchestra, opens with +a contralto solo ("Of wasted Fields and plundered Flocks") which prepares +the way for a concerted number for solos and chorus ("And now the Moon +her Orb has hid"), describing the magical arts which Merlin employed to +thwart the Baron. This number alone is sufficient to stamp Mr. Corder as +a composer of extraordinary ability. A succession of bass, tenor, and +contralto recitatives ("Wroth waxed the Warrior") leads to another +powerful chorus ("Rash Adventurer, bear thee back"), the song of the +"four maids whom Afric bore," in which the composer has caught the weird, +strange color of the scene and given it vivid expression. A tenor +recitative ("While yet the distant Echoes roll") leads up to a graceful, +sensuous soprano solo and female chorus ("Gentle Knight, awhile delay"). +Its counterpart is found in the tenor recitative and spirited, dignified +male chorus ("Son of Honor, Theme of Story"). The _dénouement_ now +begins. A contralto solo, declamatory in style ("In lofty Hall, with +Trophies graced"), and a short soprano solo of a joyous character ("Thus +while she sang") lead to the final number ("Gently, lo! the Warrior +kneels"), beginning with full chorus, which after short solos for tenor +and soprano takes a spirited martial form ("And on the Champion's Brow +was found") and closes with a quartet and chorus worked up to an imposing +climax. + +The work is largely in narrative form; but this, instead of being a +hindrance, seems to have been an advantage to the composer, who has not +failed to invest his music with dramatic force that is remarkable. Mr. +Corder is credited with being an ardent disciple of Wagner, and his +cantata certainly shows the influences of that school. It is throughout a +vigorous, effective work, and gives promise that its composer will yet be +heard from outside the English musical world. + + + + + COWEN. + + +Frederic H. Cowen, the favorite English song-writer, was born at +Kingston, Jamaica, Jan. 29, 1852, and went to England at a very early +age. His first teachers were Benedict and Sir J. Goss, with whom he +studied until 1865. During the next three years he continued his musical +education at the conservatories of Leipsic and Berlin, returning to +England in 1868. His earlier works were an operetta called "Garibaldi," a +fantasie-sonata and piano concerto, a few pieces of chamber music, and a +symphony in C minor. These served to introduce him to public notice, and +since that time nearly all of his works have met with remarkable success, +among them "The Rose Maiden" (1870); music to Schiller's "Joan of Arc" +(1871); festival overture (1872); "The Corsair," composed for the +Birmingham Festival of 1876; a symphony in F major and the Norwegian +symphony, which have been favorably received in this country. His most +important opera is "Pauline," which was produced in London with great +success by the Carl Rosa company, Nov. 22, 1876. As a song-writer, Mr. +Cowen is also well known; many of his lyrics, especially those written +for Antoinette Sterling and Mrs. E. Aline Osgood, the American singers, +having obtained a wide-spread popularity. + + + The Sleeping Beauty. + +"The Sleeping Beauty," written for the Birmingham Festival of 1885, the +poem by Francis Hueffer, has for its theme the well-known fairy tale +which has been so often illustrated in music and upon canvas. It is a +great favorite in England, and has also met with a successful reception +in Paris, where it was brought out not long since by the Concordia +Society of that city, under the title of "La Belle au Bois Dormant," the +translation having been made by Miss Augusta Holmes, herself a musician +of considerable repute. + +After a brief orchestral introduction, a three-part chorus (altos, +tenors, and basses) tells the story of the ancient King to whom an +heiress was born when all hope of offspring had been abandoned, the gay +carousal which he ordered, and the sudden appearance of the twelve fays, +guardians of his house, with their spinning-wheels and golden flax, who +sing as they weave:-- + + "Draw the thread and weave the woof + For the little child's behoof: + Future, dark to human eyes, + Openly before us lies; + As we will and as we give, + Haply shall the maiden live; + Draw the thread and weave the woof + For the little child's behoof." + +In beauty of melody and gracefulness of orchestration this chorus of the +fays is specially noticeable. Its charming movement, however, is +interrupted by a fresh passage for male chorus, of an agitated character, +describing the entrance of the Wicked Fay, who bends over the cradle of +the child and sings a characteristic contralto aria:-- + + "From the gold of the flaxen reel + Threads of bliss have been spun to thee; + By the whirl of the spinning wheel + Cruel grief shall be done to thee. + Thy fate I descry: + Ere the buds of thy youth are blown, + Ere a score of thy years have flown, + Thou shalt prick thy hand, thou shalt die." + +Following this aria, the male chorus has a few measures, invoking a curse +upon the Fay, which leads to a full chorus of an animated character, +foretelling that there shall dawn a day when a young voice, more powerful +than witchcraft, will save her; at the close of which the guardian fays +are again heard drawing the thread and weaving the woof in low, murmuring +tones, with a spinning accompaniment. It is followed by a trio (soprano, +tenor, and bass), with chorus accompaniment, announcing the departure of +the fays, and leading to a very melodious tenor solo, with two graceful +orchestral interludes, which moralizes on what has occurred and closes +the prologue. + +The first scene opens in a hall in the King's palace, and is full of +animation. A brilliant orchestral prelude leads to the full chorus in +waltz time ("At Dawn of Day on the first of May"), which moves along with +a fascinating swing, and closes in a very vigorous climax. At this point +the King makes his appearance and expresses his joy that the time has +passed when the prophecy of the Wicked Fay could take effect, for this is +the Princess's twentieth birthday. A dialogue follows between the King +and his daughter, closing with a beautiful chorus ("Pure as thy Heart"), +after which the dance-music resumes. Unobserved the Princess leaves the +banqueting-hall, glides along a gallery, and ascends the staircase to a +turret chamber. Before she enters she sings an aria, of a tranquil, +dreamy nature ("Whither away, my Heart?"), and interwoven with it are +heard the gradually lessening strains of the dance-music, which ceases +altogether as her song comes to an almost inaudible close. + +The second scene opens in the turret chamber, where the Wicked Fay, +disguised as an old crone, is spinning. After a short dialogue, in which +the Fay explains to the Princess the use of the wheel, she bids her +listen, and sings a weird ballad ("As I sit at my Spinning-wheel, strange +Dreams come to me"), closing with the refrain of the old prophecy, "Ere +the Buds of her Youth are blown." The Princess dreamily repeats the +burden of the song, and then, fearing the presence of some ill-omen, +opens the door to escape. She hears the dance-music again, but the Fay +gently draws her back and induces her to touch the flax. As she does so, +the Fay covertly pricks her finger with the spindle. She swoons away, the +dance-music suddenly stops, and there is a long silence, broken at last +by the Fay's triumphant declaration: "Thus have I wrought my Vengeance." +The next number is the Incantation Music ("Spring from the Earth, red +Roses"), a very dramatic declamation, sung by the Fay and interwoven with +snatches of chorus and the refrain of the prophecy. A choral interlude +("Sleep in Bower and Hall") follows, describing in a vivid manner, both +with voices and instruments, the magic sleep that fell upon the castle +and all its inmates, and the absence of all apparent life save the +spiders weaving their webs on the walls as the years go by:-- + + "The spells of witchcraft which enthrall + Each sleeper in that desolate hall, + Who can break them? + Say, who can lift the deathly blight + That covers king and lord and knight, + To give them back to life and light, + And awake them?" + +The answer comes in an animated prelude, through which is heard the +strain of a horn signal, constantly growing louder, and heralding the +Prince, who enters the silent palace, sword in hand, among the sleeping +courtiers, knights, and ladies. After a vigorous declamation ("Light, +Light at last") he passes on his way to the turret chamber, where he +beholds the sleeping Princess. The love-song which follows ("Kneeling +before Thee, worshipping wholly") is one of the most effective portions +of the work. His kiss awakes her, and as she springs up, the dance-music +at once resumes from the bar where it had stopped in the scene with the +Wicked Fay. An impassioned duet follows, and the work closes with the +animated waltz-chorus which opened the first scene. + + + + + DVORÁK. + + +Anton Dvorák, the Bohemian composer who has risen so suddenly into +prominence, was born at Mülhausen, near Prague, Sept. 8, 1841. His father +combined the business of tavern-keeper and butcher, and young Dvorák +assisted him in waiting upon customers, as well as in the slaughtering +business. As the laws of Bohemia stipulate that music shall be a part of +common-school education, Dvorák learned the rudiments in the village +school, and also received violin instruction. At the age of thirteen he +went to work for an uncle, who resided in the village where the +schoolmaster was a proficient musician. The latter, recognizing his +ability, gave him lessons on the organ, and allowed him to copy music. +Piano lessons followed, and he had soon grounded himself quite thoroughly +in counterpoint. At the age of sixteen he was admitted to the +organ-school of Prague, of which Joseph Pitsch was the principal. Pitsch +died soon after, and was succeeded by Kreyci, who made Dvorák acquainted +with the music of Mozart, Beethoven, and Mendelssohn. The first +orchestral work he heard was Beethoven's "Ninth Symphony," during its +rehearsal under Spohr's direction. In 1860, being then in his nineteenth +year, he obtained an engagement, with the meagre salary of one hundred +and twenty-five dollars a year, as violinist in a band that played at +cafés and dances. Two years later he secured a position in the Bohemian +Opera House at Prague, then under the direction of Mayer, where he +remained until 1871, in which year he left the theatre and devoted +himself to teaching, with the prospect of earning two hundred and fifty +dollars a year. These were hard days for the young musician; but while he +was there struggling for a bare subsistence, he continued writing +compositions, though he had no prospect of selling them or of having them +played. About this time he wrote his "Patriotic Hymn" and the opera +"König und Köhler." The latter was rejected after an orchestral trial; +but he continued his work, undaunted by failure. Shortly after this he +received the appointment of organist at the Adelbert Church, Prague, and +fortune began to smile upon him. His Symphony in F was laid before the +Minister of Instruction in Vienna, and upon the recommendation of Herbeck +secured him a grant of two hundred dollars. When Brahms replaced Herbeck +on the committee which reported upon artists' stipends, he fully +recognized Dvorák's ability, and not only encouraged him, but also +brought him before the world by securing him a publisher and commending +him to Joachim, who still further advanced his interests by securing +performances of his works in Germany and England. Since that time he has +risen rapidly, and is now recognized as one of the most promising of +living composers. Among his works which have been produced during the +past few years are the "Stabat Mater," the cantata "The Spectre's Bride," +three operas in the Czechist dialect, three orchestral symphonies, +several Slavonic rhapsodies, overtures, violin and piano concertos, an +exceedingly beautiful sextet, and numerous songs. + + + The Spectre's Bride. + +The legend of the Spectre's Bride is current in various forms among all +the Slavonic nations. The Russians, Servians, Slovaks, Lithuanians, and +Poles all have poems in which the ghostly ride of the spectre and the +maiden forms the theme. The German version, told by Bürger in his famous +ballad "Lenore," is best known; and Raff has given it a musical setting +in his Lenore Symphony. In general, the story is the same. The Spectre +comes for his Bride and she rides away with him through the night, amid +all manner of supernatural horrors, only to find at the end that she has +ridden to the grave with a skeleton. The Bohemian poem used by Dvorák is +that of Karel Jaromir Erben, a poet who obtained a national fame by +making collections of the songs and legends of his country during his +service as Secretary of the Royal Bohemian Museum and Keeper of the +Archives at Prague. In his version, unlike the German, the Spectre and +his Bride make their grewsome journey on foot. The _dénouement_ in the +churchyard differs also, as the maiden is saved by an appeal to the +Virgin. In the opening scene she is represented gazing at a picture of +the Virgin, mourning the death of her parents and the absence of her +lover, who has failed to keep his promise to return. His parting words +were:-- + + "Sow flax, my love, I counsel thee, + And every day remember me. + Spin in the first year, spin with care, + Bleach in the next the fabric fair; + Then garments make, when the years are three, + And every day remember me. + Twine I that year a wreath for thee; + We two that year shall wedded be." + +She has faithfully followed the counsel. The three years have expired, +but still no tidings have come. As she appeals to the Virgin to bring him +back, the picture moves, the flame of the lamp upleaps, there is an +ominous knock at the door, and the voice of the apparition is heard +urging her to cease praying and follow him to his home. She implores him +to wait until the night is past, but the importunate Spectre bids her go +with him, and she consents. On they speed over rough bowlders, through +thorny brakes and swamps, attended by the baying of wolves, the +screeching of owls, the croaking of frogs, and the fitful glow of +corpse-candles. One by one he compels her to throw away her prayer-book, +chaplet, and cross, and resisting all her appeals to stop and rest, at +last they reach the churchyard wall. He calms her fears with the +assurance that the church is his castle and the yard his garden, and bids +her leap the wall with him. She promises to follow him, but after he has +cleared it, sudden fear seizes her; she flies to a tiny house near by and +enters. A ghastly scene takes place; spectres are dancing before the +door, and the moonlight reveals to her a corpse lying upon a plank. As +she gazes, horror-stricken, a knock is heard, and a voice bids the dead +arise and thrust the living one out. Thrice the summons is repeated, and +then as the corpse opens its eyes and glares upon her, she prays once +more to the Virgin. At this instant the crowing of a cock is heard. The +dead man falls back, the ghastly, spectral crew disappear, and night +gives way to a peaceful morning. + + "All who to Mass at morning went + Stood still in great astonishment; + One tomb there was to ruin gone, + And in the dead-house a maiden wan; + On looking round, amazed were they, + On every grave a garment lay. + + "Well was it, maiden, that thy mind + Turned unto God, defence to find, + For He thy foes did harmless bind; + Had'st thou thyself, too, nothing done, + Ill with thy soul it then had gone; + Thy body, as the garments were, + Mangled had been, and scattered there." + +Such is the horrible story which forms the theme of Dvorák's cantata. It +was written for the Birmingham Festival of 1884, and the text was +translated by the Rev. Dr. Troutbeck, from a German translation of the +original poem made by K. J. Müller. It contains eighteen numbers, each of +considerable length, of which eleven are descriptive, the barytone, with +chorus response, acting the part of the narrator, and accompanied by +instrumentation which vividly paints the horrors of the nocturnal tramp, +even to the realistic extent of imitating the various sounds described. +It is unnecessary to specify each of these numbers in detail, as they are +all closely allied in color and general effect. The music which +accompanies them is picturesque and weird, increasing in its power and +actual supernaturalism until it reaches its climax in the dead-house +where the maiden takes refuge; and in these numbers the orchestra bears +the burden of the work. The remaining numbers are almost magical in their +beauty and fascination, particularly the first song of the maiden, +lamenting her lover, and closing with the prayer to the Virgin, which is +thoroughly devotional music, and the second prayer, which saves her from +her peril. There are four duets, soprano and tenor, between the Bride and +Spectre, and one with chorus, in which are recounted the episodes of the +chaplet, prayer-book, and cross, besides the hurried dialogue between +them as he urges her on. These, too, abound in quaint rhythms and strange +harmonies set against a highly-colored instrumental background. The story +is not a pleasant one for musical treatment,--at least for voices,--and +the prevailing tone of the composition is sombre; but of the wonderful +power of the music and its strange fascination there can be no doubt. + + + + + FOOTE. + + +Arthur Foote, a rising young composer of Boston, whose works have already +made more than a local reputation, was born at Salem, Mass., March 5, +1853. While at Harvard College he studied composition with Prof. J. K. +Paine, and after graduation determined to devote himself to the musical +profession. He studied the piano-forte and organ with Mr. B. J. Lang of +Boston, and soon made his mark as a musician of more than ordinary +promise. Among his published works which have attracted favorable +attention are various songs and piano compositions; pieces for violin and +piano, violoncello and piano; a string quartet; trio for piano, violin, +and violoncello; and "Hiawatha," a ballad for male voices and orchestra. +A suite for strings, in manuscript, has obtained the honor of performance +at the London symphony concerts (January, 1887), and an overture, "In the +Mountains," also in manuscript, was played by the Boston Symphony +Orchestra in February, 1887. He is now living in Boston, where he is +engaged in teaching the piano and organ. + + + Hiawatha. + +"The Farewell of Hiawatha," for barytone solo, male voices, and +orchestra, modestly styled by its composer a ballad, is a cantata in its +lighter form. Its subject is taken from Longfellow's familiar poem, and +includes the beautiful close of the legend beginning with the stanza:-- + + "From his place rose Hiawatha, + Bade farewell to old Nokomis, + Spake in whispers, spake in this wise, + Did not wake the guests, that slumbered." + +The composer has made use of the remainder of the poem without change, +except in repetitions demanded by musical necessity and in the omission +of the seven lines immediately preceding the final words of farewell, +which does not mar the context. A short orchestral introduction, _andante +con moto_, followed by a chorus of tenors and basses in a few bars, +recitative in form and sung pianissimo, lead to a barytone solo for +Hiawatha ("I am going, O Nokomis") of a quiet and tender character. A +graceful phrase for the violoncello introduces another choral morceau +relating Hiawatha's farewell to the warriors ("I am going, O my People") +a melodious combination of sweetness and strength, though it only rises +to a display of energy in the single phrase, "The Master of Life has sent +them," after which it closes quietly, and tenderly, in keeping with the +sentiment of the text. The remainder of the work is choral. The westward +sail of Hiawatha into the "fiery sunset," "the purple vapors," and "the +dusk of evening" is set to a very picturesque accompaniment, which dies +away in soft strains as he disappears in the distance. An allegro +movement with a crescendo of great energy introduces the farewell of "the +forests dark and lonely," moving "through all their depths of darkness," +of the waves "rippling on the pebbles," and of "the heron, the +Shuh-shuh-gah, from her haunts among the fen-lands." The last division of +the chorus is an allegro, beginning pianissimo and closing with an +exultant outburst:-- + + "Thus departed Hiawatha, + Hiawatha the Beloved, + In the glory of the sunset, + In the purple mists of evening, + To the regions of the home-wind, + Of the Northwest wind Keewaydin, + To the Islands of the Blessed, + To the kingdom of Ponemah, + To the land of the Hereafter!" + +The work, which was written for the Apollo Club of Boston, is not a long +one, nor is it at all ambitious in style. The composer has evidently +tried to reflect the quiet and tender sentiment of the farewell in his +music, and has admirably succeeded. Poetic beauty is its most striking +feature, both in the instrumental parts, which are well sustained, and in +the vocal, which are earnest, expressive, and at times very pathetic, of +this pretty tone-picture. + + + + + GADE. + + +Niels W. Gade was born at Copenhagen, Oct. 22, 1817. His father was a +musical-instrument maker and intrusted his early education to the Danish +masters Wershall, Berggren, and Weyse. He made such good progress that he +soon entered the royal orchestra of that city as a violinist and began to +be known as a composer. His first important work, the overture +"Nachklänge von Ossian," obtained a prize from the Copenhagen Musical +Union and also secured for him the favor of the King, who provided him +with the means for making a foreign journey. Prior to starting he sent a +copy of a symphony to Mendelssohn, which met with the latter's +enthusiastic approval. He arrived at Leipsic in 1843, and after producing +his first symphony with success, travelled through Italy, returning to +Leipsic in 1844, where during the winter of that year he conducted the +Gewandhaus concerts in the place of Mendelssohn, who was absent in +Berlin. In the season of 1845-46 he assisted Mendelssohn in the same +concerts, and after the latter's death became the principal director, a +post which he held until 1848, when he returned to Copenhagen and took a +position as organist, and also conducted the concerts of the Musical +Union. In 1861 he was appointed Hofcapellmeister, and was honored with +the title of Professor of Music. Since that time he has devoted himself +to composition, and has produced many excellent works, especially for +festivals in England and elsewhere. Among them are the cantatas "Comala," +"Spring Fantasie," "The Erl King's Daughter," "The Holy Night," "Spring's +Message," "The Crusaders," and "Zion;" the overtures "In the Highlands," +"Hamlet," and "Michael Angelo;" seven symphonies, and a large number of +songs and piano pieces, as well as chamber-music compositions. + + + Comala. + +"Comala," one of the earliest of Gade's larger vocal works, was first +produced at Leipsic in March, 1843. Its subject is taken from Ossian, and +relates the tragedy of "Comala," daughter of Sarno, King of Innistore, +who had conceived a violent passion for Fingal, King of Morven. Her love +is returned by the warrior, and disguised as a youth the princess follows +him on his expedition against Caracul, King of Lochlin. On the day of the +battle Fingal places her on a height, near the shore of the Carun, whence +she can overlook the fight, and promises her if victorious that he will +return at evening. Comala, though filled with strange forebodings, +hopefully waits her royal lover's coming. As the tedious hours pass on a +fearful storm arises, and amid the howling of the blast the spirits of +the fathers sweep by her on their way to the battlefield to conduct to +their home the souls of the fallen,--the same majestic idea which Wagner +uses with such consummate power in his weird ride of the Valkyries. +Comala imagines that the battle has been lost, and overcome with grief +falls to the ground and dies. The victorious Fingal returns as evening +approaches, accompanied by the songs of his triumphant warriors, only to +hear the tidings of Comala's death from her weeping maidens. Sorrowing he +orders the bards to chant her praises, and joining with her attendants to +waft her departing soul "to the fathers' dwelling" with farewell hymns. + +The cantata is almost equally divided between male and female choruses, +and these are the charm of the work. Many of the songs of Comala and her +maids are in graceful ballad form, fresh in their melody, and marked by +that peculiar refinement which characterizes all of Gade's music. The +parting duet between Fingal and Comala is very beautiful, but the +principal interest centres in the choruses. Those of the bards and +warriors are very stately in their style and abound in dramatic power, +particularly the one accompanying the triumphal return of Fingal. The +chorus of spirits is very impressive, and in some passages almost +supernatural. The female choruses, on the other hand, are graceful, +tender, and pathetic; the final full chorus, in which the bards and +maidens commend the soul of Comala to "the fathers' dwelling," has rarely +been surpassed in beauty or pathos. The music of the cantata is in +keeping with the stately grandeur and richly-hued tones of the Ossianic +poem. The poetry and music of the North are happily wedded. + + + Spring Fantasie. + +Though the "Spring Fantasie" is in undoubted cantata form, Gade +designates it as a "Concertstück;" that is, a musical composition in +which the instrumental parts are essential to its complete unity. Its +origin is unquestionably to be found in the idea of Beethoven's "Choral +Fantasie," which was subsequently developed in the choral symphony on a +still larger and grander scale. The instrumental elements of the "Spring +Fantasie" are unquestionably the most prominent. They do not play the +subordinate part of accompaniment, but really enunciate the ideas of the +poem, which are still further illustrated by the voices, acting as the +interpreters of the meaning of the instrumentation. + +The "Fantasie" was written in 1850, its subject being a poem by Edmund +Lobedanz, which of itself might appropriately be called a fantasy. The +work consists of four movements, for four solo voices, orchestra, and +piano-forte. The prominence which Gade has given to the instrumental +parts is shown by his characterizing the movements,--I. _Allegro moderato +e sostenuto_; II. _Allegro molto e con fuoco_; III. _Allegro vivace_. The +poem in the original is one of more than ordinary excellence. The +translation in most common use is one made by Mrs. Vander Weyde for a +performance of the work in London in 1878 at the Royal Normal College and +Academy of Music for the Blind, under the direction of Herr von Bülow. + +The first movement is in the nature of an invocation to spring, in which +the longing for May and its flowers is very tenderly expressed. The +second movement depicts with great vigor the return of the wintry storms, +the raging of the torrents, the gradual rolling away of the clouds, the +approach of more genial breezes, and the rising of the star, typifying +"the joy of a fair maiden's love." The closing movement is full of +rejoicing that the spring has come. Voices and instruments share alike in +the jubilation:-- + + "For the spring-time has come, the May is here, + On hill and in vale all is full of delight. + How sweet is the spring-time, how lovely and bright,-- + Its kingdom is over us all." + + + The Erl King's Daughter. + +"The Erl King's Daughter" was written in 1852. Its story differs from +that told in Goethe's famous poem, and set to music equally famous by +Schubert in his familiar song. In Goethe's poem the father rides through +the night clasping his boy and followed by the Erl King and his +daughters, who entice the child unseen by the parent. In vain he assures +him that the Erl King's voice is but the "sad wind sighing through the +withered leaves," that his train is but the mist, and that his daughters +are the aged gray willows deceiving his sight. The boy at first is +charmed with the apparition, but cries in mortal terror as the Erl King +seizes him, while the father gallops at last into the courtyard, only to +find his child dead in his arms. + +In the poem used by Gade it is the Erl King's daughter who tempts a +knight to his death. The prologue relates that Sir Oluf at eve stayed his +steed and rested beneath the alders by the brook, where he was visited by +two of the daughters, one of whom caressed him while the other invited +him to join their revels. At sound of the cock-crow, however, they +disappeared. It was the eve of Sir Oluf's wedding day. He arrives home in +a distraught condition, and in spite of his mother's appeals decides to +return to the alder grove in quest of the beauties who had bewitched him. +He finds the alder-maids dancing in the moonlight, singing and beckoning +him to join them. One of the fairest tempts him with a silken gown for +the bride and silver armor for himself. When he refuses to dance with +her, she seizes him by the arm and predicts his death on the morrow +morning. "Ride home to your bride in robe of red," she cries as he +hastens away. In the morning the mother anxiously waits his coming, and +at last beholds him riding desperately through "the waving corn." He has +lost his shield and helmet, and blood drips from his stirrups. As he +draws rein at the door of the castle he drops dead from his saddle. A +brief epilogue points the moral of the story in quaint fashion. It is to +the effect that knights who will on horseback ride should not like Oluf +stay in elfin groves with elfin maidens till morning. It is unnecessary +to specify the numbers in detail; as with the exception of the +melodramatic finale, where the music becomes quite vigorous, it is all of +the same graceful, flowing, melodic character, and needs no key to +explain it to the hearer. + + + The Crusaders. + +"The Crusaders" is one of the most powerful as well as beautiful of +modern cantatas. It was written for performance in Copenhagen in 1866, +and ten years later was produced at the Birmingham Festival, under the +composer's direction. It is divided into three parts, and its story may +be told in a word. Its theme is the same as that which Wagner has treated +in "Lohengrin" and in "Tännhauser,"--the conflict of the human soul with +the powers of darkness, sensual beauty and sorcery, and its final +triumph. It is the story of the temptation of Rinaldo d'Este, the bravest +of the Crusaders, by Armida and her sirens, who at last calls upon the +Queen of Spirits to aid them in their hopeless task, the thwarting of the +powers of evil, and the final triumph before Jerusalem. + +The first part opens with a chorus of pilgrims and women in the band of +the Crusaders, expressive of the weariness and sufferings they have +endured in their long wanderings, the end of which still appears so far +away. As the beautiful music dies away, the inspiring summons of Peter +the Hermit is heard, leading up to the Crusaders' song,--a vigorous, +war-like melody, full of manly hope and religious fervor. An evening +prayer of pious longing and exalted devotion closes this part. + +The second part is entitled "Armida," and introduces the evil genius of +the scene. A strange, mysterious orchestral prelude indicates the baneful +magic of the sorcerer's wiles. In a remarkably expressive aria, Armida +deplores her weakness in trying to overcome the power of the cross. As +she sees Rinaldo, who has left his tent to wander for a time in the night +air, she calls to the spirits to obey her incantation:-- + + "Cause a palace grand to rise, + Let a sea before it glimmer. + In the walls of richest gold + Let the purest diamonds shimmer; + Round the fountains' pearly rim, + Where bright the sunbeams are glancing, + Plashing low and murmuring sweet, + Set the merry wavelets dancing. + In yon hedge of roses where fairies rock in softest dreaming, + Fays and elfins bid appear, and sirens float in waters dreaming. + All around let music ring, + Fill the air with sweetest singing; + Lure them on with magic power, + To our midst all captive bringing. + Sing remembrance from their hearts, + Till they bow, my will fulfilling; + Make them every thought forego, + Every wish, save mine own, stilling." + +After another invocation of the spirits, the sirens appear, singing a +sensuous melody ("I dip my white Breast in the soft-flowing Tide"). Then +begins the temptation of the wandering Knight. He starts in surprise as +he hears the voices rising from the waves, and again they chant their +alluring song. They are followed by Armida, who appeals to him in a +seductive strain ("O Rinaldo, come to never-ending Bliss"). The Knight +joins with her in a duet of melodious beauty. He is about to yield to the +temptation, when he hears in the distance the tones of the Crusaders' +song. He wavers in his resolution, Armida and the sirens appeal to him +again, and again he turns as if he would follow them. The Crusaders' song +grows louder, and rouses the Knight from the spell which has been cast +about him, and the scene closes with a beautifully concerted number, in +which Rinaldo, Armida, the chorus of Crusaders and of sirens contend for +the mastery. The fascination of the Crusaders' song is the strongest. The +cross triumphs over the sorceress, and in despair she sings,-- + + "Sink, scenes illusive, deep in dark abyss of doom! + The light of day is turned to blackest night of gloom." + +The third part, entitled "Jerusalem," is religious in character, and +mostly choral. In rapid succession follow the morning hymn with beautiful +horn accompaniment, the march of the Pilgrims full of the highest +exaltation, the hermit's revelation of the Holy City to them, their +joyous greeting to it, Rinaldo's resolution to expiate his offence by his +valor, the hermit's last call to strife, their jubilant reply, and the +final victory:-- + + "As our God wills it. Up, arouse thee! + Up! yon flag with hope endows thee. + Jerusalem! the goal is there. + We cry aloud, 'Hosanna!'" + + + + + GILCHRIST. + + +William W. Gilchrist, the American composer, was born at Jersey City, N. +J., in 1846. He began his studies with H. A. Clarke, professor of music +in the University of Pennsylvania. In 1872 he accepted the position of +organist at the New Jerusalem Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, and was also +appointed teacher in the Conservatory of Miss Bauer. A year later he +returned to Philadelphia, where he has since resided. During this time he +has done a great work for music in that city, having been conductor of +several societies. He has been the recipient of honors on many occasions, +having obtained several prizes from the Philadelphia Art Society and +others for his compositions. In 1880 he contended for the prize offered +by the Cincinnati Musical Festival Association, but stood third on the +list, Dudley Buck being first and George E. Whiting second. In 1882 he +made another trial for the Association's prize, and was successful; the +committee, consisting of Carl Reinecke of Leipsic, M. Saint-Saens of +Paris, and Theodore Thomas of New York, making him the award. + + + The Forty-sixth Psalm. + +The composition referred to in the sketch of Mr. Gilchrist's life which +secured for him the Cincinnati prize in 1882 was "The Forty-sixth Psalm." +The composer's own analysis of the work, furnished at the time, is +appended:-- + + "The composition is a setting of the Forty-sixth Psalm for soprano + solo, chorus, orchestra, and organ, and has four principal divisions + exclusive of an introduction, each following the other without pause, + and connected by a gradual decrescendo in the orchestra. The opening of + the Psalm seemed to me to indicate a strong outburst of praise or of + thanksgiving for a deliverance from trials, which the introduction is + intended to convey. But instead of beginning with a strong outburst, I + lead up to it from a very subdued beginning, working gradually to a + climax at the entrance of the chorus on the words, 'God is our refuge + and our strength.' The opening movement of the chorus becomes a little + subdued very shortly as it takes up the words, 'A very present help in + trouble,' which is followed again by an _allegro con fuoco_ movement on + the words, 'Therefore we will not fear though the earth be removed, + though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea.' This + movement leads into still another, a furioso movement on the words, + 'Though the waters thereof roar, though the mountains shake with the + swelling thereof.' This is followed by an elaborate coda, in which all + the themes of the preceding movement are worked together, and which + brings the chorus to a close. + + The second division, in E major, is marked by an _andante + contemplativo_ on the words, 'There is a river the streams whereof + shall make glad the city of God.' This movement is intended to be one + of tranquillity, varied with occasional passionate outbursts on the + words, 'God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved.' A peculiar + rhythmical effect is sought by the alternation of 4/4 and 3/4 time, + three bars of the first being answered by two bars of the second. This + movement ends very tranquilly on the words, 'God shall help her, and + that right early,' and is immediately followed by an _allegro molto_, + in B minor, on the words, 'The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved; + he uttered his voice, the earth melted.' In the middle of this chorus + the soprano solo enters for the first time on the words, 'He maketh + wars to cease unto the end of the earth; He breaketh the bow and + cutteth the spear in sunder.' The chorus works up to a strong climax on + the words, 'He burneth the chariot with fire,' which is suddenly + interrupted by a decrescendo on the words, 'Be still, and know that I + am God.' + + This leads to the third division, which is a return of the second + division in E major, and which is played through almost entirely by the + orchestra, the chorus merely meditating on the words last quoted. This + leads to the final chorus, which is a fugue, in E major, with _alla + breve_ time, on the words, 'And the Lord of Hosts is with us; the God + of Jacob is our refuge,' towards the close of which a _Gloria Patri_ is + introduced, being woven in with fragments of the fugue to a strong + climax. The whole composition finishes with an impetuous accelerando. + My central idea was to make a choral and orchestral work, the solo, + while requiring a good singer, being only secondary. The Psalm seemed + to me particularly adapted for musical composition, as being capable of + a varied, even dramatic effect." + + + + + GLEASON. + + +Frederick Grant Gleason was born at Middletown, Conn., Dec. 17, 1848. He +inherited the love of music from his parents,--his father having been a +flutist and his mother an alto singer and pianist. In his sixteenth year +he showed a decided talent for composition; and two of his works, an +oratorio, "The Captivity," and a Christmas oratorio, though crudely +written, gave such promise that he was placed under the tuition of Dudley +Buck, with whom he studied the piano and composition. He made such rapid +progress that his parents were induced to send him to Germany, where he +at once entered the Leipsic Conservatory. Moscheles taught him the piano, +and Richter harmony, and he also took private lessons from Plaidy and +Lobe. In 1870 he went to Berlin, where he continued his piano studies +with Raif, a pupil of Tausig, and his tuition in harmony with Weitzmann. +After a visit home he went to England and resumed lessons on the piano +with Berringer, another pupil of Tausig, and also studied English music. +He subsequently made a second visit to Berlin, and improved his time by +studying theory with Weitzmann, the piano with Loeschorn, and the organ +with Haupt. During this visit he also issued a valuable work entitled +"Gleason's Motet Collection." After the completion of his studies he +returned home and accepted the position of organist at one of the +Hartford churches. In 1876 he removed to Chicago and engaged as teacher +in the Hershey School of Musical Art. At present he is still occupied in +teaching and also fills the position of musical critic for the "Tribune" +of that city. During these years his pen has been very busy, as the list +of his compositions shows. Among his principal works are two operas, +still in manuscript,--"Otho Visconti" and "Montezuma;" the cantatas "God +our Deliverer," "The Culprit Fay," and "Praise of Harmony;" and several +trios, sonatas, and other works for the chamber, as well as many songs. +The selections from his operas which have been played by the Thomas +orchestra show that they are compositions of unusual excellence and +scholarship. + + + The Culprit Fay. + +"The Culprit Fay," a musical setting of Joseph Rodman Drake's well-known +fairy poem, was written in 1879. It is divided into three parts,--the +first containing five, the second five, and the third eight numbers; the +solos being divided among soprano, alto, tenor, and barytone, the last +named taking the part of the Fairy King. The exquisitely graceful fairy +story told in the poem is too well known to need description. It is +admirably adapted to music by its rhythmic fluency as well as by the +delicacy of its poetical sentiment; and while it does not call for +earnestness or strength in any of its movements, there is ample +opportunity for melodious and attractive pictures in tone of the dainty +descriptions of the poet. The composer has improved these opportunities +with much skill, and, notwithstanding the intrinsic lightness of the +score, has secured musical unity and poetical coherence by the artistic +use of the _leit-motif_. Nine of these motives are employed, +characterizing the summer night, the elfin mystery, the life of the +fairies, the fay's love for the mortal maid, the penalty for this +violation of fairy law, night on the river, the spells of the water imps, +the penalties imposed upon the culprit, and the Sylphide Queen's passion +for the Fay. The skilfulness with which these motives are adapted to +characters and situations, and interwoven with the general movement in +their proper recurrence, shows that the composer has not studied Wagner, +the master of the _leit-motif_, in vain. + +After a short introduction for the horns and strings, the cantata opens +with a full chorus of graceful, flowing character ("'Tis the Middle Watch +of a Summer's Night") describing the moonlight scene about "Old Cro' +Nest." It is followed by the mystery motive announcing a weird alto solo, +"'Tis the Hour of Fairy Ban and Spell." It is the summons of the sentry +elf, ringing the hour of twelve, indicated in the score by the triangle, +and calling the fairies to confront the culprit. A stirring and blithe +instrumental introduction, followed by a short chorus ("They come from +Beds of Lichen green"), describes the gathering of the fays, retarded at +the close, and growing sombre as it is announced that "an ouphe has +broken his vestal vow." A tenor solo ("He has loved an earthly Maid") +tells the sad story of the guilty one who "has lain upon her lip of dew" +and "nestled on her snowy breast." They gather about to hear his doom, +and do not have to wait long; for the tenor song leads without break to a +barytone solo, in recitative form, by the Fairy King ("Fairy, Fairy, list +and mark"), pronouncing the penalties he must pay for his +transgression,--the catching of a drop from the sturgeon's silver bow to +wash away the stain on his wings, and the relighting of his flamewood +lamp by the last faint spark in the train of a shooting star. + +A graceful chorus ("Soft and pale is the moony Beam") opens the second +part, picturing the scene upon the strand bordering the elfin land; and +the leaps of the sturgeon, followed by a tenor solo and recitative +describing the sorrow of the lonely sprite and his desperate effort to +push his mussel-shell boat down to the verge of the haunted land. The +alto, which does all the mystery work, goes on with the description of +the vain attempt of the river imps to wreck his frail craft, and his +discovery and pursuit of the sturgeon; then there is a pause. The full +chorus, in a quick movement, pictures the pretty scene of the sturgeon's +leap, the arch of silver sheen, and the puny goblin waiting to catch the +drop. The tenor recitative announces his success, and a full jubilant +chorus of the sprites ("Joy to thee, Fay! thy Task is done") bids him +hasten back to the elfin shore. + +The third part opens with a full chorus, very animated in its progression +("Up to the Cope, careering swift"), describing the ride of the Fay past +the sphered moon and up to the bank of the Milky Way, where he checks his +courser to wait for the shooting star. In the next number, a short +recitative, the alto has a more grateful task; this time it is the +graceful sylphs of heaven who appear, weaving their dance about the Fay, +and leading him on to the palace of the Sylphide Queen. It is followed by +two charming soprano solos,--the one descriptive of her beauty as she +listens to the story of the Fay, and the other ("O Sweet Spirit of +Earth") of her sudden passion and the tempting inducements by which she +seeks to make him forget the joys of fairy-land. Once more the tenor, who +plays the part of narrator, enters, and in solo and recitative assures us +how like a brave homunculus the Fay resisted her blandishments. A very +vigorous and descriptive chorus, as fast as can be sung, pictures the Fay +careering along on the wings of the blast up to the northern plain, where +at length a star "bursts in flash and flame." The tenor announces his +second success, and the final chorus ("Ouphe and Goblin! Imp and Sprite") +sings his welcome back in an animated manner, beginning with a moderate +movement which constantly accelerates and works up to a fine climax; +after which-- + + "The hill-tops glow in morning's spring, + The skylark shakes his dappled wing, + The day glimpse glimmers on the lawn, + The cock has crowed and the fays are gone." + + + The Praise Song to Harmony. + +"The Praise Song to Harmony," written in 1886, is a musical setting of a +poem of the same name by David Ebeling, a German poet who lived in the +latter part of the eighteenth century. The composition is in a strict +sense a symphonic cantata, somewhat in the manner of Mendelssohn's "Hymn +of Praise," being prefaced with a symphonic allegro in the classical form +which is written in a very scholarly manner and displays great skill in +thematic treatment. + +The cantata proper opens with a short introduction, consisting of massive +chord foundations for the full orchestra, connected by a figure for the +strings, ushering in a chorus for male voices ("Hail thee, O Harmony, +offspring of Heaven"). The words contain a description of the creation of +worlds and of music, as the song of stars unites with the angel chorus in +praise of the Almighty. At the close of this number begins a choral theme +for trumpets, horns, and trombones, followed by strings and woodwinds, +and introducing a soprano recitative ("With Grace, thy Gaze, O Harmony") +descriptive of the blessing brought into the world by music, followed by +a picture of the misery of the race without its consolation. At the close +the brasses give out a solemn march-like theme. A short chorus ("Joy to +us! Again descending, thou Heavenly One") describes the might of song. A +brief orchestral interlude follows, preparing the entrance of a barytone +solo with chorus ("Blessed Comforter in Grief"). The work closes with a +partial repetition of the opening chorus, with a more elaborate and +brilliant figural accompaniment, in the course of which the march-like +subject is heard again in the brasses. At the end the strings maintain a +tremolo while the rest of the orchestra presents a passage with varied +harmonies. The opening theme of the cantata, though not a repetition, +bears a strong analogy to the introduction of the symphony movement. + + + + + HANDEL. + + +George Frederick Handel was born at Halle, in Lower Saxony, Feb. 23, +1685, and like many another composer revealed his musical promise at a +very early age, only to encounter parental opposition. His father +intended him to be a lawyer; but Nature had her way, and in spite of +domestic antagonism triumphed. The Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels recognized +his ability and overcame the father's determination. Handel began his +studies with Zachau, organist of the Halle cathedral. After the death of +his father, in 1697, he went to Hamburg, and for a time played in the +orchestra of the German opera. It was during his residence in that city +that he wrote his first opera, "Almira" (1705). In the following year he +went to Italy, where he remained several months under the patronage of +the Grand Duke of Florence. During the next two years he visited Venice, +Rome, and Naples, and wrote several operas and minor oratorios. In 1709 +he returned to Germany, and the Elector of Hanover, subsequently George +I. of England, offered him the position of capellmeister, which he +accepted upon the condition that he might visit England, having received +many invitations from that country. The next year he arrived in London +and brought out his opera of "Rinaldo," which proved a great success. At +the end of six months he was obliged to return to his position in +Hanover; but the English success made him impatient of the dulness of the +court. In 1712 he was in London again, little dreaming that the Elector +would soon follow him as king. Incensed with him for leaving Hanover, the +King at first refused to receive him; but some music which Handel +composed for an aquatic fęte in his honor brought about the royal +reconciliation. In 1718 he accepted the position of chapel-master to the +Duke of Chandos, for whom he wrote the famous Chandos Te Deum and +Anthems, the serenata "Acis and Galatea," and "Esther," his first English +oratorio. In 1720 he was engaged as director of Italian opera by the +society of noblemen known as the Royal Academy of Music, and from that +time until 1740 his career was entirely of an operatic character. Opera +after opera came from his pen. Some were successful, others failed. At +first composer, then director, he finally became _impresario_, only to +find himself confronted with bitter rivalry, especially at the hands of +Bononcini and Porpora. Cabals were instituted against him. Unable to +contend with them alone, he formed a partnership with Heidegger, +proprietor of the King's Theatre, in 1729. It was broken in 1734, and he +took the management of Covent Garden. The Italian conspiracies against +him broke out afresh. He failed in his undertaking and became a bankrupt. +Slanders of all sorts were circulated, and his works were no longer well +received. In the midst of his adversity sickness overtook him, ending +with a partial stroke of paralysis. When sufficiently recovered he went +to the Continent, where he remained for a few months. On his return to +London he brought out some new works, but they were not favorably +received. A few friends who had remained faithful to him persuaded him to +give a benefit concert, which was a great success. It inspired him with +fresh courage; but he did not again return to the operatic world. +Thenceforward he devoted himself to oratorio, in which he made his name +famous for all time. He himself said: "Sacred music is best suited to a +man descending in the vale of years." "Saul" and the colossal "Israel in +Egypt," written in 1740, head the list of his wonderful oratorios. In +1741 he was invited to visit Ireland. He went there in November, and many +of his works were produced during the winter and received with great +enthusiasm. In April, 1742, his immortal "Messiah" was brought out at +Dublin. It was followed by "Samson," "Joseph," "Semele," "Belshazzar," +and "Hercules," which were also successful; but even in the midst of his +oratorio work his rivals did not cease their conspiracies against him, +and in 1744 he was once more a bankrupt. For over a year his pen was +idle. In 1746 the "Occasional Oratorio" and "Judas Maccabćus" appeared, +and these were speedily followed by "Joshua," "Solomon," "Susanna," +"Theodora," and "Jephthah." It was during the composition of the +last-named work that he was attacked with the illness which finally +proved fatal. He died April 14, 1759, and was buried in Westminster +Abbey. During the last few days of his life he was heard to express the +wish that "he might breathe his last on Good Friday, in hopes of meeting +his good God, his sweet Lord and Saviour, on the day of His +resurrection." The wish was granted him; for it was on Good Friday that +he passed away, leaving behind him a name and fame that will be cherished +so long as music retains its power over the human heart. + + + Acis and Galatea. + +The first idea of Handel's famous pastoral, "Acis and Galatea," is to be +found in a serenata, "Aci, Galatea, e Polifemo," which he produced at +Naples in July, 1708. The plan of the work resembles that of the later +pastoral, though its musical setting is entirely different.[21] Little +was known of it however until nearly a quarter of a century afterwards, +when the composer revived portions of it in one of his London concerts, +as will shortly be seen. + +In 1718 Handel entered the service of James, Duke of Chandos, as +chapel-master, succeeding Dr. Pepusch. His patron had accumulated an +immense fortune and spent it in a princely manner. He had built a marble +palace, at an enormous expense, at Cannons in Middlesex, where he lived +in almost regal state. It was the chapel attached to this mansion over +which Handel was called to preside, and there were ready for his use a +large choir, a band of instrumental performers, and a fine organ. The +anthems and services of his predecessor were laid aside, and that year +Handel's busy pen supplied two new settings of the Te Deum and the twelve +Chandos Anthems, which are really cantatas in form. His first English +opera, "Esther," was also composed at Cannons, and was followed by the +beautiful pastoral which forms the subject of this sketch. "Esther" was +first performed Aug. 20, 1720, and it is generally agreed that "Acis and +Galatea" followed it in the same year, though Schoelcher in his biography +assigns 1721 as the date. Nine characters are contained in the original +manuscript,--Galatea, Clori, and Eurilla, sopranos; Acis, Filli, Dorinda, +and Damon, altos; Silvio, tenor; and Polifemo, bass. + +After this private performance the pastoral was not again heard from +until 1731-32, when it was given under peculiar circumstances. On the +13th of March, 1731, it was performed for the benefit of one Rochetti, +who took the rôle of Acis; but with this representation Handel had +nothing to do. The act of piracy was repeated in the following year, when +Mr. Arne, father of Dr. Arne the composer, and the lessee of the Little +Theatre in the Haymarket, announced its performance as follows:-- + + "At the new theatre in the Haymarket, on Thursday next, 11th May, will + be performed in English a pastoral opera called 'Acis and Galatea,' + with all the choruses, scenes, machines, and other decorations, etc. + (as before), being the first time it was ever performed in a theatrical + way. The part of Acis by Mr. Mourtier, being the first time of his + appearance in character on any stage; Galatea, Miss Arne.[22] Pit and + boxes, 5_s._" + +Handel had taken no notice of the 1731 performance; but this +representation, given at a theatre directly opposite the one of which he +was manager, roused his resentment, though piracy of this kind was very +common in those days. He determined to outdo the manager "over the way." +On the 5th of June he announced in the "Daily Journal":-- + + "In the King's Theatre in the Haymarket, the present Saturday, being + the 10th of June, will be performed a serenata called 'Acis and + Galatea,' formerly composed by Mr. Handel, and now revised by him, with + several additions, and to be performed by a great number of the best + voices and instruments. There will be no action on the stage,[23] but + the scene will represent in a picturesque manner a rural prospect, with + rocks, groves, fountains, and grottos, among which will be disposed a + chorus of nymphs and shepherds; the habits, and every other decoration, + suited to the subject. Also on the 13th, 17th, 20th. The libretto + printed for J. Watts, in three acts." + +The rival establishment had produced the work as it was originally given +at Cannons; but as intimated in his advertisement, Handel made additions, +interpolating a number of airs and choruses from the serenata which he +had composed at Naples, thus requiring the work to be sung both in +Italian and English,--a polyglot practice from which our own times are +not exempt. The part of Acis was sung by Senesino, a male soprano; +Galatea by Signora Strada; and Polyphemus by Montagnana. The other +parts--Clori and Eurilla sopranos, Filli and Dorinda contraltos, and +Silvio tenor--were also represented. It was performed eight times in +1732, and was brought out in the same form at Oxford in 1733; but in 1739 +Handel restored it to its original shape as it had been given at Cannons. +It is now generally performed in two parts with the three characters +Galatea, Acis, and Polyphemus, and choruses of nymphs and shepherds. + +The pretty pastoral will always possess more than ordinary interest, as +four celebrated poets are represented in the construction of the poem. +Gay wrote the most of it. It also contains a strophe by Hughes, a verse +by Pope,[24] and an extract from Dryden's translation of the Galatea myth +in the Metamorphoses of Ovid.[25] The story is based on the seventh fable +in the thirteenth book of the Metamorphoses,--the sad story which +Galatea, daughter of Nereus, tells to Scylla. The nymph was passionately +in love with the shepherd Acis, son of Faunus and of the nymph Symoethis, +and pursued him incessantly. She too was pursued by Polyphemus, the +one-eyed Cyclops of Ćtna, contemner of the gods. One day, reclining upon +the breast of Acis, concealed behind a rock, she hears the giant pouring +out to the woods and mountains his story of love and despair: "I, who +despise Jove and the heavens and the piercing lightnings, dread thee, +daughter of Nereus; than the lightnings is thy wrath more dreadful to me. +But I should be more patient under these slights if thou didst avoid all +men. For why, rejecting the Cyclop, dost thou love Acis? And why prefer +Acis to my embraces?" As he utters these last complaints, he espies the +lovers. Then, raging and roaring so that the mountains shook and the sea +trembled, he hurled a huge rock at Acis and crushed him. The shepherd's +blood gushing forth from beneath the rock was changed into a river; and +Galatea, who had fled to the sea, was consoled. + +The overture to the work, consisting of one movement, is thoroughly +pastoral in its style and marked by all that grace and delicacy which +characterize the composer's treatment of movements of this kind. It +introduces a chorus ("O the Pleasures of the Plains!") in which the easy, +careless life of the shepherds and their swains is pictured. Galatea +enters seeking her lover, and after the recitative, "Ye verdant Plains +and woody Mountains," relieves her heart with an outburst of melodious +beauty:-- + + "Hush, ye pretty warbling choir! + Your thrilling strains + Awake my pains + And kindle fierce desire. + Cease your song and take your flight; + Bring back my Acis to my sight." + +Acis answers her, after a short recitative, with another aria equally +graceful ("Love in her Eyes sits playing and sheds delicious Death"). The +melodious and sensuous dialogue is continued by Galatea, who once more +sings:-- + + "As when the dove + Laments her love + All on the naked spray; + When he returns + No more she mourns, + But loves the live-long day. + Billing, cooing, + Panting, wooing, + Melting murmurs fill the grove, + Melting murmurs, lasting love."-- + +Then in a duet, sparkling with the happiness of the lovers ("Happy We"), +closing with chorus to the same words, this pretty picture of ancient +pastoral life among the nymphs and shepherds comes to an end. + +In the second part there is another tone both to scene and music. The +opening chorus of alarm ("Wretched Lovers") portends the coming of the +love-sick Cyclops; the mountains bow, the forests shake, the waves run +frightened to the shore as he approaches roaring and calling for "a +hundred reeds of decent growth," that on "such pipe" his capacious mouth +may play the praises of Galatea. The recitative, "I melt, I rage, I +burn," is very characteristic, and leads to the giant's love-song, an +unctuous, catching melody almost too full of humor and grace for the +fierce brute of Ćtna:-- + + "O ruddier than the cherry! + O sweeter than the berry! + O nymph more bright + Than moonshine night, + Like kidlings, blithe and merry. + + "Ripe as the melting cluster, + No lily has such lustre. + Yet hard to tame + As raging flame, + And fierce as storms that bluster." + +In marked contrast with this declaration follows the plaintive tender +song of Acis ("Love sounds the Alarm"). Galatea appeals to him to trust +the gods, and then the three join in a trio ("The Flocks shall leave the +Mountain"). Enraged at his discomfiture, the giant puts forth his power. +He is no longer the lover piping to Galatea and dissembling his real +nature, but a destructive raging force; and the fragment of mountain +which he tears away buries poor Acis as effectually as Ćtna sometimes +does the plains beneath. The catastrophe accomplished, the work closes +with the sad lament of Galatea for her lover ("Must I my Acis still +bemoan?") and the choral consolations of the shepherds and their +swains:-- + + "Galatea, dry thy tears, + Acis now a god appears; + See how he rears him from his bed! + See the wreath that binds his head! + Hail! thou gentle murmuring stream; + Shepherds' pleasure, Muses' theme; + Through the plains still joy to rove, + Murmuring still thy gentle love." + + +[21] The superior attractions of the English serenata will probably + prevent the earlier work from ever becoming a popular favorite; more + especially since the rôle of Polifemo needs a bass singer with a + voice of the extraordinary compass of two octaves and a + half.--_Rockstro's Life of Handel_. + +[22] Miss Arne, afterwards Mrs. Cibber, enjoyed, under the latter name, a + great reputation as a singer. Her husband was Theophilus Cibber, the + brother of Colley Cibber, a poet laureate in the reign of George + II.--_Schoelcher's Life of Handel_. + +[23] This undoubtedly is the manner in which this charming little piece + ought to be performed. It is a dramatic poem, but not an acting play, + and the incidents are such as cannot be represented on the stage. A + few years ago another attempt was made to perform it as an opera, but + without success. Polyphemus is entirely an ideal character, and any + attempt to personate him must be ridiculous; and the concluding + scene, in which the giant throws a huge rock at the head of his + rival, produced shouts of merriment. "Acis and Galatea" is performed + in an orchestra in the manner in which oratorios are performed; but + its effect would certainly be heightened by the picturesque scenery + and decorations employed by Handel himself.--_Hogarth's Musical + Drama_. + +[24] + "Not showers to larks so pleasing, + Not sunshine to the bee, + Not sleep to toil so easing, + As these dear smiles to me." + +[25] + "Help! Galatea! Help, ye parent gods! + And take me dying to your deep abodes." + + + Alexander's Feast. + +Handel composed the music for Dryden's immortal ode in 1736. In the +original score the close of the first part is dated January 5, and the +end of the work January 17, showing rapid composition. Three years before +this time he had had a violent quarrel with Senesino, his principal +singer at the opera-house in the Haymarket, which led to his abandonment +of the theatre and its occupancy by his rival, Porpora. After an +unsuccessful attempt to compete with the latter, which nearly bankrupted +him in health and purse, he decided to quit opera altogether. He sought +relief for his physical ailments at Aix-la-Chapelle, and upon his return +to London in October, 1735, publicly announced that "Mr. Handel will +perform Oratorios and have Concerts of Musick this Winter at Covent +Garden Theatre." One of the first works for these concerts was +"Alexander's Feast," completed, as stated above, Jan. 17, 1736. The poem +was prepared by Newburgh Hamilton, who says in his preface:-- + + "I determined not to take any unwarrantable liberty with the poem, + which has long done honor to the nation, and which no man can add to or + abridge in anything material without injuring it. I therefore confined + myself to a plain division of it into airs, recitatives or choruses, + looking upon the words in general so sacred as scarcely to violate one + in the order of its first place. How I have succeeded the world is to + judge, and whether I have preserved that beautiful description of the + passions, so exquisitely drawn, at the same time I strove to reduce + them to the present taste in sounds. I confess my principal view was, + not to lose this favorable opportunity of its being set to music by + that great master who has with pleasure undertaken the task, and who + only is capable of doing it justice; whose compositions have long shown + that they can conquer even the most obstinate partiality, and inspire + life into the most senseless words. If this entertainment can in the + least degree give satisfaction to the real judges of poetry or music, I + shall think myself happy in having promoted it; being persuaded that it + is next to an improbability to offer the world anything in those arts + more perfect than the united labors and utmost efforts of a Dryden and + a Handel." + +In addition to the preface Hamilton appended a poem "To Mr. Handel on his +setting to Musick Mr. Dryden's Feast of Alexander," in which he +enthusiastically sings:-- + + "Two glowing sparks of that celestial flame + Which warms by mystick art this earthly frame, + United in one blaze of genial heat, + Produced this piece in sense and sounds complete. + The Sister Arts, as breathing from one soul, + With equal spirit animate the whole. + Had Dryden lived the welcome day to bless, + Which clothed his numbers in so fit a dress, + When his majestick poetry was crowned + With all your bright magnificence of sound, + How would his wonder and his transport rise, + Whilst famed Timotheus yields to you the prize!" + +The work was first performed at Covent Garden Theatre, February 19, about +a month after it was written; the principal singers being Signora Strada, +Miss Young,[26] John Beard, and Mr. Erard. It met with remarkable +success. The London "Daily Post," on the morning after its production, +said:-- + + "Never was upon the like Occasion so numerous and splendid an Audience + at any Theatre in London, there being at least 1,300 Persons present; + and it is judged that the Receipt of the House could not amount to less + than Ł450." + +It was repeated four times, and then withdrawn to make room for "Acis and +Galatea" and the oratorio of "Esther." In March, 1737, it was revived, +with two additional choruses made by Hamilton for the work; and upon the +same occasion an Italian cantata in praise of Saint Cecilia was sung. + +It is unnecessary to inform the reader of the nature of a poem familiar +the world over. The overture is written for strings and two oboes. +Throughout the work the orchestration is thin, bassoons and horns being +the only instruments added to those named above; but in 1790 Mozart +amplified the accompaniments,--an improvement which he also made for the +score of "Acis and Galatea." The great solos of the composition are the +furious aria, "'Revenge, Revenge!' Timotheus cries," and the descriptive +recitative, "Give the Vengeance due to the valiant Crew," in which Handel +employs his imitative powers with consummate effect. Clouet, in his +"Chants Classiques," says of the passage "And the king seized a flambeau +with zeal to destroy:-- + + "He paints Alexander issuing forth in the midst of an orgie, arming + himself with a torch, and followed by his generals, running to set fire + to Persepolis. While the accompaniment sparkles with the confused and + unequal glare of the torches, the song expresses truthfully the + precipitation and the tumult of the crowd, the rolling of the flames, + and the living splendor of a conflagration." + +The choruses of the work are equally strong, and some of them are among +the best Handel ever wrote, particularly, "He sang Darius great and +good," "Break his Bands of Sleep asunder," "Let old Timotheus yield the +Prize," and "The many rend the Skies with loud Applause." They are as +genuine inspirations as the best choruses of the "Messiah" or of "Israel +in Egypt." + +In 1739 Handel also set to music Dryden's shorter "Ode for St. Cecilia's +Day," beginning, + + "From Harmony, from heavenly Harmony + This universal frame began," + +the music for which had been originally composed in 1687 by Giovanni +Baptista Draghi, an Italian, who was music-master to Queen Anne and Queen +Mary, and at that time was organist to Catharine of Braganza, widow of +Charles II. Handel's setting was first performed on the anniversary of +the saint's festival, Nov. 22, 1739. The programme announced: + + "Lincoln's Inn Fields. At the Theatre Royal in Lincoln's Inn Fields, + Thursday next, November 22 (being St. Cecilia's Day), will be performed + an Ode of Mr. Dryden's, with two new Concertos for several instruments, + which will be preceded by Alexander's Feast and a Concerto on the + organ." + +Though one of the shortest of his vocal works, it contains some +magnificent choruses. + + +[26] Cecilia, a pupil of Geminiani, and afterwards wife of Dr. Arne. + + + L'Allegro. + +"L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato," the first two movements of +which contain a musical setting of Milton's well-known poem, was written +in the seventeen days from Jan. 19 to Feb. 6, 1740, and was first +performed on the 27th of the latter month at the Royal Theatre, Lincoln's +Inn Fields, London. Upon this occasion the first and second parts were +preceded, according to the handbook, by "a new concerto for several +instruments," and the third by "a new concerto on the organ," which was +played by the composer himself. It was performed again Jan. 31, 1741, +with the addition of ten new numbers to the music, which in the original +manuscript appear at the end, marked by Handel, "l'Additione." At a still +later period Handel omitted the third part ("Moderato") entirely, and +substituted for it Dryden's "Ode on St. Cecilia's Day," which he composed +in 1739. + +The text of the first two parts is by Milton, Allegro, as is well known, +chanting the praises of pleasure, Penseroso those of melancholy; Allegro +represented by tenor and Penseroso by soprano, and each supported by a +chorus which joins in the discussion of the two moods. There is a radical +difference between the poem as Milton wrote it and as it appears set to +Handel's music. Milton presented two distinct poems, though allied by +antithesis, and Penseroso does not speak until Allegro has finished. In +the poem as adapted for music they alternate in sixteen strophes and +antistrophes. The adaptation of these two parts was made by Charles +Jennens, who was a frequent collaborator with Handel.[27] He also +suggested the addition of a third part, the Moderato, and wrote the +words, in which he counsels both Allegro and Penseroso to take the middle +course of moderation as the safest. The wisdom of the poet in suggesting +the _via media_ is more to be commended than his boldness in +supplementing Milton's stately verse with commonplaces, however wise they +may have been. Chrysander, the German biographer of Handel presents a +philosophical view of the case. He says: + + "In the two pictures a deeply thoughtful mind has fixed for itself two + far-reaching goals. With these the poem has reached its perfect end, + and in the sense of its inventor there is nothing further to be added. + The only possible, the only natural outlet was that into a _life of + action_, according to the direction which the spirit now should take; + already it was the first step into this new domain which called forth + the divided feeling. The two moods do not run together into any third + mood as their point of union, but into active real life, as different + characters, forever separate. Therefore 'Moderation' could not bring + about the reconciliation; only life could do it; not contemplation, but + deeds. Gladness and Melancholy are symptoms of a vigorous soul; + moderation would be mediocrity. And herein lies the unpoetic nature of + the addition by Jennens; read according to Milton, the concluding moral + of a rich English land-owner whose inherited abundance points to + nothing but a golden mean, and whose only real problem is to keep the + balance in the lazy course of an inactive life, makes a disheartening + impression." + +The work as a whole is one of Handel's finest inspirations. The Allegro +is bright and spirited throughout; the Penseroso grave and tender; and +the Moderato quiet and respectable, as might be expected of a person who +never experiences the enthusiasms of joy or the comforts of melancholy. +The most of the composition is assigned to solo voices which carry on the +discussion, though in the Moderato it is mainly the chorus which urges +the sedate compromise between the two. + +The work opens without overture, its place having originally been +supplied by an orchestral concerto. In vigorous and very dramatic +recitative Allegro bids "loathed Melancholy" hence, followed by +Penseroso, who in a few bars of recitative far less vigorously consigns +"vain, deluding joys" to "some idle brain;" Allegro replies with the +first aria ("Come, come, thou Goddess fair"), a beautifully free and +flowing melody, responded to by Penseroso, who in an aria of stately +rhythm appeals to his goddess, "Divinest Melancholy." Now Allegro summons +his retinue of mirth:-- + + "Haste thee, nymph, and bring with thee + Jest and youthful jollity, + Quips and cranks and wanton wiles, + Nods and becks and wreathčd smiles, + Such as hang on Hebe's cheek, + And love to live in dimple sleek, + Sport, that wrinkled care derides, + And Laughter, holding both his sides;" + +and the chorus takes up the jovial refrain in the same temper. The aria +itself is well known as the laughing song. Indeed, both aria and chorus +are full of unrestrained mirth, and go laughingly along in genuine +musical giggles.[28] The effect is still further enhanced by the next +aria for Allegro ("Come and trip it as you go"), a graceful minuet, which +is also taken by the chorus. After a recitative by Penseroso ("Come, +pensive Nun"), and the aria, "Come, but keep thy wonted State" the first +Penseroso chorus occurs ("Join with thee calm Peace and Quiet"), a short +but beautiful passage of tranquil harmony. Once more in recitative +Allegro bids "loathed Melancholy" hence, and then in the aria, "Mirth, +admit me of thy Crew," leading into a chorus, sings of the lark, +"startling dull Night" and bidding good-morrow at his window,--a +brilliant number accompanied with an imitation of the lark's song. +Penseroso replies with an equally brilliant song ("Sweet Bird, that +shuns't the Noise of Folly"), in which the nightingale plays the part of +accompaniment. Another aria by Allegro ("Mirth, admit me of thy Crew") +gives an opportunity for a blithe and jocund hunting-song for the bass, +followed by one of the most beautiful numbers in the work ("Oft on a Plat +of rising Ground") sung by Penseroso, in which the ringing of the far-off +curfew, "swinging slow, with sullen roar," is introduced with telling +effect. This is followed by a quiet meditative aria ("Far from all +Resorts of Mirth"), when once again Allegro takes up the strain in the +two arias, "Let me wander not unseen," and "Straight mine Eye hath caught +new Pleasures." The first part closes with the Allegro aria and chorus +("Or let the merry Bells ring round"), full of the very spirit of joy and +youth; and ending with an exquisite harmonic effect as the gay crowd +creep to bed, "by whispering winds soon lulled to sleep." + +The second part begins with a stately recitative and aria by Penseroso +("Sometimes let gorgeous Tragedy"), followed by one of the most +characteristic arias in the work ("But O, sad Virgin, that thy Power +might raise!") in which the passage, + + "Or bid the soul of Orpheus sing + Such notes as warbled to the string + Drew iron tears down Pluto's cheek," + +is accompanied by long persistent trills that admirably suit the words. +The next number ("Populous Cities please me then") is a very descriptive +solo for Allegro, with chorus which begins in canon form for the voices +and then turns to a lively movement as it pictures the knights +celebrating their triumphs and the "store of ladies" awarding prizes to +their gallants. Again Allegro in a graceful aria sings, "There let Hymen +oft appear." It is followed by a charming canzonet ("Hide me from Day's +garish Eye") for Penseroso, which leads to an aria for Allegro ("I'll to +the well-trod Stage anon"), opening in genuinely theatrical style, and +then changing to a delightfully melodious warble at the words,-- + + "Or sweetest Shakspeare, Fancy's child, + Warble his native wood-notes wild." + +This is followed by three characteristic arias, "And ever, against eating +Cares," "Orpheus himself may heave his Head," and "These Delights, if +thou canst give,"--the last with chorus. Penseroso has a short chorus in +plain but stately harmony ("There let the pealing Organ blow"), with +pauses for the organ _ad libitum_, followed by the aria, "May at last my +weary Age," and the majestic devotional fugued chorus, "These Pleasures, +Melancholy, give!" which close the second part. + +The third part, "Il Moderato," is rarely given, and the work may well +close with the fugue that so beautifully and harmoniously ends the second +part. It opens with an aria in which Moderato tenders the sage advice:-- + + "Come, with native lustre shine, + Moderation, grace divine, + Whom the wise God of nature gave, + Mad mortals from themselves to save. + Keep as of old the middle way, + Nor deeply sad nor idly gay; + But still the same in look and gait, + Easy, cheerful, and sedate, + Keep as of old the middle way." + +With such didactic commonplaces as the above, Moderato commends +temperance, health, contentment, frugality, equanimity, and chaste love, +and bids them,-- + + "Come, with gentle hand restrain + Those who fondly court their bane; + One extreme with caution shunning, + To another blindly running. + Kindly teach how blest are they + Who nature's equal rules obey, + Who safely steer two rocks between, + And prudent keep the golden mean." + +Thus Mr. Jennens's mild philosophy goes on, one of his verses, "As steals +the Morn upon the Night," set to a brilliant tenor and soprano duet, +followed by the closing chorus, "Thy Pleasures, Moderation, give," in +full, broad, rich harmony. There needs no other proof of Handel's genius, +than that he could link such Tupperisms to his grand measures. + + +[27] Jennens was an amateur poet of the period, descended from a + manufacturing family of Birmingham, from whom he inherited a large + fortune. He lived on terms of close intimacy with Handel, and was + mentioned in his will. He died Nov. 20, 1773. + +[28] I was lucky enough to meet with the approbation of Mr. Bates in the + recitative of "Deeper and deeper still;" my next song was the + laughing one. Mr. Harrison, my predecessor at those concerts, was a + charming singer: his singing "Oft on a plat of rising ground," his + "Lord, remember David," and "O come let us worship and fall down," + breathed pure religion. No divine from the pulpit, though gifted with + the greatest eloquence, could have inspired his auditors with a more + perfect sense of duty to their Maker than Harrison did by his + melodious tones and chaste style; indeed, it was faultless: but in + the animated songs of Handel he was very deficient. I heard him sing + the laughing song without moving a muscle, and determined, though it + was a great risk, to sing it my own way, and the effect produced + justified the experiment; instead of singing it with the serious + tameness of Harrison, I laughed all through it, as I conceived it + ought to be sung, and as must have been the intention of the + composer. The infection ran; and their Majesties, and the whole + audience, as well as the orchestra, were in a roar of laughter, and a + signal was given from the royal box to repeat it, and I sang it again + with increased effect.--_Michael Kelly's Reminiscences_, 1789. + + + + + HATTON. + + +John Liphot Hatton, a composer well known in America, not only by his +songs and other works, but also by his visits here, was born in Liverpool +in 1809. Though his early musical education was very scanty, he soon +became known as a composer after his removal to London in 1832, and his +works met with a very cordial reception. In 1842 he became conductor at +Drury Lane Theatre, and while acting in that capacity brought out one of +his operettas, called "The Queen of the Thames." In 1844 he went to +Vienna and produced his opera "Pascal Bruno." Shortly afterwards he +issued several songs under the _nom de plume_ of "Czapek," which secured +for themselves widespread popularity. In 1848 he came to this country, +and some years later made a concert-tour here. Upon his return to England +he assumed direction of the music at the Princess' Theatre, and while +engaged there wrote incidental music for "Macbeth," "Sardanapalus," +"Faust and Marguerite," "King Henry VIII.," "Pizarro," "King Richard +II.," "King Lear," "The Merchant of Venice," and "Much Ado About +Nothing." In 1856 he wrote "Robin Hood," a cantata; in 1864 the opera +"Rose, or Love's Ransom," for Covent Garden; and in 1877 "Hezekiah," a +sacred drama, which was performed at the Crystal Palace. He has also +written a large number of part songs, which are great favorites with +quartet clubs, and nearly two hundred songs which are very popular; among +them, "Good-by, Sweetheart, good-by," which has been a stock piece with +concert tenors for years, and which the late Signor Brignoli used to sing +with excellent effect. His music is specially characterized by grace and +melodiousness. Hatton died in 1886. + + + Robin Hood. + +The pastoral cantata of "Robin Hood" was written for the Bradford +(England) Triennial Festival of 1856, Sims Reeves creating the part of +the hero. Its name suggests the well-known story of the greenwood outlaw +which has been charmingly versified by George Linley in the libretto. The +personages are Maid Marian, Robin Hood, Little John, and "The Bishop." +Maid Marian, it will be remembered, was the mistress who followed Robin +into the Sherwood Forest and shared his wild life; and Little John was +his stalwart lieutenant, whose name was transposed after he joined the +band, thus heightening the incongruity between his name and his great +size. The incident contained in Linley's poem appears to have been +suggested by Robin Hood's penchant for capturing bishops and other +ecclesiastics, notwithstanding his religious professions, which were +exemplified by the retention of Friar Tuck as chaplain in the bold +archer's household; or it may be based upon the historical story of the +expedition which Edward II. and some of his retainers, disguised as +monks, made into the forest for the purpose of exterminating the outlaws +and thus stopping their slaughter of the royal deer. As the old story +goes, they were led into an ambuscade by a forester who had agreed to +conduct them to the haunts of Robin, and were captured. When Robin +recognized the King in the disguise of the abbot, he craved forgiveness +for himself and his band, which was granted upon condition that he should +accompany his sovereign to Court and take a place in the royal household. +The old collection of ballads, "The Lytell Geste of Robyn Hood," tells +the same story and continues it, relating how after "dwelling in the +Kynge's courte" a year, he tired of it and obtained permission to make a +visit to the woods again, but forfeited his word and never returned, +dying at last in Kirklees priory, through the treachery of the abbess, +and how in his last moments he blew a loud blast on his horn, summoning +Little John from the forest, to whom, after he had forced his way into +his chamber, the dying Robin said: + + "Give me my bent bow in my hand, + And an arrow I'll let free, + And where that arrow is taken up, + There let my grave digged be." + +The cantata opens with a chorus of the outlaws, who vigorously assert +their independence of tribute, laws, and monarchs, followed by a +bombastic bass aria by the Bishop, who threatens them for destroying the +King's deer. His grandiloquence is speedily interrupted by the outlaws, +with Robin at their head, who surround him without further ado and make +him the butt of their sport. Robin Hood sings a charmingly melodious +ballad, "Under the Greenwood Tree," in which the Bishop is invited to +become one of their number and share their sylvan enjoyments. A trio and +chorus follow, in the course of which the Bishop parts with his personal +possessions in favor of the gentlemen around him in Lincoln green with +"bent bows." A chorus ("Strike the Harp") also informs us that the +ecclesiastic is forced to dance for the genial band much against his will +as well as his dignity. Robin's sentimentalizing about the pleasures +under the greenwood tree is still further emphasized by a madrigal for +female voices, supposed to be sung by the forest maidens, though their +identity is not very clear, as Marian was the only maid that accompanied +the band. After the plundering scene, the cantata grows more passionate +in character, describing a pretty and tender love-scene between Robin and +Marian, which is somewhat incongruous, whether Marian be considered as +the outlaw's mistress, or, as some of the old chroniclers have it, his +wife Matilda, who changed her name when she followed him into the forest. +From the musical standpoint, however, it affords an opportunity for +another graceful ballad of sentiment, in which Marian describes her heart +as "a frail bark upon the waters of love;" a duet in which the lovers +passionately declare their love for each other as well as their delight +with the forest; and a final chorus of the band, jubilantly proclaiming +their hatred of kings and courtiers, and their loyalty to Robin Hood and +Maid Marian. It may be worthy of note in this connection that Bishop, the +English composer, wrote a legendary opera called "Maid Marian, or the +Huntress of Arlingford," in which the heroine is Matilda. + + + + + HAYDN. + + +Joseph Haydn, the creator of the symphony and the string quartet, was +born at Rohrau, a little Austrian village on the river Leitha, March 31, +1732. His father was a wheelwright and his mother a cook, in service with +Count Harrach. Both the parents were fond of music, and both sang, the +father accompanying himself upon the harp, which he played by ear. The +child displayed a voice so beautiful that in his sixth year he was +allowed to study music, and was also given a place in the village +church-choir. Reutter, the capellmeister of St. Stephen's, Vienna, having +heard him, was so impressed with the beauty of his voice that he offered +him a position as chorister. Haydn eagerly accepted it, as it gave him an +opportunity for study. While in the service of St. Stephen's he had +lessons on the violin and piano, as well as in composition. When his +voice broke, and his singing was of no further value, he was thrown upon +the tender mercies of the world. Fortune favored him, however. He +obtained a few pupils, and gave himself to composition. He made the +acquaintance of Metastasio, Porpora, and Gluck. His trios began to +attract attention, and he soon found himself rising into prominence. In +1759, through the influence of a wealthy friend and amateur, he was +appointed to the post of musical director and composer in the service of +Count Morzin, and about this time wrote his first symphony. When the +Count dismissed his band, Prince Paul Anton Esterhazy received him as his +second capellmeister, under Werner. When the latter died, in 1766, Haydn +took his place as sole director. His patron meanwhile had died, and was +succeeded by his son Nicolaus, between whom and Haydn there was the +utmost good feeling. Up to this time Haydn had written thirty symphonies, +a large number of trios, quartets, and several vocal pieces. His +connection with the Prince lasted until 1790, and was only terminated by +the latter's death. During this period of twenty-eight years his musical +activity was unceasing; and as he had an orchestra of his own, and his +patron was ardently devoted to music, the incentive to composition was +never lacking. Anton succeeded Nicolaus, and was generous enough to +increase Haydn's pension; but he dismissed the entire chapel, and the +composer took up his abode in Vienna. He was hardly established before he +received a flattering proposition from Salomon, the manager, to go to +England. He had already had many pressing invitations from others, but +could not accept them, owing to his engagement to Esterhazy. Now that he +was free, he decided to make the journey. On New Year's Day, 1791, he +arrived in London. Success greeted him at once. He became universally +popular. Musicians and musical societies paid him devoted attention. He +gave a series of symphony concerts which aroused the greatest enthusiasm. +He was treated with distinguished courtesy by the royal family. Oxford +gave him the honorary degree of Doctor of Music. The nobility entertained +him sumptuously. After a year of continuous fętes he returned to Germany, +where he remained two years, during a portion of which time Beethoven was +his pupil. In 1794 he made his second journey to England, where his +former successes were repeated, and fresh honors were showered upon him. +In 1804 he was notified by Prince Esterhazy that he was about to +reorganize his chapel, and wished him for its conductor again. Haydn +accordingly returned to his old position, where he remained during the +rest of his life. He was already an old man, but it was during this +period that his most remarkable works were produced, among them the +Austrian National Hymn ("Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser"), the "Seven +Words," the "Creation," the "Seasons," and many of his best trios and +quartets. He died May 31, 1809, a few days after the occupation of Vienna +by the French, and among the mourners at his funeral were many French +officers. Funeral services were held in all the principal European +cities. Honored and respected all over Europe, he was most deeply loved +by his own countrymen, who still affectionately speak of him as "Papa" +Haydn. + + + The Seven Words. + +"The Seven Words of Jesus on the Cross," sometimes called "The Passion," +was written by Haydn in 1785, for the cathedral of Cadiz, upon a +commission from the chapter for appropriate music for Good Friday. It was +at first composed as an instrumental work, consisting of seven adagio +movements, and in this form was produced in London by the composer +himself as a "Passione instrumentale." He afterwards introduced solos and +choruses, and divided it into two parts, separating them by a largo +movement for wind instruments. It was then given at Eisenstadt in 1797, +and four years later was published in the new form, with the following +preface by the composer himself:-- + + About fifteen years ago I was applied to by a clergyman in Cadiz, and + requested to write instrumental music to the seven words of Jesus on + the cross. It was then customary every year, during Lent, to perform an + Oratorio in the Cathedral at Cadiz, the effect of which the following + arrangements contributed to heighten. The walls, windows, and columns + of the church were hung with black cloth, and only one large lamp, + hanging in the centre, lighted the solemn and religious gloom. At noon + all the doors were closed, and the music began. After a prelude, suited + to the occasion, the bishop ascended the pulpit, pronounced one of the + seven words, which was succeeded by reflections upon it. As soon as + these were ended he descended from the pulpit and knelt before the + altar. The pause was filled by music. The bishop ascended and descended + again a second, a third time, and so on; and each time the orchestra + filled up the intervals in the discourse. + + My composition must be judged on a consideration of these + circumstances. The task of writing seven adagios, each of which was to + last about ten minutes, to preserve a connection between them, without + wearying the hearers, was none of the lightest, and I soon found that I + could not confine myself within the limits of the time prescribed. + + The music was originally without text, and was printed in that form. It + was only at a later period that I was induced to add the text. The + Oratorio entitled "The Seven Words of our Redeemer on the Cross," as a + complete and, as regards the vocal parts, an entirely new work, was + first published by Messrs. Breitkopf and Härtel, of Leipsic. The + partiality with which this work has been received by scientific + musicians leads me to hope that it will not be without effect on the + public at large. + + Joseph Haydn. + + Vienna, March 1, 1880. + + +As the various movements are all of the same general tone and character, +though varied with all that skill and mastery of instrumental effect for +which Haydn was so conspicuous, it is needless to describe each +separately. By many of the musicians of his day it was considered one of +his most sublime productions; and Bombet declares that Haydn on more than +one occasion, when he was asked to which of his works he gave the +preference, replied, "The Seven Words." + +It opens with an adagio for full orchestra, of a very sorrowful but +impressive character. Then follow each of the Seven Words, given out in +simple chorale form, followed by its chorus, namely:-- + + I. + PATIENCE. + +"Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." + +_Chorus_: "Lamb of God! Surely Thou hast borne our sorrows." + + II. + THE PENITENT FORGIVEN. + +"Verily I say unto thee, this day shalt thou be with me in Paradise." + +_Chorus_: "Lord, have mercy on me after Thy great goodness." + + III. + THE MOURNERS. + +"Woman, behold thy Son. Son, behold Thy mother." + +_Chorus_: "Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for Me." + + IV. + DESOLATION. + +"Eli, Eli, lama sabacthani?" + +_Chorus_: "O my God, look upon Me." + + V. + THE BITTER CUP. + +"I thirst." + +_Chorus_: "He treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath." + + VI. + COMPLETE OBEDIENCE. + +"It is finished." + +_Chorus_: "He came down from Heaven." + + VII. + THE GREAT OBLATION. + +"Father, into Thy hands I commend my spirit." + +_Chorus_: "Into Thy hands, O Lord." + +Following immediately after the last number the whole spirit of the music +changes with the chorus, "The Veil of the Temple was rent in twain," a +presto movement, sung fortissimo, describing the darkness, the quaking of +the earth, the rending of the rocks, the opening of the graves, and the +arising of the bodies of the saints who slept, with all that vividness in +imitation and sublimity of effect which characterize so many of the +composer's passages in "The Creation" and "The Seasons." Haydn was by +nature a deeply religious man, and that he felt the inspiration of the +solemn subject is shown by the manner in which he conceived it, and by +the exalted devotion of the music which accompanies the last words of the +Man of Sorrows. The lines which Bombet quotes from Dante in this +connection are hardly exaggerated:-- + + "He with such piety his thought reveals, + And with such heavenly sweetness clothes each tone, + That hell itself the melting influence feels." + + + Ariadne. + +The cantata "Ariana a Naxos" was written in 1792, and is for a single +voice with orchestra. As an illustration of the original cantata form, it +is one of the most striking and perfect. Its story is an episode familiar +in mythology. When Minos, King of Crete, had vanquished the Athenians, he +imposed upon Ćgeus, their king, the severe penalty that seven youths +should be annually sent to Crete to be devoured by the Minotaur. In the +fourth year the king's son, Theseus, was among the number. He was more +fortunate than his predecessors, for he slew the Minotaur and was rescued +from the labyrinth by following the thread of Ariadne, daughter of Minos, +who had conceived a violent passion for the handsome warrior, conqueror +of Centaurs and Amazons. Upon his return to Athens she accompanied him as +far as the island Naxos, where the ungrateful wretch perfidiously left +her. It is this scene of desertion which Haydn chose for his cantata. + +Ariadne is supposed to have just awakened from sleep and reclines upon a +mossy bank. The first number is a recitative and largo in which she +hopefully calls upon Theseus to return. The melody is noble and spirited +in style, and yet tender and fervent in its expression of love for the +absent one. In the next number, a recitative and andante ("No one +listens! My sad Words Echo but repeats"), hopefulness turns to anxiety. +The contrast between the blissful longing of the one and the growing +solicitude expressed in the other number is very striking. The next +melody, an _allegro vivace_,-- + + "What see I? O heavens! Unhappy me! + Those are the sails of the Argosy! Greeks are those yonder! + Theseus! 'Tis he stands at the prow,"-- + +is remarkable for its passionate intensity and dramatic strength. The +clouds of despair close over her, and she calls down the vengeance of the +gods upon the deserter. In the next two numbers, an adagio ("To whom can +I turn me?"), and an andante ("Ah! how for Death I am longing"), the +melodies closely follow the sentiment of the text, accompanied by very +expressive instrumentation. An _allegro presto_, infused with the very +spirit of hopeless gloom and despair, ends the cantata:-- + + "Woe's me! deceived, betrayed! + Earth holds no consolation." + +In the mythological version, however, consolation came; for Bacchus, +"ever young," and full of pity for lorn maids, married her, and gave her +a crown of seven stars, which after her death was placed among the +constellations. The music presents many difficulties for a singer, as it +requires the noblest style of declamation, peculiar refinement of +sentiment, and rare musical intelligence, as well as facility in +execution to give expression to its recitative and strongly contrasting +melodies, which have no unity of key, but follow the varying sentiments, +with their changes of tone-color, as closely as Theseus followed his +thread. + + + + + HILLER. + + +Ferdinand Hiller, one of the most eminent of modern German composers, +and a writer of more than ordinary ability, was born at +Frankfort-on-the-Main, Oct. 24, 1811. His musical talent displayed itself +so early that in his tenth year he appeared in concerts. In 1825 he began +his studies with Hummel, and two years afterwards accompanied him on a +concert-tour to Vienna, where he published his first work, a piano-forte +quartet. He next went to Paris, where he remained until 1835, occupying +for a time the position of professor in Choron's "Institution de +Musique," but principally devoting himself to piano-playing, composition, +and concerts. In 1836 he returned to Frankfort, and for more than a year +conducted the concerts of the Coecilienverein. He then went to Milan, +where he met Rossini, and with his assistance brought out his opera +"Romilda" at La Scala, but without much success. About the same time he +began his oratorio "The Destruction of Jerusalem," one of his most +important works. In 1841 he made a second journey to Italy and gave +particular attention to church music. On his return he first resided at +Frankfort, but was soon in Leipsic, where he conducted the Gewandhaus +concerts (1843-44), and after that time in Dresden, where he produced two +more operas, "Traum in der Christ-nacht" and "Conradin." In 1847 he was +appointed municipal capellmeister at Düsseldorf, and three years later +took a similar position at Cologne, where he organized the Conservatory. +In that city he exercised a widespread influence, not alone by his +teaching, but also by his direction of the famous Lower Rhine festivals. +He also made many musical tours which increased his fame. In 1852-53 he +conducted opera in Paris; in 1870, gave a series of successful concerts +in St. Petersburg; and in 1871-72 visited England, where he produced his +works both in public concerts and festivals. His compositions are very +numerous, including among the most prominent, five operas, four +overtures, a festival march for the opening of the Albert Hall, the +Spring Symphony, the oratorios "Destruction of Jerusalem" and "Saul," and +the cantatas "Heloise," "Night," "Loreley," "O weint um Sie," "Ver +sacrum," "Nala and Damajanti," "Song of Victory," "Song of the Spirits +over the Water," "Prometheus," and "Rebecca." He has also enriched +musical literature with many important works, among them, "Aus dem +Tonleben unserer Zeit" (1867), "Personalisches und Musikalisches" (1876), +"Recollections of Mendelssohn" (1874), and "Letters to an Unknown" +(1877). He died in May, 1885. + + + Song of Victory. + +The "Song of Victory," a cantata for soprano solo, chorus, and orchestra, +was first produced at the Cologne Festival of 1871, and was written to +celebrate the victorious conclusion of the Franco-German war of 1870. It +consists of eight numbers, all of which are sacred in character, though +their purpose is to express gratitude and joy over the triumph of the +German arms. + +The opening number is a vigorous, jubilant chorus ("The Lord great +Wonders for us hath wrought"). It begins with a slow movement in massive +chords, gathering animation as it proceeds, and closing pianissimo on the +words, "There is none that searcheth or understandeth." The second number +is a soprano solo and chorus ("Praise, O Jerusalem, praise the Lord") +declamatory in style. The third ("The Heathen are fallen in the Pit") is +assigned to chorus, and is the most dramatic in the work, describing as +it does the terrors of war. In the fourth ("See, it is written in the +Book of the Righteous"), a short soprano solo, the melody is a tender +lament for the dead. The fifth ("He in Tears that soweth") is a soprano +solo with chorus of first and second sopranos and altos. In this number +lamentation gives way to hope and gladness, leading up to the last three +numbers,--the six-part chorus ("Mighty is our God"), full of effective +sustained harmony, and the soprano solos and choruses of praise and +hallelujah which resume the triumphant style of the opening chorus with +increased power and enthusiasm. + + + + + HOFMANN. + + +Heinrich Karl Johann Hofmann was born Jan. 13, 1842, at Berlin. In his +younger days he was a scholar at the Kullak Conservatory, and studied +composition with Grell, Dehn, and Wüerst. Prior to 1873 he devoted +himself to private instruction, but since that time he has been engaged +exclusively in composition. Among his works which first attracted public +attention by their intrinsic excellence as well as by the knowledge of +orchestration which they displayed, were an "Hungarian Suite" and the +"Frithjof Symphony." Among his piano compositions are the following +four-handed pieces, which have been remarkably popular: "Italienische +Liebesnovelle," "Liebesfrühling," "Trompeter von Säckingen," +"Steppenbilder," and "Aus meinem Tagebuch." His choral works are +"Nonnengesang," "Die Schöne Melusine," "Aschenbrödel," and "Cinderella." +Among his operas are "Cartouche" (1869), "Armin" (1878), and "Annchen von +Tharau" (1878). He has also written several works for mixed chorus and +männerchor, piano pieces, songs, duets, a violoncello concerto, piano +trios and quartets, and a string sextet. + + + Melusina. + +The beautiful story of Melusina has always had an attraction for artists +and musicians. Moritz von Schwind, the painter, has illustrated it in a +cycle of frescos; Julius Zellner has told it for us in a series of +orchestral tone-pictures; and Mendelssohn has chosen it as the subject of +one of his most charming overtures. The version which Hofmann uses in his +cantata entitled "The Fable of the Fair Melusina" (written in 1875) runs +as follows: Melusina, the nymph of a beautiful fountain in the Bressilian +forest, and Count Raymond have fallen in love with each other. They +declare their passion in the presence of her nymphs, and plight their +troth. Melusina engages to be his dutiful wife the first six days of the +week, but makes Raymond promise never to inquire or seek to discover what +she does on the seventh, which, she assures him, shall "never see her +stray from the path of duty." On that day she must assume her original +form, half fish and half woman, and bathe with her nymphs. Raymond +promises, calls his hunters, introduces his bride to them, and the +wedding cortčge moves joyfully on to the castle. In the second part +Raymond's mother, Clotilda, and her brother, Sintram, intrigue against +Melusina. They denounce her as a witch, and the accusation seems to be +justified by a drought which has fallen upon the land since the marriage. +The suffering people loudly clamor for the surrender of the "foul witch." +After long resistance Raymond is induced to break into the bathing-house +which he had erected over the fountain. Melusina and her nymphs, +surprised by him, call upon the king of the water-spirits to avenge his +treason. The king appears and consigns him to death. Seized with pity, +Melusina intercedes for him, and the king agrees to spare his life upon +condition that they shall separate. Raymond once more embraces her, +neither of them knowing that it will be fatal to him, dies in her arms, +and the sorrowing Melusina returns to the flood. + +The prologue describes Melusina's fountain, and contains a leading motive +which characterizes Raymond. The chorus part is very romantic in its +style, and is set to a graceful, poetical accompaniment. The opening +number introduces Melusina and her nymphs in a chorus extolling their +watery abode ("For the Flood is life-giving"). In the second number she +describes the passion she feels when thinking of Raymond. The song is +interrupted by horn signals indicating the approach of her lover and his +hunters, who join in a fresh, vigorous hunting-song and then disperse. In +the fourth number Raymond gives expression to his love for Melusina, +followed by a fervid duet between them, in which the lovers interchange +vows of constancy. The sixth number, describing their engagement in +presence of the nymphs, and concluding with a stirring chorus of nymphs +and hunters, closes the first part. + +The second part begins with a theme from the love-duet, followed by a +significant theme in the minor, ominous of approaching danger. In the +eighth number the people clamor in furious chorus for the witch. In the +ninth, a trio and chorus, Clotilda warns her son of the misery he has +brought upon his house and people, and urges him to discover what his +wife does on the seventh day. The next number introduces Melusina and her +nymphs in the bath, the former singing a plaintive song ("Love is +freighted with Sorrow and Care"). A noise is heard at the gate, and the +nymphs join in a chorus in canon form ("Hark! hark! Who has come to +watch"). As Raymond appears, the scene grows very dramatic. The king of +the water-spirits is summoned; but before he rises from the water +Melusina, in very melodious recitative, laments her lover's treason. The +scene culminates in the sentence, "Let Death be his lot." He is spared by +her intercession, but she is commanded to return to the flood. Raymond +appeals for forgiveness, and a part of the love-duet is repeated. The +final embrace is fatal to him, and he dies in her arms. The chorus +repeats the melody of the opening number ("For the Flood is +life-giving"), and she bids her dead lover a last farewell, and +disappears with the nymphs and water-spirits, singing, "Forget with the +Dwellers on Earth all earthly Woe." The epilogue is substantially the +same as the prologue. + + + + + LESLIE. + + +Henry David Leslie was born in London, June 18, 1822, and in his +sixteenth year began his musical studies with Charles Lucas, a famous +violoncellist and for a long time principal of the Royal Academy of +Music. Like his master, Leslie played the violoncello several years in +the concerts of the Sacred Harmonic Society, subsequently becoming its +conductor,--a position which he held until 1861. In 1855 he organized the +famous Leslie choir of one hundred voices, which took the first prize at +the international competition of 1878 in Paris. In 1863 he was chosen +conductor of the Herefordshire Philharmonic Society, and in the following +year became principal of the National College of Music. In 1874 he was +appointed conductor of the Guild of Amateur Musicians in London. He has +been a prolific and very popular composer, among his works being the +following: Te Deum and Jubilate in D (1846); symphony in F (1847); +anthem, "Let God arise" (1849); overture, "The Templar" (1852); oratorio, +"Immanuel" (1853); operetta, "Romance, or Bold Dick Turpin" (1857); +oratorio, "Judith," written for the Birmingham Festival (1858); cantata, +"Holyrood" (1860); cantata, "The Daughter of the Isles" (1861); and the +opera "Ida" (1864). In addition to these he has written a large number of +songs, anthems, part songs, madrigals, and piano pieces, besides music +for his choir. + + + Holyrood. + +"Holyrood" was written in 1861, and was first produced in February of +that year at St. James's Hall, London. Leslie's collaborator was the +accomplished scholar Chorley, who has certainly prepared one of the most +refined and attractive librettos ever furnished a composer. The story +represents an episode during the period of Queen Mary's innocent life, +overshadowed in the close by the dismal prophecy of the terrible fate so +rapidly approaching her. The characters are Queen Mary (soprano), Mary +Beatoun (Beton), her maid of honor (contralto); Rizzio, the ill-fated +minstrel (tenor); and John Knox (bass). The scene is laid in a court of +the palace of Holyrood, and introduces a coterie of the court ladies and +gentlemen engaged in one of those joyous revels of which Mary was so +fond. In the midst of the pleasantry, however, the Queen moves pensively +about, overcome with sadness, as if her thoughts were far away. Her +favorite maid tries in vain to rouse her from her melancholy with a +Scotch ballad. The minstrel Rizzio is then urged to try his skill. He +takes his lute and sings an Italian canzonet which has the desired +effect. The sensuous music of the South diverts her. She expresses her +delight, and seizing his lute sings her new joy in a French romance. It +is interrupted by a Puritan psalm of warning heard outside. The revellers +seek to drown it; but it grows in power, and only ceases when the leader, +John Knox, enters with stern and forbidding countenance. The Queen is +angry at first, but bids him welcome provided his mission is a kindly +one. He answers with a warning. As he has the gift of prophecy, she +orders him to read her future. After the bridal, the murder of the +bridegroom; after the murder, battle; after the battle, prison; after the +prison, the scaffold, is the tragic fate he foresees. The enraged +courtiers call for his arrest and punishment, but the light-hearted Queen +bids him go free:-- + + "Let him go, and hear our laughter! + Mirth to-day, whate'er come after." + +The cantata opens with a chorus for female voices in three divisions, +with a contralto solo, in the Scotch style:-- + + "The mavis carols in the shaw, + The leaves are green on every tree, + And June, whose car the sunbeams draw, + Is dropping gold on bank and lea; + The hind is merry in the mead, + The child that gathers gowan flower, + The Thane upon his prancing steed, + The high-born lady in her bower,-- + Gay, gay, all are gay, + On this happy summer day." + +After a short recitative passage in which Mary Beatoun appeals to the +revellers to lure the Queen from her loneliness, and their reply ("O +Lady, never sit alone"), the maid sings a very characteristic and +engaging Scotch ballad:-- + + "There once was a maiden in Melrose town + (Oh! the bright Tweed is bonny to see!) + Who looked on the best in the country down, + Because she had lovers, one, two, three. + The first was a lord with his chest of gold, + The second a ruddy shepherd so tall, + The third was a spearsman bluff and bold,-- + But Pride, it goeth before a fall. + + "One hour she smilčd, the next she wept + (Oh! the bright Tweed is bonny to see!) + And with frowns and blushes a chain she kept + Round the necks of her hapless lovers three. + For the lord in her lap poured wide his gold, + And the shepherd ran at her beck and call, + And the spearsman swore she was curst and cold, + But Pride, it goeth before a fall. + + "At last it fell out on a bleak March day + (Oh! the bright Tweed is bonny to see!) + There sate at her window the maiden gay + And looked o'er the frost for her lovers three. + But the lord had to France sailed forth with his gold, + And the shepherd had married her playmate small, + And the spearsman in battle lay stark and cold,-- + So Pride, it goeth before a fall." + +As might have been expected, this mournful ditty fails to rouse the Queen +from her melancholy, whereupon Rizzio takes his lute and sings the +canzonet "Calla stagion novella," a very slow and graceful movement, +closing with a sensuous allegro, written in the genuine Italian style, +though rather Verdi-ish for the times of Rizzio. The canzonet has the +desired effect, and is followed by a delightful French romance, sung by +the Queen, in which a tender minor theme is set off against a fascinating +waltz melody, closing with a brilliant finale:-- + + "In my pleasant land of France + There is gladness everywhere; + In the very streams a dance, + Full of life, yet debonair, + Ah, me! ah, me! + To have left it was a sin, + Even for this kind countrie. + But we will not mourn to-day, + Bid the harp and rebec play, + Merrilie, merrilie, + Sing and smile, and jocund be; + If my father's land is dear, + Mirth and valor still are here; + Maidens faithful, champions gay, + France has melted far away + Beyond the sea." + +At the close of the pretty romance, the revel begins with a stately +minuet and vocal trio ("Fal, lal, la") for the Queen, Mary Beatoun, and +Rizzio. It is interrupted by the unison psalm-tune of the Puritans, a +stern, severe old melody set to a "moving bass" accompaniment:-- + + "O thou who sittest on the throne + And wilt exalt thine horn on high, + While captive men in prison groan, + And women poor of hunger die, + Beware! albeit a Haman proud, + Served by thy slaves on bended knee, + The heaven can speak in thunder loud + And rend to dust both them and thee." + +There is a temporary pause in the revels, but at the Queen's command they +are resumed with a quick-step introduced by the pipes and full of the +genuine Scotch spirit and bustle, the "Fal lal" trio and chorus still +accompanying it. It is interrupted afresh by a repetition of the psalm +("A Hand of Fire was on the Wall"), after which John Knox enters. With +his entrance the gay music closes and the work assumes a gloomy tragic +cast as the dialogue proceeds and the terrible incidents of the prophecy +are unfolded. It is a relief when they join in a hopeful duet ("E'en if +Earth should wholly fail me") which is very quiet and melodious. It leads +to the Queen's farewell, a quaintly-written bit, with an old-fashioned +cadenza, followed by the final chorus, which takes up a theme in the same +joyous spirit as the opening one:-- + + "Hence with evil omen, + Doleful bird of night, + Who in tears of women + Takest chief delight! + Think not to alarm her, + As with mystic power; + Nought shall ever harm her, + Scotland's lily flower." + + + + + LISZT. + + +Franz Liszt, the most eminent pianist of his time, who also obtained +world-wide celebrity as a composer and orchestral conductor, was born at +Raiding, Hungary, Oct. 22, 1811. His father was an accomplished amateur, +and played the piano and violoncello with more than ordinary skill. He +was so impressed with the promise of his son that he not only gave him +lessons in music, but also devoted himself to his artistic progress with +the utmost assiduity. In his ninth year Liszt played for the first time +in public at Oedenburg. His performances aroused such enthusiasm that +several Hungarian noblemen encouraged him to continue his studies, and +guaranteed him sufficient to defray the expenses of six years' tuition. +He went to Vienna at once and studied the piano with Czerny, besides +taking lessons in composition of Salieri and Randhartinger. It was while +in that city that his first composition, a variation on a waltz of +Diabelli, appeared. In 1823 he went to Paris, hoping to secure permission +to enter the Conservatory; but Cherubini refused it on account of his +foreign origin, though Cherubini himself was a foreigner. Nothing +daunted, young Liszt continued his studies with Reicha and Paer, and two +years afterwards brought out a two-act opera entitled "Don Sancho," which +met with a very cordial reception. The slight he received from Cherubini +aroused popular sympathy for him. His wonderful playing attracted +universal attention and gained him admission into the most brilliant +Parisian salons. He was a favorite with every one, especially with the +ladies. For two or three years he made artistic tours through France, +Switzerland, and England, accompanied by his father, and everywhere met +with the most brilliant success. In 1827 the father died, leaving him +alone in the world; but good fortune was on his side. During his stay in +Paris he had made the friendship of Victor Hugo, George Sand, Lamartine, +and other great lights in literature and music, and their influence +prepared the way for his permanent success. From 1839 to 1847 he +travelled from one city to another, arousing the most extraordinary +enthusiasm; his progress was one continued ovation. In 1849 he went to +Weimar and accepted the post of conductor at the Court Theatre. He made +that city the musical centre of Europe. It was there that his greatest +compositions were written, that the school of the music of the future was +founded, and that Wagner's operas first gained an unprejudiced hearing; +and it is from Weimar that his distinguished pupils, like Von Bülow, +Tausig, Bendel, Bronsart, Klindworth, Winterberger, Reubke, and many +others date their success. In 1859 he resigned his position and after +that time resided at Rome, Pesth, and Weimar, working for the best +interest of his beloved art, and encouraging young musicians to reach the +highest standards. Few men of this century have had such a powerful +influence upon music, or have done so much to elevate and purify it. His +most important works were the "Divina Commedia" and "Faust" symphonies, +the twelve symphonic poems, the six Hungarian rhapsodies, the "Graner +Mass," the "Hungarian Coronation Mass," and the oratorios "Christus" and +"The Legend of the Holy Elizabeth." Besides these he wrote a large number +of orchestral pieces, songs, and cantatas, and a rich and varied +collection of piano-forte solos, transcriptions, and arrangements. He +died July 31, 1886. + + + Prometheus. + +Liszt's cantata "Prometheus," composed in 1850, is based upon the poem of +the same name, written by Johann Gottfried von Herder, the court preacher +of Weimar. The poem closely follows the well-known legend of Prometheus' +punishment for stealing fire from heaven, and his ultimate rescue by +Hercules from the vulture which preyed upon his vitals. The poet pictures +the victim in the midst of his sufferings, consoled by the knowledge that +he has been a benefactor to the human race. The spirits of the ocean mock +and menace him, but the harvesters and tillers of the soil praise him for +the bounteous gifts he has given to the earth. Ceres and Bacchus, +protectors of the soil and its products, also pay their tribute of +sympathy to him and thank him for the blessing of fire. Hercules at last +releases him from his torture by killing the vulture and breaking the +chains which bind him to his rock. The sufferer is brought before Themis, +who announces that the divine wrath has been appeased by his long +punishment, and that the gods forgive him. + +In building up his cantata Liszt has introduced several prologues from +the poem without music, which serve as narrators explaining the +situations, linking and leading up to the musical numbers, which are +mainly choral. Thus the opening prologue pictures the sufferings of +Prometheus, the crime for which he is forced to endure such a terrible +penalty, and the patience, hope, and heroism of the victim. The closing +lines,-- + + "Now through the hush of night burst well-known voices + Upon his ear. From out the slumbering ocean, + Fanning his cheek with breath of the sea waves, + The daughters of Oceanus approach,"-- + +introduce the opening chorus of sea-nymphs ("Prometheus, Woe to thee"), +for female voices, arranged in double parts, and set to a restless, +agitated accompaniment, expressive of fear and despair. The second +prologue, reciting the wrath of Oceanus "on his swift-winged ocean +steed," that mortals should have dared to vex his peaceful waters, and +the reply of Prometheus that "on the broad earth each place is free to +all," introduces the choruses of Tritons and Oceanides. The first is a +mixed chorus full of brightness and spirit ("Freedom! afar from Land upon +the open Sea"). Their exultant song is followed by a fascinating melody +("Hail! O Prometheus, hail!") for female chorus, with short but +expressive solos for soprano and alto ("When to our Waters the golden +Time shall come"), the number closing with double chorus in full rich +harmony ("Holy and grand and free is the Gift of Heaven"). Thereupon +follows the third prologue:-- + + "Scarcely has ceased the Ocean's song of joy, + Which, breathing peace unto Prometheus' soul, + Wakens within his breast long-buried hope, + When once again the sound of lamentation + Bursts on his ear and fills the air with sighs. + Seated within a lion-drawn chariot comes + The founder of his race--Gća herself-- + With her a train of wood-nymphs, loudly weeping." + +It introduces a chorus of Dryads ("Woe to thee, Prometheus") of the same +general character as the opening chorus of sea-nymphs, and containing a +very dramatic and declamatory alto solo ("Deserted stand God's sacred +Altars in the old Forest"). A dialogue follows between Gća and +Prometheus, in which the latter bravely defends his course. As the Dryads +disappear, Prometheus soliloquizes:-- + + "'This is, in truth, the noblest deed + Mortal has ever dared. Beat high, my heart! + On this foundation built I up my race,-- + On deathless friendship and fraternity. + Courage, Alcides! Bravely fight thy fight. + Conquer, and thou shalt free me.' From his dreams, + Roused is the Titan by a song of joy. + Before him, crowned with the rich harvest, stands + Ceres with her train of reapers." + +A mixed chorus of gleaners follows ("With the Lark sweetly singing"), +which can hardly be excelled for grace and loveliness of melody. In the +next prologue Ceres consoles Prometheus, and while she is speaking a +shout of gladness rises and Bacchus appears. He smites the rock, and at +his touch a bower of grape-vines and ivy boughs interlaces over the head +of the Titan and shadows him. This serves to introduce the chorus of +Vine-dressers ("Hail to the Pleasure-giver"), a lively strain for male +voices with an effective solo quartet. As Prometheus resumes his +soliloquy, Hermes approaches, leading Pandora, and seeks to allure him +from his purpose by her enchantments, but in vain:-- + + "The Titan conquers, and he feels the hour-- + The fated hour--draw near. Above his head + The vulture hovers, fearing to approach; + While the earth trembles, and the rocks are shaken. + Voices are heard from out the gloomy depths." + +The voices are those of the spirits in the lower regions singing a very +melodramatic chorus ("Woe! woe! the sacred Sleep of the Dead has been +disturbed"). An _allegro moderato_ for orchestra follows, preluding the +approach of Hercules, who bends his giant bow and kills the vulture, +strikes the fetters off and bids him "Go hence unto thy Mother's Throne." +The scene introduces the seventh number ("All human Foresight wanders in +deepest Night"), an expressive and stately male chorus with solo quartet. +The last prologue describes the scene at the throne of Themis, the pardon +of Prometheus, and her assurance that "Henceforth Olympus smiles upon the +Earth." Pallas presents him with a veiled figure as the reward of his +heroism, "who will bring to thy race the richest blessing,--Truth." The +goddess unveils her and declares her name "Agathea. She brings to man the +purest, holiest gift,--Charity." The closing chorus of the Muses +follows:-- + + "Of all bright thoughts that bloom on earth, + That raise poor mortals high as heaven, + The holiest, the blessedest is Charity. + Hail, Prometheus! Hail to mankind!" + + + The Bells of Strasburg. + +"Die Glocken des Strassburger Münsters" ("The Bells of Strasburg +Cathedral") was written in 1874, and is dedicated to the poet Longfellow, +from whose "Golden Legend" the composer took his theme for musical +treatment. The cantata, however, does not deal with the beautiful legend +itself as related by the old minnesinger, Hartmann von Aue, which +Longfellow has told so powerfully in his "Christus," but simply with the +prologue, describing the futile attempt of Lucifer and the Powers of the +Air to tear down the cross of the Strasburg Cathedral during the night +storm. It was a subject peculiarly attractive to Liszt, as it offered him +free scope for his fancies and unlimited opportunity for the display of +his unique and sometimes eccentric orchestration. The work is written for +barytone solo and mixed chorus, and is divided into two parts,--a short +prelude which is entitled "Excelsior" (_andante maestoso_), and in which +this word is several times repeated by the chorus with gradually +increasing power from piano to fortissimo; and "The Bells," which +comprises the principal part of the work. + +The second part opens with a massive introduction (_allegro agitato +assai_), in which the bells, horns, and trumpets play an important part, +leading up to the furious invocation of Lucifer:-- + + "Hasten! Hasten! + O ye spirits! + From its station drag the ponderous + Cross of iron that to mock us + Is uplifted high in air!" + +Without a break comes the response of the spirits, first and second +sopranos, altos, and tenors ("Oh! we cannot, for around it"), followed by +the Latin chant of the bells sung by tenors and basses, with a soft +tremolo accompaniment:-- + + "Laudo Deum verum! + Plebem voco! + Congrego clerum!" + +Again with increasing power Lucifer shouts his command:-- + + "Lower! Lower! + Hover downward! + Seize the loud, vociferous bells, and + Clashing, clanging to the pavement, + Hurl them from their windy tower!" + +As before, the chorus responds in a sweet harmonious strain ("All thy +Thunders here are harmless"), again followed by the slow and sonorous +chant of the bells:-- + + "Defunctos ploro! + Pestem fugo! + Festa decoro!" + +Lucifer reiterates his command with constantly increasing energy:-- + + "Shake the casements + Break the painted + Panes that flame with gold and crimson; + Scatter them like leaves of autumn, + Swept away before the blast." + +In its response this time the chorus is full of energy and impetuosity as +it shouts with great power, "O, we cannot! the Archangel Michael flames +from every window." The chant of the bells is now taken by the basses +alone:-- + + "Funera plango! + Fulgura frango! + Sabbato pango!" + +Lucifer makes his last appeal with all the strength that voice and +orchestra can reach:-- + + "Aim your lightnings + At the oaken + Massive, iron-studded portals! + Sack the house of God, and scatter + Wide the ashes of the dead." + +In the choral response ("The Apostles and the Martyrs wrapped in +Mantles") the sopranos and altos are in unison, making with the first and +second tenors a splendid effect. For the last time the first and second +basses sing the chant of the bells:-- + + "Excito lentos! + Dissipo ventos! + Paco cruentos!" + +With no abatement of vigor the baffled Lucifer sounds his signal for +retreat, and the voices reply, sopranos and altos in unison:-- + + "Onward! onward! + With the night-wind, + Over field and farm and forest, + Lonely homestead, darksome hamlet, + Blighting all we breathe upon." + +As the voices die away, choir, organ, and orchestra join with majestic +effect in the intonation of the Gregorian chant:-- + + "Nocte surgentes + Vigilemus omnes! + Laudemus Deum verum." + +The cantata shows Liszt's talent rather than his genius. It is a +wonderful mosaic-work of fancies, rather than an original, studied +composition with definite purpose. Its motives, while not inspired, are +finely conceived, and are presented not only gracefully, but in keeping +with the spirituality of the subject. + + + + + MACFARREN. + + +George Alexander Macfarren, one of the most prominent of modern English +composers, was born in London, March 2, 1813. He began the study of music +under the tuition of Charles Lucas in 1827. Two years later he entered +the Royal Academy of Music, and in 1834 became one of its professors. The +latter year dates the beginning of his career as a composer, his first +work having been a symphony in F minor. During the next thirty years his +important works were as follows: overture, "Chevy Chace" (1836); "Devil's +Opera," produced at the Lyceum (1838); "Emblematical Tribute on the +Queen's Marriage" and an arrangement of Purcell's "Dido and Ćneas" +(1840); editions of "Belshazzar," "Judas Maccabćus," and "Jephthah," for +the Handel Society (1843); the opera "Don Quixote" (1846); the opera +"Charles II." (1849); serenata, "The Sleeper Awakened," and the cantata +"Lenora" (1851); the cantata "May Day," for the Bradford Festival (1856); +the cantata "Christmas" (1859); the opera "Robin Hood" (1860); the masque +"Freya's Gift" and opera "Jessy Lea" (1863); and the operas "She Stoops +to Conquer," "The Soldier's Legacy," and "Helvellyn" (1864). About the +last year his sight, which had been impaired for many years, failed. His +blindness, however, did not diminish his activity. He still served as +professor in the Royal Academy, and dictated compositions,--indeed some +of his best works were composed during this time of affliction. In 1873 +appeared his oratorio "St. John the Baptist," which met with an +enthusiastic reception at the Bristol Festival of that year. In 1875 he +was elected professor of music at Cambridge, to fill the vacancy +occasioned by the death of Sterndale Bennett, and in the same year was +also appointed principal of the Royal Academy of Music. In 1876 his +oratorio "The Resurrection" was performed at the Birmingham Festival, and +in 1877 the oratorio "Joseph" at Leeds, besides the cantata "The Lady of +the Lake" at Glasgow. Grove catalogues his other compositions as follows: +a cathedral service, anthems, chants, psalm-tunes, and introits for the +Holy Days and Seasons of the English Church (1866); "Songs in a +Cornfield" (1868); "Shakspeare Songs for Four Voices" (1860-64); songs +from Lane's "Arabian Nights," and Kingsley's and Tennyson's poems: +overtures to "The Merchant of Venice," "Romeo and Juliet," "Hamlet," and +"Don Carlos;" symphonies, string quartets, and a quintet; a concerto for +violin and orchestra; and sonatas for piano-forte alone, and in +combination with other instruments. As lecturer, writer, and critic, Sir +George Macfarren also holds a high place, among his important works being +"Rudiments of Harmony" (1860); six Lectures on Harmony (1867); analyses +of oratorios for the Sacred Harmonic Society (1853-57), and of orchestral +works for the Philharmonic Society (1869-71); and a "Musical History," +being a reprint of an article on this subject contributed by him to the +Encyclopćdia Britannica. + + + Christmas. + +"Christmas," the poem by John Oxenford, was written in 1859, and was +first performed at one of the concerts of the Musical Society of London, +on the 9th of May 1860. The poem itself contains no story. It is merely a +tribute to the season; but at the same time it is not destitute of +incident, so that it possesses considerable dramatic interest. + +After a short instrumental introduction the cantata opens with a double +chorus in antiphonal style, in which both the bright and the dark sides +of winter are celebrated. The second choir takes up the theme:-- + + "The trees lift up their branches bare + Against the sky: + Through the keen and nipping air + For spring's return they seem to cry, + As the winds with solemn tone + About them sadly moan;" + +and the first choir replies:-- + + "Old Winter's hand is always free, + He scatters diamonds round; + They dart their light from every tree, + They glisten on the ground. + Then who shall call the branches bare, + When gems like those are sparkling there?" + +The two then join and bring their friendly contest to a close:-- + + 2nd Choir.--"Come in, and closely shut the door + Against the wintry weather; + Of frost and snow we'll think no more, + While round the fire we sit together." + + 1st Choir.--"Rush out from every cottage door, + 'Tis brave and bracing weather; + A madder throng ne'er met before, + Than those which now have come together." + +This double number, which is very effective, is followed by a soprano +recitative and romance ("Welcome, blest Season"), tender and yet joyous +in character, which celebrates the delight of friendly reunions at +Christmas tide, and the pleasure with which those long absent seek "the +old familiar door." In the next number, an old English carol ("A Blessing +on this noble House and all who in it dwell"), Christmas is fairly +introduced. It is sung first in unison by full chorus, then changes to +harmony, in which one choir retains the melody, and closes with a new +subject for orchestral treatment, the united choirs singing the carol. +Christmas would not be complete without its story; and this we have in +the next number for contralto solo and chorus, entitled "A Christmas +Tale." It is preceded by recitative, written in the old English style, +and each verse closes with a refrain, first sung as a solo, and then +repeated in full harmony by the chorus:-- + + "A bleak and kindless morning had broke on Althenay, + Where shunning Danish foemen the good King Alfred lay; + 'In search of food our hunters departed long ago, + I fear that they have perished, embedded in the snow.' + While thus he sadly muses, an aged man he sees, + With white hair on his forehead like frost upon the trees. + An image of the winter the haggard pilgrim stands, + And breathing forth his sorrows, lifts up his withered hands: + 'The Heavenly King, who reigns on high, + Bless him who hears the poor man's cry.' + + "'Our hearts are moved with pity, thy sufferings we deplore,' + Said Alfred's queen, the gentle, 'but scanty is our store; + One loaf alone is left us.' 'Then give it,' said the King, + 'For He who feeds the ravens, yes, He will fresh abundance bring.' + The wind was roaring loudly, the snow was falling fast, + As from the lofty turret the last, last loaf he cast. + An image of the winter, the haggard pilgrim stands, + And Alfred's welcome pittance he catches with his hands. + 'The Heavenly King, who reigns on high, + Bless him who hears the poor man's cry.' + + "The snow is thickly falling, the winter wind is loud, + But yonder in the distance appears a joyous crowd. + The hunters bring their booty, the peasants bring their corn, + And cheering songs of triumph along the blast are borne. + Before another morning down-stricken is the foe, + And blood of Danish warriors is red upon the snow. + Amid the conquering Saxons the aged pilgrim stands, + And like a holy prophet exclaims with lifted hands, + 'The Heavenly King, who reigns on high, + Bless him who hears the poor man's cry.'" + +A graceful little duet for female voices ("Little Children, all +rejoice"), picturing the delights of childhood and its exemption from +care, follows the Saxon story and leads up to the finale, which is choral +throughout, and gives all the pleasant details of Christmas cheer,--the +feast in the vaulted hall, the baron of beef, the boar with the lemon in +his jaw, the pudding, "gem of all the feast," the generous wassail, and +the mistletoe bough with its warning to maids. In delightfully +picturesque old English music the joyous scene comes to an end:-- + + "Varied sports the evening close, + Dancers form in busy rows: + Hoodwink'd lovers roam about, + Hope to find the right one out, + And when they fail how merry is the shout! + Round yon flickering flame of blue + Urchins sit, an anxious crew; + Dainties rich the bold invite, + While from the fire the timid shrink with fright. + Welcome all, welcome all. + 'Tis merry now in the vaulted hall, + The mistletoe is overhead, + The holly flaunts its berries red, + The wassail-bowl goes gayly round; + Our mirth awakes the echoes sound, + All eyes are bright, all hearts are gay; + Thus ends our Christmas day." + + + + + MACKENZIE. + + +Alexander C. Mackenzie, one of the very few successful Scotch composers, +was born at Edinburgh, in 1847. His father was a musician, and +recognizing his son's talent, sent him to Germany at the age of ten. He +began his studies with Ulrich Eduard Stein at Schwartzburg-Sondershausen, +and four years later entered the ducal orchestra as violinist. He +remained there until 1862, when he went to England to study the violin +with M. Sainton. In the same year he was elected king's scholar of the +Royal Academy of Music. Three years later he returned to Edinburgh and +established himself as a piano-teacher. The main work of his life, +however, has been composition, and to this he has devoted himself with +assiduity and remarkable success. Grove catalogues among his works: +"Cervantes," an overture for orchestra; a scherzo, for ditto; overture to +a comedy; a string quintet, and many other pieces in MS.; piano-forte +quartet in B., op. 11; Trois Morceaux pour Piano, op. 15; two songs, op. +12; besides songs, part-songs, anthems, and pieces for the piano. This +catalogue can now be increased by four of the most important works he has +produced: a Scotch Rhapsody, introduced into this country by the Theodore +Thomas orchestra; the oratorio "Rose of Sharon" (1884); an opera, "The +Troubadour" (1885), and the cantata, "The Story of Sayid" (1886), which +forms the subject of the subjoined sketch. + + + The Story of Sayid. + +"The Story of Sayid," a dramatic cantata in two parts, the libretto by +Joseph Bennett, was first produced at the Leeds Triennial Festival, Oct. +13, 1886. Its story is founded upon that of a poem in Edwin Arnold's +"Pearls of the Faith," and embodies a myth which is current among nearly +all Oriental nations. The characters are Ilmas, daughter of Sâwa +(soprano); Sayid, an Arab chief (tenor); Sâwa, a Hindoo prince +(barytone); a watchman (tenor or barytone); and a horseman (barytone). +The opening scene pictures the desolation of the land of Sâwa, caused by +the invasion of an Arab band, led by their chieftain, Sayid. In the midst +of the popular lamentations a messenger announces the defeat of the Arabs +and the capture of their leader, who is brought to the city and sentenced +to death on the spot. As Sayid prepares to meet his fate, he is +recognized by Sâwa as his rescuer at a time when he was hunting in the +hills and perishing with thirst. He offers him any boon he may ask except +that of life. Sayid entreats that he may be allowed to visit his aged +father, promising to return afterwards and suffer his fate. When Sâwa +asks who will be hostage for him, his own daughter, Ilmas, offers +herself. Moved to pity for the Arab, she persists in her offer, and her +father at last reluctantly consents. The second scene opens in Ilmas's +palace, and we discover that pity has grown into passion for Sayid during +his absence. She is interrupted in her meditations by Sâwa, who enters +with his counsellors, and announces that lightnings have flashed from the +altars of Siva, and that the gods have demanded that the hostage must +suffer in the absence of Sayid. Ilmas bids her attendants array her in +bridal robes, and in the next scene appears in an open space near the +city gate, surrounded by the court retinue and soldiers, and accompanied +by her maidens, strewing flowers in her path. Ilmas is led to the centre +of the space and kneels down, the executioner standing over her and +awaiting the signal to be given by the watchman when the sun sets. Before +that time comes the latter excitedly announces the rapid approach of an +Arab horseman. While the crowd stand eagerly waiting his arrival, Sayid +gallops through the gateway and presents himself to the Prince. He then +turns to Ilmas, who warmly receives him, and affirms that whatever fate +may overtake him she shall always cherish his memory. Sâwa relents, bids +the Arab live and be his friend, and we infer the happiness of the lovers +from the invocation of "Love the Conqueror," which brings the Damon and +Pythias story, to a close. + +A very brief orchestral prelude introduces the opening chorus with +solos:-- + + "Alas! our land is desolate, + The children cry for bread; + Around, fierce fire and sword devour, + Our women wail their dead. + + "We pray for vengeance on the foe, + To death consign them all; + Siva, arise and fight for us, + Or see thine altars fall." + +As the expressive chorus comes to a close, an allegro movement leads to a +dialogue between the people and the watchman, and subsequently with the +horseman, who announces the approach of the victorious army, followed by +a second chorus of the people invoking Siva ("Vishnu, Vishnu, thou hast +heard our Cry!"). The scene is very dramatic throughout, and is +accompanied by vigorous and suggestive music. The next number is a +triumphal march, remarkable for its local color, and gradually increasing +in power and effect as the army approaches the city. It is followed by an +excited dialogue between Sâwa and Sayid, with choral responses, and leads +up to a beautiful melody for Sayid:-- + + "Where sets the sun adown the crimson west + My native valley lies; + There by a gentle stream that murmurs rest + My father's tents arise. + + "Fearing no harm, the happy peasant tills, + The woolly flocks increase; + The shepherd's pipe is heard upon the hills, + And all around is peace." + +Another dramatic scene follows, in which Sâwa consents to Sayid's return +to his father, and accepts Ilmas as his bondswoman, which leads to a very +spirited and elaborate melody for the latter ("First of his Prophet's +Warriors he"). The first part closes with the departure of Sayid and a +repetition of the choral invocation of Siva. + +The second part opens in an apartment of Sâwa's palace, and discloses +Ilmas sitting with her maidens, as a thunderstorm dies away in the +distance. The latter join in a graceful chorus, which is one of the most +beautiful numbers in the cantata:-- + + "Sweet the balmy days of spring, + And blushing roses that they bring; + But sweeter far is love." + +Ilmas answers them in a broad and exultant strain ("Ay, sweet indeed is +Love"). As the song ends, Sâwa and attendants enter, and the scene closes +with a very dramatic chorus and solos, accompanying the preparations for +death. The second scene opens with a solemn march for orchestra, +preparing the way for the climax, and leading up to a chorus and solo for +Ilmas ("What have these Sounds to do with bridal Robes?"). As she kneels, +awaiting her fate, an orchestral interlude, set to the rhythm of the +gallop, indicates the rapid approach of Sayid. A short and agitated +dialogue follows between the watchman and the people. Sayid declares his +presence, and a graceful duet with Ilmas ensues ("Noble Maiden, low +before thee Sayid bows"), leading to a powerful choral finale ("Never +before was known a Deed like this"), closing with a stirring outburst for +all the voices:-- + + "O Love, thy car triumphal + Rolls round the subject world + More glorious than the chariot + Of the sun. + + "We hail thee, Love victorious! + Ride on with strength divine, + And quench all mortal passion + In thine own." + + + Jubilee Ode.[29] + +This work, upon which Dr. Mackenzie has been engaged for some time past, +is now complete, and on its way to several distant parts of the Empire, +where arrangements are making to perform it in celebration of the +Jubilee. Primarily, as our readers know, the Ode was intended for the +Crystal Palace only, but it will be given also in Canada, Australia, +Trinidad, Cape Colony, etc.; thus standing out from all its fellows as in +some sort an Imperial work. + +Without anticipating the criticism which will follow upon performance, we +may here give some idea of the scope and character of the Ode. Mr. Joseph +Bennett, the writer of the words, has kept strictly in view the +exigencies of a musical setting. He has obviously prepared, not a short +poem for readers, but one for musical hearers. Hence a variety of rhythm +and structure which otherwise would certainly not have been ventured +upon. From the same cause arises also the manner in which the subject is +laid out, with a view to contrast of musical effect. We may indicate the +nature of this arrangement. In the first vocal number, a chorus, the news +of the Jubilee is proclaimed, and its diffusion throughout the Empire +called for. The second number, a tenor solo, conveys to the Queen the +affectionate greetings of her home-lands, declaring that, to keep the +feast with unanimity, all weapons of party warfare are laid aside. In the +third number the Colonies and Dependencies pay their homage, the idea +worked out being that of a procession passing before the throne. First +comes the Dominion, followed by Australia, the smaller colonies and +islands, and, lastly, by India. Each of these divisions has a section of +the chorus to itself. The fifth number, a soprano solo, dwells upon the +personal virtues of the Sovereign; while the sixth, and last, opening +with a choral prayer for the Empire, continues with lines leading to the +National Anthem, for which a new second verse has been written. How far +the writer has been guided by consideration for musical opportunities +need not, after this outline sketch, be indicated. The spirit in which +Mr. Bennett has approached his theme best appears, perhaps, in the +opening verses:-- + + "For fifty years our Queen! + Victoria! hail! + Take up the cry, glad voices, + And pass the strain + O'er hill and plain, + Peaceful hamlet, roaring city, flowing river, + Till all the land rejoices. + Wild clanging bells and thund'rous cannon + With your loudest shock the air, and make it quiver + From Dee to Tamar, Thames to Shannon. + + "For fifty years our Queen! + Victoria! hail! + Take up the cry, old ocean, + And hoarsely shout + The words about. + British ships and world-wide British lands will cheer them, + Rouse an Empire's full devotion. + O blowing wind, come hither, bearing + Answering voices, loud acclaiming. Hark! we hear them. + They our loyal pride are sharing." + +In setting the words to music, Dr. Mackenzie has necessarily to consider +the place of performance and the number of performers. This, however, was +an amiable and fortunate obligation, since the result has been to give us +a work built upon broad lines, and marked by plainness of structure to an +extent unusual with the composer. We think that the music will be found +to have a true festive ring, and a majestic solidity befitting the +occasion. In the solos, with their more subdued expression, Dr. Mackenzie +has kept contrast in view, without sacrifice of simplicity; but it is in +the choruses that he best shows himself a master of bold and striking +effects. Every bar goes straight to the point, while avoiding the +commonplaces that naturally suggest themselves in the writing of festive +music. The procession chorus is, in this respect, most noteworthy of all, +and may be found no mean rival of that in the "Rose of Sharon." + + +[29] As the score of Mr. Mackenzie's Ode has not yet reached this + country, the author has taken the liberty of transferring the above + analysis of it to his work from the London "Musical Times" for May, + 1887. Although its local character may preclude its performance here, + it is not improbable that the composition of a composer so eminent + will attract attention among American musicians. + + + + + MASSENET. + + +Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet, a composer as yet but little known in this +country, was born at Montaud, France, May 12, 1842. His musical education +was obtained in the Paris Conservatory, in which between the years 1859 +and 1863 he carried off two first prizes and one second. After leaving +the Conservatory, he went to Italy for a time and pursued his studies in +composition. On his return to Paris one of his operas, "La Grand Tante," +was produced at the Opéra Comique (1867) through the influence of +Ambroise Thomas, and this performance called attention to the works of +the rising young musician. In 1872 he brought out "Don Cćsar de Bazan," +an opéra comique in three acts, and in the following year incidental +music to the tragedy "Les Erinnyes," after Ćschylus. Among his works +written since that time are "Le Roi de Lahore" (1877); "Herodiade" +(1882); "Manon" (1885); "Le Cid" (1885); the cantata "Paix et Liberté" +(1867); "Marie Magdaleine" (1873); "Eve," a mystery (1875); "La Vierge," +sacred legend; and "Narcisse," antique idylle (1878). Among his +orchestral works the best known are "Suites d'orchestre;" "Scenes +Hongroises;" "Scenes Pittoresques;" "Scenes Dramatiques;" overture +"Phčdre;" and "Pompeia," fantasia-symphony. He has also written numerous +songs and piano-forte pieces. His operas thus far have been his most +successful works, though several of his large concert pieces have been +very favorably received. He now occupies a position in the Paris +Conservatory, and is regarded as one of the most promising members of the +modern French school. + + + Mary Magdalen. + +"Mary Magdalen" was written in 1873, and was first performed at the +Odéon, Paris, in that year, with Mmes. Viardot and Vidal and MM. Bosquin +and Petit in the solo parts. It is styled by its composer a sacred drama, +and is divided into three acts, the first entitled "The Magdalen at the +Fountain;" the second, "Jesus before the Magdalen;" the third, +"Golgotha," "The Magdalen at the Cross," and "The Tomb of Jesus and the +Resurrection;" the first two scenes in the last act being included in one +tableau, and the third in another. The characters represented are Mary +Magdalen, Martha, Jesus, and Judas, the chorus parts being assigned to +the Disciples, Pharisees, Scribes, publicans, soldiers, servants, holy +women, and people. + +After a short introduction, pastoral in character, the work begins with a +scene representing Mary at the fountain of Magdala near sunset, among +women, publicans, Scribes, and Pharisees, strolling along the banks of +the little stream that flows from it. The women sing a short chorus full +of Oriental color anticipating the approach of the beautiful Nazarene. A +group of young Magdalens pass along singing blithely of love and gay +cavaliers ("C'est l'heure oů conduisant de longues Caravanes"), and the +song of the women blends with it. Next follows a chorus of the Scribes, +discussing this Stranger, and pronouncing Him an impostor, and again the +young Magdalens take up their strain. The second number is a pathetic +aria by Mary ("O mes Soeurs"), which is full of tender beauty. The women +shrink back from her and join in a taunting chorus ("La belle Pécheresse +oublie"). Next, Judas appears upon the scene, and servilely saluting Mary +counsels her to abandon sadness and return to love, in an aria which is a +good illustration of irony in music. It is followed by a powerful and +mocking chorus of women, Pharisees, and Scribes ("Vainement tu pleures"), +in which she is taunted with her shame, despite her sad appeals for pity. +The next scene is an aria and trio. Jesus appears in their midst, and in +a calm impressive aria ("Vous qui flétrissez les Erreurs des autres") +rebukes them. Mary prostrates herself at His feet and implores pardon, +and the scene closes with a trio for Jesus, Mary, and Judas, leading up +to a strong concerted finale closing the act, in which Jesus bids the +Magdalen rise and return to her home, whither He is about to repair. + +The second act opens in the Magdalen's house, which is richly decorated +with flowers and redolent with perfume. It begins with a sensuous female +chorus ("Le Seuil est paré de Fleurs rares") followed by Martha's +admonition to the servants that He who is more powerful than earthly +kings cares not for vain shows. The chorus resumes its song, and at its +close Judas appears and a long dialogue follows in which Martha rebukes +his hypocrisy. As he departs, Mary and Martha in a very graceful duet +discourse of the Saviour's coming, which is interrupted by His presence +and invocation of blessing. After a duet between Jesus and Mary, in which +He commends her to the Good Shepherd, the act closes with a powerful and +very dramatic finale containing Jesus' rebuke to Judas and His +declaration of the coming betrayal, after which the Disciples join in a +simple but very effective prayer ("Notre Pčre, loué soit Nom radieux"). + +The third act is divided into two tableaux. In the first we have the +scene of the crucifixion, the agitated choruses of the groups about the +Cross, the mocking strains of the Pharisees bidding Him descend if He is +the Master, the sorrowing song of Mary ("O Bien-aimé sous la sombre +Couronne"), and the final tragedy. The second is devoted to the +resurrection and apparition, which are treated very dramatically, closing +with an exultant Easter hymn ("Christ est vivant, ressuscité"). + +In the first two acts the music is full of rich Oriental color and is +gracefully melodious and well adapted to the situation; but in the last +act the awful solemnity of the tragedy is somewhat lost in the theatrical +manner of its treatment. Indeed it was hardly necessary that the composer +should have disclaimed the title of oratorio which some have assigned to +the work. His division of it into acts and tableaux was sufficient to +indicate that he had the stage in mind when he was writing; or at least +that his scheme was operatic in style. + + + + + MENDELSSOHN. + + +Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, the son of a Berlin banker, was born at +Hamburg, Feb. 3, 1809, and, unlike almost all other composers, was reared +in the lap of luxury. He enjoyed every advantage which wealth could +procure, with the result that he became highly educated in the other arts +as well as in music. His teachers in music were Zelter and Ludwig Berger, +and he made such progress that in his ninth year he appeared in public as +a pianist in Berlin and afterwards in Paris. The first of his +compositions to attract general notice were the overture to Shakspeare's +"Midsummer Night's Dream" and the little opera "The Marriage of Camacho," +which were brought out in Berlin in 1827. After several concert-tours, in +which he met with great success, he resided for some time in Düsseldorf. +In 1835 he went to Leipsic as director of the famous Gewandhaus +concerts,--which are still given in that city. Two years later he married +Cécile Jeanrenaud, the beautiful daughter of a minister of the Reformed +Church in Frankfort, and shortly afterwards went to Berlin as general +director of church music. In 1843 he returned to his former post in +Leipsic, and also took a position in the newly established Conservatory, +where he spent the remainder of his days in company with his family, to +whom he was closely attached. He has left a large and rich collection of +musical works, which are favorites the world over. His three great +oratorios are the "Hymn of Praise," catalogued as a symphony-cantata, +"St. Paul," and "Elijah." Besides these oratorios, the exquisite music to +the "Midsummer Night's Dream," which is familiar the world over, and his +stately dramatic music to "Antigone," he has left five symphonies, of +which the "Scotch," the "Italian," and the "Reformation" are best known; +four beautiful overtures, "Ruy Blas," "Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage," +"Hebrides," and "Melusina;" the very dramatic cantata, "The Walpurgis +Night;" a long list of songs for one or more voices; the incidental music +to Racine's "Athalia;" a very large collection of sacred music, such as +psalms, hymns, anthems, and cantatas; several trios and other specimens +of chamber music; and the lovely "Songs without Words," which are to be +found upon almost every piano, the beauty and freshness of which time has +not impaired. Mendelssohn never wrote a grand opera, owing to his +fastidiousness as to a libretto; though he finally obtained one from +Geibel on the subject of the "Loreley" which suited him. He had begun to +write it, and had finished the finale to the first act, when death +interrupted his work, Nov. 4, 1847. In addition to the subjoined +compositions selected for description, the following may be mentioned as +possessing the cantata characteristics: op. 31, the 115th Psalm, for +solo, chorus, and orchestra; op. 46, the 95th Psalm, for chorus and +orchestra; op. 51, the 114th Psalm, for double chorus and orchestra; op. +78, three Psalms for solo and chorus; op. 91, the 98th Psalm, for double +chorus and orchestra; and op. 96, Hymn ("Lass, O Herr mich") for alto +solo, chorus, and orchestra. + + + The Walpurgis Night. + +It was during his Italian travels in 1831 that Mendelssohn composed the +music to Goethe's poem "The First Walpurgis Night." His letters throw +much and interesting light upon the composition and his ideas while +writing it. In a letter written at Rome, Feb. 22, 1831, he says:-- + + "Listen and wonder! Since I left Vienna I have partly composed Goethe's + 'First Walpurgis Night,' but have not yet had courage to write it down. + The composition has now assumed a form and become a grand cantata, with + full orchestra, and may turn out well. At the opening there are songs + of spring, etc., and plenty others of the same kind. Afterwards, when + the watchmen with their 'Gabeln, und Zacken, und Eulen,' make a great + noise, the fairy frolics begin, and you know that I have a particular + foible for them; the sacrificial Druids then appear with their + trombones in C major, when the watchmen come in again in alarm; and + here I mean to introduce a light, mysterious, tripping chorus, and + lastly to conclude with a grand sacrificial hymn. Do you not think that + this might develop into a new style of cantata? I have an instrumental + introduction as a matter of course, and the effect of the whole is + spirited." + +On the 27th of April ensuing he refers to it again:-- + + "I must however return to my witches, so you must forgive my not + writing any more to-day. This whole letter seems to hover in + uncertainty, or rather I do so in my 'Walpurgis Night,' whether I am to + introduce the big drum or not. 'Zacken, Gabeln, und wilde + Klapperstöcke' seem to force me to the big drum, but moderation + dissuades me. I certainly am the only person who ever composed for the + scene on the Brocken without employing a piccolo-flute, but I can't + help regretting the big drum; and before I can receive Fanny's[30] + advice, the 'Walpurgis Night' will be finished and packed up." + +On his way back to Germany he writes from Milan, July 13, 1831, to the +artist and operatic director, Eduard Devrient:-- + + "I have been writing a large composition that perhaps will one day make + some effect,--'The First Walpurgis Night' of Goethe. I began it simply + because it pleased and excited me; I did not think of any performance. + But now that it is finished, I see that it is well suited for a large + concert piece, and in my first subscription concert in Berlin you shall + sing the bearded Druid,--the chorus sung by ----, kindly assisted by + ----. I have written the part of the Druid into your throstle (by + permission), and you will have to sing it out again." + +It was several years before the "Walpurgis Night" was publicly performed, +and meanwhile it underwent several changes. On the 28th of November, +1842, he writes to his mother:-- + + "I am really anxious to make the 'Walpurgis Night' into a + symphony-cantata, for which it was originally intended, but did not + become so from want of courage on my part." + +On the 11th of December of the same year he writes her:-- + + "My 'Walpurgis Night' is to appear once more in the second part, in a + somewhat different garb indeed from the former one, which was somewhat + too richly endowed with trombones, and rather poor in the vocal parts; + but to effect this I have been obliged to re-write the whole score from + A to Z, and to add two new arias, not to mention the rest of the + clipping and cutting. If I don't like it now, I solemnly vow to give it + up for the rest of my life." + +The cantata was first publicly performed in Leipsic, Feb. 2, 1843, at a +concert, in which it occupied the second part of the programme. It had to +stand a severe test of comparison, for the first part was very brilliant, +including a Haydn symphony, a Mozart aria, Beethoven's "Choral Fantasie," +the piano part played by Madame Schumann, the overture from "Euryanthe," +and the chorus from Weber's "Lyre and Sword;" but it made a success, and +was received with great enthusiasm. + +The subject of the cantata is a very simple one. The witches of the +Northern mythology were supposed to hold their revels on the summit of +the Brocken on the eve of the 1st of May (Walpurgis Night), and the +details of their wild and infernal "Sabbath" are familiar to every reader +of "Faust." In his separate poem Goethe seeks to go back to the origin of +the first Walpurgis Night. May-day eve was consecrated to Saint +Walpurgis, who converted the Saxons from Druidism to Christianity, and on +that night the evil spirits were said to be abroad. Goethe conceived the +idea that the Druids on that night betook themselves to the mountains to +celebrate their rites without interference from the Christians, +accomplishing their purpose by disguising their sentinels as demons, who, +when the Christians approached, ran through the woods with torches, +clashed their arms, uttered hideous noises, and thus frightened them +away, leaving the Druids free to finish their sacrifices. + +The cantata begins with an overture in two movements, an _allegro con +fuoco_ and an _allegro vivace_, which describes in vivid tone-colors the +passing of the season from winter to spring. The first number is a tenor +solo and chorus of Druids, which are full of spring feeling, rising to +religious fervor in the close:-- + + "Now May again + Breaks winter's chain, + The buds and bloom are springing; + No snow is seen, + The vales are green, + The woodland choirs are singing! + Yon mountain height + Is wintry white; + Upon it we will gather,-- + Begin the ancient holy rite; + Praise our Almighty Father." + +The next number is an alto solo, the warning of an aged woman of the +people, which is very dramatic in its style:-- + + "Know ye not a deed so daring + Dooms us all to die despairing? + Know ye not it is forbidden + By the edicts of our foemen?" + +The warning is followed by a stately exhortation from the Druid priest +("The man who flies our sacrifice"), leading up to a short chorus of a +very stirring character in which the Druids resolve to go on with their +rites. It is followed by a pianissimo chorus of the guards whispering to +each other to "secure the passes round the glen." One of them suggests +the demon scheme for frightening the enemy, which leads to the chorus:-- + + "Come with torches brightly flashing; + Rush along with billets clashing; + Through the night-gloom lead and follow, + In and out each rocky hollow. + Owls and ravens, + Howl with us and scare the cravens." + +In this chorus the composer has given the freest rein to his fancy, and +presents the weird scene in a grotesque chaos of musical effects, both +vocal and instrumental, which may fairly be called infernal, and yet +preserves form and rhythm throughout. It is followed by an exalted and +impressive hymn for bass solo and chorus, which is a relief after the +diablerie of the preceding number:-- + + "Restrained by might + We now by night + In secret here adore Thee. + Still it is day + Whene'er we pray, + And humbly bow before Thee. + Thou canst assuage + Our foemen's rage + And shield us from their terrors. + The flame aspires! + The smoke retires! + Thus clear our faith from errors! + Our customs quelled, + Our rights withheld, + Thy light shall shine forever." + +Following this impressive hymn comes the terrified warning of the +Christian guard (tenor) and the response of his equally terrified +comrades:-- + + "Help, my comrades! see a legion + Yonder comes from Satan's region! + See yon group of witches gliding + To and fro in flames advancing; + Some on wolves and dragons riding, + See, ah, see them hither prancing! + What a clattering troop of evil! + Let us, let us quickly fly them! + Imp and devil + Lead the revel; + See them caper, + Wrapt in clouds of lurid vapor." + +As the Christians disappear, scared by the demon _ruse_, the Druids once +more, led by their priest, resume their rites, closing with another +choral hymn of praise similar in style to the first. + + +[30] His sister. + + + Antigone. + +Mendelssohn wrote incidental music to four great dramas,--the "Antigone" +of Sophocles (1841); the "Oedipus at Colonos" of Sophocles (1843); the +"Athalia" of Racine (1843); and the "Midsummer Night's Dream" of +Shakspeare (1843), the overture to which was written by him in 1826. The +latter is mainly instrumental. Of the other three, the music to +"Antigone" and "Oedipus" is most frequently performed, and for that +reason has been selected for description. + +In June, 1841, the King of Saxony invited Mendelssohn to become his +Capellmeister. Frederick William IV. of Prussia had made him a similar +offer about the same time. He accepted the latter and removed to Berlin, +and the first duty imposed upon him by the King was the composition of +music to the "Antigone" of Sophocles. With the assistance of the poet +Tieck, who helped arrange the text, the work was accomplished in the +short space of eleven days, and was given on the Potsdam Court stage +October 28, to a private audience. It was first performed in public at +Leipsic, March 5, 1842. It is written for male chorus and orchestra, and +includes seven numbers; namely, 1. Introduction and maestoso ("Strahl des +Helios schönstes Licht"); 2. Andante con moto ("Vieles Gewaltige lebt"); +3. Moderato ("Ihr Seligen deren"); 4. Adagio ("O Eros, Allsieger im +Kampf"); 5. Recitative and chorus ("Noch toset des Sturmes Gewalt"); 6. +Allegro maestoso ("Vielnamiger! Wonn' und Stolz"); 7. Andante alla marcia +("Hier Kommt er ja selbst"). + +The following extracts will give a comprehensive view of this powerful +and felicitous music. Lampadius, writing of the first public performance, +says:-- + + "On the 5th of March the 'Antigone' of Sophocles, translated by Donner + and set to music by Mendelssohn, was brought out at the Leipsic theatre + before a full audience. The composer directed, and was received with + great applause. The music indeed was not antique, if to be so it must + be played on the {syrinx}, the {salpinx}, and the {phorminx}, or if the + composer must confine himself to that Greek type of melody and harmony + of which all we know is that it was extremely simple, and, according to + our ideas, meagre; but it was antique completely, in its being filled + with the fire of the tragedy and making its spirit intelligible to us + moderns, strengthening the meaning of the words, and giving a running + musical commentary on them.... With us at Leipsic, as indeed + everywhere, the Eros Chorus, with its solemn awe in the presence of the + divine omnipotence of love, and the Bacchus Chorus, which, swinging the + thyrsus, celebrates the praise of the Theban maiden's son in joyous + strains, as well as the melodramatic passages, where Antigone enters, + wailing, the chamber where her dead lover lay, and whither Creon has + borne in his son's corpse, had an imposing effect. The impression of + the whole piece, taken by itself, was very powerful. With amazement our + modern world realized the sublimity of the ancient tragic muse, and + recognized the 'great, gigantic fate which exalts man while grinding + him to powder.'" + +Devrient, the director of the opera at Carlsruhe, in his "Recollections +of Mendelssohn," has left a delightful sketch of the composition of the +work. He says:-- + + "Felix did not enter upon his task without the fullest consideration. + The first suggestion was to set the chorus in unison throughout, and to + recitative interspersed with solos; and as nearly as possible to intone + or recite the words, with accompaniment of such instruments only as may + be supposed in character with the time of Sophocles,--flutes, tubas, + and harps, in the absence of lyres. I opposed to this plan that the + voice parts would be intolerably monotonous, without the compensatory + clearness of the text being attained.... + + "Nevertheless Felix made the attempt to carry out this view, but after + a few days he confessed to me that it was impracticable; that I was + right in maintaining the impossibility of making the words clear in + choral singing, except in a few places that are obviously suited for + recitative;[31] that the chanting of a chorus would be vexatiously + monotonous, tedious, and unmusical; and that accompaniments for so few + instruments would give so little scope for variety of expression that + it would make the whole appear as a mere puerile imitation of the + ancient music, about which, after all, we knew nothing. He concluded + therefore that the choruses must be sung, as the parts must be recited, + not to assimilate themselves with the usages of Attic tragedy (which + might easily lead us into absurdity) but as we would now express + ourselves in speech and song.... With this I fully concurred; and Felix + set, so vigorously to work, that in a few weeks he played me sketches, + and by the end of September nearly the whole chain of choruses was + completed. Besides my delight at the beauty of these choruses, they + confirmed me in the certainty that Felix's genius was eminently + dramatic. They not only gave the key to every scene, the expression to + each separate verse, from the narrow complacency of the Theban citizens + to their heartful and exalted sympathy, but also a dramatic accent + soaring far beyond the words of the poet. I allude particularly to the + dithyrambus that occurs between Creon's attempt to rescue Antigone and + the relation of its terrible failure. This song of praise really + consists entirely of glorifying appeals to Bacchus, and its dramatic + application lies only in the verse:-- + + 'She was its pride, + Who, clasping the Thunderer, died; + And now, seeking its lost repose, + We pray thee to come and heal its woes. + Oh, hither bend; + From thy Parnassian heights descend.' + + "To raise this chorus to be the terrible turning-point of the action; + to bring here to its culmination the tension excited by the awful + impending doom; to give this continually gathering power to the + invocation, 'Hear us, Bacchus!' till it becomes a cry of agony; to give + this exhaustive musical expression to the situation, marks the composer + to have a specially dramatic gift. And this is betokened no less in the + melodramatic portions. The idea of adding rhythmical accompaniments to + spoken words may have been suggested by a few well-set passages in the + music to 'Faust' by Prince Radziwill. It is to be regretted that the + public is scarcely able to appreciate how exquisitely Mendelssohn has + done this, since the representatives of Antigone and of Creon are + seldom sufficiently musical to enter completely into the composer's + intention; besides that in two passages of the accompanied dialogue of + Antigone the words are not correctly set under the music." + +Of the private performance before the King and Court, Oct. 28, 1841, the +same writer says:-- + + "We had two more rehearsals on the following day, the evening one in + the presence of the King, and the performance itself took place on the + 28th, before the Court and all the invited celebrities of art and + science. It produced a very great sensation. The deep impression that + the revival of an ancient tragedy could produce in our theatrical life + promised to become an influence; it has purified our musical + atmosphere, and it is certain that to Mendelssohn must be ascribed + great and important merit in the cause. + + "Although the learned, of whom each expected the ancient tragedy to be + put upon the stage according to his peculiar conception of it (which + would of course be totally different in every case) might find the + music too modern, too operatic, in fact, not sufficiently philological, + it is undeniable that Mendelssohn's music has made the tragedy of + Sophocles accessible to the sympathies of the general public, without + in any wise violating the spirit and aroma of the poem, but rather + lending it new life and intelligibility." + + +[31] The passages, "But see, the son of Menoetius comes," etc., and "See, + Hćmon appears," etc., are examples. + + + Oedipus at Colonos. + +The story of "Oedipus Tyrannus" is told in this work in connection with +Professor Paine's composition. The "Oedipus at Colonos," to which +Mendelssohn set music, is the continuation of Sophocles' tragedy, +describing the banishment of the blind hero, the loving care of his +daughters, his arrival at Attica, and his death in the gardens of the +Eumenides at Colonos, absolved by the fate which had so cruelly pursued +him. + +The music to "Oedipus" was written at the command of the King of Prussia +in 1843, and was first produced at Potsdam, Nov. 1, 1845. It contains a +short introduction and nine choral numbers. The first and second choruses +describe the entrance of Oedipus and Antigone into the grove of the +Eumenides, their discovery by the people, the story of his sorrows which +he relates to them, his meeting with his daughter Ismene, and the arrival +of Theseus the King. The third number is the gem of the work, and is +often given on the concert-stage. The free translation of the text for +this beautiful double chorus is as follows:-- + + "_Strophe_.--Thou hast come, O stranger, to the seats of this land, + renowned for the steed; to seats the fairest on earth, the chalky + Colonos; where the vocal nightingale, chief abounding, trills her + plaintive note in the green dells, tenanting the dark-hued ivy and the + leafy grove of the god, untrodden, teeming with fruits, impervious to + the sun, and unshaken by the winds of every storm; where Bacchus, the + reveller, ever roams attending his divine nurses. + + "_Antistrophe_.--And ever day by day the narcissus, with its beauteous + clusters, bursts into bloom by heaven's dew, the ancient coronet of the + mighty goddesses, and the saffron with golden ray; nor do the sleepless + founts of Cephisus that wander through the fields fail, but ever each + day it rushes o'er the plains with its limpid wave, fertilizing the + bosom of the earth; nor have the choirs of the muses loathed this + clime; nor Venus, too, of the golden reign. + + "_Strophe_.--And there is a tree, such as I hear not to have ever + sprung in the land of Asia, nor in the mighty Doric island of Pelops, a + tree unplanted by hand, of spontaneous growth, terror of the hostile + spear, which flourishes chiefly in this region, the leaf of the pale + gray olive that nourishes our young. This shall neither any one in + youth nor in old age, marking for destruction, and having laid it waste + with his hand, bring to nought; for the eye that never closes of Morian + Jove regards it, and the blue-eyed Minerva. + + "_Antistrophe_.--And I have other praise for this mother-city to tell, + the noblest gift of the mighty divinity, the highest vaunt, that she is + the great of chivalry, renowned for the steed and famous on the main; + for thou, O sovereign Neptune, son of Saturn, hast raised her to this + glory, having first, in these fields, founded the bit to tame the + horse; and the well-rowed boat, dashed forth by the hand, bounds + marvellously through the brine, tracking on the hundred-footed + daughters of Nereus." + +The first strophe is begun by one choir in unison after a short but +graceful introduction which is repeated at the end of the strophe in +another form, and then the second choir begins the antistrophe, set to +the same beautiful melody. At its close the music changes in character +and grows vigorous and excited as the first choir sings the second +strophe, with which shortly the second choir joins in splendid eight-part +harmony. The latter takes up the strain again in the second antistrophe, +singing the praise of "the mother-city," and the number closes with the +united invocation to Neptune,--an effect which has hardly been excelled +in choral music. The fourth chorus, which is very dramatic in its effect, +tells of the assault of Creon upon Oedipus, and the fifth, his protection +by Theseus, who comes to the rescue. In this number the double choirs +unite with magnificent effect in the appeal to the gods ("Dread Power, +that fillest Heaven's high Throne") to defend Theseus in the conflict. +The sixth number ("When the Health and Strength are gone") is a pathetic +description of the blind hero's pitiful condition, and prepares the way +for the powerful choruses in which his impending fate is foreshadowed by +the thunderbolts of Jove which rend the heavens. The eighth and ninth +choruses are full of the mournful spirit of the tragedy itself, and tell +in notes as eloquent as Sophocles' lines of the mysterious disappearance +of the Theban hero, ingulfed in the opening earth, and the sorrowful +lamentations of the daughters for the father whom they had served and +loved so devotedly. + + + As the Hart Pants. + +The music to the Forty-second Psalm, familiarly known by the caption +which forms the title of this sketch, was first performed at the tenth +subscription Gewandhaus concert in Leipsic in 1838, Clara Novello taking +the soprano part. Though not constructed upon the large scale of the +"Hymn of Praise," or even of the "Walpurgis Night," it is a work which is +thoroughly artistic, and just as complete and symmetrical in its way. It +contains seven numbers. After a slow and well-sustained introduction, the +work begins with a chorus ("As the Hart pants after the Water Brooks, so +panteth my soul for Thee, O God") which is a veritable prayer in its +tenderness and expression of passionate longing. After the chorus a +delicate and refined soprano solo ("For my Soul thirsteth for God") +continues the sentiment, first given out in an oboe solo, and then +uttered by the voice in a beautifully melodious adagio. The third number +is a soprano recitative ("My Tears have been my Meat") leading to a +chorus in march time by the sopranos and altos ("For I had gone with the +Multitude; I went with them to the House of God"). Then follows a full +chorus beginning with male voices in unison ("Why, my Soul, art thou cast +down?"), answered by the female voices ("Trust thou in God"). Again the +soprano voice is heard in pathetic recitative ("O my God! my Soul is cast +down within me; all Thy Waves and thy Billows are gone over me"). A +beautiful quartet of male voices with string accompaniment replies: "The +Lord will command His Loving-kindness in the Day-time; and in the Night +His Song shall be with me, and my Prayer unto the God of my Life." The +response is full of hope and consolation; but through it all runs the +mournful strain of the soprano (forming a quintet at the end), coming to +a close only when the full chorus joins in a repetition of the fourth +number ("Trust thou in God"), this time elaborated with still greater +effect, and closing with a stately ascription of praise to the God of +Israel. + + + The Gutenberg Fest-Cantata. + +The occasion for which the short festival cantata known as the +"Gutenberg" was written, was the fourth centennial celebration of the art +of printing, which was observed at Leipsic in 1840 by the unveiling of +Gutenberg's statue in the public square, and other ceremonies. The +direction of the musical part of the festivity was intrusted to +Mendelssohn. The text for the hymn to be sung at the unveiling, which +occurred on the morning of June 24, immediately after the public service +in Church, was furnished by Adolphus Prölsz, a teacher in the Gymnasium +at Freiberg. Lampadius, in his Life of Mendelssohn, says of the +performance:-- + + "Mendelssohn arranged it with trombone accompaniment. When the opening + words, 'Fatherland! within thy Confines broke the dawning Light,'--so + the opening ran, if my memory is correct,--were heard in the Music Hall + at the first rehearsal, the heartiest applause arose among the + performers as well as the invited guests. Nothing so simple, powerful, + joyous, and unconstrained had been heard for a long time.... Many will + remember how, on the very day of the public performance, the slight + form of Mendelssohn was seen moving nervously around to find just the + right place for the trombonists, and how nearly he came to a fall from + the platform. During that performance the singers were divided into two + choirs, which sat at some distance from each other; one of them was + conducted by David, and the other by Mendelssohn." + +The cantata opens with a stately chorale ("With solemn Hymn of Praise") +set to the old tune "Honor to God alone," followed by the song in memory +of Gutenberg ("Fatherland! within thy Confines"), which has been +separately arranged and printed as a solo. The third number is a quick, +spirited movement for tenors ("And God said, 'Let there be Light'") +followed by another effective chorale ("Now, thank God all"), which +brings the work to a close. On the afternoon of the same day +Mendelssohn's much more important work, "The Hymn of Praise," was given. +A sketch of this has already appeared in the "Standard Oratorios." + + + Lauda Sion. + +The "Lauda Sion," or sequence sung at High Mass on the Feast of Corpus +Christi, was chosen by Mendelssohn as the subject of one of his most +beautiful cantatas, for four solo voices, chorus, and orchestra. The +majestic rhythm of Saint Thomas Aquinas's verses loses none of its +stateliness in this musical setting. The work was composed for the +celebration of this Festival by the Church of St. Martin at Ličge, and +was first performed there June 11, 1846. Chorley, the English critic who +accompanied Mendelssohn on that occasion, has left us in his "Modern +German Music" an interesting sketch of its first production. He says:-- + + "The early summer of 1846 was a great year for the Rhine Land and its + adjacent district; since there the Lower Rhenish Festival at + Aix-la-Chapelle was conducted by Mendelssohn, and starred by Mlle. + Jenny Lind; and within a fortnight afterwards was celebrated at Ličge + the 'Fęte Dieu,' for which his 'Lauda Sion' was written.... + + "It was a pity that those who had commissioned such a composer to write + such a work had so entirely miscalculated their means of presenting it + even respectably. The picturesque old Church of St. Martin is one of + those buildings which swallow up all sound, owing to the curve of the + vaults and the bulk of the piers; the orchestra was little more + powerful, when heard from below, than the distant scraping of a + Christmas serenade far down the street; the chorus was toneless, and + out of tune; and only one solo singer, the soprano, was even tolerable. + On arriving at Ličge with the purpose of conducting his work, + Mendelssohn gave up the matter in despair. 'No! it is not good, it + cannot go well, it will make a bad noise,' was his greeting to us.... + + "We drove with him that afternoon up to St. Martin's Church, to hear, + as he merrily styled it, 'the execution of his music.' The sight of the + steep, narrow, winding street, decked out with fir-trees and banners + and the escutcheons of the different towns of Belgium, pleased him, for + he was as keen a lover of a show as a child, and had a true artist's + quick sense of the picturesque.... + + "Not envy's self could have helped being in pain for its composer, so + slack and tuneless and ineffective was the execution of this clear and + beautiful work, by a scrannel orchestra, and singers who could hardly + be heard, and who evidenced their nationality by resolutely holding + back every movement. But in the last verse, _alla breve_-- + + 'Ecce panis angelorum'-- + + there came a surprise of a different quality. It was scenically + accompanied by an unforeseen exposition of the Host, in a gorgeous gilt + tabernacle, that slowly turned above the altar, so as to reveal the + consecrated elements to the congregation. Incense was swung from + censers, and the evening sun, breaking in with a sudden brightness, + gave a fairy-like effect to the curling fumes as they rose; while a + very musical bell, that timed the movement twice in a bar, added its + charm to the rite. I felt a quick grasp on my wrist, as Mendelssohn + whispered to me, eagerly, 'Listen! how pretty that is! it makes amends + for all their bad playing and singing,--and I shall hear the rest + better some other time.' That other time I believe never came for the + composer of the 'Lauda Sion,'--since this was only the year before his + death." + +The work is composed in seven numbers. After a short introduction the +voices give out the theme, "Lauda Sion," followed by a chorus, "Laudis +Thema," full of devotional spirit. The soprano then enunciates in the +"Sit Laus plena" phrases repeated by the chorus, followed by a +beautifully accompanied quartet, "In hac Mensa." The fifth number is a +solemn chorale in unison, leading to a soprano solo in the arioso style, +"Caro cibus," which is exquisitely beautiful. The work concludes with a +very dramatic solo and chorus, "Sumit unus," set to the words "Bone +pastor," and the closing verses of the hymn itself. Short as the cantata +is, it is one of the most felicitous of all Mendelssohn's settings of the +ritual. + + + + + MOZART. + + +Johann Chrysostomus Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, one of the most remarkable +of musical geniuses, and the only one of his contemporaries whose operas +still hold the stage with unimpaired freshness, was born at Salsburg, +Jan. 27, 1756. He was the son of Leopold Mozart, the Salzburgian +Vice-Capellmeister, who gave him and his sister Nannerl their earliest +instruction in music, and with such good results that the children +travelled and gave concerts with great success. Before he was seven years +of age he had composed several pieces for piano and violin, his earliest +having been written at the age of five. At twelve he became court +capellmeister in Salzburg. After his musical travels he went to Vienna, +and there began his period of classic activity, which commenced with +"Idomeneus," reached its culmination in "Don Giovanni," and closed with +the "Requiem,"--the "swan-song" of his wonderful career. In his brief +life Mozart composed more than fifty great works, besides hundreds of +minor ones in every possible form of musical writing. His greatest +compositions may be classed in the following order: "Idomeneus" (1780); +"Entführung aus dem Serail" (1781); "Figaro's Hochzeit" ("The Marriage of +Figaro"), (1785); "Don Giovanni" (1787); "Cosi fan Tutti," "Zauberflöte" +("The Magic Flute"), and "Titus" (1790); and the "Requiem" (1791, the +year of his death). The catalogue of Mozart's works is an immense one, +for his period of productivity was unusually long. From the age of five +to his death there was not a year that was not crowded with his music. +Besides his numerous operas, of which only the more famous are given +above, he wrote a large number of symphonies (of which the "Jupiter" is +now the best known), sonatas, concertos, for all kinds of instruments, +even to musical-glasses, trios, quartets, quintets, and sextets for all +possible combinations of instruments, marches, fugues, masses, hymns, +arias of extraordinary brilliancy, liturgies, cantatas, songs and +ballads, and indeed every form of music that is now known. His style was +studied by Beethoven, and so closely imitated that the music of his first +period, if published without autograph, would readily be attributed to +Mozart. His style was so spontaneous and characteristic that it has been +well said there is but one Mozart. The distinguishing trait of his music +is its rich melodic beauty and its almost ravishing sweetness. His melody +pours along in a bright unbroken stream that sometimes even overflows its +banks, so abundant is it. It is peculiarly the music of youth and +spring-time, exquisite in form, graceful in technique, and delightful in +expression. It was the source where all his immediate successors went for +their inspiration, though it lacked the maturity, majesty, and emotional +depths which were reached by such a Titan as Beethoven. Old as it is, and +antiquated in form, especially as compared with the work of the new +schools, its perennial freshness, grace, and beauty have made it +immortal. + + + King Thamos. + +The historical drama, "Thamos, King of Egypt," was written by Freiherr +von Gebler. Otto Jahn, in his Life of Mozart, gives the following sketch +of its story:-- + + "Menes, King of Egypt, has been deposed by a usurper, Rameses, and, as + it is thought, assassinated; but he is living, under the name of + Sethos, as high priest of the Temple of the Sun, the secret being known + only to the priest Hammon and the general Phanes. After the death of + Rameses, his son Thamos is heir to the throne. The day arrives when + Thamos attains majority, is to be invested with the diadem, and to + select a bride. The friends of Menes seek in vain to persuade him to + dispute the throne. He will not oppose the noble youth, whom he loves + and esteems. But Pheron, a prince and confidant of Thamos, has, in + conjunction with Mirza, the chief of the Virgins of the Sun, organized + a conspiracy against Thamos, and won over a portion of the army. + Tharsis, daughter of Menes, who is believed by all, even her father, to + be dead, has been brought up by Mirza under the name of Sais. It is + arranged that she shall be proclaimed rightful heir to the throne, and, + as she will then have the right to choose her consort, Mirza will + secure her beforehand for Pheron. When she discovers that Sais loves + Thamos, and he her, she induces Sais to believe that Thamos prefers her + playmate Myris, and Sais is generous enough to sacrifice her love and + her hopes of the throne to her friend. Equally nobly Thamos rejects all + suspicions against Pheron, and awards him supreme command. As the time + for action draws near, Pheron discloses to Sethos, whom he takes for a + devoted follower of Menes, and consequently for an enemy to Thamos, the + secret of Sais' existence and his own plans. Sethos prepares secretly + to save Thamos. Sais also, after being pledged to silence by an oath, + is initiated into the secret by Mirza and Pheron, and directed to + choose Pheron. She declines to give a decided answer, and Pheron + announces to Mirza his determination to seize the throne by force in + case of extremity. Sais, who believes herself not loved by Thamos, and + will not therefore choose him as consort, but will not deprive him of + the throne, takes the solemn and irrevocable oath as Virgin of the Sun. + Thamos enters, and they discover, to their sorrow, their mutual love. + Sethos, entering, enlightens Thamos as to the treachery of Pheron, + without disclosing the parentage of Sais. Pheron, disturbed by the + report that Menes is still living, comes to take council of Sethos, and + adheres to his treacherous design. In solemn assembly Thamos is about + to be declared king, when Mirza reveals the fact that Sais is the lost + Tharsis, and heiress to the throne. Thamos is the first to offer her + his homage. When she is constrained to choose between Thamos and Pheron + she declares herself bound by her oath, and announces Thamos as the + possessor of the throne. Then Pheron calls his followers to arms, but + Sethos steps forward and discloses himself as Menes; whereupon all fall + at his feet in joyful emotion. Pheron is disarmed and led off; Mirza + stabs herself; Menes, as father and ruler, releases Sais from her oath, + unites her with Thamos, and places the pair on the throne. A message + arrives that Pheron has been struck with lightning by Divine judgment, + and the piece ends." + +To this drama Mozart composed the incidental music in 1779 and 1780 at +Salzburg, where it was produced under Böhm and Shickaneder's direction. +The play did not keep the stage long. Mozart refers to this circumstance +in a letter to his father, written Feb. 15, 1783:-- + + "I regret much not being able to make use of the music for 'Thamos,' + for not having pleased here, it is included among the tabooed pieces, + no longer to be performed. For the sake of the music alone it might + possibly be given again, but it is not likely. It is really a pity." + +The music consists of five entr'actes and three choruses constructed in a +large and majestic style and specially adapted to ceremonial performance. +The first is a responsive chorus of maidens and priests ("Before thy +Light, Sun-god, thy Foe the Darkness takes Wing") sung in the temple of +the sun at Heliopolis. The second ("Godhead, throned in Power eternal") +is also sung in the temple before Thamos' coronation, at the beginning of +the fifth act, and contains short snatches of solos for a priest and +maiden, leading to a close in full harmony for the voices, and an +instrumental finale of soft music during which the priest offers +sacrifice upon the altar. The third opens with a majestic bass solo for +the high priest ("Ye Children of Dust, come, with Trembling, adore ye") +and closes with a stately strain for all the voices ("We Children of Dust +in our Reverence tremble"). + +Although the play was shelved, the music was not lost. Mozart +subsequently set the choruses to Latin and German words, and they were +adapted as hymns and motets for church use. They are now familiar to +musicians as "Splendente te Deus," "Deus tibi Laus et Honor," and "Ne +Pulvis et Cinis." Nohl says of them:-- + + "A certain solemnity pervades them such as few of his sacred works + possess, and an elevation of feeling only surpassed in the 'Flauto + Magico.' But the composer has relied on theatrical effect; and thus, in + spite of his graver intentions, we find more worldly pomp than + religious depth in these choruses, which Mozart worked out with all + love and care, even in their most minute details, and which manifest + the thoughtful mood that absorbed his soul." + + + Davidde Penitente. + +The cantata "Davidde Penitente" was the outcome of a work of love. Before +his marriage with Constance Weber, Mozart vowed that when he brought her +to Salzburg as his wife he would write a mass for the occasion and have +it performed there. In a letter written to his father, Jan. 4, 1783, he +says: "As a proof of the fulfilment of this vow, the score of a +'half-mass' is now lying by, in hopes of some day being finished." +Holmes, in his admirable Life of Mozart, says:-- + + "To exercise his pen in the grand contrapuntal style of church music + was at all times agreeable to him; and he was now free from the local + restrictions under which he had written his numerous masses at + Salzburg, where neither the style, the length of the pieces, nor their + instrumentation was left to his own discretion; hence, making due + allowance for the effect of some few years in developing the composer's + genius, the great superiority of 'Davidde Penitente,' by which title + this mass was in the sequel better known over all the earlier masses, + as well for breadth of style as in true ecclesiastical solemnity." + +The "half-mass" which Mozart brought to Salzburg in fulfilment of his vow +comprised only the Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus, and Benedictus. The remaining +numbers were supplied from another mass, and in this form the work was +produced at St. Peter's Church, Aug. 25, 1783, his wife taking the solo +part. The original work is described as exceedingly majestic and +beautiful, particularly the "Gratias" for five, and the "Qui Tollis" for +eight-voiced chorus. Jahn says of them that the same wonderful and +mysterious impression of the supernatural conveyed by the most beautiful +numbers in his Requiem characterizes these choruses. + +The "half-mass" was destined to undergo still more radical changes. In +the spring of 1785 the committee of the society for the relief of the +widows and orphans of musicians at Vienna wished to celebrate their +annual festival with some new work, and commissioned Mozart to write a +cantata. As the time was very short, he took the Kyrie and Gloria of the +mass, set Italian words to them, and added four new numbers, in which +form it was produced under the title of "Davidde Penitente" at the +Burg-theatre, March 13, the solo singers being Fraulein Cavalieri,[32] +Fraulein Distler, and Herr Adamberger.[33] The cantata comprises ten +numbers. The first number is a chorus ("Alzai le flebile voci") taken +from the "Kyrie" of the mass; the second, an allegro chorus ("Cantiam le +lodi"), from the "Gloria;" the third, a soprano solo ("Lungi le cure"), +from the "Laudamus;" the fourth, an adagio chorus ("Sii pur sempre") from +the "Gratias;" the fifth, a very melodious soprano duet ("Sorgi o +Signore"), from the "Domine Deus;" the sixth, a beautiful tenor aria ("A +te fra tanti affanni"), written for Adamberger; the seventh, a double +chorus ("Se vuoi, puniscimi"); the eighth, a bravura aria for soprano +("Fra le oscure Ombre"), written for Mademoiselle Cavalieri; the ninth, a +terzetto ("Tutti le mie speranze"); and the tenth, a final chorus and +fugue which, by general consent of the critics of the time, was called +the "queen of vocal fugues." Notwithstanding the introduction of +specially-written arias, and the brilliant music assigned to the soprano, +the cantata is regarded as one of the purest examples of Mozart's church +style. + + +[32] Catharina Cavalieri, born in 1761, died June 30, 1801. She was a + singer in Italian and German opera in Vienna from 1775 to 1783; but + as she never left that city her reputation was purely local. Mozart + wrote for her the part of Constanza in his opera "Die Entführing." + +[33] Valentin Adamberger was born at Munich, July 6, 1743, and was famed + for his splendid tenor voice. Mozart composed for him the part of + Belmont in the "Entführing," and highly esteemed him as a friend and + adviser. He died Aug. 24, 1804. + + + The Masonic Cantatas. + +Mozart became a member of the Masonic fraternity shortly after his +arrival in Vienna in 1784, and devoted himself to its objects with all +the ardor of his nature. In the following year his father visited him and +was also persuaded to join, though not without considerable entreaty on +the son's part. He was a devoted member of the Church and entertained a +deep reverence for its forms. The Church then, as now, was hostile to all +secret orders, and was particularly inimical to the Masons because they +had attacked certain alleged abuses in the cloisters. His prejudices were +overcome, however, and he soon became as ardent a devotee of Masonry as +his son. It formed one of the principal subjects of their correspondence; +but unfortunately all these letters were destroyed by the cautious father +a short time before his death, which occurred May 28, 1787. In only one +letter do we find reference to the subject, and that in a guarded manner. +On the 3d of April of that year Mozart heard of his father's illness, and +the next day he writes to him:-- + + "I have this moment heard tidings which distress me exceedingly, and + the more so that your last letter led me to suppose you were so well; + but I now hear that you are really ill. I need not say how anxiously I + shall long for a better report of you to comfort me, and I do hope to + receive it, though I am always prone to anticipate the worst. As death + (when closely considered) is the true goal of our life, I have made + myself so thoroughly acquainted with this good and faithful friend of + man, that not only has its image no longer anything alarming to me, but + rather something most peaceful and consolatory; and I thank my Heavenly + Father that He has vouchsafed to grant me the happiness, _and has given + me the opportunity (you understand me), to learn that it is the key to + our true felicity_." + +Mozart's membership in the order began at an opportune time for him. +Though at the height of his fame he was at the very lowest depth of his +finances; and both in 1787 and 1789, though he was Imperial Chamber +Musician and his opera "Don Giovanni" was having a successful run, he was +obliged to apply repeatedly to his friend and brother Mason, the merchant +Puchberg of Vienna, for loans, and also to Herr Hofdämmel, who was about +to become a Mason upon Mozart's solicitation. During the short remainder +of his life he was devotedly attached to the order, and he was buried in +the dress of the brotherhood; but, strange to say, not one of the members +accompanied their illustrious associate to the grave. + +Four of Mozart's works were directly inspired by Masonry. In 1785 he +wrote a simple but beautiful lodge song for voice, with piano +accompaniment ("Die ihr einern neuen Grade"). This was followed by the +wonderfully beautiful "Freemason's Funeral Music" for orchestra, written +upon the occasion of the death of two brothers in the fraternity, of +which Jahn says:-- + + "Mozart has written nothing more beautiful, from its technical + treatment and finished effect of sound, its earnest feeling and + psychological truth, than this short adagio. It is the utterance of a + resolute, manly character, which, in the face of death, pays the + rightful tribute to sorrow without being either crushed or stunned by + it." + +In the same year he composed a small cantata, "Die Maurerfreude," for +tenor and chorus, in honor of Herr Born, the master of the lodge to which +he belonged in Vienna, which is full of true feeling combined with +graceful melody. + +The second cantata, catalogued in Köchel "Eine Kleine Freimaurer Cantate, +'Laut verkünde unsre Freude,'" better known by its title "Lob der +Freundschaft" ("Praise of Friendship") is notable as the last work +written by Mozart. Its date is Nov. 15, 1791, only three weeks before his +death. At this time he was engaged in finishing up his "Requiem," which +had such a depressing effect upon him that he was ordered by his +physician to lay it aside. The rest he thus secured had such a good +effect that by the middle of November he was able to attend a Masonic +meeting and produce the little cantata which he had just written for +them. On reaching home after the performance he said to his wife, "O +Stänerl, how madly they have gone on about my cantata! If I did not know +that I had written better things, I should have thought this my best +composition." It is constructed upon a larger scale than the cantata of +1785, and is very pleasing and popular, but lacks the spirit and +earnestness of the former. It has six numbers: 1. Chorus, "Laut verkünde +unsre Freude;" 2. Recitative, "Zum ersten Male;" 3. Tenor aria, "Dieser +Gottheit Allmacht;" 4. Recitative, "Wohlan, ihr Brüder;" 5. Duet, "Lange +sallen diese Mauern"; 6. Chorus, "Lasst uns mit geschlungen Händen." It +was Mozart's swan-song. Two days after its performance he was stricken +down with his last illness. + + + + + PAINE. + + +John K. Paine, one of the very few really eminent American composers, was +born at Portland, Me., Jan. 9, 1839. He studied the piano, organ, and +composition with Kotzschmar in that city, and made his first public +appearance as an organist, June 25, 1857. During the following year he +went to Germany, and studied the organ, composition, and instrumentation +with Haupt and other masters in Berlin. He returned to this country in +1861, and gave several concerts, in which he played many of the organ +works of the best writers for the first time in the United States. +Shortly after his return he was appointed instructor of music in Harvard +University, and in 1876 was honored with the elevation to a professorship +and given a regular chair. He is best known as a composer, and several of +his works have been paid the rare compliment of performance in Germany, +among them his Mass in D and all his symphonies. The former was given at +the Berlin Singakademie in 1867, under his own direction. Among his +principal compositions are the oratorio "St. Peter," the music to +"Oedipus," the cantatas, "Nativity," "The Realm of Fancy," and "Phoebus, +Arise;" the Mass in D; the Centennial Hymn, set to Whittier's poem, and +sung at the opening of the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition; the +overture to "As You Like It;" "The Tempest," in the style of a symphonic +poem; the symphony in C minor, and "Spring" symphony; besides numerous +sonatas, fantasias, preludes, songs, and arrangements for organ and +piano. His larger orchestral works have been made familiar to American +audiences by Mr. Theodore Thomas's band, and have invariably met with +success. His style of composition is large, broad, and dignified, based +upon the best classic models, and evinces a high degree of musical +scholarship. + + + Oedipus Tyrannus. + +The first public performance of the "Oedipus Tyrannus" of Sophocles in +this country was given at the Sanders Theatre (Harvard College), +Cambridge, Mass., May 17, 1881, for which occasion Mr. Paine composed the +music incidental to the world-famous tragedy. The performance was a +memorable one in many ways. The tragedy was given in the original +language. It was the first event of the kind in America. The audience was +a representative one in culture, education, and social brilliancy. The +programme was also unique, being printed in Greek, and translated into +English was as follows:-- + + TO ALL THE SPECTATORS GREETING. + + [The college seal.] + + _Six verses from the Eumenides of Ćschylus:_ + + "Hail people of the city + That sit near to Zeus, + Friends of the friendly goddess, + Wise in your generation, + Ye whom under the wings of Pallas + The father guards." + + THE OEDIPUS TYRANNUS OF SOPHOCLES + WILL BE REPRESENTED IN THE THEATRE OF HARVARD UNIVERSITY + on the 17th of May ({Thargęliôn}), 1881, + and again on the 19th, 20th, and 21st. + + DRAMATIS PERSONĆ. + + Oedipus, King of Thebes George Riddle. + Priest of Zeus William Hobbs Manning. + Creon, Jocasta's brother Henry Norman. + Teiresias, the blind seer Curtis Guild. + Jocasta, Queen of Thebes Leonard Eckstein Opdycke. + Messenger, from Corinth Arthur Wellington Roberts. + Servant of Laius Gardiner Martin Lane. + Messenger from the Palace Owen Wister. + + ATTENDANTS. + + Attendants on Oedipus J. R. Coolidge, E. J. Wendell. + Attendants on Jocasta J. J. Greenough, W. L. Putnam. + Attendants on Creon G. P. Keith, J. Lee. + Boy guide of Teiresias C. H. Goodwin. + Antigone E. Manning. + Ismene J. K. Whittemore. + Suppliants.-- G. P. Keith, G. D. Markham (priests), W. H. Herrick, J. + Lee, E. Lovering, H. Putnam, L. A. Shaw, C. M. Walsh + (chosen youths), C. H. Goodwin, E. Manning, R. Manning, + W. Merrill, E. R. Thayer, J. K. Whittemore (boys). + + CHORUS OF THEBAN OLD MEN. + + Coryphćus Louis Butler McCagg. + Assistant to the chorus in the third stasmon, with solo + George Laurie Osgood. + + MEMBERS OF THE CHORUS. + + N. M. Brigham, + Frederick R. Burton, + Henry G. Chapin, + Sumner Coolidge, + Edward P. Mason, + Marshall H. Cushing, + Wendell P. Davis, + Morris Earle, + Percival J. Eaton, + Gustavus Tuckerman, + Charles S. Hamlin, + Jared S. How, + Howard Lilienthal, + Charles F. Mason. + + Leader of the chorus and composer of the music John Knowles Paine. + Prompter George L. Kittredge. + + + The scene is laid in front of the palace in Boetian Thebes. The chorus + is composed of Theban old men. Oedipus speaks first. The managers + request all the spectators to remain sitting until the postlude is + ended. Immediately after the last chorus has been sung there will be a + pause for those who wish to go out. After this the doors will be + closed. + + After the play, horse-cars ({hamaxai hipposidęrodromikai}) will be + ready for those who want to go to the city. + + Wilsons, printers. ({Oyilsônes typois egapsan}.) + + +The story of the Theban hero, his ignorance of his own parentage, his +dismay at the revelation of the oracle that he would kill his father and +marry his mother, his quarrel with the former, resulting in the very +tragedy he was seeking to avoid, his solution of the riddle of the +sphinx, the reward of the Queen's hand which Creon had promised, leading +to the unfortunate marriage with his mother, Jocasta, thus completing the +revelation of the oracle, does not need description in detail. The +marriage was followed by a pestilence that wasted Thebes, and at this +point the plot of the drama begins. It concerns itself with the efforts +of Oedipus to unravel the mystery of the death of his father, Laius, +which lead to the discovery that he himself was the murderer, and that he +had been guilty of incest with his own mother. Jocasta hangs herself, and +Oedipus, rushing frantically into the palace, beholds her, and +overwhelmed with horror at the sight and the fulfilment of the oracle, +seizes her brooch-pin and blinds himself. In the Oedipus at Colonos the +sequel is told. The hero dies in the gardens of the Eumenides, happy in +the love of his daughters and the pardon which fate grants him. + +The music to the tragedy is thoroughly classical in spirit, and has all +the nobility, breadth, dignity, and grace characteristic of the Greek +idea. The principal lyric movements of the chorus, the choral odes, of +which there are six, comprise the scheme of the composer. The +melodramatic practice of the orchestra accompanying spoken dialogue only +appears to a limited extent in the third ode; and the chorus, as +narrator, is accompanied by music only in the seven last lines of the +play, which form the postlude. The orchestral introduction, which is +treated in a very skilful and scholarly manner, epitomizes the spirit of +the work. The odes are divided as usual into strophes and antistrophes, +assigned alternately to a male chorus of fifteen and full chorus. The +first ("Oracle sweet-tongued of Zeus"), which has the genuine antique +dignity and elevation, is a description of the sufferings of the people +from the pestilence which has wasted Thebes since the unnatural marriage +of Oedipus and Jocasta, and a fervent prayer to the gods for aid. The +second ("Thou Delphic Rock, who can he be?") concludes the scene where +the blind prophet Teiresias arrives upon the summons of Creon and accuses +Oedipus of the crime, accompanying the accusation with dark hints of +further guilt. In this ode, which is specially noticeable for its rich +and graceful treatment, the chorus expresses its disbelief of the +charges. In the third scene, Creon enters to protest against the +accusations of Oedipus, but a quarrel ensues between them, which results +in the menace of death to the former. Jocasta appears, and upon her +intercession Creon is allowed to depart. In the ode, the chorus joins in +this appeal to Oedipus,--a strong, vigorous number, the effect of which +is heightened by the intervening spoken parts of Creon, Oedipus, and +Jocasta, with musical accompaniment. The fourth ode ("O may my Life be +spent in Virtue") is a vigorous denunciation of the impiety of Jocasta in +speaking scornfully of the oracles. The fifth ode ("If I the Prophet's +Gift possess") is full of idyllic grace and sweetness, realizing in a +remarkable degree the old Grecian idea of sensuous beauty. It is a +speculation upon the divine origin of Oedipus, after the messenger +relates the story of the King's exposure in his childhood upon Mount +Cithćron, and contains a charming tenor solo. The last ode ("O Race of +mortal Men") bewails the vicissitudes of fortune, and is full of the +tragic significance of impending fate. The work comes to a close with the +postlude:-- + + "Ye who dwell in Thebes our city, fix on Oedipus your eyes, + Who resolved the dark enigma, noblest liver and most wise. + Glorious like a sun he mounted, envied of the popular throng, + Now he sinks in seas of anguish, quenched the stormy waves among. + Therefore I await the final hour, to ancient wisdom known, + Ere I call one mortal happy. Never shall that thought be shown, + Till he end his earthly being, scathless of a sigh or groan." + +Six public performances of the "Oedipus" were given in 1881, and every +season since that time selections from the music have been performed in +New York, Boston, and other cities. As the most important and scholarly +work an American composer has yet produced, it cannot be heard too often. + + + The Nativity. + +The text of "The Nativity," for chorus, solo voices, and orchestra, is +taken from the hymn in Milton's ode "On the Morning of Christ's +Nativity," and is composed in three parts. The first part includes the +first, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh; the second, a +combination of the eighth and ninth; and the third, the thirteenth, +fourteenth, and fifteenth verses. After a short instrumental +introduction, which works up to an effective climax, the cantata begins +with a chorus ("It was the Winter wild"), introduced by the soprano, +developing to full harmony at the words, "Nature in Awe to Him," and +closing pianissimo. After a short soprano solo ("But, He her Fears to +cease") the chorus resumes ("With Turtle Wing the amorous Clouds +dividing"). A succession of choral passages follows, admirably suggestive +of the sentiment of the poem,--a vigorous, stirring allegro, "No War or +Battle's Sound was heard the World around;" "And Kings sat still with +awful Eye," broadly and forcibly written; and a tender, graceful number, +"But peaceful was the Night." They are followed by another soprano solo +("And though the shady Gloom"), full of brightness and animation, which +leads directly to a majestic chorus ("He saw a greater Sun appear"), +which closes the first part. + +The second part, a quartet and chorus, is pastoral in character, and +reflects the idyllic quiet and beauty of the text. The quartet, "The +Shepherds on the Lawn," is introduced by short tenor, bass, and alto +solos, and also contains a very melodious and graceful solo for soprano +("When such Music sweet their Hearts and Ears did greet"), after which +the full quartet leads up to a vigorous chorus ("The Air such Pleasure +loath to lose"), closing the part. + +The third part is choral, and forms an effective climax to the work. It +opens with the powerful chorus, "Ring out, ye crystal Spheres," +emphasized by the organ bass with stately effect, and moves on +majestically to the close,-- + + "And Heaven as at some festival + Will open wide the gates of her high palace hall." + + + The Realm of Fancy. + +"The Realm of Fancy" is a short cantata, the music set to Keats's +familiar poem:-- + + "Ever let the fancy roam, + Pleasure never is at home: + At a touch sweet pleasure melteth, + Like to bubbles when rain pelteth." + +With the exception of a dozen lines, the dainty poem is used entire, and +is set to music with a keen appreciation of its graceful beauty. A short +allegretto fancifully trips along to the opening chorus ("Ever let the +Fancy roam"), which is admirable for its shifting play of musical color. +A soprano solo ("She will bring in spite of Frost"), followed by a very +expressive barytone solo ("Thou shalt at a Glance behold the Daisy and +the Marigold"), leads up to a charming little chorus ("Shaded Hyacinth, +always Sapphire Queen"). A short instrumental passage, in the time of the +opening allegretto, introduces the final chorus ("O Sweet Fancy, let her +loose"), charmingly worked up, and closing in canon form. The cantata is +very short; but rarely have poem and music been more happily wedded than +in this delightful tribute to fancy. + + + Phoebus, Arise. + +Mr. Paine's ripe scholarship is shown to admirable advantage in his +selection of the poem "Phoebus, Arise" from among the lyrics of the old +Scottish poet, William Drummond, of Hawthornden, and the characteristic +old-style setting he has given to it. Like "The Realm of Fancy," it is +very short; but like that cantata, also, it illustrates the versatility +of his talent and the happy manner in which he preserves the +characteristics of the poem in his music. Drummond, who has been called +"the Scottish Petrarch," and whose poems were so celebrated that even Ben +Jonson could find it in his way to visit him, was noted for the grace and +lightness of his verse, and the pensive cast with which it was tinged. It +has little of the modern poetic style, and the composer has clothed his +poem in a musical garb to correspond. + +The cantata is written for tenor solo, male chorus, and orchestra, and +opens with a brilliant chorus ("Phoebus, arise, and paint the sable Skies +with azure, white, and red"), closing with a crescendo in the old style. +An expressive and somewhat pensive tenor solo follows:-- + + "This is that happy morn + And day, long-wishčd day, + Of all my life so dark + (If cruel stars have not my ruin sworn + And fates my hope betray), + Which purely white deserves + An everlasting diamond should it mark. + This is the morn should bring unto the grove + My love, to hear, and recompense my love." + +A short choral passage with tenor solo ("Fair King, who all preserves") +leads to a full rich chorus ("Now, Flora, deck thyself in fairest +Guise"). In the next number the chorus returns to the opening theme +("Phoebus, Arise"), and develops it with constantly increasing power to +the close. + + + + + PARKER. + + +Horatio W. Parker, a young American composer of more than ordinary +promise, was born at Auburndale, Mass., Sept. 15, 1863. After his +fifteenth year he began the study of music, taking his earlier lessons of +the three Boston teachers, Stephen A. Emery, John Orth, and G. W. +Chadwick. In 1882 he went to Munich and studied the organ and composition +with Josef Rheinberger, for three years. In the spring of 1885 he wrote +the cantata "King Trojan," and it was produced for the first time in that +city with success during the summer of the same year. Since then it has +been given in this country by Mr. Jules Jordan, of Providence, R. I., +Feb. 8, 1887. His string quartet in F major was played at a concert of +the Buffalo Philharmonic Society in January, 1886; and a short scherzo +was performed by the Van der Stücken orchestra in New York City in the +same year. Besides these compositions, he has written three overtures, +quite a number of songs and pieces for the piano-forte, and a symphony in +C, and ballade for chorus and orchestra, both of which were played in +Munich last year. In 1886 he accepted the professorship of music at the +Cathedral School of St. Paul, Garden City, L. I., and in February, 1887, +went to New York, where he now resides, to take charge of a boy choir in +St. Andrew's Church, Harlem. + + + King Trojan. + +"King Trojan," composed for chorus, solos, and orchestra, was written in +March, 1885, and first performed in July of the same year, at Munich. Its +story is the poem of the same name, by Franz Alfred Muth, the English +version being a free and excellent translation by the composer's mother, +Mrs. Isabella G. Parker, of Auburndale, Mass. + +After a short and graceful introduction, the cantata opens with a solo +describing the quiet beauty of a summer night, daintily accompanied by +wind instruments and harp. A second voice replies ("O Summer Night"), and +then the two join in a very vigorous duet ("O fill thou Even with Light +of Heaven"). A short solo for third voice leads up to a chorus which +gives us a picture of King Trojan's castle gleaming in the moonlight. It +is followed by a very effective solo for the King ("The Horse is +neighing, O Page of mine"), in which he bids his Page saddle his steed +for a night ride to visit his distant love. The chorus intervenes with a +reflective number ("What thinks she now?"), which is very dramatic in +style, describing the mutual longing of the lovers to be together. + +The second scene opens with a short solo by the Page ("Up, up, O King, +the Horses wait"), followed by the chorus as narrator, describing the +ride of the King and his companion through the greenwood, with which is +interwoven Trojan's solo ("How sweet and cool is yet the Night"). In the +next number, a vivacious allegro, the story of the ride is continued by +the chorus, with a characteristic accompaniment, and again Trojan sings a +charming tribute to the summer night, which is followed by responsive +solos of the King and the Page, in the allegro and penseroso style,--the +one singing of the raptures of night, the other of the gladness of day +and sunlight. A passionate bit of recitative ("Now swift, ye Horses") by +Trojan reveals the secret of the King's haste. He is King of the night, +and the morning ray will be fatal to him. A short choral number ("And +forward fly they") brings the first part to a close with the arrival of +the riders at the Queen's castle. + +The second part opens with a beautiful solo, quartet, and chorus +("Good-Night, the Lindens whisper"), which describes the meeting of the +lovers, while + + "Beneath the lofty castle gate + Slumbers the page who so long must wait. + Then crows the cock, the hour is late." + +At this note of warning the Page appeals to his master to fly, for the +sunlight will bring him pain and harm. The dallying King replies, "Hark! +how the Nightingale yet sings." A small chorus intervenes with the +warning, "Love is so fleeting, Night is so fair." The Queen appeals to +him, "What seest thou, O King?" To which Trojan replies with agitation, +"The ruddy Morning, it is my Death." Again comes the Page's warning. The +King springs up in alarm and hastens to his steed. In a choral presto +movement the ride back is described. The King conceals himself in a dark +thicket, hoping to escape, but the night has vanished and the day has +begun. Its beams penetrate his refuge, and with a last despairing cry +("Accursed Light, I feel thee now") he expires. A short choral passage, +with harp accompaniment, brings this very dramatic and fanciful +composition to a close:-- + + "And from his horse the king now falls, + He was but king of the night; + The sunlight sparkles, the sunlight shines, + But death comes with morning light." + + + + + PARKER. + + +James C. D. Parker, an American composer, was born at Boston, Mass., June +2, 1828. He received his primary education in the schools of that city, +was graduated from Harvard University in 1848, and immediately thereafter +began the study of law. His love for music, however, was irresistible, +and he soon dropped law-books and entered upon a thorough course of +musical instruction, at first in Boston, and afterwards at the +Conservatory in Leipsic, where he finished the regular course. He +returned to Boston in 1854, and at once devoted himself to musical work +in which he took a prominent part, and made an excellent reputation as +pianist, organist, and teacher, as well as composer, though he has not as +yet attempted any very large or ambitious works. In 1862 he organized an +amateur vocal association under the name of the Parker Club, which has +performed several works by Gade, Mendelssohn, Berlioz, Schumann, and +others, with success. His most important composition is the "Redemption +Hymn," which he wrote for the Boston Handel and Haydn Society during the +period he was its organist. He has also held the position of organist and +choir-director of Trinity Church in that city, and of Professor of the +College of Music connected with the Boston University. During his +unostentatious career he has earned an enviable reputation as an earnest, +honest musician deeply devoted to his art. + + + The Redemption Hymn. + +"The Redemption Hymn," for alto solo and chorus, was written for the +Fourth Triennial Festival of the Handel and Haydn Society, and was first +given on that occasion, May 17, 1877, Anna Louise Cary-Raymond taking the +solo. The words are taken from Isaiah li. 9-11. + + Chorus:--"Awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord! + "Awake as in the ancient days, in the generations of old. + "Art thou not it that hath cut Rahab and wounded the dragon? Awake, put + on strength, O arm of the Lord! + Solo and Chorus:--"Art thou not it that hath dried the sea, the waters + of the great deep, that hath made the depths of the sea a way for + the ransomed to pass over? Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall + return and come with singing unto Zion, and everlasting joy shall + be upon their head; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow + and mourning shall flee away." + +The work opens with a brief but spirited orchestral introduction, which +leads to an exultant chorus ("Awake, O Arm of the Lord"), changing to a +well-written fugue in the middle part ("Art thou not it?"), and returning +to the first theme in the close. The next number is an effective alto +solo ("Art thou not it which hath dried the Sea?") alternating with +chorus. It is followed by a slow movement for alto solo and chorus +("Therefore the Redeemed of the Lord shall return"), which closes very +gracefully and tenderly on the words, "Sorrow and Mourning shall flee +away." This little work has become a favorite with singing societies, by +the scholarly and effective manner in which it is written. + + + + + RANDEGGER. + + +Alberto Randegger was born at Trieste, April 13, 1832, and began the +study of music at an early age with Lafont and Ricci. In his twentieth +year he had written numerous minor pieces of church music, several masses +and two ballets which were produced with success in his native city. From +1852 to 1854 he was engaged as a conductor in the theatres of Fiume, +Zera, Brescia, and Venice. In the latter year he brought out a grand +opera in Brescia, called "Bianca Capello," shortly after which he went to +London, where he has since resided and made a world-wide reputation as a +teacher. In 1857 he conducted Italian opera at St. James's Theatre; in +1864 brought out a comic opera, "The Rival Beauties," at the Theatre +Royal, Leeds; in 1868 was appointed Professor of Singing at the Royal +Academy of Music, in which he has since become a director; in 1879-80 was +conductor for the Carl Rosa English Opera Company at Her Majesty's +Theatre, London; and has since been appointed conductor of the Norwich +Festival in the place of Benedict. His principal works, besides those +already mentioned, are: "Medea," a scena, sung by Madame Rudersdorff at +the Gewandhaus, Leipsic (1869); the One hundred and fiftieth Psalm, for +soprano solo, chorus, orchestra, and organ (1872); cantata, "Fridolin" +(1873); soprano scena, "Saffo" (1875); funeral anthem for the death of +the Prince Consort; and a large number of songs which are great favorites +on the concert-stage. + + + Fridolin. + +"Fridolin, or the Message to the Forge" was written for the Birmingham +Triennial Musical Festival of 1873. The words, by Mme. Erminia +Rudersdorff, are founded on Schiller's ballad, "Der Gang nach dem +Eisenhammer." The _dramatis personć_ are Waldemar, Count of Saverne; +Eglantine, Countess of Saverne; Fridolin, page to the Countess; and +Hubert, squire to the Count. The story closely follows that of Schiller. +The preface to the piano score gives its details as follows:-- + + "Fridolin and Hubert are in the service of the Count of Saverne. + Hubert, aspiring to win the affections of his beautiful mistress, + conceives a violent hatred of Fridolin, whom he regards as an obstacle + in his path. Taking advantage of Fridolin's loyal devotion to the + Countess, Hubert excites the jealousy of the Count, and prompts a stern + revenge. The Count forthwith writes to some mechanic serfs, ordering + that whoever comes asking a certain question shall be at once thrown + into their furnace. Fridolin, innocent of wrong and unconscious of + danger, receives the 'message to the forge;' but, ere setting out, he + waits upon his mistress for such commands as she might have to give. + The Countess desires him to enter the chapel he would pass on his way + and offer up a prayer for her. Fridolin obeys, and thus saves his own + life; but vengeance overtakes the traitor Hubert, who, going to the + forge to learn whether the plot has succeeded, himself asks the fatal + question, 'Is obeyed your lord's command?' and himself becomes the + victim. Fridolin subsequently appears, and is about to perish likewise, + when the Count and Countess, between whom explanations have taken + place, arrive on the scene, to preserve the innocent and to learn the + fate of the guilty." + +The cantata opens with a short but stirring prelude, introducing the +declamatory prologue-chorus:-- + + "A pious youth was Fridolin, + Who served the Lord with zeal, + And did his duty faithfully, + Come thereby woe or weal. + For this when subtle foe conspired + And sought o'er him to boast, + About his path in direst need + Kept guard the angel host." + +The cantata proper opens with a recitative by Fridolin ("Arising from the +Lap of star-clad Night"), leading up to the quiet, dreamy air, "None but +holy, lofty Thoughts." It is followed by a bass scena for Hubert +("Proceed thou, hateful Minion, on thy Path") which opens in an agitated +manner, but grows more reposeful and tender in style as the subject +changes in the passage, "For one kind Glance from out those Eyes divine." +Again the scena changes and becomes vigorous in the recitative, +"Dispelled by jealous Rage is Hope's fond Dream," set to an imposing +accompaniment, and leading to a brilliant fiery allegro ("A thousand +hideous Deaths I'd make him die"). The next number is a very graphic and +spirited hunting-chorus ("Hark! the Morn awakes the Horn"), introduced +and accompanied by the horns, and full of breezy, out-door feeling. A +long dialogue follows between Hubert and the Count, somewhat gloomy in +character, in which the former arouses his master's jealous suspicions. +The gloom still further deepens as Hubert suggests the manner of +Fridolin's death ("Mid yon gloomy Mountains"). Then follows the message +to the forge by the Count in monotone phrases ("Mark, ye Serfs, your +Lord's Commands") and the scene closes with a very dramatic duet ("Death +and Destruction fall upon his Head"). In striking contrast with these +stormy numbers comes the charming, graceful chorus of the handmaidens +("Calmly flow the equal Hours"), followed by a very expressive song for +the Countess ("No Bliss can be so great"). A short scene in recitative +leads up to a tender duet ("Above yon Sun, the Stars above") for Fridolin +and the Countess, closing with a powerful quartet for the four principal +parts ("Now know I, Hubert, thou speakest true"). + +The ninth scene is admirably constructed. It opens with an animated and +picturesque dance and chorus of villagers ("Song is resounding, Dancers +are bounding"), which swings along in graceful rhythm until it is +interrupted by a solemn phrase for organ, introduced by horns, which +prepares the way for a chorale ("Guardian Angels sweet and fair"), +closing with Fridolin's prayer at the shrine, interwoven with a beautiful +sacred chorus ("Sancta Maria, enthroned above"). In a recitative and +ballad ("The wildest Conflicts rage within my fevered Soul") the Count +mourns over what he supposes to be the infidelity of his wife, followed +by a long and very dramatic scene with the Countess ("My Waldemar, how +erred thine Eglantine?"). The last scene is laid at the forge, and after +a short but vigorous prelude opens with a chorus of the smiths ("Gift of +Demons, raging Fire"), in which the composer has produced the effect of +clanging anvils, roaring fire, and hissing sparks with wonderful realism. +The chorus closes with passages describing the providential rescue of +Fridolin and the fate of Hubert, and an _andante religioso_ ("Let your +Voices Anthems raise"). The epilogue is mainly choral, and ends this very +dramatic work in broad flowing harmonies. + + + + + RHEINBERGER. + + +Joseph Gabriel Rheinberger was born at Vaduz, in Lichtenstein, March 17, +1839, and displayed his musical talent at a very early age. He studied +the piano in his fifth year, and in his seventh was organist in the +church of his native place. At the age of twelve he entered the Munich +Conservatory, where he remained as a scholar until he was nineteen, when +he was appointed one of its teachers; at the same time he became organist +at the Hofkirche of St. Michael, and afterwards director of the Munich +Oratorio Society. In 1867 he was appointed professor and inspector of the +Royal Music School, and since 1877 has been the royal Hofkapellmeister, +directing the performances of the Kapellchor, an organization similar to +that of the Berlin Domchor. He is a very prolific composer, nearly two +hundred works having proceeded from his pen. Among them are the +"Wallenstein" and "Florentine" symphonies; a Stabat Mater; two operas, +"The Seven Ravens" and "Thürmer's Töchterlein;" incidental music to a +drama of Calderon's; a symphony-sonata for piano; a requiem for the dead +in the Franco-German war; theme and variations for string quartet; a +piano concerto; five organ sonatas; the choral works, "Toggenburg," +"Klärchen auf Eberstein," "Wittekind," and "Christophorus;" and a large +number of songs and church pieces, besides much chamber music. + + + Christophorus. + +"Christophorus," a legend, as Rheinberger calls it, was written in 1879, +and is composed for barytone, soprano, and alto solos, chorus, and +orchestra. Its subject is taken from the familiar story of the giant who +bore the infant Christ across the flood. The chorus acts the part of +narrator, and in its opening number relates the legend of Christophorus' +wanderings and his arrival before the castle whose master he would serve. +He offers his services, but when they are accepted as an offering from +the gods he haughtily declares that he only serves "for fame and +chivalry." A voice thereupon in an impressive solo ("Trust not this +loud-voiced Stranger") warns him away as an envoy of Satan, and the +chorus repeats the warning. The giant departs with the intention of +drawing his sword in Satan's cause,-- + + "For he alone must be lord of all, + Whose name doth so valiant a monarch appall." + +In a very picturesque number the chorus describes his wanderings among +the mountain crags and rocks where Satan weaves his spells about him; and +then suddenly changing to a tender, delicate strain ("Over us Stars +shine") anticipates the Voice, which in a sensuous aria ("Who is the +sovereign Lord of the Heart?") sings the power of love. In graceful +chorus the spirits taunt him, whereupon he once more resolves to fly and +to abandon the cause of Satan, but is thwarted by them. A weird chorus +closes the first part ("Satan a-hunting is gone"), ending with an +impressive strain:-- + + "Stormily falleth the night: + Frightened maidens fleeing, + Demon hordes all around. + 'A cross, see, upraised! + Fly, master! too far we have come. + Hallowed is the ground.'" + +The second part opens with a reflective soliloquy by the giant, followed +by a plaintive chorus ("All now is lone and silent") describing the +suffering of our Saviour on the cross and the sadness of a hermit gazing +upon the scene. The giant approaches the latter, and a dialogue ensues +between them, in which the identity of the victim on the cross is +revealed. Having found the King of the universe, Christophorus determines +to devote himself to His cause, and inquires how he may serve Him. He is +informed he must go to the swiftly-rolling river and carry the pilgrims +across. A chanting chorus ("As flows the River seawards, so onward glide +the Years") describes the work of the faithful toiler. Then comes a voice +calling him, and he beholds an Infant waiting for him. He takes Him upon +his shoulders and bears Him into the flood, but as he advances, bends and +struggles beneath his load "as though the whole world he bore." He +inquires the meaning, and the Voice replies:-- + + "Thou bear'st the world and bearest its Creator: + This Child is Jesus, God's own Son. + Soldier of Christ! + Thine arms were charity and mercy, + The arms of love. + Now mayst rejoice: + The prize of thy faith is won." + +A joyful, exultant chorus, ("Blessed of Rivers, the Child embrace") +closes this very graceful little "legend." + + + Toggenburg. + +"Toggenburg," a cycle of ballads, was written in 1880. The music is for +solos and mixed chorus, the ballads being linked together by motives, +thus forming a connected whole. The story is a very simple one. The +bright opening chorus ("At Toggenburg all is in festive Array") describes +the pageantry which has been prepared to welcome the return of Henry, +Knight of Toggenburg, with his fair young Suabian bride, the Lady Etha. +The chorus is followed by a duet and alto or barytone solo, which +indicate the departure of the Knight for the wars, and the Lady Etha's +loss of the wedding ring. The next number, a solo quartet and chorus +("Ah! Huntsman, who gave thee the Diamond Ring?"), is very dramatic in +its delineation of the return of the victorious Knight, who, observing +the ring on the finger of the huntsman, slays him, and then in a fit of +jealousy hurls the Lady Etha from the tower where she was waving his +welcome. The next number is a female chorus ("On mossy Bed her gentle +Form reposes"), very slow in its movement and plaintive in character. It +is followed by a weird and solemn chorus ("Through the Night rings the +Horn's Blast with Power"), picturing the mad ride of the Knight through +the darkness, accompanied by the dismal notes of ravens and mysterious +sounds like "greetings from the dead," which only cease when he discovers +the corpse of his lady with the cross on its breast. A short closing +chorus, funereal in style, ends the mournful story:-- + + "Toggenburg all is in mourning array, + The banners wave, the gate stands wide, + Count Henry returns to his home this day, + In death he anew has won his bride. + Once more for their coming the hall is prepared, + Where flickering tapers are ranged around, + And far through the night in the valley are heard + The chants of the monks with their mournful sound." + +Though the work has somewhat both of the Schumann and Mendelssohn +sentiment in it, it is nevertheless original and characteristic in +treatment. The melodies are pleasing throughout, and cover a wide range +of expression, reaching from the tenderness of love to the madness of +jealousy, and thence on to the elegiac finale. + + + + + ROMBERG. + + +Andreas Romberg was born April 27, 1767, at Vechte, near Münster. At a +very early age he was celebrated as a violinist. In his seventeenth year +he made a _furor_ by his playing at the Concerts Spirituels, Paris. In +1790, with his cousin Bernhard, who was even more celebrated as a +violoncellist (indeed the Rombergs, like the Bachs, were all musicians), +he played in the Elector's band, and also went with him to Rome, where +the cousins gave concerts together under the patronage of one of the +cardinals. During the next four years Andreas travelled in Austria and +France, and during his stay at Vienna made the acquaintance of Haydn, who +was very much interested in his musical work. In 1800 he brought out an +opera in Paris which made a failure. He then left for Hamburg, where he +married and remained many years. In 1820 he was appointed court +capellmeister at Gotha, and died there in the following year. Among his +compositions are six symphonies; five operas, "Das graue Ungeheuer," "Die +Macht der Musik," "Der Rabe," "Die Grossmuth des Scipio," and "Die Ruinen +zu Paluzzi;" and several cantatas, quartets, quintets, and church +compositions. Of all his works, however, his "Lay of the Bell" is the +best known. A few years ago it was the stock piece of nearly every choral +society in Germany, England, and the United States; and though now +relegated to the repertory of old-fashioned music, it is still very +popular. + + + Lay of the Bell. + +The "Lay of the Bell" was composed in 1808, the music being set to +Schiller's famous poem of the same name, whose stately measures are well +adapted to musical treatment. It opens with a bass solo by the Master, +urging on the workmen:-- + + "In the earth right firmly planted, + Stands well baked the mould of clay: + Up, my comrades, be ye helpful; + Let the bell be born to-day." + +The full chorus responds in a rather didactic strain ("The Labor we +prepare in Earnest"), and as it closes the Master gives his directions +for lighting the fire in the furnace and mixing the metals. In this +manner the work progresses, the Master issuing his orders until the bell +is ready for the casting, the solo singers or chorus replying with +sentiments naturally suggested by the process and the future work of the +bell. The first of these responses is the chorus, "What in the Earth +profoundly hidden," a smoothly flowing number followed by a soprano solo +("For with a Burst of joyous Clangor"), a pleasantly-rippling melody +picturing the joys of childhood, and a spirited tenor solo ("The Youth, +Girl-playmates proudly leaving") indicating the dawn of the tender +passion which broadens out into love, as the two voices join in the +charming duet, "O tender Longing, Hope delightsome." The bass still +further emphasizes their delight in the recitative, "When stern and +gentle Troth have plighted," leading up to a long but interesting tenor +solo ("Though Passion gives way") which describes the homely joys of +domestic life. The male chorus thereupon takes up the story in a joyful +strain ("And the good Man with cheerful Eye"), and tells us of the +prosperity of the happy pair and the good man's boast,-- + + "Firm as the solid earth, + Safe from misfortune's hand, + Long shall my dwelling stand;" + +to which comes the ominous response of the female chorus:-- + + "Yet none may with Fate supernal + Ever form a league eternal; + And misfortune swiftly strides." + +The Master now gives the signal to release the metal into the mould, +whereupon follows a stirring and picturesque chorus ("Right helpful is +the Might of Fire") describing the terrors of fire, the wild alarm, the +fright and confusion of the people, the clanging bells and crackling +flames, and the final destruction of the homestead, closing the first +part. + +The second part opens with the anxious orders of the Master to cease from +work and await the result of the casting. The chorus takes up a slow and +stately measure ("To Mother Earth our Work committing") which closes in a +mournful finale describing the passing funeral train, followed by a +pathetic soprano solo which tells the sad story of the death of the good +man's wife, while "To the orphaned Home a Stranger comes unloving Rule to +bear." The scene now changes from a desolate to a happy home as the +Master bids the workmen seek their pleasure while the bell is cooling. A +soprano solo takes up a cheery strain ("Wends the weary Wanderer"), +picturing the harvest home, the dance of the youthful reapers, and the +joys of evening by the fireside, followed by a tribute to patriotism, +sung by tenor and bass, the pleasant scene closing with an exultant full +chorus ("Thousand active Hands combining"). The Master then gives the +order to break the mould, and in contemplation of the ruin which might +have been caused had the metal burst it, the chorus breaks out in strong, +startling phrases picturing the horrors of civil strife ("The Master's +Hand the Mould may shatter"). The work, however, is complete and +successful, and in the true spirit of German Gemüthlichkeit the Master +summons his workmen:-- + + "Let us, comrades, round her pressing, + Upon our bell invoke a blessing. + 'Concordia,' let her name be called: + In concord and in love of one another, + Where'er she sound, may brother meet with brother." + +The cantata closes with a last invocation on the part of the Master, +followed by a jubilant chorus ("She is moving, She is moving"). + + + + + SCHUBERT. + + +Franz Peter Schubert was born in Vienna, Jan. 31, 1797, and received his +first musical lessons from his father and his elder brother Ignaz. In his +eleventh year he sang in the Lichtenthal choir and shortly afterwards +entered the Imperial Convict School, where for the next three or four +years he made rapid progress in composition. In 1813 he returned home, +and to avoid the conscription entered his father's school as a teacher, +where he remained for three years, doing drudgery but improving his +leisure hours by studying with Salieri and devoting himself assiduously +to composition. His life had few events in it to record. It was devoted +entirely to teaching and composition. He wrote in almost every known form +of music, but it was in the Lied that he has left the richest legacy to +the world, and in that field he reigns with undisputed title. +Unquestionably many of these songs were inspirations, like the "Erl +King," for instance, which came to him in the midst of a carousal. The +most famous of them are to be found in the cycluses "Müllerlieder," "Die +Gesänge Ossians," "Die Geistlichen Lieder," "Die Winterreise," and "Der +Schwanengesang." They are wonderful for their completeness, their +expression of passion, their beauty and grace of form, the delicacy of +their fancy, and their high artistic finish. Among the other great works +he has left are the lovely "Song of the Spirits over the Water," for male +voices; "Die Allmacht;" "Prometheus;" "Miriam's War Song;" the eight-part +chorus "An den Heiligen Geist;" the "Momens Musicale;" impromptus and +Hungarian fantasies for piano; the sonatas in C minor and B flat minor; +nine symphonies, two of them unfinished; the trios in B flat and E flat; +the quartets in D minor and G major; the quintet in C; two operas, +"Alfonso and Estrella" and "Fierrabras;" the mass in G, which he wrote +when but eighteen years of age, and the mass in E flat, which was his +last church composition. His catalogued works number over a thousand. He +died Nov. 19, 1828, and his last wish was to be buried by the side of +Beethoven, who on his death-bed had recognized "the divine spark" in +Schubert's music. Three graves only separate the great masters of the +Symphony and the Lied in the cemetery of Währing. + + + Miriam's War Song. + +The majestic cantata, "Miriam's War Song," was written in March, 1828, +the last year of Schubert's life,--a year which was rich, however, in the +productions of his genius. The beautiful symphony in C, the mass in E +flat, the string quartet in C, the three piano sonatas dedicated to +Schumann, the eight-voiced "Hymn to the Holy Ghost," the 92d Psalm, a +"Tantum Ergo," and several songs, among them "Am Strom," "Der Hirt auf +den Felsen," and a part of the "Schwanengesang," all belong to this year. +The authorities differ as to the time of the first performance of +"Miriam's War Song." Nottebohm in his catalogue says that it was first +sung at a concert, Jan. 30, 1829, given for the purpose of raising funds +to erect a monument in memory of the composer, who died on the 19th of +the previous November. Others assert that Schubert was induced to give a +concert, March 26, 1828, the programme being composed entirely of his own +music, and that it was first heard on that occasion. + +The work is for soprano solo and chorus, the words by the poet +Grillparzer, and the accompaniment, for the piano, as Schubert left it. +He had intended arranging it for orchestra, but did not live to complete +it. The work, however, was done a year or two afterwards by his friend +Franz Lachner, at that time officiating as Capellmeister at the +Kärnthnerthor Theatre in Vienna. + +The theme of the cantata is Miriam's hymn of praise for the escape of the +Israelites, and the exultant song of victory by the people, rejoicing not +alone at their own delivery but at the destruction of the enemy. It opens +with a spirited and broad harmony, "Strike the Cymbals," changing to a +calm and graceful song, describing the Lord as a shepherd leading his +people forth from Egypt. The next number, depicting the awe of the +Israelites as they passed through the divided waters, the approach of +Pharaoh's hosts, and their destruction, is worked up with great power. As +the sea returns to its calm again, the opening chorus is repeated, +closing with a powerful fugue. The cantata is short, but it is a work of +imperishable beauty. + + + + + SCHUMANN. + + +Robert Schumann was born at Zwickau, in Saxony, June 8, 1810. In his +earliest youth he was recognized as a child of genius. His first teacher +in music was Baccalaureus Kuntzch, who gave him piano instruction. He +studied the piano with Wieck, whose daughter Clara he subsequently +married, now world-famous as a pianist. In 1830, in which year his +artistic career really opened, he began the theoretical study of music, +first with Director Kupsch in Leipsic and later with Heinrich Dorn, and +at the same time entered upon the work of composition. Schumann was not +only a musician but an able critic and graceful writer; and in 1834, with +Schunke, Knorr, and Wieck, he founded the "Neue Zeitschrift für Musik," +which had an important influence upon musical progress in Germany, and in +which the great promise of such musicians as Chopin and Brahms was first +recognized. He married Clara Wieck in 1840, after much opposition from +her father; and in this year appeared some of his best songs, including +the three famous cycluses, "Liederkreis," "Woman's Life and Love," and +"Poet's Love," which now have a world-wide fame. In the following year +larger works came from his pen, among them his B minor symphony, +overture, scherzo, and finale in E major, and the symphony in D minor. +During this period in his career he made many artistic journeys with his +wife, which largely increased the reputation of both. In 1843 he +completed his great "romantic oratorio," "Paradise and the Peri," set to +Moore's text, and many favorite songs and piano compositions, among them +the "Phantasiestücke" and "Kinderscenen," and his elegant piano quintet +in E flat. In 1844, in company with his wife, he visited St. Petersburg +and Moscow, and their reception was a royal one. The same year he +abandoned his "Zeitschrift," in which "Florestan," "Master Raro," +"Eusebius," and the other pseudonyms had become familiar all over +Germany, and took the post of director in Düsseldorf, in the place of +Ferdinand Hiller. During the last few years of his life he was the victim +of profound melancholy, owing to an affection of the brain, and he even +attempted suicide by throwing himself into the Rhine. He was then removed +to an asylum at Endenich, where he died July 20, 1856. The two men who +exercised most influence upon Schumann were Jean Paul and Franz Schubert. +He was deeply pervaded with the romance of the one and the emotional +feeling of the other. His work is characterized by genial humor, a rich +and warm imagination, wonderfully beautiful instrumentation, especially +in his accompaniments, the loftiest form of expression, and a rigid +adherence to the canons of art. + + + Advent Hymn. + +In a letter to Strakerjan, Schumann writes:-- + + "To apply his powers to sacred music is the artist's highest aim. But + in youth we are all very firmly rooted to earth, with its joys and + sorrows; in old age the twigs tend upwards. And so I hope that that day + may not be too far distant from me." + +The first of his works indicated in the above words to his friend was the +"Advent Hymn," written in 1848, based upon Rückert's poem. It was +followed later by a requiem and a mass, these comprising his only sacred +music. + +The "Advent Hymn" describes the entry of Christ into Jerusalem, +reflectively considers his peaceful career as compared with that of +earthly kings, and appeals to His servants to bear tidings of Him +throughout the world, closing with a prayer that He will bring His peace +to all its people. It is a hymn full of simple devotion and somewhat +narrow in its limitations; but Schumann has treated it with all the +dignity and breadth of the oratorio style. It opens with a melodious +soprano solo ("In lowly Guise thy King appeareth"), with choral responses +by sopranos and altos, leading to an effective five-part chorus ("O King +indeed, though no Man hail Thee"), begun by first and second tenors and +basses, and closing in full harmony with the added female voices. The +soprano voice again announces a subject ("Thy Servants faithful, Tidings +bearing"), which is taken up by full chorus, in somewhat involved form, +though closing in plain harmony. The third number ("When Thou the stormy +Sea art crossing") is given out by the soprano and repeated by the female +chorus with a charming pianissimo effect. A few bars for male chorus +("Lord of Grace and Truth unfailing") lead into full chorus. The fifth +number ("Need is there for Thyself returning"), also choral, is very +elaborately treated with interchanging harmonies and bold rhythms, +leading up to the final choruses, which are very intricate in +construction, but at the close resolve into a double chorus of great +power and genuine religious exaltation. + +There are other works of Schumann's which are more or less in the cantata +form, such as "The King's Son," op. 116, set to a ballad of Uhland's; +"The New Year's Song," op. 144, poem by Rückert; "The Luck of Edenhall," +op. 143, poem by Uhland; "Of the Page and the King's Daughter," op. 140, +poem by Geibel; the "Spanish Love Song," op. 138; the "Minnespiel," op. +101; and the "Ritornelle," op. 65. + + + The Pilgrimage of the Rose. + +"The Pilgrimage of the Rose," for solo and chorus, with piano +accompaniment, twenty-four numbers, was written in the spring of 1851, +and was first performed May 6, 1852, at a Düsseldorf subscription +concert. The story is taken from a somewhat vapid fairy-tale by Moritz +Horn, and has little point or meaning. It turns upon the commonplace +adventures of a young girl whose origin is disclosed by a rose which was +never to fall from her hand. + +The principal numbers are the opening song, a joyous hymn to spring, in +canon form, for two sopranos; the dancing choruses of the elves, for two +sopranos and alto; the male chorus, "In the thick Wood," which is very +effective in harmony; the exultant bridal songs, "Why sound the Horns so +gayly?" and "Now at the Miller's;" the duet, "In the smiling Valley, 'mid +the Trees so green;" the Grave Song; the quartet, "Oh, Joy! foretaste of +Heaven's Rest;" and the duet, "I know a blushing Rosebud." + +The work as a whole has never attained the popularity of his "Paradise +and the Peri," though detached numbers from it are frequently given with +great success. The inadequacy of the poem has much to do with this; and +it must also be remembered that it was written at a time when Schumann's +powers had begun to weaken under the strain of the mental disorder which +finally proved fatal. Reissmann, in his analysis of the work, says:-- + + "The man who had hitherto refused to allow even the simplest + composition to flow from any but a distinct idea, who constantly strove + to enter into relations with some distinct movement of the heart or the + imagination, here grasped at a poem utterly destitute of any rational + fundamental idea, and so arbitrary in execution, so tasteless in parts, + that the musical inspiration it offered could never have moved any + other composer to set it to music." + + + The Minstrel's Curse. + +"The Minstrel's Curse," for solo voice, chorus and orchestra, was written +in 1852, and first performed in the same year. Its text is based upon +Uhland's beautiful ballad of the same name, which was adapted for the +composer by Richard Pohl. The libretto shows numerous variations from the +original text. Some of the verses are literally followed, others are +changed, and many new songs and motives are introduced. Several of +Uhland's other ballads are assigned to the minstrel, the youth, and the +queen, among them "Die Drei Lieder," "Entsagung," and "Hohe Liebe," as +well as extracts from "Rudello," "Lied des Deutschen Sängers," "Gesang +und Krieg," and "Das Thal." Instead of the beautiful verse in the +original poem:-- + + "They sing of spring and love, of happy golden youth, + Of freedom, manly worth, of sanctity and truth. + They sing of all emotions sweet the human breast that move, + They sing of all things high the human heart doth love. + The courtly crowd around forget to sneer and nod, + The king's bold warriors bow before their God. + The queen, to pleasure and to melancholy willing prey, + Down to the singers casts the rose which on her bosom lay,"-- + +which leads up to the tragedy, it is the singing of the "Hohe Liebe" +which is made the motive by Pohl, who from this point on follows the +story as told by Uhland. + +The work contains fourteen numbers. The first two verses, describing the +castle and its haughty monarch, are sung by the narrator, and are +followed by an alto solo, very bright and joyous in style, which tells of +the arrival of the two minstrels. The fourth number is a Provençal song, +full of grace and poetical feeling, sung by the youth, followed by full +chorus. The King angrily interposes in the next number, "Enough of Spring +and Pleasure," whereupon the harper sings a beautiful ballad interpolated +by the librettist. The queen follows with a quiet, soothing strain, +appealing for further songs, and in reply the youth and harper once more +sing of spring. The youth's powerful song of love, which changes to a +trio in the close, the queen and harper joining, indicates the coming +tragedy, and from this number on the chorus follows the story as told by +Uhland, with great power and spirit. The general style of the work is +declamatory, but in many of its episodes the ballad form is used with +great skill and effect. + + + + + SINGER. + + +Otto Singer was born in Saxony, July 26, 1833, and attended the Leipsic +Conservatory from 1851 to 1855, studying with Richter, Moscheles, and +Hauptmann. In 1859 he went to Dresden and for two years thereafter +studied with Liszt, of whom he was not only a favorite scholar but always +a most zealous advocate. In 1867 he came to this country to take a +position in the Conservatory at New York, then under the direction of +Theodore Thomas and William Mason. In 1873, upon Mr. Thomas's suggestion, +he went to Cincinnati and became the assistant musical director of the +festival chorus of that city, a position which he filled with eminent +ability for several years. At the festival of 1878 he conducted the first +performance of Liszt's "Graner Mass" in this country, and also his own +"Festival Ode" set to a poem by F. A. Schmitt, and written to commemorate +the dedication of the new Music Hall. In the same year the Cincinnati +College of Music was organized, and he was engaged as one of the +principal instructors, a position which he still holds, and in which he +has displayed signal ability. Mr. Singer has written many compositions +for piano and orchestra, and besides his "Festival Ode," the cantata +"Landing of the Pilgrims" (1876). + + + The Landing of the Pilgrims. + +"The Landing of the Pilgrims," written in 1876, was Mr. Singer's +Centennial offering to the patriotic music of that year. The text of the +cantata is the familiar poem written by Mrs. Felicia Hemans, which was +first set to music by her own sister, Miss Browne, though in somewhat +different style from this work of the modern school. + +The cantata opens with an instrumental prelude which gives out the +principal motive as we afterwards find it set to the words, "With their +Hymns of lofty Cheer;" and truly lofty cheer it is, that antique, strong +melody. Breathed softly at first, as from afar, it is repeated after a +rapid crescendo with the whole weight of the orchestra, to melt away +again on an organ point in more subdued tone-color. In the second +movement (andante) it appears in quadruple time, augmented in its cadence +by a chromatic harmony which serves well to enrich the working-up of this +fine piece of orchestral writing. A short interlude containing the germ +of a second theme, which afterwards appears at the words, "This was their +Welcome Home," now prepares the entrance of the voices. To the words, +"The breaking Waves dashed high," the basses and tenors give out the +first motive, and after declaiming the stormy opening lines of the poem +break forth in unison with "When a Band of Exiles moored their Bark on +the wild New England Shore." The time again changing, the composer very +happily contrasts the phrases, "Not as a Conqueror comes" and "They the +true-hearted came." Soon, however, the ever-pliable principal theme falls +into a martial stride, and a very effective setting of the words, "Not +with the Roll of stirring Drums," concludes the opening male chorus. Here +follows the Centennial Hymn as given out in the beginning, sung first by +an alto voice, and repeated by the full chorus of mixed voices. After the +close, the orchestra, dreaming along in the spell, as it were, seems to +spiritualize the sturdy Pilgrim Fathers into meek Pilgrims of the +Cross,--a piece of exquisite tenderness, Liszt-Wagnerish, and yet +beautiful. After some alto recitatives and short choral phrases, the +leading theme once more enters with heavy martial step to the words, +"There was Manhood's Brow," etc. The musical setting of the question, +"What sought they?" etc., is cast in simpler form, and the response, +"They sought a Faith's pure Shrine," is given in six measures, _a +capella_, for five voices. This brings us to the last movement, _andante +maestoso_. The leading motive, now contracted into one measure, is tossed +about in the double basses as on the waves of a heavy surf until it +reaches the climax on the words "Freedom to worship God." The cantata +forms a valuable addition to our musical literature, and was first sung +by the Cincinnati Harmonic Society, of which Mr. Singer was leader at the +time. + + + + + SMART. + + +Henry Smart, one of the most prominent of the modern English composers, +was born in London, Oct. 26, 1813. Though almost entirely self-taught, he +soon made his mark as a musician of more than ordinary ability. For many +years he was principally known as an organist and organ-writer. He wrote +numerous compositions for that instrument, which are still largely in +use, and from 1836 to 1864 was famous in London for his contributions to +the church service. In 1855 his opera, "Bertha, or the Gnome of +Hartzburg," was produced with success in that city. Among his festival +works were the cantatas, "The Bride of Dunkerron," for Birmingham (1864); +"King René's Daughter" and "The Fishermaidens," for female voices (1871); +the sacred cantata "Jacob," for Glasgow (1873); and two anthems for +solos, chorus, and organ, for the London Choral Choirs' Association +Festivals of 1876 and 1878. As a writer of part-songs he has also +achieved a wide reputation. Grove states that he also was "a very +accomplished mechanic, and had he taken up engineering instead of music, +would no doubt have been successful. As a designer of organs he was often +employed." Shortly after 1864 he lost his sight and thereafter composed +entirely by dictation. His services for music secured him a government +pension in June, 1879, but he did not live to enjoy it, dying July 6 of +the same year. + + + The Bride of Dunkerron. + +"The Bride of Dunkerron," words by Frederick Enoch, was written for the +Birmingham Festival of 1864, and is based upon a tradition, the scene +located at the Castle of Dunkerron, on the coast of Kerry, which has also +been made the subject of a ballad by Crofton Croker. The story is a very +simple one. The Lord of Dunkerron becomes enamoured of a sea-maiden, and +as she is unable to leave her element he follows her to her abode. She +seeks the Sea-King to obtain his consent to their union, but returns to +her lover with the sad message that she is doomed to death for loving a +mortal. He in turn is driven from the Sea-King's realm, and is cast back +by the tempest to the shores of the upper world; and the work closes with +the laments of the sea-spirits for the maiden, and of the serfs for their +master. + +After an expressive orchestral introduction the cantata opens with a +chorus of the serfs (tenors and basses) ("Ere the Wine-cup is dry"), +followed by a very romantic chorus of sea-maidens, the two at times +interwoven and responsive,--the one describing Lord Dunkerron's nightly +vigils on the seashore, and the other the melody of the maidens which +tempts him. A charming orchestral intermezzo, full of the feeling of the +sea, ensues, and is followed by recitative and aria ("The full Moon is +beaming") for Dunkerron, which is very simple in style but effective as a +song, even apart from its setting. It leads up to another chorus of the +sea-maidens ("Let us sing, the moonlit Shores along") and a long love +dialogue between Dunkerron and the Maiden. The next number is a very +spirited and picturesque chorus ("Down through the Deep") describing the +passage of the lovers to the Maiden's home, which is followed by a +sturdy, sonorous recitative and aria for bass voice ("Oh, the Earth is +fair in Plain and Glade") sung by the Sea-King. Two very attractive +choruses follow, the first ("O Storm King, hear us") with a solo for the +Sea-King, and the second ("Hail to thee, Child of the Earth") by the +sea-maidens. Another graceful melody, "Our Home shall be on this bright +Isle," is assigned to the Maiden, leading to a duet with Dunkerron, in +which she announces her departure to obtain the Sea-King's consent to +their union. A chorus of the storm-spirits ("Roar, Wind of the Tempest, +roar") indicates her doom and leads up to the finale. A powerful trio for +the Maiden, Dunkerron, and Sea-King, followed by the angry commands of +the latter ("Hurl him back!"), tells of the death of the lovers, and the +work closes as it opened, with the intermingled choruses of serfs and +sea-maidens, this time, however, full of lamentation over the sad +tragedy. + + + King René's Daughter. + +"King René's Daughter," a cantata for female voices only, the poem by +Frederick Enoch, was written in 1871. The story is freely adapted from +Henrik Hertz's lyric drama. Iolanthe, the daughter of King René, Count of +Provence, was betrothed in her infancy to the son of the Count of +Vaudemont. When but a year old she was stricken with blindness. She has +been reared in ignorance of her affliction by a strict concealment from +her of all knowledge of the blessings of sight. A wandering magician +agrees to cure her by the use of an amulet, provided she is first +informed of the existence of the missing sense; but her father refuses +permission. Her betrothed has never seen her, but wandering one day +through the valley of Vaucluse, singing his troubadour lays, he beholds +her, and is captivated by her beauty. His song reveals to her the faculty +of which she has been kept in ignorance, and the magician, his condition +thus having been fulfilled, restores her to sight. + +The work is divided into thirteen numbers, the solo parts being Iolanthe +(soprano), Martha (mezzo-soprano), and Beatrice (contralto). In the third +number another soprano voice is required in a trio and chorus of +vintagers; and in the sixth number, a soprano and contralto in the +quartet, which acts the part of narrator, and tells of the troubadour's +rose song to Iolanthe. It is unnecessary to specify the numbers in +detail, as they are of the same general character,--smooth, flowing, and +graceful in melody throughout. The most striking of them are No. 3, trio +and chorus ("See how gay the Valley shines"); No. 5, arietta for Martha +("Listening to the Nightingales"); No. 6, quartet ("Who hath seen the +Troubadour?"); No. 8, Iolanthe's song ("I love the Rose"); No. 11, duet +and chorus ("Sweet the Angelus is ringing"); and the finale, with the +jubilant chorus:-- + + "René the king will ride forth from the gate + With his horsemen and banners in state; + And the trumpets shall fanfaron ring + To René, to René, the king. + Then with rebec and lute and with drum + The bride in her beauty will come; + And the light of her eyes, they will say, has surpassed + The diamonds that shine at her waist,-- + The diamonds that shine in her long golden hair,-- + King René's daughter the fair." + + + + + SULLIVAN. + + +Arthur Seymour Sullivan was born in London, May 13, 1842. His father, a +band-master and clarinet-player of distinction, intrusted his musical +education at first to the Rev. Thomas Hilmore, master of the children of +the Chapel Royal. He entered the chapel in 1854 and remained there three +years, and also studied in the Royal Academy of Music under Goss and +Sterndale Bennett, during this period, leaving the latter institution in +1858, in which year he went to Leipsic. He remained in the Conservatory +there until 1861, when he returned to London and introduced himself to +its musical public, with his music to Shakspeare's "Tempest," which made +a great success. The enthusiasm with which this was received, and the +favors he gained at the hands of Chorley, at that time musical critic of +the "Athenćum," gave him a secure footing. The cantata "Kenilworth," +written for the Birmingham Festival, the music to the ballet "L'Île +enchantée," and an opera, "The Sapphire Necklace," were produced in 1864. +In 1866 appeared his first symphony and an overture, "In Memoriam," a +tribute to his father, who died that year. The next year his overture +"Marmion" was first performed. In 1869 he wrote his first oratorio, "The +Prodigal son," in 1873 "The Light of the World," and in 1880 "The Martyr +of Antioch;" the first for the Worcester, the second for the Birmingham, +and the third for the Leeds festival. The beautiful "Overture di Ballo," +so frequently played in this country by the Thomas orchestra, was written +for Birmingham in 1870, and the next year appeared his brilliant little +cantata, "On shore and Sea." On the 11th of May, 1867, was first heard in +public his comic operetta, "Cox and Box." It was the first in that series +of extraordinary successes, really dating from "The Sorcerer," which are +almost without parallel in the operatic world, and which have made his +name, and that of his collaborator, Gilbert, household words. He has done +much for sacred as well as secular music. In addition to his oratorios he +has written numerous anthems, forty-seven hymn tunes, two Te Deums, +several carols, part-songs, and choruses, and in 1872 edited the +collection of "Church Hymns with Tunes" for the Christian Knowledge +Society. His latest works are the opera "Ruddygore" and the cantata "The +Golden Legend," both written in 1886. He received the honorary degree of +Doctor of Music from Cambridge in 1876, and from Oxford in 1879, and in +1883 was knighted by the Queen. + + + On Shore and Sea. + +The cantata "On Shore and Sea" was written for the London International +Exhibition of 1871. The solo parts are allotted to La Sposina, a Riviera +woman, and Il Marinajo, a Genoese sailor. The action passes in the +sixteenth century, at a port of the Riviera and on board of a Genoese and +Moorish galley at sea. The cantata opens with a joyous sailors' chorus +and the lament of the mothers and wives as the seamen weigh anchor and +set sail. The scene then changes to the sea. On board one of the galleys, +in the midnight watch, the Marinajo invokes the protection of Our Lady, +Star of the Sea, for the loved one left behind. The scene next changes to +the return of the fleet, triumphant in its encounters with the Moorish +vessels. The women throng to the shore, headed by La Sposina, to welcome +the sailors back, but the galley on board which her lover served is +missing. It has been captured by the Moors, and in a pathetic song she +gives expression to her sorrow. In the next scene we find him toiling at +the oar at the bidding of his Moorish masters. While they are revelling +he plans a rising among his fellow-captives which is successful. They +seize the galley and steer back to the Riviera, entering port amid +choruses of rejoicing. The cantata is full of charming melodies, the +instrumentation is Oriental in color, and the choruses, particularly the +closing ones, are very stirring. + + + The Golden Legend. + +"The Golden Legend" was first produced at the Leeds Musical Festival, +Oct. 16, 1886. The story of the legend has already been told in the +description of Mr. Buck's cantata by the same name, which took the +Cincinnati Festival prize in 1880. The adaptation of Mr. Longfellow's +poem for the Sullivan cantata was made by Joseph Bennett, who while +omitting its mystical parts, except the prologue, has confined himself to +the story of Prince Henry and Elsie. All the principal scenes, though +sometimes rearranged to suit the musical demands of the composer, have +been retained, so that the unity of the legend is preserved. + +The prologue, representing the effort of Lucifer and the spirits of the +air to tear down the cathedral cross, is used without change. The part of +Lucifer is assigned to the barytone voice, the spirits of the air to the +sopranos and altos, and the bells to the tenors and basses, the whole +closing with the Gregorian Chant. The orchestral accompaniment is very +realistic, particularly in the storm music and in the final number, where +the organ adds its voice to the imposing harmony. The first scene opens +with the soliloquy of Prince Henry in his chamber ("I cannot sleep"), +followed by a dramatic duet with Lucifer, describing the temptation, and +closes with a second solo by the Prince, accompanied by a warning chorus +of angels. The second scene opens before the cottage of Ursula at +evening, with a short alto recitative ("Slowly, slowly up the Wall") with +pastoral accompaniment, followed by a very effective choral hymn ("O +Gladsome Light") sung by the villagers ere they depart for their homes, +the Prince's voice joining in the Amen. The remainder of the scene +includes a dialogue between Elsie and her mother, in which the maid +expresses her determination to die for the Prince, and a beautiful prayer +("My Redeemer and my Lord") in which she pleads for strength to carry out +her resolution, closing with her noble offer to the Prince, which he +accepts, the angels responding Amen to the blessing he asks for her. + +The third scene opens with Elsie, the Prince, and their attendants on the +road to Salerno where the cure is to be effected by her sacrifice. They +fall in with a band of pilgrims, among whom is Lucifer in the disguise of +a monk. The two bands part company, and as night comes on the Prince's +attendants encamp near the sea. The continuity of the narrative is varied +by a simple, graceful duet for the Prince and Elsie ("Sweet is the Air +with budding Haws"); the Gregorian music of the pilgrims in the distance +("Cujus clavis lingua Petri"); the mocking characteristic song of Lucifer +("Here am I too in the pious Band"), interwoven with the chant; the song +of greeting to the sea by the Prince ("It is the Sea"); and a very +effective solo for Elsie ("The Night is calm and cloudless"), which is +repeated by full chorus with soprano obligato dwelling upon the words +"Christe Eleison." The fourth scene opens in the Medical School at +Salerno, and discloses Lucifer disguised as the physician Friar Angelo, +who receives Elsie and takes her into an inner apartment, notwithstanding +the protests of the Prince, who suddenly resolves to save her, and +finally effects her rescue. The music to this scene is very dramatic, and +it also contains a short but striking unaccompanied chorus ("O Pure in +Heart"). + +The fifth scene is short. It passes at the door of Ursula's cottage, +where a forester brings the mother the news of Elsie's safety and of the +Prince's miraculous cure. The dialogue is followed by a prayer of +thanksgiving ("Virgin, who lovest the Poor and Lowly"). The last scene +opens on the terrace of the castle of Vautsberg. It is the evening of the +wedding day, and amid the sound of bells heard in the distance the Prince +relates to Elsie the story of Charlemagne and Fastrada, at the close of +which the happy pair join in an exultant duet. The cantata ends with a +choral epilogue, worked up to a fine fugal climax in which Elsie's "deed +divine" is compared to the mountain brook flowing down from "the cool +hills" to bless "the broad and arid plain." + + + + + WAGNER. + + +Richard Wagner, who has been sometimes ironically called the musician of +the future, and whose music has been relegated to posterity by a +considerable number of his contemporaries, was born at Leipsic, May 22, +1813. After his preliminary studies in Dresden and Leipsic, he took his +first lessons in music from Cantor Weinlig. In 1836 he was appointed +musical director in the theatre at Magdeburg, and later occupied the same +position at Königsberg. Thence he went to Riga, where he began his opera +"Rienzi." He then went to Paris by sea, was nearly shipwrecked on his way +thither, and landed without money or friends. After two years of hard +struggling he returned to Germany. His shipwreck and forlorn condition +suggested the theme of "The Flying Dutchman," and while on his way to +Dresden he passed near the castle of Wartburg, in the valley of +Thuringia, whose legends inspired his well-known opera of "Tannhäuser." +He next removed to Zurich, and about this time appeared "Lohengrin," his +most popular opera. "Tristan and Isolde" was produced in 1856, and his +comic opera, "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg," three years later. In 1864 +he received the patronage of King Louis of Bavaria, which enabled him to +complete and perform his great work, "Der Ring der Nibelungen." He laid +the foundation of the new theatre at Baireuth in 1872, and in 1875 the +work was produced, and created a profound sensation all over the musical +world. "Parsifal," his last opera, was first performed in 1882. His works +have aroused great opposition, especially among conservative musicians, +for the reason that he has set at defiance the conventional operatic +forms, and in carrying out his theory of making the musical and dramatic +elements of equal importance, and employing the former as the language of +the latter in natural ways, has made musical declamation take the place +of set melody, and swept away the customary arias, duets, quartets, and +concerted numbers of the Italian school, to suit the dramatic exigencies +of the situations. Besides his musical compositions, he enjoys almost +equal fame as a littérateur, having written not only his own librettos, +but four important works,--"Art and the Revolution," "The Art Work of the +Future," "Opera and Drama," and "Judaism in Music." His music has made +steady progress through the efforts of such advocates as Liszt, Von +Bülow, and Richter in Germany, Pasdeloup in France, Hueffer in England, +and Theodore Thomas in the United States. In 1870 he married Frau Cosima +von Bülow, the daughter of Liszt,--an event which produced almost as much +comment in social circles as his operas have in musical. He died during a +visit to Venice, Feb. 13, 1883. + + + Love Feast of the Apostles. + +"Das Liebesmahl der Apostel" ("The Love Feast of the Apostles"), a +Biblical scene for male voices and orchestra, dedicated to Frau Charlotte +Emilie Weinlig, the widow of the composer's old teacher, was written in +1843, the year after "Rienzi," and was first performed in the +Frauen-Kirche in Dresden at the Men's Singing Festival, July 6 of that +year. + +The work opens with a full chorus of Disciples ("Gegrüsst seid, Brüder, +in des Herren Namen"), who have gathered together for mutual help and +strength to endure the persecutions with which they are afflicted. The +movement flows on quietly, though marked by strong contrasts, for several +measures, after which the chorus is divided, a second and third chorus +taking up the two subjects, "Uns droht der Mächt'gen Hass," and "O fasst +Vertrau'n," gradually accelerating and working up to a climax, and +closing pianissimo ("Der Mächt'gen Späh'n verfolgt uns überall"). + +In the next number the Apostles enter (twelve bass voices) with a +sonorous welcome ("Seid uns gegrüsst, ihr lieben Brüder"), reinforced by +the Disciples, pianissimo ("Wir sind versammelt im Namen Jesu Christi"), +the united voices at last in powerful strains ("Allmächt'ger Vater, der +du hast gemacht Himmel und Erd' und Alles was darin") imploring divine +help and the sending of the Holy Ghost to comfort them. At its close +voices on high are heard ("Seid getrost, ich bin euch nah, und mein Geist +ist mit euch"). The Disciples reply with increasing vigor ("Welch Brausen +erfüllt die Luft"). The Apostles encourage them to steadfast reliance +upon the Spirit ("Klein müthige! Hört an was jetzt der Geist zu Künden +uns gebeut"), and the work comes to a close with a massive chorale ("Denn +ihm ist alle Herrlichkeit von Ewigkeit zu Ewigkeit"), worked up with +overpowering dramatic force, particularly in the instrumentation. Though +but a small composition compared with the masterpieces for the stage +which followed it, it is peculiarly interesting in its suggestions of the +composer's great dramatic power which was to find its fruition in the +later works from his pen. + + + + + WEBER. + + +Carl Maria von Weber was born Dec. 18, 1786, at Eutin, and may almost be +said to have been born on the stage, as his father was at the head of a +theatrical company, and the young Carl was carried in the train of the +wandering troupe all over Germany. His first lessons were given to him by +Henschkel, conductor of the orchestra of Duke Friedrich of Meiningen. At +the age of fourteen he wrote his first opera, "Das Waldmädchen," which +was performed several times during the year 1800. In 1801 appeared his +two-act comic opera, "Peter Schmoll and his Neighbors," and during these +two years he also frequently played in concerts with great success. He +then studied with the Abbé Vogler, and in his eighteenth year was engaged +for the conductorship of the Breslau opera. About this time appeared his +first important opera, "Rubezahl." At the conclusion of his studies with +Vogler he was made director of the opera at Prague. In 1816 he went to +Berlin, where he was received with the highest marks of popular esteem, +and thence to Dresden as hofcapellmeister. This was the most brilliant +period in his career. It was during this time that he married Caroline +Brandt, the actress and singer, who had had a marked influence upon his +musical progress, and to whom he dedicated his exquisite "Invitation to +the Dance." The first great work of his life, "Der Freischütz," +was written at this period. Three other important operas +followed,--"Preciosa," "Euryanthe," the first performance of which took +place in Vienna in 1823, and "Oberon," which he finished in London and +brought out there. Weber's last days were spent in the latter city, and +it was while making preparations to return to Germany, which he longed to +see again, that he was stricken down with his final illness. On the 4th +of June, 1826, he was visited by Sir George Smart, Moscheles, and other +musicians who were eager to show him attention. He declined to have any +one watch by his bedside, thanked them for their kindness, bade them +good-by, and then turned to his friend Fürstenau, and said, "Now let me +sleep." These were his last words. The next morning he was found dead in +his bed. He has left a rich legacy of works besides his operas,--a large +collection of songs, many cantatas (of which the "Jubilee" and "Kampf und +Sieg" are the finest), some masses, of which that in E flat is the most +beautiful, and several concertos, besides many brilliant rondos, +polaccas, and marches for the piano. + + + Jubilee Cantata. + +The "Jubilee Cantata" was written in 1818 to celebrate the fiftieth +anniversary of the reign of King Friedrich August of Saxony. The King +having expressed a desire that there should be a court concert on the day +of the anniversary, September 20, Count Vitzthum commissioned Weber to +write a grand jubilee cantata. The poet Friedrich Kind supplied the +words. While engaged in its composition Weber was informed by friends +that other arrangements were being made for the concert, and on the 12th +of September the information was confirmed by a letter from the Count +which informed him that notwithstanding his personal protests, the +Jubilee Cantata was not to be given. The son in his biography of his +father intimates that the change was the result of intrigues on the part +of his Italian rivals, Morlacchi, Zingarelli, and Nicolini. The same +authority says that the cantata was finally produced in the Neustadt +church for the benefit of the destitute peasantry in the Hartz mountains, +Weber himself conducting the performance, and that only the overture to +the work, now famous the world over as the "Jubel," was played at the +court concert. The best authorities, however, now believe that the Jubel +overture is an entirely independent work, having no connection with the +cantata. The text of the cantata, which commemorates many special events +in the life of the King, being found unsuitable for general performance, +a second text was subsequently written by Amadeus Wendt, under the title +of "Ernte-Cantata" ("Harvest Cantata") which is the one now in common +use, although still another version was made under the name of "The +Festival of Peace," by Hampdon Napier, which was used at a performance in +London under the direction of the composer himself only a few days before +his death. + +The cantata is written for the four solo voices, chorus, and orchestra. +It opens after a short allegro movement with a full jubilant chorus +("Your thankful Songs upraise"), the solo quartet joining in the middle +part with chorus. The second number is a very expressive recitative and +aria for tenor ("Happy Nation, still receiving"). The third is +characterized by quiet beauty, and is very devotional in spirit. It +begins with a soprano recitative and aria ("Yet not alone of Labor comes +our Plenty"), leading up to a second recitative and aria ("The gracious +Father hears us when we call"), which are very vivacious in style, +closing with a tenor recitative ("The Air is mild and clear and grateful +to the Reapers"). These prepare the way for a short but very powerful +chorus ("Woe! see the Storm-Clouds"). In the next number ("How fearful +are the Terrors Nature brings") the bass voice moralizes on the powers of +Nature, followed by a plaintive strain for two sopranos, which leads up +to a majestic prayer for chorus ("Lord Almighty, full of Mercy"). A bass +recitative ("Lo, once our Prayer") introduces a beautiful quartet and +chorus of thanksgiving ("Wreathe into Garlands the Gold of the Harvest"). +They are followed by a tenor recitative and soprano solo ("Soon noble +Fruit by Toil was won"), and the work comes to a close with a stately +chorus of praise ("Father, reigning in Thy Glory"). + + + Kampf und Sieg. + +In June, 1815, Weber arrived in Munich and during his stay made the +acquaintance of Fraulein Wohlbrück, the singer, which led to an +introduction to her father, who was both an actor and a poet. On the very +day that he met Wohlbrück, the news came to Munich of the victory of the +Allies at Waterloo, the whole city was decorated and illuminated, and a +great crowd, Weber with them, went to St. Michael's Church to listen to a +Te Deum. While there the idea of a grand cantata in commemoration of the +victory came into his mind. On his return home he met Wohlbrück and +communicated his purpose to him. The enthusiastic poet agreed to furnish +the words. About the first of August the text was placed in Weber's +hands, and he at once set it to music. It was first produced on the 22d +of December at Prague, and made a profound impression by its stirring +military character and vivid battle-descriptions. + +The cantata is written for the four solo voices, chorus of sopranos, +altos, two tenors, and basses and orchestra. A stirring orchestral +introduction leads up to a people's chorus which describes the +disappearance of dissensions heralding the approach of victory. No. 3 is +a bass solo entitled "Faith," with a delightful violoncello +accompaniment. In No. 4, Love (soprano) and Hope (tenor) join with Faith +in a song full of feeling. No. 5 is a soldiers' chorus of an enthusiastic +and martial character, while in the distance is heard the Austrian +Grenadier's march mingling with it. In the next number the approach of +the enemy is heard as the chorus closes with the majestic phrase, "Mit +Gott sei unser Werk gethan." The lively march of the enemy comes nearer +and nearer, interwoven with the next chorus, which is set to Körner's +prayer "Wie auch die Hölle braust." Then follows the opening of the +battle, with the roar of cannon, the shouts of the soldiers, and the +cries of the wounded, through which is heard the French national air +defiantly sounding. Another soldiers' chorus follows. It pictures the +advance of the Prussian Jägers ("Ha! welch ein Klang"), followed by the +simple strains of "God save the King!" In No. 9 the fight is renewed, the +music reaching a pitch of almost ferocious energy, until the joyous cry +is heard, "Hurrah! Er flieht," and the triumphant march of victory +emphasizes the exultant pćan, "Heil dir im Siegerkranz." The rest of the +cantata is purely lyrical in style. Once more the voices of "Faith" and +"Love" are heard, leading up to the final majestic chorus, "Herr Gott, +Dich loben wir," accompanying a solo voice chanting the theme "Gieb und +erhalte den Frieden der Welt." + + + + + WHITING. + + +George Elbridge Whiting was born at Holliston, Mass., Sept. 14, 1842. He +began the study of the piano at a very early age, but soon abandoned it +for the organ. His progress was so rapid that at the age of thirteen he +made his public appearance as a player. In 1857 he went to Hartford, +Conn., where he had accepted a position in one of the churches, and while +there organized the Beethoven Society. In 1862 he removed to Boston, but +shortly afterwards went to England, where he studied the organ for a year +with Best. On his return he was engaged as organist of St. Joseph's +Church, Albany, N. Y., but his ambition soon took him to Europe again. +This time he went to Berlin and finished his studies with Radecke and +Haupt. He then returned to Albany and remained there three years, leaving +that city to accept a position at the church of the Immaculate +Conception, Boston. In 1874 he was appointed organist at the Music Hall, +and was also for some time at the head of the organ department of the New +England Conservatory of Music. In 1878 he was organist for the third +Cincinnati May Festival, and in 1879 accepted a position in the College +of Music in that city, at the same time taking charge of the organ in the +Music Hall, with what success those who attended the May Festivals in +that city will remember. He remained in Cincinnati three years and then +returned to his old position in Boston. Mr. Whiting ranks in the first +class of American organists, and has also been a prolific composer. Among +his vocal works are a mass in C minor (1872); mass in F minor (1874); +prologue to Longfellow's "Golden Legend" (1873); cantatas, "Dream +Pictures" (1877), "The Tale of the Viking" (1880); a concert overture +("The Princess"); a great variety of organ music, including "The +Organist," containing twelve pieces for that instrument, and "the First +Six Months on the Organ," with twenty-five studies; several concertos, +fantasies, and piano compositions, and a large number of songs. + + + The Tale of the Viking. + +"The Tale of the Viking" was written in competition for the prize offered +by the Cincinnati Musical Festival Association in 1879, and though +unsuccessful, is still regarded as one of the most admirable and +scholarly works yet produced in this country. The text of the cantata is +Longfellow's "Skeleton in Armor," that weird and stirring story of the +Viking, which the poet so ingeniously connected with the old mill at +Newport. + +The work comprises ten numbers, and is written for three solo voices +(soprano, tenor, and barytone), chorus, and orchestra. A long but very +expressive overture, full of the dramatic sentiment of the poem, prepares +the way for the opening number, a short male chorus:-- + + "'Speak! speak! thou fearful guest + Who, with thy hollow breast + Still in rude armor drest, + Comest to daunt me! + Wrapt not in Eastern balms, + But with thy fleshless palms + Stretched, as if asking alms, + Why dost thou haunt me?'" + +Next comes a powerful chorus for mixed voices ("Then from those cavernous +Eyes"), which leads up to the opening of the Viking's story ("I was a +Viking old"), a barytone solo, which is made very dramatic by the skilful +division of the song between recitative and the melody. In the fourth +number the male chorus continues the narrative ("But when I older grew"), +describing in a vivacious and spirited manner the wild life of the +marauders on the sea and their winter wassails as they told the Berserker +legends over their cups of ale. In the fifth the soprano voice tells of +the wooing of "The blue-eyed Maid" in an aria ("Once, as I told in Glee") +remarkable for its varying shades of expression. At its close a brilliant +march movement, very sonorous in style and highly colored, introduces a +vigorous chorus ("Bright in her Father's Hall"), which describes the +refusal of old Hildebrand to give his daughter's hand to the Viking. A +dramatic solo for barytone ("She was a Prince's Child") pictures the +flight of the dove with the sea-mew, which is followed by a chorus of +extraordinary power as well as picturesqueness ("Scarce had I put to +Sea"), vividly describing the pursuit, the encounter, and the Viking's +escape with his bride. A graceful but pathetic romance for tenor ("There +lived we many Years"), which relates her death, and burial beneath the +tower, leads to the closing number, a soprano solo with a full stately +chorus, admirably worked up, picturing the death of the Viking, who falls +upon his spear, and ending in an exultant and powerful burst of harmony, +set to the words:-- + + "'Thus, seamed with many scars, + Bursting these prison bars, + Up to its native stars + My soul ascended; + There from the flowing bowl + Deep drinks the warrior's soul, + _Skoal_! to the Northland! _skoal_!' + Thus the tale ended." + + + + + APPENDIX. + + +The following alphabetical list has been prepared to present the reader +with the titles of the more important cantatas by well-known composers +and the dates of their composition. To make an exhaustive catalogue of +works of this class would be impossible, as a great number have been lost +entirely, and hundreds of others are now only known by name; but the +writer believes that those subjoined will provide musical students, as +well as the general reader, with as complete a reference list as can be +desired. + + Adam, Adolphe. + Le Premiers Pas (1847); + La Fęte des Arts (1852); + Chant de Victoire (1855); + Birth of the Prince Imperial (1856). + Anderton, Thomas. + The Song of Deborah and Barak (1871); + The Wreck of the Hesperus (1882); + The Norman Baron (1884); + Yuletide (1885). + Arnold, Samuel. + Sennacherib (1774). + Aspa, Edward. + The Gypsies (1870); + Endymion (1875). + Astorga, Emanuele. + Quando penso (1706); + Torne Aprile (1706); + In questo core (1707); + Dafni (1709). + Bach, John Sebastian. + Two hundred and twenty-six sacred cantatas, of which the following + are most commonly sung: Ich hatte viel Bekümmerniss; Festo + Ascensionis Christi; Ein' Feste Burg (Reformation festival of 1717); + Aus tiefer Noth schrei ich; Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam; Ehre + sei Gott in der Höhe (Christmas cantata); Gottes Zeit ist die + allerbeste Zeit (mourning cantata); Lobe den Herrn (New Year's Day); + O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort; Gott ist mein König; Wie schön leucht uns + der Morgenstern. + Twenty-eight birthday, funeral, and secular cantatas: among them, + Komische cantate, Kaffee cantate, Bauern oder Hochzeit's cantate. + Balfe, Michael. + Mazeppa (1862); + The Page (?). + Barnby, Joseph. + Rebekah (1870). + Barnett, John Francis. + The Ancient Mariner (1867); + Paradise and the Peri (1870); + Lay of the Last Minstrel (1874); + The Good Shepherd (1876); + The Building of the Ship (1880). + Beethoven, Ludwig von. + Der Glorreiche Augenblick (1814); + Meeresstille und glücklich Fahrt (1815). + Bendall, Wilfred. + Parizadeh (1870); + The Lady of Shalott (1871). + Benedict, Julius. + Undine (1860); + Richard Coeur de Leon (1863); + Legend of St. Cecilia (1866); + Legend of St. Elizabeth (1867); + St. Peter (1870); + Graziella (1882). + Bennett, William Sterndale. + May Queen (1858); + International Exhibition Ode (1862); + Cambridge Installation Ode (1862). + Berlioz, Hector. + Sardanaple (1830); + Romeo and Juliet (dramatic symphony with solos and chorus) (1839); + Damnation of Faust (dramatic scenes) (1846); + L'Imperiale (1855); + Le Cinq Mai (1857). + Bishop, Henry. + The Seventh Day (1840). + Boito, Arrigo. + Ode to Art (1880). + Brahms, Johannes. + Rinaldo (1868); + Rhapsodie (1870); + Schicksalslied (1871); + Triumphlied (1873); + Gesang der Parzen (1877); + Boadicea (1878). + Bridge, John Frederick. + Rock of Ages (1880); + Boadicea (1880). + Bristow, George Frederick. + Daniel (1876). + Bronsart, Hans von. + Christmarkt (1876). + Bruch, Max. + Die Birken und die Erlen (1853); + Jubilate-Amen (1856); + Rinaldo (1858); + Rorate Coeli (1861); + Frithjof's Saga (1862); + Salamis (1862); + Die Flucht der heilige Familie (1863); + Gesang der heiligen drei Könige (1864); + Römischer Triumphgesang (1864); + Römische Leichenfeier (1864); + Schön Ellen (1869); + Odysseus (1872); + Arminius (1873); + Normannenzug (1874); + Song of the Bell (1876); + Achilleus (1885). + Brüll, Ignaz. + Die Gesternähren (1875). + Buck, Dudley. + Forty-sixth Psalm (1872); + Don Munio (1874); + Centennial Cantata (1876); + The Nun of Nidaros (1878); + Golden Legend (1880); + Voyage of Columbus (1885); + Light of Asia (1886). + Caldicott, Alfred James. + La Primavera (1880); + The Widow of Nain (1881); + Rhine Legend (1883); + Queen of the May (1885). + Carissimi, Giacomo. + Jephthah (1660). + Cherubini, Marie Luigi. + La Pubblica Felicitŕ (1774); + Arnphion (1786); and seventeen others. + Cimerosa, Domenico. + La Nascita del Delfino (1786); and one hundred others. + Clay, Frederick. + The Knights of the Cross (1866); + Lalla Rookh (1877). + Corder, Frederick. + The Cyclops (1880); + The Bridal of Triermain (1886). + Costa, Michael. + The Dream (1815); + La Passione (1827). + Cowen, Frederick Hymen. + The Rose Maiden (1870); + The Corsair (1876); + St. Ursula (1881); + The Sleeping Beauty (1885). + Cummings, William Hayman. + The Fairy Ring (1873). + Damrosch, Leopold. + Ruth and Naomi (1870); + Sulamith (1877). + David, Félicien César. + The Desert (1844). + Dvorák, Anton. + Patriotic Hymn (1880); + The Spectre's Bride (1885). + Erdmannsdorfer, Max. + Prinzessin Ilse (1870); + Die Schneewittchen (1871). + Foote, Arthur. + The Legend of Hiawatha (1879). + Foster, Myles Birkett. + The Bonnie Fishwives (1880). + Fry, William Henry. + The Fall of Warsaw (1858). + Gabriel, Virginia. + Dreamland (1870); + Evangeline (1873). + Gade, Niels Wilhelm. + Comala (1843); + Spring Fantasie (1850); The Holy Night (1851); + Erl King's Daughter (1852); + Frühlingsbotschaft (1853); + Kalamus (1853); + Psyche (1856); + Zion (1860); + The Crusaders (1866). + Gadsby, Henry Robert. + Alice Brand (1870); + Lord of the Isles (1880); + Columbus (1881). + Garcia, Manuel. + Endimione (1822). + Gaul, Alfred Robert. + Ruth (1881); + The Holy City (1882). + Gernsheim, Friedrich. + Odin's Meeresritt (1860). + Gilchrist, William Wallace. + Forty-seventh Psalm (1882); + The Rose (1886). + Gleason, Frederick Grant. + God our Deliverer (1878); + The Culprit Fay (1879); + Praise of Harmony (1886). + Glover, Ferdinand. + The Fire Worshippers (1857). + Glover, William. + The Corsair (1849). + Glover, William Howard. + Tam O'Shanter (1855). + Gluck, Christoph Willibald. + Alexander's Feast (1753); + De Profundis (1760); + The Last Judgment (finished by Salieri) (1761). + Goetz, Hermann. + By the Waters of Babylon (1874); + Noenia (1875). + Goldmark, Karl. + Frühling's Hymne (1876). + Gounod, Charles François. + Marie Stuart et Rizzio (1837); + Daughters of Jerusalem (1838); + Fernand (1839); + Ŕ la Frontičre (1870); + Gallia (1871). + Grieg, Edward. + Land Kennung (1865). + Halévy, Jacques Fromental. + Les Plages du Nil (1850); + Italie (1850). + Hamerik, Asger. + Friedenshymne (1868). + Handel, George Frederick. + Passion (1704); + twelve called "Hanover" (1711); + seventy-nine written in Italy (1706-1712); + Acis and Galatea (1720); + Sei del cielo (1736); + Alexander's Feast (1736); + Ode on St. Cecilia's Day (1739); + L'Allegro, il Penseroso, ed il Moderato (1740). + Hatton, John Liphot. + Robin Hood (1856). + Hauptmann, Moritz. + Herr, Herr! wende dich zum Gebet (1840); + Die lustigen Musikanten (1842). + Haydn, Joseph. + Birthday of Prince Nicholas (1763); + Applausus Musicus (1768); + Die Erwahlung eines Kapellmeisters (1769); + Ah! come il core mi palpito (1783); + Invocation of Neptune (1783); + An die Freude (1786); + Das Erndtefest (1786); + Deutschland's Klage auf den Tod Friedrichs der Grossen (1787); + Des Dichter's Geburtsfest (1787); + Hier liegt Constantia (1787); + Ariadne a Naxos (1792); + Ombra del caro bene (1798); + Der Versohnung's Tod (1809). + Heap, C. Swinnerton. + The Maid of Astolat (1885). + Hesse, Adolph Friedrich. + Sei uns gnadig, Gott der gnaden (1831); + Von Leiden ist me in Herz bedrängt (1832). + Hiller, Ferdinand. + Die lustige Musikanten (1838); + O, weint um Sie (1839); + Morning of Palm Sunday (1839); + Whitsuntide (1840); + Israel's Siegesgesang (1841); + Song of the Spirits over the Water (1842); + Prometheus (1843); + Rebecca (1843); + The Night of the Nativity (1843); + Heloise (1844); + Loreley (1845); + Die Nacht (1846); + Ostermorgen (1850); + Richard Löwenherz (1855); + An das Vaterland (1861); + Song of Victory (1871); + Song of Heloise (1871); + Nala und Damajanti (1871); + Pentecost (1872); + Prince Papagei (1872). + Himmel, Friedrich Heinrich. + La Danza (1792); + Hessan's Söhne und Prussien's Töchter (1797); + Das Vertrauen auf Gott (1797); + Funeral Cantata (1799). + Hofmann, Heinrich K. + J. Deutschland's Erhebung (1874); + Aschenbrödel (1875); + Song of the Norns (1875); + Melusina (1876); + Cinderella (1879). + Hummel, Johann Nepomuk. + Diana ed Endimione (1818). + Isouard, Nicolo. + Hebe (1813). + Jackson, William. + Lycidas (1767); + The Praise of Music (1770); + The Year (1785). + Jensen, Adolf. + Jephtha's Daughter (1864); + Donald Caird ist wieder da (1875); + The Feast of Adonis (1881). + Krug, Arnold. + Nomadenzug (1877); + Sigurd (1882). + Kücken, Friedrich. + Friedenshymne (1870). + Kuhlau, Friedrich. + Die Feier des Wohlwollens (1818). + Lachner, Franz. + Die vier Menschenalter (1843); + Der Sturm (1845); + Sixty-third Psalm (1849); + Des Krieger's Gebet (1851); + Siegesgesang (1852); + Mozart Fest Cantate (1852); + Sturmesmythe (1853); + Bundeslied (1854); + One Hundred and Fiftieth Psalm (1854). + Lahee, Henry. + Building of the Ship (1869); + The Blessing of the Children (1870). + Lassen, Edward. + Les Flamands sous van Arteveldt (1854); + The Artists (1861); + Fest Cantate (1874). + Lefébvre, Wély Louis. + Aprčs le Victoire (1863). + Leslie, Henry David. + Judith (1858); + Holyrood (1860); + The Daughter of the Isles (1861). + Lindpaintner, Peter Joseph von. + Widow of Nain (1846). + Liszt, Franz. + Prometheus (1850); + Ave Maria (1851); + Pater Noster (1852); + Schiller Cantata (1859); + Die Seligkeiten (arranged from "Christus") (1863); + Eighteenth Psalm (1867); + Beethoven Festival Cantata (1870); + Requiem (1870); + One Hundred and Sixteenth Psalm (1873); + The Bells of Strasburg (1874); + An den heiligen Franziskus (1874); + St. Cecilia (1875); + Thirteenth Psalm (1877). + Lloyd, Charles Harford. + Hero and Leander (1884); + The Song of Balder (1885); + Andromeda (1886). + Macfarren, George Alexander. + Lenora (1852); + May Day (1857); + The Soldier's Legacy (1857); + Christmas (1860); + Songs in a Cornfield (1868); + The Lady of the Lake (1877); + Outward Bound (1877). + Mackenzie, Alexander Campbell. + The Bride (1880); + Jason (1882); + Story of Sayid (1886). + Massenet, Jules Émile Frédéric. + David Rizzio (1863); + Paix et Liberté (1867); + Mary Magdalen (1873); + Eve (1875); + Narcisse (1877). + Mendelssohn, Bartholdy Felix. + Christe, du Lamm Gottes (1827); + Ach Gott von Himmel (1827); + Humboldt Fest Cantate (1828); + Walpurgis Night (1831); + As the Hart pants (1838); + Friedrich August Fest Cantate (1842); + Lauda Sion (1846); + To the Sons of Art (1846). + Mercadante, Saverio. + L'Unione delle belli Arte (1818); + The Seven Words (1821). + Meyerbeer, Giacomo. + Seven sacred Cantatas from Klopstock (1810); + God and Nature (1810); + March of the Bavarian Archers (1816); + The Genius of Music at the Grave of Beethoven (1830); + Gutenberg Cantata (1836); + Le Festa nella Corte di Ferrara (1843); + Maria und ihr Genius (1851). + Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus. + Grabmusik (1767); + Davidde penitente (1783); + Die Seele (1783); + Die Maurer freude (1785); + La Betulia liberata (1786); + Eine Kleine Freimaurer Cantate (1791). + Neukomm, Sigismond. + Napoleon's Midnight Review (1828); + Easter Morning (1829). + Oxenford, Edward. + Crown of Roses (1886). + Pacini, Giovanni. + Dante Centenary (1865). + Paer, Ferdinand. + Bacco ed Ariadna (1804); + La Conversazione Armonica (1804); + Il Trionfo della chiesa Cattolica (1805); + Europa in Creta (1806); + Il S. Sepolcro (1815). + Paine, John Knowles. + Oedipus (1881); + Phoebus Arise (1882); + The Nativity (1883); + Realm of Fancy (1884). + Paine, Robert P. + From Death unto Life (1883); + Great is the Lord (1884); + The Lay of the Last Minstrel (1884); + A Day with our Lord (1885). + Paisiello, Giovanni. + Peleus (1763); + Achille in Sciro (1783); + Giunone Lucina (1784). + Parker, James C. D. + Redemption Hymn (1877); + The Blind King (1886). + Parker, H. + W. King Trojan (1885). + Pattison, Thomas Mee. + The Ancient Mariner (1885); + The Lay of the Last Minstrel (1885). + Pepusch, John Christopher. + Alexis (1712). + Pergolesi, Giovanni. + Siciliana (1730); + Euridice (1730). + Ponchielli, Amilcare. + Donizetti ed Mayr Cantata (1875). + Prout, Ebenezer. + Hereward (1878); + Freedom (1880); + Alfred (1881); + Queen Aimée (1885). + Raff, Joseph Joachim. + Wachet auf (1865); + Deutschland's Auferstehung (1865); + Einer Entschlaffener (1876); + One Hundred and Thirtieth Psalm, "De Profundis" (1878); + Die Tageszeiten (1878). + Randegger, Albert. + Medea (1869); + The One Hundred and Fiftieth Psalm (1872); + Fridolin (1873); + Saffo (1875). + Reichardt, Johann Friedrich. + Trauer Cantate auf den Tod Friedrich (1786); + La Danza (1790). + Reinecke, Karl. + Ein geistliche Abendlied (1851); + Schlachtlied (1852); + Schneewittchen (1852); + Salvum fac regem (1859); + Weinachts (1861); + Belshazzar (1863); + Te Deum Laudamus (1870); + Flucht der heilige Familie (1873); + Dörnroschen (1875); + Aschenbrödel (1877); + Hakon Jarl (1877); + Die wilden Schwäne (1881). + Reissiger, Karl Gottlieb. + Der Herr macht Alles wohl (1830). + Reissmann, August. + Drusus' Death (1870); + Lorelei (1871). + Rheinberger, Joseph. + Wasserfee (1867); + Die Nacht (1868); + Die tödte Braut (1873); + Johannisnacht (1875); + Klärchen auf Eberstein (1876); + Christophorus (1880); + Toggenburg (1880). + Ries, Ferdinand. + Der Morgen (1835). + Rockstro, William Smyth. + The little Daughter of Jairus (1871); + The Good Shepherd (1885). + Rode, Theodore. + Passion's Cantata (1864). + Romberg, Andreas. + The Transient and the Eternal (1801); + Lay of the Bell (1808). + Rossini, Gioachino. + Didone abandonnata (1811); + Eglo e Irene (1814); + Teti e Peleo (1816); + I pastori (1820); + Cara patria (1820); + La Riconoscenza (1821); + Il pianto delle Muse (1823); + La sacra Alleanza (1823); + Il vero ommagio (1823); + Joan of Arc (1859). + Rubinstein, Anton. + E dunque vero (1865); + Die Nixe (1866); + The Morning (1868); + Mignon (1869); + Hecuba (1872); + Hagar in the Wilderness (1872). + Ryan, Desmond L. + The Maid of Astolat (1886). + Saint-Saens, Charles Camille. + Les Noces de Prométhée (1867); + Le Deluge (1876); + Eighteenth Psalm (1877); + Chanson d' Ancętre (1878); + La Lyre et la Harpe (1879); + Hymn to Victor Hugo (1885). + Salaman, Charles Kensington. + Shakspeare Jubilee (1850). + Salieri, Antonio. + Le Dernier Jugement (1788); + La Riconoscenza (1796). + Scarlatti, Alessandro. + Povera pelegrina (1697). + Scharwenka, Ludwig Philipp. + Herbstfeier (1882); + Sakuntala (1883). + Schira, Francesca. + The Lord of Burleigh (1873). + Schmitt, Aloys. + Die Wörter des Glaubens (1816); + Die Huldigung der Tonkunst (1818); + Die Hoffnung (1820). + Schubert, Franz. + Salieri's Jubilee (1815); + Prometheus (1816); + Cantata (Spendau) (1816); + Glaube, Hoffnung und Liebe (1816); + Der Frühlingsmorgen (1818); + Vogl Cantata (1818); + Die Allmacht (1820); + Constitution's Lied (1822); + Ŕ la belle Irene (1827); + Miriam's Song (1828). + Schumann, Robert. + Mignon's Requiem (1849); + Advent Hymn (1849); + Pilgrimage of the Rose (1851); + The King's Son (1851); + The Singer's Curse (1852); + The Page and the King's Daughter (1852); + The Luck of Edenhall (1853). + Singer, Otto. + Landing of the Pilgrims (1876); + Festival Ode (1877). + Smart, Henry. + Bride of Dunkerron (1864); + King René's Daughter (1871); + The Fishermaidens (1871); + Jacob (1873). + Spohr, Louis. + The Liberation of Germany (1814); + Lord, Thou art great (1815); + How lovely are Thy Dwellings (1815); + Jehovah, Lord of Hosts (1820); + The Lord's Prayer (1829); + Hymn to the holy Cecilia (1856). + Spontini, Gaspard. + Borussia (1826); + Gott segne der König (1828). + Stainer, John. + The Daughter of Jairus (1878); + St. Mary Magdalene (1883). + Stanford, Charles Villiers. + The Revenge (1880); + God is our Hope (1881). + Sullivan, Arthur. + Kenilworth (1864); + On Shore and Sea (1871); + The Martyr of Antioch (1875); + The Golden Legend (1886). + Svendsen, Johann. + Marriage Cantata (1873). + Thomas, Ambroise. + Lesueur Cantata (1852); + The Tyrol (1867); + Carnival of Rome (1868); + The Atlantic (1868); + Sabbath Night (1869); + Boieldieu Cantata (1875). + Thomas, Arthur Goring. + The Sun Worshippers (1881). + Tschaikowsky, Peter I. + Coronation Cantata (1882). + Volkmann, Friedrich R. + To-night (1867); + Sappho (1868). + Wagner, Richard. + New Year's (1834); + Das Liebesmahl der Apostel (1843); + Gelegensheit Cantate (1843). + Weber, Carl Maria von. + Der Ester Ton (1808); + Kampf und Sieg (1815); + Natur und Liebe (1818); + Jubilee Cantata (1818). + Whiting, George Elbridge. + Dream Pictures (1877); + Lenora (1879); + Tale of the Viking (1880); + Henry of Navarre (1885). + Winter, Peter. + Pigmalione; + Piramo e Thisbe; + Die verlassene Dido; + Vortigerne; + Hector; + Inez de Castro; + Henri IV.; + Baiersche Lustbarkeit; + Der Franz Lustgarten; + Die Hochzeit des Figaro; + Andromaque; + Prague et Philomela; + Timoteo; + Die Erlösung des Menschen; + Die Auferstehung Germania's Friedens; (all written between 1789 and + 1793). + Zingarelli, Nicolo. + Telemaco (1785); + Eco (1802); + Cantata Sacra (1829). + + + + + INDEX. + + + Acis and Galatea, 27, 166. + Addison, 58, 59. + Advent Hymn, 27, 319. + Alexander's Feast, 27, 173. + American Cantatas, 28. + Antigone, 254. + Appendix, 353. + Ariadne, 198. + Arnold, Edwin, 117, 233. + As the Hart Pants, 262. + Auber, 66. + + Bach, 22-25, 63, 308; + life of, 29. + Balfe, 56; + life of, 44. + Bassani, 18. + Beethoven, 20, 134, 135, 146, 250, 269, 314; + life of, 48. + Bells of Strasburg, 221. + Benedict, 66, 128, 299; + life of, 56. + Bennett, 27, 227, 332; + life of, 62. + Berlioz, 27, 295; + life of, 68. + Bononcini, 19, 164. + Brahms, 27, 135, 317; + life of, 82. + Bridal of Triermain, 124. + Bride of Dunkerron, 328. + Bruch, 27; + life of, 86. + Buck, 27, 28, 153, 156, 335; + life of, 101. + Burney, 14, 16, 18. + Byron, 45, 70. + + Caldara, 19. + Cantata, origin of, 13; + earlier form, 14; + in France, 20; + in Germany, 21; + Church cantatas, 26-28; + modern cantatas, 26-28. + Carissimi, 13, 14, 16. + Carlyle, 38, 39, 40. + Centennial Meditation of Columbia, 28, 106. + Cesti, 16. + Chandos Anthems, 26, 164, 167. + Chopin, 317. + Chorley, 58, 64, 210, 265, 332. + Choron, 15, 201. + Christmas, 228. + Christophorus, 304. + Comala, 27, 144. + Corder, life of, 123. + Cowen, 27; + life of, 128. + Crusaders, 149. + Culprit Fay, 28, 157. + + Damnation of Faust, 27, 74. + Dante, 198. + D'Astorga, 19. + Davidde Penitente, 274. + Donizetti, 59. + Don Munio, 27, 28, 103. + Dryden, 19, 58, 59, 170, 173, 175, 177, 178. + Drummond, 289. + Dvorák, life of, 134. + + Ein' Feste Burg, 38. + Erl King's Daughter, 147. + Exhibition Ode, 66. + + Fair Ellen, 93. + Festa Ascensionis Christi, 37. + Foote, 28, + life of, 140. + Forty-sixth Psalm, 28, 154. + Fridolin, 27, 299. + Frithjof's Saga, 27, 87. + + Gade, 27, 295; + life of, 143. + Gasparini, 17, 18. + George Sand, 216. + Gilchrist, 28; + life of, 153. + Gleason, 28; + life of, 156. + Glorious Moment, The, 53. + Gluck, 192. + Goethe, 54, 80, 86, 148, 248, 249, 251. + Golden Legend (Buck), 28, 109. + Golden Legend (Sullivan), 27, 335. + Gottes Zeit, 33. + Gounod, 78, 79. + Gutenberg Fest, 263. + + Hamerik, 28, 107, 109. + Handel, 19, 20, 25, 27, 32, 58, 59, 85; + life of, 163. + Handel's Passion Cantata, 25. + Hanover Cantatas, 25. + Hatton, life of, 186. + Hawkins, 13, 16. + Haydn, 26, 48, 54, 250; + life of, 191. + Heil der in Siegerkranz, 84. + Heine, 39. + Hiawatha, 28, 141. + Hiller, 27, 86, 123, 318; + life of, 201. + Hofmann, 27; + life of, 205. + Holyrood, 210. + + Ich hatte viel Bekummerniss, 31. + Irving, 103, 114. + Italian Cantata writers, 16-20. + + Jubilee Cantata, 344. + Jubilee Ode, 237. + + Kampf und Sieg, 27, 346. + Keats, 288. + King René's Daughter, 330. + King Thamos, 270. + King Trojan, 28, 292. + + L'Allegro, 178. + Lamartine, 216. + Landing of the Pilgrims, 28, 325. + Lauda Sion, 265. + Lay of the Bell, 27, 309. + Legrenzi, 17. + Leslie, life of, 209. + Light of Asia, 27, 28, 117. + Liszt, 27, 82, 83, 324, 339, 340; + life of, 215. + Lotti, 17, 19. + Longfellow, 110, 141, 221, 222, 335, 349. + Love Feast of the Apostles, 340. + Luther, 38, 39, 40, 42. + + Macfarren, 50, 52; + life of, 226. + Mackenzie, life of, 232. + Marcello, 19. + Mary Magdalen, 242. + Masonic Cantatas, 276. + Massenet, life of, 241. + May Queen, 27, 64. + Mazeppa, 45. + Melusina, 27, 206. + Mendelssohn, 20, 27, 36, 40, 52, 62, 87, 134, 143, 161, 203, 206, 295, + 307; + life of, 246. + Meyerbeer, 41, 66. + Milton, 178, 179, 286. + Minstrel's Curse, 322. + Miriam's War Song, 314. + Mozart, 20, 48, 62, 134, 176, 250; + life of, 268. + + Nativity, The, 28, 286. + Nicolai, 41. + + Odysseus, 27, 95. + Oedipus at Colonos, 259. + Oedipus Tyrannus, 28, 259, 281. + On Shore and Sea, 334. + + Paganini, 70. + Paine, 28, 140; + life of, 280. + Paisiello, 20. + Parker, H. W., 28; + life of, 291. + Parker, J. C. D., 28; + life of, 295. + Pergolesi, 20. + Phoebus, Arise, 28, 289. + Pilgrimage of the Rose, 321. + Pope, 170. + Porpora, 19, 164, 192. + Praise Song to Harmony, 28, 161. + Prometheus, 27, 217. + + Raff, 136. + Rákóczy March, 77. + Randegger, 27; + life of, 298. + Realm of Fancy, 28, 288. + Redemption Hymn, 28, 296. + Rheinberger, 27, 291; + life of, 303. + Robin Hood, 187. + Romberg, 27, 308. + Romeo and Juliet, 70. + Rosa Salvator, 17. + Rossi, 17. + Rossini, 44. + Rousseau, 20. + Ruins of Athens, 49. + + Saint-Saens, 153. + Salamis, 92. + Salieri, 215, 313. + Sarti, 20. + Scarlatti, 18, 19. + Schiller, 299, 309. + Schubert, 27, 49, 148, 318, + life of, 313. + Schumann, 27, 62, 82, 251, 295, 307, 315; + life of, 317. + Scott, Walter, 124. + Seven Words, The, 194. + Shakspeare, 71, 75, 87, 227, 246, 254, 332. + Singer, 28, 109; + life of, 324. + Sleeping Beauty, 27, 129. + Smart, life of, 327. + Song of Miriam, 27. + Song of Victory, 27, 203. + Spectre's Bride, 136. + Spring Fantasie, 146. + St. Cecilia, 57. + Story of Sayid, 233. + Strozzi, 13. + Sullivan, 27; + life of, 332. + + Tale of the Viking, 28, 349. + Tennyson, 67. + Thomas, Ambroise, 241. + Thomas, Theodore, 102, 109, 153, 233, 281, 324, 333, 339. + Toggenburg, 27, 306. + Triumphlied, 27, 83. + + Uhland, 320, 322, 323. + + Verdi, 66, 213. + Victor Hugo, 216. + Voyage of Columbus, 28, 114. + + Wagner, 41, 106, 127, 145, 149, 216; + life of, 338. + Walpurgis Night, 27, 248, 262. + Weber, 27, 56, 251; + life of, 342. + Whiting, 28, 153; + life of, 348. + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's The Standard Cantatas, by George P. 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