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diff --git a/44910-0.txt b/44910-0.txt index 87f2502..eb9f2a0 100644 --- a/44910-0.txt +++ b/44910-0.txt @@ -1,40 +1,4 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Descriptive Analyses of Piano Works, by -Edward Baxter Perry - -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: Descriptive Analyses of Piano Works - For the Use of Teachers, Players, and Music Clubs - -Author: Edward Baxter Perry - -Release Date: February 14, 2014 [EBook #44910] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSES OF PIANO WORKS *** - - - - -Produced by Sean (scribe_for_hire@yahoo.com), based on -page images generously made available by the Internet -Archive -(https://archive.org/details/descriptiveanaly00perriala). - - - - - - - - +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 44910 *** DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSES OF PIANO WORKS @@ -6539,362 +6503,4 @@ their names on every tongue. 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Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm -concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared -with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project -Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. -unless a copyright notice is included. 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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: Descriptive Analyses of Piano Works - For the Use of Teachers, Players, and Music Clubs - -Author: Edward Baxter Perry - -Release Date: February 14, 2014 [EBook #44910] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSES OF PIANO WORKS *** - - - - -Produced by Sean (scribe_for_hire@yahoo.com), based on -page images generously made available by the Internet -Archive -(https://archive.org/details/descriptiveanaly00perriala). - - - - - - - - - - DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSES - OF PIANO WORKS - - FOR THE USE OF TEACHERS, - PLAYERS, AND MUSIC CLUBS - - - BY - EDWARD BAXTER PERRY - - - PHILADELPHIA - THEODORE PRESSER CO. - LONDON, WEEKES & CO. - - - - - Copyright, 1902, by Theodore Presser - International Copyright - - - Printed in the United States of America - - - - - My Keys - - - I. - - To no crag-crowning castle above the wild main, - To no bower of fair lady or villa in Spain; - To no deep, hidden vaults where the stored jewels shine, - Or the South's ruddy sunlight is prisoned in wine; - To no gardens enchanted where nightingales sing, - And the flowers of all climes breathe perpetual spring: - To none of all these - They give access, my keys, - My magical ebon and ivory keys. - - II. - - But to temples sublime, where music is prayer, - To the bower of a goddess supernally fair; - To the crypts where the ages their mysteries keep, - Where the sorrows and joys of earth's greatest ones sleep; - Where the wine of emotion a life's thirst may still, - And the jewels of thought gleam to light at my will: - To more than all these - They give access, my keys, - My magical ebon and ivory keys. - - III. - - To bright dreams of the past in locked cells of the mind, - To the tombs of dead joys in their beauty enshrined; - To the chambers where love's recollections are stored, - And the fanes where devotion's best homage is poured; - To the cloudland of hope, where the dull mist of tears - As the rainbow of promise illumined appears; - To all these, when I please, - They give access, my keys, - My magical ebon and ivory keys. - - - - - Only an Interpreter - - - The world will still go on the very same - When the last feeble echo of my name - Has died from out men's listless hearts and ears - These many years. - - Its tides will roll, its suns will rise and set, - When mine, through twilight portals of regret, - Has passed to quench its pallid, parting light - In rayless night, - - While o'er my place oblivion's tide will sweep - To whelm my deeds in silence dark and deep, - The triumphs and the failures, ill and good, - Beneath its flood. - - Then other, abler men will serve the Art - I strove to serve with singleness of heart; - Will wear her thorned laurels on the brow, - As I do now. - - I shall not care to ask whose fame is first, - Or feel the fever of that burning thirst - To win her warmest smile, nor count the cost - Whate'er be lost. - - As I have striven, they will strive to rise - To hopeless heights, where that elusive prize, - The unattainable ideal, gleams - Through waking dreams. - - But I shall sleep, a sleep secure, profound, - Beyond the reach of blame, or plaudits' sound; - And who stands high, who low, I shall not know: - 'Tis better so. - - For what the gain of all my toilsome years, - Of all my ceaseless struggles, secret tears? - My best, more brief than frailest summer flower, - Dies with the hour. - - My most enduring triumphs swifter pass - Than fairy frost-wreaths from the window glass: - The master but of moments may not claim - A deathless name. - - Mine but the task to lift, a little space, - The mystic veil from beauty's radiant face - That other men may joy thereon to see, - Forgetting me. - - Not mine the genius to create the forms - Which stand serenely strong, thro' suns and storms, - While passing ages praise that power sublime - Defying time. - - Mine but the transient service of a day, - Scant praise, too ready blame, and meager pay: - No matter, though with hunger at the heart - I did my part. - - I dare not call my labor all in vain, - If I but voice anew one lofty strain: - The faithful echo of a noble thought - With good is fraught. - - For some it cheers upon life's weary road, - And some hearts lightens of their bitter load, - Which might have missed the message in the din - Of strife and sin. - - My lavished life-blood warmed and woke again - The still, pale children of another's brain, - Brimmed full the forms which else were cold, - Tho' fair of mold. - - And thro' their lips my spirit spoke to men - Of higher hopes, of courage under pain, - Of worthy aspirations, fearless flight - To reach the light. - - Then, soul of mine, content thee with thy fate, - Though noble niche of fame and guerdon great - Be not for thee: thy modest task was sweet - At beauty's feet. - - The Artist passes like a swift-blown breeze, - Or vapors floating up from summer seas; - But Art endures as long as life and love: - For her I strove. - - - - - Contents - - PAGE - Introduction, 11 - Esthetic versus Structural Analysis, 15 - Sources of Information Concerning Musical Compositions, 23 - Traditional Beethoven Playing, 32 - Beethoven: The Moonlight Sonata, Op. 27, No. 2, 45 - Beethoven: Sonata Pathétique, Op. 13, 50 - Beethoven: Sonata in A Flat Major, Op. 26, 55 - Beethoven: Sonata in D Minor, Op. 31, No. 2, 61 - Beethoven: Sonata in C Major, Op. 53, 64 - Beethoven: Sonata in E Minor, Op. 90, 68 - Beethoven: Music to "The Ruins of Athens," 72 - Weber: Invitation to the Dance, Op. 65, 81 - Weber: Rondo in E Flat, Op. 62, 86 - Weber: Concertstück, in F Minor, Op. 79, 90 - Weber-Kullak: Lützow's Wilde Jagd, Op. 111, No. 4, 93 - Schubert: (Impromptu in B Flat) Theme and Variations, - Op. 142, No. 3, 99 - Emotion in Music, 105 - Chopin: Sonata, B Flat, Op. 35, 113 - The Chopin Ballades, 118 - Chopin: Ballade in G Minor, Op. 23, 123 - Chopin: Ballade in F Major, Op. 38, 130 - Chopin: Ballade in A Flat, Op. 47, 137 - Chopin: Polonaise, A Flat Major, Op. 53, 142 - Chopin: Impromptu in A Flat, Op. 29, 147 - Chopin: Fantasie Impromptu, Op. 66, 149 - Chopin: Tarantelle, A Flat, Op. 43, 152 - Chopin: Berceuse, Op. 57, 156 - Chopin: Scherzo in B Flat Minor, Op. 31, 158 - Chopin: Prelude, Op. 28, No. 15, 161 - Chopin: Waltz, A Flat, Op. 42, 168 - Chopin's Nocturnes, 172 - Chopin: Nocturne in E Flat, Op. 9, No. 2, 174 - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 27, No. 2, 176 - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 32, No. 1, 179 - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 1, 183 - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 2, 186 - Chopin: Polish Songs, Transcribed for Piano by Franz Liszt, 191 - Liszt: Poetic and Religious Harmonies, No. 3, Book 2, 194 - Liszt: First Ballade, 199 - Liszt: Second Ballade, 201 - Transcriptions for the Piano by Liszt, 203 - Wagner-Liszt: Spinning Song from "The Flying Dutchman," 205 - Wagner-Liszt: Tannhäuser March, 208 - Wagner-Liszt: Abendstern, 209 - Wagner-Liszt: Isolde's Love Death, 210 - Schubert-Liszt: Der Erlkönig, 213 - Schubert-Liszt: Hark! Hark! the Lark, 216 - Schubert-Liszt: Gretchen am Spinnrad, 217 - Liszt: La Gondoliera, 219 - The Music of the Gipsies and Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies, 222 - Rubinstein: Barcarolle, G Major, 237 - Rubinstein: Kamennoi-Ostrow, No. 22, 241 - Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite, Op. 46, 247 - Grieg: An den Frühling, Op. 43, No. 6, 257 - Grieg: Vöglein, Op. 43, No. 4, 260 - Grieg: Berceuse, Op. 38, No. 1, 261 - Grieg: The Bridal Procession, from "Aus dem Volksleben," - Op. 19, No. 2, 264 - Saint-Saëns: Le Rouet d'Omphale, 271 - Saint-Saëns: Danse Macabre, 276 - Counterparts among Poets and Musicians, 281 - - - - - DESCRIPTIVE - ANALYSES OF - PIANO WORKS - - - Introduction - - -The material comprised in the following pages has been collected for use -in book form by the advice and at the earnest request of the publisher, -as well as of many musical friends, who express the belief that it is of -sufficient value and interest to merit a certain degree of permanency, -and will prove of practical aid to teachers and students of music. A -portion of it has already appeared in print in the program books of the -Derthick Musical Literary Society and in different musical journals; and -nearly all of it has been used at various times in my own Lecture -Recitals. - -The book is merely a compilation of what have seemed the most -interesting and valuable results of my thought, reading, and research in -connection with my Lecture Recital work during the past twenty years. - -In the intensely busy life of a concert pianist a systematic and -exhaustive study of the whole broad field of piano literature has been -utterly impossible. That would require the exclusive devotion of a -lifetime at least. My efforts have been necessarily confined strictly to -such compositions as came under my immediate attention in connection -with my own work as player. - -The effect is a seemingly desultory and haphazard method in the study, -and an inadequacy and incoherency in the collective result, which no one -can possibly realize or deplore so fully as myself. Still the work is a -beginning, a first pioneer venture into a realm which I believe to be -not only new, but rich and important. I can only hope that the example -may prompt others, with more leisure and ability, to follow in the path -I have blazed, to more extensive explorations and more complete results. - -Well-read musicians will find in these pages much that they have learned -before from various scattered sources. Naturally so. I have not -originated my facts or invented my legends. They are common property for -all who will but seek. I have merely collected, arranged, and, in many -instances, translated them into English. I claim no monopoly. On the -other hand, they may find some things they have not previously known. In -such cases I venture to suggest to the critically and incredulously -inclined, that this does not prove their inaccuracy, though some have -seemed to fancy that it did. Not to know a thing does not always -conclusively demonstrate that it is not so. - -To the general reader let me say that this book represents the best -thought and effort of my professionally unoccupied hours during the past -twenty years. It comes to you with my heart in it, bringing the wish -that the material here collected may be to you as interesting and -helpful as it has been to me in the gathering. The actual writing has -mainly been done on trains, or in lonely hotel rooms far from books of -reference, or aids of any kind; so occasional inexactitudes of data or -detail are by no means improbable, when my only resource was the memory -of something read, or of personal conversation often years before. With -the limited time at my disposal, a detailed revision is not practicable, -and I therefore present the articles as originally written. Take and use -what seems of value, and the rest pass by. - -The plan and purpose of the book rest simply upon the theory that the -true interpretation of music depends not only on the player's possession -of a correct insight into the form and harmonic structure of a given -composition, but also on the fullest obtainable knowledge concerning the -circumstances and environment of its origin, and the conditions -governing the composer's life at the time, as well as any historical or -legendary matter which may have served him as inspiration or suggestion. - -My reason for now presenting it to the public is the same as that which -has caused me to devote my professional life exclusively to the Lecture -Recital--namely, because experience has proved to me that a knowledge of -the poetic and dramatic content of a musical work is of immense value to -the player in interpretation, and to the listener in comprehension and -enjoyment of any composition, and because, except in scattered -fragments, no information of just this character exists elsewhere in -print. - -It being, as explained, impossible to make this collection of analyses -complete, or even approximately so, it has seemed wise to limit the -number here included to just fifty, so as to keep the book to a -convenient size. I have endeavored to select those covering as large a -range and variety as possible, with the view of making them as broadly -helpful and suggestive as may be. - -It is my intention to continue my labors along this line so far as -strength and opportunity permit, in the faith that I can devote my -efforts to no more useful end. - - _Edward Baxter Perry._ - - - - - Esthetic versus Structural Analysis - - -It has been, and still is, the general custom among most musicians, when -called upon to analyze a composition for the enlightenment of students -or the public, or in the effort to broaden the interest in their art, to -think and speak solely of the _form_, the _structure_ of the work, to -treat it scientifically, anatomically--to dwell with sonorous unction -upon the technical names for its various divisions, to lay bare and -delightedly call attention to its neatly fashioned joints, to dilate -upon the beauty of its symmetrical proportions, and show how one part -fits into or is developed out of another--in brief, to explain more or -less intelligently the details of its mechanical construction, without a -hint or a thought as to why it was made at all, or why it should be -allowed to exist. With the specialist's engrossing absorption in the -technicalities of his vocation, they expect others to share their -interest, and are surprised and indignant to find that they do not. They -forget that to the average hearer this learned dissertation upon primary -and secondary subjects, episodical passages, modulation to related and -unrelated keys, cadences, return of the first theme, etc., has about as -much meaning and importance as so much Sanskrit. It is well enough, so -far as it goes, in the classroom, where students are being trained for -specialists, and need that kind of information; but it is only one -side,--the mechanical side,--and the general public needs something -else; and even the student, however gifted, if he is to become more than -a mere technician, must have something else; for composition and -interpretation both have their mere technic, as much as keyboard -manipulation, which is, however, only the means, not the end. - -Knowledge of and insight into musical form are necessary to the player, -but not to the listener, even for the highest artistic appreciation and -enjoyment, just as the knowledge of colors and their combination is -essential to the painter, but not to the beholder. The poet must -understand syntax and prosody, the technic of rhyme-making and -verse-formation; but how many of his readers could analyze correctly -from that standpoint the poem they so much enjoy, or give the scientific -names for the literary devices employed? Or how many of them would care -to hear it done, or be the better for it if they did? The public expects -results, not rules or formulas; effects, not explanations of stage -machinery; food and stimulus for the intellect, the emotions, the -imagination, not recipes of how they are prepared. - -The value of esthetic analysis is undeniably great in rendering this -food and stimulus, contained in every good composition, more easily -accessible and more readily assimilated, by a judicious selection and -partial predigestion, so to speak, of the different artistic elements in -a given work, and a certain preparation of the listener to receive them. -This is, of course, especially true in the case of the young, and those -of more advanced years, to whom, owing to lack of training and -opportunity, musical forms of expression are somewhat unfamiliar; or, in -other words, those to whom the musical idiom is still more or less -strange. But there are also very many musicians of established position -who are sorely in need of something of the kind to awaken them to a -perception of other factors in musical art besides sensuous beauty and -the display of skill; to develop their imaginative and poetic faculties, -in which both their playing and theories prove them to be deficient; and -the more loudly they cry against it as useless and illegitimate, the -more palpably self-evident becomes their own crying need of it. - -Esthetic analysis consists in grasping clearly the essential artistic -significance of a composition, its emotional or descriptive content, -either with or without the aid of definite knowledge concerning the -circumstances of its origin, and expressing it plainly in a few simple, -well-chosen words, comprehensible by the veriest child in music, whether -young or old in years, conveying in a direct, unmistakable, and concrete -form the same general impressions which the composition, through all its -elaborations and embellishments, all its manifold collateral -suggestions, is intended to convey, giving a skeleton, not of its form, -but of its subject-matter, so distinctly articulated that the most -untrained perceptions shall be able to recognize to what genus it -belongs. - -Of course, when it is possible, as it is in many cases, to obtain and -give reliable data concerning the conception and birth of a musical -work, the actual historical or traditional material, or the personal -experience, which furnished its inspiration, the impulse which led to -its creation, it is of great assistance and value; and this is -especially so when the work is distinctly descriptive of external scenes -or human actions. For example, take the Schubert-Liszt "Erlkönig." Here -the elements embodied are those of tempest and gloom, of shuddering -terror, of eager pursuit and panic-stricken flight, ending in sudden, -surprised despair. These may be vaguely felt by the listener when the -piece is played, with varying intensity according to his musical -susceptibility; but if the legend of the "Erlkönig," or "Elf-king," is -narrated and attention directly called to the various descriptive -features of the work,--the gallop of the horse, the rush and roar of the -tempest through the depths of the Black Forest, the seductive insistence -and relentless pursuit of the elf-king, the father's mad flight, the -shriek of the child, and the final tragic ending, all so distinctly -suggested in the music,--the impression is intensified tenfold, rendered -more precise and definite; and the undefined sensations produced by the -music are focused at once into a positive, complete, artistic effect. - -Who can doubt that this is an infinite gain to the listener and to art? -Again, take an instance selected from a large number of compositions -which are purely emotional, with no kind of realistic reference to -nature or action, the Revolutionary Etude, by Chopin, Opus 10, No. 12. -The emotional elements here expressed are fierce indignation, vain but -desperate struggle, wrathful despair. These are easily recognized by the -trained esthetic sense. Indeed, the work cannot be properly rendered by -one who does not feel them in playing it; and they can be eloquently -described in a general way by one possessing a little gift of language -and some imagination; but many persons find it hard to grasp abstract -emotions without a definite assignable cause for them, and are -incalculably aided if told that the study was written as the expression -of Chopin's feelings, and those of every Polish patriot, on receipt of -the news that Warsaw had been taken and sacked by the Russians. - -Where such data cannot be found concerning a composition, one can make -the content of a work fairly clear by means of description, of analogy -and comparison, by the use of poetic metaphor and simile, by little -imaginative word-pictures, embodying the same general impression; by any -means, in short,--any and all are legitimate,--which will produce the -desired result, namely: to concentrate the attention of the student or -the listener on the most important elements in a composition, to show -him what to listen for and what to expect; to prepare him fully to -receive and respond to the proper impression, to tune up his esthetic -nature to the required key, so it may re-echo the harmonious -soul-utterances of the Master, as the horn-player breathes through his -instrument before using it, to warm it, to bring it up to pitch, to put -it in the right vibratory condition. - -The plan of esthetic analysis, in more or less complete form, was used -by nearly all of the great teachers, such as Liszt, Kullak, Frau -Schumann, and others, and was a very important factor in their -instruction. It was used by all the great writers on music who were at -the same time eminent musicians, like Liszt, Schumann, Mendelssohn, -Mozart, Wagner, Berlioz, Ehrlich, and many more. Surely, with such -examples as precedents, not to mention other good and sufficient -grounds, we may feel safe in pursuing it to the best of our ability, in -print, in the teaching-room, in the concert-hall, whenever and wherever -it will contribute to the increase of general musical interest and -intelligence, in spite of the outcries of the so-called "purists," who -see and would have us see in musical art only sensuous beauty and the -perfection of form, with possibly the addition of, as they might put it, -a certain ethereal, spiritual, indefinable something, too sacred to be -talked about, too transcendental to be expressed in language, too lofty -and pure to be degraded to the level of human speech. - -Who, I ask, are the sentimentalists--they, or we who believe that music, -like every other art, is _expression_, the embodying of human -experiences, than which there is no grander or loftier theme on this -earth? Trust me, it is not music nor its subject-matter that is -nebulous, indistinct, hazy; but the mental conceptions of too many who -deal with it. - -If art is _expression_, as estheticians agree, and music is an art, as -we claim, then it must express something; and, given sufficient -intelligence, training, and insight, that something--the vital essence -of every good composition--can be stated in words. Not always -adequately, I grant, but at least intelligibly, as a key to the fuller, -more complex expression of the music; serving precisely like the -synopsis to an opera, or the descriptive catalogue in a picture gallery. -This is the aim and substance of esthetic analysis. - - Musicians are many who see in their mistress - But physical beauty of "color" and "form," - Who hear in her voice but a sensuous sweetness, - No thrill of the heart that is living and warm. - - They judge of her worth by "perfection of outline," - "Proportion of parts" as they blend in the whole, - "Symmetrical structure," and "finish of detail"; - They see but the body--ignoring the soul. - - She speaks, but they seem not to master her meaning, - They catch but the "rhythmical ring of the phrase." - She sings, but they dream not a message is borne on - The breath of the sigh, while its "cadence" they praise. - - Her saddest laments are "melodious minors" - To them, and her jests are but "notes marked staccato"; - Her tenderest pleadings but "themes well developed," - Her rage--but "a climax of chords animato." - - In vain she endeavors to rouse their perceptions - By touching their brows with her soul-stirring hand - They measure her fingers, their fairness admire, - Declare her "divine," but will not understand. - - Away with such worthless and sense-prompted service; - Forgetting the goddess, to worship the shrine; - Forgetting the bride, to admire her costume, - Her garments that glitter, and jewels that shine: - - And give us the artists of true inspiration, - Whose insight is clear, and whose brains comprehend, - To interpret the silver-tongued message of music - That speaks to the heart, like the voice of a friend; - - That wakens the soul to the joys that are higher - And purer than all that the senses can give, - That teaches the language of lofty endeavor, - And hints of a life that 'twere worthy to live! - - For music is Art, and all Art is expression, - The "beauty of form" but embodies the thought, - Imprisons one ray of that wisdom supernal - Which Genius to sense-blinded mortals has brought. - - Then give us the artist whose selfless devotion - To Art and her service is earnest and true, - To read us the mystical meaning of music; - Musicians are many, but artists are few. - - - - - Sources of Information Concerning Musical Compositions - - -During my professional career I have received scores of letters from -musical persons all over the country, asking for the name of the book or -books from which I derive the information, anecdote, and poetic -suggestion, concerning the compositions used in my Lecture Recitals, -particularly the points bearing upon the descriptive and emotional -significance of such compositions. All realize the importance and value -of this phase of interpretative work, and many are anxious to introduce -it in their teaching or public performances; but all alike, myself not -excepted, find the sources of such information scanty and difficult of -access. - -First, let me say frankly that there is no such book, or collection of -books. My own meager stock of available material in this line has been -laboriously collected, without definite method, and at first without -distinct purpose, during many years of extensive miscellaneous reading -in English, French, and German; supplemented by a rather wide -acquaintance among musicians and composers, and the life-long habit of -seizing and magnifying the poetic or dramatic bearing and import of -every scene, situation, and anecdote. If asked to enumerate the sources -from which points of value concerning musical works can be derived, I -should answer that they are three, not all equally promising, but from -each of which I myself have obtained help, and all of which I should try -before deserting the field. These are: - -First, and perhaps the most important, reading. Second, a large -acquaintance among musicians, and frequent conversations with them on -musical subjects. Third, an intuitive perception, partly inborn and -partly acquired, of the analogies between musical ideas, on the one -hand, and the experiences of life and the emotions of the human soul, on -the other. I will now elaborate each of these a little, to make my -meaning more clear. - -While there is no book in which information concerning the meaning of -musical compositions is collected and classified for convenient -reference, such information is scattered thinly and unevenly throughout -all literatures,--a grain here, a nugget there, like gold through the -secret veins of the earth,--and can be had only by much digging and -careful sifting. Now and again you come upon a single volume, like a -rich though limited pocket of precious ore, and rejoice with exceeding -gladness at the discovery of a treasure. But unfortunately, there is -usually nothing in the appearance or nature of such a book to indicate -to the seeker before perusal that this treasure is within, or to -distinguish it from scores of barren volumes. And the very item of which -he may be in search is very likely not here to be found; so he must turn -again to the quest, which is much like seeking a needle in a hay-mow, or -a pearl somewhere at the bottom of the Indian Ocean. - -Musical histories, biographies, and essays--what is usually termed -distinctly musical literature--by no means exhibit the only productive -soil, though they are certainly the most fruitful, and should be first -turned to, because nearest at hand. Poetry, fiction, travels, personal -reminiscences, in short every department of literature, from the -philosophy of Schopenhauer to the novels of George Sand, must be made to -contribute what it can to the stock of general and comprehensive -knowledge, which is our ambition. I instance these two authors, because, -while neither of them wrote a single work which would be found embraced -in a catalogue of musical literature, the metaphysical speculations of -Schopenhauer are known to have had great influence upon Wagner's -personality, and through that, of course, upon his music; while in some -of the characteristics of George Sand will be found the key to certain -of Chopin's moods, and their musical expression. But even where no such -relation between author and composer can be traced, I deem one could -rarely read a good literary work, chosen at random, without chancing -upon some item of interest or information, which would prove directly or -indirectly of value to the professional musician in his life-work. And -this is entirely apart from the general broadening, developing, and -maturing influence of good reading upon the mind and imagination, which -may be added to the more direct benefit sought, forming a background of -esthetic suggestion and perception, against which the beauties of -tone-pictures stand forth with enhanced power and heightened color. - -I know of no better plan to suggest to those striving for an intelligent -comprehension of the composer's meaning in his great works than much and -careful reading of the best books in all departments, and the more -varied and comprehensive their scope the better. In the search for -enlightenment concerning any one particular composition, I should advise -the student to begin with works, if such exist, from the pen of the -composer himself, followed by biographies and all essays, criticisms, -and dissertations upon his compositions which are in print. If these -fail to give information, he should proceed to read as much as possible -regarding the composer's country and contemporaries, and concerning any -and all subjects in which he has become aware, by the study of his life, -that the master was interested. The chances are that he will come upon -something of aid or value before finishing this task. Still very often -the quest will and must be in vain, because about many musical works -there exists absolutely no information in print. - -I can perhaps better indicate the course to be pursued by giving some -illustrations in my own experience. The following will serve: During a -trip in New York State I was asked whether Grieg's "Peer Gynt" suite was -founded upon any legend or story, and if so, what. Though familiar with -the composition in question, I had never played it myself, nor given it -any particular attention, and in point of fact was as ignorant on the -subject as my interrogator, and obliged to confess as much. This was -before the composition had become familiar in this country and before -the drama on which it is founded had been translated into English. -Being, however, convinced, from the names attached to different parts of -the suite, of the probability of its foundation upon some literary or -historic subject, I determined to investigate. I first read several -biographical sketches of Grieg, but found no special mention of the -"Peer Gynt" suite; then everything I could secure on the subject of -Norwegian music in general and Grieg's compositions in particular, -without avail. As I knew Grieg to be, with the possible exception of -Chopin, the most intensely national and patriotic of all composers, I -inferred that if he had taken any legend or story as the basis of this -work, it was undoubtedly Norwegian in character. I read, therefore, -several articles on the history of Norway, the Norsemen, and the -Norwegian language and literature, watching carefully for the name of -Peer Gynt, but in vain. I next undertook some of the _sagas_ or ancient -Norse traditions, with the same result. Having exhausted my resources in -this direction, I began to investigate modern Norwegian literature. -Here, of course, I encountered, in large type, the names of Björnson and -Ibsen, and almost at the outset I found among the works of the latter -the versified drama of "Peer Gynt," and my search was at an end. Having -procured a German translation of this drama, I found scenes and -characters to correspond exactly with those which figure in Grieg's -music, and a reference in the preface to an orchestral suite, by this -composer, founded upon "Peer Gynt." - -Now had I been as well informed as I recommend all my readers to be, I -should have known at the outset of this Norwegian drama, and been at -once upon the right track. But being only familiar with those prose -dramas of Ibsen which have been translated into English, I was obliged -to undertake all this extra labor, to ascertain a single fact; which -only proves once again, that the more the musician's memory is stored -with miscellaneous facts and ideas, even such as do not seem to have any -connection with music, the lighter and more successful will be his -labors in his profession. - -The second main source of information concerning musical works is found -among musicians themselves. There is a vast amount of tradition, -suggestion, and knowledge appertaining to the masterpieces in this art, -which has never got into print, and lives only by passing from mouth to -mouth, much as the early legends of all countries were orally handed -down among minstrels and skalds from generation to generation. Every -great interpreter and every great composer becomes, with the passage of -years of a long and active life, a vast and valuable storehouse of all -sorts of hints, facts, and ideas on the subject of various compositions, -which usually die with him, except such portions as have been orally -transmitted to pupils and associates. In this respect the late Theodor -Kullak was worth any three men I have ever known, and those of his -pupils who had tastes and interests similar to his own, and were of -retentive memory, have all derived from him no mean portion of their -material. To cull from every musician and musically informed person all -the odds and ends of information in his possession is a valuable, though -perhaps selfish habit. And here let me emphasize to all students the -importance of not allowing the memory to get into that very prevalent -bad habit of refusing to retain anything which is not presented in print -to the organ of vision. The ear is as good a road to the brain as the -eye, and every one should possess the faculty of acquiring information -from conversations, lessons, and lectures, as readily as from books. - -The third resource of the seeker after truth of this nature is to be -found within himself. The musician should early accustom himself to -grasp clearly the essential essence, the vital principle, of an artistic -moment, a dramatic situation. For some such moment, mood, or situation, -however vague or veiled, underlies every true art work; and unless the -performer can perceive and comprehend this inner germ of meaning clearly -enough to express it intelligibly, though it may be crudely, in his own -words, he will find that many a hint has been lost upon him, and many a -bit of knowledge, that might have been his, has escaped him. This is not -a musical faculty merely; it is a mental peculiarity. Every person, -whatever his profession, should train himself to catch, as quickly and -clearly as may be, the real drift of a book, of an argument, of a chain -of circumstances, of a political situation, of history, of character, -and to place his finger instinctively upon the germ upon which all else -centers. - -The power to feel instinctively the real mood and meaning of a musical -composition is by no means confined to the musical profession; indeed, -is often strongly marked in those ignorant of the very rudiments of the -art. I remember once playing to a rough old trapper, of the early -pioneer days in Wisconsin, who had drifted back to civilization to "die -in camp," as he expressed it, the Revolutionary Etude of Chopin, Op. 10, -No. 12, already cited in illustration, written on receipt of the -knowledge that Warsaw had been taken and sacked by the Russians. "What -does it mean?" I asked when it was finished. He sprang from his chair in -great excitement. "Mean?" he said; "it means cyclone in the big woods! -Indian onslaught! White men all killed, but die hard!" His -interpretation, I need not say, was not historically correct, but for -all artistic purposes it was just as good, though expressed in the rough -backwoods imagery familiar to him. He caught the tone of rage and -conflict, of desperate struggle and dark despair, which sounds in every -line, and he had truly understood the composition, to the shame of many -a well-educated musician, whose comment would probably have been, "How -difficult that left hand part is! De Pachmann plays it much faster, and -with such a beautiful pianissimo!" - -This particular study is simply a vivid mood picture. It is not in any -sense what is called descriptive or program music; yet it has a distinct -meaning which can be more or less adequately expressed in words, for the -aid of those who do not readily grasp its expression. I wish to -reiterate here what I have before stated, that I would not be understood -to hold that all music has or should have some story connected with it. -I merely believe that every worthy composition is the musical setting of -some scene, incident, mood, idea, or emotion. Long practice in -perceiving and grasping what may be termed the "internal evidence" of -the music itself will develop, in the musician, a susceptibility to such -impressions, which will often lead him to a knowledge elsewhere sought -in vain, and greatly lessen his labors in arriving at knowledge -elsewhere to be found. - -I have now thrown all the light in my power upon the _modus operandi_ of -obtaining information and ideas relating to musical compositions, and -have, I think, demonstrated the difficulty of such an undertaking. For -my own Lecture Recital programs I often select works about which I -happen to be well informed, and have more than once spent an entire -summer in reading and research concerning others which I wished to -include. It will be seen from the nature of the case, that because one -possesses full information in regard to a certain ballade or polonaise, -it by no means establishes a certainty, as is sometimes inferred, that -he will be equally enlightened concerning all others. There never was -and never will be any one man who can furnish information on the subject -of all compositions, and it is equally impossible that any glossary or -cyclopedia will ever be compiled which can refer the student to books -containing points in regard to any musical work one may chance to be -practising, or wish to perform. - - - - - Traditional Beethoven Playing - - -How often of late years we hear this expression: Will some one who -claims to know kindly tell us what it means? For one, I confess myself, -after a decade of careful, thoughtful investigation, utterly unable to -find out. We hear one pianist extolled as a wonderful Beethoven player, -as a safe, legitimate, trustworthy champion of the good old classical -traditions; and another equally eminent artist condemned as wholly -unworthy to lift for the public the veil of awe and deep mystery -enshrouding the sublimities of this grandest of tone-Titans. The late -von Bülow, for instance, was well-nigh universally conceded to be the -representative Beethoven player of the age, for no better reasons, so -far as I can discover, than that he was generally admitted to be a -failure in the presentation of most works of the modern school, and that -cold, calculating, cynical intellectuality was the predominant feature -of his personality and his musical work, which made him the driest, most -unideal, uninteresting pianist of his generation, in spite of his -phenomenal technic, memory, and mental power. - -On the other hand, Paderewski, with all his infinitely magnetic -personality, his incomparable beauty of tone and coloring, his blended -nobility and refinement of conception, is decried as a perverter of -taste, a destroyer of traditions and precedents, because, forsooth, he -plays Beethoven too warmly, too emotionally, too subjectively. - -_De grace, messieurs_, what does it all signify? Are we then to accept -perforce as final, in spite of our better instincts, the dictum of the -long since petrified Leipsic School, which holds technic of the hand and -head, not only as the supreme, but as the sole element in musical -art--which relegates all emotion and its expression to the despised -limbo of sickly sentimentality, and which epitomizes its highest -encomium of an artist in the words "He allows himself no -liberties"--that is to say, he plays merely the notes, with the -faultless precision and soulless monotony of a machine? Is this, then, -_traditional_ playing of Beethoven, or any other composer? Is it art at -all? If there is any such thing as an authentic, authoritative musical -standard concerning any given composition, upon what does or should it -rest? Surely either upon the way its composer rendered it, or desired it -rendered, if that can be ascertained, or upon the way it was given by -its first great public interpreter. Let us examine the scanty available -data concerning Beethoven's piano works from this point of view. How did -Beethoven himself play his own works? - -This question reminds one of the century-old dispute among scholars as -to the propriety of the so-called English pronunciation of Latin, an -absurdity on the face of it. Fancy talking of the English pronunciation -of French or German! Of course, we do not know and have no means of -learning exactly how the old Latins did pronounce their language in all -the niceties of detail, but one thing we do know with absolute -certainty, and that is that they did not Anglicize it, for the one good -reason that our language did not come into existence until centuries -after the Latin tongue was dead. Similarly, as there is no one now -living who can remember and tell us just how Beethoven did play any -given sonata, and as, unfortunately, the phonograph was not then -invented to preserve for us the incalculably precious records of his -interpretations, we have no means of ascertaining just what his -conceptions were, even supposing they had been twice alike, which they -probably were not. But this we may be sure of, beyond a question or a -doubt: He did not play them according to von Bülow. Furthermore, there -is no ground for believing that his performances were at all such as the -conservative sticklers for classic traditions insist that our renditions -of Beethoven must be to-day. We know this from a study of the life and -characteristics of the man, from the internal evidence of his works, and -from the reports given us by his contemporaries of his manner of playing -them and their effect upon the hearer. - -Beethoven was preëminently a romanticist, in the content, if not always -in the form of his works; a man of pronounced, self-loyal individuality -and intense subjectivity, who wrote, and consequently must have played, -as he felt, and not in accordance with prescribed rules and formulas; a -man who can reply without immodesty when criticized for breaking a -preëstablished law of harmony, "I do it," with the calm confidence in -the divine right of genius to self-utterance in its own chosen way which -always accompanies true greatness and has been the infallible compass of -progress in all ages. The man who was the fearless, outspoken champion -of artistic sincerity and profound earnestness, whose scorn of shallow, -pedantic formulas was as uncompromising as it was irrepressible, whose -watchword was universality of content, who believed that music could and -should be made to express every phase of human emotion, who could -venture on the unheard-of innovation of beginning a sonata with a -pathetic adagio, and introducing a chorus into the last movement of a -symphony, in open defiance of all established tradition, who was -repeatedly accused by the critics of his day of being unable to write a -correct fugue or sonata, and whose music was declared to be that of a -madman by leading musicians even as late as the beginning of our -century--this is surely not the man whose artistic personality can be -fairly represented by a purely intellectual, stiffly precise, though -never so scholarly reading of his printed scores. How is that better -than the bloodless plaster casts of the living, breathing children of -his genius? The printed symbols represent audible sounds and the sounds -symbolize emotions. The mere sounds with the emotions left out are no -more Beethoven's music than the printed notes if never made audible. - -Of his own playing, we are told that it lacked finish and precision, but -never warmth and intensity; that, like his nature, it was stormy, -impetuous, impulsive, at times even almost brutal in its rough strength -and fierce energy; that he often sacrificed tone quality and even -accuracy in his complete abandonment to the torrent of his emotions, but -never failed to stir to their profoundest depths the hearts of his -hearers. Is this the man, this hero of musical democracy, this giant -embodiment of the Titanic forces of primitive Nature, this shaggy-maned -lion, with the great, warm, keenly sentient human heart, whose nearest -prototype among modern players is Rubinstein; is this the man with whom -originated the severely classical school, the cold, prim, stately -interpretations which we are told to reverence as traditional, in which -the head is everything, the heart nothing--form all-important, and -feeling a deplorable weakness? It is impossible, incredible! - -I honestly believe that if Beethoven himself could revisit the world and -appear _incognito_ in the concert-halls of our musical centers to give -us an ideal, authoritative rendition of his great works, one-half of his -audience and nine-tenths of his critics would hold up their hands in -holy horror at his untraditional and un-Beethoven-like readings, and -would declare that while he was an interesting and magnetic artist, and -an enjoyable player of the lighter, more emotional modern school, his -renderings of the revered classics were dangerously perverting to the -public taste and could not be sufficiently condemned. - -But if not with Beethoven himself, with whom did these so-called -traditions originate? Was it with the first great public interpreters of -his works, who introduced them to the world of concert-goers and so -earned the right to have their readings respected? Who was the first, -most enthusiastic, courageous, and efficient champion of Beethoven's -piano works? Who did most to introduce them to the concert audiences of -Europe, to force for them first a hearing, then a reluctant recognition? -Who first and oftenest dared to present Beethoven's serious chamber -music to the frivolous sensation-loving Parisians, and to risk his -unprecedented popularity with them upon the venture? Who but Franz -Liszt! For nearly two decades, during the whole of his phenomenal career -as a virtuoso, the vast weight of his musical influence and example, the -incalculable force of his fervid, magnetic personality, and his -inexhaustible resources as an executant, were all brought to bear in -behalf of his revered Beethoven, in the effort to render his best piano -works familiar and popular with the European public. It is safe to say -that during that period Liszt introduced more Beethoven sonatas to more -people than all other pianists combined. He then established such -traditions as there may be regarding the proper interpretation of these -works; and surely no one who heard him play, no one who is even slightly -familiar with his life, characteristics, and art ideals, will think for -a moment of classing him with the conservative school, with the -inflexible, puritanical adherents to cut-and-dried theories and the cold -dead letter of the law as represented by the printed notes. - -But we are told that precisely these printed notes and signs should be -our only and all-sufficient guide. We are commanded to stick to the text -and not to presume to take personal liberties with so sacred a thing as -a Beethoven composition. I wonder if the advocates of this idea, which -does so much credit to their bump of veneration and so little to their -artistic insight, ever took the trouble to examine the text of these -same Beethoven compositions in the earliest editions, as they came first -from his own hand; and if so, whether they noticed the conspicuous -absence of marks of expression. When they urge that Beethoven probably -knew best how his works should be rendered and that we ought to follow -exclusively and religiously his indications, do they know how very few -and inadequate these were? So few, in fact, that if only those given by -the composer are to be observed, even the most rigid of our sticklers -for classical severity are guilty of the most flagrant breaches of their -own rule. Are we then to suppose that Beethoven wished his music played -without varying expression, on one dead monotonous level? Not at all; -but simply to infer that, like many great composers, he felt such -indications to be wholly unnecessary, and was far too impatient to stop -for such mechanical details. To him his music was the vital utterance of -the intense life within. The meaning and true delivery of each phrase -were vividly, unmistakably self-evident, needing arbitrary marks of -expression as little as a heart-felt declaration of love or outburst of -grief. He rightly assumed that to be played at all as it should be, such -music must first be felt, and that visible marks of expression would be -as needless to the player with intuitive comprehension, as they would be -useless to the player without it. Just as Chopin omitted the indication -"tempo rubato" from all his later works, declaring that any one who had -sense enough to play them at all would know that it was demanded without -being told. - -True, Beethoven's works have been edited well-nigh to death since his -time, but of course without his sanction or revision; and as no two -editions agree, who shall decide which is infallible? And why, I ask, is -not the audible interpretation at the piano of a Liszt, a Rubinstein, or -a Paderewski just as likely to be legitimate as the printed -interpretation of a Bülow or a Lebert? Has not one artist as good a -right to his conception as another? And in heaven's name what possible -reason is there for assuming, in regard to an intensely emotional -composer and player like Beethoven, that the coldly, stiffly scholastic -reading of his works is more in accordance with his original intention -than a more warm and subjective one? - -Moreover, even if there were a complete, corrected, authorized edition -of Beethoven, carefully revised by the composer himself, any one who has -ever written out, proof-read, and finally published the simplest -original composition knows well by experience how utterly impossible it -is to indicate definitely, with our imperfect system of marking, just -how each strain should be rendered. A general outline of the whole -effect desired can be given; but try as we may, all the more delicate -shades, the finer details of accent and inflection, must always be left -to the taste, insight, and temperament of the individual performer; just -as the intelligent reading of a poem depends upon much besides an -observance of the punctuation marks. It is not within the limits of -human ability to edit a single period of eight measures so perfectly -that no variations or mistakes in the interpretation are possible. - -In view of these facts, I am bold enough to maintain that there is no -such thing as an absolutely correct traditional rendering of any single -Beethoven composition, one to be followed inflexibly. It might be said -of Beethoven, and in fact of any great composer, as aptly as of -Shakespeare, that he is always on the level of his readers. Those -possessing neither natural nor acquired appreciation for the best music -will find in Beethoven nothing but a series of unintelligible and more -or less disagreeable noises, like Humboldt. Those who by nature, -training, and habit of mind are fitted to perceive and enjoy only the -physical and intellectual elements in tonal art,--its sensuous effect -upon the ear, its rhythmic movement, its ingenious intricacies of -structure and symmetry of form,--will seek and find, and, if they are -players, will emphasize in Beethoven only these factors, and will -vehemently protest that there is nothing else there, and that any -attempt to find or to introduce anything else is presumptuous and -morbid. But those to whom music is the artistic medium for the -expression of the strongest, deepest, and best of human emotions, who -demand that every strain shall come fresh and warm from the heart of the -composer and speak directly and forcefully to the heart of the hearer; -those to whom the brain, no less than the hand, is a servant to that -higher, subtler ego we call the soul, and form and technic alike mere -vehicles for soul utterance, will strive, with humble, self-abnegating -fidelity, to read between the lines of the printed music that unwritten, -unwritable spirit of their composer; will infuse for the moment their -own pulsing, revivifying life into the symbolic forms until they glow -with at least a faint suggestion of their original warmth and vitality, -as when freshly born of the passion and the labor of genius. These alone -can give us, in the light and truth of spiritual intuition, the only -approximately _traditional Beethoven playing_. - - - - - BEETHOVEN - 1770 1827 - - - - - Beethoven: The Moonlight Sonata, Op. 27, No. 2 (C Sharp Minor) - - -There is probably no composition for the piano of any real merit, by any -writer, which is so universally known, at least by name, as this sonata. -Every one has heard of it, read about it, and most persons are more or -less familiar with the music, or at any rate with portions of it, -especially the first movement, which is, technically, easy enough to be -_executed_, in the literal sense, with the greatest facility by every -school-girl. - -According to strict requirements of the law of form it is, in reality, -not a sonata at all, but a free fantasia, in three detached movements, -of a very pronounced but widely diverse emotional character. There has -been considerable questioning on the part of the public, and much -discussion among musicians, as to the origin of its name, its relevancy -to the music, and the true artistic significance of the work. - -There is little, if any, suggestion of moonlight, or the mood usually -associated with a moonlight scene, in any of the movements; but there -are several more or less credited traditions concerning it afloat, -legitimatizing the title and explaining its origin. Of these, the one -that seems to the present writer most fully authenticated and best -sustained by the content of the compositions as a whole is the -following. It is given, not as a verified fact, but as a suggestive -possibility, a legendary background in keeping with the work. - -It is a well-known matter of history that, during his early struggles -for existence in Vienna, while experiencing the inevitable period of -probation, well named the "starvation epoch," common to the lot of every -creative artist, and the equally inevitable heritage of great genius, -born fifty years in advance of its time,--lack of appreciation and -scathing abuse from the self-constituted, self-satisfied foes of all -progressive art, called critics,--Beethoven had the additional -misfortune to fall deeply, but hopelessly, in love with a beautiful and -brilliantly accomplished, though shallow, young heiress, of noble birth -and lofty social position, Julie Guicciardi by name, who was, for a -short time, one of his pupils. She is said to have returned his -affection, but the union was, of course, under the then prevailing -conditions, utterly impossible; and even if it could have taken place, -would doubtless have proved most incompatible and uncongenial. She was a -countess, accustomed to luxury and splendor; he an obscure musician -fighting for the bare necessities of life, hardly higher in the social -scale than her father's valet and not so well paid. It was absurd; and -blind Love had blundered once again in his marksmanship. Or was it an -intentional, cruel shaft from the tricky little god? In any case, -Beethoven was deeply smitten; and this unlucky passion darkened and -saddened his life for many years, and is accountable for much of the -somber tone which we find in his compositions of that period. - -So much is fact. The story goes that one evening, when wandering in the -outskirts of the city, on one of those long, solitary walks, which were -his only relaxation, he chanced to pass an elegant suburban villa in -which a gay social gathering was in progress. Some one was playing one -of his recent compositions as he went by--a rare occurrence in those -days. His attention was attracted and, half unconsciously, he stopped to -listen--stopped, as luck would have it, in a full flood of moonlight, -was recognized from within, and a laughing company of the guests, Julie -among them, sallied out, surrounded and captured him, and fairly -compelled him to come in and play for them. They insisted that he should -improvise and should take for his theme the moonlight which had been the -cause of his capture and their unexpected pleasure. The usually -reticent, intractable, not to say morose, Beethoven at last -consented--under who shall say what subtle spell of Julie's voice and -eyes?--and seated himself at the piano. - -But those who are at all familiar with his music know that Beethoven -was, except in a few rare instances, an emotional, not a realistic -writer; a subjective, not an objective artist; reproducing not the -scenes and circumstances of his environment or fancied situations, but -the emotional impressions which they produced upon his own inner being, -colored by his own personality and the mental conditions of the moment, -often just the reverse of what might naturally have been expected. What -he most keenly felt on this particular occasion was not the soft -splendor of the summer night, or the opulent luxury and careless, -superficial gaiety about him, but the bitter and cutting contrast which -they afforded to his own struggling, sorrow-darkened, care-laden -existence, full of disappointments and humiliations, of petty, sordid, -yet unavoidable anxieties, with those twin vultures ever at his heart--a -hopeless love, an unappreciated genius. The result was moonlight music -in which no gleam of moonlight was reflected; only its somber shadow -lying heavily and depressingly upon the stream of his emotions, which -poured themselves out through the harmonies of this composition with an -unconscious power and truth and a pathetic grandeur which have justly -made it world-famous. - -The first movement expresses unmingled sadness, but without any weakness -of vain complaint; a calm, candid, but hopeless recognition of the -inevitable. - -The second seems to be an attempt at a lighter, more cheerful strain, a -fleeting recollection of his ostensible theme; but it is only partially -successful and very brief, and is followed by a reaction into a mood far -more intense and darkly fierce than the first. - -The last movement is full of indignant protest, of passionate rebellion, -with occasional bursts of fiery defiance. In it we see the strong soul, -surging like the waves of a mighty sea against the rocky borders of -fate, striving desperately to break through or over them, and returning -again and again to the fruitless attempt, with a courage only equaled by -its futility. It is the Titan Beethoven battling with the gods of -destiny. - -It is, of course, unlikely, even impossible, that this -improvisation,--the tradition being true,--was precisely the music of -the Moonlight Sonata in its present form. It could but furnish the -themes, outlines, and moods of the various movements, subsequently -developed into the composition so widely known and admired. - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata Pathétique, Op. 13 - - -With the exception, perhaps, of the "Moonlight," this work is the best -known to the world at large, and the one most frequently attempted by -ambitious students of the Beethoven sonatas. Its familiar title was not -bestowed by Beethoven himself, but by some publishers later, and seems -to me inaptly chosen; in fact, not at all justly applicable to the -composition as a whole. It was probably suggested partly by the minor -key, but mainly by the second movement, which is gravely pathetic in -mood. As a whole the work is far too strong, intense, and dramatic to -warrant the name. _Sonata Tragica_ would have been better. I have not -been able to find any authority for attributing to it definite -descriptive significance in the objective sense. It is the forceful -expression of a pronounced emotional condition, or rather, sequence of -experiences, embodied with all the fervent glow and impetuous power of -early manhood, yet with the precision and finish of maturity. Every -measure is replete with intense feeling as well as intrinsic beauty. -There is not a superfluous note or a meaningless embellishment in it -from beginning to end; not an ounce of sawdust stuffing to fill out the -defective contours of a stereotyped form--which, alas! is not true of -many of Beethoven's piano works; and, all in all, it seems to the -present writer to be the most musically interesting and evenly sustained -composition for the piano from Beethoven's pen. - -The broad, impressive introduction marked _grave_ is full of strength -and somber majesty. It is gloomily grand rather than pathetic, like the -epitome of some stern fatalist's philosophy of life, and reminds one of -Swinburne's lines: - - "More dark than a dead world's tomb, - More high than the sheer dawn's gate, - More deep than the wide sea's womb, - Fate." - -The first subject of the allegro movement is anything but pathetic. It -is full of fire, energy, and restless striving; of fierce conflict and -desperate endeavor; of the defiant pride of genius exulting in the -unequal combat with the world's stony indifference, and the inimical -conditions of life. - -The second theme is warmer and more nearly approaches the lyric vein. It -is half pleading, half argumentative in tone, strikingly suggestive of -the mood so common to young but gifted souls, in the bitterness of their -first pained surprise at the cruel contrast between the ideal and the -actual in life. It seems to strive to reason with unreasoning and -unreasonable facts, and to touch the heart of a heartless fate with its -tender pleading. The continually reiterated embellishments upon the -melody notes here should be given distinctly as a _mordente_, with -marked accent on the last of the three tones in every case, not played -as a triplet with accent on the first, as is so often done, and even so -indicated in many standard editions, thus materially weakening the -effect of the passage, rendering it trivial and characterless as well as -out of keeping with the general mood. This is what Kullak used to call -"the lazy way" of playing it. The striking contrast between the first -and second subjects should be maintained throughout, with greatest -possible distinctness, and the closing chords must be given boldly, -defiantly, like a challenge proudly flung to all the powers of darkness, -to fate, no matter how adverse. - -With the second movement comes a radical change of mood. The first -impetuous vigor has been expended in the struggle; the first joy of -combat and self-reliant consciousness of strength have ebbed away like a -receding tide, leaving the soul exhausted, discouraged, but not -despairing. There is a moment of truce in life's battle, a moment of -calm, though sad reflection; a moment in which to contemplate the -impassable gulf between the heaven-piercing heights of ambition and the -petty levels of possible human achievement, in which to dream, not of -victory and happiness,--those are among the unattainable ideals,--but of -rest and sweet forgetfulness, and to say with Tennyson-- - - "What profit do we have to war with evil? - Let us alone." - -There is an occasional hint of the volcanic fires of passion, slumbering -beneath this surface calm of a spirit sent to earth, but not broken, -gathering its forces for a fresh uprising. But as a whole it is -tranquilly thoughtful, gravely introspective, and should be rendered -with great deliberation and profound earnestness. - -The last movement is hardly up to the standard of the other two, either -musically or emotionally. Still it is interesting, symmetrically made, -and not devoid of depth and intensity. It is perhaps a logical -conclusion to the work, if we regard the whole as a sort of tone-poem on -life. With most of us in youth, our boundless courage and aspiration -lead us to dare all things and believe in the possibility of all things; -to hurl ourselves into the fight with destiny, with the limitless -presumption of untried powers and unwarrantable hopes. Later comes a -period of depression and discouragement, in which nothing seems worth -effort, so far do realities fall below our expectations. Then, if we are -reasonable, we learn, at last, to adapt ourselves in a measure to things -as they are, to content ourselves in some wise with the flowers, since -the stars are out of reach, and to measure achievement relatively, not -by the standard of our first glorious, ever-to-be-regretted ambitions, -but of the possible, the partial and imperfect, under the limitations of -inflexible earthly conditions; and we quench our soul's thirst as best -we may with the meager, mingled draught of bitter-sweet that life -offers. - -This movement is light, rapid, and would be cheerful but for its minor -key and its undertone of plaintive sadness. It seems like an attempt to -take a brighter view of life, but is still shadowed by past -experiences,--a touching gaiety dimmed by the mist of recent tears,--and -this is, perhaps unintentionally, the most nearly pathetic of the three -movements. It should be given with life and warmth, and, despite the -pedants, with a free use of the rubato, but not with extreme velocity. - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata in A Flat Major, Op. 26 - - -This sonata, like the "Moonlight" and several others in the collection -of Beethoven's piano work bearing this name, is not cast in the usual -sonata mold; in fact, it is not a sonata at all, according to the modern -technical application of the term. But as the name sonata was originally -derived from the Italian verb _sonare_, to sound, or, in musical -parlance, to cause to sound, to play upon a musical instrument, and was -used to designate any piece of instrumental music whatsoever, in -distinction from that which was intended to be sung, it is perhaps as -correctly employed in this connection as in any other. - -The first movement of this work consists of a simple, beautiful, -melodious, noble lyric theme, followed by five strongly contrasted and -strikingly characteristic variations, and an exquisitely tender and -expressive little coda. - -The _theme and variations_, not only in this, but in every case where -the form is well wrought out, is a musical illustration of the natural, -logical process of evolution. The simple, vital germ of thought or -feeling, inherent in the theme, as the life principle inheres in the -germ of wheat, is seen to expand gradually and develop through the -successive variations into new and changing forms of ever-increasing -beauty and suggestiveness until every latent possibility of expression -has been matured and exhausted, and the idea has been presented to us in -every practicable light and from every attainable standpoint; just as -the gradual growth and ripening of the wheat, subjected to nature's -infinite variety of conditions and her ceaseless alternation of day and -night, cold and heat, sun and rain, calm and storm, present to us daily -some change of form and hue, some new phase of its progressive -existence, until complete maturity is reached and its utmost limit of -development attained. - -A still better analogy may be drawn from human experience itself, from -the constant modification and development of a given character, -subjected to the shifting vicissitudes and changeful, often conflicting -influences of daily life. It is interesting and helpful, in studying or -listening to any work in the _theme and variation_ form, to conceive of -the theme as symbolizing a definite personality, as of hero or heroine -in a narrative, a personality clearly marked, but undeveloped, distinct -to the mind of the composer, and which the performer or hearer should -endeavor to grasp with equal definiteness. Each variation may then -represent some varying phase of life, some different experience or -influence, or emotional condition, bearing upon this typified -personality. The peculiar mood and suggestive characteristics of each -variation must be clearly perceived and strongly emphasized, and its due -relation to the whole work preserved, while the underlying, -all-pervading theme must be kept intelligibly recognizable through all -its most capricious and widely contrasting modifications, to give -purpose and continuity to the whole; just as the strongly marked -individuality of a well-drawn character is traceable through all the -manifold vicissitudes of life and may be counted on to follow out its -own inherent laws of evolution, no matter what the circumstances or -conditions to which it may be subjected. - -Let us, in the case of this sonata, conceive of the first simple theme -as suggesting, through the subtle symbolism of tone effects, the -character of our hero, gravely tender, calmly resolute, nobly, warmly, -generously affectionate, with much of innate strength, tempered by -gentleness and latent passion, refined by ideality. - -In the first variation life presents itself to him as a serious but -interesting and agreeable problem, possessing the charm of mystery. He -investigates, speculates, reflects, lingers fascinated upon the -threshold of the shadowy unknown, enjoys the vague delight of its dim -but inviting perspective. - -In the second he faces storm and conflict, revels in the discovery and -fullest exercise of his own strength and courage and in his successful -wrestle with danger and difficulty. The mood here is bold, heroic, full -of life and energy. - -In the third our hero is suddenly confronted by the twin giants, death -and despair. The shadow of their sable forms envelops him with -impenetrable gloom. His soul is crushed by a weight as of a leaden pall, -and from the depths it sends up a half-stifled cry of unutterable, -inarticulate anguish, equaled by nothing in literature, unless it may be -by the verses of Edgar Allan Poe entitled "The Conqueror Worm." - -The fourth variation brings a reaction toward a brighter mood, flashes -of sunlight through parting clouds, fitful gleams of spasmodic gaiety, -half hope, half defiance, showing intermittently against the somber -background of grief. - -Finally, the fifth and last variation is a tender, cheerful love poem, -telling, with a charming intermingling of fervent warmth and playful -brightness, of the sovereign magic of human affection, in which the -tried spirit has at last found solace and repose; while the brief but -significant little coda seems like a dreamy retrospect, a tender -reminiscence of bygone joys, and griefs, and struggles, tempered by -distance and brightened by the light of present happiness. - -If the work ended here it would be well rounded and complete, and it may -be, in fact often is, presented in this form, entirely omitting the -other three movements. But though not indispensable to the symmetry of -the composition, the remaining three movements of the sonata are all -intrinsically interesting and enjoyable, and embody three radically -differing types of emotional life. In them we are dealing no longer with -an individual experience, but with general moods, with abstract elements -and conditions. - -The principal subject of the scherzo is bright, piquant, exhilarating; -expressing unmixed, uncontrolled gaiety, toned down for a moment in the -trio to a touch of arch tenderness, but immediately breaking away again -into rollicking hilarity. It should be given with great clearness and -crispness, very little pedal, and a clean, sparkling tone, like sharply -cut glass icicles with the sun behind them. The term _scherzo_ is an -Italian word, signifying a jest, and all that is most capricious, -sportive, and humorous in music finds expression in this form. - -The third movement is one of the two great funeral marches for the piano -in existence, the other being that in the sonata, Op. 35, by Chopin. -This one by Beethoven is so forcefully characteristic in mood and -movement, so full of gloomy grandeur, of dramatic intensity, of depth -and richness of somber harmonic coloring, that it may be ranked among -his very ablest artistic creations. It should be played with the utmost -fullness and sonority of tone, but not extremely loud even in the -climaxes, and never hard or rough; so as to convey the impression of -suppressed power and of a noble, sustained sorrow, not a spasmodic, -petulant distress. Its inflexible, unvarying rhythm throughout should -suggest, not only the slow, solemn movement of the funeral procession, -the heavily tolling bells, the awed, hushed grief of the mourners, but -as well the more abstract and universal thoughts of the slow but -relentless march of time and destiny and the might and majesty of death. - -The last movement of the sonata is in the usual rondo form, light, -graceful, ethereal, with a certain subdued cheerfulness, telling of -dreamy aspiration and vague, intuitive faith in ultimate good, of the -airy, upward flight of light-winged hope toward a brighter realm beyond -the grave, where pain and death shall be remembered only as the minor -cadences and passing dissonances which lead to the enhanced beauty of -the final major harmony. - -The sonata as a whole is one of the most interesting productions of -Beethoven's second period, and is technically within the reach of most -good amateurs. - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata in D Minor, Op. 31, No. 2 - - -This is not usually considered a descriptive composition, but Beethoven, -when questioned regarding it, answered: "Read Shakespeare's 'Tempest.'" -With this hint from the most authoritative of all sources, the composer -himself, we may easily trace, if not a strongly realistic, at least a -suggestive reference in the music to that most romantic drama by the -greatest of English play-writers. And we may also find a pertinent -rebuke for those who are inclined to sneer at the idea of descriptive -suggestion in music in general and in Beethoven's works in particular, -in spite of Beethoven's own words: "I always have some picture in mind -when I write." - -The first movement of this sonata opens with an extremely simple theme, -consisting merely of the notes of the common triad--_do-mi-sol-do_--a -theme so bald, so apparently devoid of beauty and latent resources that -only Beethoven would have ventured to use it; and only his genius could -have given it any degree of interest. It is evidently chosen with -deliberate intention to indicate naïve simplicity and natural primitive -conditions of life in the island, as Prospero found it, with that -half-animal, half-savage man, Caliban, as the most prominent figure in -it. His singular, ludicrously grotesque personality may have suggested -some of the clumsily rollicking passages in this movement. The tempest -is only hinted at, not vividly portrayed--a tempest in miniature, a -storm in fairyland. Still, it is unmistakable, though divested of all -its terrors, just as it must have appeared to Prospero himself, whose -magic power and complete mastery over the elemental forces placed him -above and beyond all fear. - -The second movement, full of sweet repose, of grave, tranquil happiness, -is like the hearts of the two lovers in the drama, safe in the loving -and powerful protection of Prospero, living close to the gentle, -passionless breast of Mother Nature, childlike in their simple trust, -their spontaneous affection, their simple joy in the passing hour. It -seems at first rather tame and colorless to our modern ears, accustomed -to the ceaseless stress and din of complex and conflicting elements, -warring together in the life and art of our own day; but if we can -forget for a moment the intensity, the restless questioning and striving -of the present and go back in spirit for a century or two to more normal -conditions, we shall find this music restful and soothing as the green -sweep of woods and meadows on a June morning in the country, after the -glare and fever of a city ball-room. - -The closing movement, with its light, tripping rhythm, its playful, -half-facetious mood, is evidently intended to recall the pranks of that -merry, tricksy sprite, Puck, so brimming over with good-natured fun and -laughing mischief, yet so ready and able, at his master's command, to -"put a girdle round the world in forty minutes." - -The whole is a work of delicate fancy rather than emotional depth or -dramatic force. It shows us a somewhat unusual phase of Beethoven's -genius, and is but one more proof of his versatility, one more -justification for his title, "The Shakespeare of Music." - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata, C Major, Op. 53 - - -This is one of the best and justly most beloved of the pianoforte works -from what is known as Beethoven's Second Period; that is to say, the -period when his creative power was at its zenith, when his genius had -reached its fullest maturity, yet showed no sign of waning; when, in its -individual development, it had outgrown all youthful crudities, all -reminiscent suggestions of older masters, occasionally to be found in -his earlier writings, yet before it had lapsed into that somewhat -obstruse, metaphysical vein to which some of us are inclined to object -in his latest works, in which individuality is sometimes exaggerated -into eccentricity. The present writer is not among those who regard his -latest sonatas for the piano as in any sense his greatest works, and it -is something of a question whether any pianist would play or any -audience tolerate the Op. 111, for instance, if it bore any signature -but that of Beethoven. The works of his second or middle period are -instinct with far more genuine spontaneity and true musical effect. - -The Op. 53 is familiarly known among musicians under two names. It is -often designated as the "Aurora Sonata," because of its suggestive -reference to, not to say actual description of, those wondrous fireworks -of the heavens, the northern lights. The first movement particularly, -with its constant change of key, its well-nigh infinite variety of light -and shade, above all, its constant flash and play of scintillating -embellishment and brilliant passage work, cannot fail to call up before -the imaginative mind the varying hues, the shifting, intermittent -splendors of the aurora borealis, with its flashes of crimson and -orange, and its flickerings of softest violet and rose. - -The second movement forms a distinct and restful contrast and quiet -background to the brilliancy of the first. It is slow, reposeful, and -gravely impressive, symbolizing the hushed solemnity of the quiet, -frost-clear, winter night. - -The last movement, a prefect rondo in form, returns to the mood and -general style of the first. It is bright and crisp, full of brilliant -ornamentations and striking contrasts, and should be given with the idea -of the northern lights again distinctly before the mind. Its airy, -buoyant melody, floating lightly upon swiftly flowing waves of -accompaniment, reminding one of that Wotan's bridge which the ancient -Northman fancied he beheld in the glittering, far-spanning arch of the -aurora, that bright, but perilous, path of heroes from Earth to -Walhalla. - -This composition is also known as the "Waldstein Sonata," because -dedicated to Count Waldstein, of Vienna, one of Beethoven's best -friends, during his earlier years in the Austrian capital. Count -Waldstein was a descendant of the famous general and most prominent -Catholic leader, who figured so prominently during the thirty years' war -in Germany, that sanguinary struggle between Catholics and Protestants, -from 1618 to 1648. The name of this brilliant leader, a Bohemian noble -of vast wealth and power, and commander of the Austrian imperial forces, -is usually spelled Wallenstein; but the name and lineage are identical -with that of the Count to whom this sonata is dedicated--the confusion -arising from the difference between the German and Bohemian orthography. -The original Wallenstein, though unquestionably a man of pronounced -intellectual ability and a devout, enthusiastic Catholic, was a firm -believer in what we term the obsolete science of astrology and an -earnest student of its mysteries. He had fullest faith in all the mystic -auguries and prophetic omens of the skies, and never undertook any -important step without first carefully consulting them, aided by the -profounder knowledge of a trained, professional astrologer, whom he -always kept close at hand. It is of interest to note that the famous -German scientist, Kepler, served for many years as the private -astrologer of Wallenstein, In the researches and belief of Duke -Wallenstein he included every manifestation of the aurora borealis. In -fact, he seems to have laid particular stress upon these as bearing -directly upon his own life and career, as fraught with special prophetic -import for him personally. It is a curious coincidence, in view of these -facts, that the most brilliant display of the northern lights recorded -for the first half of the seventeenth century took place on the very -evening on which Wallenstein was assassinated, only a few hours prior to -his murder. In the light of his theories it would almost seem like an -attempt of his old friends in the skies to warn him of impending peril. -At all events, the aurora was, according to his belief, an important -factor in his life. His descendants, who naturally treasured all the -facts and traditions concerning their brilliant ancestor, would -therefore regard the aurora with special interest as being, in a certain -sense, connected with their own family history. It was for this reason, -as a delicate and appropriate compliment to his friend, that Beethoven, -in writing a work which was to be dedicated to him, chose this theme and -embodied it in a composition which, for his time and in view of the then -prevailing musical conditions, as well as the necessary limitations of -the strict sonata form, is remarkably, even graphically, descriptive. - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata, E Minor, Op. 90 - - -This composition is one of the shortest, easiest, and, from the -standpoint of magnitude, least important of Beethoven's later works. It -has but two movements, neither of them of extreme technical difficulty, -and in structure it fails, in various essential respects, to fulfil the -requirements of the conventional sonata form. Indeed, the same may be -said of many of his best known and most played sonatas, which are -sonatas only in name, according to the generally accepted technical -significance of the term, notably the Op. 26, Op. 27, No. 2, and others. -Yet this little Op. 90, in E minor, is among his most genial, -interesting, and gratefully musical compositions. In spite of an -occasional touch of pedantry, it is full of melodic charm and emotional -suggestiveness. It is not descriptive in the sense of portraying either -actual scenes or events. It deals not with action, but with a series of -varying, strongly contrasted moods. - -It is dedicated to Count Lichnowsky, a resident of Vienna, with whom the -composer was intimately acquainted, and of whose touching little love -story it is a musical embodiment. The Count's personal experiences of -mind and heart suggested the work and formed its emotional content. He -was a member of one of the most aristocratic Viennese families, belonged -to the highest nobility, and had inherited a proud old name and vast -estates. He occupied a lofty position in both social and diplomatic -circles, but he had become seriously and profoundly attached to a young -actress of unquestioned talent and rising fame, but of obscure and very -humble origin--a girl of exceptional beauty, sterling character, and -refined, winning personality, but, considered from the standpoint of -worldly position and class traditions, a wholly unsuitable alliance for -the great noble. - -It is difficult for one educated in democratic America to grasp the -conditions involved in such a situation, or to understand and to -sympathize with the painful struggle in the mind of the Count, the -maddening doubts, the heart-sick vacillation on her account, as much as -his own, before the final decision was reached; the obstacles to be -overcome, the opposition of friends and relatives to be met or defied, -before the path could be cleared to his desired goal. On the one hand, -love and happiness with the woman of his choice; on the other, social -ostracism for his future wife, certainly, and for himself, probably; -serious detriment to his promising career; a life of constant battle -with class prejudice, of incessant petty slights and mortifications; a -position necessarily trying and humiliating to both. At last, however, -love triumphed over all doubts and difficulties, as it always should and -must if genuine, and the wedding took place. - -It is said, "All the world loves a lover," and certainly the story of -true love victorious over all opposition is the oldest and to most -people the most interesting ever told. This story, or at least the -emotions underlying it, expressed in music, Beethoven gives us in the -two strongly contrasted movements of this little sonata: a simple drama -of hearts, in two acts, written in the language of tone. - -The first movement deals with the period of doubt and indecision, of -mental conflict and moody alternation, of resolve and depression. Its -strong, passionate minor first subject in chords expresses the struggle -and unrest, the indignant protest against petty prejudice and inflexible -conventionality; while its plaintive little counter-theme tells of -tender longings, of sad discouragements, of hopes deferred and desire -thwarted. In the development it reaches a vigorous, rough, almost -dissonant climax, as of bitter defiance and fierce scorn of the world -and its trammels. - -The second movement, calm, fluent, and sweetly melodious, full of rest -and tranquil content, deals with the period after love's victory, when -hope has been fulfilled and the heart's unrest has been transformed to -peace and happiness, where life flows onward like a placid stream, its -waters brightened and purified by the glad sunlight of perfect love and -full-orbed happiness, its waves murmuring the old yet ever new refrain, -the simple, natural, yet magically potent melody, to which the symphony -of the universe is harmonized. - -There is an occasional brief suggestion of past strife and remembered -trial, just sufficient to give enduring zest to the present, reposeful -joy; but, as a whole, this last movement, with its constantly reiterated -tender yet cheerful major melody, seems to sing over and over, with -trifling variations of form, but untiring delight in its essential -burden, the song of love's completeness. A song without words it may be, -but with a meaning passing words. - - - - - Beethoven: Music to "The Ruins of Athens" - - -This composition, or rather series of fragmentary musical sketches, -containing some very original and telling movements, is wholly unknown -to the American public, and unfamiliar to most musicians, except for the -"Turkish Grand March," the only number that has gained any considerable -popularity. "The Ruins of Athens" is the name of a curious but very -ingenious production for the stage, once quite popular in Germany--a -sort of combination of the spectacular play, the musical melodrama and -classical allegory, designated "A Dramatic Mask" by the author, a -playwright of Vienna. It was written and produced at a time when the -sympathies and interest of the Christian world were strongly enlisted -for the Greeks in their gallant and desperate struggles for freedom from -Turkish domination and oppression which ended successfully in 1829, -after a contest of seven years. - -The scene is laid in Athens, then practically in ruins. The characters, -situations, and environment are all, of course, Greek. To this work -Beethoven furnished the music, originally scored for orchestra, some -numbers of which have since been transcribed for the piano. Of these, -only two are of any real value or importance to the pianist. - - - Turkish Grand March - -First, the "Turkish Grand March" referred to, written to accompany the -march of the Turkish troops across the stage in one scene. Rubinstein, -when in this country years ago, scored many of his greatest popular -successes with his own effective arrangement of this number. It contains -no great originality or musical depth, in fact is quite primitive in -both content and structure, but is brilliant and pleasing, with a -strongly marked, rhythmic swing and a shrill, strident melody which, in -its intentional, bald simplicity, strongly suggests the rude but -spirited martial music of a half-barbaric people, given by fife and -drum. Its artistic effectiveness depends upon the skilful handling of an -old but ever popular device, the audible illusion of approach and -departure. The music, beginning with the softest possible pianissimo, -swells in a gradual, almost imperceptible crescendo, to the heaviest -obtainable triple forte, and then as gradually diminishes to double -pianissimo, tapering off at last into silence; thus simulating the -approach of marching troops from a distance nearer and nearer, till they -pass across the stage in immediate proximity, and then their gradual -receding till lost again in the distance. It is a device of which many -composers have availed themselves, and makes great demands upon the -player's self-control and sense of proportion and gradation, as well as -his command of the tonal resources of his instrument. - - - The Dance of the Dervishes - -By far the most original of these numbers is "The Dance of the -Dervishes," the second one referred to. This brief but complete -composition is full of striking originality and graphic realism. It is -one in which Beethoven's genius seems to have anticipated by half a -century the pronounced modern trend toward descriptive or program music, -and is as realistic a tone-painting as we might expect from the pen of -Saint-Saëns, Wagner, or any of the recent writers. The dance was -introduced into the play as an interesting local feature,--the dervishes -being numerous in connection with the Turkish army,--and Beethoven -naturally selected it as an effective subject for musical treatment. -But, before speaking of their dancing as illustrated by Beethoven, it -may be of sufficient historical interest to give a brief sketch of the -dervishes themselves. - -They developed as a sect or order from Mohammedanism after it was well -established in the world. The name "dervishes," which they assumed, -comes from a Russian word which means "beggars from door to door." The -Arabic word which means the same thing is "fakirs." So they are called -dervishes or fakirs in different localities, but are the same body. They -declared themselves Moslems, but their doctrines, in many respects, -differed widely from those of Mohammed. Their beginnings are in -obscurity, but they were a well-established order by the eleventh -century. Their expressed beliefs, as we earliest come to know them, were -chiefly and decidedly religious. They seemed to represent the spiritual -and mystical side of Islam, having a philosophy much like that of the -Hindus, and perhaps borrowed from them. Their central idea seemed to be -that the soul is an emanation from God, and that man's highest aim is to -seek a total absorption in Him. Their various and strange rites and -ceremonies seem only different ways by which they sought for union with -the deity. In this way they claimed that they secured miraculous powers. -At first they largely lived in convents, under rules and orders, giving -themselves up to meditation and penance, observing the rules of poverty, -abstinence from wine, and celibacy, in the higher classes. Their growth -was rapid; but in time they largely fell away from their highest estate, -ceased to be so strictly a religious body, broke up into various ranks -and sub-orders, became more free from conventional rules, more nomadic, -and more wild and fanatical; but their social and political influence -ever increased, so that they have long been regarded as a dangerous -element in the state. There are crowds of them all through the East that -seem to belong to no society, wandering mendicants, and, though often -skilled in trades, largely subsisting by professional jugglery, bigoted -in their fantastic beliefs, and varying in their rites and strange -ceremonies. And yet always and everywhere there is still some general -adherence to the old appointed religious ways, a peculiar tie or -affiliation with the distinctive body or sect, however differing in -certain notions or modes of worship. The lowest devotee of them all -claims that the dervishes or fakirs constitute a distinct body of -religious believers in spite of all divisions and varieties in -manifestation. They acknowledge no authority but that of their spiritual -guides, as that of the Mahdi in the Soudan, where these fanatics have -been so lately fighting the English. They agree also in not following -the letter of the Koran, or the general teachings of its interpreters. -As a whole body, in all its orders, all over the world, they seek, as an -act of worship, to get into an ecstatic state. They do this in various -ways: Sometimes by drinking hasheesh, but more generally by some -physical or mental ways, and while under the excitement they perform -astounding feats in jugglery or mysticism that really seem almost -miraculous. We cannot stop to detail these different methods. One of -them is the dance of a certain order which has received the name of the -"dancing or whirling dervishes." - -This is the dance of Beethoven--an ingenious method of excitement and -self-torture, and at the same time a strict religious ceremonial. It -consists of little more than an exceedingly rapid gyration upon an -imaginary pivot, spinning round and round like tops, with almost -incredible velocity, till overcome by dizziness from the protracted -rotary motion, or by physical exhaustion, they fall in a swoon, after -passing through all the successive stages of delirious frenzy always -attending intense fanatical religious excitement, no matter what the -race or faith. The dance is accompanied by frantic gestures, wild cries, -and doleful groans, and often by a species of weird oriental music, -adapted to its rhythm, and intended to stimulate the dancers to greater -excitement, and consequently greater exertion and speed. - -This music, as well as a portrayal of the dance, Beethoven gives us in -this composition, which has been admirably transcribed for the piano by -Saint-Saëns. It begins softly and a little slowly. As the dancers -gradually get under way and warmed to their task, it gradually grows in -speed and power as the frenzy increases, till it reaches a furious, -almost insane climax; then rapidly diminishes as, one by one, the -dancers, exhausted or swooning, drop out of the circle. - -It demands great freedom and facility in octave playing, and endless -verve and abandon of style; and needs, to be comprehended and enjoyed by -an audience, some explanation of its character and artistic -signification, either given by the player or printed on the program. - - - - - WEBER - 1786 1826 - - - - - Weber: Invitation to the Dance, Op. 65 - - -Critics have generally ascribed to this composition the honor of -inaugurating a new and important department in the realm of tonal -creation--namely, that of descriptive or program music; that is to say, -music which attempts to embody in tone something more than mere ideal -beauty of metrical form and rhythmic symmetry, and to express something -more than vague emotional states, too intangible for utterance in words; -music which conveys not only sensuous pleasure and indefinite moods, but -a distinct, realistic suggestion; which gives, against a background of -harmony, with its general emotional coloring, an actual picture of some -scene in nature or experience in life; music, in a word, which takes its -place in line with the advanced position of the other arts, in progress -toward dramatic truth and worthy realism. Descriptive music, like -landscape painting, has been the latest, and in some respects the -loftiest, phase of the art to be developed. - -We can scarcely with justice credit to Weber, as a strictly original -departure, the opening of this new path in the domain of musical art, -which was in modern times to lead so far and to such important and -magnificent results. Descriptive music, of a more or less pronounced -character, had already appeared from time to time, though rarely so -labeled, and mostly in detached fragments, in the works of most of the -greatest composers, preëminently in those of Haydn, Mozart, Gluck, and -Beethoven. Even the austere Handel was not entirely free from occasional -digressions into this field. But we may safely ascribe to Weber the -honor of being one of the first to have the full courage of his -convictions and to declare himself boldly for this phase of creative -art, by giving to this distinctly descriptive composition an -unmistakably descriptive title, thus fearlessly unveiling and -emphasizing its realistic intentions. - -The work opens with a simple but serious passage of recitative in single -notes, in the baritone register, conveying the "Invitation to the Dance" -as if by a mellow masculine voice. Then comes the reply, in a soft -soprano, brief, kindly, but as if offering some playful objection, as -the lady, true to her sex, waits to be asked a second time before saying -yes. The invitation is repeated more urgently, followed by the assenting -treble, as the lady steps upon the floor on the arm of her partner. A -brief dialogue ensues, in which the two voices can be distinctly traced -by their differing registers, alternating and interwoven, as the pair -pace the polished floor, exchanging those airy nothings of the -ball-room. Then the orchestra enters, with a passage of brilliant -resonant chords, full of spirited life and gay challenge, calling the -dancers to their places, and the waltz proper begins. Its crisp, piquant -rhythm and free elasticity of movement, its bright, graceful melody and -cheerful major harmony, all express youthful elation, fresh, joyous -excitement, thoughtless, hence unmixed, gaiety. - -As the steps and the pulses quicken, there comes on that exhilaration of -mood familiar to all dancers, caused by the lights, the flowers, the -perfumes, the music, the gay costumes, the beauty and the gallantry of a -ball-room, the rhythmic exercise of the muscles and free circulation of -the blood, all acting together to produce upon the senses and the fancy -an effect amounting almost to intoxication; an echo of which is awakened -in every breast, which has felt it often and keenly, on catching a -strain of distant dance music, to the end of life. This mood is depicted -in the composition before us by an exuberance of runs and ornamentation, -following the first simple enunciation of the waltz melody. - -After rising to quite a little climax of ecstasy, this mood lapses -abruptly into the second waltz theme, slower, more lyric, dreamy, -languorous, almost melancholy in tone, conveying that impression which -every susceptible person feels, to the verge of rising tears, after -listening long to waltz music, which is quite different from its first -inspiring effect, and which every devoted dancer feels equally surely in -the prolonged waltz. The time has come when one has grown so accustomed -to the waltz movement as to be scarcely conscious of it, seems rather, -in a state of rhythmic rest, to be floating on the atmosphere, which -ebbs and flows to a three-four measure. Thoughts, breath, pulses, flying -feet, the murmur of voices, all existence has adapted itself to this -waltz tempo, as to its normal element, and the very planets seem to -swing through space in triple rhythm. The true waltz has but two moods, -which touch the opposite poles of emotion--that of joyous elation and of -dreamy languor. We may call them the _Allegro_ and the _Penseroso_ of -the waltz. And Weber, in the "Invitation to the Dance," has recognized -this and woven his composition of but two themes, representing the -contrasting phases of feeling described. - -In the midst of the second warm and sinuous melody, we hear again the -masculine voice, in less conventional accents, and the soft responses of -the treble, through quite a colloquy, while the accompaniment keeps ever -steadily to the undulating waltz movement, till the two voices merge -gradually into the general murmur and are drowned in the flourishes of -the orchestra, as our couple disappears in the whirl, with which the -waltz, taking up again the first sparkling melody with accelerated pace, -draws with increasing confusion to its close. When the dance has ceased, -and the orchestra is silent, the introductory theme recurs, as the -gentleman leads his lady to a seat and expresses his thanks with the -sedate courtesy of his first greeting; and thus ends this charming -composition and this glimpse into that gay social world, where the hand -some, talented, but rather dissolute young composer was only too great a -favorite in his early years. - -In spite of a certain baldness and primitive naïveté noticeable in the -treatment at times, the "Invitation to the Dance," so widely and justly -popular, is one of Weber's ablest pianoforte compositions, both from a -musical and a dramatic standpoint. Regarded from that of pure music, it -is especially interesting from the fact that it was the first -composition to raise the waltz, used up to that time only as an -accompaniment for dancing, to the level of legitimate and recognized -artistic musical forms. In the hands of Schubert, Chopin, Strauss, -Rubinstein, and Moszkowski, these successive kings of the waltz, it has -since reached its present development. - -The "Invitation to the Dance" was written a few months after Weber's -happy marriage with the opera singer, Caroline Brandt, and is dedicated -to "My Caroline." - - - - - Weber: Rondo in E Flat, Op. 62 - - -The rondo is the most ancient, simple, and natural form of homophonic -musical construction. It is based upon the folk-song and is always in -one or the other of the more or less complex song forms. It consists of -a simple melodic period, usually eight measures in length, bright and -cheerful in character, alternating several times, virtually unchanged at -each reappearance, with one or more subordinate subjects, in a more -lyric or dramatic mood, for the sake of variety and contrast. - -An apt but homely illustration of the rondo may be found in that most -laborious and indigestible product of American cookery, that culinary -absurdity, originating in our natural tendency toward display and -dyspepsia, the layer cake. In the most primitive form of rondo, or more -strictly speaking, rondino, the first theme appears but twice, -corresponding to a first and second layer of cake, with the filling of -cream or jelly between, represented by the second contrasting subject, -of a more piquant and savory flavor, between the first theme and its -reappearance--a sort of musical Washington pie. In the more extended -forms, the principal melody recurs several times, occasionally with -slight changes of treatment, but without radical transformation or -development, like a successive series of cake layers of slightly -different flavor, but the same fundamental material and an entirely -different filling between them, each time; and a coda, or musical -postscript, is occasionally added by way of frosting over the whole. - -The rondo form is by nature adapted to the expression of the lighter, -more pleasurable emotions. Graceful fancy, playful tenderness, arch -coquetry, sparkling vivacity, here find their most ready and appropriate -embodiment. The form is sometimes employed to express pensive sadness or -restless, impatient longing, but never effectively to utter grave, -profound thought or grand and lofty sentiment. Hence it most frequently -appears as the final movement of symphony or sonata, a sort of light, -pleasant dessert after the more substantial repast. - -_Rondo_ is one of those words of many relatives, both in our own English -and other languages. Probably the great-grandfather of them all is the -Latin _rotundus_, and probably the first emigrant to America, in the -musical line of descent, was the old-fashioned _round_, familiar to our -ancestors. Cousins and other close connections of the rondo are in music -the _roundelay_ and in poetry the _rondeau_, _rondel_, and _roundel_, -all bearing a striking family resemblance both in external features and -inward characteristics. - -The poet Algernon Charles Swinburne, in his "Century of Roundels," -presents to us many charming representatives of this most modern branch -of the family. The following verses, quoted from the work mentioned, are -the best possible descriptive illustration of the form, scope, and -characteristics of both the roundel in poetry and the rondo in music: - - "THE ROUNDEL. - - "A Roundel is wrought as a ring or a star-bright sphere, - With craft of delight and with cunning of sound unsought, - That the heart of the hearer may smile if to pleasure his ear - A Roundel is wrought. - - "Its jewel of music is carven of all or of aught-- - Love, laughter, or mourning--remembrance or fear-- - That fancy may fashion to hang in the ear of thought. - - "As the bird's quick song runs round, and the hearts in us hear - Pause answer to pause, and again the same strain caught. - So moves the device whence, round as a pearl or tear, - A Roundel is wrought." - -The E flat rondo of Weber is a fine specimen of its class, perfect and -considerably complex in form and charmingly exhilarating in mood, with -just enough of dramatic suggestion to give the necessary contrast of -shading. It is neither distinctly descriptive nor deeply emotional. It -pleases like a piece of rare old lace or hand embroidery, rather than -like a picture or poem, by its delicate workmanship, its fine finish, -and its beautiful, skilfully combined materials. Its mission is to charm -the esthetic taste, like some dainty little Italian villa of variegated -marbles, half hidden in a grove of olive and orange trees, by its -symmetry of outline, its harmony of varied colors, and the simple, -joyous, sunshiny life and love of life which it suggests, rather than to -arouse the intellect or stir the depths of feeling by historic or -legendary association with vivid or tragic human interests. - -This composition should be played freely and fluently, with a certain -gaiety and vivacity, but at a reasonably moderate tempo, with a tone -crisp and sparkling, not dry, yet not too legato; clear, but not heavy. -The player should employ few, if any, of the modern rubato effects and -be careful to avoid blurred or too close pedaling, especially in the -first subject. A somewhat slower tempo and more decided lyric effect -should be introduced when the left-hand theme in B flat major occurs, -and still more during the suggestion of dramatic recitative, alternating -between the two hands, which opens with the half note in the right hand -on G flat, A natural, and E flat. But, as a whole, the tempo should be -kept very steady, and a strongly marked rhythmic distinctness and -precision are absolute essentials in the proper presentation of this, as -of all Weber's works. - - - - - Weber: Concertstück in F Minor Op. 79 - - -Although written for piano and orchestra, and still occasionally given -as a concerto in symphony concerts, this work is more familiar and more -frequently heard as a piano solo merely, or with the orchestral parts -arranged for second piano, in which form it is very popular, especially -for use in pupils' recitals and music schools. It is one of the best and -most effective of Weber's compositions for piano, and one of the most -successful of his attempts in the line of descriptive music, in which he -was a pioneer; for as Sir George Grove well says, "His talent shone most -conspicuously whenever he had a poetical idea to interpret musically." -On the subject of this concerto, he continues: "Though complete in -itself as a piece of music, it is prompted by a poetical idea, for a -whole dramatic scene was in the composer's mind when he wrote it.... The -part which the different movements take in this program is obvious -enough, but a knowledge of the program adds greatly to the pleasure of -listening." - -It is rare indeed to find in print any accurate and detailed information -concerning the artistic and dramatic content of any particular -composition; but in regard to this Concertstück by Weber, we are -fortunate enough to have the whole story on which the music was founded -given in the words of Benedict, who had it from the composer himself. - -"The châtelaine sits alone on her balcony, gazing far away into the -distance. Her knight has gone to the Holy Land. Years have passed by, -battles have been fought. Is he still alive? Will she ever see him -again? Her excited imagination calls up a vision of her husband, lying -wounded and forsaken on the battlefield. Can she not fly to him and die -by his side? She falls back unconscious. But hark! What notes are those -in the distance? Over there in the forest something flashes in the -sunlight--nearer and nearer! Knights and squires with the cross of the -crusaders, banners waving, acclamations of the people. And there, it is -he! She sinks into his arms. Love is triumphant. Happiness without end. -The very woods and waves sing the song of love. A thousand voices -proclaim his victory." - -The composition is in four movements, and it is hardly necessary to add -that the first, _larghetto_, represents the sorrowful meditation of the -lonely châtelaine upon her balcony; the second, _allegro_, her lively -imagination picturing her lord upon the field of battle; the third, -_march_, the tramp of the returning crusaders with flying banners; and -the fourth, _finale_, the reunion when "the very woods and waves sing -the song of love." - -Those Philistines who contend that program music is but a mushroom -growth of the last decades of the nineteenth century will hardly care to -come face to face with this instance of it, backed by the authority of -Grove, Benedict, and von Weber, and nearly a hundred years old. - - - - - Weber-Kullak: Lützow's Wilde Jagd, Op. 111, No. 4 - - -Among the better class of rather old-fashioned but effective -transcriptions for the piano, which have fallen somewhat into neglect of -later years, Kullak's pianoforte version of Weber's "Lützow's Wild Ride" -deserves attention. - -The original ballad, which formed the text of Weber's song, was one of -the best of many of similar character by Karl Theodor Körner, that -trumpet-voiced Swabian poet, the popular idol of his time in southern -Germany, who sounded the notes of patriotism, conflict, and heroism in -simple but ringing verses, which still echo in the hearts of his -countrymen, and which describe the scenes, and glow with the fervid -spirit of the century's dawn. - -Major Lützow, the hero of the ballad, was an officer in the Prussian -Hussars during the brief and disastrous struggle with Napoleon in 1813, -when his country went down, crushed well-nigh out of existence, by the -invincible power and iron hand of the all-conquering Emperor. When -Berlin surrendered, the Prussian army was disarmed and disbanded, and -the King, Frederick William III, was forced to accept with thanks the -most humiliating conditions of peace; and even the beautiful Queen -Louisa, the people's beloved divinity, had to humble herself in her -despair to beg from the generosity of the victor the most ordinary -concessions to the vanquished. Major Lützow indignantly repudiated the -disgraceful treaty and openly defied the vengeance of the great -Napoleon. Rallying a few of his gallant riders about him, he escaped to -the forests, and there organized a guerrilla band, for months waging a -phenomenally desperate but successful war on his own account with the -world's conqueror and his matchless army. - -Lützow and his "Black Riders" were soon known far and near, the hope and -pride of friends, the terror of foes; and hundreds of the best martial -spirits of Germany flocked to his standard. He pushed his daring raids -even across the Rhine into France, sweeping down like a whirlwind -apparently from the sky, at the most unexpected times and places, -leaving consternation and destruction in his track, and was gone again -before the French could rally to oppose him. Soon the belief spread that -the "Black Riders" were a supernatural phenomenon, an incarnation of the -bloody spirit of the time, half men, half demons, bearing charmed lives, -ignoring time, distance, and other human limitations, and liable to -appear at any moment, without warning, in the midst of the imperial -camp, or in the heart of Paris. Their very name was enough to shake the -nerves of the bravest veteran. - -This element of the supernatural Körner has ingeniously worked into the -ballad, and it adds materially to the thrilling power of the heroic -narration, though it is used, and very judiciously, not in the form of -positive statement, but in a mood of shuddering inquiry and doubt. - -Weber, in his vocal setting of the ballad, with his usual ability in -grasping and utilizing every realistic suggestion of his subject, has -emphasized both the martial and the spectral phases of the theme, -treating with equal skill the spirit of martial daring and heroic -patriotism which spoke in Lützow's deeds, and the supernatural terrors -which they awoke. One moment the "Black Huntsmen" sweep by us across -some open moonlit plain, with a wild haste, with the clang of saber, the -ring of bugle, and the tramp of rushing steeds; the next they flit -before us through the gloom of the forests, vague, mysterious, like the -indistinct phantoms of war. The distinct imitation of the rhythmic beat -of galloping hoofs, so frequent a device in descriptive music, is -effectively utilized here in accompaniment, while the melody of the -song, full of trumpet-like suggestions, is raid to consist in part of -actual bugle calls which were used among Lützow's raiders. - -Kullak, in his instrumental transcription, while preserving with -artistic fidelity the composer's intention in all the original effects -of the song, has broadened, enriched, and intensified them, and at the -same time adapted them cleverly to the resources of the piano. In places -they may be still further enhanced by playing, as I would recommend to -those possessing sufficient technic for it, all the scale passages for -both hands in octaves, instead of single notes, as they are written, -thus adding volume and brilliancy to the work as a whole. - -The introduction, in rapid triplets, with marked accentuation, -reproducing the exact rhythm of the gallop of horses, should begin -softly, as if distant, and rise in a steady crescendo to a strong -climax, suggesting the swift approach of a troop of riders; then the -melody enters, bold and distinct, as if in trumpet tones, or given by -the resonant voices of the dashing troopers. The piece must be varied by -frequent and marked contrasts; now a trumpet-call, clear and sharp, -answered by a distant echo; now a whispered hint of spectral terrors; -again the sweep and rush, the clash and clamor, the delirious excitement -of the impetuous charge. - -The exultant climax, at the close, well expresses the sentiment of the -final verse of the ballad: - - "The Fatherland is free, famous, and triumphant, - Glory to the heroes whose blood has bought the victory!" - -This composition of Weber's, when given by a rousing, ringing, -full-voiced male chorus of Germans, stirs the martial spirit in every -breast, just as the Marseillaise fires the blood of the French. In its -piano transcription, by Kullak, I recommend it to every player and -teacher who is seeking something which is very difficult to -find--namely: a good and effective number, martial and rhythmic in -character, which is of real merit, and is a novelty to the audience of -to-day, and yet has a classic name attached. It is admirably adapted to -close a program or to end a group of several shorter compositions of -varying mood. - - - - - SCHUBERT - 1797 1828 - - - - - Schubert: (Impromptu B Flat) Theme and Variations, Op. 142, No. 3 - - -Franz Schubert, the golden sands of whose brief existence, rich with the -jewel gleams of genius, ran all too swiftly through the glass of time, -between the years 1797 and 1828, may be considered, if not the -strongest, certainly the most genial, fluent, and spontaneous composer -of the modern Romantic School, which arose and flourished so luxuriantly -during the vigorous youth of our own century. He is most generally known -as the master of the German "Lied" or song. This brief, concise, -epigrammatic form of condensed musical expression, though not, of -course, original with Schubert, received at his hand its fullest -development, its highest perfection, both as regards intrinsic beauty -and dramatic precision; while in quantity, as well as quality, he far -surpasses all competitors in this vein of creative work. There are -something like 600 of these songs from his pen, and such was his fluent -versatility of production, that he is known to have completed seven of -these inimitable musical gems in one day. His instrumental compositions, -whether for orchestra or piano, though far less numerous, are for the -most part equally able and effective, and deserve a much more frequent -hearing in the concert-room than they at present receive, displaying, as -they do, to the full, his inventive spontaneity, his inexhaustible fund -of fresh, original melody, and the peculiar, tender, poetic grace of his -style. - -Most of Schubert's best known pianoforte works, like the composition -under discussion, belong to the smaller, more modest, and unpretentious -forms. They are eminently soft, sweet, and winning, rarely exhibiting -that breadth, grandeur, and passionate intensity with which such -composers as Chopin, Schumann, and Liszt have made us familiar. But who -would despise the wood anemone because it chances not to possess the -voluptuous perfume of the queenly rose or the gorgeous hues of the -wizard poppy? - -The "theme and variations," of which this work is an excellent example, -is one of the most ancient, natural, and logical forms of musical -construction. A simple melody, clearly enunciated at the beginning, is -used by the composer as the musical germ of his work, from which he -evolves, as by the process of spontaneous growth, all its manifold -possibilities for varied expression and contrasted effect; much as the -skilful orator expands from his tersely stated thesis or text, by means -of elaborate comparison, analysis, antithesis, and peroration, all that -far-reaching sequence of deduction and argument latent in his -thought-germ. It is always fascinating to watch this growth, this -gradual evolution, this play of many colored lights over the familiar -theme, under the skilful and ingenious manipulation of a master hand. -But there is, I claim, a deeper interest and a higher pleasure to be -derived from seeking, beneath the smoothly flowing harmonies and -graceful, rippling embellishment, for the allegorical significance or -suggestion mirrored in their clear depths, as scenes and faces are -reflected in the tranquil stream, and which are rarely, if ever, wanting -in the true art work. - -The "theme and variations" in music, which owes its origin to the first -crude attempts of early composers to elongate and develop a musical idea -into a symmetrical art form, corresponds to a very early phase of -another art. I refer to the series of progressive pictures carved on the -friezes of many ancient Oriental and Grecian temples, portraying -successive episodes in the life of some god, hero, king, or prophet. The -central figure is ever the same, however attitude, action, mood, and -environment may vary, to suit the stage of his story represented in each -scene. No smoke of battle, strangeness of garb, or storm of emotion can -so obscure or distort the familiar lineaments that they are not -recognizable, though they take contour and expression from -circumstances, those variations in the theme of life. The same idea is -carried out in pictorial art in the interiors of more modern edifices, -when the walls of cathedrals are adorned with frescoes representing the -life of Christ, in numerous consecutive panels, from the infant in the -manger to the death upon the cross. Painting can tell a story, within -certain limitations, as well as words, and more powerfully. The same is -true of music, for those who have ears to hear. - -As already stated in connection with the Beethoven sonata, Op. 26, to me -the "theme and variations" always seems to represent a given character -or personality, met at different times, amid varying scenes and -circumstances, in many moods and situations, as would be the case in -real life; developing with the progress of acquaintance and contrasting -experiences, showing now one aspect, now another, according to the -changes of inner emotion or outward environment, but always preserving -the same individuality, an identity which lends itself to, but does not -lose itself in, the vicissitudes of human existence. In the particular -work before us, let the first fresh, simple, tender theme symbolize a -maiden, the heroine of the story we will call her, fair, with the -delicate freshness of first youth, full of the winning grace, the naïve -simplicity and the dreamy poetic fancy of one of Lytton's heroines: a -young girl, - - "Standing with reluctant feet - Where the brook and river meet-- - Womanhood and childhood fleet." - -All the manifold vicissitudes of life are lying untried before her, with -the latent possibilities of her nature waiting to be unfolded and -developed by experience, that climate of the soul. - -In the first variation, with its tremulous yet flowing embellishment, -all is vague, uncertain, conjectural. She seems in a mood of -speculation, of reverie, to be gazing forward down the dim vista of the -years, and wondering, with a thrill at heart, what they promise or -presage for her. It is the first rosy, dawning twilight of as yet -indefinite hope and desire. - -In the second, her pulses beat to a swifter, stronger measure. She has -begun to taste the zest of life and is borne along impetuously on the -stream of youthful exhilaration and unbroken confidence, out into the -broad, full sunlight of the first great happiness. Light ripples of -laughter, quick-drawn breaths of delight, a sunny circuit of bright and -blithe fancies, envelop the theme and well-nigh conceal it. - -The mournful melody, somber minor harmonies, and sobbing accompaniment -of the third variation, so full of passionate pain, express the all too -certain reaction from the former hilarious mood, the coming of that -inevitable shadow of all great joy--its corresponding grief. The hour -has come when the first great, crushing sorrow surges in upon the soul, -in a resistless, overwhelming tide; and our heroine, from fancying that -her life's pathway was to be all roses and sunshine, is forced to find -it, for the time at least, all thorns and midnight darkness, and to -match her single strength with the might of woe in that struggle for -supremacy which must come soon or late to all. - -The fourth again changes wholly in character; is bold, energetic, -spirited, almost martial. The struggle of life is in full progress. The -resolute, forceful bass tones, with which the left hand enters from time -to time, seem like the impetus of a strong will giving momentum to -earnest purpose. This variation tells in stirring trumpet tones of -victory, of the dauntless courage and the elastic strength born in noble -natures of endurance and endeavor, of a character invigorated by -conflict, deepened and matured by adversity; and it leads us back, at -its close, through many winding ways and devious modulations, to a later -happiness, expressed in the fifth and last--a happiness hard-won, but -more complete than the first, though less exuberant, more ethereal and -spiritual, with something in it of the mellow sunset glow. - -The work closes with a tranquil coda, a brief evening retrospect, grave -and thoughtful; but, on the whole, cheerful in tone, as if the backward -glance were, all in all, fraught with satisfaction. Here we find the -opening theme, the character melody, in all its first simplicity, but -given an octave lower, in slower tempo and in full chords. Our heroine -has not altered; the contours are clear, the proportions identical, not -a note is wanting; but the _leit-motif_ of her personality is deeper, -broader, and fuller for the experiences of life behind her, and seems to -bear the imprint as of an epitaph, "I have lived and loved and labored. -All is well." - - - - - Emotion in Music - - -Not long since, when urging upon a pupil the necessity of bringing out -the deeper mood and meaning of a certain composition, the present writer -received this response: "I am afraid to make it say all that, to put so -much of myself into it; people will call me sentimental!" - -The reply voiced a prevailing and thoroughly American weakness. It is -far too common here to find, especially among our girls, a bright, warm, -impulsive nature, full of genuine sentiment and poetic fancy, choked and -perverted, turned shallow and bitter, by this same paralyzing fear of -ridicule; to meet persons who take a morbid pride in concealing and -repressing their better selves so effectually, that even their most -intimate friends shall never suspect them of being one degree less -frivolous and heartless than their companions, who in their turn are -doubtless vying with them in this deplorable, misguided effort to -belittle themselves, their lives and influence. - -It is one of the most significant and lamentable signs of the time, that -any allusion to or expression of a warm, true, earnest sentiment is met -in society with more or less open and bitter derision, even by those who -are secretly in sympathy with it, admire the courage and sincerity of -its champion, and would gladly take the same bold stand in its defense, -but dare not, and so add their coward voices to swell the majority. This -is the more deplorable, since this tendency is at once cause and effect. -The continual and systematic denial and suppression of emotion and -ideality result finally in their complete extinction in most cases, or -leave them deformed and feeble, to struggle for a precarious existence -in some dark, hidden recess of the soul, whose highest throne is their -rightful heritage. - -George Sand says, somewhere, speaking of the French, "We once had -sentiment, but the sirocco of sarcasm has scorched it from our hearts, -and where it grew is a desert place!" Alas for the people of whom this -is true! Alas for the young man or maiden who can say, "I have no -sentiment," and speak truth. And let me here caution any young person -against a light and frequent, even though purposely insincere, denial of -any characteristic of value; for there is a strange and subtle sympathy -between the heart and the lips, which works steadily, if stealthily, to -bring them more and more into accord. A lie is in every sense a -violation of the laws of nature; and what is first uttered as a -conscious, flagrant falsehood, becomes less so with each repetition, -till unawares a day will come which shall see it transformed into a -glaring truth. Such a person, no matter how highly organized, or -perfectly trained otherwise, is no better than a machine. He does not -live, he simply runs. - -One may not be to blame for a natural deficiency in those higher -qualities which make a life warm and rich and attractive, which mark a -personality as something more than an animated clod, or even a -well-adjusted mental mechanism; he must be pitied even though -instinctively shunned; but he who wantonly draws the fatal knife of -sarcasm across the throat of a true sentiment or a lofty ideal, however -feebly or imperfectly embodied, commits a crime against humanity at -large, more injurious and far-reaching in its effects than slaughter of -the body only. Above all, let us beware how we tamper with the natural, -essential relations between art and the emotions. Good-by to the artist -who has no place or use for sentiment in his work; he should turn his -attention at once to some more practical and creditable branch of -mechanics. - -One grievous mistake in our American system of training is that we -ignore almost altogether this phase of culture. We develop the -conscience, the reason, the memory, but do nothing for the taste, the -imagination, the esthetic sense, the whole ideal and spiritual side of -the character. The faithful, protracted study of music, or other branch -of art, even though it never result in any financial profit or the -smallest degree of professional success, will develop faculties and -tendencies of more advantage to the student and to all who may come in -contact with him in private life, than any amount of algebra, or any -number of Greek roots. The German methods of study, especially for young -ladies, might teach us a valuable lesson in this connection. - -He who would attain the best results in art should remember that we do -not gather dates of thorns, nor figs of thistles; that "only life begets -life," and that after its own kind; that an art product, to be really -good and great, must be the concentrated, crystallized essence of the -best that is in him, the epitome of his highest moods and aspirations, -of those rare, intuitive glimpses of a loftier existence, to which in -favorable moments he can lift himself, the distilled perfume of weeks, -it may be years, of living. He should subject himself to every possible -cultivating, elevating influence, should train, not only hand and head, -but heart as well; for these three are the inseparable trinity of art. -He should increase his resources, widen his experiences, expand his -horizon; not by cramming a quantity of facts, or by the conquest of mere -technical means--what use in commanding words, or tones, if one has -nothing to express withal?--but by increased familiarity with and -capacity to appreciate and exercise the qualities so constantly -requisite in his work. - -Let us remember, too, what the scientists tell us, that light and heat -radiated from a given center are dissipated in force and intensity in -proportion to the square of the distance to be traversed. The same is -emphatically true of emotion. If one would stir his audience to a -pleasurable excitement, he must himself be shaken as in a tempest; to -warm them, he must be at white heat. - -Should the question arise, How shall one learn to feel music more deeply -and make it more expressive? my answer would be, Read, think, feel, -dream, love, live! Read--not musical history and biography--these give -information, not culture; they are valuable, but not in this connection; -read poetry, especially the lyric and dramatic, and good prose -literature. A person entirely unaccustomed to understand or to utter -anything in tones, will often find the key to this unfamiliar medium of -expression by the following indirect method: Find some work, a poem is -best, because briefer and more concrete, which expresses, approximately -at least, the sentiment of the composition to be studied. Most persons -are more familiar with the language of words than with that of tones, -and will reach a given mood more directly and easily through that -channel. Let the poem be well studied, not only with the mind, but with -the imagination, dwelling upon it, trying to feel its meaning and beauty -as deeply as possible; then throw the same emotional content into the -music, making the tones tell what the words have said. The present -writer has found this course in teaching very effective with all -sensitive natures, even with those who have but the rudiments of an -artistic temperament. - -Above all, artist or amateur, teacher or pupil, fear not to use in your -work to the full all the emotional power you have or can acquire. It may -be the injudicious application of force that sometimes impairs artistic -results; it is never the excess. Vital energy should be controlled, -regulated, but never stinted. Ill-timed frenzy is not art, of course; -but where intensity is demanded and proper gradations and proportions -are observed, no dirge is ever too deeply gloomy, no dramatic climax too -strong. The danger is always of tameness, rather than of excessive -fervor. - -Let us, then, be genuine, earnest, whole-hearted, open, in our -allegiance to the ideal; and as for those who sneer at sentiment in art -or in life, why, let them rave. We adhere to the creed which T. T. -Munger has beautifully formulated for our profession in his "Music as -Revelation": "Emotion is the summit of existence, and music is the -summit of emotion, the art pathway to God." - - - - - CHOPIN - 1810 1849 - - - - - Chopin: Sonata, B Flat Minor, Op. 35 - - -Whether regarded from the standpoint of musical form, of intrinsic -beauty, or of dramatic intensity, this work may safely be pronounced -Chopin's masterpiece; and in the present writer's opinion it ranks as -the greatest composition in all piano literature. Chopin's ability to -handle the strict sonata form successfully has been sometimes called in -question; but whatever may be said of his other two sonatas, this one -will certainly bear comparison with the most perfect models of symmetry, -finish, and architectural completeness, by the best known and most -universally recognized classic masters. In the _allegro_ movement, upon -which the distinguishing character of the sonata form always depends, -the first and second subjects are well contrasted and admirably -balanced, the development is logical, ingenious, and forceful, and the -statement of the dramatic content is clear, concise, and strong, without -a single irrelevant phrase or superfluous measure. - -The work is founded upon an ancient Polish poem of a semi-legendary, -semi-allegorical significance, by a once prominent, now well-nigh -forgotten Polish writer. It consists of four movements, corresponding to -the four cantos of the poem, of which it is, in a sense, a musical -translation, treating successively the principal moods and situations in -the story. The fact that in the first two movements the incidents are -treated symbolically, emotionally, in accordance with the composer's -usual subjective mode of expression, rather than with the descriptive or -imitative devices of the modern school, does not in the least detract -from the poetic impression or suggestive power of the music. - -In the last two movements he has recourse, for obvious reasons, to the -direct method of definite realism. The first movement pictures the life -and feelings of the hero, a Polish knight of the middle ages, facing -storm and conflict, danger and hardship, in camp and field, fighting for -king and country, cheered now and then, in lonely hours of vigil at the -camp-fire, by waking visions of his distant home and his waiting bride. - -The opening measures of the brief introduction tell of stern courage and -inflexible resolve. Then the first subject enters, stirring, impetuous, -fiery, full of the ring of trumpets, the clash of steel, the fierce -exultation of desperate combat. The tranquil second subject suggests -memories of the happy days of youth in his quiet home--dreams of a -future brightened by the light of promised love, but still enveloped in -the softening haze of distance and uncertainty. The development, with -its complex, conflicting rhythms, its resistless, tempestuous sweep, -thrills with the excitement of sudden onset, the rush of charging -squadrons, the battle cry of struggling hosts. The closing chords -express a somber triumph, the proud but sorrow-shadowed elation of a -hard-won victory, purchased by the blood of many a patriot comrade. - -The second movement, the scherzo, gives us the triumphant return of our -hero crowned with laurel, accompanied by the jubilant strains of martial -music, and the glad acclamations of the crowd. Yet, in the midst of his -pride and well-earned glory, he finds time to dream again; this time -more tenderly, sweetly, hopefully; to dream of his home-coming, and the -fond greeting that awaits him in his own native village, where, through -the difficulties and dangers of the campaign, his promised bride has -been watching, and hoping, and praying for his return in faithful but -anxious affection. - -Here again we find two contrasting and strongly characteristic themes: -The first, full of martial pride and exultation, the thoughts of -victory, the glad tribute of applause to a nation's hero; the second, -tender, dreamy, pulsing with love's anticipation. After this soulful -trio melody, the first martial strains are repeated; but in the coda, a -brief recurrence of the trio theme seems to emphasize the idea that with -him the love thought dominates. This brings us to the third movement, -the Funeral March, unquestionably the best funeral march ever written -for the piano, the most intrinsically beautiful, the most touchingly, -intensely sad, and the most complete, finely finished, and perfectly -sustained, from first measure to last; the strongest, noblest, deepest -expression of heart-crushing sorrow to be found in all piano literature. - -As it is published and most often heard by itself, many who have played -and listened to it have not even been aware that it affords the third -chapter, so to speak, in a great tone epic, for as such this sonata must -be considered. - -As our hero approaches home, his heart swelling with anticipation, he is -greeted by the distant, solemn tolling of cathedral bells, too evidently -funeral bells, and soon is met by a slowly moving, somber procession of -black-robed monks and mourners, bearing to her last resting-place in the -church-yard the very bride to whose fond greeting he has so ardently -looked forward. The music, soft and muffled at first, like the toll of -far-off bells, gradually grows in power and intensity as the procession -advances, assuming more and more the heavy, measured, inflexible rhythm -of a funeral march, and swelling at last to an overwhelming climax of -passionate pain. - -Then the procession comes to a stand by the open grave. After a brief -pause, the sweet, plaintive trio melody enters, pure and tender as a -prayer, touched and thrilled to warmth and pathos by memories of happier -days; after which the march movement is resumed, as the procession -slowly and sadly returns to the village; the music, heavy, crushing, -inexorable at first as the voice of fate, gradually recedes, diminishes, -dies in the distance; and then follows the last movement, the presto, in -some respects the most original and most impressive of all, the lament -of the autumn night-wind over a forsaken grave, one of the few cases in -which Chopin chose to be distinctly realistic, a literal and graphic -imitation of wind effects; yet woven through it is an unmistakable -suggestion of the mood of the hour and situation, the chill, the gloom, -the wild despair, and a hint of that ever darker thought that will arise -at such moments; after death, formless void, chaos. - -There is an important vein of allegory underlying this whole story, like -a deep substratum. The hero is a personification of the typical Polish -patriot, struggling, in a forlorn hope, for his native land; the bride -is Poland, and the mighty, overwhelming grief expressed is more than a -personal sorrow: it is for the death and burial of a nation. - -The authority for connecting the poem referred to with this sonata has -been frequently questioned. I wish to state here that the poetic -background to this great work is by no means hypothetically sketched in -by my own imagination, however fully justified by the inherent character -of the music. I have my data in full from Kullak and Liszt, the latter -having been a personal friend of Chopin, as is well known, and having -first presented the sonata in public to the musical world. We may safely -assume, therefore, that he was correctly informed with regard to it, and -that this interpretation is authentic and authoritative. - - - - - The Chopin Ballades - - -Probably no class of musical compositions ever presented to the world by -any master has been so little understood, and consequently so much -misrepresented as the ballades by Frederic Chopin. Even so standard an -authority as Grove, in his "Dictionary of Music and Musicians," writes -as follows: "_Ballade_, a name adopted by Chopin for four pieces of -pianoforte music, which have no peculiar form or character of their own, -beyond being written in triple time, and to which the name seems to be -no more applicable than that of sonnet to the pieces which others have -written under that title"--a statement which proves that he had little -information and less interest in regard to the subject. - -The French word _ballade_, which Chopin used as title for these -compositions, is derived from the Provencal _ballata_, a dancing song, -which in turn comes from _bellare_, to dance; and our modern English -words ballad, ball, ballet, all descend to us from the same source. In -Italian, _ballata_ meant a dancing piece, in distinction from _sonata_, -a sounding piece, and _cantata_, a singing piece; and the _ballade_ and -_ballata_ originally meant a piece of music to be sung while dancing or -accompanied by dancing. The dance element, however, was early lost, and -ballade in French, like ballad in English, came to mean a short and -popular narrative poem adapted for singing or recitation. The ballad is -a tale in verse. It differs from the epic in being briefer, less -dignified in tone, and in concerning itself with actual practical events -in the lives of individuals, instead of with historic and mythological -subjects, which form the main province of the epic. The true ballad -treats of some knightly exploit, some national episode, or some tale of -love and adventure; and, as we shall see, Chopin, in adopting this title -for instrumental compositions, adhered strictly to its definition and -its literary characteristics and significance. - -The Chopin ballades, four in number and ranking among his most -strikingly original and effective contributions to pianoforte music, -introduced an entirely new and distinctly unique musical form, well-nigh -limitless in its possibilities of expression and application, its facile -adaptability to every phase of emotional and descriptive writing. As was -natural, they opened the way for a host of more or less worthy -followers, bold, independent free lances, heedless of the forms and -rules which bind in rank and file the more orderly conservative -compositions; all bearing a strong racial resemblance, but variously -designated by such special clan cognomens as ballade, novelette, legend, -fable, fairy-tale, and the like. They now constitute a complete and -markedly individual school of composition, of which Chopin in his -ballades was the originator, and which is differentiated from all others -by its distinctly declamatory, narrative style. - -Chopin used the name ballade in the sense in which it is employed in -modern literature--to designate a short, poetic narrative, a miniature -epic, as distinguished from the lyric, didactic, and dramatic forms of -poetry. He intended the ballade in music to be a counterpart of the -ballad in poetry, and his inventive genius and unerring taste supplied -and perfected a form precisely adapted to the end in view; a form which -is strictly akin neither to the rondo, the sonata allegro, nor the free -fantasia, though having certain points of resemblance to all three, -still less to any of the dance forms. It reminds us more of some of the -larger, more complex song forms, as, for instance, the musical settings -by Schubert and others of the more pretentious German ballads by Goethe, -Berger, and Uhland; but its development is broader and ampler, at once -more extended and more logical, evincing a greater degree of -constructive musicianship. - -Chopin's able biographer, Karasowski, says of the ballades: "Some -regarded them as a variety of the rondo; others, with more accuracy, -called them poetical stories. Indeed, there is about them a narrative -tone (_Märchenton_) which is particularly well rendered by the six-four -and six-eight time, and which makes them differ essentially from the -existing forms." In view of these facts, patent even to the superficial -student of Chopin's life and works, it seems very strange that we should -so often hear and even see in print sneering insinuations to the effect -that the composer christened these works ballades for lack of any better -or more appropriate name; that the title has in reality nothing of -significance or distinctness, which is justified either by the form or -the content of the works. - -As a matter of fact, all four of these ballades, according to Chopin's -own statement to Schumann during an interview at Leipsic, are founded -directly upon Polish poems by the greatest poet of that nation, Adam -Mickiewicz, the father of the romantic school in Poland, a contemporary -and personal friend of the composer, a man whose fervent patriotism and -unswerving fidelity to national themes, as well as the warmth, -tenderness, and power of his creative genius, specially endeared him to -the heart of his compatriot and brother artist, the tone-poet Chopin. It -is difficult, not to say impossible, to estimate the stimulating -influence of Mickiewicz and his works upon the creative activity of -Chopin. That the music of the latter has attained world-wide celebrity, -while the poems of the former are scarcely heard of outside of the small -and cultured circle of his own countrymen and women, is due perhaps not -so much to the superiority of the composer's genius over that of the -poet, as to the more universal intelligibility of his chosen idiom, his -medium of expression, Polish being a language understood by few persons -even of cosmopolitan tendencies, and one which is ill adapted for -translation into non-Slavonic tongues. Certain it is that Chopin himself -was quick to acknowledge his deep indebtedness to his gifted countryman, -and rose to some of his loftiest flights of creative effort when -translating into his own beloved language of tone ideas, experiences, -incidents, and situations which had already been molded and vivified -into artistic life and beauty by the hand of the poet, as in the case of -the four ballades under consideration. - -Though the origin of these ballades as musical transcripts of certain -poems by Mickiewicz is indisputable, it has always been a mooted -question, and one fraught with the keenest interest, at least to some of -us, upon what particular poem any given ballade is founded; what special -experience or incident, national, personal, or imaginary, found its -first embodiment in the verses of the Slavic poet, to thrill with its -power and beauty a limited circle of Polish readers, and was later -reincarnated by Chopin, to find a far wider sphere of influence -throughout the musical world; and what may be the peculiar subtle karma -of romantic or dramatic association which this vital art germ has -brought with it in its transmigration from a former existence; in a -word, whence and what is the essential artistic essence of each ballade? - -If we could trace it to its fountain head and familiarize ourselves with -the sources of Chopin's own inspiration, the task of rightly -comprehending and interpreting any one of these compositions would be -vastly facilitated. This no one has hitherto done successfully. Few -among English-speaking musicians are able to read Mickiewicz in the -original Polish; translations of his works are meager, imperfect, and -very difficult to obtain. It is therefore not without a certain glow of -satisfaction that the present writer is able, after diligent, unwearying -inquiry and voluminous reading, covering a period of some fifteen years, -confidently to affirm that he has at last traced back to their -inspirational sources three at least of the four ballades; and he -submits to the reader the results of his research, in the hope that some -degree of the interest and pleasure he has himself derived from this -line of investigation may be shared by others. - -Should any question arise with regard to the accuracy of the statements -and conclusions here advanced, I would say that the authority on which -they are based is derived partly from definite historical data, -existing, though widely diffused, in print; partly from direct -traditions gathered from those who enjoyed the personal acquaintance of -the composer; and partly from the carefully considered internal evidence -of the works themselves, when critically compared with the poems to -which they presumably had reference. I will say further that concerning -the fourth ballade, in F minor, I am still as completely in the dark as -any of my readers, and would gratefully welcome any information or -suggestion which might tend to throw the smallest light upon the -subject. - - - Ballade in G Minor, Op. 23 - -The first ballade, Op. 23, in G minor, was published in June, 1836, -perhaps written a year or two earlier. It was suggested by and is -founded upon one of the most able and forceful, as well as extended, -patriotic historical poems by Mickiewicz, often called the Lithuanian -Epic, entitled "Konrad Wallenrod," and published in 1828. The following -is a brief synopsis of its plot: - -During the latter half of the fourteenth century, the Red Cross knights, -a powerful religious, political, and military order, controlling large -dominions on the Baltic, in territory now included in modern Russia, -were at fierce feud with Lithuania, then an independent principality, -later united with Poland by a marriage of its reigning prince, Jagiello, -to the heiress of the Polish throne, thus founding the dynasty of the -Jagiellos, the most illustrious of the royal houses of Poland. Long and -desperate was the struggle. The Lithuanians, though vastly outnumbered -and frequently outgeneraled and defeated, defended every inch of their -beloved fatherland, now absorbed in western Russia, with heroic valor. -At last their ruling prince and idolized leader fell in battle, their -army was routed and cut to pieces, the scanty remnant taking refuge from -their merciless pursuers among the fastnesses of the mountains; and the -country was for a time practically subjugated and forced to submit to -the most cruel and tyrannical oppression. The conquerors, being -Crusaders and Christian knights, considered every species of atrocious -spoliation and barbaric violence, when practised against the infidel -Lithuanians, as justifiable, even laudable, and for some years the -sufferings of the conquered knew no limit. - -Among the prisoners taken and carried into virtual slavery by the -Teutonic Order, was the little seven-year-old son of the fallen -prince--a bright, precocious, winsome lad, who, after serving for some -time as page in the household of the grand master of the Order, so -completely won the heart of the old knight, that he adopted the boy and -educated him with his own children, in all the courtly and martial -accomplishments of the time. Years passed. Young Konrad grew in manly -power and promise, and came to be ranked among the flower of Teutonic -chivalry, first in the tourney, first in the field, and first in the -ladies' hall. But ever at his side, as strange friend and secret -counselor, was seen the somber figure of the aged Wajdelote, or bard, a -venerable minstrel, who had come none knew whence, and, despite his -proud and gloomy bearing, had won high favor at the court by the magic -of his voice and lute. Ostensibly a wandering singer, he was in reality -a Lithuanian noble of high degree, a former friend of Konrad's father, -the fallen prince, and stood high in the confidence of the Lithuanian -people and nobility as an able, devoted patriot. He came as an emissary -from them to find and win back their lost prince Konrad to his own true -flag and his native land. They were still hoping and fitfully struggling -to throw off the tyranny of the Red Cross knights and wanted Konrad for -their leader. - -Under the cloak of his minstrelsy, the Wajdelote plied this secret -mission. With all the fiery eloquence of his poet's genius, he wrought -upon the spirit of the young man, rousing it to duty and action, to -honor, ambition, and patriotism, to sympathy with the wrongs of his -oppressed fellow-countrymen, to vengeance for the death of his -slaughtered father, stirring its latent heroism, steeling it to -steadfast purpose. And as his influence strengthened day by day, the -open brow of the young prince grew clouded, the smile vanished from his -lips, and his sunny eyes grew deeper and darker with stern resolve. - -At last the occasion came. In a foray against a band of insurgent -Lithuanians, Konrad and his mentor detached themselves from their -companions, and feigning to be taken captive, joined the forces of their -own countrymen, where they were welcomed with the wildest enthusiasm. -The two years that followed were the happiest of Konrad's life. He threw -himself heart and soul into the fierce joy of combat for his native -land, devoting to her service all his personal courage and ability, and -all the military skill so carefully acquired at the court and camp of -the Red Cross knights; yet found time in the brief pauses of activity to -woo and win as wife the fairest and truest of the Lithuanian maids. For -a time the pulses of his life throbbed with a full but fluctuating tide, -in the swift interchange of love's delights and the thrill of gallant -deeds. Caressing whispers alternated with the clash of swords, and the -tender light of the honeymoon with the lurid gleam of the camp-fire; but -his happiness was destined to be as transient as his valor was vain. A -sterner duty, a more self-sacrificing devotion claimed him, and his -veteran mentor was still at his side to mature the plan and urge its -execution. His beloved Lithuania, enfeebled, broken, disorganized for so -long, was wholly unable to cope in open field with her powerful, -disciplined, and well-equipped antagonist. Some daring, subtle, and -far-sighted stratagem alone might save her; and such a one had formed -itself in the mind of the old minstrel. Again his eloquence rang in the -ears of Konrad, like the voice of fate, "Behold, this is to do! Thou art -the man!" - -A heart-breaking farewell to his bride, and Konrad disappears utterly -from the scene for ten years; then returns irrecognizably altered in -appearance, under an assumed name, with wealth and fame and following, -acquired in wars with the Saracens of Spain. The old grand master of the -Red Cross knights is dead, and Konrad with little difficulty secures his -own election to that office; and then begins the work of vengeance. By -his absolute power as grand master, and his cunning diplomacy, he -involved the order in bitter internal dissensions, depleted its -treasury, wasted its resources, weakened its garrisons, and in every -possible way sapped its strength, and finally led the flower of its army -to complete annihilation in a winter campaign against the Lithuanians, -into whose snares and ambuscades the Red Cross knights were mercilessly -thrown by secret and preconcerted arrangement with his countrymen. - -Thus by a course of treachery, which for daring, subtlety, and sustained -purpose, both in conception and execution, has hardly a parallel in -history, was accomplished what could not have been done by force. The -power of the order was effectually broken and Lithuania set free. But -Konrad's life, as well as his happiness, paid the price of his -patriotism. His beloved bride he never saw but once again, and that only -for a moment of agonized parting through dungeon bars, just before his -execution. And it is said he never smiled from the hour when the voice -of the stern old minstrel first stirred his heart with the trumpet call -of inexorable duty, till the hour when its proud pulses were stilled -forever by the daggers of the secret tribunal. For his identity was -discovered; he was, of course, tried and condemned as a traitor to the -order, and died in disgrace by the hands of his former comrades. - -Such is the story, sad but stirring, which Mickiewicz handles in his -poem, and which Chopin reëmbodied in the G minor ballade, not following -literally its successive steps, but emphasizing to his utmost its -spirit, character, and moral. I think no one ever played this -composition, or listened to it attentively, without feeling that its -mood was not of our day and land. The time it represents is the middle -ages, its scene is laid in stern and rugged Lithuania, among warlike -knights and resentful rebels, and its whole spirit is therefore medieval -and military. - -It opens with a brief but scornfully defiant introduction, a call to -arms, reminding one of the first lines of that familiar address to the -Roman gladiators: "Friends, I come not here to talk; ye all do know the -story of our thraldom." Then the first and principal theme enters, -symbolizing the forceful personality and stern mentor voice of the old -minstrel, in its somber yet resolute phrases, solemn, inflexible, -relentless as fate; telling of wrongs to be avenged, of a nation in -bondage awaiting its deliverer; of the imperative call of duty and -patriotism; and it constantly recurs all through the composition as its -leading motive, whenever, as is vividly suggested by the other -contrasting, conflicting themes and passages, continually introduced, -the young prince wavers in his purpose, deterred by doubts and -forebodings, lured by seductive temptations from pursuance of the -desperate and soul-trying venture; whenever his mind wanders, as it must -at times, to regretful memories of happier days, to the splendors of -feast and tournament, to the pomp and pride of a martial career under -the adopted flag of the order, to the blithe hunting-horns of his gay -companions in youth, and tender dreams of the first great love of his -manhood, all sacrificed to a grand but pitiless cause. He is ever -recalled to the heroic mood, to the proud but rugged path of duty, by -this mentor voice--gravely insistent, quietly determined, which will not -be gainsaid; and which finally triumphs over all other considerations. -The impetuous presto which closes the work portrays the fierce -excitement and fiery rush of conflict, the utter self-abandon that hurls -itself jubilantly into the arms of an ignominious death for a cherished -ideal; and it ends with the savage but triumphant shout of a -blood-bought victory. - -This ballade, though comparatively an early work, is one of Chopin's -most darkly grand and dramatically powerful efforts; and the subjective -personal moods of the exiled Polish patriot are voiced in its gloomy -indignation, its desperate courage, and its fierce defiance. - -There is an undercurrent of political meaning in "Konrad Wallenrod," -which fortunately escaped the notice of the Russians, who allowed its -publication at St. Petersburg, but which appeals to every native and -friend of Poland and has had no small share in making its popularity. -Lithuania in the fourteenth century, broken and crushed, represents -Poland in the nineteenth, and the tyrannical Teutonic Order stands for -Russian oppression. The Wajdelote's recitals of the wrongs of a dear but -downtrodden land, the indignation and resentment under a foreign yoke, -and the appeal to arms for freedom and revenge, are all spoken in the -cause of Poland, and are so felt by the native reader. Konrad's dire -vengeance on the conqueror is a picture of the secret hope of all Polish -patriots of the final overthrow and punishment of the tyrant and the -reëstablishment of Polish independence. - - - Ballade in F Major, Op. 38 - -The second ballade, in F major, is, of the three under consideration, -the least of a favorite and the least played; probably because the -radical extremes of mood which it presents, in abrupt, almost painful -contrast, its apparent incoherency, and its sudden, startling, seemingly -causeless changes of movement, render it difficult to comprehend and -still more so to interpret, and difficult to follow with intelligent -sympathy even when well rendered. - -It opens with an exceedingly simple, undemonstrative theme, in the major -key, almost too lucid and childlike in the naïve directness of its -utterance, and singularly devoid of the glowing warmth and color which -usually characterize the melodies by this writer. Cool, pure, and -passionless, yet velvet-soft and delicately sweet, it floats upon the -gentle pulsations of the simple accompaniment, like a snow-white, -freshly fragrant water-lily, upon the crystal ripples of some -glacier-fed mountain lake. Then suddenly, without warning or apparent -reason, there bursts a furious tempest of rage, pain, and conflict, as -if some vast Titanic embodiment in bronze of lurid war had been melted -by a world-conflagration into a stream of fluid destruction, and poured -out upon some fair scene of pastoral peace and happiness. - -Almost as suddenly the storm of fury abates, or rather seems to recede -into distance, sounding still for a time, but far and faint, as if its -tumult reached us muffled by intervening walls. Then the first simple -theme returns, sweetly calm in its pristine innocence, but soon merged -into a series of plaintive minor cadences, as of pathetic pleading, of -earnest, insistent supplication, interrupted by a brief and startlingly -abrupt climax, in full massive chords, like the confident defiance -hurled by the children of light at the hosts of darkness, certain of -victory, in their reliance on the omnipotent arm of the God of battles. -Once more the gentle first theme, followed by those imploring minor -cadences and a repetition of the strong, courageous climax, and then the -tempest breaks again with renewed intensity, the stress of desperate -strife, the agony of terror, a seething, surging, rushing torrent of -tone, as if men and demons were struggling for life in a swirling -vortex, where the elemental forces of ocean and fire had met in a -death-grapple. - -The _finale_, in presto movement, an impetuous sweep of gloomy, exultant -harmonies, suggests the mood of a brave but sorely tried spirit, -dominating distress, rising superior to disaster, and proudly triumphant -in spite of seeming defeat. At the close, in form of a coda, a few -measures of the first melody return, saddened, but still gentle, ending -plaintively in the minor, as if to say, "There have been great wrong and -suffering and bitterness, but now is peace." - -Unquestionably this work presents two radically opposing elements in -sharpest contrast; the one, reposeful purity; the other, infuriate -passion. Of this much we are sure in simply listening to the music, -without searching for historical origin or collateral information. It is -interesting to note Rubinstein's words with regard to it, and to see how -near his art instinct led him to the discovery of its realistic -significance, presumably without the aid of any definite knowledge as to -its actual origin. He writes of it: - -"Is it possible that the interpreter does not feel the necessity of -representing to his hearers a field flower caught by a gust of wind, a -caressing of the flower by the wind, the resistance of the flower, the -stormy struggle of the wind, the entreaty of the flower, which at last -lies broken there? This may be paraphrased: the field flower, a rustic -maiden; the wind, a knight." - -Let us now examine the substance at least of the poetic material from -which Chopin derived the mood and suggestion of this musical work. Again -it is a ballad upon a Lithuanian theme, from the pen of Mickiewicz. But -this time it is a legendary and not a historical subject which is -treated. The Polish ballad is entitled "The Switez Lake," and its -substance is here given in a somewhat abbreviated and simplified form: - -In the heart of Lithuania lies the beautiful, sequestered Lake Switez, -its forest-mantled shores rarely visited by the foot of a stranger, but -peopled by the peasant fancy with wild legends, shadowy traditions, and -wraith-like memories of bygone days. Its blue waves murmur, at the foot -of giant oaks, their strange tales of nymphs and sprites and -water-kelpies, while through the long and still summer nights the sleepy -branches make answer, in dreamy whisperings, of elves and gnomes and the -uncanny doings of the little people of the forest. At least so the -belated countryman affirms, overtaken by nightfall in this haunted -region; and many are the tales of that awesome place and hour with which -he terrifies his companions around the winter fire. - -Once, many years ago, a gallant knight, of a most ancient and lofty -lineage, with dauntless courage and a pious heart, whose castle crowned -a neighboring height, resolved to sound and solve the mystery hid in its -depths; and, taking with him a mammoth net of stoutest cords, a score of -brawny henchmen to draw its meshes, and a venerable priest, to bless the -catch and exorcise spirits, he proceeded to the shore. Prayer was said, -the net was flung and sank, and mighty was the struggle that ensued. The -tightened meshes strained to bursting, the taut ropes writhed and moaned -like things alive, and dragged upon the arms that strained to draw them -shoreward. The water raved and churned against the trembling banks, and -black clouds, thunder-voiced, concealed the sky. The pious father's -constant prayers at last prevailed, and the net, with its strange -burden, was safely landed. A pale but exquisitely lovely maid, with -sweet, calm dignity in face and mien, a wreath of snow-white -water-lilies on her shining hair, arose from out the tangles of the net, -and in a voice like the low murmur of soft waves at twilight, thus she -spoke: - -"Rash knight! Thy lineage and piety combined protect thee, else hadst -thou found a grave, with all thy following, in this adventure. But as -thou art of godly mind and as we are akin by blood, through long -descent, it is vouchsafed to me this once to break the mystic silence of -the centuries, and to reveal to thee the secret of the lake, and mine, -its lily queen. - -"Know then, where now is forest dark and dense, a noble city reared its -lofty battlements in former years. My sire, its ruling prince, held all -but regal sway; and I, his child, a princess well beloved by all, -counted my sunny years beside the Switez waves, as blithe as they. One -morning, in that ne'er-to-be-forgotten spring, the trumpet voice of war -through all our streets rang out the call to arms. Our royal master, -Mindog, Lithuania's king, had summoned all who wielded lance, to join -him in the field, against a horde of merciless Russian barbarians, -wasting all the land. And forth my father hastened, with him all his -goodly company of knights and men at arms, and left us women, trembling -and defenseless, in the town, trusting in God and in our innocence, till -their return. That very night, by a circuitous route, evading Mindog's -might and my stout father's sword, the Russians came, many as the sands -upon the shore, ruthless as wolves in winter's dearth. Our gates -unguarded proved an easy prize, and in they poured, thronging our -streets, demoniac in their lust for blood, exulting in the havoc of our -homes. My maidens, wild with terror, crowded round, imploring succor; -while I, as weak as they, saw our dishonor, worse than death, stalking -upon us from the barbarian ranks. - -"Then, in the frenzied panic, some one cried, 'Our only hope is mutual -destruction! Let us slay each other, cursed be she who falters!' Like -sudden inspiration, the mad purpose seized us all. And then was seen a -sight to set red war atremble with affright, and blanch the lurid sun to -sickly pallor. Fair hands, used only to the lute and broidery frame, -unsheathed the dagger and made bare the breast. With clinging arms and -lips together pressed, and sad eyes beaming love-light through their -tears, each sought to find her sister's heart and still its throbbing -with her poniard's point. Yet strength and courage faltered at the fatal -stroke. In my great agony I raised my voice in prayer to Him who guides -the storm-clouds' wrath and curbs the tempest in its wild career. -'Prevent,' I cried, 'this awful crime, and save us in this hour of -direst need! Send us in mercy the swift death we needs must find, but -let not maiden blood by maiden hands be shed!' - -"The prayer was heard. An earthquake shook our city, until it rocked and -reeled, crumbling and sinking like the snow-drifts in a springtime rain; -while from the lake a mighty wall of water rose and rushed upon us, -whelming alike pursuer and pursued, foeman and friend; hushing the din -of war and shriek of victim in one common flood of cool, safe silence. - -"So our city fell. My maidens, all transformed to water-lilies, blossom -here in happy purity through long summers, and palsy-withered is the -impious hand that strives to drag them from the friendly shelter of the -waves; while I, their lily queen, within my crystal realm hold quiet -sway, safe from the rude approach of man's destructive passions. Now -thou knowest the story, all save this. My father fell by Russian spears. -My princely brother, on returning from the wars, found all his realm a -waste, his capital destroyed, found home and sister vanished in the -flood; and wandering in other lands, when years had passed, he wedded a -stranger bride. From this their union, through a long, illustrious line -of heroes, thou art sprung. Hence thou art safe upon these shores, -despite this day's temerity, so long as with a pure heart and noble -mind, thou dost guard our name and honor in the world. Remember this. -But seek no more to pierce the kindly veil of mysteries, not meant for -mortal eyes; and never hope or strive to see again the lily queen of -Switez." - -So speaking, with a smile of saddest sweetness, she turned slowly to the -lake, and vanished in its whelming waters, which closed with laughing -ripples round her. - -No one familiar with Chopin's ballade in F can fail to perceive the -close and accurate application of the music to this romantic tale. It -begins at and deals with the appearance and story of the lily queen, and -her gentle, pure, and winning personality, and soft-voiced narration, -figure symbolically in the opening melody. The sudden burst of the -terrific war cloud, the maiden's trust in and confident appeal to a -higher power, the final whelming of the city in the friendly flood, -follow successively in almost literal portrayal, the work closing in the -mood of the maiden's final farewell and warning to the adventurous -knight who had disturbed her repose. - -Viewed from the standpoint of the subject-matter, the startling, almost -drastic, contrasts of the work seem not only intelligible, but -legitimate and artistic. - - - Ballade No. 3, in A Flat, Op. 47 - -This is the best known, the most played, and most popular of all the -Chopin ballades. Its warm, lyric opening theme, its strikingly original -rhythmic effects, its piquant, bewitching second subject, full of -playful grace, as well as its magnificently developed climax, one of the -finest in the piano literature, have all endeared it to the hearts of -Chopin lovers and rendered it one of the most effective of concert -solos. - -Like the second ballade in F major, this composition is founded upon an -ancient legend of Lake Switez, which seems to be a center about which -cluster many of the Lithuanian myths. The one in question had been -previously treated by Chopin's friend and compatriot, Adam Mickiewicz, -in the form of a ballad in Polish verse, and the substance of the story, -briefly and simply told, is as follows: - -A young and fearless knight, whose ancestral castle crowned a -forest-covered eminence above the beautiful blue lake, was wont to -wander on its lone and wooded shores at evening and to meet there -clandestinely his radiant, beautiful, mysterious lady-love, whose name, -home, and origin he was unable to discover, and which she persistently -refused to disclose. She always appeared to him suddenly, without -warning or visible approach, as if born anew each night of the filtering -moonlight and shifting forest shadows, or as if drawing her ethereal -substance at will from the floating mist wreaths above the lake. And she -vanished as miraculously, when she chose to end their interview, -dissolving from his very arms into mist once more. Perhaps the very -mystery which enveloped her enhanced her charms. In any case, her power -grew upon the knight till he became most desperately enamoured, pressing -his suit with growing ardor. At first she coquetted with his passion, -laughing at his fervor and meeting his fiery protestations with playful, -incredulous mockery; but, finally touched by his fiery eloquence, she -made him a conditional promise. If he would prove his fidelity, would -remain true to her and her memory during her absence, no matter what -temptations might arise, for the space of just one little passing moon, -she would then return, reveal her identity, and become his bride, if he -still desired it. - -Of course, he swore eternal fidelity, and she, with a little half-sad, -half-incredulous smile, vanished into the night mist. For several -evenings he wandered, lonely and disconsolate, on the shores of the -lake, longing and vainly seeking for his absent love and cursing the -tardy hours of his probation. Then, when his patience was about -exhausted, he was met there, on the selfsame spot, in the same mystic -moonlight and with the same suddenness and mystery, by another maiden, -even more beautiful than the first, and not inclined to be so distant. -She jeered at him for his depression, for his useless and stupid -fidelity to an absent prude, while with many lures and graces she -beckoned him on to join her in the moonlit mazes of the dance. - -At first, remembering his promise, he made some show of resistance, but -very soon he yielded completely to her seductions, declaring his -admiration for this new beauty in ardent terms, and followed her with -extended arms, as she flitted on before him, keeping always just a -little out of reach; followed, heedless where his steps might lead, -reckless of consequences, conscious only of her tender glances and her -beckoning hand, till, borne up and on by the spell of her enchantment, -she had led him far out upon the treacherous surface of the lake, whose -placid ripples seemed magically to sustain both pursuer and pursued. -Then, when midway across the lake, she turned upon him, indignation -blazing in her eyes. With a single impatient gesture she flung off her -disguise and faced him, poised upon a curling wave, in all the airy -grace and winsomeness of his first abandoned love. "False lover!" she -cried, "where is now thy true love, thy sworn love? Forgotten, forsaken, -ere the moon that witnessed thy plighted vows hath run one-quarter of -its little circle. Behold thy doom! So perish the faithless!" Her white -arms waved in mystic incantation, a sudden storm-wind swept the lake, -the billows heaved and swirled beneath him, and a yawning chasm opened -at his feet. With a last passionate appeal he sank to its chilly depths, -while she, laughing in mocking derision, vanished in a shower of silver -spray. - -The peasants declare that to this day, on quiet moonlit nights, one may -still see the white form of the Switez maid wandering, as if in search, -among the shadows of the forest-mantled shores or gliding over the -surface of the lake; while mingling with the whisper of the wind among -the trees and the murmurs of the waves upon the strand, one still hears -the echo of her words: "Forsaken, forsworn. So perish the faithless." - -Such is the story of the Switez maid, as told by Mickiewicz in -inimitable Polish verse, and translated into the symbolic language of -music by the Polish tone-poet, Chopin, in the A flat ballade. - -The first warmly emotional theme of the composition, with its tender, -persuasive cadences, its ever-growing passionateness, symbolizes the -ardent and impulsive hero of the legend; while the bright, piquant -second theme admirably portrays the arch, coquettish heroine, with her -airy witcheries and playful grace. It cannot be mistaken, for it compels -attention as it enters, after a moment of suspense, in radical contrast -to what precedes, with the dainty rhythmic effect, so difficult to -render for most players. Its introduction later in a different key, with -different accompaniment and embellishments, represents the disguise with -which the maid attempts to cloak her identity, but the same melody is -distinctly traceable through all changes. The superb climax near the -close of the work forcibly depicts at once the swift approach and -resistless sweep of the tempest upon the lake and the intensity of the -emotional situation at the moment of the final catastrophe. Here, too, -is heard again the first melody, the hero theme, in a brief return, as -he makes his last, vain appeal, and we even catch the vanishing ripple -of the maiden's mocking laughter. - -The details of the story are not so literally worked out in the music, -or followed with so much realistic fidelity, as would have been the case -with Liszt or Wagner, or with some other more recent writers. Chopin's -art is always rather suggestive than descriptive, dealing directly with -the moods evoked by a given situation or event, rather than with the -physical aspect of the events themselves; with the awe and terror -produced by the tempest, for instance, rather than with the audible or -visible phenomena of the tempest. In this particular case he deals -mainly with the general emotional and mental elements which underlie the -legend and the characteristics of the two personages who figure in it, -instead of treating its successive incidents in detail, or in definite -chronological order. The work is therefore sketched on broad, -fundamental lines, and leaves the setting and filling in in large -measure to the imagination of the hearer. This must always be the ideal -method in an art so ethereal and, in one sense, so vague as that of -music. Still, the connection between the music of this ballade and the -actual scenes and development of the legend is distinct enough to be -easily traced by those familiar with the story, and players or listeners -will find, as always, that the purely musical interest of this and all -the Chopin ballades is materially deepened and increased by the -background of relevant facts--by an acquaintance with the material on -which they are based and which gave to the composer the impulse for -their creation. - - - - - Chopin: Polonaise, A Flat Major, Op. 53 - - -Interesting from a historic as well as a musical standpoint is the -origin of the polonaise. In the year 1573, when the Polish throne became -vacant on the extinction of the royal dynasty of Jagiello, a national -assembly of electors was convened at the then capital, Cracow, to decide -upon a new sovereign. The candidates for the throne were all of royal -blood--Ernest of Austria, Henry of Anjou of the house of Valois, brother -to the ruling king of France, a Swedish prince, and Ivan the Terrible of -Russia. But the real struggle lay between the Austrian and French -princes. The choice fell at last on Henry of Anjou, later himself king -of France as Henry III. - -In the following autumn he ascended the Polish throne, and among the -many gorgeous ceremonials attending his coronation, was one quite -natural and proper under the circumstances--a formal presentation to the -new monarch, of the leading dignitaries and personages of his realm. It -took place in the vast and magnificent throne hall of the royal castle -at Cracow. The nobles and officials, each with his lady on his arm, -defiled before the throne where the monarch was seated, in a stately -procession, and as they passed before the king were presented by the -master of ceremonies. This formal march was accompanied by suitable -music, written expressly for the occasion and performed by the royal -band. Whether this embryonic polonaise is still in existence, no one -knows; probably not; but two distinct ideas were, or should have been, -before the composer's mind in penning the harmonies for this solemn -ceremonial. - -First, of course, to write music eminently suited to the occasion, to -embody, and, if possible, enhance all the pomp and splendor of the -magnificent, august assembly; second, to portray through the music, so -far as might be, something of the national characteristics of this -Polish race which the Frenchman came as a stranger to rule over. The -music in its own way was to serve as a species of introduction. - -Little by little, from this crude but characteristic beginning was -developed through the centuries the peculiar national dance, or, more -strictly speaking, march of the Poles; and the music performed during -its progress came to have among dance forms the same title. It partook -of the various stages of evolution to which all music was subject at -different epochs, and within the last hundred years has been modified to -keep pace with the general development of musical resources. But however -it may vary in minor details of form and treatment, every polonaise -which is true to itself must express the original ideas upon which the -form was primarily based--on the one hand a splendid ceremonial, on the -other Polish national life. - -In the present day the polonaise is a universally accepted musical form, -common property with the composers of all nations. But Chopin, Polish by -birth, education, and sympathies, found it strictly within his scope, -and has easily surpassed all other writers in number, quality, and -characteristic force as a polonaise writer. - -Of his many works in this vein, the Op. 53, in A flat, is in my opinion -decidedly the best, both as regards virile power and direct, forceful -expression of the original polonaise idea. It begins with a wild, -impetuous introduction, brief but stirring, a sort of fanfare of drums -and trumpets, intended to call the people to order and to establish at -the outset the tonality of the mood, so to speak. Then follows the -swinging, pompous measure of the polonaise proper, readily suggesting by -its splendid martial harmonies the proud military bearing, the gorgeous -armor, and the stately tread of those steel-clad feudal heroes, as they -defiled before the throne. - -In place of the trio, usually of a more quiet nature in works of this -kind, Chopin has introduced a very singular passage, the most strikingly -original portion of the whole composition--a long-sustained, stupendous -octave climax of the left hand, consisting of a little rhythmic figure -of four notes, constantly reiterated with growing power, against a sort -of trumpet obligato in brilliant measured chords for the right. The -movement vividly suggests the tramp of cavalry. The composer had in mind -the Polish light-horse of medieval fame, a very aristocratic body of -picked horsemen, composed of the flower of Polish chivalry and -disciplined in constant warfare with the Turks. A number of the -brilliant officers of this division were necessarily present at the -coronation ceremony when the polonaise form originated, and these with -their exploits Chopin endeavors to introduce by means of this singular -passage. - -There is a curious anecdote afloat concerning the effect of this -movement on the composer himself. On one occasion, when playing the -nearly completed work, his nervous organism enfeebled by illness and his -imagination intensely excited by the fever-glow of composition, he was -seized by a peculiar hallucination. He fancied that a band of the -knights he had been attempting to portray, came riding in from the gloom -of the outer night, in through the opening walls of his apartment, -arrayed in their antique war panoply, horse and rider just as they might -have arisen from their century-old graves in Poland. He was so overcome -by this self-invoked apparition that he actually fled from the room, and -it was some days before he could be induced to re-enter it or resume -work on the mighty polonaise. - -Immediately following the great octave climax referred to is a subdued, -vague, fearsome little passage in light running figures, totally foreign -in movement, mood, and even key to the remainder of the work, for which -we would be at a loss to account if unacquainted with the circumstances -narrated, but which, with the light just thrown upon it, is readily -understood. The author seems to have lost for the time the thread of the -composition, to have drifted far from its martial mood and swinging -rhythm, but after a period of groping indecision, through which we hear -the trepidation and reluctant fascination with which he again approaches -this monster of his own creation, with a sudden boldness of attack he -regains the clew, resumes with energy the march movement, and the work -sweeps to its close with even more than its original power and splendor. - - - - - Chopin: Impromptu in A Flat, Op. 29 - - -Light, graceful, dainty, capricious, full of playful tenderness and -delicate fancy is this little work, written for and presented as a -wedding gift to one of his favorite pupils, La Comtesse de Lobau, to -whom it is dedicated. The first movement embodies the joyous, hopeful, -congratulatory spirit of the occasion, expressed with all that refined -elegance and polished perfection of style of which Chopin was so -preëminently the master, both in music and language. It is the most -unqualifiedly optimistic strain from his pen with which I am acquainted. - -The trio, in F minor, brings a touch of half-veiled sadness and -irrepressible regret, as if called forth by the thought that their art -work together is now to end. She has been for years one of his most -talented, diligent, and interesting students. She is, like himself, a -Polish exile in a foreign land, and their community of sympathies and -sorrows, combined with her charming personality and congenial -temperament, have tended to merge the relations of teacher and pupil -into the closer bonds of a life-long friendship. He is naturally -reluctant to lose her, but this mood of depression is soon subordinated -to the thought that she has found the philosopher's stone, the fabled -blue flower of the German poets, the subtile, yet supreme panacea for -all human ills--love. This idea is expressed in the last half of the -trio as only Chopin could express it; and the work ends with a -repetition of the first strain, brightly, happily, with a certain -restful completeness of fulfilled desire in the reiterated closing -chords. - - - - - Chopin: Fantasie Impromptu, Op. 66 - - -Among other manuscripts found on Chopin's writing-table after his death -was the original of this composition, complete in every detail, but -written across the back, in his own trembling hand, were the words, "To -be destroyed when I am gone." - -It is difficult to account for this injunction, except upon the theory -that he feared that both the form and the content of the work were too -original, too subtle and complex, and too wholly unfamiliar to the -musical world of his day, to be readily comprehended, and that it would -either suffer from incorrect rendition or be condemned and ignored. So -he preferred a quick death by fire for this child of his sad later days, -to a slow death by mutilation or cruel neglect. - -Fortunately the request was disregarded by his friends. The work was -published and has become one of his most beloved, as it is one of his -most faultlessly beautiful compositions. The peculiarity of form -referred to is familiar to all who have attempted the study of this -impromptu. The whole first movement, consisting of a continuous rapid -figure of four notes in the right hand against three in the left, is one -of the most unusual and difficult musical problems to solve -satisfactorily, and only to be mastered by long and special practice--a -case, as I have often said, where it is well to remember the biblical -injunction, "let not thy right hand know what thy left hand doeth." But -when smoothly played, it produces just that sinuous, interwoven, flowing -effect which the composer desired, and which could not have been -obtained, in such perfection, in any other way. - -The content of this composition, like that of many of Chopin's smaller -works, is purely emotional, like a strictly lyric poem, by his literary -counterpart Tennyson, for instance; it is a wholly subjective expression -of a mental state, an emotional condition, not of any scene or any -action. It touches the minor key and sounds the plaintive harmonies to -which his heart-strings were tuned and vibrating at the time when it was -written. It voices a soft summer twilight mood, half sad, half tender, -full of vague regrets, of indefinite longings and aspirations, of -fluttering hope, never destined to be realized, and bright fleeting -memories that rise and pass, dimmed by intervening clouds of sorrow and -disappointment, like the shifting forms and hues of a kaleidoscope seen -through a misty glass, or the luminous phantoms of dead joys and shadowy -suggestions of the "might have been," against the gray background of a -sad present and an uncertain, promiseless future. It is a strange, -delicately complex mood, a mood of life's sunset hour, colored by the -pathetic glories of the dying day, and the depressing, yet tranquilizing -shadows of the coming night--a mood well-nigh impossible to express, but -perfectly embodied in the music. - -The following simple little verses, in which, as will be seen, has been -made a somewhat free use of the suggestive symbolism of nature, may -serve to illustrate, though by no means to the writer's satisfaction, -his conception of the artistic significance of this composition: - - THE FANTASIE IMPROMPTU. - - The sigh of June through the swaying trees, - The scent of the rose, new blown, on the breeze, - The sound of waves on a distant strand, - The shadows falling on sea and land; - All these are found - In this stream of sound, - This murmuring, mystical, minor strain. - - And stars that glimmer in misty skies, - Like tears that shimmer in sorrowing eyes, - And the throb of a heart that beats in tune - With tender regrets of a happier June, - When life was new - And love was true, - And the soul was a stranger to sorrow and pain. - - - - - Chopin: Tarantelle, A Flat, Op. 43 - - -Brilliant, effective, and not excessively difficult though it be, this -admirably constructed and thoroughly characteristic _tarantelle_ in A -flat is but little played; perhaps because it appeals less to the love -of the "true Chopinism of Chopin" than most of his compositions, as -being out of the recognized Chopin vein, deficient in the special -melodic and emotional elements usually distinguishing his works. -Nevertheless, considered objectively as a tarantelle, from the -standpoint, not of Chopinism, but of what the true tarantelle should be, -it is one of the best ever written,--hence one of his masterpieces,--and -furnishes another proof of the almost infinite versatility of his -creative power, both in style and in mood. - -The origin of the tarantelle, as a musical form, is interesting and must -be considered in judging the real merit of this or any similar work. The -name is derived from that of the tarantula, that venomous denizen of -southern climes, of the spider species, whose bite is usually fatal. -There is a generally prevalent belief among the peasants of both Spain -and Italy, a belief founded, no doubt, upon centuries of experience, -that there is but one reliable cure for this poison, and one which -Nature herself prescribes and imperatively demands--that of violent and -protracted bodily exercise, and the consequent excessively profuse -perspiration, enabling the system to throw off the poison through the -pores. The idea has the same pathological base as the ancient Arabic -cure for hydrophobia, recently revived with great success in this day of -resurrection of buried wisdom--an extremely hot and long-continued steam -bath. - -It is claimed that the victim of the tarantula is seized by a delirious -desire, an uncontrollable madness for dancing, which, if fully -gratified, in fact encouraged and stimulated to the utmost, may save his -life by means of the prosaic but practical process above suggested. So -his friends assemble in haste, form a circle on the village green or -plaza, strike up the wildest, most furiously rapid and exciting music -possible, on any instrument that may be at hand, preferably the mandolin -and tambourine, as the most rhythmic and inspiring, and take turns -dancing with him, until each is exhausted and gives place to the next, -and until the victim recovers or dies of fatigue. The faster the tempo, -the more intoxicating the music, the better the purpose will be served, -and the greater the hope of a successful cure. - -From this crude and primitive germ the modern musical art form, known -and used all over the world, has gradually developed, retaining, of -course, as must every characteristic dance form, the spirit and -fundamental element of the situation and circumstances which gave it -birth. - -The true tarantelle may be either in a major or minor key, the latter -being most common; but it must be wild, stirring, exceedingly rapid, -with a strong rhythmic swing and a certain dash and go, irresistibly -suggesting the fever of the dance at its most delirious ecstasy. It is -always written in six-eight time, which is somewhat singular, as it has -none of the usual rhythmic peculiarities of that measure, but invariably -produces the impression of twelve-eight, or, perhaps still more -strongly, that of four-four with the beats divided into triplets. In -fact, this is generally the best method of counting it for the pupil. It -should contain no harmonic or technical complexities to distract the -attention of either player or listener from the regular rhythmic swing -and form and movement of the dance; and the melodic trio, occasionally -introduced by some composers, is always an incongruous artistic -absurdity, wholly out of place. - -Though the musical form is common property of all composers in all -lands, the actual dance, as such, is specially identified with southern -Spain and Italy, and is rarely used elsewhere. To the tourist one of the -most unique and vividly interesting episodes of his sojourn in these -localities is the performance of the tarantelle by one of the trained -dancing girls, which may be witnessed almost any evening, given with all -the dash and verve of the southern temperament, a perfect embodiment of -grace and fire and dance frenzy. - -This tarantelle by Chopin possesses all the essential characteristics in -a high degree, with not a single lapse or irrelevant digression in mood, -in form, even in the details of accompaniment. It may be taken as a -model of the true tarantelle, spirited, well sustained throughout, and -eminently playable. - - - - - Chopin: Berceuse, Op. 57 - - -The Chopin Berceuse (which is the French word for cradle-song) is a most -unique as well as most ideally beautiful composition, standing alone in -all piano literature, as regards its form and harmonic structure, the -only one of its species. It is beyond all question or comparison, the -finest cradle-song ever written for the piano, an exceptionally perfect -example of that rare blending of spontaneous genius and mechanical -ingenuity, for which Chopin was so preëminent, resulting in a work -matchless in its originality, its suggestive realism, its delicacy of -finish, and its poetic content. An organ point on D flat, which is its -only bass note, sustained throughout the entire composition, and a -couplet of the simplest chords, the tonic and dominant seventh, -alternating back and forth in a swinging, rocking motion, form the -accompaniment, continued practically without change, from first measure -to last, portraying naturally, easily, yet unmistakably, the soothing -monotony of the rockaby movement. The left hand may be said to rock the -cradle throughout the whole composition, while in the soft, continually -intertwining melody in the right hand, like an endless, infolding circle -of maternal love, we find the lullaby song of the mother, sung as she -sits there in the hush of the twilight, rocking her little one to sleep. - -Around and over this melody Chopin has flung, with his own inimitable -delicacy, a silver lace-work of embellishment, falling soft and light as -the moonlight spray from fountains in fairyland, as through the -idealizing summer haze, half veiling a distant landscape, we seem to -catch dim glimpses of the dream-pictures, the fleeting fancies, the -changing phantasmagoria of prophetic visions, that drift through the -brain of the mother as she sits there in the gathering dusk, waiting for -the little eyes to be tightly closed, and wondering vaguely to herself -on what scenes they will open in the far future years. - -Slower and gentler grows the motion of the cradle, softer and lower the -lullaby song, further and further the dream pictures drift into the -shadows, until at last the wings of slumber are folded about the little -one. Silence reigns. The mother's daily task of loving ministry is ended -and she, too, may rest. The two lingering closing chords, soft and slow, -suggest the moment when she rises from the cradle and spreads her hands -in silent benediction over the sleeping child. - -Infinite tenderness and delicacy are needed for the interpretation of -this composition; a tone like violet velvet, and a light, fluent finger -technic, to which its really extreme difficulties seem like dainty play. - - - - - Chopin: Scherzo in B Flat Minor, Op. 31 - - -A very familiar, yet always fresh and intensely interesting composition -is this scherzo. The name is an Italian word signifying a jest, and we -find in musical nomenclature a number of derivatives from it, as -_scherzino_ (little jest) and _scherzando_ (jestingly, playfully). The -term is used by most composers to designate compositions that are -bright, playful, humorous in character. Nearly all the leading composers -have written more or less in this vein. Mendelssohn particularly -excelled in it, and even serious old Beethoven became quite jocose at -times in the scherzo movements of his symphonies; though it always -reminds one of the sportive dancing of an elephant. - -Chopin applied the name to four of his greatest, most intense and -impassioned works, seemingly without the smallest reason or relevancy. -Why, no one can even surmise, unless it may have been in a mood of -sardonic perversity, of sarcastic bitterness, purposely to mislead the -public as to the real artistic intention and significance of the music, -and see if they would have sufficient perception to discover it for -themselves. It is a sad commentary on the insight of many of our -so-called musicians, that they have not done so even to this day, and -persist in playing the Chopin scherzi jestingly and as trivially as -possible, which may be the subtle, covert jest which Chopin intended. -Who knows? In reality these four works, especially the first three of -them, are among his greatest and grandest. They are broad, heroic, -seriously and profoundly emotional productions, marking the high-water -line of his creative power; full of the strength and virile energy which -those acquainted only with his nocturnes and waltzes are inclined to -deny him altogether, but in which he far exceeds all other composers, -past or present, with the possible exception of Beethoven and Wagner. -Jests only in name, or, if in fact, then in the sense of bitterest -satire, aimed at the world and at life, jests written in the heart's -blood of the composer; written when Poland, his beloved native land, lay -in her death agony, when three great European powers had combined to -write the word _finis_ in Polish blood and tears, across the last page -of her history. What wonder that the music throbs with intense but -conflicting emotions--fiery indignation, fierce defiance, bitter scorn, -and, in the next breath, pitiful tenderness for the wronged and the -suffering, heart-breaking sorrow for the unavailing heroism and wasted -lives of his countrymen! - -All these moods will be found in swift and sharply contrasting -succession in all the four scherzi, but notably in the one in B flat -minor, which I regard as the best of the four. The seeming incongruity -between its name and its musical content, its ostensible and its real -significance, always recalls to me famous lines: - - "The lip that's first to wing the jest - Is first to breathe the secret sigh; - The laugh that rings with keenest zest - But chokes the flood-gates of the eye." - - - - - Chopin: Prelude (D Flat Major), Op. 28, No. 15 - - -A unique position in pianoforte literature is occupied by these -Preludes, Op. 28. They derive their name rather from their form than -from their musical import. Like the usual preludes to songs, or more -extended musical works, they are short, fragmentary tone sketches rather -than complete pictures; each consisting, as a rule, of a single, simple -movement, and embodying but a single concrete idea, and seeming to imply -by its brevity and its suggestive rather than fully descriptive -character, that a more elaborately developed composition is to follow, -to which this has been but an introduction and in which the idea, here -merely outlined, will receive more exhaustive treatment. In reality, -however, each of these preludes is complete in itself; an exquisite -musical vignette containing, like some dainty vial of hand-cut Venetian -glass, the distilled essence of dead flowers of memory and experience -from Chopin's past; particularly of scenes, episodes, and emotional -impressions of his romantic life on the island of Majorca. Just as a -painter might have sketched, with hasty but truthfully graphic pencil, -on the pages of his portfolio, the fleeting impressions produced upon -his senses and imagination by this novel, picturesque environment, so -the composer has preserved in these bits of offhand but vivid tone -painting, glimpses into his daily life, his moods and experiences during -that winter of 1838-39. - -Banished by his physicians to this Mediterranean isle, in the hope of -benefit to his fast failing health, and refused shelter in any hotel or -private residence, on account of the there prevalent belief that -consumption was contagious, Chopin and the little party of devoted -friends who accompanied him (most notable among whom was the famous -French novelist, George Sand) were forced to improvise a temporary abode -in the semi-habitable wing of an old ruined convent, which had been -abandoned by the monks. It was picturesquely situated on a rocky -promontory, commanding a view, on the one side, of the open sea, dotted -with the countless white sails of Mediterranean commerce; on the other, -of the sheltered bay, the village beyond, and the lofty volcanic -mountains in the background. Here they spent the winter, and here nearly -all of the preludes, with many others of Chopin's most poetic smaller -works, originated--artistic crystallizations of passing impressions and -experiences, concerning which and the life in which they originated, -George Sand writes: "While staying here he composed some short but very -beautiful pieces which he modestly entitled preludes. They were real -masterpieces. Some of them create such vivid impressions that the shades -of the dead monks seem to rise and pass before the hearer in solemn and -gloomy funeral pomp. Others are full of charm and melancholy, glowing -with the sparkling fire of enthusiasm, breathing with the hope of -restored health. The laughter of the children at play, the distant -strains of the guitar, the twitter of birds on the damp branches, would -call forth from his soul melodies of indescribable sweetness and grace. -But many also are so full of gloom and sadness that, in spite of the -pleasure they afford, the listener is filled with pain. Some of his -later tone-poems bring before us a sparkling crystal stream reflecting -the sunbeams. Chopin's quieter compositions remind us of the song of the -lark as it lightly soars into the ether, or the gentle gliding of the -swan over the smooth mirror of the waters; they seem filled with the -holy calm of nature. When Chopin was in a despondent mood, the piercing -cry of the hungry eagle among the crags of Majorca, the mournful wailing -of the storm, and the stern immovability of the snow-clad heights, would -awaken gloomy fancies in his soul. Then again, the perfume of the orange -blossoms, the vine bending to the earth beneath its rich burden, the -peasant singing his Moorish songs in the fields, would fill him with -delight." - -The Prelude in D flat, No. 15, which I select as one of the most -beautiful and characteristic of these sketches, embodies a strange day -dream of the composer in which, as he says, "vision and reality were -indistinguishably blended." - -One bright, late autumn morning the little party of friends had taken -advantage of the weather, and of the fact that Chopin seemed in -unusually good health and spirits, to make a long-talked-of excursion to -the neighboring village, promising to return before sunset. During their -absence a sudden tropical tempest of terrific severity swept the island. -The wind blew a hurricane, the rain descended in floods, the streams -rose, bridges and roadways were destroyed, and it was only with extreme -difficulty and considerable danger that they succeeded in reaching the -convent about midnight, having spent six hours in traversing the last -mile and a half of the distance. They found Chopin in a state bordering -on delirium. The physical effect of the storm on his shattered nerves, -combined with his own depression and his keen anxiety for them, had -combined to work his sensitive, and at that time morbid, temperament up -to a state of feverish excitement, in which the normal barriers between -perception and hallucination had well-nigh vanished. He told them -afterward that he had been a prey to a gruesome vision of which this -prelude is the musical portrayal. - -He fancied that he lay dead at the bottom of the sea; that near him sat -a beautiful siren singing in exquisitely sweet and tender strains, a -song of his own life and love and sorrow. But though her voice was -soothing in its dreamy pathos, and though he felt oppressed by a -crushing languor and fatigue and longed for rest, he could not lose -consciousness, because tormented by the regular, relentlessly monotonous -fall of great drops upon his heart. As the drops continued increasing -steadily in weight and in importunate demand upon his attention, as if -burdened with some great and sad significance which he must recognize, -he became aware that they were the tears of his friends on earth whom he -had loved and lost. With this knowledge, vivid memory and poignant pain -awoke together, and his anguish grew to an overpowering climax of -intensity. Then, nature's limit being reached, the force of his tempest -of grief finally exhausted itself, and he sank gradually into a state of -dull, despairing lethargy, and at last into welcome unconsciousness, the -last sound in his ears being the soothing strains of the siren, and his -last sensation the now faint and feeble, but still regular falling of -his friends' tears upon his heart. - -This composition should be conceived and executed so as to render, to -the full, its intensely emotional character. The first theme in D flat -major, with its sweetly languorous tone, should be given quite slowly, -with pressure touch, producing a penetrating, but not loud, singing -quality of tone, while the reiterated A flat in the accompaniment, -which, throughout the whole work suggests the falling drops, must be at -first vaguely hinted rather than distinctly struck. The middle part in -chords should be commenced very softly with a whispering, mysterious -tone, affecting the hearer like the first shadow of an approaching -thunder cloud, or the presentiment of coming woe. Then the power should -steadily increase--gradually, relentlessly, like the stealthy, -irresistible rising of the dark cold tide about some chained victim in -an ocean cave, where the light of day has never penetrated; mounting -steadily--not rapidly--to the overwhelming climax of the reiterated -octave B in the right hand. - -In the repetition of this passage the same effect should be produced, -with the climax still more intensified. Then let the power as gradually -decrease, till at the return of the siren's song it has sunk into -pianissimo and the closing measure should fade away into silence, like -the echo of dream bells. - -I have dwelt at some length upon this prelude because it is the best -known of the set; the most complete and, generally speaking, the most -effective; and because, in connection with the suggestive quotation from -George Sand, it will serve as a helpful illustration to the student in -arriving at an intelligent comprehension of the others. But a few words -in further elucidation of some of them may be in place. - -The first, in somber, sonorous chords, expresses Chopin's initial -impressions of the stately, but half-ruined monastery in which he and -his little party had found refuge, and the solemn thoughts called up by -its decaying grandeur, its silent loneliness, its vast, gloomy, -memory-haunted halls and cloisters. - -The third represents an evening scene, with the setting sun kindling to -crimson and gold the spires and picturesque whitewashed cottages of the -village of Majorca, a mile away across the little bay, while the gentle -breeze, like the sigh of departing day, brings the sound of silvery -bells from the little village church ringing the vesper chimes. - -The fifth and sixth embody the same mood, in an almost identically -similar setting. They may be effectively combined into one picture of a -dark, depressing, late autumnal day; a day of gray skies and leaden sea; -of heavy, windless calm, the calm of exhaustion and utter weariness, -with the low, sad rain dripping monotonously upon the roof like the -tears of the gods for a dying world. In one, the melody expressing the -element of human sorrow is in the soprano, plaintively, touchingly, -sweetly pathetic. In the other, it is placed in the lower register of -Chopin's favorite orchestral instrument, the 'cello, which it -reproduces, throbbing with a more passionate intensity, a more poignant -pain. But in general character and treatment the two belong together. - -No. 8 tells of the gay carol of the birds at dawn, floating in at the -open windows of Chopin's chamber. No. 17 is a rustic dance of the -Majorcan peasants. No. 24, the last, is a graphic description of a -tropical storm with the flash of lightning and the ominous roll of the -thunder literally portrayed. - -Space does not permit of a detailed analysis of all the numbers, but -each has its special character and suggestive import, and is a picture -of some episode or mood during that winter's sojourn on Majorca. - - - - - Chopin: Waltz, A Flat, Op. 42 - - -Every dance, the waltz included, is based upon and adapted to some -particular dance movement. All its effects, whether of melody, harmony, -rhythm, or embellishment, are carefully calculated by the composer to -meet the requirements of this special movement, to conform to and -express its general character and be governed by its usual rate of -speed. Each of these dance movements embodies in itself some peculiar -quality or characteristic, such as stately grace in the minuet, martial -pomp in the polonaise, impetuous vivacity in the galop, which the music -must indicate and supplement. The Chopin waltzes are no exception to -this rule. They are distinctly and preëminently waltzes; and though of -course not for actual dance purposes, they are intended as idealized -tone-pictures of the waltz, and of ball-room scenes and experiences. - -The one in question, Op. 42 in A flat, is planned upon a broader scale, -contains more variety, and taxes more thoroughly the resources of the -accomplished pianist than any other work of Chopin in this vein. Its -tender, floating melodies, bright, delicate passage work, and swinging, -swaying rhythms are replete with all that eloquent, gliding grace, that -arch coquetry, that passionate warmth of mood, which we so invariably -associate with the festive scenes, - - "Where youth and pleasure meet - To chase the glowing hours with flying feet." - -Lights sparkle, delicate draperies are afloat, like perfumed clouds, -upon the languid air, bright eyes scintillate with mirth or soften with -emotion, and - - "All goes merry as a marriage bell." - -And yet throughout all there runs a half-hidden undertone that tells of -deeper, sterner thought and far intenser feeling; that tells of dark -forebodings, of distant alarms, of sudden trumpet calls; so that the -work in its entirety cannot but seem to us the counterpart in music of -that familiar, almost hackneyed, but immortal word-picture of Byron, -describing the great ball on the eve of the battle of Waterloo, to whose -thunderous music the fate of nations was reversed, like the steps of the -dancers in a ball-room, and France changed monarchs as a lady shifts her -partners. - -The somber trio strain, about the middle of the composition, suggests to -us "Brunswick's fated chieftain," who sat apart and watched the dancers -and listened to the revelry with "Death's prophetic ear." Later, where -the rhythmic pulsation of the waltz is abruptly and violently -interrupted in the midst of its flowing cadences, by a strong emphasized -G natural F, repeated twice by both hands in unison, we are forcibly -reminded of the line-- - - "But hush! hark! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell!" - -After a moment of consternation and suspense, the waltz movement -proceeds, appearing almost flippant by contrast, and seeming to say, -like the verse which follows, - - "On with the dance, let joy be unconfined!" - -Lastly, the breathless, impetuous finale indicates the "hurrying to and -fro," the "mounting in hot haste," and "marshalling in arms," with which -the dance broke up at midnight, as cavaliers rushed from the ball-room -to the battlefield. Both Chopin, the greatest musician of Poland, and -Mickiewicz, her greatest poet, were powerfully impressed by the -personality and poetry of Lord Byron, and there is no doubt that our -composer had the stanzas of the contemporaneous English writer in mind -in the creation of this work. - -The first duty of the performer in rendering this composition should be -to suggest irresistibly to the listeners both the mood and movement of -the waltz, and to force them to feel, as far as may be, the elastic -swing of the rhythm and the warm, voluptuous mood of the music. The tone -quality employed should constantly change to suit the contrasting colors -of the different strains; now warmly lyric, now sparkling and vibrant, -at times deeply somber, and again strikingly dramatic and declamatory. - -As to tempo, I would caution the player against an extreme rate of -speed. Remember that the usual waltz step is, approximately at least, -our guide in choosing the proper movement. I am aware that many -pianists, of the greatest skill and reputation, are guilty of the -cardinal error of playing one of these beautiful poetic little -compositions of Chopin's at _prestissimo_ tempo, so as to display their -phenomenal finger dexterity at the expense of all musical and artistic -truth; so fast, indeed, that even if the notes were all struck with -accuracy, which is by no means always the case, its graceful rhythmic -swing and all its melodic and harmonic effects are utterly lost, leaving -nothing but an incoherent, formless, purposeless whirlwind of tone, as -dry and unlovely as the eddies of dust in a September gale, suggesting -neither the mood nor movement of a waltz. - - - - - Chopin's Nocturnes - - -In derivation and general significance the term nocturne coincides with -our English word nocturnal. It is music appertaining to the night, a -night piece, suited to and expressing its usually quiet, dreamful, -pensive mood, and frequently portraying some nocturnal scene or episode. -The name nocturne was originally used as synonymous with that of -serenade, and they were virtually identical in character. But in later -times it has come to have a much broader application, and to-day, though -every serenade is of course a nocturne, all nocturnes are by no means -serenades. - -The serenade is a real or imaginary song of love, and presupposes a fair -listener at a lattice window and a lover singing beneath the stars, to -the accompaniment of a harp, mandolin, or guitar. The nocturne may -legitimately embody any phase of human emotion or experience, or any -aspect of inanimate nature, which can rationally be conceived of as -appropriately emanating from or environed by nocturnal conditions. - -It must not be supposed that this vein of composition was Chopin's only -or even his most important field of activity. To judge him exclusively -by his nocturnes and waltzes is precisely like judging Shakespeare -solely by his sonnets. But it was a vein in which, owing to his -peculiarly poetic temperament and fertile imagination, he far excelled -all other writers, no less in the quality than in the number and variety -of his creations. - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne in E Flat, Op. 9, No. 2 - - -This perhaps is the easiest and certainly the best known of Chopin's -nocturnes. Scarcely a student but has played it at one time or another. -In fact, it has been worn well-nigh to shreds; yet still retains its -simple, tender charm, if approached in the proper spirit. It is replete -with melodic beauty and warm harmonic coloring, and is an excellent -study in tone-production and shading, as well as a model of symmetrical -form. It was one of his early works, and the glow of first youth still -lingers about it, in spite of its over-familiarity and much abuse. As a -teaching-piece it sometimes surprises the weary teacher with a waft of -unexpected freshness, like the fleeting odor from an old and much-used -school-book in which violets have been pressed. - -It is a pure lyric, a love-song without words, but to which a dreamily -tender poetic text can easily be imagined and supplied; and the very -evident suggestion of the harp or guitar in its accompanying chords -facilitates the effort and brightens the poetic effect. So far as I can -learn, it has no definite local background, either in fact or tradition; -no special place or persons to which it refers. It is an abstract idea -treated subjectively, the embodied emotional reflex of imaginary -conditions. The scene is a garden--any garden, so it be beautiful, rich -with the vivid luxuriance of the South, fragrant with the breath of -sleeping flowers, with the South summer-night hanging fondly over it, -and the summer stars glittering above. The melody is the song of the -ideal troubadour, pouring out his heart to the night and his listening -lady, while the accompanying chords are lightly swept from vibrant -strings by the practised fingers of the minstrel. The cadenza at the -close is intended as a mere delicate ripple of liquid brilliancy, as if -the moon, suddenly breaking through a veil of evening mist, had flooded -the scene with a rain of silvery radiance. - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 27, No. 2 - - -This nocturne, though one of Chopin's most intrinsically beautiful -compositions for the piano, is even more frequently heard upon the -violin. It has been, for decades, a favorite lyric number with all the -leading violinists of the world, and adapts itself admirably to the -resources and peculiar character of this instrument. - -For this there is an excellent reason, far other than mere chance. On a -certain evening in the early thirties were assembled in an elegant -Parisian salon a company of the musical and literary _élite_ of the -French capital, to meet several foreign celebrities and enjoy one of -those rare opportunities for intellectual and artistic converse and -companionship, of which we read with envious longing, but which are -practically unknown in our busy, prosaic age. - -There were present Chopin, Liszt, Mendelssohn, the latter then in Paris -on a brief visit, besides many local musicians of note, including some -of the professors of the Conservatoire, also George Sand, Heinrich -Heine, Alfred De Musset, with some lesser literary lights, and a -brilliant gathering of social leaders. It was an evening long to be -remembered for the sparkling wit and repartee, flashed back and forth -from these brilliant intellects, like the rays of light from the -glittering jewels of the ladies, for the occasional bursts of glowing -eloquence and poetic thought from the profounder minds, and especially -for the music, which was plentiful and of the best. - -It may have been on this very occasion that Rossini made his famous, but -most unfriendly, hit at the expense of Liszt's marvelous powers of -improvisation, which he, Rossini, was inclined seemingly to doubt. Liszt -was being pressed to play and to improvise, and Rossini called out -across the room: "Yes, my friend, do improvise that beautiful thing that -you improvised at Madam --'s last Friday, and at Lord So and So's the -week before." - -In the course of the evening a local violinist of prominence played for -the company a new composition of his own, a sweet, long-sustained -cantilena, with a more involved second movement in double stopping. When -he had finished and the applause had subsided, one of the ladies was -heard to remark, "What a pity that the piano is incapable of these -effects! It is brilliant, dramatic, resourceful, what you will; but only -the violin can stir the heart in that way." - -Chopin rose, bowing with one of his equivocal smiles, half-sad, -half-playfully mocking, stepped to the piano and improvised this -nocturne, a perfect reproduction of all the best violin effects, -cantilena and all, including the double-stopping in the second theme, -with a certain warmth and poetry added, which were all his own. Of -course, it was afterward finished and perfected in detail, but in -substance it was the same as the D flat nocturne which we all know so -well and which the violinists, though most of them unconscious of the -reason, have singled out as specially adapted to their instrument. - -The player should keep the violin and its effects in mind in rendering -it, the lingering, songful, string quality of tone in the melody, the -smooth legato, the leisurely, well-rounded embellishments; and the tempo -should never be hurried. It may be well to say, in this connection, that -in these Chopin nocturnes, and in all other lyric compositions, the -embellishments, grace-notes, and the like should be made to conform to -the general mood and character of the rest of the music. Symmetry and -fitting proportions are among the primal laws of all art. - -In a Liszt rhapsody, a cadenza should flash like a rocket, but in a -Chopin nocturne it should glide with easy, undulating grace, should -float like a wind-blown ribbon, a fallen rose-leaf. Too often we hear -the ornamental passages in a lyric played as if they were wholly -irrelevant matter, dropped in there by accident out of some other -entirely different compositions,--a bit of vain, noisy display in the -midst of a poetic dream, breaking instead of enhancing its charm, -utterly incongruous. Harmonize the embellishments with the subject! Fit -the trimming to the fabric! - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 32, No. 1 - - -Although technically easy and thoroughly musical, this little work is -strangely enough but little played. It is technically no harder than the -Op. 9 referred to, though it requires more intensity and stronger -contrasts in its treatment. - -It is singular that a comparatively simple composition, of such -intrinsic merit, by one of the great composers, comprising, as it does, -so many attractive elements in such small compass, should be so little -used. Possibly, to those not acquainted with its subject, the closing -chords, with their sharp, almost painful contrast, and utter -dissimilarity to the preceding movement, have seemed incongruous and -unintelligible; but, when the theme and purpose of the whole are -understood, it is seen in what a masterly manner, and with what simple -material, Chopin has produced the most striking dramatic results. - -The subject of this nocturne is the same as that of Robert Browning's -later poem, "In a Gondola"; an episode to be found in the annals of -Venice, when, at the height of her pride and power, she was nominally a -republic, but from the large legislative body elected exclusively from -among the nobility, an inner, higher circle of forty was chosen, and -they, in turn, selected from their number, by secret ballot, the -mysterious, potent Council of Ten, gruesomely famous in history, who -wielded the real power of the State, often for the darkest personal -ends, the Doge being little more than a figure-head. Highest and most -dreaded of all was the Council of Three, chosen from their own number by -the Ten, by an ingenious system of secret ballot so perfect that only -those selected knew on whom the choice had fallen, and they did not know -each other's identity. They met at night, in a secret chamber, in which -the three tables and three chairs, and even the blocks of marble in the -pavement of the floor were symbolically triangular. They entered at the -fixed hour, by three separate doors, disguised in black masks and long -black cloaks, conferred in whispers only, and their decrees, like those -of the Greek Fates, were inexorable and inevitable. Veiled and shielded -by mystery, they worked their awful will, from which there was no escape -and no appeal. - -The story runs that once a beautiful and high-spirited heiress, the -daughter of a former Doge, and the special ward of the Council of Three, -as the disposal of her hand and fortune was an important State matter, -had the courage to brave their prohibition and secretly to welcome the -suit and return the love of a young, gallant, but fortuneless knight, -who risked his life to obtain their brief, stolen interviews, or to -breathe his love in subdued but heart-stirring melody beneath her -window. One night, when a great ball at the palace seemed to afford an -opportunity for her to escape unnoticed, he came disguised as a -gondolier, and for a few sweet moments they were alone together upon the -moonlit water. - -The first theme of this nocturne suggests the scene in the gondola, with -its softly swaying motion as it feels the faint swell of the great sea's -distant heart-throb, while the melodic phrases embody the tender mood of -the lovers as if in a sweet, low song. Browning expresses the mood in -his opening lines: - - "I send my heart up to thee, all my heart, - In this my singing; - For the stars help me and the sea bears part; - The very night is clinging - Closer to Venice's streets to leave one space - Above me, whence thy face - May light my joyous heart to thee, its dwelling-place." - -The second theme is somewhat more intense, though still subdued. It -tells of greater passion and also of deeper sadness, with an occasional -passing thrill of suppressed terror. Browning sings it: - - "O which were best, to roam or rest? - The land's lap or the water's breast? - To sleep on yellow millet sheaves, - Or swim in lucid shadows, just - Eluding water-lily leaves. - An inch from Death's black fingers, thrust - To lock you, whom release he must; - Which life were best on summer eves?" - -To which the lady answers: - - "Dip your arm o'er the boat-side, elbow deep, - As I do; thus; were death so unlike sleep, - Caught this way? Death's to fear from flame or steel, - Or poison, doubtless; but from water--feel!" - -The last measures of the lyric melody, full of lingering sweetness, are -like the parting kiss. Then suddenly, brutally, with the G major chord -against the crashing F's in the bass, the voice of fate breaks the -tender spell. Death enters with swift, heart-crushing tread, and his icy -hand snatches his victim from the very arms of love; and the closing -chords, brief, but impressive, voice the shock, the cry of anguish, and -the swift sinking into black despair, which were the lady's more bitter -share in the tragedy. For too soon the time had passed. Their brief -happiness had been saddened and softened to deeper, graver tenderness by -the knowledge of impending danger, by the ever-recurrent cloud like the -passing thought that Browning voices in the line: - - "What if the Three should catch at last thy serenader?" - -They must return or be detected. Reluctantly he guides the boat back to -the landing, and just in the moment of their farewell he is surprised, -overpowered, and stabbed to death by waiting assassins, dying in her -arms. - -The closing of the nocturne as just described is, to my thinking, more -dramatic, more realistic, and far stronger than the last lines of -Browning's poem: - - "It was ordained to be so, sweet! and best - Comes now, beneath thine eyes, upon thy breast. - Still kiss me! Care not for the cowards! Care - Only to put aside thy beauteous hair - My blood will hurt! The Three I do not scorn - To death, because they never lived; but I - Have lived, indeed, and so (yet one more kiss) can die." - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 1 - - -Opus 37, No. 1, in G minor, was written during Chopin's winter sojourn -on the island of Majorca already described. On this occasion also the -composer had been left alone to occupy himself with his piano, while his -more active friends went for a sail on the bay. The sun had disappeared -behind a western bank of cloud. The evening shadows were fast closing -around him, filling with gloom and mystery the distant recesses of the -vast, irregular apartment where he sat, and the columned cloister -beyond, which led from the ruined refectory of the monastery to the -chapel where the priests and abbots of ten centuries lay entombed. The -ruins of a dead past were on every side. The silent presence of Death -seemed all about him. He felt that, like the day, his life was swiftly -declining, and the mood of the place and the hour was strong upon him. -It found utterance in the sorrowfully beautiful, passionately pathetic -first melody of this nocturne, with its falling minor phrases, like the -cry of a deep but suppressed despair, and its somber, sobbing -accompaniment, like the muffled moan of the surf on the adjacent beach. -A precisely similar mood is powerfully expressed in Tennyson's poem -"Break, break, break," especially in the closing lines, - - "But the tender grace of a day that is dead - Will never come back to me." - -Suddenly, in the midst of his melancholy reveries, Chopin was seized by -one of those deceptive visions, so frequent at that time. The shadowy -forms of a procession of dead monks seemed to emerge from beneath the -obscure arches of the refectory, in a slow funeral march along the -cloister behind him to the chapel, where their evening services were -formerly held, solemnly chanting as they passed their _Santo Dio_. This -impressive chant, as if sung by a chorus of subdued male voices, is -realistically reproduced in the middle movement of the nocturne. The -very words _Santo Dio_ are distinctly suggested by each little phrase of -four consecutive chords. - -When the monks have vanished, and their voices have died away in the -distance beneath the echoing vault of the chapel, Chopin recovers -himself with a shudder and resumes his sad dreaming, symbolized by a -return of the first melody. But just at its close the sun sinks below -the western bank, its last rays gleam for a moment on the white sail of -the boat just rounding up to the landing. His friends return. His lonely -brooding is cheerfully interrupted. His mood brightens and the nocturne -ends with an exquisite transition to the major key. - -The player should strive in this work for a somber intensity of tone, -and should render each phrase of the melody as if the pain expressed -were his own, making the undertone of the sobbing sea distinctly -apparent in the accompanying chords. In the middle movement, where the -monks' chant is introduced, the imitation of a muffled chorus of male -voices should be made deceptively realistic. All the notes of each chord -must be pressed, not struck, with a firm but elastic touch, and exactly -simultaneously; and each little quadruplet of chords must rise and fall -in power, so accented as to enunciate the words _Santo Dio_. This is at -once the saddest, the deepest, and the most descriptive, while -technically the easiest, of all the Chopin nocturnes. - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 2 - - -Graceful, tender, and cheerful is the general tone of the Nocturne in G -major. It was written the following summer after Chopin's return to -France, during a visit of some weeks at Nohant, the beautiful country -seat of George Sand, where in the midst of a smiling rural landscape, -bright and winning, rather than awe-inspiring, breathing the mild but -invigorating air of his beloved France, surrounded by cheerful and -congenial companions and by every possible physical comfort, our -composer's health and spirits temporarily revived. To this epoch, brief -as it was, we owe some of his most genial and attractive compositions. - -Again it is evening and Chopin is alone, but this time it is in his own -familiar, cozy room, where the perfect appointments and tasteful -arrangement tell of loving feminine hands, glad to minister to every -fancy of his delicately fastidious nature. The scent of flowers floats -in through the open window, and mingled with it the low voices of -friends in the garden below. He watches the play of lights and shadows -among the swaying branches of a tall, graceful willow tree just outside -his casement, the vaguely outlined, fleecy, floating gray clouds, ghosts -of dead storms, silently passing on into the infinite unknown spaces of -the sky. He listens to the night wind sighing among the tree-tops, to -the good-nights of sleepy birds, to the vesper bell of a distant -village, and embodies his dreamy impressions in the first movement of -this nocturne, with its wavering, undulating murmurous effects, and its -faint, intermittent melodic suggestions, like the half-remembered music -of a dream. - -The second movement, twice alternating with the first, though in -different keys, is distinctly a slumber song in rhythm and mood, a -restful, gentle, soothing lullaby to the composer's own weary heart, to -his momentarily slumbering griefs, and forebodings; peaceful, tender, -pensively sad at times, but entirely free from that ultra-bitterness and -gloom which color most of his later works. His Polish biographer calls -this the most beautiful melody Chopin ever wrote, and it reminds us -strongly of Tennyson's lines in the same mood: - - "There is sweet music here that softer falls - Than petals from blown roses on the grass, - Or night-dews on still waters between walls - Of shadowy granite, in a gleaming pass; - Music that gentler on the spirit lies - Than tired eyelids upon tired eyes." - -An extremely light but fluent legato touch, and an ethereal delicacy and -grace of conception are demanded for the first movement, and the -ever-present curve of beauty should be indicated in each little passage -of three measures. Let the player imagine a brightly tinted feather -ball, tossed lightly into the air and fluttering softly and slowly to -earth again. - -For the second movement, a singing lyric tone, a subdued warmth of -color, and a steady, reposeful, rocking rhythm are a necessity, and the -lullaby mood should be kept in mind. - - - - - LISZT - 1811 1886 - - - - - Chopin's Polish Songs, Transcribed for Piano by Liszt - - -Six of these songs, transcribed for piano, with all Liszt's wonted -skill, render this charming vein of Chopin's work available to the -pianist. I cite two as illustrations: - -These Polish songs by Chopin are, comparatively speaking, unknown, even -among musicians, overshadowed and hidden as they have always been by the -number and magnitude of his pianoforte works, like wood-violets lost in -the depths of a forest. Yet, though small and unpretentious as the -violets, they are among his most genial and poetic creations. Seventeen -of them have been published, as genuine bits of vocal melody as ever -were penned or sung; and there are many more which have never been -printed, scarcely even written out in full; hasty pastime sketches, the -fair daughters of a momentary inspiration, wedded to stray verses of -Polish poetry which caught Chopin's fancy, from the pen of Mickiewicz -and other national bards. - - - The Maiden's Wish - -"The Maiden's Wish," the first of the two songs presented, is one of the -earliest and most popular, so far as known; a dainty, capricious little -mazurka song, half playful, half tender. The words embody the fond wish -of a merry, winsome maiden, whose life is touched to seriousness by the -shadow of first love upon her pathway, the wish that she were a sunbeam -to leave the high vault of Heaven and desert the flowers and streams of -earth to shine through her lover's window and gladden him alone; or that -she were a bird to leave the fields and forests and fly on swift pinions -to his window at early dawn and wake him with a song of love. - -The music accurately and closely reproduces the spirit of the words, in -all their warmth, archness, and grace. The short but continually -recurring trill, "ever on the self-same note," in prelude and interlude, -suggests the thrill which the maiden feels at heart as she flits singing -about the house and garden, unconsciously keeping step to the rhythm of -the mazurka, the native dance of her province. - - - The Ring - -The second song selected resembles in form the ordinary folk-song, with -its single, reiterated musical strophe, and also in its simplicity, its -fresh, unaffected sincerity of mood. But it shows far more perfect -workmanship, and is of a much more refined and poetic quality. It is -plaintively sad, tenderly pathetic in every phrase, a pale, delicate -blossom of sentiment, dropped upon the grave of youth and first love. It -describes the early betrothal of a youth, full of faith, hope, and -happiness, to his playmate and child-love. On departing into strange -lands, the youth gives the maiden a ring and she gives him in exchange a -promise to become his bride on his return. After years of weary -wandering, during which his heart has been ever faithful to his early -love, he returns to find she has forgotten ring and promise and lover. -But in spite of her perfidy and the hopelessness of his attachment, his -constant thoughts cling ever to the little ring he gave and the little -playmate with her childish grace and garb. A very old story and a very -simple one, but none the less sad for that. - -In addition to its intrinsic charm and artistic merit this little -composition possesses a personal interest in its subtle reference to -Chopin's own experience. The great tone-poet knew a love other and -earlier than that destructive passion for George Sand which blasted his -life and broke his heart. But his beloved Constantia, to whom he was -betrothed before leaving Poland, at twenty years of age, to seek his -fortune in the great world, forgot her plighted vows and the little ring -he gave as their visible token, and married another; and it is the -composer's own grieved and disappointed heart that speaks in this -tenderly beautiful song, saddened by the first of the many swiftly -gathering clouds which obscured the brightness of his sunny youth, and -in a few short years rendered the name of Chopin synonymous to his -friends with grief and suffering. - - - - - The Poetic and Religious Harmonies by Franz Liszt - - -Liszt's reputation in this country as a pianoforte composer has hitherto -rested, in the main, upon his brilliant and popular operatic fantasies, -a few of his études, and his unique and world-famous Hungarian -rhapsodies; all of which, though effective and by no means to be -despised, are, after all, only the bright bubbles tossed off in playful -mood from the surface of his genius, like the globules that rise from -the sparkling champagne. - -That there is a deeper, more serious, and far more important vein of -strictly original work of his, which has as yet scarcely been -discovered, still less exploited, few persons, even among the musicians -themselves, seem to be aware. Of course, in the large cities, his -orchestral works--that is to say, some of them--have been occasionally -given and his concertos have become fairly well known; but elsewhere he -is chiefly known as the leading manufacturer of musical pyrotechnics, -the inventor of the best pianistic sky-rockets and the best articles in -tonal thunder and lightning thus far put upon the world's market. But -the fact is that his future fame as a creative musician is destined to -stand upon a much firmer and more lasting basis--namely, that of the -original work referred to; and I believe in a much higher niche in the -temple of art than it at present occupies. - -Among these original works, and forming an important and distinct -division of them, peculiar to itself both in form and subject matter, -the "Poetic and Religious Harmonies" claim our attention. These were -written under rather singular circumstances. - -All through his life, from early boyhood, Liszt was subject to -occasional moods of intense religious fervor,--devotional paroxysms, one -might almost call them,--sweeping over him like a tidal wave, -submerging, for the time, all other thoughts and impulses, and then -receding, to leave him about where they found him. Their transitory and -spasmodic nature has led many to believe that they were not real, but -assumed, simulated hypocritically for effect, or for a purpose; as, for -example, to escape the importunate claims of his several mistresses. - -But those who knew him best are inclined to make allowance for his -impulsive, erratic, unbalanced temperament, his undeveloped oriental -nature, half barbaric in spite of its immense and manifold powers, and -to concede that, while they lasted, they were very genuine and very -profound. Under this impelling force he was several times on the point -of giving up his worldly career and devoting himself to a monastic life, -and was only restrained by the efforts of his many friends and admirers. - -In 1856 came the last and most enduring of these impulses, and, in -obedience to it, he abandoned his life as a concert artist, which, for -phenomenal success, has never had a parallel before or since, retired -into rigorous seclusion in the Vatican at Rome, where he was the guest -and pupil of the Pope himself, and devoted nearly five consecutive years -to religious study and contemplation, receiving the title of Abbé in the -Catholic Church, which he retained till his death, and writing a -considerable number of compositions, all of a distinctively religious -character, all based upon religious themes, either incidents narrated in -the Scriptures, or in the lives of the saints, or subjective experiences -connected with his own spiritual life and development. - -Among these, his great "Legend of St. Elizabeth" is preëminent, and this -series of nine poetic and religious harmonies; each a complete -composition, having no connection with the others except in its general -character, bearing a special title indicating its nature and subject. -Some of them are of very great musical worth and importance, and are -among his best productions, notably, the No. 3, Book 2, entitled "The -Benediction of God in the Solitude." It is one of the subjective, -emotional compositions referred to, giving us a glimpse into the heart -life of the composer during this epoch of profound and intense religious -experience. - -It opens with a subdued but strongly emotional, 'cello-like theme in the -left hand, expressing the first discontent and vague longings of a soul -whose best aspirations and highest needs have found no real satisfaction -in worldly things, yet which has no certain grasp, no safe reliance on -any life beyond and above the present; a soul adrift on the dark ocean -of doubt and skepticism, with no guiding star of hope, no beacon-light -of promise, not even the compass of faith in things unseen by which to -shape its course. This mood grows steadily in intensity, through the -successive stages of unrest, agitation, distress, despair, to an -overpowering climax. Then it is followed by a short, quiet movement in D -major, literally imitating the tranquil strain of the organ and the -distant sound of cathedral bells; thus symbolizing the promises and -proffered consolations of the Church; then a period of grave pondering, -of thoughtful examination and introspection, and then the first theme -repeats, but with less vehement treatment, in a gentle though still -agitated mood, like a recapitulation of his former state from a newly -acquired standpoint, a softened memory of the old, stormy, desperate -mood. - -The work closes with a tranquil, flowing movement, a complete inundation -of the spirit by a flood of that "peace which passeth understanding," -the benediction of God in the solitude. He has found, as he believes, -safety, rest, and reconciliation with divine law and will. This closing -strain, in its reposeful happiness, forms a fitting and most beautiful -ending to this serious, ideally suggestive composition. - -Other numbers of this set are almost equally interesting, but I have not -space for more of them. This one will serve as a good example, and I may -add that it was regarded by Liszt himself as the best of his piano -compositions. - -A little French poem from Liszt's own pen, which stands as motto at the -head of this music, sums up its significance. I append a nearly literal -translation. - - "Whence comes, O my God, this sweet peace that surrounds - My glad heart? And this faith that within me abounds? - To me who, uncertain, in anguish of mind, - On an ocean of doubt tossed about by each wind, - Was seeking for truth in the dreams of the sage, - And for peace, among hearts that were chafing with rage. - A sudden--there flashed on my soul from above - A vision of glorified heavenly love; - It seemed that an age and a world passed away - And I rise, a new man, to enjoy a new day." - - - - - Liszt's Ballades - - -While speaking of Liszt's original compositions, we must not omit his -two ballades, which, though musically a little disappointing, are works -of considerable magnitude and marked individuality, and possess no small -degree of descriptive interest. They are in the same general form and -vein as the Chopin ballades, and were evidently suggested by them, -though they cannot be compared with them either for beauty or for -strength. - - - First Ballade - -The first, in B minor, is decidedly the more vigorous of the two, and -the more difficult. It is based upon the pathetically tragic story of -the Prisoner of Chillon, so ably told in Byron's poem, which the player -should read with care, so as to familiarize himself thoroughly with its -incidents and moods. The poem tells of that nameless captive chained for -life to a pillar in a rock-hewn dungeon beneath the castle of Chillon, -on Lake Leman, below the surface of the lake, so that he listens day and -night to the dull thunder or mournful murmur of the changeful waves -above his head, as his only indication of the shifting moods of Nature -in the living world, her passing smiles and storms, her slowly circling -seasons as they come and go. - - "A double dungeon, wall and wave - Have made--and like a living grave. - Below the surface of the lake - The dark vault lies, wherein we lay: - We heard its ripple night and day, - Sounding o'er our heads it knocked, - And then the very rock hath rocked, - And I have felt it shake unshocked: - Because I could have smiled to see - The death that would have set me free." - -Years drag themselves out to eternities. One by one his few companions -die of cold and hunger, leaving him alone in that living tomb, with his -endless, changeless, unutterable misery. - - "I had no thought, no feeling--none. - Among the stones I stood a stone. - It was not night, it was not day, - For all was blank and bleak and gray: - A sea of stagnant idleness, - Blind, boundless, mute, and motionless." - -His only gleam of comfort were the occasional visits of an azure-winged -bird that came now and then and perched on the window ledge outside his -dungeon bars, a fair and gentle companion symbolizing for him all the -beauty and tenderness and sweetness in the life he has lost; and on -which he comes to concentrate the love and interest of his famished -heart. - - "A lovely bird with azure wings, - And song that said a thousand things, - And seemed to say them all to me! - I never saw the like before, - I ne'er shall see its likeness more: - It seemed, like me, to want a mate, - But was not half so desolate; - And it was come to love me, when - None lived to love me so again." - -The opening movement of the ballade, representing the thunder of the -waves reverberating through the gloom of that cavern-like cell, and the -later lyric, which might be called the bird theme, suggesting his tender -communing with his little friend, are the best movements in the work. -The details of the story are not carried out, but its outlines, and -especially its moods, are clearly given. - - - Second Ballade - -The second ballade, in D flat major, is more melodious and attractive, -but less strong. It is dedicated to Liszt's life-long friend and -powerful patron, the Duke of Weimar, and, out of compliment to him, -treats of an episode in the Duke's family history, back in the days of -the second Crusade. - -A young and gallant chief of the house of Weimar stands in the rosy -light of early dawn, on the highest turret of his castle, with his newly -wedded bride, taking a long farewell of her and of their fair domain, -for at sunrise he leads his knights and men-at-arms to the crusade, and -the return is years distant and uncertain. Their mood is full of sadness -and yet of a strong, religious exultation and trust. His mission is a -grand and glorious one. Heaven will surely guide and protect its -faithful knights, and his lady bids him Godspeed, though with tearful -eyes. From the castle court below, sounds of gathering troops and -martial preparation rise to their ears, at first faintly, then with -growing din and clamor, till a burst of trumpets greets the rising sun; -the gates are flung open and, hastily descending, he takes his place at -the head of his forces and they march away to the strains of inspiriting -military music. The lady still stands alone on her turret, waving her -greetings--stands there, as he sees her last, flooded with the glory of -the morning, an embodiment of love and hope and promise--a vision to -haunt his waking dreams in far-away Palestine, to cheer his lonely -camp-fire vigils and lead him to victory on the field of action. - -As she still stands dreamily watching the last gleam of the -spear-points, the last flutter of the receding banners, the sanguine -fancy of youth leaps the intervening years, and she thinks she hears the -strains of the martial music at the head of the returning army coming in -triumph back from a successful campaign. - -The successive moments in the story above sketched are given with -realistic distinctness in the music, and can be followed without -difficulty. - - - - - Transcriptions for the Piano by Franz Liszt - - -The peculiar aptitude required for successfully rewriting a song or -orchestral composition for the piano, so that it shall become, not a -mere bald, literal reproduction of the melodies and harmonies, as in -most of the piano-scores of the opera, interesting only to students, but -a complete and effective art-work for this instrument, may be a lower -order of genius than the original creative faculty, but is certainly -more rare and almost as valuable to the musical world. It demands, -first, a clear, discriminating perception of the essential musical and -dramatic elements of the original work, in their relative proportions -and degrees of importance, distinct from the merely idiomatic details of -their setting; second, a supreme knowledge of the resources and -limitations of the new medium of expression, so as at once to preserve -unimpaired the peculiar character and primal force of the original -composition, and to make it sound as if expressly written for the piano. -It is one thing to write out the notes of an orchestral score so that -they are, in the main, playable by a single performer on the piano; but -it is quite another thing to readjust all the effects to pianistic -possibilities, so as to produce in full measure the intended artistic -impression. There is practically the same difference as in poetic -translation between the rough, verbal rendering of a Latin exercise by a -school-boy, and the finished, artistic English version of a poem from -some foreign tongue, by a gifted and scholarly writer like Longfellow. - -Whatever may be thought or said of Liszt as an original composer, in his -piano transcriptions he has never had an equal, scarcely even a would-be -competitor. His work in this line is of inestimable importance to the -pianist, both as student and public performer, and forms a rich and -extensive department of piano literature. Think what a gap would be left -in any artist's repertoire if Liszt's transcriptions, including the -rhapsodies, were struck out of it; for the rhapsodies are only -transcriptions of gipsy music. Practically all of Wagner's music that is -available for the pianist he owes to Liszt's able intermediation. True, -Brassin has done some commendable work in his settings of fragments from -the Nibelungen operas, but of these the "Magic Fire" music is the only -really usable number; and this, though playable and attractive from its -own intrinsic merits, is hardly satisfactory, either as a genuinely -pianistic setting or as a reproduction of the artistic effects of the -original. One feels that it is an interesting attempt, not a complete -success; and the "Ride of the Walkyrie," which ought to be the most -effective of all the Wagner numbers for piano, is wholly unusable for -concert purposes. One is practically restricted to Liszt in this -direction, but finds in him a mine of highly finished, admirably set -gems, accessible, though technically not easy to appropriate. - - - Wagner-Liszt: Spinning Song, from the "Flying Dutchman" - -Take, for example, the familiar and ever-enjoyable "Spinning Song" from -the "Flying Dutchman," definite and symmetrical in form, perfect in -every detail as a piano composition, eminently playable and pianistic, -yet preserving the original dramatic intention with absolute -completeness and integrity. Those who are familiar with the opera will -need no explanation of its contents; but for the many piano students who -are not, I give a brief synopsis of the scene of which this music is at -once an accompaniment and a picture; for Wagner's music is all intended -to intensify, by reduplicating in tone, scenes and moods represented on -the stage. - -A little company of village maidens, in a seaport town in Holland, is -assembled of a winter evening to spin. It is to be a semi-social, -semi-useful gathering, much like the old quilting parties of our -grandmothers' time, and they are all in the best of spirits. They start -the wheels, but something is wrong apparently; the thread breaks or -tangles, and two or three times they are obliged to stop, wait a moment, -and recommence, till finally the buzz and hum of the swift-rolling -wheels become continuous. This orchestral imitation of the -spinning-wheel is a piece of very graphic realism, and in the piano -arrangement is given almost equally well in the left-hand accompaniment, -while the right hand carries in chords the chorus of the spinning -maidens, as they sing at their work, a bright, joyous, rhythmical song, -full of gaiety and wit, as shown by an occasional interruption by a -burst of merry laughter. - -In the very midst of their jollity they are startled into an abrupt -silence by the ominous sound of a single horn close by, and they suspend -their work to listen. The horn rings out, clear and strong, a peculiar -impressive signal, which they know and dread as that of the "Flying -Dutchman," the terror of those shores, the fated commander of a phantom -ship, manned by a specter crew, who sails the northern seas eternally, -in winter storm and summer fog, condemned forever to this ghastly -isolation from his living fellow-men, and striking terror to the hearts -of all the simple fisher-folk, whenever the dim outlines of his ship are -seen in the misty offing; and especially when his signal horn is heard; -for it is known that he does sometimes land. His only possible chance of -escape from the awful curse upon him is that once in a hundred years he -is permitted to spend a few brief days on shore and mingle with his -kind, and if, during that short period, he can win the love of any true -maiden so completely that she will voluntarily give her life for him, -then the curse is ended and both may rise to the realms of the blessed -together. It is a grand opportunity for generous self-sacrifice on the -part of some noble girl; but naturally all shrink from it, and are -panic-stricken at his approach. - -But the horn dies away. Echo repeats the notes and drops them. All is -still. They think he is merely passing, as he often does, and has no -intention of landing here at present. So, after a little timid -hesitation, they resume their work and their song, become as hilarious -as before, even more so, going off at last into a perfect gale of -laughter, in the midst of which the horn sounds again; this time nearer, -louder, more importunate. Surely he is about to land, perhaps is already -on shore and approaching; and then there is a frenzy of panic; work is -flung aside, wheels are overturned in the confusion, and the girls -scatter in mad terror in all directions; and with this flight the scene -closes, and this transcription for the piano ends. - -I will add, however, for the completion of the story, that one of the -girls, the heroine, her woman's heart touched to pity by the awful -destiny of the curse-laden commander, remains, half in eagerness, half -in fear, to meet him at his entrance and to become the willing sacrifice -for his redemption. - -The keynote of the whole opera is found in that sublimest of all -facts--human love triumphant over fate. - -With this story in mind, even those quite unfamiliar with the music -cannot fail to recognize and follow the successive details of the scene -described: the whir and hum of the spinning-wheels, the chorus of -singing maidens, the entrance of the signal horn, with its echo and the -terror that follows; the repetition of these incidents in growing -climax, and the mad confusion and scamper at the close. - - - Wagner-Liszt: Tannhäuser March - -Liszt's brilliant transcription of this fragment of the _Tannhäuser_ -music is another of the most popular and grateful Wagner numbers for the -piano. It must not be confounded with the "March of the Pilgrims," or, -more properly, the "Pilgrim's Chorus," as it often is by those not -familiar with the opera. The latter, a chorus of fervently devout -pilgrims departing for the Holy Land, is solemn, inspiring, but somber -in character, while the march is brilliantly festive in tone, gorgeous -in coloring, pompously magnificent in its martial rhythms, its rich -major harmonies and its ringing trumpet themes. It appropriately -accompanies the entrance of a long and splendidly appareled procession -of guests into the old castle known as the _Wacht Burg_, a famous feudal -stronghold in Thuringia during the middle ages. They have assembled in -holiday mood and attire to witness one of those prize contests in -singing--a sort of musical tournament between the leading Minnesingers -of the time, frequently held at the castles of the powerful German -nobles of that period. The word _Minne_ is an old German, poetic synonym -for _Liebe_, or love. Hence the Minnesinger was a minstrel whose avowed -theme was love. - -It was a gala occasion. Excitement and anticipation ran high, for some -of the most celebrated names of the time were on the list of -competitors. All had their favorites, to whom they were disposed to -accord the victory in advance, and all came in the expectation, not only -of a rich musical feast, but of a close and sharply contested combat of -genius, for the honors of the day. The opening trumpet signal announces -that the castle gates are thrown open, and summons the guests to form in -marching order, and then the glittering ranks move forward to the -rhythmically cadenced measures of the march music. Gallant knights in -glistening armor, the pride of race and martial glory in mien and -carriage, stately dames in silk and jewels, fair maidens sweet as the -blossoms they wear, and old men in the dignity of years and proven -wisdom--all are there and are faithfully mirrored in the music as they -pass before us. There is an imposing pomp and gorgeous splendor about -it; a little wearying, it may be, after a time, but certainly never -equaled, if approached, by any other composition, and absolutely in -keeping with the mood and setting of the scene. The tempo should be very -moderate, the rhythm marked and steady, the contrasts distinct, and the -tone, for the most part, full and brilliant, but never harsh. - - - Wagner-Liszt: Abendstern - -Another selection from this same opera, this time in the lyric vein, -which Liszt has effectively arranged for the piano, is the "Evening Star -Romance," as it is often called. It is one of the songs of Wolfram, the -leading baritone of the opera. The theme is love, and the opening line -of the song, "O thou, my gracious evening star," clearly indicates the -bard's intention. The love of which he sings is to be a modest, distant, -respectful devotion, a pure adoration rather than a passionate desire. -His lady-fair is to be his light, his guide, his inspiration to lofty -vows and noble deeds of chivalry. For her will he be all things, achieve -all things, sacrifice all things, asking no reward but her smile of -approbation. She is to be his divinity, not his bride; to be worshiped, -not possessed. - -The mood is one of glowing enthusiasm and ideal unselfishness, but -subdued to a dreamy, half intensity, like sunlight through a fleece of -summer clouds. The player should strive to produce in the melody the -effects of a rich, mellow baritone voice, clearly, smoothly, musically -modulated, warm, but never impassioned. The Minnesingers always -accompany themselves upon the harp, and the harp effects used by Wagner -in the orchestra have been retained, as a matter of course, by Liszt in -the piano arrangement, and must be reproduced by the player with the -utmost fidelity. - - - Wagner-Liszt: Isolde's Love Death - -One of the most vividly interesting, to musicians, of all the -Wagner-Liszt transcriptions, is the death scene from "Tristan und -Isolde," known as "Isolde's Love Death." It is not a number easily -grasped, or usually enjoyed by the general audience; and the elemental -power and intensity of the passion it so forcefully expresses have been -often criticized as morbid, unnatural, and exaggerated, by those, the -mildly tempered milk-and-water of whose stormiest passions never exceed -the moderate, decorous fury of a tempest in a tea-pot. But to those who -can sympathize with and appreciate its irresistible, volcanic outburst -of emotion, its overwhelming sweep of life-rending anguish, it is one of -the strongest, grandest lyric utterances in all the realm of music, -thrilling and overpowering the heart to the degree of pain and terror. - -It is a lyric in form, in treatment, and in subject-matter, dealing -exclusively with emotion, not action, though its breadth of outline, its -somber strength, and its passionate intensity give it a decidedly -dramatic effect. Here is no pink-and-white pet of the modern -drawing-room, grieving for her missing poodle, or another's failure to -wear the most up-to-date tie; but a glorious primeval woman, with the -fire of youth and plenty of good red blood in her veins, a goddess in -the unreserved frankness of her feelings, the boundless strength of her -devotion, sublime in the might of her passion and the majesty of her -doom. - -Her life is her love and must end with it. Her hero-lover, Tristan, lies -beside her, dying of a mortal wound received in combat for love of her, -however dishonorable in the world's eyes; and he is the more to be -cherished because despised and hunted to his death by his king and -former comrades for her sake. Further attempt at flight with him is -hopeless. Fate and their foes are closing swiftly in around them. The -end is inevitable. Their brief, wild dream of stolen happiness is over. -The first black, crushing moment of despairing realization, portrayed in -the opening measures in sober chords, is followed by a strain of sweet, -tender, but plaintive reminiscence of what love was to them and might -have been. Then comes a long, steadily growing, tremendously impassioned -climax of impotent protest, of desperate love, of vehement, -heart-breaking sorrow, all mingled in one glowing lava stream of -frenzied anguish, merging at last into a soft, half-delirious vision of -reunion and happiness beyond the grave, in which her spirit takes its -flight, to realms, we will hope, where hearts, not crowned heads, were -the arbiters of her woman's destiny. - -Those who have no sympathy with a really great passion which sweeps all -before it, flinging the pretty policies and cut-and-dried conventions of -life aside like straw in the path of a cataract, had better let this -music alone. It is not for them either to feel or to render. It requires -exceptional intensity of treatment, a broad, strong, yet flexible -chord-technique, and an absolute mastery of the tonal resources of the -piano. - - - - - Schubert-Liszt: Transcriptions - - -Some of Liszt's very best though earliest work in the line of pianoforte -transcription was done in connection with the Schubert songs; most of it -in the thirties. These songs were then first coming into prominence, and -their markedly romantic and descriptive character appealed strongly to -the dramatic instincts of this master of the piano, understanding and -utilizing as no other writer ever had, the resources and possibilities -of his instrument. Liszt adapted a large number of these songs to it, -rendering them most effectively available as piano solos, selecting -mainly those in which the character of the text and original music gave -opportunity for suggestively realistic and descriptive treatment. - - - Der Erlkönig - -Most famous and decidedly most dramatic of these is the "Erlkönig." All -German students and most vocalists are familiar with the text of this -song, which is its own best explanation; but the piano student may find -a sketch of the story helpful. It is a legend of the Black Forest in -Baden, brought to the world's notice by Goethe in one of his most -dramatic and perfectly wrought ballads. This ballad Schubert set to -music in a moment of highest inspiration; then, in the natural reaction -and discouragement following such a supreme effort of genius, he threw -the manuscript into the waste-basket as unsuccessful and impracticable. -It was rescued a few hours later by a celebrated tenor of the day, who -chanced to call, and accidentally discovering this gem among the torn -papers, saved it to the world. Liszt recognized its immense -possibilities as a piano number and gave the song an instrumental -setting which is even more effective than the original vocal -composition. - -The story is briefly this. A horseman is riding homeward through the -depths of the Black Forest at midnight in a raging tempest, bearing in -his arms his little boy, wrapped safely against the storm, held close -for warmth and safety. The "Erlkönig," or, as we should say, "Elf King," -is abroad in the dark, storm-racked forest. He espies the boy, takes a -freakish fancy to him, determines to possess the child, approaches -softly, with coaxing and persuasion, offers flowers, playthings, pretty -elf playmates, everything he can think of, to tempt the boy to leave his -father, and come with him. But the little one is terrified, shrieks to -his father for protection; and the father, while striving to quiet his -fears, spurs onward at utmost speed, seeking in vain to distance the -pursuing Elf King. - -The composition is graphically descriptive and contains many varied, yet -blended elements. The swift gallop of the horse over the broken ground -is given in rapid triplets as a continuous accompaniment; the rush of -the storm-wind through the moaning pine-tops, the roar of the thunder, -the chill and gloom and terrors of the wild night, are forcefully -depicted in the sweeping crescendos and somber harmonies of the left -hand, while the three voices engaged in the flying, intermittent -colloquy are rendered the more distinct and easy to follow, by being -played in different and suitable registers; the father's voice in the -baritone--grave, stern, impressive; the child's in the -soprano--plaintive and pathetic; and the Elf King's high in the -descant--sweet, seductive, persuasive, impossible to mistake. Three -times this colloquy is renewed, with growing agitation, each time ending -with the terrified shriek of the child, while the flight and pursuit -continue with increasing speed, and the tempest grows apace. Finally the -Elf King loses patience, throws off the mask of friendly gentleness, -declares that if the child will not come willingly he shall use force, -and tries to take him by violence. The child shrieks for the third time -in an anguish of fear, for the touch of the elf is death to a mortal. - -The father, now himself frantic with terror, spurs on madly for home, -with the tempest crashing about him. He reaches his door at last and -dismounts in fancied security, only to find the boy dead in his arms; -and perhaps the most impressive moment of the whole composition is that -at its suddenly subdued, solemnly mournful close, when he stands at the -goal of his furious but futile race, and gazes, by the light of his own -home fire, into the dead face of his child. - - - Hark! Hark! the Lark - -Among the Schubert-Liszt transcriptions, the one which probably stands -next to the "Erlkönig" in general popularity is the song "Hark! Hark! -the Lark at Heaven's Gate Sings!" the words being the well-known, -charming little matin song by Shakespeare which Schubert has set to -music with all his infallible insight into their exact emotional import, -and all his masterly command of musical resources, reproducing in the -melody and its harmonic background the effect intended in every line of -the text, filling every subtlest shade of feeling to a nicety, realizing -once again that ideal union, that perfect marriage of words and music, -so difficult and so rare with most song-writers, but which was a -distinguishing characteristic of Schubert's work. - -In his piano accompaniment Liszt has displayed even more than his usual -skill in preserving all the intrinsic beauty and precise poetic -significance of the original, besides giving to it an eminently -pianistic form. The music is bright, buoyant, joyous as the summer -morning, fresh as its breezes, light as its floating clouds, stirring -our hearts with the revivifying call of a new day, breathing hope and -happiness in every measure, while the airy rippling embellishments -remind us of the exuberant song of the skylark, as he rises exultantly -to meet the dawn, shaking the dew from his swift wings and pouring out -the plenitude of his glad heart upon the awakening earth in a sparkling -shower of music, like the bubbling overflow of some sky fountain of pure -delight. - -The player and listener will do well to have in mind Shelley's lines, -describing the "clear, keen joyance" of that "scorner of the ground," -the English skylark. - - - Gretchen am Spinnrad - -A striking contrast to the composition just described is afforded by the -equally able but intensely mournful transcription entitled "Gretchen am -Spinnrad." - -The text of this song is taken from Goethe's "Faust." It is the song of -Marguerite, sitting at her wheel, in the gathering dusk of evening, -spinning mechanically from the force of long habit, but with her -thoughts engrossed by memories of her lost happiness, her ruined life, -and blighted future. The mood is one of overwhelming melancholy, of -crushing despair, whose dark depths are fitfully stirred from time to -time by a rebellious surge of passionate but hopeless longing, as her -heart throbs to some passing recollection of departed joys and love's -fateful delirium. - -Her dashing but faithless lover, Faust, after winning and betraying her -affection, robbing her of the innocence and tranquil happiness of -girlhood, has abandoned her to face her bitter fate alone; and she moans -in her solitary anguish: - - "My peace is gone, my heart oppressed, - And never again will my soul find rest." - -The music perfectly voices the piteous sadness of her mood, with the -occasional intermittent outbursts of passion; while the monotonous hum -of the spinning-wheel, literally imitated in the accompaniment, as in -every good spinning song, seems in this case to adapt itself to the song -of the maiden, to harmonize with its sadness, to take on a corresponding -melancholy, reflecting the emotions expressed in her voice and words, as -a stream reflects the somber cloud that shadows it--a good illustration -of that universal principle in art, which invests inanimate things with -a fancied sympathy with human experiences. - -Nothing could be more complete or perfectly appropriate than the musical -treatment of this subject; but its unmitigated sadness probably prevents -its becoming a popular favorite; and its extreme, though not at first -apparent, difficulty places it beyond the reach of most amateur players. - - - - - Liszt: La Gondoliera - - -Like many of Liszt's contributions to piano literature, this dainty and -most pleasing little work is not exclusively his own; that is, it is not -an original melodic creation, but the admirably clever arrangement or -setting of an old Venetian boat-song. The melody has been in existence -for many decades, perhaps centuries, and may be heard by any one who -visits Venice, as sung by the gondolier in time to the swing of his -dextrously handled single oar. It is called "La Biondina in Gondoletta" -("the blond maid in a gondola"), and was originally composed by -Pistrucci, to words by Peruchini, and harmonized later by Beethoven, in -his folk-songs, entitled "Zwölf verschiedene Volkslieder." - -It is a distinctly Italian melody, with no pretensions to great depth or -dramatic intensity, but simple, tender, and sweet, winning rather than -commanding--a lyric of the sensuously beautiful type, but not to be -despised, as it is a spontaneous product of the sunny-tempered, -warm-hearted children of the South. It contains no hint of the Venice of -mystery, of secret cruelty, of world-wide powers, of the Council of the -Ten, that masked midnight tribunal of former days; but breathes only of -Venice the fair, in her moonlit beauty--of Venice, "the Bride of the -Sea." - -Liszt's setting gives us not only the melody enhanced by effective -harmonic coloring and delicate embellishment, but a characteristic and -picturesque background of accompaniment suggesting the scene, the mood, -and the environment; the low murmur of the Adriatic, at the distant -water-gate, pleading to be admitted to the presence of his Queen; the -soft ripples stealing up the long winding canals, whispering their love -secrets under the palaces of Juliette and Desdemona, and creeping -fearfully beneath the Bridge of Sighs, and past the dreaded dungeons of -the doges; the silvery moonlight gleaming upon marble frieze and column, -and touching to soft brilliancy the fadeless tints of glass mosaic; the -dip and sway of the graceful gondola as it glides on its silent way -along those water streets between rows of stately buildings, every -carved stone of which is alive with history or with some romantic -legend. - -All these are delicately yet graphically depicted, while the boatman's -song rises and falls, seeming now near, now distant, as it is borne to -us on the varying breath of the light sea-breeze. The whole picture is -one of subdued evening tints, of half-disclosed, half-hinted outlines, -with a pervading mood of dreamy fancy, of wistful tenderness. It seems -to me one of Liszt's most perfect and ably sustained efforts in the -purely lyric, yet suggestively descriptive vein. - -At the close, the great, sonorous bell of St. Mark's Cathedral strikes -midnight, its grave, deep-toned voice majestically commanding the -attention. The F sharp here used to produce the bell effect, and at the -same time serving as bass in a prolonged organ-point throughout the -coda, is the actual keynote of the St. Mark's bell, ingeniously utilized -for this double purpose. Meanwhile, the last notes of the song die away -in the distance, and slumber, like a veil of mist floating in from the -summer sea, envelops the city. - - - - - The Music of the Gipsies and Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies - - -Liszt, in his able and unique but somewhat prolix work, entitled "The -Bohemians and Their Music in Hungary," which, so far as I can learn, has -never been translated into English, gives some most interesting -information concerning these much-played and much-discussed Rhapsodies, -their origin, character, and artistic importance, their relation to the -national music of the gipsies and the racial peculiarities of this -strange people, which I believe will be new to most readers. - -I present here what seem to me the most valuable facts and ideas in -Liszt's book in connection with these Rhapsodies, using, so far as -possible, his own words translated from the French. I have used the word -"gipsies" for "Bohemians" in the translation; this being the usual -English name for the race, as "Bohemian" is the French. - -It should be distinctly borne in mind that, contrary to the generally -prevailing impression, these so-called Hungarian Rhapsodies are not in -any sense derived from or founded upon national Hungarian music, or the -national life and racial traits of the Hungarians. The floating -fragments of wild, fantastic melody and strange, weird harmony which -Liszt has gathered and utilized in this form, came neither from the Huns -nor from the Magyars, whose blended tribes compose the present Hungarian -race; but they are of purely gipsy origin. It is distinctly and -characteristically gipsy music which Liszt has merely adapted to the -piano. His reasons for calling these works Hungarian Rhapsodies he -states as follows: - -"In publishing a part of the material which we had the opportunity to -collect during our long connection with the gipsies of Hungary, in -transcribing it for the piano, as the instrument which could best -render, in its entirety, the sentiment and the form of the gipsy art, it -was necessary to select a generic name which should indicate the doubly -national character which we attach to it. - -"We have called the collection of these fragments 'Hungarian -Rhapsodies.' By the word 'Rhapsody' we have wished to designate the -fantastically epic element which we believe we recognize therein. Each -of these productions has always seemed to us to form a part of a poetic -series. These fragments narrate no facts, it is true; but 'those who -have ears to hear' will recognize in them certain states of mind, in -which are condensed the ideals of a nation. It may be a nation of -Pariahs; but what difference does that make to art? Since they have -experienced sentiments capable of being idealized, and have clothed them -in a form of undisputed beauty, they have acquired the right to -recognition in art. - -"Furthermore, we have called these Rhapsodies 'Hungarian' because it -would not be just to separate in the future what has been united in the -past. The Hungarians have adopted the gipsies as their national -musicians. They have identified themselves with their proud and warlike -enthusiasms, as with their poignant griefs, which they know so well how -to depict. They have not only associated themselves in their 'Frischka' -with their joys and feasts, but have wept with them while listening to -their 'Lassans.' - -"The nomadic people of the gipsies, though scattered in many countries, -and cultivating elsewhere their music, have nowhere given it a value -equivalent to that which it has acquired on Hungarian soil; because in -no other place has it met, as there, the popular sympathy which was -necessary to its development. The liberal hospitality of the Hungarians -toward the gipsies was so necessary to its existence that it belongs as -much to the one as to the other. Hungary, then, can with good right -claim as its own this art nourished by its cornfields and its vineyards, -developed by its sun and its shade, encouraged by its admiration, -embellished and ennobled, thanks to its favor and protection." - -These compositions, then, according to Liszt's own statement, are called -"Hungarian" only by courtesy and a sort of national adoption. They are -called "Rhapsodies" because of their resemblance, in form, character, -and content, to those detached, fragmentary poems sung or recited by the -wandering bards, troubadours, and rhapsodists of the olden time--poems -embodying the collective sentiments, the heroic deeds, the touching or -stirring experiences of a people, which were later collected and welded -together, with more or less coherency, by some master mind, to form the -national epic of that people. This music, of an authentically gipsy -parentage, of which Liszt speaks as "the songs without words" of the -gipsies, and to which he has merely stood sponsor at its rechristening -and its introduction, in new civilized dress, to the musical world, is -the only art form in which this enigmatical race has ever expressed -itself--the only channel through which its ill-comprehended but intense -inner life of emotion, imagination, and vague idealism has found vent. -It is the inarticulate, but none the less expressive, cry of the soul of -a race struggling with that universal human longing for self-utterance. - -Liszt's aim, pursued for many years, at great pains and with masterly -ability, was to collect and preserve for the world at least certain -representative portions of this music, and construct from them a tone -epic of the gipsies, possessing, not only from the artistic, but from -the historical and anthropological standpoint, an interest and value -similar to that of other epics in verse, as, for instance, those of the -Greeks, the Persians, the Germans, the Finns, Scandinavians, etc. - -Of the actual history of the gipsies little is known, save that they are -the strangest and most anomalous people of the globe. Numerous theories -as to their origin have been advanced, only to be abandoned. But the -best belief of to-day is that they originated in India, being of the -lowest Soodra caste or Pariahs there, driven out by the terrible Mongol -invasions between the tenth and thirteenth centuries A. D. They first -appear to the historical world in Egypt, and their name, "gipsies," -given them in this country and Great Britain, is but a corruption of the -word "Egyptian"; and hence they were long erroneously supposed to have -originated there. In other countries they have received various names, -as Bohemians in France, Gitanos in Spain, Zigeuner in Germany, Zingari -in Italy. But they always and everywhere designate themselves as Romani, -or Roma Sinte, meaning, "Roma" (men) and "Sinte," probably from Scind, -or the Indus River. They did not appear in Western Europe till the early -part of the fifteenth century, first in Bohemia, then in France and -Germany, and thence they spread, in wandering bands, from natural -increase, and, perhaps, from further immigration, over most of Europe -and other large portions of the world, everywhere abused and hated, and -by most governments cruelly persecuted. The Austrian government, under -Maria Theresa, was the main, modified exception to this harshness. She -encouraged and protected them in some localities in Hungary, and, under -this more humane care, they have there lived, in very considerable -numbers, a more stable and localized life than elsewhere on earth, -affording some modifications and improvement of their general habits and -character, as nomad, oriental vagabonds. - -Liszt, in the book referred to, has eloquently and strikingly -characterized this strange people, as follows: "Among the nations of -Europe there suddenly appeared one day a people, whence no one could -definitely say. It cast itself upon the Continent without showing any -desire of conquest, but also without asking any right to a domicile. It -did not desire to appropriate to itself an inch of ground, but it -declined to give up an hour of time. It had no wish to conquer, but it -refused to submit. It avowed neither from what Asiatic or African -plateaus it had descended, nor from what necessity it had sought other -skies. It brought no memories; it betrayed no hope. Too vain of its sad -race to condescend to merge itself in any other, it was content to live -repulsing all foreign elements.... This is a strange people, so strange -as to resemble no other in any respect. It possesses neither country, -nor religion, nor history, nor any law whatever.... It permits no -influence, no will, no persecution, no instruction either to modify, -dissolve, or extirpate it. It is divided into tribes, hordes, and bands -which wander here and there, following each the route dictated by -chance, without communication with each other, largely ignoring their -collective existence, but each preserving, under the most distant -meridian, with a solidarity which is sacred to them, infallible rallying -signs, the same physiognomy, the same language, the same manners.... The -ages pass. The world progresses. The countries where they sojourn make -war or peace, change masters and manners, while they remain impassive -and indifferent, living from day to day, profiting by the preoccupations -caused by events which decide the fate of nations, to secure their own -existence with less difficulty.... This people that shares the joys, the -sorrows, the prosperities, and misfortunes of no other; that, like an -incarnate sarcasm, laughs at the ambitions, the tears, the combats, and -festivals of all others; that knows neither whence it came nor whither -it goes; ... that preserves no traditions and registers no annals; that -has no faith and no law, no belief and no rule of conduct; that is held -together only by gross superstitions, vague customs, constant misery, -and deep humiliation; this people, that nevertheless is obstinate, at -the price of all degradation and destitution, to preserve its tents and -its tatters, its hunger and its liberty; this people, that exercises -upon civilized nations an indescribable and indestructible fascination, -passing as a mysterious legacy from one age to the next, all defamed as -it is, offers nevertheless some striking and charming types to our -grandest poets; this people, so heterogeneous, of a character so -indomitable, so intractable, so inexplicable, must conceal, in some -corner of its heart, some lofty qualities, since, susceptible of -idealization, it has idealized itself; for it has poems and songs which, -if united, might perhaps form the national epic of the gipsies." - -It is from such a people, so understood and described by him, that Liszt -has taken the musical fragments inwrought into his Hungarian Rhapsodies; -and he reasons at length and ingeniously as to his right to call these -musical cycles parts of what could be enlarged and made to cohere into a -national tone epic. This people, being unfitted to express itself -nationally in any other mode save through its wonderful, though rude and -uncultivated, instinct for music, "as it drew the bow upon the strings -of the violin, inspiration taught it, without its seeking, rhythms, -cadences, modulations, songs, speech, and discourse. Hegel was not -wrong," says Liszt, "when he gives to the word 'epic' more of the -signification of the verb 'to speak,' or utter, than of the substantive, -'recital'; and these tone pictures are fragments of an epic, because -they speak sentiments which are common to all the race, which form their -inner nature, the physiognomy of their soul, the expression of their -whole sentient being." And therefore, in summary conclusion, Liszt says: -"Believing that the scattered fragments of the instrumental music of the -gipsies, properly arranged, with some understanding of the succession -necessary to make them reciprocally valuable, would afford the -expression of those collective sentiments which inhere in the entire -people, determining their character and customs, one feels himself -authorized to give to such a collection the name of National Epic." - -Regarded from a purely musical standpoint, the Rhapsodies have -occasioned much controversy and considerable adverse criticism on the -part of certain musicians who pride themselves on their loyalty to -conservative traditions. They have been decried as trivial, superficial, -and sensational; as lacking in depth and dignity, in symmetry of form -and nobility of sentiment. These critics seem to forget that the object -of all art is primarily, not instruction or elevation, or even abstract -beauty, but expression. Its mission is to portray, not exclusively the -highest and grandest emotions of humanity, but every experience, every -shade of feeling, every psychological possibility of the race, with -equally sympathetic fidelity. Humanity is the broad theme; and the -various forms of art, on which the specialist is apt to lay undue -stress, are only the means of expression, not the supreme end. That form -is best, in any given case, which best serves the artist's purpose. - -It should be remembered that the music under discussion does not purport -to embody the loftiest or profoundest sentiment which Liszt was -personally capable of feeling or portraying, but the life, scenes, and -moods of the gipsy camp, presented in the primitive, but spontaneous and -vividly graphic, tone imagery of the gipsies themselves. Who shall say -that, as a representative racial art, it is not precisely as legitimate, -as worthy, and as genuinely artistic as the characteristic national art -of the Germans, the Italians, or any other people? Who shall presume to -dictate to the artist what subject, or class of subjects, he may or may -not select for treatment? I repeat, all art has for its mission the -expression of life, all life; not the establishment or maintenance of -standards either of morals or emotions; still less of mere forms of -expression. Is not the gipsy maid, with her ungoverned caprices, her -moments of exuberant gaiety, or passionate grief, just as much alive, -hence as legitimate a theme for the artist, and certainly as interesting -and romantic a subject for art treatment, as the staid German -_Hausfrau_, or the frivolous American society girl? The beggar boy has -been as ably painted, and is considered as artistic a figure as the -king. Poets have sung the loves of shepherds and shepherdesses as fondly -as those of lords and ladies. Is not, then, a good portrayal of a gipsy -camp, whether in words, colors, or tones, just as legitimate a work of -art as an equally able picture of an imperial palace, or an imposing -cathedral? Will not "Carmen" live as long on the operatic stage as even -that paragon of all feminine virtues, "Fidelio"? Is not Don Juan as -immortal a personage in art as Lohengrin? Goethe says: "We have only the -right to ask three questions of any art work: First, what did the artist -intend? Second, was it worth doing? Third, has he succeeded?" Judged -from this, the only true standpoint of esthetic criticism, I venture to -maintain that the Hungarian Rhapsodies are just as good and just as -legitimate music, in their own peculiar way,--that is to say, they -fulfil the essential conditions of their special artistic purpose, as -well and as completely,--as the Bach fugues, or the Beethoven sonatas. - -Granting, if need be, that the Rhapsodies are sensational, heaven -protect us from music that produces no sensation! And, in this case, it -is the sensation, or startling effect, not of mere brilliancy, but of -the unfamiliar contact with the spirit of a race radically differing -from our own; not sensuous and superficial, but profoundly -temperamental, possessing all the fresh charm of new thought expressed -in a novel idiom. Granting again that their melodies are capricious and -fantastic, their harmonies strange and half-barbaric, their form -incoherent and wholly at variance with our established notions of -musical structure, all this but renders them the more characteristic. -The picturesque gipsy could not appear to advantage, nor as a typical -figure in conventional evening dress, with punctilious drawing-room -manners; and the sentiments imputed to him, to be true to life, must not -be those of the cultivated modern gentleman, expressed with the stately -precision affected by the scholastic world; but primitive, elementary, -to some degree chaotic, uttered with the rude force and directness of -the undeveloped nature. In brief, he must be represented against the -background and amid the surroundings which are his natural environment. - -These Rhapsodies are to be taken as rough but faithful self-portraitures -of the gipsies, strictly on their own standards of merit, as art works -in a department by themselves, with a pronounced individuality and a -definite purpose. They are sixteen in number, and all constructed on the -same general plan, made up, like mosaics, of widely varying fragments of -melody, each expressing some particular mood or phase of life, but -combined so as to give a comprehensive impression of the scenes and -conditions of gipsy camps, familiar to Liszt for many years, through -frequent and lengthy visits, as vividly described by him in the book -from which we have so largely quoted. - -Roughly speaking, the melodies so interwoven in the Rhapsodies may be -divided into three classes, all of which appear in about equal -proportions, and with their ever startling sharpness of contrast, in -each and all of these works: the "lassan," a slow, mournfully lugubrious -song, expressing the uttermost depths of depression; the "frischka," a -bright, playful, capricious dance movement, full of grace, humor, and -witching coquetry, and the "czardas," a furious, almost demoniac dance -portraying the dance delirium at its most intoxicating extreme, -resembling somewhat the Tarantelle of Spain and the Dervish dance of the -Orient. These three, with an occasional brief strain from a fugitive -love-song, shy and elusive as the notes of some timid night bird, or a -march-like movement of wild but distinctly martial character, formed the -crude material from which Liszt has wrought these always effective and -thoroughly pianistic compositions. A brief, special reference to two or -three of the best known among them will be sufficient to indicate an -intelligent interpretation of them all. - -The No. 6, for instance, begins with one of the march movements referred -to. It is rhythmic and pompous, with a bold, half-barbaric splendor. -Next comes one of the slower forms of the "frischka," which is often -sung in Hungary to the words of a half-tipsy drinking-song. Then follows -one of the most doleful of the "lassans," the words to which, in free -translation, run as follows: "My father is dead, my mother is dead, I -have no brothers or sisters, and all the money that I have left will -just buy a rope to hang myself with." - -The work closes with one of the wildest, most impetuous of the "czardas" -dances, which Liszt has wrought up to an irresistible, overwhelming -climax. - -The No. 12 begins with a slow, gloomy recitative delivered with an -impressive dignity so exaggerated as to border on the bombastic; a tale -of strange adventures, it may be, narrated by the chief of the tribe at -the evening camp-fire, while the flickering firelight plays upon the -picturesque figures grouped about against the somber background of the -pines, and the thunder mutters sullenly in the distance. Then a quiet -bit of lyric, evidently a love-song, gives a touch of softness to the -scene, and hints at a covert courtship among the shadows. Later, the -crisp, piquant music of the "frischka" calls the young people to the -dance, which gradually increases in speed and brilliancy, till it -finally merges in the "czardas," in which all join, and which is given -with the greatest possible dash and abandon. - -No. 15 is founded upon, and mainly consists of the Rakoczy March, -composed by a gipsy musician in honor of Rakoczy, that Hungarian -patriot, popular general, and hero, whose daring exploits as leader, in -the Hungarian struggle for independence, made him a prominent historical -figure of his time, and the idol of his countrymen. This march has been -adopted as the national march of Hungary, and Liszt's setting of it for -piano is among his most stupendous works. - -These few illustrations may serve as guides in forming a correct -conception of all the Rhapsodies. I have given to the foregoing article -more space than seems, at first thought, to be warranted; partly, -because it gives a somewhat unusual point of view in considering Liszt, -not only as a composer, but as a thoughtful and philosophic student of -esthetics, and as an eloquent, forceful writer; partly, because I hope -it may produce in the minds of some readers a more favorable, because -more justly discriminating, attitude of mind toward these Hungarian -Rhapsodies as musical art works; but mainly, because it emphasizes, with -the powerful support of Liszt's authority, certain general principles of -art which seem to me all-important, but which are too often ignored in -considering the special art of music. - - - - - RUBINSTEIN - 1830 1894 - - - - - Rubinstein: Barcarolle, in G Major - - -Strictly speaking, the "barcarolle" is an Italian boat-song--"barca" -being the Italian word for boat. But in musical terminology it has been -localized and signifies distinctly a Neapolitan boat-song associated as -exclusively with the Vesuvian bay as is the gondoliera with the lagoons -and canals of Venice. In each case it is the song of the local boatman, -sung to the rhythmical accompaniment of the swinging oar, and enhanced -in poetic charm by the beauty and romantic atmosphere of the -surroundings. In each case also it has served as a suggestive and -grateful artistic subject for musical treatment, used by nearly all the -modern composers, great and small, and one which is particularly suited -to the pianoforte and facilely adapted to its characteristic resources. - -In many respects the barcarolle, in this its idealized form as a musical -art work, closely resembles the gondoliera, similarly developed; for -instance, in its graceful six-eight rhythm, its gliding, swaying -boat-like movement, its suggestions of dipping oar and rippling water, -and in its sustained song-like melody which we may easily consider as -representing the voice of the boatman. - -These descriptive elements are common to all works of both classes, but -the characteristic mood of the typical barcarolle is less tender and -passionate, more cheery and fanciful than that of the gondoliera. It has -less of the human element, more of the sea and its slumbering mystery; -less of the lover's sigh, and more of the half-seen witchery of -sea-sprites and mermaids in the clear depths of inverted sky beneath. To -appreciate this mood to the full, one must have drifted, with suspended -oars, in a small boat, upon the far-famed bay of Naples, just as evening -fell, with the lofty banner of blue-black smoke waving majestically -above the summit of Vesuvius, in the distance, like the pennon of some -mighty earth giant, an ominous reminder of his terrible, through -slumbrous, power; with the city rising in the background, terrace on -terrace, from the water's edge to the stern old ducal castle, which -crowns the height and looms dark and forbiddingly against the sky, a -memory in stone, with the fairy island of Capri lying to seaward and the -cool breath of the Mediterranean filling the sails of the countless -fishing-boats gliding shoreward, while the boatmen sing to the subdued -accompaniment of the evening chimes softened by distance. Seen at midday -from the height, under the glare and scorch of the noonday sun, with the -discordant, jangling sounds of busy life rising harshly to one, like the -cries from some pit of torment, Naples seems a hell; but at the evening -hour, viewed from the bay, it is a veritable dream of heaven. - -No one has caught and embodied in music the mood and scene of this hour, -with its caressing coolness, its murmuring ripples, whispering secrets -of other days, like Rubinstein, though many have attempted it with more -or less success. Of his five barcarolles, all beautiful and -characteristic, the most faultlessly typical seems to me the one in G -major which I have selected for special mention. - -This is not only one of the most graceful and characteristic, as well as -most perfect in form and finish, but also decidedly the most realistic -of the five. The rhythmic play of the oars, the undulating movement of -the boat, and the constant plash of the water, are all vividly -suggested, and the melody of the boatman's song, original with -Rubinstein, is very appropriate and typical, heard in intermittent -fragments as if sung fitfully in broken snatches. The chords -accompanying the melody should be given lightly, though in nearly strict -time, in regular, rhythmic pulsations, but with a broken arpeggio -effect, that may well coincide with the representation of rippling -water, which idea is to be kept in mind. - -The passages in double-thirds, which form the principal difficulty of -the work, must be rendered with the utmost smoothness and delicacy. It -is a good plan to begin each passage with a very low and extremely loose -wrist, raising it gradually till quite high toward the middle of the run -and then lowering it as gradually and easily to the end. This insures -absolute flexibility and enhances the undulating effect. The following -little verses, by T. Buchanan Read, express exactly in words the mood of -this barcarolle, and I never play it without thinking of them: - - "My soul to-day - Is far away, - Adrift upon the Vesuvian bay. - My winged boat, - A bird afloat, - Glides by the purple peaks remote. - Across the rail - My hand I trail - Within the shadow of the sail. - With bliss intense - The cooling sense - Glides down my drowsy indolence." - - - - - Rubinstein: Kamennoi-Ostrow, No. 22 - - -Kamennoi-Ostrow is the name of one of a group of islands situated in the -Neva River, some miles below St. Petersburg, "Ostrow" being the Russian -word for island, and "Kamennoi" the specific name for this particular -island, signifying at once small and rocky. This island is a favorite -pleasure resort, both winter and summer, for the wealthy and -aristocratic classes of St. Petersburg; one of the imperial palaces is -situated upon it, besides many cafés, dance halls, summer and winter -concert gardens, and the like. In winter it is the objective point for -countless gay sleighing parties, in which the lavish Russian nobles vie -with each other in the display of elaborately decorated sledges, fine -blooded horses in glittering harness, and piles of almost priceless -furs. At this time the highway to and from the island is the smooth, -solid ice of the frozen river. In summer the transit is made by boat, -and the gaiety is higher during those gorgeous summer nights, when the -midnight sun, never quite vanishing below the southern horizon, floods -the scene with its wondrous, mystical light, unlike either moonlight or -the ordinary light of day, but described by enthusiastic beholders as -possessing a peculiar, magical charm wholly its own and scarcely to be -imagined by those who have never witnessed it. - -Rubinstein, who spent many years of his later life at St. Petersburg, -was naturally a frequent visitor at Kamennoi-Ostrow. In fact, on several -occasions he spent a number of weeks consecutively at one of its summer -hotels and became very familiar with all phases of gaiety at this -festive resort and well acquainted with most of its habitués. His set of -twenty-four pieces for the piano, entitled "Kamennoi-Ostrow," is a -series of tone sketches suggested by and representing various scenes and -personages which his sojourn there brought within his experience. The -No. 22, which is probably the best of the set and certainly the most -widely known, is intended as the musical portrait of a lady, -Mademoiselle Anna de Friedebourg, a personal acquaintance of Rubinstein, -to whom the composition is dedicated. It is a portrait drawn in tender -yet glowing tints against the soft background of the summer night, -outlining, however, the spiritual rather than the physical charms and -characteristics of the lady, affording us a conception of her -individuality as well as the mood of the surroundings. The first and -principal subject, a slow and song-like lyric melody, enunciated by the -left hand, with its peculiarly warm and mellow character, reminding one, -in color and quality, of the tone of the G string on the violin, is -intended to suggest the personality of the lady, or perhaps, more -strictly, the emotional impression which this personality produced upon -the composer; while the delicate, vibratory accompaniment of the right -hand indicates the poetic setting or background, the luminous midsummer -night, in one of those island pleasure gardens, the weird light -quivering down through tremulous leaves, the mingled scent of flowers -and faint sea-breezes, the hum of summer insects, and the whisper of the -reeds stirred by the lazily flowing river. - -Upon the dreamful hush of this audible silence sounds clear, but sweet -and silvery, the little bell of a Greek Catholic chapel, not far -distant, calling to midnight mass and ringing out at regular intervals, -with soft persistency, through the whole of the second strain or -movement. Below and subordinate to it is heard a curious series of -colloquial phrases of melody, subdued and fitful, like the fragments of -a murmured conversation, as if a low and interrupted dialogue were -taking place. Then the full, rich chords of the organ roll out upon the -quiet night, flooding it at once with ample waves of grave, solemn -harmony. This is followed by a brief passage of recitative in single -notes, suggesting the voice of the priest intoning the service within -the chapel. It is said to be an exact reproduction, note for note, of a -fragment of very ancient Hebrew music, once forming a part of the -religious exercises of the Jews and long ago incorporated into the Greek -Catholic service. - -Then comes an effective, but seemingly irrelevant, cadenza in double -arpeggios which, though pleasing, has no apparent connection either with -the subject or the mood of the rest of the composition, but which serves -indifferently well as a means of leading back to the first theme, -presented this time with full, flowing accompaniment in a more -impassioned guise, as if to indicate the deeper, more intensified -emotions developed by the romantic scene and poetic surroundings. - -The composition closes with a momentary return of the little -conversational strain, merely suggested and only just audible this time, -like whispered words of farewell; and then a few quiet chords of the -organ, lingering and slowly fading into the silence, as a pleasant -memory reluctantly dissolves into slumber. - - - - - GRIEG - 1843 1907 - - - - - Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite, Op. 46 - - -Grieg is the chief living exponent of Norwegian music, as Ibsen is of -its literature. "Peer Gynt" is a versified drama by Henrik Ibsen, to -which Grieg has written an orchestral suite of that name, from which -arrangements for piano have been transcribed, both for two and four -hands. - -The scenes, incidents, moods, and characters of Ibsen's drama are -essentially Scandinavian; wild, gloomy, fantastic, often vague and -incoherent to the reader of more classic and polished literature. Peer -Gynt, the hero, is a lawless adventurer, of wild and uncouth -personality, undisciplined instincts and passions, and most chaotic -career. - -The various parts of the Grieg suite are founded upon various scenes of -the drama, but the numbering of the different movements will mislead the -player, as the chronological progression of the drama is not always -adhered to in the music. The following is the order in which the numbers -should be presented to fit the scenes which they represent in the life -and adventures of Peer Gynt: (1) Peer Gynt and Ingrid; (2) Troll Dance; -(3) Death of Ase; (4) Arabian Dance; (5) Anitra's Dance; (6) Solveig's -Song; (7) Morning; (8) Storm; (9) Cradle Song. I have included in their -proper places two of the songs of Solveig, the principal heroine of the -drama, which Grieg has also set to music and which should be rendered by -soprano voice. - - - 1. Peer Gynt and Ingrid - -This is also called "Ingrid's Complaint" and _"Brautraub_," or the -robbery of the bride. It is the first of the scenes in the drama which -Grieg has rendered into music, and represents one of the earliest -escapades in the life of the hero, when he attended the rustic -festivities of a wedding in the neighborhood, and, seized with a sudden -infatuation for the bride, Ingrid, ran away with her to the mountains, -in the face of the assembled company. The first four measures, marked -"allegro furioso," suggest the furious movement and delirious excitement -of the flight and pursuit, contrasting ludicrously with the dazed, -helpless astonishment of the disappointed bridegroom. - -The following protracted plaintive minor strains embody the complainings -and reproaches of Ingrid, grieving for a life ruined and happiness -destroyed, from which Peer suddenly makes his escape, brutally leaving -her to her fate in the hills; and the first four measures are repeated -at the close, to indicate that the only lasting impression made upon him -by the whole affair was that of the exciting and triumphant moment of -his success. - - - 2. Troll Dance - -This is the most graphic of all the numbers, and is sometimes called "In -the Hall of the Mountain King." The _troll_ seems to be the Scandinavian -mountain spirit, but more of the nature of gnomes, kobolds, and goblins -than of the gentle elves and fairies of English lore. After deserting -the unfortunate Ingrid in the forest, Peer fled still deeper into the -rugged fastnesses, where he was surrounded at nightfall by a pack of -trolls, who alternately teased and entertained him with their pranks and -antics, until scattered at dawn by the sound of church-bells in the -distance. - -The grotesque character of this movement admirably depicts the uncanny -mood and nature of the trolls. The opening measures are light and weird, -fantastically suggesting the stealthy footsteps of the gathering pack of -trolls, emerging on tiptoe from the mists and shadows of the night, and -cautiously surrounding their uninvited guest. Little by little the -movement becomes more impetuous, as the hilarity and excitement -increase, until toward the close it grows to an incoherent whirl and -rush, above which ring out sharply the gruesome shrieks of the -infuriated goblins, balked of the continuance of their vindictive -delight in tormenting their victim, by the approach of dawn. - - - 3. Death of Ase - -On returning to his mother's hut in his native village, after these and -many other adventures, Peer finds her on her death-bed, and remains with -her through the night, during which she passes away, enlivening her last -hours with the most preposterous tales and pantomimes. This scene of the -drama, in spite of its solemnity and sadness, carries the fantastic to -the extreme verge of the grotesque. - -The illustrative music is cast in the mold of a "funeral march," without -trio and with but one well-developed theme. In it Grieg has emphasized -only the somber and tragical aspect of the situation, ignoring entirely -its touches of ghastly humor. The utter and crushing despair of a -wrecked and disappointed life, of shattered hopes and unrequited and -unappreciated maternal affection, sobs through its strains, enhancing -the pangs of approaching dissolution. Its mood is that of unqualified -gloom, unrelieved by a single vibration of hope or consolation. - - - 4. Arabian Dance - -In the interval which has elapsed since the death of Ase, our hero, now -in the prime of life, driven by his erratic spirit and love of -adventure, has landed upon the coast of Africa, after being fairly -hounded out of his own country by the ridicule and contempt of his -neighbors. This scene takes place in an oasis of the Great Desert, where -an Arab chief has pitched his tent, and where Peer, mounted on a stolen -white charger and clad in stolen silk and jeweled robes, has arrived in -the rôle of the prophet to the Bedouins. A bevy of Arabian girls are -dancing before him in oriental costume, pausing to render homage at -intervals to the supposed prophet, who reclines among cushions, drinking -coffee and smoking a long pipe. The music begins with a monotonous -rhythmical figure in the accompaniment, suggesting the beat of -tambourines and castanets, and the melody of the opening strain is weird -rather than bright, stealthily playful rather than openly gay, rising -soon to a considerable degree of excited movement. The trio, with its -double melody and its languorous warmth of cadence, tells of -increasingly involved figures in the dance and a more voluptuous, -seductive grace of motion among the dancers. Then the opening strain is -repeated, with its clash of tambourines, its tinkle of silver bangles -and anklets, and its mood of repressed, but jocose, humor, beneath a -flimsy veil of fictitious gravity. - - - 5. Anitra's Dance - -Anitra, the light-limbed and dark-eyed daughter of the chief, has won -the especial favor of the prophet, and dances alone before him after her -companions have retired. Peer is enraptured and promises to make her an -houri in paradise, and to give her a soul, a very little one, in return -for her love and service. She is not much tempted by the soul, but -finally consents to fly to the desert with him for the gift of the large -opal from his turban. Anitra's dance is more warmly subjective, more -distinctly personal in character than the preceding, at once lighter and -more rapid, more tender and winningly graceful, full of arch defiance, -playful witcheries, and the coquettish confidence of the high-born -maiden and practised solo-danseuse, certain of her power and bent on -using it to the full, for the complete subjugation of their prophet -guest. We can almost feel her smoothly undulating movements, her swift, -but seductive, changes of pose, and those sharp, stolen side-glances, -skilfully blended of shyness and fire, flashing from beneath her -drooping black lashes, fascinating, but dangerous, like lightning gleams -from a fringe of somber cloud. - - - 6. Solveig's Song - -Solveig, a Norwegian maiden of Peer's own village, the earliest and only -worthy love of his life, whom he has deserted in a spasm of virtue, -feeling himself unfit to remain with her, sits spinning at the door of a -log hut, in a forest far up in the North. She is now a middle-aged -woman, fair and comely, and as she spins she sings of her unfailing -faith in Peer's return, her own ever-constant love, and her prayers to -God to strengthen and gladden her lover on earth or in heaven. In the -music to this song Grieg has admirably depicted the character of -Solveig: beautiful, tender, joyous, and full of hope. The English -translation of the words, which is but a poor and inadequate -representation of the original, runs as follows: - - "Though winter departeth, - And fadeth the May; - Though summer, too, may vanish, - The year pass away; - Yet thou'lt return, my darling, - For thou, love, art mine. - I gave thee my promise, - Forever I am thine. - - "God help thee, my darling, - If living art thou; - God bless thee, O my darling, - If dead thou art now. - I will wait thy coming - Till thou drawest near; - Or tarry thou in heaven, - Till I can meet thee, dear." - - - 7. Morning - -This, the most musical and sensuously beautiful movement of the whole -suite, represents daybreak in Egypt, with the desert in the distance and -the great pyramids, with groups of acacias and palms in the foreground, -against a rosy eastern sky. Peer stands before the statue of Memnon in -the first hush of the dawn, and watches the rays of the rising sun -strike upon it, when, true to the ancient tradition, the statue sings. -Soft and mysterious strains of music, monotonous and prolonged, are -drawn by the sunbeams from the venerable stone. - -The melody of this movement is of extreme simplicity and lyric beauty, -pure and fresh as the dawn. Its cadences swell in power and volume as -the sun rises higher; and the full flood of light is transmitted into a -full flood of song, as the statue thrills and vibrates with the first -kisses of the ardent Egyptian sun. - -After the climax, which is full and joyous, but never passionate, the -music diminishes and dies away in broken snatches, as the statue, now -thoroughly impregnated with light and warmth, ceases to emit those -sounds with which it has been said to salute the daybreak for four -thousand years. - - - 8. Storm - -Peer Gynt, now a vigorous old man, is on board a ship on the North Sea -off the Norwegian coast, trying to discern the familiar outline of -mountains and glaciers through the growing twilight and gathering storm. -The wind rises to a gale; it grows dark; the sea increases; the ship -labors and plunges; breakers are ahead; the sails are torn away; the -ship strikes and goes to pieces, a shattered wreck, and the waves -swallow all. Peer, true to his nature, saves his life and adds to the -list of his sins by pushing a fellow-passenger from an upturned boat -which will not support both, and floating to shore. - -This, the final instrumental number of the suite, is by far the most -difficult, important, and pretentious of them all; and whether regarded -from a musical or descriptive standpoint, is unquestionably the crowning -effort of the whole work. It portrays the mood and the might of the -tempest with startling vividness, the blackness of the storm-racked -clouds, the rage of the wind-lashed waters, the shrieking of the gale -through snapping cordage, the almost human complaining of the noble -ship, struggling hopelessly with her doom. In brief, the strength, the -power, and the manifold phantom voices of the storm are simultaneously -and graphically expressed, and the mood and movement, both in duration -and completeness of development, exceed those in any of the other -numbers. At length, however, after the catastrophe, the force of the -storm is broken, the fury of wind and waves subsides, and the receding -thunder clouds mutter their baffled rage and threats of deferred -destruction more and more faintly as they disappear, and the light of -morning breaks upon the scene. Then softly, like the audible voice of -the sunlight, comes an instrumental transcription of Solveig's song of -love, previously sung, whose familiar strains symbolically express the -idea that her sleepless affection, her guardian thoughts and prayers -have watched over her loved one and brought him at last safely through -danger and tempest to his native shore. This symbolic use of Solveig's -song, with its suggestive significance, is in my opinion the happiest -and most poetic touch in the whole composition. - - - 9. Solveig's Cradle Song - -Solveig, the guardian angel of Peer's life, represents and appeals to -all that is good in his nature. Her influence, even in the midst of his -maddest escapades, has never wholly deserted him, and serves at last as -the magnet to draw him back to her and home. The last scene in the drama -represents Solveig, now a serene-faced, silver-haired old lady, stepping -forth from the door of the forest hut, on her way to church. Peer, who -in his chaotic fashion has become a prey to disappointment, to remorse, -and to fear of death, appears suddenly before her, calling himself a -sinner and crying for condemnation from the lips of the woman whom he -has most sinned against. Solveig sinks upon a bench at the door of the -hut. Peer drops upon his knees at her feet and buries his face in her -lap. The sun rises and the curtain falls as she sings her lullaby song -of peace and happiness. Grieg has set these last stanzas of the drama to -music under the title of Solveig's Wiegenlied, or Cradle Song. They are -translated as follows: - - "Sleep thou, dearest boy of mine! - I will cradle thee, I will watch thee. - The boy has been sitting on his mother's lap, - The two have been playing all the life-day long. - The boy has been resting at his mother's breast - All the life-day long. God's blessing on my joy. - The boy has been lying close in to my heart - All the life-day long. He is weary now. - Sleep thee, dearest boy of mine! - I will cradle thee, I will watch thee. - Sleep and dream thou, dear my boy!" - -These lines seem to indicate a transition from wifely love to maternal -love in the affection of Solveig, with the advent of age. - -The moral of the drama, not a very ethical one, but one which has -possessed the minds of many devoted women since the world began, appears -to be that in love alone is salvation. Whatever the errors and sins and -follies of the man, he is won at last and saved, even at the eleventh -hour, by the faith, the hope, and the love of one devoted woman. - - - - - Grieg: An den Frühling (Spring Song), Op. 43, No. 6 - - -Among the very few strictly lyric compositions for the piano by -Grieg,--a vein in which he was singularly unproductive for so eminent a -genius,--this spring song must unquestionably take rank as the best, the -most evenly sustained throughout, the most perfect in form and finish, -and decidedly the finest as well as most emotional in quality. - -The opening notes of the right hand accompaniment fall light and silvery -as the soft drops of the April shower upon the waiting woods, when the -first faint shimmer of tender green begins to tint the tips of the -waving boughs. Then the melody enters in the left hand with subdued, -repressed intensity, warmly, sweetly vibrant, like the upper register of -that most passionate of instruments, the 'cello, a melody telling of -mild, languorous days and soft, dream-haunted nights, thrilled through -by the mysterious throbbing of a new life in the earth's long-frozen -veins; telling of Nature, surprised but radiantly happy, awakening at -the touch of her ardent lover, the sudden spring, from her ice-locked -sleep, like the slumbering, frost-fettered bride in the old legend of -Siegfried and Brünnhilde; telling of summer joys and brightness begotten -of their union, of bird songs, sweeter for the long silence, of -many-tinted flowers springing in fragrant profusion where the cold white -drifts of winter lay but yesterday, as if the snowflakes had all been -transformed to blossoms by the magic kiss of the sun; of love as sudden -as the spring, as tenderly sweet as its violets, strong as its rushing -torrents, but alas! too often as transient as its fleeting glories. This -sudden, startling thought of pain and disillusion strikes sharply across -the mellow, golden current of the stream with a somber threatening note -of danger and distress rising to a swift, strong climax of indignant -protest or fierce defiance, a contrasting reactionary mood common to -certain minds, like those, for instance, of Byron and Heine, aptly -illustrated by the following lines, translated from the German of -Amentor: - - "Sing not to me of spring, its flowers and azure skies, - Fleeting delusions all to cheat unwary eyes. - Talk not to me of love, its dreams of Paradise. - The charms of spring, the joys of love, are brilliant lies." - -But this dark mood is of but brief duration; it is soon exorcised by the -plenitude of sunshine and the exuberance of springtime happiness, and -the first melody returns with all its glowing beauty and seductive -sweetness, and with a fuller, more fluent, voluptuous accompaniment, -suggesting the mingled voices of many streams exulting in their new -freedom, or the irregular, intermittent sighs of May breezes, impatient -with having to rock all the baby leaves at once. - -This composition is technically of only moderate difficulty, but -requires for its proper delivery a fine taste, great warmth of feeling, -and a telling, sensuous quality of tone for the melody, while the right -hand accompaniment in the first movement is kept almost infinitely light -and delicate. The sudden burst of passionate pain and resentment in the -climax should be given with extreme intensity and a decided acceleration -of tempo, as well as increase in power; followed by an abrupt fall to a -caressing pianissimo, and a long lingering hold on the final chord just -preceding the return of the first melody, to accentuate the renewal of -the softer, sunnier mood. - - - - - Grieg: Vöglein (Little Birds), Op. 43, No. 4 - - -A charming and effective supplementary companion piece to the spring -song is that exquisitely, daintily fanciful, yet exceedingly brief piece -of descriptive tone painting, called "The Little Birds," published in -the same volume of lyrics with the preceding number. It may be played as -an added and appropriate coda to the spring song. It is one of those -graphically realistic productions which tell their own story. It -portrays very literally, by more than suggestive imitation, the blithe -twitter of the spring birds fluttering amid the dancing leaves and -sunlight, engaged in their delightful occupation of nest-building. -Notice, too, the sudden touch of facetious drollery, so characteristic -of Grieg, where the delicate little bird motive is abruptly transferred -to the bass register, producing a peculiarly comical, grotesque effect, -reminding one of the gutteral hilarity of the spring-awakened frogs in -some neighboring pool. - -Exceeding lightness and delicacy, combined with a certain playful -staccato effect, are the chief technical requisites for the correct -performance of this work, which, though small, will well repay careful -study. The tone produced should be crisp and bright, though never rising -above piano, and the tempo not exceedingly rapid. - - - - - Grieg: Berceuse, Op. 38, No. 1 - - -One of Grieg's most charming lyrics is this thoroughly unique and -characteristic Cradle Song. This has always been a most attractive and -facilely treated subject for piano-compositions, on account of the way -in which it lends itself to realistic handling. - -The general plan of these compositions is always substantially the same: -a simple, swinging accompaniment in the left hand, symbolizing the -rocking cradle, and a soft, soothing melody in the right, more or less -elaborately ornamented, suggesting the song of the nurse or mother -lulling the child to rest. - -An almost infinite variety of effect is possible, however, within these -seemingly narrow limits, dependent upon the differing ability and -personality of the composer, the diversity in melodic and harmonic -coloring, and especially upon the environment and conditions conceived -of by the writer as the setting or background of the picture. The range -of legitimate suggestion in this regard by means of such works is as -broad as that of human experience itself. For instance, the child -imagined may be the idolized prince of a royal line, rocked in a golden -cradle with a jeweled crown embossed upon its satin canopy, and guarded -by the loyalty, the hopes and pride of a mighty nation; or it may be the -sickly offspring of want and suffering, doomed from its birth to sorrow -and struggle and disappointment, to a crown of toil and a heritage of -tears; or perhaps it may be a fairy changeling, stolen by Titania in -some wayward caprice, rocked to sleep in a lily-cup upon crystal waves, -or watching, with large, wondering human eyes, the pranks of the forest -elves as they trace with swiftly circling feet their magic rings upon -the moss, or awaken the morning-glories upon the lawn with a shower-bath -of dew. - -The lullaby song of the mother may thrill with the sweet content and -rapturous joy of a life of love and brightness but just begun, and -seemingly endless in its forward vista of ever new and ever glad -surprises. Her fancies may be winged by hope and happiness to airy -flights in which no sky-piercing height seems impossible; or her voice -may vibrate with the songs of a broken-hearted widow, who guards the -little sleeper in an agony of loving fear, as the last treasure saved -from the wreck of her world. As the smallest plot of garden ground -possesses the capacity to receive and develop the germs of the most -diverse forms of vegetation, from the violet to the oak, from the -fragrant rose to the deadly poppy, so these modest little musical forms -are replete with an almost boundless potentiality of suggestion. - -In the case of this particular work by Grieg, the child portrayed is no -delicate rose-tinted girl-baby, downily cushioned upon silken pillows, -peeping timidly from a drift of dainty laces like the first crocuses -from the feathery snow of April, but the lusty son of a Viking stock, -with the blood of a sturdy race of fighters coursing red through his -veins, and with a will and a voice of his own, cradled in the hollow -trunk of a pine or the hide-lashed blade-bones of the elk, wrapped in -the skin of wolf or bear, and lulled to sleep by the rough, but kindly, -crooning of a peasant nurse. May we not fancy the refrain of her song -somewhat after the fashion of the following lines? - - "Oh, hush thee, my baby; - The time will soon come - When thy rest will be broken - By trumpet and drum, - When the bows will be bent, - The blades will be red, - And the beacon of battle - Will blaze overhead. - Then hush thee, my baby, - Take rest while you may, - For strife comes with manhood - As waking with day." - - - - - Grieg: The Bridal Procession, from "Aus dem Volksleben." Op. 19, No. 2 - - -One of the best known and most popular of Grieg's compositions is the -second movement of his piano suite entitled "Aus dem Volksleben" -(sketches of Norwegian country life), a work which portrays, with all -his graphic power and good-natured humor, a number of unique and -characteristic phases of the peasant life in Norway. This second -movement, at once the easiest and most pleasing number of the suite, is -intended as a realistic representation of the music of a primitive -peasant band, which leads a rural bridal procession, made up of -Norwegian countrypeople, on its way to the church. - -We may fancy ourselves seated on a bank by the roadside, with a jolly -company of villagers in picturesque holiday costume, listening to their -jests and gaiety as we await the rustic pageant. Soon our attention is -caught by the sound of distant music, gradually approaching, strange, -weird, uncanny music, as if the gnomes and trolls had left their work in -the secret mines and caverns of the mountains, where they are ever -forging new chains for the fettered earth-giants as their prisoned -strength increases, and had turned musicians for a frolic and come forth -into the light of day to join the festival. The rhythmic beat of drums -and cymbals, the shrill, strident notes of the fife, the quaint, -quavering tones of the pipe and clarinet, mingle in a strain jocosely -mirthful, rather than truly gay, and becoming more insistent as it -advances. - -There is no trace of tenderness, no hint of sweet anticipation, no -suggestive undertone of sacred solemnity, in this music. We miss the -warm color and tremulous, sustained effects of the violins, which with -us are always symbolic of love. It seems almost like a musical satire on -the tender passion; as if the divine but dethroned Balder (the God of -Love in Norse mythology), disgusted by the infidelity and ingratitude of -mankind, were employing all his wondrous power as a minstrel to -depreciate and deride this his best gift to humanity. But perhaps we do -not rightly appreciate the significance of the music. As it draws nearer -and nearer, growing stronger with every moment, we begin to suspect that -perhaps its very rudeness and primitive energy express more truthfully -than more delicate, dreamy, finely shaded cadences could do, the idea -that human love is one of the elemental forces of nature, underlying and -antedating all the subtilizing refinements of civilization, and destined -to outlast them, as the rugged granite of the northern mountains -antedates and will outlast all the crystal palaces of taste and luxury. - -On comes the procession, the music swelling and growing with every step, -till as it passes immediately before us it becomes an almost deafening -crash of dissonant instruments, each player with lusty good-will doing -his utmost to honor the occasion, outvie his comrades, and earn his -share in the wedding feast, by making his part most prominent in the -general din. First comes the band, then the bride and groom and the -bridesmaids in white, with wands and wreaths, a troop of children with -baskets of flowers, then a company of the immediate friends and -relatives of the bridal pair, with the older neighbors and acquaintances -soberly bringing up the rear. So they defile before us, and pass on -their way down the sunlit country road to the church, the music -gradually diminishing as it recedes into the distance, growing fainter -and fainter till only occasional shriller notes or louder fragments -reach us, and at last even these are sunk in the summer silence. - -This movement is in march time and form, and the strict, unvarying march -rhythm should be preserved throughout, absolutely without variation. The -tone should be crisp and clear, with but little singing quality, to -represent that of wooden wind instruments, but varying in degree from -the softest possible _pp_ to the most tremendous _fff_ which the -performer is capable of producing. The player is here afforded an -opportunity of testing his powers in that most difficult of all elements -in pianism--a long-sustained, evenly-graded crescendo and diminuendo. To -produce its true realistic effect, the music should emerge almost -imperceptibly out of silence, increase steadily, but by infinitesimal -degrees, to the greatest quantity of tone power which the instrument -will produce; then diminish as gradually and steadily till it dissolves -into silence again at the close; not stopping at a given point, but -simply ceasing to sound. Those who have heard Rubinstein render the -Turkish march from "The Ruins of Athens" will remember it as a masterly -model for this effect. - - - - - SAINT-SAËNS - 1835 - - - - - Saint-Saëns: Le Rouet d'Omphale - - -Saint-Saëns, though himself a first-rate concert pianist and the -composer of some excellent things for the piano, notably in concerto -form, is, nevertheless, chiefly gifted and principally celebrated as a -writer for orchestra, having done his best, most original, and most -interesting work in this line. Among his many important compositions for -full orchestra, there are perhaps none which better represent his -individuality and peculiar style than his four "Symphonic Poems," of -which two have been selected for illustration here. This form of -composition, as well as its name, originated with Franz Liszt, whose -twelve "Symphonic Poems" are his most important contributions to -orchestra literature. In musical structure the symphonic poem -corresponds to the modern overture and to the pianoforte ballade, as -exemplified by Chopin, much more nearly than to the symphony proper. It -consists of a single movement, without different divisions and -pronounced differentiated parts, such as are to be found in the -regulation symphony, though it often expresses a wide variety of moods, -merging into one another without pause or interruption. - -Its only radical point of similarity to the symphony lies in the fact -that its first principal theme is subjected to an elaborate and logical -development in most cases, as in the symphonic allegro. It is distinctly -an outgrowth of modern romanticism and deals always with the somewhat -definite poetic thought, or some real or imaginary episode from life. It -is, in fact, program music of the most pronounced and uncompromising -type, and the special thought or episode is always indicated by its -descriptive title. - -The four Symphonic Poems of Saint-Saëns are: (1) Le Rouet d'Omphale; (2) -Phaeton; (3) Danse Macabre; (4) La Jeunesse d'Hercule. - -I have selected for consideration here the first and third, entitled -respectively the "Rouet d'Omphale" and the "Danse Macabre"; the one -descriptive of a classic, the other of a medieval scene and tradition. - -The first, the "Wheel of Omphale," was suggested by the Greek myth of -Hercules and Omphale. The story of the pair is familiar to all readers -of classic mythology, and represents perhaps the most singular episode -in the checkered career of this hero and demigod. The legend runs as -follows: Hercules, having killed his friend Iphitus in a fit of madness, -to which he was occasionally subject, fell a prey to a severe malady, -sent upon him by the gods in punishment for this murder. He consulted -the Delphic oracle with a view to learning the means of escaping from -this disease. He was informed by the oracle that he could only be cured -by allowing himself to be sold as a slave for three years, and giving -the purchase money to the father of Iphitus as recompense for the loss -of his son. Accordingly Hercules was sold by Mercury as a slave to -Omphale, the Queen of Lydia, then reigning in that country, who had long -been desirous to see this strongest of men and greatest hero of his age. -He remained with her the allotted three years, and during this period of -slavery, by the wish of the queen, the warrior-hero assumed female -attire and sat spinning among the women, where his royal mistress often -chastised him with her sandal for his awkward manner of holding the -distaff, while she paraded in his lion's skin, armed with his famous -war-club. But if awkward at the distaff this son of Jupiter understood -other arts which he practised upon the Lydian queen; for in the -intervals of spinning he made love to her so successfully that from -their union sprang the race of Croesus, famous in antiquity. Some -authorities regard this legend of Hercules and Omphale as of -astronomical significance, while others give it a moral interpretation, -saying it illustrates how even the strongest and bravest of men is -demeaned and belittled when subjugated by a woman. - -The music opens with a playfully realistic introduction, consisting of a -series of light, rapid-running figures and graceful embellishments, -imitatively suggesting the roll and buzz of the spinning-wheels. A -series of delicate turns, each an audible circle, add their quota of -pertinent symbolism to the general effect. Soon the melody enters, -joyous, musical, yet with a certain arch mockery, enhanced by its odd, -piquant rhythm. It is the song of the spinning maidens, cheerfully -speeding their hours of toil with music and mirth, with occasional -irrepressible touches of gay raillery at the expense of the clumsy -captive warrior, whose long face and futile attempts at their handicraft -afford them vast amusement. Now and then a distinct burst of silvery -laughter is heard above the boom of the wheels, interrupting the strain. -Omphale, too, is there, admonishing, chiding, ridiculing the hero, as he -moodily pursues his unwonted and unwilling task with many a blunder and -comical mistake; yet we can fancy a half-tender smile softening her -reprimands and sweetening her playful chastisements. - -Then with a radical change of mood and movement comes the second -important theme, a broad, impressive, strikingly original melody in the -bass, half gloomy, half indignant, the mighty manly voice of Hercules, -uplifted in grave lament and dignified protest, deploring his hard lot, -defying its humiliations, reproaching his gay tormentors, rebelling at -his menial duties and unworthy surroundings, yet with a stern, proud -gravity, a grand fortitude which scorns alike weak complainings and -impotent petulance. It subsides at last into philosophic resignation and -sorrowful self-repression, as if consoled by the thought that his -punishment is after all just and his submission voluntary. - -Then the spinning movement is resumed and the first song virtually -repeated, though in a materially modified rhythm; and the work ends -playfully, as it begins, with a wonderfully realistic imitation of the -gradual stopping of the wheels, as their momentum exhausts itself and -little by little their speed slackens and they finally come to a -complete rest when abandoned by the girls, as sunset ends the day's -work. - -This composition is one of Saint-Saëns' most genial and melodious -productions, as well as an excellent piece of descriptive work. It may -be rendered on the piano either in the four-hand arrangement by Guiraud, -or as transcribed for two hands by the composer himself. It is about -equally feasible and effective in either of these forms. - - - - - Saint-Saëns: Danse Macabre - - -For the significance of the French word _macabre_ we must turn to the -Arabic _makabir_, signifying a burial place or cemetery. The "Danse -Macabre," therefore, is simply a "cemetery dance" or "Dance of Death." - -One of the most prevalent superstitions during the middle ages -throughout Europe, and especially France, was that of the "Danse -Macabre,"--a belief that once a year, on Hallowe'en, the dead of the -churchyards rose for one wild, hideous carnival, one bacchanalian revel, -in which old King Death acted as master of ceremonies. This gruesome -idea appears frequently in the literature of the period, and also in its -painting, particularly in church decoration, and a more or less graphic -portrayal of the "Danse Macabre" may still be seen on the walls of some -old cathedrals and monasteries. - -This composition, belonging as it does to the ultra-realistic French -school of the present day, is a vivid tone picture of the same "Danse -Macabre." At the head of the original composition, serving as motto and -undoubtedly as direct inspiration for the music, stands a curious -ancient French poem in well-nigh obsolete fourteenth century idiom. I -have made a free translation of these verses into English, as follows: - - On a sounding stone, - With a blanched thigh-bone, - The bone of a saint, I fear, - Death strikes the hour - Of his wizard power, - And the specters haste to appear. - - From their tombs they rise - In sepulchral guise, - Obeying the summons dread, - And gathering round - With obeisance profound, - They salute the King of the Dead. - - Then he stands in the middle - And tunes up his fiddle, - And plays them a gruesome strain. - And each gibbering wight - In the moon's pale light - Must dance to that wild refrain. - - Now the fiddle tells, - As the music swells, - Of the charnel's ghastly pleasures; - And they clatter their bones - As with hideous groans - They reel to those maddening measures. - - The churchyard quakes - And the old abbey shakes - To the tread of that midnight host, - And the sod turns black - On each circling track, - Where a skeleton whirls with a ghost. - - The night wind moans - In shuddering tones - Through the gloom of the cypress tree, - While the mad rout raves - Over yawning graves - And the fiddle bow leaps with glee. - - So the swift hours fly - Till the reddening sky - Gives warning of daylight near. - Then the first cock crow - Sends them huddling below - To sleep for another year. - -The composition opens with twelve weird strokes indicating the arrival -of midnight, struck out upon a vibrant tombstone by the impatient hand -of Death himself. There follows a light, staccato passage, suggesting -the moment when, in obedience to this awesome signal, the specters -appear from their graves and come tiptoeing forward to take their places -in the fantastic circle. Then comes a strikingly realistic passage where -Death attempts to tune up his fiddle, as he is to furnish the music for -the dance. It has been lying disused since the last annual festival, is -very much out of tune, and refuses to come up to pitch. In spite of his -best endeavors, the E string obstinately remains at E flat. The -repetition of this passage at intervals throughout the composition -suggests occasional hasty and ill-timed efforts to tune up. - -Now comes the first theme of the dance itself, light, fantastic, -suggestive of purely physical excitement and ghastly pleasure, and -graphically representing the imagery of the corresponding verse of the -poem. - -The second theme is slower, heavier, more gloomily impressive, with its -weird minor harmonies and its strongly marked rhythms, suggesting the -darkness and terror of that midnight scene, the gruesome gravity of old -King Death, as master of ceremonies, and the increasingly ponderous -tread of that ghostly multitude, to which the gray walls of the abbey -and the very ground itself seem to reel in unison. This is the moment -when "the sod turns black where each skeleton whirls with a ghost." - -Death again attempts to tune up his fiddle, with frenzied haste, and the -dance grows in speed and impetuous power. Later it is interrupted by a -lyric intermezzo, brief but pathetically sweet. It seems to be a -plaintive lament played in a momentary pause of the dancing, expressing -the sad memories and hopeless longings of the dancers, the real mood -which underlies the forced gaiety of this wild revel. It is -appropriately accompanied by the Æolian-like effect of the night wind -sighing among the cypress boughs. An onward rush follows, more furiously -impetuous than before, for just as in the small hours the boisterous and -frenzied merriment of the witches in "Walpurgis Night" grew apace, so -does this skeleton dance gradually reach an almost demoniac climax of -hilarity, as all unite in a grand finale, a thunderous whirl of hideous -merriment. Here the first and second dance themes are very ingeniously -woven together, appearing simultaneously in a piece of most grotesque -but effective counterpoint. - -Then comes a sudden hush, in which the distant crow of the morning cock -is distinctly heard, a signal that daylight is approaching and the revel -must end. With a wild hurry and scurry the specters betake themselves to -their graves once more, a final lugubrious wail from the fiddle closing -the composition, as Death is the last to leave the field. - - - - - Counterparts among Poets and Musicians - - -Those who have had sufficient interest to read any considerable number -of the foregoing chapters cannot have failed to perceive that, to the -mind of the author, the sister arts, music and poetry, sustain to each -other an even closer, more vitally intimate relation than the family -connection generally conceded to them. - -It is a kinship of soul and sympathy, as well as of race--a similarity -of aim and influence upon humanity; a similarity, even in the kind of -effect produced, and the means employed to produce it, which renders -them largely interdependent and reciprocally helpful. The purpose of -both is expression, chiefly emotional expression, descriptions of nature -and references to natural phenomena being introduced merely as -accessories, as background or setting for the human life and interest, -which are of primary importance. Both express their meaning, not through -imitated sounds or forms borrowed from the physical world, but by means -of audible symbols devised by man for this express purpose, which have -come by long usage and general acceptance to have a definite -significance, but require a certain degree of education to comprehend -them, and which are therefore more intellectual, more adapted to the -expression of the subtler phases of life, and more purely human in their -origin, than the media of form and color employed in the plastic arts. - -True, the one uses tones, the other words, as its material; but the -difference is by no means so radical as at first appears. Both exist in -time, while all other arts have to do with space and substance. Both -have but one dimension, so to speak,--namely, duration,--and owe -whatever of the beauty of form and proportion they possess to a -symmetrical subdivision of this given duration into correspondent parts -or sections, by means of accents, brief pauses, and rhymes or cadences. -Both may successfully treat a progressive series of moods or scenes, of -varying character, and fluctuating intensity, which is not possible in -the plastic arts, limited as they all are to the portrayal of a single -situation, a single instant of time, a single fixed conception. Both, -again, possess a certain warmth and inherent pulsing life, which is -their common, dominant characteristic, due to the heart-throb of rhythm, -which is lacking in all other arts. - -Even in the media they employ, there is a strong though subtle -resemblance; both appeal directly to the sense of hearing, which -scientists tell us is more intimately connected with the nerve centers -of emotional life than any other of the senses. In both cases the -immediate appeal is to the feelings and the imagination, without -recourse to intervening imagery borrowed from external nature. Both -embody the cry of one soul to another, and they are not widely divergent -in quality or effect. Language at its highest is almost song, and music -at its best is idealized declamation. All good poetry must be musical. -It should, as we say, sing itself; and all good music must be poetical, -conveying a distinctly poetic impression. - -To me every poem presupposes a possible musical setting, and every -worthy composition, a possible poetic text. Hence the language used, in -describing music, must of necessity, so far as the powers of the writer -permit, possess a generally poetic character. In all my thought and -reading, along this line, it has seemed to me, not only of extreme -interest, but of great practical value to every musician and writer, to -devote careful study to the analogy between these arts, to the -correspondences between artists, in these parallel lines of work, and -between their special productions in each, to obtain the widest possible -familiarity with both arts and their mutual relations, with a view to -letting each aid to a fuller elucidation and better appreciation of the -other. I have always grouped together in my mind Bach and Milton, -Beethoven and Shakespeare, Mozart and Spenser, Schubert and Moore, -Schumann and Shelley, Mendelssohn and Longfellow, Chopin and Tennyson, -Liszt and Byron, Wagner and Victor Hugo. - -Bach and Milton seem to me to occupy corresponding niches in the temples -of music and of verse, because of the strong religious element in the -personality of both, of their severe, involved, lengthy, sonorous, and -dignified style of utterance; their mutual disdain of mere sentiment and -softer graces, and their fondness for works of large dimensions and -serious import. Furthermore, because of the proneness of both to -religious and churchly subjects, and the corresponding position which -they occupy as veteran classics in their respective arts. - -The analogy between Beethoven and Shakespeare is almost too obvious for -remark. They are the twin giants of music and literature in their -colossal and comprehensive powers, in the breadth and universality of -their genius, and in the verdict of absolute superiority unanimously -accorded them by all nations, all schools, and all factions, both in the -profession and by the public. They are like the pyramids of Egypt; they -overtop all altitudes, cover more area, and present a more enduring -front to the "corroding effects of time" than aught else the world has -known. - -Mozart and Spenser resemble each other in their quaint and classic, yet -naïve and sunshiny style, their abundance, almost excess of fancy, and -their fondness for supernatural, though for the most part non-religious -and non-mythological scenes, incidents, and characters; also in their -habit of treating startling situations and normally grievous -catastrophes without exciting any very profound subjective emotions in -their readers and hearers. Not that they are flippant or superficial in -character; far from it; but with them art was somewhat removed from -humanity. With Spenser literature was not life, and with Mozart music -was not emotion. We smile and are glad at heart because of them, but we -are not thrilled; we are pensive or reflective, but we rarely weep and -are never plunged into despair. There is a moral lesson, it is true, in -the feats of the knights and ladies in the "Faery Queen," as also in the -vicissitudes of that rather admirable scoundrel, Don Juan, but it is not -burned into us, as by a keener and crueler hand. Those who enjoy poetry -and music, rather than feel it, love it, or learn from it, are always -partial to Spenser and Mozart. - -No artistic affinity is more marked than that of Schubert and Moore. -They are both preëminently song-writers. Both had a gift of spontaneous, -happy, graceful development of a single thought in small compass. Both -are melodious beyond compare, and both wrote with an ease, rapidity, and -versatility rarely matched in the annals of their arts. Moore is the -most musical of poets, and Schubert, perhaps, the most poetic of -musicians. One of Moore's life-purposes was the collection of stray -waifs of national airs and furnishing them with appropriate words. -Likewise, one of Schubert's main services to art was the collection of -brief lyric poems and setting them to suitable melodies. Each reached -over into the sister art a friendly hand, and each, unawares, won his -chief fame thereby. Moreover, though clinging by instinct and preference -to the smaller, simpler, more unpretentious forms, each wrote one or two -lengthy and well-developed works, such as the "Lalla Rookh," with Moore, -and the "Wanderer Fantaisie," with Schubert, which gloriously bear -comparison with the masterpieces of their type from the pens of the -ablest writers in the larger forms. - -Shelley has been called the poet's poet, and Schumann might as aptly be -termed the musician's composer; because the subtle, fanciful, subjective -character and the metaphysical tendency of the works of both require the -keen insight and the fertile imagination of the artistic temperament, to -follow them in all their flights and catch the full significance of -their suggestions. With both, the instinct for form is weak, and the -constructive faculty almost wanting. Ideas and figures are fine, -profound, and astute, but there is a lack of lucidity, brevity, and -force, as well as of logical development, in their expression. A few -bits of melody by Schumann, such as the "Träumerei," and an occasional -brief lyric by Shelley, like "The Skylark," have become well-known and -popular; but their works, in the main, are likely to be the last ever -written to catch the public ear. They appeal the more strongly to the -inner circle of initiates who are familiar spirits in the mystical -realm, whose language they speak. Where Shelley is the favorite poet, -and Schumann the favorite composer, an unusually active fancy and subtle -intellect are sure to be found. - -Mendelssohn and Longfellow are alike in almost every feature. Both are -in temperament objective and optimistic. Both are graceful, fluent, -melodious, tender, and thoughtful, without being ever strongly -impassioned or really dramatic. Both display superior and -well-disciplined powers, nobility of sentiment, and ease and grace of -manner. Perfect gentlemen and polished scholars, both avoid all radical -and reformatory tendencies, to such an extent as to lend a shade of -conventionality to their artistic personality, as compared with the -extreme romanticists of their day. Both have reached the public ear and -heart as no other talent of equal magnitude has ever done. Many of the -ballads, narrative poems, and shorter pieces by Longfellow, and the -"Songs Without Words," by Mendelssohn, have become so familiar as to be -almost hackneyed, even with the non-poetic and non-musical populace. - -Chopin is beyond dispute the Tennyson of the pianoforte. The same depth, -warmth, and delicacy of feeling vitalizing every line, the same polish, -fineness of detail, and symmetry of form, the same exquisitely refined, -yet by no means effeminate, temperament are seen in both. Each shows us -fervent passion, beyond the ken of common men, without a touch of -brutality; intense and vehement emotion, with never a hint of violence -in its betrayal, expressed in dainty rhythmic numbers as polished and -symmetrical as if that symmetry and polish were their only _raison -d'être_. This similar trait leads often to a similar mistake in regard -to both. Superficial observers, fixing their attention on the preëminent -delicacy, tenderness, elegance, and grace of their manner and matter, -regard them as exponents of these qualities merely, and deny them -broader, stronger, sterner characteristics. Never was a grosser wrong -done true artists. No poet and no composer is more profound, passionate, -and intense than Tennyson and Chopin, and none so rarely pens a line -that is devoid of genuine feeling as its legitimate origin. But the -artist in each stood with quiet finger on the riotous pulses of emotion, -and forbade all utterance that was crude, chaotic, or uncouth. Both had -the heart of fire and tongue of gold. Tennyson wrote the model lyrics of -his language and Chopin the model lyrics of his instrument, for all -posterity. Edgar Poe said of Tennyson: "I call him and think him the -noblest of poets, because the excitement which he induces is at all -times the most ethereal, the most elevating, and the most pure. No poet -is so little of the earth, earthy." The same words might well be spoken -of Chopin. - -Liszt and Byron were kindred spirits, both as men and artists. Among the -serener stars and planets that move majestically in harmony with -heaven's first law, to the music of the spheres, they were like meteors -or comets, appearing above the horizon with dazzling brilliance, and -darting to the zenith, through an erratic career, reaching a summit of -fame and popularity, attained during his lifetime by no other poet or -musician, and setting at defiance all laws of art, of society, and of -morals. Brilliancy of style and character, haughty independence, -impetuous passion, a matchless splendor of genius, a supreme contempt -for the weaknesses of lesser mortals, combined with the warmest -admiration for their peers, are the distinguishing attributes of both. -Byron's devoted friendship for Moore and Shelley corresponds exactly to -Liszt's feeling for Chopin and Wagner. Liszt himself recognized this -affinity between himself and Byron. The English poet was for many years -his model and favorite author; many of his scenes and poems he -translated into tones, and his influence is marked in most of his -earlier compositions. The works of both are remarkable for a fire and -fury almost demoniac, alternating with a light and flippant grace, -almost impish. Both understood a climax as few others have done, and -both had the dramatic element strongly developed. Both were lawless and -dissolute, according to the world's verdict, yet scrupulous and refined -to an extreme in certain respects. Each scandalized the world, repaid -its censure with scorn, and saw it at his feet; and each left, like a -meteor, a track of fire behind him, which still burns with a red and -vivid, if not the purest, luster. - -Wagner and Victor Hugo are the two Titans of the nineteenth century, -having created more stir and ferment in the world of art and letters -than any other writers, contemporary or previous. Each is the leading -genius of his nation. They resemble each other in the pronounced -originality of their genius, their virile energy and productivity, and -their colossal force. Of both, the rare and singular fact is true, that -their productions all attain about the same level of merit. Most authors -and most composers are known by one or a few sublime creations. I know -of no others who have written an equal number of great works and none -that are mediocre or feeble. They are also alike in the circumstance -that while each has done fine work in a number of other departments, it -is the dramatic element which forms the strongest feature of their -artistic personality. Few French novels can compare with those of Victor -Hugo; but it is the powers of the dramatist displayed in the plot, -striking situations and characters, which constitute their chief merit; -and in his writings for the stage he has far surpassed all that he has -done as novelist. Likewise, while Wagner's orchestral works for the -concert room would alone have made him a reputation, it is by his operas -that he has made the world ring with his fame. Each had a sense of the -dramatic and a mastery of its effects not even approached by any other -artist. They bear, furthermore, a strong resemblance in their -revolutionary character and tendencies. Both were born pioneers, -innovators, reformers. Both headed a revolt against the reigning -sovereigns and the established government of their respective arts and -after a desperate struggle came out victorious. Both have been followed -by a host of disciples, belligerent and radical beyond all that the -annals of music and literature can show. They were like two powerful -battering-rams, attacking the bulwarks of classic prejudice and -conventionality. The revolution which Wagner brought about in opera was -exactly matched by Hugo with the drama. His "Hernani" was as great a -shock to the established precedents of the stage, as was Wagner's -"Nibelungen." Lastly, both display the unusual phenomenon of retaining -their creative power into extreme old age, and both died when life and -art and fame were fully ripe, with the eyes of the world upon them and -their names on every tongue. - - - FINIS. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Descriptive Analyses of Piano Works, by -Edward Baxter Perry - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSES OF PIANO WORKS *** - -***** This file should be named 44910-8.txt or 44910-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/4/9/1/44910/ - -Produced by Sean (scribe_for_hire@yahoo.com), based on -page images generously made available by the Internet -Archive -(https://archive.org/details/descriptiveanaly00perriala). - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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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: Descriptive Analyses of Piano Works - For the Use of Teachers, Players, and Music Clubs - -Author: Edward Baxter Perry - -Release Date: February 14, 2014 [EBook #44910] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSES OF PIANO WORKS *** - - - - -Produced by Sean (scribe_for_hire@yahoo.com), based on -page images generously made available by the Internet -Archive -(https://archive.org/details/descriptiveanaly00perriala). - - - - - - - - - - DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSES - OF PIANO WORKS - - FOR THE USE OF TEACHERS, - PLAYERS, AND MUSIC CLUBS - - - BY - EDWARD BAXTER PERRY - - - PHILADELPHIA - THEODORE PRESSER CO. - LONDON, WEEKES & CO. - - - - - Copyright, 1902, by Theodore Presser - International Copyright - - - Printed in the United States of America - - - - - My Keys - - - I. - - To no crag-crowning castle above the wild main, - To no bower of fair lady or villa in Spain; - To no deep, hidden vaults where the stored jewels shine, - Or the South's ruddy sunlight is prisoned in wine; - To no gardens enchanted where nightingales sing, - And the flowers of all climes breathe perpetual spring: - To none of all these - They give access, my keys, - My magical ebon and ivory keys. - - II. - - But to temples sublime, where music is prayer, - To the bower of a goddess supernally fair; - To the crypts where the ages their mysteries keep, - Where the sorrows and joys of earth's greatest ones sleep; - Where the wine of emotion a life's thirst may still, - And the jewels of thought gleam to light at my will: - To more than all these - They give access, my keys, - My magical ebon and ivory keys. - - III. - - To bright dreams of the past in locked cells of the mind, - To the tombs of dead joys in their beauty enshrined; - To the chambers where love's recollections are stored, - And the fanes where devotion's best homage is poured; - To the cloudland of hope, where the dull mist of tears - As the rainbow of promise illumined appears; - To all these, when I please, - They give access, my keys, - My magical ebon and ivory keys. - - - - - Only an Interpreter - - - The world will still go on the very same - When the last feeble echo of my name - Has died from out men's listless hearts and ears - These many years. - - Its tides will roll, its suns will rise and set, - When mine, through twilight portals of regret, - Has passed to quench its pallid, parting light - In rayless night, - - While o'er my place oblivion's tide will sweep - To whelm my deeds in silence dark and deep, - The triumphs and the failures, ill and good, - Beneath its flood. - - Then other, abler men will serve the Art - I strove to serve with singleness of heart; - Will wear her thorned laurels on the brow, - As I do now. - - I shall not care to ask whose fame is first, - Or feel the fever of that burning thirst - To win her warmest smile, nor count the cost - Whate'er be lost. - - As I have striven, they will strive to rise - To hopeless heights, where that elusive prize, - The unattainable ideal, gleams - Through waking dreams. - - But I shall sleep, a sleep secure, profound, - Beyond the reach of blame, or plaudits' sound; - And who stands high, who low, I shall not know: - 'Tis better so. - - For what the gain of all my toilsome years, - Of all my ceaseless struggles, secret tears? - My best, more brief than frailest summer flower, - Dies with the hour. - - My most enduring triumphs swifter pass - Than fairy frost-wreaths from the window glass: - The master but of moments may not claim - A deathless name. - - Mine but the task to lift, a little space, - The mystic veil from beauty's radiant face - That other men may joy thereon to see, - Forgetting me. - - Not mine the genius to create the forms - Which stand serenely strong, thro' suns and storms, - While passing ages praise that power sublime - Defying time. - - Mine but the transient service of a day, - Scant praise, too ready blame, and meager pay: - No matter, though with hunger at the heart - I did my part. - - I dare not call my labor all in vain, - If I but voice anew one lofty strain: - The faithful echo of a noble thought - With good is fraught. - - For some it cheers upon life's weary road, - And some hearts lightens of their bitter load, - Which might have missed the message in the din - Of strife and sin. - - My lavished life-blood warmed and woke again - The still, pale children of another's brain, - Brimmed full the forms which else were cold, - Tho' fair of mold. - - And thro' their lips my spirit spoke to men - Of higher hopes, of courage under pain, - Of worthy aspirations, fearless flight - To reach the light. - - Then, soul of mine, content thee with thy fate, - Though noble niche of fame and guerdon great - Be not for thee: thy modest task was sweet - At beauty's feet. - - The Artist passes like a swift-blown breeze, - Or vapors floating up from summer seas; - But Art endures as long as life and love: - For her I strove. - - - - - Contents - - PAGE - Introduction, 11 - Esthetic versus Structural Analysis, 15 - Sources of Information Concerning Musical Compositions, 23 - Traditional Beethoven Playing, 32 - Beethoven: The Moonlight Sonata, Op. 27, No. 2, 45 - Beethoven: Sonata Pathetique, Op. 13, 50 - Beethoven: Sonata in A Flat Major, Op. 26, 55 - Beethoven: Sonata in D Minor, Op. 31, No. 2, 61 - Beethoven: Sonata in C Major, Op. 53, 64 - Beethoven: Sonata in E Minor, Op. 90, 68 - Beethoven: Music to "The Ruins of Athens," 72 - Weber: Invitation to the Dance, Op. 65, 81 - Weber: Rondo in E Flat, Op. 62, 86 - Weber: Concertstueck, in F Minor, Op. 79, 90 - Weber-Kullak: Luetzow's Wilde Jagd, Op. 111, No. 4, 93 - Schubert: (Impromptu in B Flat) Theme and Variations, - Op. 142, No. 3, 99 - Emotion in Music, 105 - Chopin: Sonata, B Flat, Op. 35, 113 - The Chopin Ballades, 118 - Chopin: Ballade in G Minor, Op. 23, 123 - Chopin: Ballade in F Major, Op. 38, 130 - Chopin: Ballade in A Flat, Op. 47, 137 - Chopin: Polonaise, A Flat Major, Op. 53, 142 - Chopin: Impromptu in A Flat, Op. 29, 147 - Chopin: Fantasie Impromptu, Op. 66, 149 - Chopin: Tarantelle, A Flat, Op. 43, 152 - Chopin: Berceuse, Op. 57, 156 - Chopin: Scherzo in B Flat Minor, Op. 31, 158 - Chopin: Prelude, Op. 28, No. 15, 161 - Chopin: Waltz, A Flat, Op. 42, 168 - Chopin's Nocturnes, 172 - Chopin: Nocturne in E Flat, Op. 9, No. 2, 174 - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 27, No. 2, 176 - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 32, No. 1, 179 - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 1, 183 - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 2, 186 - Chopin: Polish Songs, Transcribed for Piano by Franz Liszt, 191 - Liszt: Poetic and Religious Harmonies, No. 3, Book 2, 194 - Liszt: First Ballade, 199 - Liszt: Second Ballade, 201 - Transcriptions for the Piano by Liszt, 203 - Wagner-Liszt: Spinning Song from "The Flying Dutchman," 205 - Wagner-Liszt: Tannhaeuser March, 208 - Wagner-Liszt: Abendstern, 209 - Wagner-Liszt: Isolde's Love Death, 210 - Schubert-Liszt: Der Erlkoenig, 213 - Schubert-Liszt: Hark! Hark! the Lark, 216 - Schubert-Liszt: Gretchen am Spinnrad, 217 - Liszt: La Gondoliera, 219 - The Music of the Gipsies and Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies, 222 - Rubinstein: Barcarolle, G Major, 237 - Rubinstein: Kamennoi-Ostrow, No. 22, 241 - Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite, Op. 46, 247 - Grieg: An den Fruehling, Op. 43, No. 6, 257 - Grieg: Voeglein, Op. 43, No. 4, 260 - Grieg: Berceuse, Op. 38, No. 1, 261 - Grieg: The Bridal Procession, from "Aus dem Volksleben," - Op. 19, No. 2, 264 - Saint-Saens: Le Rouet d'Omphale, 271 - Saint-Saens: Danse Macabre, 276 - Counterparts among Poets and Musicians, 281 - - - - - DESCRIPTIVE - ANALYSES OF - PIANO WORKS - - - Introduction - - -The material comprised in the following pages has been collected for use -in book form by the advice and at the earnest request of the publisher, -as well as of many musical friends, who express the belief that it is of -sufficient value and interest to merit a certain degree of permanency, -and will prove of practical aid to teachers and students of music. A -portion of it has already appeared in print in the program books of the -Derthick Musical Literary Society and in different musical journals; and -nearly all of it has been used at various times in my own Lecture -Recitals. - -The book is merely a compilation of what have seemed the most -interesting and valuable results of my thought, reading, and research in -connection with my Lecture Recital work during the past twenty years. - -In the intensely busy life of a concert pianist a systematic and -exhaustive study of the whole broad field of piano literature has been -utterly impossible. That would require the exclusive devotion of a -lifetime at least. My efforts have been necessarily confined strictly to -such compositions as came under my immediate attention in connection -with my own work as player. - -The effect is a seemingly desultory and haphazard method in the study, -and an inadequacy and incoherency in the collective result, which no one -can possibly realize or deplore so fully as myself. Still the work is a -beginning, a first pioneer venture into a realm which I believe to be -not only new, but rich and important. I can only hope that the example -may prompt others, with more leisure and ability, to follow in the path -I have blazed, to more extensive explorations and more complete results. - -Well-read musicians will find in these pages much that they have learned -before from various scattered sources. Naturally so. I have not -originated my facts or invented my legends. They are common property for -all who will but seek. I have merely collected, arranged, and, in many -instances, translated them into English. I claim no monopoly. On the -other hand, they may find some things they have not previously known. In -such cases I venture to suggest to the critically and incredulously -inclined, that this does not prove their inaccuracy, though some have -seemed to fancy that it did. Not to know a thing does not always -conclusively demonstrate that it is not so. - -To the general reader let me say that this book represents the best -thought and effort of my professionally unoccupied hours during the past -twenty years. It comes to you with my heart in it, bringing the wish -that the material here collected may be to you as interesting and -helpful as it has been to me in the gathering. The actual writing has -mainly been done on trains, or in lonely hotel rooms far from books of -reference, or aids of any kind; so occasional inexactitudes of data or -detail are by no means improbable, when my only resource was the memory -of something read, or of personal conversation often years before. With -the limited time at my disposal, a detailed revision is not practicable, -and I therefore present the articles as originally written. Take and use -what seems of value, and the rest pass by. - -The plan and purpose of the book rest simply upon the theory that the -true interpretation of music depends not only on the player's possession -of a correct insight into the form and harmonic structure of a given -composition, but also on the fullest obtainable knowledge concerning the -circumstances and environment of its origin, and the conditions -governing the composer's life at the time, as well as any historical or -legendary matter which may have served him as inspiration or suggestion. - -My reason for now presenting it to the public is the same as that which -has caused me to devote my professional life exclusively to the Lecture -Recital--namely, because experience has proved to me that a knowledge of -the poetic and dramatic content of a musical work is of immense value to -the player in interpretation, and to the listener in comprehension and -enjoyment of any composition, and because, except in scattered -fragments, no information of just this character exists elsewhere in -print. - -It being, as explained, impossible to make this collection of analyses -complete, or even approximately so, it has seemed wise to limit the -number here included to just fifty, so as to keep the book to a -convenient size. I have endeavored to select those covering as large a -range and variety as possible, with the view of making them as broadly -helpful and suggestive as may be. - -It is my intention to continue my labors along this line so far as -strength and opportunity permit, in the faith that I can devote my -efforts to no more useful end. - - _Edward Baxter Perry._ - - - - - Esthetic versus Structural Analysis - - -It has been, and still is, the general custom among most musicians, when -called upon to analyze a composition for the enlightenment of students -or the public, or in the effort to broaden the interest in their art, to -think and speak solely of the _form_, the _structure_ of the work, to -treat it scientifically, anatomically--to dwell with sonorous unction -upon the technical names for its various divisions, to lay bare and -delightedly call attention to its neatly fashioned joints, to dilate -upon the beauty of its symmetrical proportions, and show how one part -fits into or is developed out of another--in brief, to explain more or -less intelligently the details of its mechanical construction, without a -hint or a thought as to why it was made at all, or why it should be -allowed to exist. With the specialist's engrossing absorption in the -technicalities of his vocation, they expect others to share their -interest, and are surprised and indignant to find that they do not. They -forget that to the average hearer this learned dissertation upon primary -and secondary subjects, episodical passages, modulation to related and -unrelated keys, cadences, return of the first theme, etc., has about as -much meaning and importance as so much Sanskrit. It is well enough, so -far as it goes, in the classroom, where students are being trained for -specialists, and need that kind of information; but it is only one -side,--the mechanical side,--and the general public needs something -else; and even the student, however gifted, if he is to become more than -a mere technician, must have something else; for composition and -interpretation both have their mere technic, as much as keyboard -manipulation, which is, however, only the means, not the end. - -Knowledge of and insight into musical form are necessary to the player, -but not to the listener, even for the highest artistic appreciation and -enjoyment, just as the knowledge of colors and their combination is -essential to the painter, but not to the beholder. The poet must -understand syntax and prosody, the technic of rhyme-making and -verse-formation; but how many of his readers could analyze correctly -from that standpoint the poem they so much enjoy, or give the scientific -names for the literary devices employed? Or how many of them would care -to hear it done, or be the better for it if they did? The public expects -results, not rules or formulas; effects, not explanations of stage -machinery; food and stimulus for the intellect, the emotions, the -imagination, not recipes of how they are prepared. - -The value of esthetic analysis is undeniably great in rendering this -food and stimulus, contained in every good composition, more easily -accessible and more readily assimilated, by a judicious selection and -partial predigestion, so to speak, of the different artistic elements in -a given work, and a certain preparation of the listener to receive them. -This is, of course, especially true in the case of the young, and those -of more advanced years, to whom, owing to lack of training and -opportunity, musical forms of expression are somewhat unfamiliar; or, in -other words, those to whom the musical idiom is still more or less -strange. But there are also very many musicians of established position -who are sorely in need of something of the kind to awaken them to a -perception of other factors in musical art besides sensuous beauty and -the display of skill; to develop their imaginative and poetic faculties, -in which both their playing and theories prove them to be deficient; and -the more loudly they cry against it as useless and illegitimate, the -more palpably self-evident becomes their own crying need of it. - -Esthetic analysis consists in grasping clearly the essential artistic -significance of a composition, its emotional or descriptive content, -either with or without the aid of definite knowledge concerning the -circumstances of its origin, and expressing it plainly in a few simple, -well-chosen words, comprehensible by the veriest child in music, whether -young or old in years, conveying in a direct, unmistakable, and concrete -form the same general impressions which the composition, through all its -elaborations and embellishments, all its manifold collateral -suggestions, is intended to convey, giving a skeleton, not of its form, -but of its subject-matter, so distinctly articulated that the most -untrained perceptions shall be able to recognize to what genus it -belongs. - -Of course, when it is possible, as it is in many cases, to obtain and -give reliable data concerning the conception and birth of a musical -work, the actual historical or traditional material, or the personal -experience, which furnished its inspiration, the impulse which led to -its creation, it is of great assistance and value; and this is -especially so when the work is distinctly descriptive of external scenes -or human actions. For example, take the Schubert-Liszt "Erlkoenig." Here -the elements embodied are those of tempest and gloom, of shuddering -terror, of eager pursuit and panic-stricken flight, ending in sudden, -surprised despair. These may be vaguely felt by the listener when the -piece is played, with varying intensity according to his musical -susceptibility; but if the legend of the "Erlkoenig," or "Elf-king," is -narrated and attention directly called to the various descriptive -features of the work,--the gallop of the horse, the rush and roar of the -tempest through the depths of the Black Forest, the seductive insistence -and relentless pursuit of the elf-king, the father's mad flight, the -shriek of the child, and the final tragic ending, all so distinctly -suggested in the music,--the impression is intensified tenfold, rendered -more precise and definite; and the undefined sensations produced by the -music are focused at once into a positive, complete, artistic effect. - -Who can doubt that this is an infinite gain to the listener and to art? -Again, take an instance selected from a large number of compositions -which are purely emotional, with no kind of realistic reference to -nature or action, the Revolutionary Etude, by Chopin, Opus 10, No. 12. -The emotional elements here expressed are fierce indignation, vain but -desperate struggle, wrathful despair. These are easily recognized by the -trained esthetic sense. Indeed, the work cannot be properly rendered by -one who does not feel them in playing it; and they can be eloquently -described in a general way by one possessing a little gift of language -and some imagination; but many persons find it hard to grasp abstract -emotions without a definite assignable cause for them, and are -incalculably aided if told that the study was written as the expression -of Chopin's feelings, and those of every Polish patriot, on receipt of -the news that Warsaw had been taken and sacked by the Russians. - -Where such data cannot be found concerning a composition, one can make -the content of a work fairly clear by means of description, of analogy -and comparison, by the use of poetic metaphor and simile, by little -imaginative word-pictures, embodying the same general impression; by any -means, in short,--any and all are legitimate,--which will produce the -desired result, namely: to concentrate the attention of the student or -the listener on the most important elements in a composition, to show -him what to listen for and what to expect; to prepare him fully to -receive and respond to the proper impression, to tune up his esthetic -nature to the required key, so it may re-echo the harmonious -soul-utterances of the Master, as the horn-player breathes through his -instrument before using it, to warm it, to bring it up to pitch, to put -it in the right vibratory condition. - -The plan of esthetic analysis, in more or less complete form, was used -by nearly all of the great teachers, such as Liszt, Kullak, Frau -Schumann, and others, and was a very important factor in their -instruction. It was used by all the great writers on music who were at -the same time eminent musicians, like Liszt, Schumann, Mendelssohn, -Mozart, Wagner, Berlioz, Ehrlich, and many more. Surely, with such -examples as precedents, not to mention other good and sufficient -grounds, we may feel safe in pursuing it to the best of our ability, in -print, in the teaching-room, in the concert-hall, whenever and wherever -it will contribute to the increase of general musical interest and -intelligence, in spite of the outcries of the so-called "purists," who -see and would have us see in musical art only sensuous beauty and the -perfection of form, with possibly the addition of, as they might put it, -a certain ethereal, spiritual, indefinable something, too sacred to be -talked about, too transcendental to be expressed in language, too lofty -and pure to be degraded to the level of human speech. - -Who, I ask, are the sentimentalists--they, or we who believe that music, -like every other art, is _expression_, the embodying of human -experiences, than which there is no grander or loftier theme on this -earth? Trust me, it is not music nor its subject-matter that is -nebulous, indistinct, hazy; but the mental conceptions of too many who -deal with it. - -If art is _expression_, as estheticians agree, and music is an art, as -we claim, then it must express something; and, given sufficient -intelligence, training, and insight, that something--the vital essence -of every good composition--can be stated in words. Not always -adequately, I grant, but at least intelligibly, as a key to the fuller, -more complex expression of the music; serving precisely like the -synopsis to an opera, or the descriptive catalogue in a picture gallery. -This is the aim and substance of esthetic analysis. - - Musicians are many who see in their mistress - But physical beauty of "color" and "form," - Who hear in her voice but a sensuous sweetness, - No thrill of the heart that is living and warm. - - They judge of her worth by "perfection of outline," - "Proportion of parts" as they blend in the whole, - "Symmetrical structure," and "finish of detail"; - They see but the body--ignoring the soul. - - She speaks, but they seem not to master her meaning, - They catch but the "rhythmical ring of the phrase." - She sings, but they dream not a message is borne on - The breath of the sigh, while its "cadence" they praise. - - Her saddest laments are "melodious minors" - To them, and her jests are but "notes marked staccato"; - Her tenderest pleadings but "themes well developed," - Her rage--but "a climax of chords animato." - - In vain she endeavors to rouse their perceptions - By touching their brows with her soul-stirring hand - They measure her fingers, their fairness admire, - Declare her "divine," but will not understand. - - Away with such worthless and sense-prompted service; - Forgetting the goddess, to worship the shrine; - Forgetting the bride, to admire her costume, - Her garments that glitter, and jewels that shine: - - And give us the artists of true inspiration, - Whose insight is clear, and whose brains comprehend, - To interpret the silver-tongued message of music - That speaks to the heart, like the voice of a friend; - - That wakens the soul to the joys that are higher - And purer than all that the senses can give, - That teaches the language of lofty endeavor, - And hints of a life that 'twere worthy to live! - - For music is Art, and all Art is expression, - The "beauty of form" but embodies the thought, - Imprisons one ray of that wisdom supernal - Which Genius to sense-blinded mortals has brought. - - Then give us the artist whose selfless devotion - To Art and her service is earnest and true, - To read us the mystical meaning of music; - Musicians are many, but artists are few. - - - - - Sources of Information Concerning Musical Compositions - - -During my professional career I have received scores of letters from -musical persons all over the country, asking for the name of the book or -books from which I derive the information, anecdote, and poetic -suggestion, concerning the compositions used in my Lecture Recitals, -particularly the points bearing upon the descriptive and emotional -significance of such compositions. All realize the importance and value -of this phase of interpretative work, and many are anxious to introduce -it in their teaching or public performances; but all alike, myself not -excepted, find the sources of such information scanty and difficult of -access. - -First, let me say frankly that there is no such book, or collection of -books. My own meager stock of available material in this line has been -laboriously collected, without definite method, and at first without -distinct purpose, during many years of extensive miscellaneous reading -in English, French, and German; supplemented by a rather wide -acquaintance among musicians and composers, and the life-long habit of -seizing and magnifying the poetic or dramatic bearing and import of -every scene, situation, and anecdote. If asked to enumerate the sources -from which points of value concerning musical works can be derived, I -should answer that they are three, not all equally promising, but from -each of which I myself have obtained help, and all of which I should try -before deserting the field. These are: - -First, and perhaps the most important, reading. Second, a large -acquaintance among musicians, and frequent conversations with them on -musical subjects. Third, an intuitive perception, partly inborn and -partly acquired, of the analogies between musical ideas, on the one -hand, and the experiences of life and the emotions of the human soul, on -the other. I will now elaborate each of these a little, to make my -meaning more clear. - -While there is no book in which information concerning the meaning of -musical compositions is collected and classified for convenient -reference, such information is scattered thinly and unevenly throughout -all literatures,--a grain here, a nugget there, like gold through the -secret veins of the earth,--and can be had only by much digging and -careful sifting. Now and again you come upon a single volume, like a -rich though limited pocket of precious ore, and rejoice with exceeding -gladness at the discovery of a treasure. But unfortunately, there is -usually nothing in the appearance or nature of such a book to indicate -to the seeker before perusal that this treasure is within, or to -distinguish it from scores of barren volumes. And the very item of which -he may be in search is very likely not here to be found; so he must turn -again to the quest, which is much like seeking a needle in a hay-mow, or -a pearl somewhere at the bottom of the Indian Ocean. - -Musical histories, biographies, and essays--what is usually termed -distinctly musical literature--by no means exhibit the only productive -soil, though they are certainly the most fruitful, and should be first -turned to, because nearest at hand. Poetry, fiction, travels, personal -reminiscences, in short every department of literature, from the -philosophy of Schopenhauer to the novels of George Sand, must be made to -contribute what it can to the stock of general and comprehensive -knowledge, which is our ambition. I instance these two authors, because, -while neither of them wrote a single work which would be found embraced -in a catalogue of musical literature, the metaphysical speculations of -Schopenhauer are known to have had great influence upon Wagner's -personality, and through that, of course, upon his music; while in some -of the characteristics of George Sand will be found the key to certain -of Chopin's moods, and their musical expression. But even where no such -relation between author and composer can be traced, I deem one could -rarely read a good literary work, chosen at random, without chancing -upon some item of interest or information, which would prove directly or -indirectly of value to the professional musician in his life-work. And -this is entirely apart from the general broadening, developing, and -maturing influence of good reading upon the mind and imagination, which -may be added to the more direct benefit sought, forming a background of -esthetic suggestion and perception, against which the beauties of -tone-pictures stand forth with enhanced power and heightened color. - -I know of no better plan to suggest to those striving for an intelligent -comprehension of the composer's meaning in his great works than much and -careful reading of the best books in all departments, and the more -varied and comprehensive their scope the better. In the search for -enlightenment concerning any one particular composition, I should advise -the student to begin with works, if such exist, from the pen of the -composer himself, followed by biographies and all essays, criticisms, -and dissertations upon his compositions which are in print. If these -fail to give information, he should proceed to read as much as possible -regarding the composer's country and contemporaries, and concerning any -and all subjects in which he has become aware, by the study of his life, -that the master was interested. The chances are that he will come upon -something of aid or value before finishing this task. Still very often -the quest will and must be in vain, because about many musical works -there exists absolutely no information in print. - -I can perhaps better indicate the course to be pursued by giving some -illustrations in my own experience. The following will serve: During a -trip in New York State I was asked whether Grieg's "Peer Gynt" suite was -founded upon any legend or story, and if so, what. Though familiar with -the composition in question, I had never played it myself, nor given it -any particular attention, and in point of fact was as ignorant on the -subject as my interrogator, and obliged to confess as much. This was -before the composition had become familiar in this country and before -the drama on which it is founded had been translated into English. -Being, however, convinced, from the names attached to different parts of -the suite, of the probability of its foundation upon some literary or -historic subject, I determined to investigate. I first read several -biographical sketches of Grieg, but found no special mention of the -"Peer Gynt" suite; then everything I could secure on the subject of -Norwegian music in general and Grieg's compositions in particular, -without avail. As I knew Grieg to be, with the possible exception of -Chopin, the most intensely national and patriotic of all composers, I -inferred that if he had taken any legend or story as the basis of this -work, it was undoubtedly Norwegian in character. I read, therefore, -several articles on the history of Norway, the Norsemen, and the -Norwegian language and literature, watching carefully for the name of -Peer Gynt, but in vain. I next undertook some of the _sagas_ or ancient -Norse traditions, with the same result. Having exhausted my resources in -this direction, I began to investigate modern Norwegian literature. -Here, of course, I encountered, in large type, the names of Bjoernson and -Ibsen, and almost at the outset I found among the works of the latter -the versified drama of "Peer Gynt," and my search was at an end. Having -procured a German translation of this drama, I found scenes and -characters to correspond exactly with those which figure in Grieg's -music, and a reference in the preface to an orchestral suite, by this -composer, founded upon "Peer Gynt." - -Now had I been as well informed as I recommend all my readers to be, I -should have known at the outset of this Norwegian drama, and been at -once upon the right track. But being only familiar with those prose -dramas of Ibsen which have been translated into English, I was obliged -to undertake all this extra labor, to ascertain a single fact; which -only proves once again, that the more the musician's memory is stored -with miscellaneous facts and ideas, even such as do not seem to have any -connection with music, the lighter and more successful will be his -labors in his profession. - -The second main source of information concerning musical works is found -among musicians themselves. There is a vast amount of tradition, -suggestion, and knowledge appertaining to the masterpieces in this art, -which has never got into print, and lives only by passing from mouth to -mouth, much as the early legends of all countries were orally handed -down among minstrels and skalds from generation to generation. Every -great interpreter and every great composer becomes, with the passage of -years of a long and active life, a vast and valuable storehouse of all -sorts of hints, facts, and ideas on the subject of various compositions, -which usually die with him, except such portions as have been orally -transmitted to pupils and associates. In this respect the late Theodor -Kullak was worth any three men I have ever known, and those of his -pupils who had tastes and interests similar to his own, and were of -retentive memory, have all derived from him no mean portion of their -material. To cull from every musician and musically informed person all -the odds and ends of information in his possession is a valuable, though -perhaps selfish habit. And here let me emphasize to all students the -importance of not allowing the memory to get into that very prevalent -bad habit of refusing to retain anything which is not presented in print -to the organ of vision. The ear is as good a road to the brain as the -eye, and every one should possess the faculty of acquiring information -from conversations, lessons, and lectures, as readily as from books. - -The third resource of the seeker after truth of this nature is to be -found within himself. The musician should early accustom himself to -grasp clearly the essential essence, the vital principle, of an artistic -moment, a dramatic situation. For some such moment, mood, or situation, -however vague or veiled, underlies every true art work; and unless the -performer can perceive and comprehend this inner germ of meaning clearly -enough to express it intelligibly, though it may be crudely, in his own -words, he will find that many a hint has been lost upon him, and many a -bit of knowledge, that might have been his, has escaped him. This is not -a musical faculty merely; it is a mental peculiarity. Every person, -whatever his profession, should train himself to catch, as quickly and -clearly as may be, the real drift of a book, of an argument, of a chain -of circumstances, of a political situation, of history, of character, -and to place his finger instinctively upon the germ upon which all else -centers. - -The power to feel instinctively the real mood and meaning of a musical -composition is by no means confined to the musical profession; indeed, -is often strongly marked in those ignorant of the very rudiments of the -art. I remember once playing to a rough old trapper, of the early -pioneer days in Wisconsin, who had drifted back to civilization to "die -in camp," as he expressed it, the Revolutionary Etude of Chopin, Op. 10, -No. 12, already cited in illustration, written on receipt of the -knowledge that Warsaw had been taken and sacked by the Russians. "What -does it mean?" I asked when it was finished. He sprang from his chair in -great excitement. "Mean?" he said; "it means cyclone in the big woods! -Indian onslaught! White men all killed, but die hard!" His -interpretation, I need not say, was not historically correct, but for -all artistic purposes it was just as good, though expressed in the rough -backwoods imagery familiar to him. He caught the tone of rage and -conflict, of desperate struggle and dark despair, which sounds in every -line, and he had truly understood the composition, to the shame of many -a well-educated musician, whose comment would probably have been, "How -difficult that left hand part is! De Pachmann plays it much faster, and -with such a beautiful pianissimo!" - -This particular study is simply a vivid mood picture. It is not in any -sense what is called descriptive or program music; yet it has a distinct -meaning which can be more or less adequately expressed in words, for the -aid of those who do not readily grasp its expression. I wish to -reiterate here what I have before stated, that I would not be understood -to hold that all music has or should have some story connected with it. -I merely believe that every worthy composition is the musical setting of -some scene, incident, mood, idea, or emotion. Long practice in -perceiving and grasping what may be termed the "internal evidence" of -the music itself will develop, in the musician, a susceptibility to such -impressions, which will often lead him to a knowledge elsewhere sought -in vain, and greatly lessen his labors in arriving at knowledge -elsewhere to be found. - -I have now thrown all the light in my power upon the _modus operandi_ of -obtaining information and ideas relating to musical compositions, and -have, I think, demonstrated the difficulty of such an undertaking. For -my own Lecture Recital programs I often select works about which I -happen to be well informed, and have more than once spent an entire -summer in reading and research concerning others which I wished to -include. It will be seen from the nature of the case, that because one -possesses full information in regard to a certain ballade or polonaise, -it by no means establishes a certainty, as is sometimes inferred, that -he will be equally enlightened concerning all others. There never was -and never will be any one man who can furnish information on the subject -of all compositions, and it is equally impossible that any glossary or -cyclopedia will ever be compiled which can refer the student to books -containing points in regard to any musical work one may chance to be -practising, or wish to perform. - - - - - Traditional Beethoven Playing - - -How often of late years we hear this expression: Will some one who -claims to know kindly tell us what it means? For one, I confess myself, -after a decade of careful, thoughtful investigation, utterly unable to -find out. We hear one pianist extolled as a wonderful Beethoven player, -as a safe, legitimate, trustworthy champion of the good old classical -traditions; and another equally eminent artist condemned as wholly -unworthy to lift for the public the veil of awe and deep mystery -enshrouding the sublimities of this grandest of tone-Titans. The late -von Buelow, for instance, was well-nigh universally conceded to be the -representative Beethoven player of the age, for no better reasons, so -far as I can discover, than that he was generally admitted to be a -failure in the presentation of most works of the modern school, and that -cold, calculating, cynical intellectuality was the predominant feature -of his personality and his musical work, which made him the driest, most -unideal, uninteresting pianist of his generation, in spite of his -phenomenal technic, memory, and mental power. - -On the other hand, Paderewski, with all his infinitely magnetic -personality, his incomparable beauty of tone and coloring, his blended -nobility and refinement of conception, is decried as a perverter of -taste, a destroyer of traditions and precedents, because, forsooth, he -plays Beethoven too warmly, too emotionally, too subjectively. - -_De grace, messieurs_, what does it all signify? Are we then to accept -perforce as final, in spite of our better instincts, the dictum of the -long since petrified Leipsic School, which holds technic of the hand and -head, not only as the supreme, but as the sole element in musical -art--which relegates all emotion and its expression to the despised -limbo of sickly sentimentality, and which epitomizes its highest -encomium of an artist in the words "He allows himself no -liberties"--that is to say, he plays merely the notes, with the -faultless precision and soulless monotony of a machine? Is this, then, -_traditional_ playing of Beethoven, or any other composer? Is it art at -all? If there is any such thing as an authentic, authoritative musical -standard concerning any given composition, upon what does or should it -rest? Surely either upon the way its composer rendered it, or desired it -rendered, if that can be ascertained, or upon the way it was given by -its first great public interpreter. Let us examine the scanty available -data concerning Beethoven's piano works from this point of view. How did -Beethoven himself play his own works? - -This question reminds one of the century-old dispute among scholars as -to the propriety of the so-called English pronunciation of Latin, an -absurdity on the face of it. Fancy talking of the English pronunciation -of French or German! Of course, we do not know and have no means of -learning exactly how the old Latins did pronounce their language in all -the niceties of detail, but one thing we do know with absolute -certainty, and that is that they did not Anglicize it, for the one good -reason that our language did not come into existence until centuries -after the Latin tongue was dead. Similarly, as there is no one now -living who can remember and tell us just how Beethoven did play any -given sonata, and as, unfortunately, the phonograph was not then -invented to preserve for us the incalculably precious records of his -interpretations, we have no means of ascertaining just what his -conceptions were, even supposing they had been twice alike, which they -probably were not. But this we may be sure of, beyond a question or a -doubt: He did not play them according to von Buelow. Furthermore, there -is no ground for believing that his performances were at all such as the -conservative sticklers for classic traditions insist that our renditions -of Beethoven must be to-day. We know this from a study of the life and -characteristics of the man, from the internal evidence of his works, and -from the reports given us by his contemporaries of his manner of playing -them and their effect upon the hearer. - -Beethoven was preeminently a romanticist, in the content, if not always -in the form of his works; a man of pronounced, self-loyal individuality -and intense subjectivity, who wrote, and consequently must have played, -as he felt, and not in accordance with prescribed rules and formulas; a -man who can reply without immodesty when criticized for breaking a -preestablished law of harmony, "I do it," with the calm confidence in -the divine right of genius to self-utterance in its own chosen way which -always accompanies true greatness and has been the infallible compass of -progress in all ages. The man who was the fearless, outspoken champion -of artistic sincerity and profound earnestness, whose scorn of shallow, -pedantic formulas was as uncompromising as it was irrepressible, whose -watchword was universality of content, who believed that music could and -should be made to express every phase of human emotion, who could -venture on the unheard-of innovation of beginning a sonata with a -pathetic adagio, and introducing a chorus into the last movement of a -symphony, in open defiance of all established tradition, who was -repeatedly accused by the critics of his day of being unable to write a -correct fugue or sonata, and whose music was declared to be that of a -madman by leading musicians even as late as the beginning of our -century--this is surely not the man whose artistic personality can be -fairly represented by a purely intellectual, stiffly precise, though -never so scholarly reading of his printed scores. How is that better -than the bloodless plaster casts of the living, breathing children of -his genius? The printed symbols represent audible sounds and the sounds -symbolize emotions. The mere sounds with the emotions left out are no -more Beethoven's music than the printed notes if never made audible. - -Of his own playing, we are told that it lacked finish and precision, but -never warmth and intensity; that, like his nature, it was stormy, -impetuous, impulsive, at times even almost brutal in its rough strength -and fierce energy; that he often sacrificed tone quality and even -accuracy in his complete abandonment to the torrent of his emotions, but -never failed to stir to their profoundest depths the hearts of his -hearers. Is this the man, this hero of musical democracy, this giant -embodiment of the Titanic forces of primitive Nature, this shaggy-maned -lion, with the great, warm, keenly sentient human heart, whose nearest -prototype among modern players is Rubinstein; is this the man with whom -originated the severely classical school, the cold, prim, stately -interpretations which we are told to reverence as traditional, in which -the head is everything, the heart nothing--form all-important, and -feeling a deplorable weakness? It is impossible, incredible! - -I honestly believe that if Beethoven himself could revisit the world and -appear _incognito_ in the concert-halls of our musical centers to give -us an ideal, authoritative rendition of his great works, one-half of his -audience and nine-tenths of his critics would hold up their hands in -holy horror at his untraditional and un-Beethoven-like readings, and -would declare that while he was an interesting and magnetic artist, and -an enjoyable player of the lighter, more emotional modern school, his -renderings of the revered classics were dangerously perverting to the -public taste and could not be sufficiently condemned. - -But if not with Beethoven himself, with whom did these so-called -traditions originate? Was it with the first great public interpreters of -his works, who introduced them to the world of concert-goers and so -earned the right to have their readings respected? Who was the first, -most enthusiastic, courageous, and efficient champion of Beethoven's -piano works? Who did most to introduce them to the concert audiences of -Europe, to force for them first a hearing, then a reluctant recognition? -Who first and oftenest dared to present Beethoven's serious chamber -music to the frivolous sensation-loving Parisians, and to risk his -unprecedented popularity with them upon the venture? Who but Franz -Liszt! For nearly two decades, during the whole of his phenomenal career -as a virtuoso, the vast weight of his musical influence and example, the -incalculable force of his fervid, magnetic personality, and his -inexhaustible resources as an executant, were all brought to bear in -behalf of his revered Beethoven, in the effort to render his best piano -works familiar and popular with the European public. It is safe to say -that during that period Liszt introduced more Beethoven sonatas to more -people than all other pianists combined. He then established such -traditions as there may be regarding the proper interpretation of these -works; and surely no one who heard him play, no one who is even slightly -familiar with his life, characteristics, and art ideals, will think for -a moment of classing him with the conservative school, with the -inflexible, puritanical adherents to cut-and-dried theories and the cold -dead letter of the law as represented by the printed notes. - -But we are told that precisely these printed notes and signs should be -our only and all-sufficient guide. We are commanded to stick to the text -and not to presume to take personal liberties with so sacred a thing as -a Beethoven composition. I wonder if the advocates of this idea, which -does so much credit to their bump of veneration and so little to their -artistic insight, ever took the trouble to examine the text of these -same Beethoven compositions in the earliest editions, as they came first -from his own hand; and if so, whether they noticed the conspicuous -absence of marks of expression. When they urge that Beethoven probably -knew best how his works should be rendered and that we ought to follow -exclusively and religiously his indications, do they know how very few -and inadequate these were? So few, in fact, that if only those given by -the composer are to be observed, even the most rigid of our sticklers -for classical severity are guilty of the most flagrant breaches of their -own rule. Are we then to suppose that Beethoven wished his music played -without varying expression, on one dead monotonous level? Not at all; -but simply to infer that, like many great composers, he felt such -indications to be wholly unnecessary, and was far too impatient to stop -for such mechanical details. To him his music was the vital utterance of -the intense life within. The meaning and true delivery of each phrase -were vividly, unmistakably self-evident, needing arbitrary marks of -expression as little as a heart-felt declaration of love or outburst of -grief. He rightly assumed that to be played at all as it should be, such -music must first be felt, and that visible marks of expression would be -as needless to the player with intuitive comprehension, as they would be -useless to the player without it. Just as Chopin omitted the indication -"tempo rubato" from all his later works, declaring that any one who had -sense enough to play them at all would know that it was demanded without -being told. - -True, Beethoven's works have been edited well-nigh to death since his -time, but of course without his sanction or revision; and as no two -editions agree, who shall decide which is infallible? And why, I ask, is -not the audible interpretation at the piano of a Liszt, a Rubinstein, or -a Paderewski just as likely to be legitimate as the printed -interpretation of a Buelow or a Lebert? Has not one artist as good a -right to his conception as another? And in heaven's name what possible -reason is there for assuming, in regard to an intensely emotional -composer and player like Beethoven, that the coldly, stiffly scholastic -reading of his works is more in accordance with his original intention -than a more warm and subjective one? - -Moreover, even if there were a complete, corrected, authorized edition -of Beethoven, carefully revised by the composer himself, any one who has -ever written out, proof-read, and finally published the simplest -original composition knows well by experience how utterly impossible it -is to indicate definitely, with our imperfect system of marking, just -how each strain should be rendered. A general outline of the whole -effect desired can be given; but try as we may, all the more delicate -shades, the finer details of accent and inflection, must always be left -to the taste, insight, and temperament of the individual performer; just -as the intelligent reading of a poem depends upon much besides an -observance of the punctuation marks. It is not within the limits of -human ability to edit a single period of eight measures so perfectly -that no variations or mistakes in the interpretation are possible. - -In view of these facts, I am bold enough to maintain that there is no -such thing as an absolutely correct traditional rendering of any single -Beethoven composition, one to be followed inflexibly. It might be said -of Beethoven, and in fact of any great composer, as aptly as of -Shakespeare, that he is always on the level of his readers. Those -possessing neither natural nor acquired appreciation for the best music -will find in Beethoven nothing but a series of unintelligible and more -or less disagreeable noises, like Humboldt. Those who by nature, -training, and habit of mind are fitted to perceive and enjoy only the -physical and intellectual elements in tonal art,--its sensuous effect -upon the ear, its rhythmic movement, its ingenious intricacies of -structure and symmetry of form,--will seek and find, and, if they are -players, will emphasize in Beethoven only these factors, and will -vehemently protest that there is nothing else there, and that any -attempt to find or to introduce anything else is presumptuous and -morbid. But those to whom music is the artistic medium for the -expression of the strongest, deepest, and best of human emotions, who -demand that every strain shall come fresh and warm from the heart of the -composer and speak directly and forcefully to the heart of the hearer; -those to whom the brain, no less than the hand, is a servant to that -higher, subtler ego we call the soul, and form and technic alike mere -vehicles for soul utterance, will strive, with humble, self-abnegating -fidelity, to read between the lines of the printed music that unwritten, -unwritable spirit of their composer; will infuse for the moment their -own pulsing, revivifying life into the symbolic forms until they glow -with at least a faint suggestion of their original warmth and vitality, -as when freshly born of the passion and the labor of genius. These alone -can give us, in the light and truth of spiritual intuition, the only -approximately _traditional Beethoven playing_. - - - - - BEETHOVEN - 1770 1827 - - - - - Beethoven: The Moonlight Sonata, Op. 27, No. 2 (C Sharp Minor) - - -There is probably no composition for the piano of any real merit, by any -writer, which is so universally known, at least by name, as this sonata. -Every one has heard of it, read about it, and most persons are more or -less familiar with the music, or at any rate with portions of it, -especially the first movement, which is, technically, easy enough to be -_executed_, in the literal sense, with the greatest facility by every -school-girl. - -According to strict requirements of the law of form it is, in reality, -not a sonata at all, but a free fantasia, in three detached movements, -of a very pronounced but widely diverse emotional character. There has -been considerable questioning on the part of the public, and much -discussion among musicians, as to the origin of its name, its relevancy -to the music, and the true artistic significance of the work. - -There is little, if any, suggestion of moonlight, or the mood usually -associated with a moonlight scene, in any of the movements; but there -are several more or less credited traditions concerning it afloat, -legitimatizing the title and explaining its origin. Of these, the one -that seems to the present writer most fully authenticated and best -sustained by the content of the compositions as a whole is the -following. It is given, not as a verified fact, but as a suggestive -possibility, a legendary background in keeping with the work. - -It is a well-known matter of history that, during his early struggles -for existence in Vienna, while experiencing the inevitable period of -probation, well named the "starvation epoch," common to the lot of every -creative artist, and the equally inevitable heritage of great genius, -born fifty years in advance of its time,--lack of appreciation and -scathing abuse from the self-constituted, self-satisfied foes of all -progressive art, called critics,--Beethoven had the additional -misfortune to fall deeply, but hopelessly, in love with a beautiful and -brilliantly accomplished, though shallow, young heiress, of noble birth -and lofty social position, Julie Guicciardi by name, who was, for a -short time, one of his pupils. She is said to have returned his -affection, but the union was, of course, under the then prevailing -conditions, utterly impossible; and even if it could have taken place, -would doubtless have proved most incompatible and uncongenial. She was a -countess, accustomed to luxury and splendor; he an obscure musician -fighting for the bare necessities of life, hardly higher in the social -scale than her father's valet and not so well paid. It was absurd; and -blind Love had blundered once again in his marksmanship. Or was it an -intentional, cruel shaft from the tricky little god? In any case, -Beethoven was deeply smitten; and this unlucky passion darkened and -saddened his life for many years, and is accountable for much of the -somber tone which we find in his compositions of that period. - -So much is fact. The story goes that one evening, when wandering in the -outskirts of the city, on one of those long, solitary walks, which were -his only relaxation, he chanced to pass an elegant suburban villa in -which a gay social gathering was in progress. Some one was playing one -of his recent compositions as he went by--a rare occurrence in those -days. His attention was attracted and, half unconsciously, he stopped to -listen--stopped, as luck would have it, in a full flood of moonlight, -was recognized from within, and a laughing company of the guests, Julie -among them, sallied out, surrounded and captured him, and fairly -compelled him to come in and play for them. They insisted that he should -improvise and should take for his theme the moonlight which had been the -cause of his capture and their unexpected pleasure. The usually -reticent, intractable, not to say morose, Beethoven at last -consented--under who shall say what subtle spell of Julie's voice and -eyes?--and seated himself at the piano. - -But those who are at all familiar with his music know that Beethoven -was, except in a few rare instances, an emotional, not a realistic -writer; a subjective, not an objective artist; reproducing not the -scenes and circumstances of his environment or fancied situations, but -the emotional impressions which they produced upon his own inner being, -colored by his own personality and the mental conditions of the moment, -often just the reverse of what might naturally have been expected. What -he most keenly felt on this particular occasion was not the soft -splendor of the summer night, or the opulent luxury and careless, -superficial gaiety about him, but the bitter and cutting contrast which -they afforded to his own struggling, sorrow-darkened, care-laden -existence, full of disappointments and humiliations, of petty, sordid, -yet unavoidable anxieties, with those twin vultures ever at his heart--a -hopeless love, an unappreciated genius. The result was moonlight music -in which no gleam of moonlight was reflected; only its somber shadow -lying heavily and depressingly upon the stream of his emotions, which -poured themselves out through the harmonies of this composition with an -unconscious power and truth and a pathetic grandeur which have justly -made it world-famous. - -The first movement expresses unmingled sadness, but without any weakness -of vain complaint; a calm, candid, but hopeless recognition of the -inevitable. - -The second seems to be an attempt at a lighter, more cheerful strain, a -fleeting recollection of his ostensible theme; but it is only partially -successful and very brief, and is followed by a reaction into a mood far -more intense and darkly fierce than the first. - -The last movement is full of indignant protest, of passionate rebellion, -with occasional bursts of fiery defiance. In it we see the strong soul, -surging like the waves of a mighty sea against the rocky borders of -fate, striving desperately to break through or over them, and returning -again and again to the fruitless attempt, with a courage only equaled by -its futility. It is the Titan Beethoven battling with the gods of -destiny. - -It is, of course, unlikely, even impossible, that this -improvisation,--the tradition being true,--was precisely the music of -the Moonlight Sonata in its present form. It could but furnish the -themes, outlines, and moods of the various movements, subsequently -developed into the composition so widely known and admired. - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata Pathetique, Op. 13 - - -With the exception, perhaps, of the "Moonlight," this work is the best -known to the world at large, and the one most frequently attempted by -ambitious students of the Beethoven sonatas. Its familiar title was not -bestowed by Beethoven himself, but by some publishers later, and seems -to me inaptly chosen; in fact, not at all justly applicable to the -composition as a whole. It was probably suggested partly by the minor -key, but mainly by the second movement, which is gravely pathetic in -mood. As a whole the work is far too strong, intense, and dramatic to -warrant the name. _Sonata Tragica_ would have been better. I have not -been able to find any authority for attributing to it definite -descriptive significance in the objective sense. It is the forceful -expression of a pronounced emotional condition, or rather, sequence of -experiences, embodied with all the fervent glow and impetuous power of -early manhood, yet with the precision and finish of maturity. Every -measure is replete with intense feeling as well as intrinsic beauty. -There is not a superfluous note or a meaningless embellishment in it -from beginning to end; not an ounce of sawdust stuffing to fill out the -defective contours of a stereotyped form--which, alas! is not true of -many of Beethoven's piano works; and, all in all, it seems to the -present writer to be the most musically interesting and evenly sustained -composition for the piano from Beethoven's pen. - -The broad, impressive introduction marked _grave_ is full of strength -and somber majesty. It is gloomily grand rather than pathetic, like the -epitome of some stern fatalist's philosophy of life, and reminds one of -Swinburne's lines: - - "More dark than a dead world's tomb, - More high than the sheer dawn's gate, - More deep than the wide sea's womb, - Fate." - -The first subject of the allegro movement is anything but pathetic. It -is full of fire, energy, and restless striving; of fierce conflict and -desperate endeavor; of the defiant pride of genius exulting in the -unequal combat with the world's stony indifference, and the inimical -conditions of life. - -The second theme is warmer and more nearly approaches the lyric vein. It -is half pleading, half argumentative in tone, strikingly suggestive of -the mood so common to young but gifted souls, in the bitterness of their -first pained surprise at the cruel contrast between the ideal and the -actual in life. It seems to strive to reason with unreasoning and -unreasonable facts, and to touch the heart of a heartless fate with its -tender pleading. The continually reiterated embellishments upon the -melody notes here should be given distinctly as a _mordente_, with -marked accent on the last of the three tones in every case, not played -as a triplet with accent on the first, as is so often done, and even so -indicated in many standard editions, thus materially weakening the -effect of the passage, rendering it trivial and characterless as well as -out of keeping with the general mood. This is what Kullak used to call -"the lazy way" of playing it. The striking contrast between the first -and second subjects should be maintained throughout, with greatest -possible distinctness, and the closing chords must be given boldly, -defiantly, like a challenge proudly flung to all the powers of darkness, -to fate, no matter how adverse. - -With the second movement comes a radical change of mood. The first -impetuous vigor has been expended in the struggle; the first joy of -combat and self-reliant consciousness of strength have ebbed away like a -receding tide, leaving the soul exhausted, discouraged, but not -despairing. There is a moment of truce in life's battle, a moment of -calm, though sad reflection; a moment in which to contemplate the -impassable gulf between the heaven-piercing heights of ambition and the -petty levels of possible human achievement, in which to dream, not of -victory and happiness,--those are among the unattainable ideals,--but of -rest and sweet forgetfulness, and to say with Tennyson-- - - "What profit do we have to war with evil? - Let us alone." - -There is an occasional hint of the volcanic fires of passion, slumbering -beneath this surface calm of a spirit sent to earth, but not broken, -gathering its forces for a fresh uprising. But as a whole it is -tranquilly thoughtful, gravely introspective, and should be rendered -with great deliberation and profound earnestness. - -The last movement is hardly up to the standard of the other two, either -musically or emotionally. Still it is interesting, symmetrically made, -and not devoid of depth and intensity. It is perhaps a logical -conclusion to the work, if we regard the whole as a sort of tone-poem on -life. With most of us in youth, our boundless courage and aspiration -lead us to dare all things and believe in the possibility of all things; -to hurl ourselves into the fight with destiny, with the limitless -presumption of untried powers and unwarrantable hopes. Later comes a -period of depression and discouragement, in which nothing seems worth -effort, so far do realities fall below our expectations. Then, if we are -reasonable, we learn, at last, to adapt ourselves in a measure to things -as they are, to content ourselves in some wise with the flowers, since -the stars are out of reach, and to measure achievement relatively, not -by the standard of our first glorious, ever-to-be-regretted ambitions, -but of the possible, the partial and imperfect, under the limitations of -inflexible earthly conditions; and we quench our soul's thirst as best -we may with the meager, mingled draught of bitter-sweet that life -offers. - -This movement is light, rapid, and would be cheerful but for its minor -key and its undertone of plaintive sadness. It seems like an attempt to -take a brighter view of life, but is still shadowed by past -experiences,--a touching gaiety dimmed by the mist of recent tears,--and -this is, perhaps unintentionally, the most nearly pathetic of the three -movements. It should be given with life and warmth, and, despite the -pedants, with a free use of the rubato, but not with extreme velocity. - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata in A Flat Major, Op. 26 - - -This sonata, like the "Moonlight" and several others in the collection -of Beethoven's piano work bearing this name, is not cast in the usual -sonata mold; in fact, it is not a sonata at all, according to the modern -technical application of the term. But as the name sonata was originally -derived from the Italian verb _sonare_, to sound, or, in musical -parlance, to cause to sound, to play upon a musical instrument, and was -used to designate any piece of instrumental music whatsoever, in -distinction from that which was intended to be sung, it is perhaps as -correctly employed in this connection as in any other. - -The first movement of this work consists of a simple, beautiful, -melodious, noble lyric theme, followed by five strongly contrasted and -strikingly characteristic variations, and an exquisitely tender and -expressive little coda. - -The _theme and variations_, not only in this, but in every case where -the form is well wrought out, is a musical illustration of the natural, -logical process of evolution. The simple, vital germ of thought or -feeling, inherent in the theme, as the life principle inheres in the -germ of wheat, is seen to expand gradually and develop through the -successive variations into new and changing forms of ever-increasing -beauty and suggestiveness until every latent possibility of expression -has been matured and exhausted, and the idea has been presented to us in -every practicable light and from every attainable standpoint; just as -the gradual growth and ripening of the wheat, subjected to nature's -infinite variety of conditions and her ceaseless alternation of day and -night, cold and heat, sun and rain, calm and storm, present to us daily -some change of form and hue, some new phase of its progressive -existence, until complete maturity is reached and its utmost limit of -development attained. - -A still better analogy may be drawn from human experience itself, from -the constant modification and development of a given character, -subjected to the shifting vicissitudes and changeful, often conflicting -influences of daily life. It is interesting and helpful, in studying or -listening to any work in the _theme and variation_ form, to conceive of -the theme as symbolizing a definite personality, as of hero or heroine -in a narrative, a personality clearly marked, but undeveloped, distinct -to the mind of the composer, and which the performer or hearer should -endeavor to grasp with equal definiteness. Each variation may then -represent some varying phase of life, some different experience or -influence, or emotional condition, bearing upon this typified -personality. The peculiar mood and suggestive characteristics of each -variation must be clearly perceived and strongly emphasized, and its due -relation to the whole work preserved, while the underlying, -all-pervading theme must be kept intelligibly recognizable through all -its most capricious and widely contrasting modifications, to give -purpose and continuity to the whole; just as the strongly marked -individuality of a well-drawn character is traceable through all the -manifold vicissitudes of life and may be counted on to follow out its -own inherent laws of evolution, no matter what the circumstances or -conditions to which it may be subjected. - -Let us, in the case of this sonata, conceive of the first simple theme -as suggesting, through the subtle symbolism of tone effects, the -character of our hero, gravely tender, calmly resolute, nobly, warmly, -generously affectionate, with much of innate strength, tempered by -gentleness and latent passion, refined by ideality. - -In the first variation life presents itself to him as a serious but -interesting and agreeable problem, possessing the charm of mystery. He -investigates, speculates, reflects, lingers fascinated upon the -threshold of the shadowy unknown, enjoys the vague delight of its dim -but inviting perspective. - -In the second he faces storm and conflict, revels in the discovery and -fullest exercise of his own strength and courage and in his successful -wrestle with danger and difficulty. The mood here is bold, heroic, full -of life and energy. - -In the third our hero is suddenly confronted by the twin giants, death -and despair. The shadow of their sable forms envelops him with -impenetrable gloom. His soul is crushed by a weight as of a leaden pall, -and from the depths it sends up a half-stifled cry of unutterable, -inarticulate anguish, equaled by nothing in literature, unless it may be -by the verses of Edgar Allan Poe entitled "The Conqueror Worm." - -The fourth variation brings a reaction toward a brighter mood, flashes -of sunlight through parting clouds, fitful gleams of spasmodic gaiety, -half hope, half defiance, showing intermittently against the somber -background of grief. - -Finally, the fifth and last variation is a tender, cheerful love poem, -telling, with a charming intermingling of fervent warmth and playful -brightness, of the sovereign magic of human affection, in which the -tried spirit has at last found solace and repose; while the brief but -significant little coda seems like a dreamy retrospect, a tender -reminiscence of bygone joys, and griefs, and struggles, tempered by -distance and brightened by the light of present happiness. - -If the work ended here it would be well rounded and complete, and it may -be, in fact often is, presented in this form, entirely omitting the -other three movements. But though not indispensable to the symmetry of -the composition, the remaining three movements of the sonata are all -intrinsically interesting and enjoyable, and embody three radically -differing types of emotional life. In them we are dealing no longer with -an individual experience, but with general moods, with abstract elements -and conditions. - -The principal subject of the scherzo is bright, piquant, exhilarating; -expressing unmixed, uncontrolled gaiety, toned down for a moment in the -trio to a touch of arch tenderness, but immediately breaking away again -into rollicking hilarity. It should be given with great clearness and -crispness, very little pedal, and a clean, sparkling tone, like sharply -cut glass icicles with the sun behind them. The term _scherzo_ is an -Italian word, signifying a jest, and all that is most capricious, -sportive, and humorous in music finds expression in this form. - -The third movement is one of the two great funeral marches for the piano -in existence, the other being that in the sonata, Op. 35, by Chopin. -This one by Beethoven is so forcefully characteristic in mood and -movement, so full of gloomy grandeur, of dramatic intensity, of depth -and richness of somber harmonic coloring, that it may be ranked among -his very ablest artistic creations. It should be played with the utmost -fullness and sonority of tone, but not extremely loud even in the -climaxes, and never hard or rough; so as to convey the impression of -suppressed power and of a noble, sustained sorrow, not a spasmodic, -petulant distress. Its inflexible, unvarying rhythm throughout should -suggest, not only the slow, solemn movement of the funeral procession, -the heavily tolling bells, the awed, hushed grief of the mourners, but -as well the more abstract and universal thoughts of the slow but -relentless march of time and destiny and the might and majesty of death. - -The last movement of the sonata is in the usual rondo form, light, -graceful, ethereal, with a certain subdued cheerfulness, telling of -dreamy aspiration and vague, intuitive faith in ultimate good, of the -airy, upward flight of light-winged hope toward a brighter realm beyond -the grave, where pain and death shall be remembered only as the minor -cadences and passing dissonances which lead to the enhanced beauty of -the final major harmony. - -The sonata as a whole is one of the most interesting productions of -Beethoven's second period, and is technically within the reach of most -good amateurs. - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata in D Minor, Op. 31, No. 2 - - -This is not usually considered a descriptive composition, but Beethoven, -when questioned regarding it, answered: "Read Shakespeare's 'Tempest.'" -With this hint from the most authoritative of all sources, the composer -himself, we may easily trace, if not a strongly realistic, at least a -suggestive reference in the music to that most romantic drama by the -greatest of English play-writers. And we may also find a pertinent -rebuke for those who are inclined to sneer at the idea of descriptive -suggestion in music in general and in Beethoven's works in particular, -in spite of Beethoven's own words: "I always have some picture in mind -when I write." - -The first movement of this sonata opens with an extremely simple theme, -consisting merely of the notes of the common triad--_do-mi-sol-do_--a -theme so bald, so apparently devoid of beauty and latent resources that -only Beethoven would have ventured to use it; and only his genius could -have given it any degree of interest. It is evidently chosen with -deliberate intention to indicate naive simplicity and natural primitive -conditions of life in the island, as Prospero found it, with that -half-animal, half-savage man, Caliban, as the most prominent figure in -it. His singular, ludicrously grotesque personality may have suggested -some of the clumsily rollicking passages in this movement. The tempest -is only hinted at, not vividly portrayed--a tempest in miniature, a -storm in fairyland. Still, it is unmistakable, though divested of all -its terrors, just as it must have appeared to Prospero himself, whose -magic power and complete mastery over the elemental forces placed him -above and beyond all fear. - -The second movement, full of sweet repose, of grave, tranquil happiness, -is like the hearts of the two lovers in the drama, safe in the loving -and powerful protection of Prospero, living close to the gentle, -passionless breast of Mother Nature, childlike in their simple trust, -their spontaneous affection, their simple joy in the passing hour. It -seems at first rather tame and colorless to our modern ears, accustomed -to the ceaseless stress and din of complex and conflicting elements, -warring together in the life and art of our own day; but if we can -forget for a moment the intensity, the restless questioning and striving -of the present and go back in spirit for a century or two to more normal -conditions, we shall find this music restful and soothing as the green -sweep of woods and meadows on a June morning in the country, after the -glare and fever of a city ball-room. - -The closing movement, with its light, tripping rhythm, its playful, -half-facetious mood, is evidently intended to recall the pranks of that -merry, tricksy sprite, Puck, so brimming over with good-natured fun and -laughing mischief, yet so ready and able, at his master's command, to -"put a girdle round the world in forty minutes." - -The whole is a work of delicate fancy rather than emotional depth or -dramatic force. It shows us a somewhat unusual phase of Beethoven's -genius, and is but one more proof of his versatility, one more -justification for his title, "The Shakespeare of Music." - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata, C Major, Op. 53 - - -This is one of the best and justly most beloved of the pianoforte works -from what is known as Beethoven's Second Period; that is to say, the -period when his creative power was at its zenith, when his genius had -reached its fullest maturity, yet showed no sign of waning; when, in its -individual development, it had outgrown all youthful crudities, all -reminiscent suggestions of older masters, occasionally to be found in -his earlier writings, yet before it had lapsed into that somewhat -obstruse, metaphysical vein to which some of us are inclined to object -in his latest works, in which individuality is sometimes exaggerated -into eccentricity. The present writer is not among those who regard his -latest sonatas for the piano as in any sense his greatest works, and it -is something of a question whether any pianist would play or any -audience tolerate the Op. 111, for instance, if it bore any signature -but that of Beethoven. The works of his second or middle period are -instinct with far more genuine spontaneity and true musical effect. - -The Op. 53 is familiarly known among musicians under two names. It is -often designated as the "Aurora Sonata," because of its suggestive -reference to, not to say actual description of, those wondrous fireworks -of the heavens, the northern lights. The first movement particularly, -with its constant change of key, its well-nigh infinite variety of light -and shade, above all, its constant flash and play of scintillating -embellishment and brilliant passage work, cannot fail to call up before -the imaginative mind the varying hues, the shifting, intermittent -splendors of the aurora borealis, with its flashes of crimson and -orange, and its flickerings of softest violet and rose. - -The second movement forms a distinct and restful contrast and quiet -background to the brilliancy of the first. It is slow, reposeful, and -gravely impressive, symbolizing the hushed solemnity of the quiet, -frost-clear, winter night. - -The last movement, a prefect rondo in form, returns to the mood and -general style of the first. It is bright and crisp, full of brilliant -ornamentations and striking contrasts, and should be given with the idea -of the northern lights again distinctly before the mind. Its airy, -buoyant melody, floating lightly upon swiftly flowing waves of -accompaniment, reminding one of that Wotan's bridge which the ancient -Northman fancied he beheld in the glittering, far-spanning arch of the -aurora, that bright, but perilous, path of heroes from Earth to -Walhalla. - -This composition is also known as the "Waldstein Sonata," because -dedicated to Count Waldstein, of Vienna, one of Beethoven's best -friends, during his earlier years in the Austrian capital. Count -Waldstein was a descendant of the famous general and most prominent -Catholic leader, who figured so prominently during the thirty years' war -in Germany, that sanguinary struggle between Catholics and Protestants, -from 1618 to 1648. The name of this brilliant leader, a Bohemian noble -of vast wealth and power, and commander of the Austrian imperial forces, -is usually spelled Wallenstein; but the name and lineage are identical -with that of the Count to whom this sonata is dedicated--the confusion -arising from the difference between the German and Bohemian orthography. -The original Wallenstein, though unquestionably a man of pronounced -intellectual ability and a devout, enthusiastic Catholic, was a firm -believer in what we term the obsolete science of astrology and an -earnest student of its mysteries. He had fullest faith in all the mystic -auguries and prophetic omens of the skies, and never undertook any -important step without first carefully consulting them, aided by the -profounder knowledge of a trained, professional astrologer, whom he -always kept close at hand. It is of interest to note that the famous -German scientist, Kepler, served for many years as the private -astrologer of Wallenstein, In the researches and belief of Duke -Wallenstein he included every manifestation of the aurora borealis. In -fact, he seems to have laid particular stress upon these as bearing -directly upon his own life and career, as fraught with special prophetic -import for him personally. It is a curious coincidence, in view of these -facts, that the most brilliant display of the northern lights recorded -for the first half of the seventeenth century took place on the very -evening on which Wallenstein was assassinated, only a few hours prior to -his murder. In the light of his theories it would almost seem like an -attempt of his old friends in the skies to warn him of impending peril. -At all events, the aurora was, according to his belief, an important -factor in his life. His descendants, who naturally treasured all the -facts and traditions concerning their brilliant ancestor, would -therefore regard the aurora with special interest as being, in a certain -sense, connected with their own family history. It was for this reason, -as a delicate and appropriate compliment to his friend, that Beethoven, -in writing a work which was to be dedicated to him, chose this theme and -embodied it in a composition which, for his time and in view of the then -prevailing musical conditions, as well as the necessary limitations of -the strict sonata form, is remarkably, even graphically, descriptive. - - - - - Beethoven: Sonata, E Minor, Op. 90 - - -This composition is one of the shortest, easiest, and, from the -standpoint of magnitude, least important of Beethoven's later works. It -has but two movements, neither of them of extreme technical difficulty, -and in structure it fails, in various essential respects, to fulfil the -requirements of the conventional sonata form. Indeed, the same may be -said of many of his best known and most played sonatas, which are -sonatas only in name, according to the generally accepted technical -significance of the term, notably the Op. 26, Op. 27, No. 2, and others. -Yet this little Op. 90, in E minor, is among his most genial, -interesting, and gratefully musical compositions. In spite of an -occasional touch of pedantry, it is full of melodic charm and emotional -suggestiveness. It is not descriptive in the sense of portraying either -actual scenes or events. It deals not with action, but with a series of -varying, strongly contrasted moods. - -It is dedicated to Count Lichnowsky, a resident of Vienna, with whom the -composer was intimately acquainted, and of whose touching little love -story it is a musical embodiment. The Count's personal experiences of -mind and heart suggested the work and formed its emotional content. He -was a member of one of the most aristocratic Viennese families, belonged -to the highest nobility, and had inherited a proud old name and vast -estates. He occupied a lofty position in both social and diplomatic -circles, but he had become seriously and profoundly attached to a young -actress of unquestioned talent and rising fame, but of obscure and very -humble origin--a girl of exceptional beauty, sterling character, and -refined, winning personality, but, considered from the standpoint of -worldly position and class traditions, a wholly unsuitable alliance for -the great noble. - -It is difficult for one educated in democratic America to grasp the -conditions involved in such a situation, or to understand and to -sympathize with the painful struggle in the mind of the Count, the -maddening doubts, the heart-sick vacillation on her account, as much as -his own, before the final decision was reached; the obstacles to be -overcome, the opposition of friends and relatives to be met or defied, -before the path could be cleared to his desired goal. On the one hand, -love and happiness with the woman of his choice; on the other, social -ostracism for his future wife, certainly, and for himself, probably; -serious detriment to his promising career; a life of constant battle -with class prejudice, of incessant petty slights and mortifications; a -position necessarily trying and humiliating to both. At last, however, -love triumphed over all doubts and difficulties, as it always should and -must if genuine, and the wedding took place. - -It is said, "All the world loves a lover," and certainly the story of -true love victorious over all opposition is the oldest and to most -people the most interesting ever told. This story, or at least the -emotions underlying it, expressed in music, Beethoven gives us in the -two strongly contrasted movements of this little sonata: a simple drama -of hearts, in two acts, written in the language of tone. - -The first movement deals with the period of doubt and indecision, of -mental conflict and moody alternation, of resolve and depression. Its -strong, passionate minor first subject in chords expresses the struggle -and unrest, the indignant protest against petty prejudice and inflexible -conventionality; while its plaintive little counter-theme tells of -tender longings, of sad discouragements, of hopes deferred and desire -thwarted. In the development it reaches a vigorous, rough, almost -dissonant climax, as of bitter defiance and fierce scorn of the world -and its trammels. - -The second movement, calm, fluent, and sweetly melodious, full of rest -and tranquil content, deals with the period after love's victory, when -hope has been fulfilled and the heart's unrest has been transformed to -peace and happiness, where life flows onward like a placid stream, its -waters brightened and purified by the glad sunlight of perfect love and -full-orbed happiness, its waves murmuring the old yet ever new refrain, -the simple, natural, yet magically potent melody, to which the symphony -of the universe is harmonized. - -There is an occasional brief suggestion of past strife and remembered -trial, just sufficient to give enduring zest to the present, reposeful -joy; but, as a whole, this last movement, with its constantly reiterated -tender yet cheerful major melody, seems to sing over and over, with -trifling variations of form, but untiring delight in its essential -burden, the song of love's completeness. A song without words it may be, -but with a meaning passing words. - - - - - Beethoven: Music to "The Ruins of Athens" - - -This composition, or rather series of fragmentary musical sketches, -containing some very original and telling movements, is wholly unknown -to the American public, and unfamiliar to most musicians, except for the -"Turkish Grand March," the only number that has gained any considerable -popularity. "The Ruins of Athens" is the name of a curious but very -ingenious production for the stage, once quite popular in Germany--a -sort of combination of the spectacular play, the musical melodrama and -classical allegory, designated "A Dramatic Mask" by the author, a -playwright of Vienna. It was written and produced at a time when the -sympathies and interest of the Christian world were strongly enlisted -for the Greeks in their gallant and desperate struggles for freedom from -Turkish domination and oppression which ended successfully in 1829, -after a contest of seven years. - -The scene is laid in Athens, then practically in ruins. The characters, -situations, and environment are all, of course, Greek. To this work -Beethoven furnished the music, originally scored for orchestra, some -numbers of which have since been transcribed for the piano. Of these, -only two are of any real value or importance to the pianist. - - - Turkish Grand March - -First, the "Turkish Grand March" referred to, written to accompany the -march of the Turkish troops across the stage in one scene. Rubinstein, -when in this country years ago, scored many of his greatest popular -successes with his own effective arrangement of this number. It contains -no great originality or musical depth, in fact is quite primitive in -both content and structure, but is brilliant and pleasing, with a -strongly marked, rhythmic swing and a shrill, strident melody which, in -its intentional, bald simplicity, strongly suggests the rude but -spirited martial music of a half-barbaric people, given by fife and -drum. Its artistic effectiveness depends upon the skilful handling of an -old but ever popular device, the audible illusion of approach and -departure. The music, beginning with the softest possible pianissimo, -swells in a gradual, almost imperceptible crescendo, to the heaviest -obtainable triple forte, and then as gradually diminishes to double -pianissimo, tapering off at last into silence; thus simulating the -approach of marching troops from a distance nearer and nearer, till they -pass across the stage in immediate proximity, and then their gradual -receding till lost again in the distance. It is a device of which many -composers have availed themselves, and makes great demands upon the -player's self-control and sense of proportion and gradation, as well as -his command of the tonal resources of his instrument. - - - The Dance of the Dervishes - -By far the most original of these numbers is "The Dance of the -Dervishes," the second one referred to. This brief but complete -composition is full of striking originality and graphic realism. It is -one in which Beethoven's genius seems to have anticipated by half a -century the pronounced modern trend toward descriptive or program music, -and is as realistic a tone-painting as we might expect from the pen of -Saint-Saens, Wagner, or any of the recent writers. The dance was -introduced into the play as an interesting local feature,--the dervishes -being numerous in connection with the Turkish army,--and Beethoven -naturally selected it as an effective subject for musical treatment. -But, before speaking of their dancing as illustrated by Beethoven, it -may be of sufficient historical interest to give a brief sketch of the -dervishes themselves. - -They developed as a sect or order from Mohammedanism after it was well -established in the world. The name "dervishes," which they assumed, -comes from a Russian word which means "beggars from door to door." The -Arabic word which means the same thing is "fakirs." So they are called -dervishes or fakirs in different localities, but are the same body. They -declared themselves Moslems, but their doctrines, in many respects, -differed widely from those of Mohammed. Their beginnings are in -obscurity, but they were a well-established order by the eleventh -century. Their expressed beliefs, as we earliest come to know them, were -chiefly and decidedly religious. They seemed to represent the spiritual -and mystical side of Islam, having a philosophy much like that of the -Hindus, and perhaps borrowed from them. Their central idea seemed to be -that the soul is an emanation from God, and that man's highest aim is to -seek a total absorption in Him. Their various and strange rites and -ceremonies seem only different ways by which they sought for union with -the deity. In this way they claimed that they secured miraculous powers. -At first they largely lived in convents, under rules and orders, giving -themselves up to meditation and penance, observing the rules of poverty, -abstinence from wine, and celibacy, in the higher classes. Their growth -was rapid; but in time they largely fell away from their highest estate, -ceased to be so strictly a religious body, broke up into various ranks -and sub-orders, became more free from conventional rules, more nomadic, -and more wild and fanatical; but their social and political influence -ever increased, so that they have long been regarded as a dangerous -element in the state. There are crowds of them all through the East that -seem to belong to no society, wandering mendicants, and, though often -skilled in trades, largely subsisting by professional jugglery, bigoted -in their fantastic beliefs, and varying in their rites and strange -ceremonies. And yet always and everywhere there is still some general -adherence to the old appointed religious ways, a peculiar tie or -affiliation with the distinctive body or sect, however differing in -certain notions or modes of worship. The lowest devotee of them all -claims that the dervishes or fakirs constitute a distinct body of -religious believers in spite of all divisions and varieties in -manifestation. They acknowledge no authority but that of their spiritual -guides, as that of the Mahdi in the Soudan, where these fanatics have -been so lately fighting the English. They agree also in not following -the letter of the Koran, or the general teachings of its interpreters. -As a whole body, in all its orders, all over the world, they seek, as an -act of worship, to get into an ecstatic state. They do this in various -ways: Sometimes by drinking hasheesh, but more generally by some -physical or mental ways, and while under the excitement they perform -astounding feats in jugglery or mysticism that really seem almost -miraculous. We cannot stop to detail these different methods. One of -them is the dance of a certain order which has received the name of the -"dancing or whirling dervishes." - -This is the dance of Beethoven--an ingenious method of excitement and -self-torture, and at the same time a strict religious ceremonial. It -consists of little more than an exceedingly rapid gyration upon an -imaginary pivot, spinning round and round like tops, with almost -incredible velocity, till overcome by dizziness from the protracted -rotary motion, or by physical exhaustion, they fall in a swoon, after -passing through all the successive stages of delirious frenzy always -attending intense fanatical religious excitement, no matter what the -race or faith. The dance is accompanied by frantic gestures, wild cries, -and doleful groans, and often by a species of weird oriental music, -adapted to its rhythm, and intended to stimulate the dancers to greater -excitement, and consequently greater exertion and speed. - -This music, as well as a portrayal of the dance, Beethoven gives us in -this composition, which has been admirably transcribed for the piano by -Saint-Saens. It begins softly and a little slowly. As the dancers -gradually get under way and warmed to their task, it gradually grows in -speed and power as the frenzy increases, till it reaches a furious, -almost insane climax; then rapidly diminishes as, one by one, the -dancers, exhausted or swooning, drop out of the circle. - -It demands great freedom and facility in octave playing, and endless -verve and abandon of style; and needs, to be comprehended and enjoyed by -an audience, some explanation of its character and artistic -signification, either given by the player or printed on the program. - - - - - WEBER - 1786 1826 - - - - - Weber: Invitation to the Dance, Op. 65 - - -Critics have generally ascribed to this composition the honor of -inaugurating a new and important department in the realm of tonal -creation--namely, that of descriptive or program music; that is to say, -music which attempts to embody in tone something more than mere ideal -beauty of metrical form and rhythmic symmetry, and to express something -more than vague emotional states, too intangible for utterance in words; -music which conveys not only sensuous pleasure and indefinite moods, but -a distinct, realistic suggestion; which gives, against a background of -harmony, with its general emotional coloring, an actual picture of some -scene in nature or experience in life; music, in a word, which takes its -place in line with the advanced position of the other arts, in progress -toward dramatic truth and worthy realism. Descriptive music, like -landscape painting, has been the latest, and in some respects the -loftiest, phase of the art to be developed. - -We can scarcely with justice credit to Weber, as a strictly original -departure, the opening of this new path in the domain of musical art, -which was in modern times to lead so far and to such important and -magnificent results. Descriptive music, of a more or less pronounced -character, had already appeared from time to time, though rarely so -labeled, and mostly in detached fragments, in the works of most of the -greatest composers, preeminently in those of Haydn, Mozart, Gluck, and -Beethoven. Even the austere Handel was not entirely free from occasional -digressions into this field. But we may safely ascribe to Weber the -honor of being one of the first to have the full courage of his -convictions and to declare himself boldly for this phase of creative -art, by giving to this distinctly descriptive composition an -unmistakably descriptive title, thus fearlessly unveiling and -emphasizing its realistic intentions. - -The work opens with a simple but serious passage of recitative in single -notes, in the baritone register, conveying the "Invitation to the Dance" -as if by a mellow masculine voice. Then comes the reply, in a soft -soprano, brief, kindly, but as if offering some playful objection, as -the lady, true to her sex, waits to be asked a second time before saying -yes. The invitation is repeated more urgently, followed by the assenting -treble, as the lady steps upon the floor on the arm of her partner. A -brief dialogue ensues, in which the two voices can be distinctly traced -by their differing registers, alternating and interwoven, as the pair -pace the polished floor, exchanging those airy nothings of the -ball-room. Then the orchestra enters, with a passage of brilliant -resonant chords, full of spirited life and gay challenge, calling the -dancers to their places, and the waltz proper begins. Its crisp, piquant -rhythm and free elasticity of movement, its bright, graceful melody and -cheerful major harmony, all express youthful elation, fresh, joyous -excitement, thoughtless, hence unmixed, gaiety. - -As the steps and the pulses quicken, there comes on that exhilaration of -mood familiar to all dancers, caused by the lights, the flowers, the -perfumes, the music, the gay costumes, the beauty and the gallantry of a -ball-room, the rhythmic exercise of the muscles and free circulation of -the blood, all acting together to produce upon the senses and the fancy -an effect amounting almost to intoxication; an echo of which is awakened -in every breast, which has felt it often and keenly, on catching a -strain of distant dance music, to the end of life. This mood is depicted -in the composition before us by an exuberance of runs and ornamentation, -following the first simple enunciation of the waltz melody. - -After rising to quite a little climax of ecstasy, this mood lapses -abruptly into the second waltz theme, slower, more lyric, dreamy, -languorous, almost melancholy in tone, conveying that impression which -every susceptible person feels, to the verge of rising tears, after -listening long to waltz music, which is quite different from its first -inspiring effect, and which every devoted dancer feels equally surely in -the prolonged waltz. The time has come when one has grown so accustomed -to the waltz movement as to be scarcely conscious of it, seems rather, -in a state of rhythmic rest, to be floating on the atmosphere, which -ebbs and flows to a three-four measure. Thoughts, breath, pulses, flying -feet, the murmur of voices, all existence has adapted itself to this -waltz tempo, as to its normal element, and the very planets seem to -swing through space in triple rhythm. The true waltz has but two moods, -which touch the opposite poles of emotion--that of joyous elation and of -dreamy languor. We may call them the _Allegro_ and the _Penseroso_ of -the waltz. And Weber, in the "Invitation to the Dance," has recognized -this and woven his composition of but two themes, representing the -contrasting phases of feeling described. - -In the midst of the second warm and sinuous melody, we hear again the -masculine voice, in less conventional accents, and the soft responses of -the treble, through quite a colloquy, while the accompaniment keeps ever -steadily to the undulating waltz movement, till the two voices merge -gradually into the general murmur and are drowned in the flourishes of -the orchestra, as our couple disappears in the whirl, with which the -waltz, taking up again the first sparkling melody with accelerated pace, -draws with increasing confusion to its close. When the dance has ceased, -and the orchestra is silent, the introductory theme recurs, as the -gentleman leads his lady to a seat and expresses his thanks with the -sedate courtesy of his first greeting; and thus ends this charming -composition and this glimpse into that gay social world, where the hand -some, talented, but rather dissolute young composer was only too great a -favorite in his early years. - -In spite of a certain baldness and primitive naivete noticeable in the -treatment at times, the "Invitation to the Dance," so widely and justly -popular, is one of Weber's ablest pianoforte compositions, both from a -musical and a dramatic standpoint. Regarded from that of pure music, it -is especially interesting from the fact that it was the first -composition to raise the waltz, used up to that time only as an -accompaniment for dancing, to the level of legitimate and recognized -artistic musical forms. In the hands of Schubert, Chopin, Strauss, -Rubinstein, and Moszkowski, these successive kings of the waltz, it has -since reached its present development. - -The "Invitation to the Dance" was written a few months after Weber's -happy marriage with the opera singer, Caroline Brandt, and is dedicated -to "My Caroline." - - - - - Weber: Rondo in E Flat, Op. 62 - - -The rondo is the most ancient, simple, and natural form of homophonic -musical construction. It is based upon the folk-song and is always in -one or the other of the more or less complex song forms. It consists of -a simple melodic period, usually eight measures in length, bright and -cheerful in character, alternating several times, virtually unchanged at -each reappearance, with one or more subordinate subjects, in a more -lyric or dramatic mood, for the sake of variety and contrast. - -An apt but homely illustration of the rondo may be found in that most -laborious and indigestible product of American cookery, that culinary -absurdity, originating in our natural tendency toward display and -dyspepsia, the layer cake. In the most primitive form of rondo, or more -strictly speaking, rondino, the first theme appears but twice, -corresponding to a first and second layer of cake, with the filling of -cream or jelly between, represented by the second contrasting subject, -of a more piquant and savory flavor, between the first theme and its -reappearance--a sort of musical Washington pie. In the more extended -forms, the principal melody recurs several times, occasionally with -slight changes of treatment, but without radical transformation or -development, like a successive series of cake layers of slightly -different flavor, but the same fundamental material and an entirely -different filling between them, each time; and a coda, or musical -postscript, is occasionally added by way of frosting over the whole. - -The rondo form is by nature adapted to the expression of the lighter, -more pleasurable emotions. Graceful fancy, playful tenderness, arch -coquetry, sparkling vivacity, here find their most ready and appropriate -embodiment. The form is sometimes employed to express pensive sadness or -restless, impatient longing, but never effectively to utter grave, -profound thought or grand and lofty sentiment. Hence it most frequently -appears as the final movement of symphony or sonata, a sort of light, -pleasant dessert after the more substantial repast. - -_Rondo_ is one of those words of many relatives, both in our own English -and other languages. Probably the great-grandfather of them all is the -Latin _rotundus_, and probably the first emigrant to America, in the -musical line of descent, was the old-fashioned _round_, familiar to our -ancestors. Cousins and other close connections of the rondo are in music -the _roundelay_ and in poetry the _rondeau_, _rondel_, and _roundel_, -all bearing a striking family resemblance both in external features and -inward characteristics. - -The poet Algernon Charles Swinburne, in his "Century of Roundels," -presents to us many charming representatives of this most modern branch -of the family. The following verses, quoted from the work mentioned, are -the best possible descriptive illustration of the form, scope, and -characteristics of both the roundel in poetry and the rondo in music: - - "THE ROUNDEL. - - "A Roundel is wrought as a ring or a star-bright sphere, - With craft of delight and with cunning of sound unsought, - That the heart of the hearer may smile if to pleasure his ear - A Roundel is wrought. - - "Its jewel of music is carven of all or of aught-- - Love, laughter, or mourning--remembrance or fear-- - That fancy may fashion to hang in the ear of thought. - - "As the bird's quick song runs round, and the hearts in us hear - Pause answer to pause, and again the same strain caught. - So moves the device whence, round as a pearl or tear, - A Roundel is wrought." - -The E flat rondo of Weber is a fine specimen of its class, perfect and -considerably complex in form and charmingly exhilarating in mood, with -just enough of dramatic suggestion to give the necessary contrast of -shading. It is neither distinctly descriptive nor deeply emotional. It -pleases like a piece of rare old lace or hand embroidery, rather than -like a picture or poem, by its delicate workmanship, its fine finish, -and its beautiful, skilfully combined materials. Its mission is to charm -the esthetic taste, like some dainty little Italian villa of variegated -marbles, half hidden in a grove of olive and orange trees, by its -symmetry of outline, its harmony of varied colors, and the simple, -joyous, sunshiny life and love of life which it suggests, rather than to -arouse the intellect or stir the depths of feeling by historic or -legendary association with vivid or tragic human interests. - -This composition should be played freely and fluently, with a certain -gaiety and vivacity, but at a reasonably moderate tempo, with a tone -crisp and sparkling, not dry, yet not too legato; clear, but not heavy. -The player should employ few, if any, of the modern rubato effects and -be careful to avoid blurred or too close pedaling, especially in the -first subject. A somewhat slower tempo and more decided lyric effect -should be introduced when the left-hand theme in B flat major occurs, -and still more during the suggestion of dramatic recitative, alternating -between the two hands, which opens with the half note in the right hand -on G flat, A natural, and E flat. But, as a whole, the tempo should be -kept very steady, and a strongly marked rhythmic distinctness and -precision are absolute essentials in the proper presentation of this, as -of all Weber's works. - - - - - Weber: Concertstueck in F Minor Op. 79 - - -Although written for piano and orchestra, and still occasionally given -as a concerto in symphony concerts, this work is more familiar and more -frequently heard as a piano solo merely, or with the orchestral parts -arranged for second piano, in which form it is very popular, especially -for use in pupils' recitals and music schools. It is one of the best and -most effective of Weber's compositions for piano, and one of the most -successful of his attempts in the line of descriptive music, in which he -was a pioneer; for as Sir George Grove well says, "His talent shone most -conspicuously whenever he had a poetical idea to interpret musically." -On the subject of this concerto, he continues: "Though complete in -itself as a piece of music, it is prompted by a poetical idea, for a -whole dramatic scene was in the composer's mind when he wrote it.... The -part which the different movements take in this program is obvious -enough, but a knowledge of the program adds greatly to the pleasure of -listening." - -It is rare indeed to find in print any accurate and detailed information -concerning the artistic and dramatic content of any particular -composition; but in regard to this Concertstueck by Weber, we are -fortunate enough to have the whole story on which the music was founded -given in the words of Benedict, who had it from the composer himself. - -"The chatelaine sits alone on her balcony, gazing far away into the -distance. Her knight has gone to the Holy Land. Years have passed by, -battles have been fought. Is he still alive? Will she ever see him -again? Her excited imagination calls up a vision of her husband, lying -wounded and forsaken on the battlefield. Can she not fly to him and die -by his side? She falls back unconscious. But hark! What notes are those -in the distance? Over there in the forest something flashes in the -sunlight--nearer and nearer! Knights and squires with the cross of the -crusaders, banners waving, acclamations of the people. And there, it is -he! She sinks into his arms. Love is triumphant. Happiness without end. -The very woods and waves sing the song of love. A thousand voices -proclaim his victory." - -The composition is in four movements, and it is hardly necessary to add -that the first, _larghetto_, represents the sorrowful meditation of the -lonely chatelaine upon her balcony; the second, _allegro_, her lively -imagination picturing her lord upon the field of battle; the third, -_march_, the tramp of the returning crusaders with flying banners; and -the fourth, _finale_, the reunion when "the very woods and waves sing -the song of love." - -Those Philistines who contend that program music is but a mushroom -growth of the last decades of the nineteenth century will hardly care to -come face to face with this instance of it, backed by the authority of -Grove, Benedict, and von Weber, and nearly a hundred years old. - - - - - Weber-Kullak: Luetzow's Wilde Jagd, Op. 111, No. 4 - - -Among the better class of rather old-fashioned but effective -transcriptions for the piano, which have fallen somewhat into neglect of -later years, Kullak's pianoforte version of Weber's "Luetzow's Wild Ride" -deserves attention. - -The original ballad, which formed the text of Weber's song, was one of -the best of many of similar character by Karl Theodor Koerner, that -trumpet-voiced Swabian poet, the popular idol of his time in southern -Germany, who sounded the notes of patriotism, conflict, and heroism in -simple but ringing verses, which still echo in the hearts of his -countrymen, and which describe the scenes, and glow with the fervid -spirit of the century's dawn. - -Major Luetzow, the hero of the ballad, was an officer in the Prussian -Hussars during the brief and disastrous struggle with Napoleon in 1813, -when his country went down, crushed well-nigh out of existence, by the -invincible power and iron hand of the all-conquering Emperor. When -Berlin surrendered, the Prussian army was disarmed and disbanded, and -the King, Frederick William III, was forced to accept with thanks the -most humiliating conditions of peace; and even the beautiful Queen -Louisa, the people's beloved divinity, had to humble herself in her -despair to beg from the generosity of the victor the most ordinary -concessions to the vanquished. Major Luetzow indignantly repudiated the -disgraceful treaty and openly defied the vengeance of the great -Napoleon. Rallying a few of his gallant riders about him, he escaped to -the forests, and there organized a guerrilla band, for months waging a -phenomenally desperate but successful war on his own account with the -world's conqueror and his matchless army. - -Luetzow and his "Black Riders" were soon known far and near, the hope and -pride of friends, the terror of foes; and hundreds of the best martial -spirits of Germany flocked to his standard. He pushed his daring raids -even across the Rhine into France, sweeping down like a whirlwind -apparently from the sky, at the most unexpected times and places, -leaving consternation and destruction in his track, and was gone again -before the French could rally to oppose him. Soon the belief spread that -the "Black Riders" were a supernatural phenomenon, an incarnation of the -bloody spirit of the time, half men, half demons, bearing charmed lives, -ignoring time, distance, and other human limitations, and liable to -appear at any moment, without warning, in the midst of the imperial -camp, or in the heart of Paris. Their very name was enough to shake the -nerves of the bravest veteran. - -This element of the supernatural Koerner has ingeniously worked into the -ballad, and it adds materially to the thrilling power of the heroic -narration, though it is used, and very judiciously, not in the form of -positive statement, but in a mood of shuddering inquiry and doubt. - -Weber, in his vocal setting of the ballad, with his usual ability in -grasping and utilizing every realistic suggestion of his subject, has -emphasized both the martial and the spectral phases of the theme, -treating with equal skill the spirit of martial daring and heroic -patriotism which spoke in Luetzow's deeds, and the supernatural terrors -which they awoke. One moment the "Black Huntsmen" sweep by us across -some open moonlit plain, with a wild haste, with the clang of saber, the -ring of bugle, and the tramp of rushing steeds; the next they flit -before us through the gloom of the forests, vague, mysterious, like the -indistinct phantoms of war. The distinct imitation of the rhythmic beat -of galloping hoofs, so frequent a device in descriptive music, is -effectively utilized here in accompaniment, while the melody of the -song, full of trumpet-like suggestions, is raid to consist in part of -actual bugle calls which were used among Luetzow's raiders. - -Kullak, in his instrumental transcription, while preserving with -artistic fidelity the composer's intention in all the original effects -of the song, has broadened, enriched, and intensified them, and at the -same time adapted them cleverly to the resources of the piano. In places -they may be still further enhanced by playing, as I would recommend to -those possessing sufficient technic for it, all the scale passages for -both hands in octaves, instead of single notes, as they are written, -thus adding volume and brilliancy to the work as a whole. - -The introduction, in rapid triplets, with marked accentuation, -reproducing the exact rhythm of the gallop of horses, should begin -softly, as if distant, and rise in a steady crescendo to a strong -climax, suggesting the swift approach of a troop of riders; then the -melody enters, bold and distinct, as if in trumpet tones, or given by -the resonant voices of the dashing troopers. The piece must be varied by -frequent and marked contrasts; now a trumpet-call, clear and sharp, -answered by a distant echo; now a whispered hint of spectral terrors; -again the sweep and rush, the clash and clamor, the delirious excitement -of the impetuous charge. - -The exultant climax, at the close, well expresses the sentiment of the -final verse of the ballad: - - "The Fatherland is free, famous, and triumphant, - Glory to the heroes whose blood has bought the victory!" - -This composition of Weber's, when given by a rousing, ringing, -full-voiced male chorus of Germans, stirs the martial spirit in every -breast, just as the Marseillaise fires the blood of the French. In its -piano transcription, by Kullak, I recommend it to every player and -teacher who is seeking something which is very difficult to -find--namely: a good and effective number, martial and rhythmic in -character, which is of real merit, and is a novelty to the audience of -to-day, and yet has a classic name attached. It is admirably adapted to -close a program or to end a group of several shorter compositions of -varying mood. - - - - - SCHUBERT - 1797 1828 - - - - - Schubert: (Impromptu B Flat) Theme and Variations, Op. 142, No. 3 - - -Franz Schubert, the golden sands of whose brief existence, rich with the -jewel gleams of genius, ran all too swiftly through the glass of time, -between the years 1797 and 1828, may be considered, if not the -strongest, certainly the most genial, fluent, and spontaneous composer -of the modern Romantic School, which arose and flourished so luxuriantly -during the vigorous youth of our own century. He is most generally known -as the master of the German "Lied" or song. This brief, concise, -epigrammatic form of condensed musical expression, though not, of -course, original with Schubert, received at his hand its fullest -development, its highest perfection, both as regards intrinsic beauty -and dramatic precision; while in quantity, as well as quality, he far -surpasses all competitors in this vein of creative work. There are -something like 600 of these songs from his pen, and such was his fluent -versatility of production, that he is known to have completed seven of -these inimitable musical gems in one day. His instrumental compositions, -whether for orchestra or piano, though far less numerous, are for the -most part equally able and effective, and deserve a much more frequent -hearing in the concert-room than they at present receive, displaying, as -they do, to the full, his inventive spontaneity, his inexhaustible fund -of fresh, original melody, and the peculiar, tender, poetic grace of his -style. - -Most of Schubert's best known pianoforte works, like the composition -under discussion, belong to the smaller, more modest, and unpretentious -forms. They are eminently soft, sweet, and winning, rarely exhibiting -that breadth, grandeur, and passionate intensity with which such -composers as Chopin, Schumann, and Liszt have made us familiar. But who -would despise the wood anemone because it chances not to possess the -voluptuous perfume of the queenly rose or the gorgeous hues of the -wizard poppy? - -The "theme and variations," of which this work is an excellent example, -is one of the most ancient, natural, and logical forms of musical -construction. A simple melody, clearly enunciated at the beginning, is -used by the composer as the musical germ of his work, from which he -evolves, as by the process of spontaneous growth, all its manifold -possibilities for varied expression and contrasted effect; much as the -skilful orator expands from his tersely stated thesis or text, by means -of elaborate comparison, analysis, antithesis, and peroration, all that -far-reaching sequence of deduction and argument latent in his -thought-germ. It is always fascinating to watch this growth, this -gradual evolution, this play of many colored lights over the familiar -theme, under the skilful and ingenious manipulation of a master hand. -But there is, I claim, a deeper interest and a higher pleasure to be -derived from seeking, beneath the smoothly flowing harmonies and -graceful, rippling embellishment, for the allegorical significance or -suggestion mirrored in their clear depths, as scenes and faces are -reflected in the tranquil stream, and which are rarely, if ever, wanting -in the true art work. - -The "theme and variations" in music, which owes its origin to the first -crude attempts of early composers to elongate and develop a musical idea -into a symmetrical art form, corresponds to a very early phase of -another art. I refer to the series of progressive pictures carved on the -friezes of many ancient Oriental and Grecian temples, portraying -successive episodes in the life of some god, hero, king, or prophet. The -central figure is ever the same, however attitude, action, mood, and -environment may vary, to suit the stage of his story represented in each -scene. No smoke of battle, strangeness of garb, or storm of emotion can -so obscure or distort the familiar lineaments that they are not -recognizable, though they take contour and expression from -circumstances, those variations in the theme of life. The same idea is -carried out in pictorial art in the interiors of more modern edifices, -when the walls of cathedrals are adorned with frescoes representing the -life of Christ, in numerous consecutive panels, from the infant in the -manger to the death upon the cross. Painting can tell a story, within -certain limitations, as well as words, and more powerfully. The same is -true of music, for those who have ears to hear. - -As already stated in connection with the Beethoven sonata, Op. 26, to me -the "theme and variations" always seems to represent a given character -or personality, met at different times, amid varying scenes and -circumstances, in many moods and situations, as would be the case in -real life; developing with the progress of acquaintance and contrasting -experiences, showing now one aspect, now another, according to the -changes of inner emotion or outward environment, but always preserving -the same individuality, an identity which lends itself to, but does not -lose itself in, the vicissitudes of human existence. In the particular -work before us, let the first fresh, simple, tender theme symbolize a -maiden, the heroine of the story we will call her, fair, with the -delicate freshness of first youth, full of the winning grace, the naive -simplicity and the dreamy poetic fancy of one of Lytton's heroines: a -young girl, - - "Standing with reluctant feet - Where the brook and river meet-- - Womanhood and childhood fleet." - -All the manifold vicissitudes of life are lying untried before her, with -the latent possibilities of her nature waiting to be unfolded and -developed by experience, that climate of the soul. - -In the first variation, with its tremulous yet flowing embellishment, -all is vague, uncertain, conjectural. She seems in a mood of -speculation, of reverie, to be gazing forward down the dim vista of the -years, and wondering, with a thrill at heart, what they promise or -presage for her. It is the first rosy, dawning twilight of as yet -indefinite hope and desire. - -In the second, her pulses beat to a swifter, stronger measure. She has -begun to taste the zest of life and is borne along impetuously on the -stream of youthful exhilaration and unbroken confidence, out into the -broad, full sunlight of the first great happiness. Light ripples of -laughter, quick-drawn breaths of delight, a sunny circuit of bright and -blithe fancies, envelop the theme and well-nigh conceal it. - -The mournful melody, somber minor harmonies, and sobbing accompaniment -of the third variation, so full of passionate pain, express the all too -certain reaction from the former hilarious mood, the coming of that -inevitable shadow of all great joy--its corresponding grief. The hour -has come when the first great, crushing sorrow surges in upon the soul, -in a resistless, overwhelming tide; and our heroine, from fancying that -her life's pathway was to be all roses and sunshine, is forced to find -it, for the time at least, all thorns and midnight darkness, and to -match her single strength with the might of woe in that struggle for -supremacy which must come soon or late to all. - -The fourth again changes wholly in character; is bold, energetic, -spirited, almost martial. The struggle of life is in full progress. The -resolute, forceful bass tones, with which the left hand enters from time -to time, seem like the impetus of a strong will giving momentum to -earnest purpose. This variation tells in stirring trumpet tones of -victory, of the dauntless courage and the elastic strength born in noble -natures of endurance and endeavor, of a character invigorated by -conflict, deepened and matured by adversity; and it leads us back, at -its close, through many winding ways and devious modulations, to a later -happiness, expressed in the fifth and last--a happiness hard-won, but -more complete than the first, though less exuberant, more ethereal and -spiritual, with something in it of the mellow sunset glow. - -The work closes with a tranquil coda, a brief evening retrospect, grave -and thoughtful; but, on the whole, cheerful in tone, as if the backward -glance were, all in all, fraught with satisfaction. Here we find the -opening theme, the character melody, in all its first simplicity, but -given an octave lower, in slower tempo and in full chords. Our heroine -has not altered; the contours are clear, the proportions identical, not -a note is wanting; but the _leit-motif_ of her personality is deeper, -broader, and fuller for the experiences of life behind her, and seems to -bear the imprint as of an epitaph, "I have lived and loved and labored. -All is well." - - - - - Emotion in Music - - -Not long since, when urging upon a pupil the necessity of bringing out -the deeper mood and meaning of a certain composition, the present writer -received this response: "I am afraid to make it say all that, to put so -much of myself into it; people will call me sentimental!" - -The reply voiced a prevailing and thoroughly American weakness. It is -far too common here to find, especially among our girls, a bright, warm, -impulsive nature, full of genuine sentiment and poetic fancy, choked and -perverted, turned shallow and bitter, by this same paralyzing fear of -ridicule; to meet persons who take a morbid pride in concealing and -repressing their better selves so effectually, that even their most -intimate friends shall never suspect them of being one degree less -frivolous and heartless than their companions, who in their turn are -doubtless vying with them in this deplorable, misguided effort to -belittle themselves, their lives and influence. - -It is one of the most significant and lamentable signs of the time, that -any allusion to or expression of a warm, true, earnest sentiment is met -in society with more or less open and bitter derision, even by those who -are secretly in sympathy with it, admire the courage and sincerity of -its champion, and would gladly take the same bold stand in its defense, -but dare not, and so add their coward voices to swell the majority. This -is the more deplorable, since this tendency is at once cause and effect. -The continual and systematic denial and suppression of emotion and -ideality result finally in their complete extinction in most cases, or -leave them deformed and feeble, to struggle for a precarious existence -in some dark, hidden recess of the soul, whose highest throne is their -rightful heritage. - -George Sand says, somewhere, speaking of the French, "We once had -sentiment, but the sirocco of sarcasm has scorched it from our hearts, -and where it grew is a desert place!" Alas for the people of whom this -is true! Alas for the young man or maiden who can say, "I have no -sentiment," and speak truth. And let me here caution any young person -against a light and frequent, even though purposely insincere, denial of -any characteristic of value; for there is a strange and subtle sympathy -between the heart and the lips, which works steadily, if stealthily, to -bring them more and more into accord. A lie is in every sense a -violation of the laws of nature; and what is first uttered as a -conscious, flagrant falsehood, becomes less so with each repetition, -till unawares a day will come which shall see it transformed into a -glaring truth. Such a person, no matter how highly organized, or -perfectly trained otherwise, is no better than a machine. He does not -live, he simply runs. - -One may not be to blame for a natural deficiency in those higher -qualities which make a life warm and rich and attractive, which mark a -personality as something more than an animated clod, or even a -well-adjusted mental mechanism; he must be pitied even though -instinctively shunned; but he who wantonly draws the fatal knife of -sarcasm across the throat of a true sentiment or a lofty ideal, however -feebly or imperfectly embodied, commits a crime against humanity at -large, more injurious and far-reaching in its effects than slaughter of -the body only. Above all, let us beware how we tamper with the natural, -essential relations between art and the emotions. Good-by to the artist -who has no place or use for sentiment in his work; he should turn his -attention at once to some more practical and creditable branch of -mechanics. - -One grievous mistake in our American system of training is that we -ignore almost altogether this phase of culture. We develop the -conscience, the reason, the memory, but do nothing for the taste, the -imagination, the esthetic sense, the whole ideal and spiritual side of -the character. The faithful, protracted study of music, or other branch -of art, even though it never result in any financial profit or the -smallest degree of professional success, will develop faculties and -tendencies of more advantage to the student and to all who may come in -contact with him in private life, than any amount of algebra, or any -number of Greek roots. The German methods of study, especially for young -ladies, might teach us a valuable lesson in this connection. - -He who would attain the best results in art should remember that we do -not gather dates of thorns, nor figs of thistles; that "only life begets -life," and that after its own kind; that an art product, to be really -good and great, must be the concentrated, crystallized essence of the -best that is in him, the epitome of his highest moods and aspirations, -of those rare, intuitive glimpses of a loftier existence, to which in -favorable moments he can lift himself, the distilled perfume of weeks, -it may be years, of living. He should subject himself to every possible -cultivating, elevating influence, should train, not only hand and head, -but heart as well; for these three are the inseparable trinity of art. -He should increase his resources, widen his experiences, expand his -horizon; not by cramming a quantity of facts, or by the conquest of mere -technical means--what use in commanding words, or tones, if one has -nothing to express withal?--but by increased familiarity with and -capacity to appreciate and exercise the qualities so constantly -requisite in his work. - -Let us remember, too, what the scientists tell us, that light and heat -radiated from a given center are dissipated in force and intensity in -proportion to the square of the distance to be traversed. The same is -emphatically true of emotion. If one would stir his audience to a -pleasurable excitement, he must himself be shaken as in a tempest; to -warm them, he must be at white heat. - -Should the question arise, How shall one learn to feel music more deeply -and make it more expressive? my answer would be, Read, think, feel, -dream, love, live! Read--not musical history and biography--these give -information, not culture; they are valuable, but not in this connection; -read poetry, especially the lyric and dramatic, and good prose -literature. A person entirely unaccustomed to understand or to utter -anything in tones, will often find the key to this unfamiliar medium of -expression by the following indirect method: Find some work, a poem is -best, because briefer and more concrete, which expresses, approximately -at least, the sentiment of the composition to be studied. Most persons -are more familiar with the language of words than with that of tones, -and will reach a given mood more directly and easily through that -channel. Let the poem be well studied, not only with the mind, but with -the imagination, dwelling upon it, trying to feel its meaning and beauty -as deeply as possible; then throw the same emotional content into the -music, making the tones tell what the words have said. The present -writer has found this course in teaching very effective with all -sensitive natures, even with those who have but the rudiments of an -artistic temperament. - -Above all, artist or amateur, teacher or pupil, fear not to use in your -work to the full all the emotional power you have or can acquire. It may -be the injudicious application of force that sometimes impairs artistic -results; it is never the excess. Vital energy should be controlled, -regulated, but never stinted. Ill-timed frenzy is not art, of course; -but where intensity is demanded and proper gradations and proportions -are observed, no dirge is ever too deeply gloomy, no dramatic climax too -strong. The danger is always of tameness, rather than of excessive -fervor. - -Let us, then, be genuine, earnest, whole-hearted, open, in our -allegiance to the ideal; and as for those who sneer at sentiment in art -or in life, why, let them rave. We adhere to the creed which T. T. -Munger has beautifully formulated for our profession in his "Music as -Revelation": "Emotion is the summit of existence, and music is the -summit of emotion, the art pathway to God." - - - - - CHOPIN - 1810 1849 - - - - - Chopin: Sonata, B Flat Minor, Op. 35 - - -Whether regarded from the standpoint of musical form, of intrinsic -beauty, or of dramatic intensity, this work may safely be pronounced -Chopin's masterpiece; and in the present writer's opinion it ranks as -the greatest composition in all piano literature. Chopin's ability to -handle the strict sonata form successfully has been sometimes called in -question; but whatever may be said of his other two sonatas, this one -will certainly bear comparison with the most perfect models of symmetry, -finish, and architectural completeness, by the best known and most -universally recognized classic masters. In the _allegro_ movement, upon -which the distinguishing character of the sonata form always depends, -the first and second subjects are well contrasted and admirably -balanced, the development is logical, ingenious, and forceful, and the -statement of the dramatic content is clear, concise, and strong, without -a single irrelevant phrase or superfluous measure. - -The work is founded upon an ancient Polish poem of a semi-legendary, -semi-allegorical significance, by a once prominent, now well-nigh -forgotten Polish writer. It consists of four movements, corresponding to -the four cantos of the poem, of which it is, in a sense, a musical -translation, treating successively the principal moods and situations in -the story. The fact that in the first two movements the incidents are -treated symbolically, emotionally, in accordance with the composer's -usual subjective mode of expression, rather than with the descriptive or -imitative devices of the modern school, does not in the least detract -from the poetic impression or suggestive power of the music. - -In the last two movements he has recourse, for obvious reasons, to the -direct method of definite realism. The first movement pictures the life -and feelings of the hero, a Polish knight of the middle ages, facing -storm and conflict, danger and hardship, in camp and field, fighting for -king and country, cheered now and then, in lonely hours of vigil at the -camp-fire, by waking visions of his distant home and his waiting bride. - -The opening measures of the brief introduction tell of stern courage and -inflexible resolve. Then the first subject enters, stirring, impetuous, -fiery, full of the ring of trumpets, the clash of steel, the fierce -exultation of desperate combat. The tranquil second subject suggests -memories of the happy days of youth in his quiet home--dreams of a -future brightened by the light of promised love, but still enveloped in -the softening haze of distance and uncertainty. The development, with -its complex, conflicting rhythms, its resistless, tempestuous sweep, -thrills with the excitement of sudden onset, the rush of charging -squadrons, the battle cry of struggling hosts. The closing chords -express a somber triumph, the proud but sorrow-shadowed elation of a -hard-won victory, purchased by the blood of many a patriot comrade. - -The second movement, the scherzo, gives us the triumphant return of our -hero crowned with laurel, accompanied by the jubilant strains of martial -music, and the glad acclamations of the crowd. Yet, in the midst of his -pride and well-earned glory, he finds time to dream again; this time -more tenderly, sweetly, hopefully; to dream of his home-coming, and the -fond greeting that awaits him in his own native village, where, through -the difficulties and dangers of the campaign, his promised bride has -been watching, and hoping, and praying for his return in faithful but -anxious affection. - -Here again we find two contrasting and strongly characteristic themes: -The first, full of martial pride and exultation, the thoughts of -victory, the glad tribute of applause to a nation's hero; the second, -tender, dreamy, pulsing with love's anticipation. After this soulful -trio melody, the first martial strains are repeated; but in the coda, a -brief recurrence of the trio theme seems to emphasize the idea that with -him the love thought dominates. This brings us to the third movement, -the Funeral March, unquestionably the best funeral march ever written -for the piano, the most intrinsically beautiful, the most touchingly, -intensely sad, and the most complete, finely finished, and perfectly -sustained, from first measure to last; the strongest, noblest, deepest -expression of heart-crushing sorrow to be found in all piano literature. - -As it is published and most often heard by itself, many who have played -and listened to it have not even been aware that it affords the third -chapter, so to speak, in a great tone epic, for as such this sonata must -be considered. - -As our hero approaches home, his heart swelling with anticipation, he is -greeted by the distant, solemn tolling of cathedral bells, too evidently -funeral bells, and soon is met by a slowly moving, somber procession of -black-robed monks and mourners, bearing to her last resting-place in the -church-yard the very bride to whose fond greeting he has so ardently -looked forward. The music, soft and muffled at first, like the toll of -far-off bells, gradually grows in power and intensity as the procession -advances, assuming more and more the heavy, measured, inflexible rhythm -of a funeral march, and swelling at last to an overwhelming climax of -passionate pain. - -Then the procession comes to a stand by the open grave. After a brief -pause, the sweet, plaintive trio melody enters, pure and tender as a -prayer, touched and thrilled to warmth and pathos by memories of happier -days; after which the march movement is resumed, as the procession -slowly and sadly returns to the village; the music, heavy, crushing, -inexorable at first as the voice of fate, gradually recedes, diminishes, -dies in the distance; and then follows the last movement, the presto, in -some respects the most original and most impressive of all, the lament -of the autumn night-wind over a forsaken grave, one of the few cases in -which Chopin chose to be distinctly realistic, a literal and graphic -imitation of wind effects; yet woven through it is an unmistakable -suggestion of the mood of the hour and situation, the chill, the gloom, -the wild despair, and a hint of that ever darker thought that will arise -at such moments; after death, formless void, chaos. - -There is an important vein of allegory underlying this whole story, like -a deep substratum. The hero is a personification of the typical Polish -patriot, struggling, in a forlorn hope, for his native land; the bride -is Poland, and the mighty, overwhelming grief expressed is more than a -personal sorrow: it is for the death and burial of a nation. - -The authority for connecting the poem referred to with this sonata has -been frequently questioned. I wish to state here that the poetic -background to this great work is by no means hypothetically sketched in -by my own imagination, however fully justified by the inherent character -of the music. I have my data in full from Kullak and Liszt, the latter -having been a personal friend of Chopin, as is well known, and having -first presented the sonata in public to the musical world. We may safely -assume, therefore, that he was correctly informed with regard to it, and -that this interpretation is authentic and authoritative. - - - - - The Chopin Ballades - - -Probably no class of musical compositions ever presented to the world by -any master has been so little understood, and consequently so much -misrepresented as the ballades by Frederic Chopin. Even so standard an -authority as Grove, in his "Dictionary of Music and Musicians," writes -as follows: "_Ballade_, a name adopted by Chopin for four pieces of -pianoforte music, which have no peculiar form or character of their own, -beyond being written in triple time, and to which the name seems to be -no more applicable than that of sonnet to the pieces which others have -written under that title"--a statement which proves that he had little -information and less interest in regard to the subject. - -The French word _ballade_, which Chopin used as title for these -compositions, is derived from the Provencal _ballata_, a dancing song, -which in turn comes from _bellare_, to dance; and our modern English -words ballad, ball, ballet, all descend to us from the same source. In -Italian, _ballata_ meant a dancing piece, in distinction from _sonata_, -a sounding piece, and _cantata_, a singing piece; and the _ballade_ and -_ballata_ originally meant a piece of music to be sung while dancing or -accompanied by dancing. The dance element, however, was early lost, and -ballade in French, like ballad in English, came to mean a short and -popular narrative poem adapted for singing or recitation. The ballad is -a tale in verse. It differs from the epic in being briefer, less -dignified in tone, and in concerning itself with actual practical events -in the lives of individuals, instead of with historic and mythological -subjects, which form the main province of the epic. The true ballad -treats of some knightly exploit, some national episode, or some tale of -love and adventure; and, as we shall see, Chopin, in adopting this title -for instrumental compositions, adhered strictly to its definition and -its literary characteristics and significance. - -The Chopin ballades, four in number and ranking among his most -strikingly original and effective contributions to pianoforte music, -introduced an entirely new and distinctly unique musical form, well-nigh -limitless in its possibilities of expression and application, its facile -adaptability to every phase of emotional and descriptive writing. As was -natural, they opened the way for a host of more or less worthy -followers, bold, independent free lances, heedless of the forms and -rules which bind in rank and file the more orderly conservative -compositions; all bearing a strong racial resemblance, but variously -designated by such special clan cognomens as ballade, novelette, legend, -fable, fairy-tale, and the like. They now constitute a complete and -markedly individual school of composition, of which Chopin in his -ballades was the originator, and which is differentiated from all others -by its distinctly declamatory, narrative style. - -Chopin used the name ballade in the sense in which it is employed in -modern literature--to designate a short, poetic narrative, a miniature -epic, as distinguished from the lyric, didactic, and dramatic forms of -poetry. He intended the ballade in music to be a counterpart of the -ballad in poetry, and his inventive genius and unerring taste supplied -and perfected a form precisely adapted to the end in view; a form which -is strictly akin neither to the rondo, the sonata allegro, nor the free -fantasia, though having certain points of resemblance to all three, -still less to any of the dance forms. It reminds us more of some of the -larger, more complex song forms, as, for instance, the musical settings -by Schubert and others of the more pretentious German ballads by Goethe, -Berger, and Uhland; but its development is broader and ampler, at once -more extended and more logical, evincing a greater degree of -constructive musicianship. - -Chopin's able biographer, Karasowski, says of the ballades: "Some -regarded them as a variety of the rondo; others, with more accuracy, -called them poetical stories. Indeed, there is about them a narrative -tone (_Maerchenton_) which is particularly well rendered by the six-four -and six-eight time, and which makes them differ essentially from the -existing forms." In view of these facts, patent even to the superficial -student of Chopin's life and works, it seems very strange that we should -so often hear and even see in print sneering insinuations to the effect -that the composer christened these works ballades for lack of any better -or more appropriate name; that the title has in reality nothing of -significance or distinctness, which is justified either by the form or -the content of the works. - -As a matter of fact, all four of these ballades, according to Chopin's -own statement to Schumann during an interview at Leipsic, are founded -directly upon Polish poems by the greatest poet of that nation, Adam -Mickiewicz, the father of the romantic school in Poland, a contemporary -and personal friend of the composer, a man whose fervent patriotism and -unswerving fidelity to national themes, as well as the warmth, -tenderness, and power of his creative genius, specially endeared him to -the heart of his compatriot and brother artist, the tone-poet Chopin. It -is difficult, not to say impossible, to estimate the stimulating -influence of Mickiewicz and his works upon the creative activity of -Chopin. That the music of the latter has attained world-wide celebrity, -while the poems of the former are scarcely heard of outside of the small -and cultured circle of his own countrymen and women, is due perhaps not -so much to the superiority of the composer's genius over that of the -poet, as to the more universal intelligibility of his chosen idiom, his -medium of expression, Polish being a language understood by few persons -even of cosmopolitan tendencies, and one which is ill adapted for -translation into non-Slavonic tongues. Certain it is that Chopin himself -was quick to acknowledge his deep indebtedness to his gifted countryman, -and rose to some of his loftiest flights of creative effort when -translating into his own beloved language of tone ideas, experiences, -incidents, and situations which had already been molded and vivified -into artistic life and beauty by the hand of the poet, as in the case of -the four ballades under consideration. - -Though the origin of these ballades as musical transcripts of certain -poems by Mickiewicz is indisputable, it has always been a mooted -question, and one fraught with the keenest interest, at least to some of -us, upon what particular poem any given ballade is founded; what special -experience or incident, national, personal, or imaginary, found its -first embodiment in the verses of the Slavic poet, to thrill with its -power and beauty a limited circle of Polish readers, and was later -reincarnated by Chopin, to find a far wider sphere of influence -throughout the musical world; and what may be the peculiar subtle karma -of romantic or dramatic association which this vital art germ has -brought with it in its transmigration from a former existence; in a -word, whence and what is the essential artistic essence of each ballade? - -If we could trace it to its fountain head and familiarize ourselves with -the sources of Chopin's own inspiration, the task of rightly -comprehending and interpreting any one of these compositions would be -vastly facilitated. This no one has hitherto done successfully. Few -among English-speaking musicians are able to read Mickiewicz in the -original Polish; translations of his works are meager, imperfect, and -very difficult to obtain. It is therefore not without a certain glow of -satisfaction that the present writer is able, after diligent, unwearying -inquiry and voluminous reading, covering a period of some fifteen years, -confidently to affirm that he has at last traced back to their -inspirational sources three at least of the four ballades; and he -submits to the reader the results of his research, in the hope that some -degree of the interest and pleasure he has himself derived from this -line of investigation may be shared by others. - -Should any question arise with regard to the accuracy of the statements -and conclusions here advanced, I would say that the authority on which -they are based is derived partly from definite historical data, -existing, though widely diffused, in print; partly from direct -traditions gathered from those who enjoyed the personal acquaintance of -the composer; and partly from the carefully considered internal evidence -of the works themselves, when critically compared with the poems to -which they presumably had reference. I will say further that concerning -the fourth ballade, in F minor, I am still as completely in the dark as -any of my readers, and would gratefully welcome any information or -suggestion which might tend to throw the smallest light upon the -subject. - - - Ballade in G Minor, Op. 23 - -The first ballade, Op. 23, in G minor, was published in June, 1836, -perhaps written a year or two earlier. It was suggested by and is -founded upon one of the most able and forceful, as well as extended, -patriotic historical poems by Mickiewicz, often called the Lithuanian -Epic, entitled "Konrad Wallenrod," and published in 1828. The following -is a brief synopsis of its plot: - -During the latter half of the fourteenth century, the Red Cross knights, -a powerful religious, political, and military order, controlling large -dominions on the Baltic, in territory now included in modern Russia, -were at fierce feud with Lithuania, then an independent principality, -later united with Poland by a marriage of its reigning prince, Jagiello, -to the heiress of the Polish throne, thus founding the dynasty of the -Jagiellos, the most illustrious of the royal houses of Poland. Long and -desperate was the struggle. The Lithuanians, though vastly outnumbered -and frequently outgeneraled and defeated, defended every inch of their -beloved fatherland, now absorbed in western Russia, with heroic valor. -At last their ruling prince and idolized leader fell in battle, their -army was routed and cut to pieces, the scanty remnant taking refuge from -their merciless pursuers among the fastnesses of the mountains; and the -country was for a time practically subjugated and forced to submit to -the most cruel and tyrannical oppression. The conquerors, being -Crusaders and Christian knights, considered every species of atrocious -spoliation and barbaric violence, when practised against the infidel -Lithuanians, as justifiable, even laudable, and for some years the -sufferings of the conquered knew no limit. - -Among the prisoners taken and carried into virtual slavery by the -Teutonic Order, was the little seven-year-old son of the fallen -prince--a bright, precocious, winsome lad, who, after serving for some -time as page in the household of the grand master of the Order, so -completely won the heart of the old knight, that he adopted the boy and -educated him with his own children, in all the courtly and martial -accomplishments of the time. Years passed. Young Konrad grew in manly -power and promise, and came to be ranked among the flower of Teutonic -chivalry, first in the tourney, first in the field, and first in the -ladies' hall. But ever at his side, as strange friend and secret -counselor, was seen the somber figure of the aged Wajdelote, or bard, a -venerable minstrel, who had come none knew whence, and, despite his -proud and gloomy bearing, had won high favor at the court by the magic -of his voice and lute. Ostensibly a wandering singer, he was in reality -a Lithuanian noble of high degree, a former friend of Konrad's father, -the fallen prince, and stood high in the confidence of the Lithuanian -people and nobility as an able, devoted patriot. He came as an emissary -from them to find and win back their lost prince Konrad to his own true -flag and his native land. They were still hoping and fitfully struggling -to throw off the tyranny of the Red Cross knights and wanted Konrad for -their leader. - -Under the cloak of his minstrelsy, the Wajdelote plied this secret -mission. With all the fiery eloquence of his poet's genius, he wrought -upon the spirit of the young man, rousing it to duty and action, to -honor, ambition, and patriotism, to sympathy with the wrongs of his -oppressed fellow-countrymen, to vengeance for the death of his -slaughtered father, stirring its latent heroism, steeling it to -steadfast purpose. And as his influence strengthened day by day, the -open brow of the young prince grew clouded, the smile vanished from his -lips, and his sunny eyes grew deeper and darker with stern resolve. - -At last the occasion came. In a foray against a band of insurgent -Lithuanians, Konrad and his mentor detached themselves from their -companions, and feigning to be taken captive, joined the forces of their -own countrymen, where they were welcomed with the wildest enthusiasm. -The two years that followed were the happiest of Konrad's life. He threw -himself heart and soul into the fierce joy of combat for his native -land, devoting to her service all his personal courage and ability, and -all the military skill so carefully acquired at the court and camp of -the Red Cross knights; yet found time in the brief pauses of activity to -woo and win as wife the fairest and truest of the Lithuanian maids. For -a time the pulses of his life throbbed with a full but fluctuating tide, -in the swift interchange of love's delights and the thrill of gallant -deeds. Caressing whispers alternated with the clash of swords, and the -tender light of the honeymoon with the lurid gleam of the camp-fire; but -his happiness was destined to be as transient as his valor was vain. A -sterner duty, a more self-sacrificing devotion claimed him, and his -veteran mentor was still at his side to mature the plan and urge its -execution. His beloved Lithuania, enfeebled, broken, disorganized for so -long, was wholly unable to cope in open field with her powerful, -disciplined, and well-equipped antagonist. Some daring, subtle, and -far-sighted stratagem alone might save her; and such a one had formed -itself in the mind of the old minstrel. Again his eloquence rang in the -ears of Konrad, like the voice of fate, "Behold, this is to do! Thou art -the man!" - -A heart-breaking farewell to his bride, and Konrad disappears utterly -from the scene for ten years; then returns irrecognizably altered in -appearance, under an assumed name, with wealth and fame and following, -acquired in wars with the Saracens of Spain. The old grand master of the -Red Cross knights is dead, and Konrad with little difficulty secures his -own election to that office; and then begins the work of vengeance. By -his absolute power as grand master, and his cunning diplomacy, he -involved the order in bitter internal dissensions, depleted its -treasury, wasted its resources, weakened its garrisons, and in every -possible way sapped its strength, and finally led the flower of its army -to complete annihilation in a winter campaign against the Lithuanians, -into whose snares and ambuscades the Red Cross knights were mercilessly -thrown by secret and preconcerted arrangement with his countrymen. - -Thus by a course of treachery, which for daring, subtlety, and sustained -purpose, both in conception and execution, has hardly a parallel in -history, was accomplished what could not have been done by force. The -power of the order was effectually broken and Lithuania set free. But -Konrad's life, as well as his happiness, paid the price of his -patriotism. His beloved bride he never saw but once again, and that only -for a moment of agonized parting through dungeon bars, just before his -execution. And it is said he never smiled from the hour when the voice -of the stern old minstrel first stirred his heart with the trumpet call -of inexorable duty, till the hour when its proud pulses were stilled -forever by the daggers of the secret tribunal. For his identity was -discovered; he was, of course, tried and condemned as a traitor to the -order, and died in disgrace by the hands of his former comrades. - -Such is the story, sad but stirring, which Mickiewicz handles in his -poem, and which Chopin reembodied in the G minor ballade, not following -literally its successive steps, but emphasizing to his utmost its -spirit, character, and moral. I think no one ever played this -composition, or listened to it attentively, without feeling that its -mood was not of our day and land. The time it represents is the middle -ages, its scene is laid in stern and rugged Lithuania, among warlike -knights and resentful rebels, and its whole spirit is therefore medieval -and military. - -It opens with a brief but scornfully defiant introduction, a call to -arms, reminding one of the first lines of that familiar address to the -Roman gladiators: "Friends, I come not here to talk; ye all do know the -story of our thraldom." Then the first and principal theme enters, -symbolizing the forceful personality and stern mentor voice of the old -minstrel, in its somber yet resolute phrases, solemn, inflexible, -relentless as fate; telling of wrongs to be avenged, of a nation in -bondage awaiting its deliverer; of the imperative call of duty and -patriotism; and it constantly recurs all through the composition as its -leading motive, whenever, as is vividly suggested by the other -contrasting, conflicting themes and passages, continually introduced, -the young prince wavers in his purpose, deterred by doubts and -forebodings, lured by seductive temptations from pursuance of the -desperate and soul-trying venture; whenever his mind wanders, as it must -at times, to regretful memories of happier days, to the splendors of -feast and tournament, to the pomp and pride of a martial career under -the adopted flag of the order, to the blithe hunting-horns of his gay -companions in youth, and tender dreams of the first great love of his -manhood, all sacrificed to a grand but pitiless cause. He is ever -recalled to the heroic mood, to the proud but rugged path of duty, by -this mentor voice--gravely insistent, quietly determined, which will not -be gainsaid; and which finally triumphs over all other considerations. -The impetuous presto which closes the work portrays the fierce -excitement and fiery rush of conflict, the utter self-abandon that hurls -itself jubilantly into the arms of an ignominious death for a cherished -ideal; and it ends with the savage but triumphant shout of a -blood-bought victory. - -This ballade, though comparatively an early work, is one of Chopin's -most darkly grand and dramatically powerful efforts; and the subjective -personal moods of the exiled Polish patriot are voiced in its gloomy -indignation, its desperate courage, and its fierce defiance. - -There is an undercurrent of political meaning in "Konrad Wallenrod," -which fortunately escaped the notice of the Russians, who allowed its -publication at St. Petersburg, but which appeals to every native and -friend of Poland and has had no small share in making its popularity. -Lithuania in the fourteenth century, broken and crushed, represents -Poland in the nineteenth, and the tyrannical Teutonic Order stands for -Russian oppression. The Wajdelote's recitals of the wrongs of a dear but -downtrodden land, the indignation and resentment under a foreign yoke, -and the appeal to arms for freedom and revenge, are all spoken in the -cause of Poland, and are so felt by the native reader. Konrad's dire -vengeance on the conqueror is a picture of the secret hope of all Polish -patriots of the final overthrow and punishment of the tyrant and the -reestablishment of Polish independence. - - - Ballade in F Major, Op. 38 - -The second ballade, in F major, is, of the three under consideration, -the least of a favorite and the least played; probably because the -radical extremes of mood which it presents, in abrupt, almost painful -contrast, its apparent incoherency, and its sudden, startling, seemingly -causeless changes of movement, render it difficult to comprehend and -still more so to interpret, and difficult to follow with intelligent -sympathy even when well rendered. - -It opens with an exceedingly simple, undemonstrative theme, in the major -key, almost too lucid and childlike in the naive directness of its -utterance, and singularly devoid of the glowing warmth and color which -usually characterize the melodies by this writer. Cool, pure, and -passionless, yet velvet-soft and delicately sweet, it floats upon the -gentle pulsations of the simple accompaniment, like a snow-white, -freshly fragrant water-lily, upon the crystal ripples of some -glacier-fed mountain lake. Then suddenly, without warning or apparent -reason, there bursts a furious tempest of rage, pain, and conflict, as -if some vast Titanic embodiment in bronze of lurid war had been melted -by a world-conflagration into a stream of fluid destruction, and poured -out upon some fair scene of pastoral peace and happiness. - -Almost as suddenly the storm of fury abates, or rather seems to recede -into distance, sounding still for a time, but far and faint, as if its -tumult reached us muffled by intervening walls. Then the first simple -theme returns, sweetly calm in its pristine innocence, but soon merged -into a series of plaintive minor cadences, as of pathetic pleading, of -earnest, insistent supplication, interrupted by a brief and startlingly -abrupt climax, in full massive chords, like the confident defiance -hurled by the children of light at the hosts of darkness, certain of -victory, in their reliance on the omnipotent arm of the God of battles. -Once more the gentle first theme, followed by those imploring minor -cadences and a repetition of the strong, courageous climax, and then the -tempest breaks again with renewed intensity, the stress of desperate -strife, the agony of terror, a seething, surging, rushing torrent of -tone, as if men and demons were struggling for life in a swirling -vortex, where the elemental forces of ocean and fire had met in a -death-grapple. - -The _finale_, in presto movement, an impetuous sweep of gloomy, exultant -harmonies, suggests the mood of a brave but sorely tried spirit, -dominating distress, rising superior to disaster, and proudly triumphant -in spite of seeming defeat. At the close, in form of a coda, a few -measures of the first melody return, saddened, but still gentle, ending -plaintively in the minor, as if to say, "There have been great wrong and -suffering and bitterness, but now is peace." - -Unquestionably this work presents two radically opposing elements in -sharpest contrast; the one, reposeful purity; the other, infuriate -passion. Of this much we are sure in simply listening to the music, -without searching for historical origin or collateral information. It is -interesting to note Rubinstein's words with regard to it, and to see how -near his art instinct led him to the discovery of its realistic -significance, presumably without the aid of any definite knowledge as to -its actual origin. He writes of it: - -"Is it possible that the interpreter does not feel the necessity of -representing to his hearers a field flower caught by a gust of wind, a -caressing of the flower by the wind, the resistance of the flower, the -stormy struggle of the wind, the entreaty of the flower, which at last -lies broken there? This may be paraphrased: the field flower, a rustic -maiden; the wind, a knight." - -Let us now examine the substance at least of the poetic material from -which Chopin derived the mood and suggestion of this musical work. Again -it is a ballad upon a Lithuanian theme, from the pen of Mickiewicz. But -this time it is a legendary and not a historical subject which is -treated. The Polish ballad is entitled "The Switez Lake," and its -substance is here given in a somewhat abbreviated and simplified form: - -In the heart of Lithuania lies the beautiful, sequestered Lake Switez, -its forest-mantled shores rarely visited by the foot of a stranger, but -peopled by the peasant fancy with wild legends, shadowy traditions, and -wraith-like memories of bygone days. Its blue waves murmur, at the foot -of giant oaks, their strange tales of nymphs and sprites and -water-kelpies, while through the long and still summer nights the sleepy -branches make answer, in dreamy whisperings, of elves and gnomes and the -uncanny doings of the little people of the forest. At least so the -belated countryman affirms, overtaken by nightfall in this haunted -region; and many are the tales of that awesome place and hour with which -he terrifies his companions around the winter fire. - -Once, many years ago, a gallant knight, of a most ancient and lofty -lineage, with dauntless courage and a pious heart, whose castle crowned -a neighboring height, resolved to sound and solve the mystery hid in its -depths; and, taking with him a mammoth net of stoutest cords, a score of -brawny henchmen to draw its meshes, and a venerable priest, to bless the -catch and exorcise spirits, he proceeded to the shore. Prayer was said, -the net was flung and sank, and mighty was the struggle that ensued. The -tightened meshes strained to bursting, the taut ropes writhed and moaned -like things alive, and dragged upon the arms that strained to draw them -shoreward. The water raved and churned against the trembling banks, and -black clouds, thunder-voiced, concealed the sky. The pious father's -constant prayers at last prevailed, and the net, with its strange -burden, was safely landed. A pale but exquisitely lovely maid, with -sweet, calm dignity in face and mien, a wreath of snow-white -water-lilies on her shining hair, arose from out the tangles of the net, -and in a voice like the low murmur of soft waves at twilight, thus she -spoke: - -"Rash knight! Thy lineage and piety combined protect thee, else hadst -thou found a grave, with all thy following, in this adventure. But as -thou art of godly mind and as we are akin by blood, through long -descent, it is vouchsafed to me this once to break the mystic silence of -the centuries, and to reveal to thee the secret of the lake, and mine, -its lily queen. - -"Know then, where now is forest dark and dense, a noble city reared its -lofty battlements in former years. My sire, its ruling prince, held all -but regal sway; and I, his child, a princess well beloved by all, -counted my sunny years beside the Switez waves, as blithe as they. One -morning, in that ne'er-to-be-forgotten spring, the trumpet voice of war -through all our streets rang out the call to arms. Our royal master, -Mindog, Lithuania's king, had summoned all who wielded lance, to join -him in the field, against a horde of merciless Russian barbarians, -wasting all the land. And forth my father hastened, with him all his -goodly company of knights and men at arms, and left us women, trembling -and defenseless, in the town, trusting in God and in our innocence, till -their return. That very night, by a circuitous route, evading Mindog's -might and my stout father's sword, the Russians came, many as the sands -upon the shore, ruthless as wolves in winter's dearth. Our gates -unguarded proved an easy prize, and in they poured, thronging our -streets, demoniac in their lust for blood, exulting in the havoc of our -homes. My maidens, wild with terror, crowded round, imploring succor; -while I, as weak as they, saw our dishonor, worse than death, stalking -upon us from the barbarian ranks. - -"Then, in the frenzied panic, some one cried, 'Our only hope is mutual -destruction! Let us slay each other, cursed be she who falters!' Like -sudden inspiration, the mad purpose seized us all. And then was seen a -sight to set red war atremble with affright, and blanch the lurid sun to -sickly pallor. Fair hands, used only to the lute and broidery frame, -unsheathed the dagger and made bare the breast. With clinging arms and -lips together pressed, and sad eyes beaming love-light through their -tears, each sought to find her sister's heart and still its throbbing -with her poniard's point. Yet strength and courage faltered at the fatal -stroke. In my great agony I raised my voice in prayer to Him who guides -the storm-clouds' wrath and curbs the tempest in its wild career. -'Prevent,' I cried, 'this awful crime, and save us in this hour of -direst need! Send us in mercy the swift death we needs must find, but -let not maiden blood by maiden hands be shed!' - -"The prayer was heard. An earthquake shook our city, until it rocked and -reeled, crumbling and sinking like the snow-drifts in a springtime rain; -while from the lake a mighty wall of water rose and rushed upon us, -whelming alike pursuer and pursued, foeman and friend; hushing the din -of war and shriek of victim in one common flood of cool, safe silence. - -"So our city fell. My maidens, all transformed to water-lilies, blossom -here in happy purity through long summers, and palsy-withered is the -impious hand that strives to drag them from the friendly shelter of the -waves; while I, their lily queen, within my crystal realm hold quiet -sway, safe from the rude approach of man's destructive passions. Now -thou knowest the story, all save this. My father fell by Russian spears. -My princely brother, on returning from the wars, found all his realm a -waste, his capital destroyed, found home and sister vanished in the -flood; and wandering in other lands, when years had passed, he wedded a -stranger bride. From this their union, through a long, illustrious line -of heroes, thou art sprung. Hence thou art safe upon these shores, -despite this day's temerity, so long as with a pure heart and noble -mind, thou dost guard our name and honor in the world. Remember this. -But seek no more to pierce the kindly veil of mysteries, not meant for -mortal eyes; and never hope or strive to see again the lily queen of -Switez." - -So speaking, with a smile of saddest sweetness, she turned slowly to the -lake, and vanished in its whelming waters, which closed with laughing -ripples round her. - -No one familiar with Chopin's ballade in F can fail to perceive the -close and accurate application of the music to this romantic tale. It -begins at and deals with the appearance and story of the lily queen, and -her gentle, pure, and winning personality, and soft-voiced narration, -figure symbolically in the opening melody. The sudden burst of the -terrific war cloud, the maiden's trust in and confident appeal to a -higher power, the final whelming of the city in the friendly flood, -follow successively in almost literal portrayal, the work closing in the -mood of the maiden's final farewell and warning to the adventurous -knight who had disturbed her repose. - -Viewed from the standpoint of the subject-matter, the startling, almost -drastic, contrasts of the work seem not only intelligible, but -legitimate and artistic. - - - Ballade No. 3, in A Flat, Op. 47 - -This is the best known, the most played, and most popular of all the -Chopin ballades. Its warm, lyric opening theme, its strikingly original -rhythmic effects, its piquant, bewitching second subject, full of -playful grace, as well as its magnificently developed climax, one of the -finest in the piano literature, have all endeared it to the hearts of -Chopin lovers and rendered it one of the most effective of concert -solos. - -Like the second ballade in F major, this composition is founded upon an -ancient legend of Lake Switez, which seems to be a center about which -cluster many of the Lithuanian myths. The one in question had been -previously treated by Chopin's friend and compatriot, Adam Mickiewicz, -in the form of a ballad in Polish verse, and the substance of the story, -briefly and simply told, is as follows: - -A young and fearless knight, whose ancestral castle crowned a -forest-covered eminence above the beautiful blue lake, was wont to -wander on its lone and wooded shores at evening and to meet there -clandestinely his radiant, beautiful, mysterious lady-love, whose name, -home, and origin he was unable to discover, and which she persistently -refused to disclose. She always appeared to him suddenly, without -warning or visible approach, as if born anew each night of the filtering -moonlight and shifting forest shadows, or as if drawing her ethereal -substance at will from the floating mist wreaths above the lake. And she -vanished as miraculously, when she chose to end their interview, -dissolving from his very arms into mist once more. Perhaps the very -mystery which enveloped her enhanced her charms. In any case, her power -grew upon the knight till he became most desperately enamoured, pressing -his suit with growing ardor. At first she coquetted with his passion, -laughing at his fervor and meeting his fiery protestations with playful, -incredulous mockery; but, finally touched by his fiery eloquence, she -made him a conditional promise. If he would prove his fidelity, would -remain true to her and her memory during her absence, no matter what -temptations might arise, for the space of just one little passing moon, -she would then return, reveal her identity, and become his bride, if he -still desired it. - -Of course, he swore eternal fidelity, and she, with a little half-sad, -half-incredulous smile, vanished into the night mist. For several -evenings he wandered, lonely and disconsolate, on the shores of the -lake, longing and vainly seeking for his absent love and cursing the -tardy hours of his probation. Then, when his patience was about -exhausted, he was met there, on the selfsame spot, in the same mystic -moonlight and with the same suddenness and mystery, by another maiden, -even more beautiful than the first, and not inclined to be so distant. -She jeered at him for his depression, for his useless and stupid -fidelity to an absent prude, while with many lures and graces she -beckoned him on to join her in the moonlit mazes of the dance. - -At first, remembering his promise, he made some show of resistance, but -very soon he yielded completely to her seductions, declaring his -admiration for this new beauty in ardent terms, and followed her with -extended arms, as she flitted on before him, keeping always just a -little out of reach; followed, heedless where his steps might lead, -reckless of consequences, conscious only of her tender glances and her -beckoning hand, till, borne up and on by the spell of her enchantment, -she had led him far out upon the treacherous surface of the lake, whose -placid ripples seemed magically to sustain both pursuer and pursued. -Then, when midway across the lake, she turned upon him, indignation -blazing in her eyes. With a single impatient gesture she flung off her -disguise and faced him, poised upon a curling wave, in all the airy -grace and winsomeness of his first abandoned love. "False lover!" she -cried, "where is now thy true love, thy sworn love? Forgotten, forsaken, -ere the moon that witnessed thy plighted vows hath run one-quarter of -its little circle. Behold thy doom! So perish the faithless!" Her white -arms waved in mystic incantation, a sudden storm-wind swept the lake, -the billows heaved and swirled beneath him, and a yawning chasm opened -at his feet. With a last passionate appeal he sank to its chilly depths, -while she, laughing in mocking derision, vanished in a shower of silver -spray. - -The peasants declare that to this day, on quiet moonlit nights, one may -still see the white form of the Switez maid wandering, as if in search, -among the shadows of the forest-mantled shores or gliding over the -surface of the lake; while mingling with the whisper of the wind among -the trees and the murmurs of the waves upon the strand, one still hears -the echo of her words: "Forsaken, forsworn. So perish the faithless." - -Such is the story of the Switez maid, as told by Mickiewicz in -inimitable Polish verse, and translated into the symbolic language of -music by the Polish tone-poet, Chopin, in the A flat ballade. - -The first warmly emotional theme of the composition, with its tender, -persuasive cadences, its ever-growing passionateness, symbolizes the -ardent and impulsive hero of the legend; while the bright, piquant -second theme admirably portrays the arch, coquettish heroine, with her -airy witcheries and playful grace. It cannot be mistaken, for it compels -attention as it enters, after a moment of suspense, in radical contrast -to what precedes, with the dainty rhythmic effect, so difficult to -render for most players. Its introduction later in a different key, with -different accompaniment and embellishments, represents the disguise with -which the maid attempts to cloak her identity, but the same melody is -distinctly traceable through all changes. The superb climax near the -close of the work forcibly depicts at once the swift approach and -resistless sweep of the tempest upon the lake and the intensity of the -emotional situation at the moment of the final catastrophe. Here, too, -is heard again the first melody, the hero theme, in a brief return, as -he makes his last, vain appeal, and we even catch the vanishing ripple -of the maiden's mocking laughter. - -The details of the story are not so literally worked out in the music, -or followed with so much realistic fidelity, as would have been the case -with Liszt or Wagner, or with some other more recent writers. Chopin's -art is always rather suggestive than descriptive, dealing directly with -the moods evoked by a given situation or event, rather than with the -physical aspect of the events themselves; with the awe and terror -produced by the tempest, for instance, rather than with the audible or -visible phenomena of the tempest. In this particular case he deals -mainly with the general emotional and mental elements which underlie the -legend and the characteristics of the two personages who figure in it, -instead of treating its successive incidents in detail, or in definite -chronological order. The work is therefore sketched on broad, -fundamental lines, and leaves the setting and filling in in large -measure to the imagination of the hearer. This must always be the ideal -method in an art so ethereal and, in one sense, so vague as that of -music. Still, the connection between the music of this ballade and the -actual scenes and development of the legend is distinct enough to be -easily traced by those familiar with the story, and players or listeners -will find, as always, that the purely musical interest of this and all -the Chopin ballades is materially deepened and increased by the -background of relevant facts--by an acquaintance with the material on -which they are based and which gave to the composer the impulse for -their creation. - - - - - Chopin: Polonaise, A Flat Major, Op. 53 - - -Interesting from a historic as well as a musical standpoint is the -origin of the polonaise. In the year 1573, when the Polish throne became -vacant on the extinction of the royal dynasty of Jagiello, a national -assembly of electors was convened at the then capital, Cracow, to decide -upon a new sovereign. The candidates for the throne were all of royal -blood--Ernest of Austria, Henry of Anjou of the house of Valois, brother -to the ruling king of France, a Swedish prince, and Ivan the Terrible of -Russia. But the real struggle lay between the Austrian and French -princes. The choice fell at last on Henry of Anjou, later himself king -of France as Henry III. - -In the following autumn he ascended the Polish throne, and among the -many gorgeous ceremonials attending his coronation, was one quite -natural and proper under the circumstances--a formal presentation to the -new monarch, of the leading dignitaries and personages of his realm. It -took place in the vast and magnificent throne hall of the royal castle -at Cracow. The nobles and officials, each with his lady on his arm, -defiled before the throne where the monarch was seated, in a stately -procession, and as they passed before the king were presented by the -master of ceremonies. This formal march was accompanied by suitable -music, written expressly for the occasion and performed by the royal -band. Whether this embryonic polonaise is still in existence, no one -knows; probably not; but two distinct ideas were, or should have been, -before the composer's mind in penning the harmonies for this solemn -ceremonial. - -First, of course, to write music eminently suited to the occasion, to -embody, and, if possible, enhance all the pomp and splendor of the -magnificent, august assembly; second, to portray through the music, so -far as might be, something of the national characteristics of this -Polish race which the Frenchman came as a stranger to rule over. The -music in its own way was to serve as a species of introduction. - -Little by little, from this crude but characteristic beginning was -developed through the centuries the peculiar national dance, or, more -strictly speaking, march of the Poles; and the music performed during -its progress came to have among dance forms the same title. It partook -of the various stages of evolution to which all music was subject at -different epochs, and within the last hundred years has been modified to -keep pace with the general development of musical resources. But however -it may vary in minor details of form and treatment, every polonaise -which is true to itself must express the original ideas upon which the -form was primarily based--on the one hand a splendid ceremonial, on the -other Polish national life. - -In the present day the polonaise is a universally accepted musical form, -common property with the composers of all nations. But Chopin, Polish by -birth, education, and sympathies, found it strictly within his scope, -and has easily surpassed all other writers in number, quality, and -characteristic force as a polonaise writer. - -Of his many works in this vein, the Op. 53, in A flat, is in my opinion -decidedly the best, both as regards virile power and direct, forceful -expression of the original polonaise idea. It begins with a wild, -impetuous introduction, brief but stirring, a sort of fanfare of drums -and trumpets, intended to call the people to order and to establish at -the outset the tonality of the mood, so to speak. Then follows the -swinging, pompous measure of the polonaise proper, readily suggesting by -its splendid martial harmonies the proud military bearing, the gorgeous -armor, and the stately tread of those steel-clad feudal heroes, as they -defiled before the throne. - -In place of the trio, usually of a more quiet nature in works of this -kind, Chopin has introduced a very singular passage, the most strikingly -original portion of the whole composition--a long-sustained, stupendous -octave climax of the left hand, consisting of a little rhythmic figure -of four notes, constantly reiterated with growing power, against a sort -of trumpet obligato in brilliant measured chords for the right. The -movement vividly suggests the tramp of cavalry. The composer had in mind -the Polish light-horse of medieval fame, a very aristocratic body of -picked horsemen, composed of the flower of Polish chivalry and -disciplined in constant warfare with the Turks. A number of the -brilliant officers of this division were necessarily present at the -coronation ceremony when the polonaise form originated, and these with -their exploits Chopin endeavors to introduce by means of this singular -passage. - -There is a curious anecdote afloat concerning the effect of this -movement on the composer himself. On one occasion, when playing the -nearly completed work, his nervous organism enfeebled by illness and his -imagination intensely excited by the fever-glow of composition, he was -seized by a peculiar hallucination. He fancied that a band of the -knights he had been attempting to portray, came riding in from the gloom -of the outer night, in through the opening walls of his apartment, -arrayed in their antique war panoply, horse and rider just as they might -have arisen from their century-old graves in Poland. He was so overcome -by this self-invoked apparition that he actually fled from the room, and -it was some days before he could be induced to re-enter it or resume -work on the mighty polonaise. - -Immediately following the great octave climax referred to is a subdued, -vague, fearsome little passage in light running figures, totally foreign -in movement, mood, and even key to the remainder of the work, for which -we would be at a loss to account if unacquainted with the circumstances -narrated, but which, with the light just thrown upon it, is readily -understood. The author seems to have lost for the time the thread of the -composition, to have drifted far from its martial mood and swinging -rhythm, but after a period of groping indecision, through which we hear -the trepidation and reluctant fascination with which he again approaches -this monster of his own creation, with a sudden boldness of attack he -regains the clew, resumes with energy the march movement, and the work -sweeps to its close with even more than its original power and splendor. - - - - - Chopin: Impromptu in A Flat, Op. 29 - - -Light, graceful, dainty, capricious, full of playful tenderness and -delicate fancy is this little work, written for and presented as a -wedding gift to one of his favorite pupils, La Comtesse de Lobau, to -whom it is dedicated. The first movement embodies the joyous, hopeful, -congratulatory spirit of the occasion, expressed with all that refined -elegance and polished perfection of style of which Chopin was so -preeminently the master, both in music and language. It is the most -unqualifiedly optimistic strain from his pen with which I am acquainted. - -The trio, in F minor, brings a touch of half-veiled sadness and -irrepressible regret, as if called forth by the thought that their art -work together is now to end. She has been for years one of his most -talented, diligent, and interesting students. She is, like himself, a -Polish exile in a foreign land, and their community of sympathies and -sorrows, combined with her charming personality and congenial -temperament, have tended to merge the relations of teacher and pupil -into the closer bonds of a life-long friendship. He is naturally -reluctant to lose her, but this mood of depression is soon subordinated -to the thought that she has found the philosopher's stone, the fabled -blue flower of the German poets, the subtile, yet supreme panacea for -all human ills--love. This idea is expressed in the last half of the -trio as only Chopin could express it; and the work ends with a -repetition of the first strain, brightly, happily, with a certain -restful completeness of fulfilled desire in the reiterated closing -chords. - - - - - Chopin: Fantasie Impromptu, Op. 66 - - -Among other manuscripts found on Chopin's writing-table after his death -was the original of this composition, complete in every detail, but -written across the back, in his own trembling hand, were the words, "To -be destroyed when I am gone." - -It is difficult to account for this injunction, except upon the theory -that he feared that both the form and the content of the work were too -original, too subtle and complex, and too wholly unfamiliar to the -musical world of his day, to be readily comprehended, and that it would -either suffer from incorrect rendition or be condemned and ignored. So -he preferred a quick death by fire for this child of his sad later days, -to a slow death by mutilation or cruel neglect. - -Fortunately the request was disregarded by his friends. The work was -published and has become one of his most beloved, as it is one of his -most faultlessly beautiful compositions. The peculiarity of form -referred to is familiar to all who have attempted the study of this -impromptu. The whole first movement, consisting of a continuous rapid -figure of four notes in the right hand against three in the left, is one -of the most unusual and difficult musical problems to solve -satisfactorily, and only to be mastered by long and special practice--a -case, as I have often said, where it is well to remember the biblical -injunction, "let not thy right hand know what thy left hand doeth." But -when smoothly played, it produces just that sinuous, interwoven, flowing -effect which the composer desired, and which could not have been -obtained, in such perfection, in any other way. - -The content of this composition, like that of many of Chopin's smaller -works, is purely emotional, like a strictly lyric poem, by his literary -counterpart Tennyson, for instance; it is a wholly subjective expression -of a mental state, an emotional condition, not of any scene or any -action. It touches the minor key and sounds the plaintive harmonies to -which his heart-strings were tuned and vibrating at the time when it was -written. It voices a soft summer twilight mood, half sad, half tender, -full of vague regrets, of indefinite longings and aspirations, of -fluttering hope, never destined to be realized, and bright fleeting -memories that rise and pass, dimmed by intervening clouds of sorrow and -disappointment, like the shifting forms and hues of a kaleidoscope seen -through a misty glass, or the luminous phantoms of dead joys and shadowy -suggestions of the "might have been," against the gray background of a -sad present and an uncertain, promiseless future. It is a strange, -delicately complex mood, a mood of life's sunset hour, colored by the -pathetic glories of the dying day, and the depressing, yet tranquilizing -shadows of the coming night--a mood well-nigh impossible to express, but -perfectly embodied in the music. - -The following simple little verses, in which, as will be seen, has been -made a somewhat free use of the suggestive symbolism of nature, may -serve to illustrate, though by no means to the writer's satisfaction, -his conception of the artistic significance of this composition: - - THE FANTASIE IMPROMPTU. - - The sigh of June through the swaying trees, - The scent of the rose, new blown, on the breeze, - The sound of waves on a distant strand, - The shadows falling on sea and land; - All these are found - In this stream of sound, - This murmuring, mystical, minor strain. - - And stars that glimmer in misty skies, - Like tears that shimmer in sorrowing eyes, - And the throb of a heart that beats in tune - With tender regrets of a happier June, - When life was new - And love was true, - And the soul was a stranger to sorrow and pain. - - - - - Chopin: Tarantelle, A Flat, Op. 43 - - -Brilliant, effective, and not excessively difficult though it be, this -admirably constructed and thoroughly characteristic _tarantelle_ in A -flat is but little played; perhaps because it appeals less to the love -of the "true Chopinism of Chopin" than most of his compositions, as -being out of the recognized Chopin vein, deficient in the special -melodic and emotional elements usually distinguishing his works. -Nevertheless, considered objectively as a tarantelle, from the -standpoint, not of Chopinism, but of what the true tarantelle should be, -it is one of the best ever written,--hence one of his masterpieces,--and -furnishes another proof of the almost infinite versatility of his -creative power, both in style and in mood. - -The origin of the tarantelle, as a musical form, is interesting and must -be considered in judging the real merit of this or any similar work. The -name is derived from that of the tarantula, that venomous denizen of -southern climes, of the spider species, whose bite is usually fatal. -There is a generally prevalent belief among the peasants of both Spain -and Italy, a belief founded, no doubt, upon centuries of experience, -that there is but one reliable cure for this poison, and one which -Nature herself prescribes and imperatively demands--that of violent and -protracted bodily exercise, and the consequent excessively profuse -perspiration, enabling the system to throw off the poison through the -pores. The idea has the same pathological base as the ancient Arabic -cure for hydrophobia, recently revived with great success in this day of -resurrection of buried wisdom--an extremely hot and long-continued steam -bath. - -It is claimed that the victim of the tarantula is seized by a delirious -desire, an uncontrollable madness for dancing, which, if fully -gratified, in fact encouraged and stimulated to the utmost, may save his -life by means of the prosaic but practical process above suggested. So -his friends assemble in haste, form a circle on the village green or -plaza, strike up the wildest, most furiously rapid and exciting music -possible, on any instrument that may be at hand, preferably the mandolin -and tambourine, as the most rhythmic and inspiring, and take turns -dancing with him, until each is exhausted and gives place to the next, -and until the victim recovers or dies of fatigue. The faster the tempo, -the more intoxicating the music, the better the purpose will be served, -and the greater the hope of a successful cure. - -From this crude and primitive germ the modern musical art form, known -and used all over the world, has gradually developed, retaining, of -course, as must every characteristic dance form, the spirit and -fundamental element of the situation and circumstances which gave it -birth. - -The true tarantelle may be either in a major or minor key, the latter -being most common; but it must be wild, stirring, exceedingly rapid, -with a strong rhythmic swing and a certain dash and go, irresistibly -suggesting the fever of the dance at its most delirious ecstasy. It is -always written in six-eight time, which is somewhat singular, as it has -none of the usual rhythmic peculiarities of that measure, but invariably -produces the impression of twelve-eight, or, perhaps still more -strongly, that of four-four with the beats divided into triplets. In -fact, this is generally the best method of counting it for the pupil. It -should contain no harmonic or technical complexities to distract the -attention of either player or listener from the regular rhythmic swing -and form and movement of the dance; and the melodic trio, occasionally -introduced by some composers, is always an incongruous artistic -absurdity, wholly out of place. - -Though the musical form is common property of all composers in all -lands, the actual dance, as such, is specially identified with southern -Spain and Italy, and is rarely used elsewhere. To the tourist one of the -most unique and vividly interesting episodes of his sojourn in these -localities is the performance of the tarantelle by one of the trained -dancing girls, which may be witnessed almost any evening, given with all -the dash and verve of the southern temperament, a perfect embodiment of -grace and fire and dance frenzy. - -This tarantelle by Chopin possesses all the essential characteristics in -a high degree, with not a single lapse or irrelevant digression in mood, -in form, even in the details of accompaniment. It may be taken as a -model of the true tarantelle, spirited, well sustained throughout, and -eminently playable. - - - - - Chopin: Berceuse, Op. 57 - - -The Chopin Berceuse (which is the French word for cradle-song) is a most -unique as well as most ideally beautiful composition, standing alone in -all piano literature, as regards its form and harmonic structure, the -only one of its species. It is beyond all question or comparison, the -finest cradle-song ever written for the piano, an exceptionally perfect -example of that rare blending of spontaneous genius and mechanical -ingenuity, for which Chopin was so preeminent, resulting in a work -matchless in its originality, its suggestive realism, its delicacy of -finish, and its poetic content. An organ point on D flat, which is its -only bass note, sustained throughout the entire composition, and a -couplet of the simplest chords, the tonic and dominant seventh, -alternating back and forth in a swinging, rocking motion, form the -accompaniment, continued practically without change, from first measure -to last, portraying naturally, easily, yet unmistakably, the soothing -monotony of the rockaby movement. The left hand may be said to rock the -cradle throughout the whole composition, while in the soft, continually -intertwining melody in the right hand, like an endless, infolding circle -of maternal love, we find the lullaby song of the mother, sung as she -sits there in the hush of the twilight, rocking her little one to sleep. - -Around and over this melody Chopin has flung, with his own inimitable -delicacy, a silver lace-work of embellishment, falling soft and light as -the moonlight spray from fountains in fairyland, as through the -idealizing summer haze, half veiling a distant landscape, we seem to -catch dim glimpses of the dream-pictures, the fleeting fancies, the -changing phantasmagoria of prophetic visions, that drift through the -brain of the mother as she sits there in the gathering dusk, waiting for -the little eyes to be tightly closed, and wondering vaguely to herself -on what scenes they will open in the far future years. - -Slower and gentler grows the motion of the cradle, softer and lower the -lullaby song, further and further the dream pictures drift into the -shadows, until at last the wings of slumber are folded about the little -one. Silence reigns. The mother's daily task of loving ministry is ended -and she, too, may rest. The two lingering closing chords, soft and slow, -suggest the moment when she rises from the cradle and spreads her hands -in silent benediction over the sleeping child. - -Infinite tenderness and delicacy are needed for the interpretation of -this composition; a tone like violet velvet, and a light, fluent finger -technic, to which its really extreme difficulties seem like dainty play. - - - - - Chopin: Scherzo in B Flat Minor, Op. 31 - - -A very familiar, yet always fresh and intensely interesting composition -is this scherzo. The name is an Italian word signifying a jest, and we -find in musical nomenclature a number of derivatives from it, as -_scherzino_ (little jest) and _scherzando_ (jestingly, playfully). The -term is used by most composers to designate compositions that are -bright, playful, humorous in character. Nearly all the leading composers -have written more or less in this vein. Mendelssohn particularly -excelled in it, and even serious old Beethoven became quite jocose at -times in the scherzo movements of his symphonies; though it always -reminds one of the sportive dancing of an elephant. - -Chopin applied the name to four of his greatest, most intense and -impassioned works, seemingly without the smallest reason or relevancy. -Why, no one can even surmise, unless it may have been in a mood of -sardonic perversity, of sarcastic bitterness, purposely to mislead the -public as to the real artistic intention and significance of the music, -and see if they would have sufficient perception to discover it for -themselves. It is a sad commentary on the insight of many of our -so-called musicians, that they have not done so even to this day, and -persist in playing the Chopin scherzi jestingly and as trivially as -possible, which may be the subtle, covert jest which Chopin intended. -Who knows? In reality these four works, especially the first three of -them, are among his greatest and grandest. They are broad, heroic, -seriously and profoundly emotional productions, marking the high-water -line of his creative power; full of the strength and virile energy which -those acquainted only with his nocturnes and waltzes are inclined to -deny him altogether, but in which he far exceeds all other composers, -past or present, with the possible exception of Beethoven and Wagner. -Jests only in name, or, if in fact, then in the sense of bitterest -satire, aimed at the world and at life, jests written in the heart's -blood of the composer; written when Poland, his beloved native land, lay -in her death agony, when three great European powers had combined to -write the word _finis_ in Polish blood and tears, across the last page -of her history. What wonder that the music throbs with intense but -conflicting emotions--fiery indignation, fierce defiance, bitter scorn, -and, in the next breath, pitiful tenderness for the wronged and the -suffering, heart-breaking sorrow for the unavailing heroism and wasted -lives of his countrymen! - -All these moods will be found in swift and sharply contrasting -succession in all the four scherzi, but notably in the one in B flat -minor, which I regard as the best of the four. The seeming incongruity -between its name and its musical content, its ostensible and its real -significance, always recalls to me famous lines: - - "The lip that's first to wing the jest - Is first to breathe the secret sigh; - The laugh that rings with keenest zest - But chokes the flood-gates of the eye." - - - - - Chopin: Prelude (D Flat Major), Op. 28, No. 15 - - -A unique position in pianoforte literature is occupied by these -Preludes, Op. 28. They derive their name rather from their form than -from their musical import. Like the usual preludes to songs, or more -extended musical works, they are short, fragmentary tone sketches rather -than complete pictures; each consisting, as a rule, of a single, simple -movement, and embodying but a single concrete idea, and seeming to imply -by its brevity and its suggestive rather than fully descriptive -character, that a more elaborately developed composition is to follow, -to which this has been but an introduction and in which the idea, here -merely outlined, will receive more exhaustive treatment. In reality, -however, each of these preludes is complete in itself; an exquisite -musical vignette containing, like some dainty vial of hand-cut Venetian -glass, the distilled essence of dead flowers of memory and experience -from Chopin's past; particularly of scenes, episodes, and emotional -impressions of his romantic life on the island of Majorca. Just as a -painter might have sketched, with hasty but truthfully graphic pencil, -on the pages of his portfolio, the fleeting impressions produced upon -his senses and imagination by this novel, picturesque environment, so -the composer has preserved in these bits of offhand but vivid tone -painting, glimpses into his daily life, his moods and experiences during -that winter of 1838-39. - -Banished by his physicians to this Mediterranean isle, in the hope of -benefit to his fast failing health, and refused shelter in any hotel or -private residence, on account of the there prevalent belief that -consumption was contagious, Chopin and the little party of devoted -friends who accompanied him (most notable among whom was the famous -French novelist, George Sand) were forced to improvise a temporary abode -in the semi-habitable wing of an old ruined convent, which had been -abandoned by the monks. It was picturesquely situated on a rocky -promontory, commanding a view, on the one side, of the open sea, dotted -with the countless white sails of Mediterranean commerce; on the other, -of the sheltered bay, the village beyond, and the lofty volcanic -mountains in the background. Here they spent the winter, and here nearly -all of the preludes, with many others of Chopin's most poetic smaller -works, originated--artistic crystallizations of passing impressions and -experiences, concerning which and the life in which they originated, -George Sand writes: "While staying here he composed some short but very -beautiful pieces which he modestly entitled preludes. They were real -masterpieces. Some of them create such vivid impressions that the shades -of the dead monks seem to rise and pass before the hearer in solemn and -gloomy funeral pomp. Others are full of charm and melancholy, glowing -with the sparkling fire of enthusiasm, breathing with the hope of -restored health. The laughter of the children at play, the distant -strains of the guitar, the twitter of birds on the damp branches, would -call forth from his soul melodies of indescribable sweetness and grace. -But many also are so full of gloom and sadness that, in spite of the -pleasure they afford, the listener is filled with pain. Some of his -later tone-poems bring before us a sparkling crystal stream reflecting -the sunbeams. Chopin's quieter compositions remind us of the song of the -lark as it lightly soars into the ether, or the gentle gliding of the -swan over the smooth mirror of the waters; they seem filled with the -holy calm of nature. When Chopin was in a despondent mood, the piercing -cry of the hungry eagle among the crags of Majorca, the mournful wailing -of the storm, and the stern immovability of the snow-clad heights, would -awaken gloomy fancies in his soul. Then again, the perfume of the orange -blossoms, the vine bending to the earth beneath its rich burden, the -peasant singing his Moorish songs in the fields, would fill him with -delight." - -The Prelude in D flat, No. 15, which I select as one of the most -beautiful and characteristic of these sketches, embodies a strange day -dream of the composer in which, as he says, "vision and reality were -indistinguishably blended." - -One bright, late autumn morning the little party of friends had taken -advantage of the weather, and of the fact that Chopin seemed in -unusually good health and spirits, to make a long-talked-of excursion to -the neighboring village, promising to return before sunset. During their -absence a sudden tropical tempest of terrific severity swept the island. -The wind blew a hurricane, the rain descended in floods, the streams -rose, bridges and roadways were destroyed, and it was only with extreme -difficulty and considerable danger that they succeeded in reaching the -convent about midnight, having spent six hours in traversing the last -mile and a half of the distance. They found Chopin in a state bordering -on delirium. The physical effect of the storm on his shattered nerves, -combined with his own depression and his keen anxiety for them, had -combined to work his sensitive, and at that time morbid, temperament up -to a state of feverish excitement, in which the normal barriers between -perception and hallucination had well-nigh vanished. He told them -afterward that he had been a prey to a gruesome vision of which this -prelude is the musical portrayal. - -He fancied that he lay dead at the bottom of the sea; that near him sat -a beautiful siren singing in exquisitely sweet and tender strains, a -song of his own life and love and sorrow. But though her voice was -soothing in its dreamy pathos, and though he felt oppressed by a -crushing languor and fatigue and longed for rest, he could not lose -consciousness, because tormented by the regular, relentlessly monotonous -fall of great drops upon his heart. As the drops continued increasing -steadily in weight and in importunate demand upon his attention, as if -burdened with some great and sad significance which he must recognize, -he became aware that they were the tears of his friends on earth whom he -had loved and lost. With this knowledge, vivid memory and poignant pain -awoke together, and his anguish grew to an overpowering climax of -intensity. Then, nature's limit being reached, the force of his tempest -of grief finally exhausted itself, and he sank gradually into a state of -dull, despairing lethargy, and at last into welcome unconsciousness, the -last sound in his ears being the soothing strains of the siren, and his -last sensation the now faint and feeble, but still regular falling of -his friends' tears upon his heart. - -This composition should be conceived and executed so as to render, to -the full, its intensely emotional character. The first theme in D flat -major, with its sweetly languorous tone, should be given quite slowly, -with pressure touch, producing a penetrating, but not loud, singing -quality of tone, while the reiterated A flat in the accompaniment, -which, throughout the whole work suggests the falling drops, must be at -first vaguely hinted rather than distinctly struck. The middle part in -chords should be commenced very softly with a whispering, mysterious -tone, affecting the hearer like the first shadow of an approaching -thunder cloud, or the presentiment of coming woe. Then the power should -steadily increase--gradually, relentlessly, like the stealthy, -irresistible rising of the dark cold tide about some chained victim in -an ocean cave, where the light of day has never penetrated; mounting -steadily--not rapidly--to the overwhelming climax of the reiterated -octave B in the right hand. - -In the repetition of this passage the same effect should be produced, -with the climax still more intensified. Then let the power as gradually -decrease, till at the return of the siren's song it has sunk into -pianissimo and the closing measure should fade away into silence, like -the echo of dream bells. - -I have dwelt at some length upon this prelude because it is the best -known of the set; the most complete and, generally speaking, the most -effective; and because, in connection with the suggestive quotation from -George Sand, it will serve as a helpful illustration to the student in -arriving at an intelligent comprehension of the others. But a few words -in further elucidation of some of them may be in place. - -The first, in somber, sonorous chords, expresses Chopin's initial -impressions of the stately, but half-ruined monastery in which he and -his little party had found refuge, and the solemn thoughts called up by -its decaying grandeur, its silent loneliness, its vast, gloomy, -memory-haunted halls and cloisters. - -The third represents an evening scene, with the setting sun kindling to -crimson and gold the spires and picturesque whitewashed cottages of the -village of Majorca, a mile away across the little bay, while the gentle -breeze, like the sigh of departing day, brings the sound of silvery -bells from the little village church ringing the vesper chimes. - -The fifth and sixth embody the same mood, in an almost identically -similar setting. They may be effectively combined into one picture of a -dark, depressing, late autumnal day; a day of gray skies and leaden sea; -of heavy, windless calm, the calm of exhaustion and utter weariness, -with the low, sad rain dripping monotonously upon the roof like the -tears of the gods for a dying world. In one, the melody expressing the -element of human sorrow is in the soprano, plaintively, touchingly, -sweetly pathetic. In the other, it is placed in the lower register of -Chopin's favorite orchestral instrument, the 'cello, which it -reproduces, throbbing with a more passionate intensity, a more poignant -pain. But in general character and treatment the two belong together. - -No. 8 tells of the gay carol of the birds at dawn, floating in at the -open windows of Chopin's chamber. No. 17 is a rustic dance of the -Majorcan peasants. No. 24, the last, is a graphic description of a -tropical storm with the flash of lightning and the ominous roll of the -thunder literally portrayed. - -Space does not permit of a detailed analysis of all the numbers, but -each has its special character and suggestive import, and is a picture -of some episode or mood during that winter's sojourn on Majorca. - - - - - Chopin: Waltz, A Flat, Op. 42 - - -Every dance, the waltz included, is based upon and adapted to some -particular dance movement. All its effects, whether of melody, harmony, -rhythm, or embellishment, are carefully calculated by the composer to -meet the requirements of this special movement, to conform to and -express its general character and be governed by its usual rate of -speed. Each of these dance movements embodies in itself some peculiar -quality or characteristic, such as stately grace in the minuet, martial -pomp in the polonaise, impetuous vivacity in the galop, which the music -must indicate and supplement. The Chopin waltzes are no exception to -this rule. They are distinctly and preeminently waltzes; and though of -course not for actual dance purposes, they are intended as idealized -tone-pictures of the waltz, and of ball-room scenes and experiences. - -The one in question, Op. 42 in A flat, is planned upon a broader scale, -contains more variety, and taxes more thoroughly the resources of the -accomplished pianist than any other work of Chopin in this vein. Its -tender, floating melodies, bright, delicate passage work, and swinging, -swaying rhythms are replete with all that eloquent, gliding grace, that -arch coquetry, that passionate warmth of mood, which we so invariably -associate with the festive scenes, - - "Where youth and pleasure meet - To chase the glowing hours with flying feet." - -Lights sparkle, delicate draperies are afloat, like perfumed clouds, -upon the languid air, bright eyes scintillate with mirth or soften with -emotion, and - - "All goes merry as a marriage bell." - -And yet throughout all there runs a half-hidden undertone that tells of -deeper, sterner thought and far intenser feeling; that tells of dark -forebodings, of distant alarms, of sudden trumpet calls; so that the -work in its entirety cannot but seem to us the counterpart in music of -that familiar, almost hackneyed, but immortal word-picture of Byron, -describing the great ball on the eve of the battle of Waterloo, to whose -thunderous music the fate of nations was reversed, like the steps of the -dancers in a ball-room, and France changed monarchs as a lady shifts her -partners. - -The somber trio strain, about the middle of the composition, suggests to -us "Brunswick's fated chieftain," who sat apart and watched the dancers -and listened to the revelry with "Death's prophetic ear." Later, where -the rhythmic pulsation of the waltz is abruptly and violently -interrupted in the midst of its flowing cadences, by a strong emphasized -G natural F, repeated twice by both hands in unison, we are forcibly -reminded of the line-- - - "But hush! hark! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell!" - -After a moment of consternation and suspense, the waltz movement -proceeds, appearing almost flippant by contrast, and seeming to say, -like the verse which follows, - - "On with the dance, let joy be unconfined!" - -Lastly, the breathless, impetuous finale indicates the "hurrying to and -fro," the "mounting in hot haste," and "marshalling in arms," with which -the dance broke up at midnight, as cavaliers rushed from the ball-room -to the battlefield. Both Chopin, the greatest musician of Poland, and -Mickiewicz, her greatest poet, were powerfully impressed by the -personality and poetry of Lord Byron, and there is no doubt that our -composer had the stanzas of the contemporaneous English writer in mind -in the creation of this work. - -The first duty of the performer in rendering this composition should be -to suggest irresistibly to the listeners both the mood and movement of -the waltz, and to force them to feel, as far as may be, the elastic -swing of the rhythm and the warm, voluptuous mood of the music. The tone -quality employed should constantly change to suit the contrasting colors -of the different strains; now warmly lyric, now sparkling and vibrant, -at times deeply somber, and again strikingly dramatic and declamatory. - -As to tempo, I would caution the player against an extreme rate of -speed. Remember that the usual waltz step is, approximately at least, -our guide in choosing the proper movement. I am aware that many -pianists, of the greatest skill and reputation, are guilty of the -cardinal error of playing one of these beautiful poetic little -compositions of Chopin's at _prestissimo_ tempo, so as to display their -phenomenal finger dexterity at the expense of all musical and artistic -truth; so fast, indeed, that even if the notes were all struck with -accuracy, which is by no means always the case, its graceful rhythmic -swing and all its melodic and harmonic effects are utterly lost, leaving -nothing but an incoherent, formless, purposeless whirlwind of tone, as -dry and unlovely as the eddies of dust in a September gale, suggesting -neither the mood nor movement of a waltz. - - - - - Chopin's Nocturnes - - -In derivation and general significance the term nocturne coincides with -our English word nocturnal. It is music appertaining to the night, a -night piece, suited to and expressing its usually quiet, dreamful, -pensive mood, and frequently portraying some nocturnal scene or episode. -The name nocturne was originally used as synonymous with that of -serenade, and they were virtually identical in character. But in later -times it has come to have a much broader application, and to-day, though -every serenade is of course a nocturne, all nocturnes are by no means -serenades. - -The serenade is a real or imaginary song of love, and presupposes a fair -listener at a lattice window and a lover singing beneath the stars, to -the accompaniment of a harp, mandolin, or guitar. The nocturne may -legitimately embody any phase of human emotion or experience, or any -aspect of inanimate nature, which can rationally be conceived of as -appropriately emanating from or environed by nocturnal conditions. - -It must not be supposed that this vein of composition was Chopin's only -or even his most important field of activity. To judge him exclusively -by his nocturnes and waltzes is precisely like judging Shakespeare -solely by his sonnets. But it was a vein in which, owing to his -peculiarly poetic temperament and fertile imagination, he far excelled -all other writers, no less in the quality than in the number and variety -of his creations. - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne in E Flat, Op. 9, No. 2 - - -This perhaps is the easiest and certainly the best known of Chopin's -nocturnes. Scarcely a student but has played it at one time or another. -In fact, it has been worn well-nigh to shreds; yet still retains its -simple, tender charm, if approached in the proper spirit. It is replete -with melodic beauty and warm harmonic coloring, and is an excellent -study in tone-production and shading, as well as a model of symmetrical -form. It was one of his early works, and the glow of first youth still -lingers about it, in spite of its over-familiarity and much abuse. As a -teaching-piece it sometimes surprises the weary teacher with a waft of -unexpected freshness, like the fleeting odor from an old and much-used -school-book in which violets have been pressed. - -It is a pure lyric, a love-song without words, but to which a dreamily -tender poetic text can easily be imagined and supplied; and the very -evident suggestion of the harp or guitar in its accompanying chords -facilitates the effort and brightens the poetic effect. So far as I can -learn, it has no definite local background, either in fact or tradition; -no special place or persons to which it refers. It is an abstract idea -treated subjectively, the embodied emotional reflex of imaginary -conditions. The scene is a garden--any garden, so it be beautiful, rich -with the vivid luxuriance of the South, fragrant with the breath of -sleeping flowers, with the South summer-night hanging fondly over it, -and the summer stars glittering above. The melody is the song of the -ideal troubadour, pouring out his heart to the night and his listening -lady, while the accompanying chords are lightly swept from vibrant -strings by the practised fingers of the minstrel. The cadenza at the -close is intended as a mere delicate ripple of liquid brilliancy, as if -the moon, suddenly breaking through a veil of evening mist, had flooded -the scene with a rain of silvery radiance. - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 27, No. 2 - - -This nocturne, though one of Chopin's most intrinsically beautiful -compositions for the piano, is even more frequently heard upon the -violin. It has been, for decades, a favorite lyric number with all the -leading violinists of the world, and adapts itself admirably to the -resources and peculiar character of this instrument. - -For this there is an excellent reason, far other than mere chance. On a -certain evening in the early thirties were assembled in an elegant -Parisian salon a company of the musical and literary _elite_ of the -French capital, to meet several foreign celebrities and enjoy one of -those rare opportunities for intellectual and artistic converse and -companionship, of which we read with envious longing, but which are -practically unknown in our busy, prosaic age. - -There were present Chopin, Liszt, Mendelssohn, the latter then in Paris -on a brief visit, besides many local musicians of note, including some -of the professors of the Conservatoire, also George Sand, Heinrich -Heine, Alfred De Musset, with some lesser literary lights, and a -brilliant gathering of social leaders. It was an evening long to be -remembered for the sparkling wit and repartee, flashed back and forth -from these brilliant intellects, like the rays of light from the -glittering jewels of the ladies, for the occasional bursts of glowing -eloquence and poetic thought from the profounder minds, and especially -for the music, which was plentiful and of the best. - -It may have been on this very occasion that Rossini made his famous, but -most unfriendly, hit at the expense of Liszt's marvelous powers of -improvisation, which he, Rossini, was inclined seemingly to doubt. Liszt -was being pressed to play and to improvise, and Rossini called out -across the room: "Yes, my friend, do improvise that beautiful thing that -you improvised at Madam --'s last Friday, and at Lord So and So's the -week before." - -In the course of the evening a local violinist of prominence played for -the company a new composition of his own, a sweet, long-sustained -cantilena, with a more involved second movement in double stopping. When -he had finished and the applause had subsided, one of the ladies was -heard to remark, "What a pity that the piano is incapable of these -effects! It is brilliant, dramatic, resourceful, what you will; but only -the violin can stir the heart in that way." - -Chopin rose, bowing with one of his equivocal smiles, half-sad, -half-playfully mocking, stepped to the piano and improvised this -nocturne, a perfect reproduction of all the best violin effects, -cantilena and all, including the double-stopping in the second theme, -with a certain warmth and poetry added, which were all his own. Of -course, it was afterward finished and perfected in detail, but in -substance it was the same as the D flat nocturne which we all know so -well and which the violinists, though most of them unconscious of the -reason, have singled out as specially adapted to their instrument. - -The player should keep the violin and its effects in mind in rendering -it, the lingering, songful, string quality of tone in the melody, the -smooth legato, the leisurely, well-rounded embellishments; and the tempo -should never be hurried. It may be well to say, in this connection, that -in these Chopin nocturnes, and in all other lyric compositions, the -embellishments, grace-notes, and the like should be made to conform to -the general mood and character of the rest of the music. Symmetry and -fitting proportions are among the primal laws of all art. - -In a Liszt rhapsody, a cadenza should flash like a rocket, but in a -Chopin nocturne it should glide with easy, undulating grace, should -float like a wind-blown ribbon, a fallen rose-leaf. Too often we hear -the ornamental passages in a lyric played as if they were wholly -irrelevant matter, dropped in there by accident out of some other -entirely different compositions,--a bit of vain, noisy display in the -midst of a poetic dream, breaking instead of enhancing its charm, -utterly incongruous. Harmonize the embellishments with the subject! Fit -the trimming to the fabric! - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 32, No. 1 - - -Although technically easy and thoroughly musical, this little work is -strangely enough but little played. It is technically no harder than the -Op. 9 referred to, though it requires more intensity and stronger -contrasts in its treatment. - -It is singular that a comparatively simple composition, of such -intrinsic merit, by one of the great composers, comprising, as it does, -so many attractive elements in such small compass, should be so little -used. Possibly, to those not acquainted with its subject, the closing -chords, with their sharp, almost painful contrast, and utter -dissimilarity to the preceding movement, have seemed incongruous and -unintelligible; but, when the theme and purpose of the whole are -understood, it is seen in what a masterly manner, and with what simple -material, Chopin has produced the most striking dramatic results. - -The subject of this nocturne is the same as that of Robert Browning's -later poem, "In a Gondola"; an episode to be found in the annals of -Venice, when, at the height of her pride and power, she was nominally a -republic, but from the large legislative body elected exclusively from -among the nobility, an inner, higher circle of forty was chosen, and -they, in turn, selected from their number, by secret ballot, the -mysterious, potent Council of Ten, gruesomely famous in history, who -wielded the real power of the State, often for the darkest personal -ends, the Doge being little more than a figure-head. Highest and most -dreaded of all was the Council of Three, chosen from their own number by -the Ten, by an ingenious system of secret ballot so perfect that only -those selected knew on whom the choice had fallen, and they did not know -each other's identity. They met at night, in a secret chamber, in which -the three tables and three chairs, and even the blocks of marble in the -pavement of the floor were symbolically triangular. They entered at the -fixed hour, by three separate doors, disguised in black masks and long -black cloaks, conferred in whispers only, and their decrees, like those -of the Greek Fates, were inexorable and inevitable. Veiled and shielded -by mystery, they worked their awful will, from which there was no escape -and no appeal. - -The story runs that once a beautiful and high-spirited heiress, the -daughter of a former Doge, and the special ward of the Council of Three, -as the disposal of her hand and fortune was an important State matter, -had the courage to brave their prohibition and secretly to welcome the -suit and return the love of a young, gallant, but fortuneless knight, -who risked his life to obtain their brief, stolen interviews, or to -breathe his love in subdued but heart-stirring melody beneath her -window. One night, when a great ball at the palace seemed to afford an -opportunity for her to escape unnoticed, he came disguised as a -gondolier, and for a few sweet moments they were alone together upon the -moonlit water. - -The first theme of this nocturne suggests the scene in the gondola, with -its softly swaying motion as it feels the faint swell of the great sea's -distant heart-throb, while the melodic phrases embody the tender mood of -the lovers as if in a sweet, low song. Browning expresses the mood in -his opening lines: - - "I send my heart up to thee, all my heart, - In this my singing; - For the stars help me and the sea bears part; - The very night is clinging - Closer to Venice's streets to leave one space - Above me, whence thy face - May light my joyous heart to thee, its dwelling-place." - -The second theme is somewhat more intense, though still subdued. It -tells of greater passion and also of deeper sadness, with an occasional -passing thrill of suppressed terror. Browning sings it: - - "O which were best, to roam or rest? - The land's lap or the water's breast? - To sleep on yellow millet sheaves, - Or swim in lucid shadows, just - Eluding water-lily leaves. - An inch from Death's black fingers, thrust - To lock you, whom release he must; - Which life were best on summer eves?" - -To which the lady answers: - - "Dip your arm o'er the boat-side, elbow deep, - As I do; thus; were death so unlike sleep, - Caught this way? Death's to fear from flame or steel, - Or poison, doubtless; but from water--feel!" - -The last measures of the lyric melody, full of lingering sweetness, are -like the parting kiss. Then suddenly, brutally, with the G major chord -against the crashing F's in the bass, the voice of fate breaks the -tender spell. Death enters with swift, heart-crushing tread, and his icy -hand snatches his victim from the very arms of love; and the closing -chords, brief, but impressive, voice the shock, the cry of anguish, and -the swift sinking into black despair, which were the lady's more bitter -share in the tragedy. For too soon the time had passed. Their brief -happiness had been saddened and softened to deeper, graver tenderness by -the knowledge of impending danger, by the ever-recurrent cloud like the -passing thought that Browning voices in the line: - - "What if the Three should catch at last thy serenader?" - -They must return or be detected. Reluctantly he guides the boat back to -the landing, and just in the moment of their farewell he is surprised, -overpowered, and stabbed to death by waiting assassins, dying in her -arms. - -The closing of the nocturne as just described is, to my thinking, more -dramatic, more realistic, and far stronger than the last lines of -Browning's poem: - - "It was ordained to be so, sweet! and best - Comes now, beneath thine eyes, upon thy breast. - Still kiss me! Care not for the cowards! Care - Only to put aside thy beauteous hair - My blood will hurt! The Three I do not scorn - To death, because they never lived; but I - Have lived, indeed, and so (yet one more kiss) can die." - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 1 - - -Opus 37, No. 1, in G minor, was written during Chopin's winter sojourn -on the island of Majorca already described. On this occasion also the -composer had been left alone to occupy himself with his piano, while his -more active friends went for a sail on the bay. The sun had disappeared -behind a western bank of cloud. The evening shadows were fast closing -around him, filling with gloom and mystery the distant recesses of the -vast, irregular apartment where he sat, and the columned cloister -beyond, which led from the ruined refectory of the monastery to the -chapel where the priests and abbots of ten centuries lay entombed. The -ruins of a dead past were on every side. The silent presence of Death -seemed all about him. He felt that, like the day, his life was swiftly -declining, and the mood of the place and the hour was strong upon him. -It found utterance in the sorrowfully beautiful, passionately pathetic -first melody of this nocturne, with its falling minor phrases, like the -cry of a deep but suppressed despair, and its somber, sobbing -accompaniment, like the muffled moan of the surf on the adjacent beach. -A precisely similar mood is powerfully expressed in Tennyson's poem -"Break, break, break," especially in the closing lines, - - "But the tender grace of a day that is dead - Will never come back to me." - -Suddenly, in the midst of his melancholy reveries, Chopin was seized by -one of those deceptive visions, so frequent at that time. The shadowy -forms of a procession of dead monks seemed to emerge from beneath the -obscure arches of the refectory, in a slow funeral march along the -cloister behind him to the chapel, where their evening services were -formerly held, solemnly chanting as they passed their _Santo Dio_. This -impressive chant, as if sung by a chorus of subdued male voices, is -realistically reproduced in the middle movement of the nocturne. The -very words _Santo Dio_ are distinctly suggested by each little phrase of -four consecutive chords. - -When the monks have vanished, and their voices have died away in the -distance beneath the echoing vault of the chapel, Chopin recovers -himself with a shudder and resumes his sad dreaming, symbolized by a -return of the first melody. But just at its close the sun sinks below -the western bank, its last rays gleam for a moment on the white sail of -the boat just rounding up to the landing. His friends return. His lonely -brooding is cheerfully interrupted. His mood brightens and the nocturne -ends with an exquisite transition to the major key. - -The player should strive in this work for a somber intensity of tone, -and should render each phrase of the melody as if the pain expressed -were his own, making the undertone of the sobbing sea distinctly -apparent in the accompanying chords. In the middle movement, where the -monks' chant is introduced, the imitation of a muffled chorus of male -voices should be made deceptively realistic. All the notes of each chord -must be pressed, not struck, with a firm but elastic touch, and exactly -simultaneously; and each little quadruplet of chords must rise and fall -in power, so accented as to enunciate the words _Santo Dio_. This is at -once the saddest, the deepest, and the most descriptive, while -technically the easiest, of all the Chopin nocturnes. - - - - - Chopin: Nocturne, Op. 37, No. 2 - - -Graceful, tender, and cheerful is the general tone of the Nocturne in G -major. It was written the following summer after Chopin's return to -France, during a visit of some weeks at Nohant, the beautiful country -seat of George Sand, where in the midst of a smiling rural landscape, -bright and winning, rather than awe-inspiring, breathing the mild but -invigorating air of his beloved France, surrounded by cheerful and -congenial companions and by every possible physical comfort, our -composer's health and spirits temporarily revived. To this epoch, brief -as it was, we owe some of his most genial and attractive compositions. - -Again it is evening and Chopin is alone, but this time it is in his own -familiar, cozy room, where the perfect appointments and tasteful -arrangement tell of loving feminine hands, glad to minister to every -fancy of his delicately fastidious nature. The scent of flowers floats -in through the open window, and mingled with it the low voices of -friends in the garden below. He watches the play of lights and shadows -among the swaying branches of a tall, graceful willow tree just outside -his casement, the vaguely outlined, fleecy, floating gray clouds, ghosts -of dead storms, silently passing on into the infinite unknown spaces of -the sky. He listens to the night wind sighing among the tree-tops, to -the good-nights of sleepy birds, to the vesper bell of a distant -village, and embodies his dreamy impressions in the first movement of -this nocturne, with its wavering, undulating murmurous effects, and its -faint, intermittent melodic suggestions, like the half-remembered music -of a dream. - -The second movement, twice alternating with the first, though in -different keys, is distinctly a slumber song in rhythm and mood, a -restful, gentle, soothing lullaby to the composer's own weary heart, to -his momentarily slumbering griefs, and forebodings; peaceful, tender, -pensively sad at times, but entirely free from that ultra-bitterness and -gloom which color most of his later works. His Polish biographer calls -this the most beautiful melody Chopin ever wrote, and it reminds us -strongly of Tennyson's lines in the same mood: - - "There is sweet music here that softer falls - Than petals from blown roses on the grass, - Or night-dews on still waters between walls - Of shadowy granite, in a gleaming pass; - Music that gentler on the spirit lies - Than tired eyelids upon tired eyes." - -An extremely light but fluent legato touch, and an ethereal delicacy and -grace of conception are demanded for the first movement, and the -ever-present curve of beauty should be indicated in each little passage -of three measures. Let the player imagine a brightly tinted feather -ball, tossed lightly into the air and fluttering softly and slowly to -earth again. - -For the second movement, a singing lyric tone, a subdued warmth of -color, and a steady, reposeful, rocking rhythm are a necessity, and the -lullaby mood should be kept in mind. - - - - - LISZT - 1811 1886 - - - - - Chopin's Polish Songs, Transcribed for Piano by Liszt - - -Six of these songs, transcribed for piano, with all Liszt's wonted -skill, render this charming vein of Chopin's work available to the -pianist. I cite two as illustrations: - -These Polish songs by Chopin are, comparatively speaking, unknown, even -among musicians, overshadowed and hidden as they have always been by the -number and magnitude of his pianoforte works, like wood-violets lost in -the depths of a forest. Yet, though small and unpretentious as the -violets, they are among his most genial and poetic creations. Seventeen -of them have been published, as genuine bits of vocal melody as ever -were penned or sung; and there are many more which have never been -printed, scarcely even written out in full; hasty pastime sketches, the -fair daughters of a momentary inspiration, wedded to stray verses of -Polish poetry which caught Chopin's fancy, from the pen of Mickiewicz -and other national bards. - - - The Maiden's Wish - -"The Maiden's Wish," the first of the two songs presented, is one of the -earliest and most popular, so far as known; a dainty, capricious little -mazurka song, half playful, half tender. The words embody the fond wish -of a merry, winsome maiden, whose life is touched to seriousness by the -shadow of first love upon her pathway, the wish that she were a sunbeam -to leave the high vault of Heaven and desert the flowers and streams of -earth to shine through her lover's window and gladden him alone; or that -she were a bird to leave the fields and forests and fly on swift pinions -to his window at early dawn and wake him with a song of love. - -The music accurately and closely reproduces the spirit of the words, in -all their warmth, archness, and grace. The short but continually -recurring trill, "ever on the self-same note," in prelude and interlude, -suggests the thrill which the maiden feels at heart as she flits singing -about the house and garden, unconsciously keeping step to the rhythm of -the mazurka, the native dance of her province. - - - The Ring - -The second song selected resembles in form the ordinary folk-song, with -its single, reiterated musical strophe, and also in its simplicity, its -fresh, unaffected sincerity of mood. But it shows far more perfect -workmanship, and is of a much more refined and poetic quality. It is -plaintively sad, tenderly pathetic in every phrase, a pale, delicate -blossom of sentiment, dropped upon the grave of youth and first love. It -describes the early betrothal of a youth, full of faith, hope, and -happiness, to his playmate and child-love. On departing into strange -lands, the youth gives the maiden a ring and she gives him in exchange a -promise to become his bride on his return. After years of weary -wandering, during which his heart has been ever faithful to his early -love, he returns to find she has forgotten ring and promise and lover. -But in spite of her perfidy and the hopelessness of his attachment, his -constant thoughts cling ever to the little ring he gave and the little -playmate with her childish grace and garb. A very old story and a very -simple one, but none the less sad for that. - -In addition to its intrinsic charm and artistic merit this little -composition possesses a personal interest in its subtle reference to -Chopin's own experience. The great tone-poet knew a love other and -earlier than that destructive passion for George Sand which blasted his -life and broke his heart. But his beloved Constantia, to whom he was -betrothed before leaving Poland, at twenty years of age, to seek his -fortune in the great world, forgot her plighted vows and the little ring -he gave as their visible token, and married another; and it is the -composer's own grieved and disappointed heart that speaks in this -tenderly beautiful song, saddened by the first of the many swiftly -gathering clouds which obscured the brightness of his sunny youth, and -in a few short years rendered the name of Chopin synonymous to his -friends with grief and suffering. - - - - - The Poetic and Religious Harmonies by Franz Liszt - - -Liszt's reputation in this country as a pianoforte composer has hitherto -rested, in the main, upon his brilliant and popular operatic fantasies, -a few of his etudes, and his unique and world-famous Hungarian -rhapsodies; all of which, though effective and by no means to be -despised, are, after all, only the bright bubbles tossed off in playful -mood from the surface of his genius, like the globules that rise from -the sparkling champagne. - -That there is a deeper, more serious, and far more important vein of -strictly original work of his, which has as yet scarcely been -discovered, still less exploited, few persons, even among the musicians -themselves, seem to be aware. Of course, in the large cities, his -orchestral works--that is to say, some of them--have been occasionally -given and his concertos have become fairly well known; but elsewhere he -is chiefly known as the leading manufacturer of musical pyrotechnics, -the inventor of the best pianistic sky-rockets and the best articles in -tonal thunder and lightning thus far put upon the world's market. But -the fact is that his future fame as a creative musician is destined to -stand upon a much firmer and more lasting basis--namely, that of the -original work referred to; and I believe in a much higher niche in the -temple of art than it at present occupies. - -Among these original works, and forming an important and distinct -division of them, peculiar to itself both in form and subject matter, -the "Poetic and Religious Harmonies" claim our attention. These were -written under rather singular circumstances. - -All through his life, from early boyhood, Liszt was subject to -occasional moods of intense religious fervor,--devotional paroxysms, one -might almost call them,--sweeping over him like a tidal wave, -submerging, for the time, all other thoughts and impulses, and then -receding, to leave him about where they found him. Their transitory and -spasmodic nature has led many to believe that they were not real, but -assumed, simulated hypocritically for effect, or for a purpose; as, for -example, to escape the importunate claims of his several mistresses. - -But those who knew him best are inclined to make allowance for his -impulsive, erratic, unbalanced temperament, his undeveloped oriental -nature, half barbaric in spite of its immense and manifold powers, and -to concede that, while they lasted, they were very genuine and very -profound. Under this impelling force he was several times on the point -of giving up his worldly career and devoting himself to a monastic life, -and was only restrained by the efforts of his many friends and admirers. - -In 1856 came the last and most enduring of these impulses, and, in -obedience to it, he abandoned his life as a concert artist, which, for -phenomenal success, has never had a parallel before or since, retired -into rigorous seclusion in the Vatican at Rome, where he was the guest -and pupil of the Pope himself, and devoted nearly five consecutive years -to religious study and contemplation, receiving the title of Abbe in the -Catholic Church, which he retained till his death, and writing a -considerable number of compositions, all of a distinctively religious -character, all based upon religious themes, either incidents narrated in -the Scriptures, or in the lives of the saints, or subjective experiences -connected with his own spiritual life and development. - -Among these, his great "Legend of St. Elizabeth" is preeminent, and this -series of nine poetic and religious harmonies; each a complete -composition, having no connection with the others except in its general -character, bearing a special title indicating its nature and subject. -Some of them are of very great musical worth and importance, and are -among his best productions, notably, the No. 3, Book 2, entitled "The -Benediction of God in the Solitude." It is one of the subjective, -emotional compositions referred to, giving us a glimpse into the heart -life of the composer during this epoch of profound and intense religious -experience. - -It opens with a subdued but strongly emotional, 'cello-like theme in the -left hand, expressing the first discontent and vague longings of a soul -whose best aspirations and highest needs have found no real satisfaction -in worldly things, yet which has no certain grasp, no safe reliance on -any life beyond and above the present; a soul adrift on the dark ocean -of doubt and skepticism, with no guiding star of hope, no beacon-light -of promise, not even the compass of faith in things unseen by which to -shape its course. This mood grows steadily in intensity, through the -successive stages of unrest, agitation, distress, despair, to an -overpowering climax. Then it is followed by a short, quiet movement in D -major, literally imitating the tranquil strain of the organ and the -distant sound of cathedral bells; thus symbolizing the promises and -proffered consolations of the Church; then a period of grave pondering, -of thoughtful examination and introspection, and then the first theme -repeats, but with less vehement treatment, in a gentle though still -agitated mood, like a recapitulation of his former state from a newly -acquired standpoint, a softened memory of the old, stormy, desperate -mood. - -The work closes with a tranquil, flowing movement, a complete inundation -of the spirit by a flood of that "peace which passeth understanding," -the benediction of God in the solitude. He has found, as he believes, -safety, rest, and reconciliation with divine law and will. This closing -strain, in its reposeful happiness, forms a fitting and most beautiful -ending to this serious, ideally suggestive composition. - -Other numbers of this set are almost equally interesting, but I have not -space for more of them. This one will serve as a good example, and I may -add that it was regarded by Liszt himself as the best of his piano -compositions. - -A little French poem from Liszt's own pen, which stands as motto at the -head of this music, sums up its significance. I append a nearly literal -translation. - - "Whence comes, O my God, this sweet peace that surrounds - My glad heart? And this faith that within me abounds? - To me who, uncertain, in anguish of mind, - On an ocean of doubt tossed about by each wind, - Was seeking for truth in the dreams of the sage, - And for peace, among hearts that were chafing with rage. - A sudden--there flashed on my soul from above - A vision of glorified heavenly love; - It seemed that an age and a world passed away - And I rise, a new man, to enjoy a new day." - - - - - Liszt's Ballades - - -While speaking of Liszt's original compositions, we must not omit his -two ballades, which, though musically a little disappointing, are works -of considerable magnitude and marked individuality, and possess no small -degree of descriptive interest. They are in the same general form and -vein as the Chopin ballades, and were evidently suggested by them, -though they cannot be compared with them either for beauty or for -strength. - - - First Ballade - -The first, in B minor, is decidedly the more vigorous of the two, and -the more difficult. It is based upon the pathetically tragic story of -the Prisoner of Chillon, so ably told in Byron's poem, which the player -should read with care, so as to familiarize himself thoroughly with its -incidents and moods. The poem tells of that nameless captive chained for -life to a pillar in a rock-hewn dungeon beneath the castle of Chillon, -on Lake Leman, below the surface of the lake, so that he listens day and -night to the dull thunder or mournful murmur of the changeful waves -above his head, as his only indication of the shifting moods of Nature -in the living world, her passing smiles and storms, her slowly circling -seasons as they come and go. - - "A double dungeon, wall and wave - Have made--and like a living grave. - Below the surface of the lake - The dark vault lies, wherein we lay: - We heard its ripple night and day, - Sounding o'er our heads it knocked, - And then the very rock hath rocked, - And I have felt it shake unshocked: - Because I could have smiled to see - The death that would have set me free." - -Years drag themselves out to eternities. One by one his few companions -die of cold and hunger, leaving him alone in that living tomb, with his -endless, changeless, unutterable misery. - - "I had no thought, no feeling--none. - Among the stones I stood a stone. - It was not night, it was not day, - For all was blank and bleak and gray: - A sea of stagnant idleness, - Blind, boundless, mute, and motionless." - -His only gleam of comfort were the occasional visits of an azure-winged -bird that came now and then and perched on the window ledge outside his -dungeon bars, a fair and gentle companion symbolizing for him all the -beauty and tenderness and sweetness in the life he has lost; and on -which he comes to concentrate the love and interest of his famished -heart. - - "A lovely bird with azure wings, - And song that said a thousand things, - And seemed to say them all to me! - I never saw the like before, - I ne'er shall see its likeness more: - It seemed, like me, to want a mate, - But was not half so desolate; - And it was come to love me, when - None lived to love me so again." - -The opening movement of the ballade, representing the thunder of the -waves reverberating through the gloom of that cavern-like cell, and the -later lyric, which might be called the bird theme, suggesting his tender -communing with his little friend, are the best movements in the work. -The details of the story are not carried out, but its outlines, and -especially its moods, are clearly given. - - - Second Ballade - -The second ballade, in D flat major, is more melodious and attractive, -but less strong. It is dedicated to Liszt's life-long friend and -powerful patron, the Duke of Weimar, and, out of compliment to him, -treats of an episode in the Duke's family history, back in the days of -the second Crusade. - -A young and gallant chief of the house of Weimar stands in the rosy -light of early dawn, on the highest turret of his castle, with his newly -wedded bride, taking a long farewell of her and of their fair domain, -for at sunrise he leads his knights and men-at-arms to the crusade, and -the return is years distant and uncertain. Their mood is full of sadness -and yet of a strong, religious exultation and trust. His mission is a -grand and glorious one. Heaven will surely guide and protect its -faithful knights, and his lady bids him Godspeed, though with tearful -eyes. From the castle court below, sounds of gathering troops and -martial preparation rise to their ears, at first faintly, then with -growing din and clamor, till a burst of trumpets greets the rising sun; -the gates are flung open and, hastily descending, he takes his place at -the head of his forces and they march away to the strains of inspiriting -military music. The lady still stands alone on her turret, waving her -greetings--stands there, as he sees her last, flooded with the glory of -the morning, an embodiment of love and hope and promise--a vision to -haunt his waking dreams in far-away Palestine, to cheer his lonely -camp-fire vigils and lead him to victory on the field of action. - -As she still stands dreamily watching the last gleam of the -spear-points, the last flutter of the receding banners, the sanguine -fancy of youth leaps the intervening years, and she thinks she hears the -strains of the martial music at the head of the returning army coming in -triumph back from a successful campaign. - -The successive moments in the story above sketched are given with -realistic distinctness in the music, and can be followed without -difficulty. - - - - - Transcriptions for the Piano by Franz Liszt - - -The peculiar aptitude required for successfully rewriting a song or -orchestral composition for the piano, so that it shall become, not a -mere bald, literal reproduction of the melodies and harmonies, as in -most of the piano-scores of the opera, interesting only to students, but -a complete and effective art-work for this instrument, may be a lower -order of genius than the original creative faculty, but is certainly -more rare and almost as valuable to the musical world. It demands, -first, a clear, discriminating perception of the essential musical and -dramatic elements of the original work, in their relative proportions -and degrees of importance, distinct from the merely idiomatic details of -their setting; second, a supreme knowledge of the resources and -limitations of the new medium of expression, so as at once to preserve -unimpaired the peculiar character and primal force of the original -composition, and to make it sound as if expressly written for the piano. -It is one thing to write out the notes of an orchestral score so that -they are, in the main, playable by a single performer on the piano; but -it is quite another thing to readjust all the effects to pianistic -possibilities, so as to produce in full measure the intended artistic -impression. There is practically the same difference as in poetic -translation between the rough, verbal rendering of a Latin exercise by a -school-boy, and the finished, artistic English version of a poem from -some foreign tongue, by a gifted and scholarly writer like Longfellow. - -Whatever may be thought or said of Liszt as an original composer, in his -piano transcriptions he has never had an equal, scarcely even a would-be -competitor. His work in this line is of inestimable importance to the -pianist, both as student and public performer, and forms a rich and -extensive department of piano literature. Think what a gap would be left -in any artist's repertoire if Liszt's transcriptions, including the -rhapsodies, were struck out of it; for the rhapsodies are only -transcriptions of gipsy music. Practically all of Wagner's music that is -available for the pianist he owes to Liszt's able intermediation. True, -Brassin has done some commendable work in his settings of fragments from -the Nibelungen operas, but of these the "Magic Fire" music is the only -really usable number; and this, though playable and attractive from its -own intrinsic merits, is hardly satisfactory, either as a genuinely -pianistic setting or as a reproduction of the artistic effects of the -original. One feels that it is an interesting attempt, not a complete -success; and the "Ride of the Walkyrie," which ought to be the most -effective of all the Wagner numbers for piano, is wholly unusable for -concert purposes. One is practically restricted to Liszt in this -direction, but finds in him a mine of highly finished, admirably set -gems, accessible, though technically not easy to appropriate. - - - Wagner-Liszt: Spinning Song, from the "Flying Dutchman" - -Take, for example, the familiar and ever-enjoyable "Spinning Song" from -the "Flying Dutchman," definite and symmetrical in form, perfect in -every detail as a piano composition, eminently playable and pianistic, -yet preserving the original dramatic intention with absolute -completeness and integrity. Those who are familiar with the opera will -need no explanation of its contents; but for the many piano students who -are not, I give a brief synopsis of the scene of which this music is at -once an accompaniment and a picture; for Wagner's music is all intended -to intensify, by reduplicating in tone, scenes and moods represented on -the stage. - -A little company of village maidens, in a seaport town in Holland, is -assembled of a winter evening to spin. It is to be a semi-social, -semi-useful gathering, much like the old quilting parties of our -grandmothers' time, and they are all in the best of spirits. They start -the wheels, but something is wrong apparently; the thread breaks or -tangles, and two or three times they are obliged to stop, wait a moment, -and recommence, till finally the buzz and hum of the swift-rolling -wheels become continuous. This orchestral imitation of the -spinning-wheel is a piece of very graphic realism, and in the piano -arrangement is given almost equally well in the left-hand accompaniment, -while the right hand carries in chords the chorus of the spinning -maidens, as they sing at their work, a bright, joyous, rhythmical song, -full of gaiety and wit, as shown by an occasional interruption by a -burst of merry laughter. - -In the very midst of their jollity they are startled into an abrupt -silence by the ominous sound of a single horn close by, and they suspend -their work to listen. The horn rings out, clear and strong, a peculiar -impressive signal, which they know and dread as that of the "Flying -Dutchman," the terror of those shores, the fated commander of a phantom -ship, manned by a specter crew, who sails the northern seas eternally, -in winter storm and summer fog, condemned forever to this ghastly -isolation from his living fellow-men, and striking terror to the hearts -of all the simple fisher-folk, whenever the dim outlines of his ship are -seen in the misty offing; and especially when his signal horn is heard; -for it is known that he does sometimes land. His only possible chance of -escape from the awful curse upon him is that once in a hundred years he -is permitted to spend a few brief days on shore and mingle with his -kind, and if, during that short period, he can win the love of any true -maiden so completely that she will voluntarily give her life for him, -then the curse is ended and both may rise to the realms of the blessed -together. It is a grand opportunity for generous self-sacrifice on the -part of some noble girl; but naturally all shrink from it, and are -panic-stricken at his approach. - -But the horn dies away. Echo repeats the notes and drops them. All is -still. They think he is merely passing, as he often does, and has no -intention of landing here at present. So, after a little timid -hesitation, they resume their work and their song, become as hilarious -as before, even more so, going off at last into a perfect gale of -laughter, in the midst of which the horn sounds again; this time nearer, -louder, more importunate. Surely he is about to land, perhaps is already -on shore and approaching; and then there is a frenzy of panic; work is -flung aside, wheels are overturned in the confusion, and the girls -scatter in mad terror in all directions; and with this flight the scene -closes, and this transcription for the piano ends. - -I will add, however, for the completion of the story, that one of the -girls, the heroine, her woman's heart touched to pity by the awful -destiny of the curse-laden commander, remains, half in eagerness, half -in fear, to meet him at his entrance and to become the willing sacrifice -for his redemption. - -The keynote of the whole opera is found in that sublimest of all -facts--human love triumphant over fate. - -With this story in mind, even those quite unfamiliar with the music -cannot fail to recognize and follow the successive details of the scene -described: the whir and hum of the spinning-wheels, the chorus of -singing maidens, the entrance of the signal horn, with its echo and the -terror that follows; the repetition of these incidents in growing -climax, and the mad confusion and scamper at the close. - - - Wagner-Liszt: Tannhaeuser March - -Liszt's brilliant transcription of this fragment of the _Tannhaeuser_ -music is another of the most popular and grateful Wagner numbers for the -piano. It must not be confounded with the "March of the Pilgrims," or, -more properly, the "Pilgrim's Chorus," as it often is by those not -familiar with the opera. The latter, a chorus of fervently devout -pilgrims departing for the Holy Land, is solemn, inspiring, but somber -in character, while the march is brilliantly festive in tone, gorgeous -in coloring, pompously magnificent in its martial rhythms, its rich -major harmonies and its ringing trumpet themes. It appropriately -accompanies the entrance of a long and splendidly appareled procession -of guests into the old castle known as the _Wacht Burg_, a famous feudal -stronghold in Thuringia during the middle ages. They have assembled in -holiday mood and attire to witness one of those prize contests in -singing--a sort of musical tournament between the leading Minnesingers -of the time, frequently held at the castles of the powerful German -nobles of that period. The word _Minne_ is an old German, poetic synonym -for _Liebe_, or love. Hence the Minnesinger was a minstrel whose avowed -theme was love. - -It was a gala occasion. Excitement and anticipation ran high, for some -of the most celebrated names of the time were on the list of -competitors. All had their favorites, to whom they were disposed to -accord the victory in advance, and all came in the expectation, not only -of a rich musical feast, but of a close and sharply contested combat of -genius, for the honors of the day. The opening trumpet signal announces -that the castle gates are thrown open, and summons the guests to form in -marching order, and then the glittering ranks move forward to the -rhythmically cadenced measures of the march music. Gallant knights in -glistening armor, the pride of race and martial glory in mien and -carriage, stately dames in silk and jewels, fair maidens sweet as the -blossoms they wear, and old men in the dignity of years and proven -wisdom--all are there and are faithfully mirrored in the music as they -pass before us. There is an imposing pomp and gorgeous splendor about -it; a little wearying, it may be, after a time, but certainly never -equaled, if approached, by any other composition, and absolutely in -keeping with the mood and setting of the scene. The tempo should be very -moderate, the rhythm marked and steady, the contrasts distinct, and the -tone, for the most part, full and brilliant, but never harsh. - - - Wagner-Liszt: Abendstern - -Another selection from this same opera, this time in the lyric vein, -which Liszt has effectively arranged for the piano, is the "Evening Star -Romance," as it is often called. It is one of the songs of Wolfram, the -leading baritone of the opera. The theme is love, and the opening line -of the song, "O thou, my gracious evening star," clearly indicates the -bard's intention. The love of which he sings is to be a modest, distant, -respectful devotion, a pure adoration rather than a passionate desire. -His lady-fair is to be his light, his guide, his inspiration to lofty -vows and noble deeds of chivalry. For her will he be all things, achieve -all things, sacrifice all things, asking no reward but her smile of -approbation. She is to be his divinity, not his bride; to be worshiped, -not possessed. - -The mood is one of glowing enthusiasm and ideal unselfishness, but -subdued to a dreamy, half intensity, like sunlight through a fleece of -summer clouds. The player should strive to produce in the melody the -effects of a rich, mellow baritone voice, clearly, smoothly, musically -modulated, warm, but never impassioned. The Minnesingers always -accompany themselves upon the harp, and the harp effects used by Wagner -in the orchestra have been retained, as a matter of course, by Liszt in -the piano arrangement, and must be reproduced by the player with the -utmost fidelity. - - - Wagner-Liszt: Isolde's Love Death - -One of the most vividly interesting, to musicians, of all the -Wagner-Liszt transcriptions, is the death scene from "Tristan und -Isolde," known as "Isolde's Love Death." It is not a number easily -grasped, or usually enjoyed by the general audience; and the elemental -power and intensity of the passion it so forcefully expresses have been -often criticized as morbid, unnatural, and exaggerated, by those, the -mildly tempered milk-and-water of whose stormiest passions never exceed -the moderate, decorous fury of a tempest in a tea-pot. But to those who -can sympathize with and appreciate its irresistible, volcanic outburst -of emotion, its overwhelming sweep of life-rending anguish, it is one of -the strongest, grandest lyric utterances in all the realm of music, -thrilling and overpowering the heart to the degree of pain and terror. - -It is a lyric in form, in treatment, and in subject-matter, dealing -exclusively with emotion, not action, though its breadth of outline, its -somber strength, and its passionate intensity give it a decidedly -dramatic effect. Here is no pink-and-white pet of the modern -drawing-room, grieving for her missing poodle, or another's failure to -wear the most up-to-date tie; but a glorious primeval woman, with the -fire of youth and plenty of good red blood in her veins, a goddess in -the unreserved frankness of her feelings, the boundless strength of her -devotion, sublime in the might of her passion and the majesty of her -doom. - -Her life is her love and must end with it. Her hero-lover, Tristan, lies -beside her, dying of a mortal wound received in combat for love of her, -however dishonorable in the world's eyes; and he is the more to be -cherished because despised and hunted to his death by his king and -former comrades for her sake. Further attempt at flight with him is -hopeless. Fate and their foes are closing swiftly in around them. The -end is inevitable. Their brief, wild dream of stolen happiness is over. -The first black, crushing moment of despairing realization, portrayed in -the opening measures in sober chords, is followed by a strain of sweet, -tender, but plaintive reminiscence of what love was to them and might -have been. Then comes a long, steadily growing, tremendously impassioned -climax of impotent protest, of desperate love, of vehement, -heart-breaking sorrow, all mingled in one glowing lava stream of -frenzied anguish, merging at last into a soft, half-delirious vision of -reunion and happiness beyond the grave, in which her spirit takes its -flight, to realms, we will hope, where hearts, not crowned heads, were -the arbiters of her woman's destiny. - -Those who have no sympathy with a really great passion which sweeps all -before it, flinging the pretty policies and cut-and-dried conventions of -life aside like straw in the path of a cataract, had better let this -music alone. It is not for them either to feel or to render. It requires -exceptional intensity of treatment, a broad, strong, yet flexible -chord-technique, and an absolute mastery of the tonal resources of the -piano. - - - - - Schubert-Liszt: Transcriptions - - -Some of Liszt's very best though earliest work in the line of pianoforte -transcription was done in connection with the Schubert songs; most of it -in the thirties. These songs were then first coming into prominence, and -their markedly romantic and descriptive character appealed strongly to -the dramatic instincts of this master of the piano, understanding and -utilizing as no other writer ever had, the resources and possibilities -of his instrument. Liszt adapted a large number of these songs to it, -rendering them most effectively available as piano solos, selecting -mainly those in which the character of the text and original music gave -opportunity for suggestively realistic and descriptive treatment. - - - Der Erlkoenig - -Most famous and decidedly most dramatic of these is the "Erlkoenig." All -German students and most vocalists are familiar with the text of this -song, which is its own best explanation; but the piano student may find -a sketch of the story helpful. It is a legend of the Black Forest in -Baden, brought to the world's notice by Goethe in one of his most -dramatic and perfectly wrought ballads. This ballad Schubert set to -music in a moment of highest inspiration; then, in the natural reaction -and discouragement following such a supreme effort of genius, he threw -the manuscript into the waste-basket as unsuccessful and impracticable. -It was rescued a few hours later by a celebrated tenor of the day, who -chanced to call, and accidentally discovering this gem among the torn -papers, saved it to the world. Liszt recognized its immense -possibilities as a piano number and gave the song an instrumental -setting which is even more effective than the original vocal -composition. - -The story is briefly this. A horseman is riding homeward through the -depths of the Black Forest at midnight in a raging tempest, bearing in -his arms his little boy, wrapped safely against the storm, held close -for warmth and safety. The "Erlkoenig," or, as we should say, "Elf King," -is abroad in the dark, storm-racked forest. He espies the boy, takes a -freakish fancy to him, determines to possess the child, approaches -softly, with coaxing and persuasion, offers flowers, playthings, pretty -elf playmates, everything he can think of, to tempt the boy to leave his -father, and come with him. But the little one is terrified, shrieks to -his father for protection; and the father, while striving to quiet his -fears, spurs onward at utmost speed, seeking in vain to distance the -pursuing Elf King. - -The composition is graphically descriptive and contains many varied, yet -blended elements. The swift gallop of the horse over the broken ground -is given in rapid triplets as a continuous accompaniment; the rush of -the storm-wind through the moaning pine-tops, the roar of the thunder, -the chill and gloom and terrors of the wild night, are forcefully -depicted in the sweeping crescendos and somber harmonies of the left -hand, while the three voices engaged in the flying, intermittent -colloquy are rendered the more distinct and easy to follow, by being -played in different and suitable registers; the father's voice in the -baritone--grave, stern, impressive; the child's in the -soprano--plaintive and pathetic; and the Elf King's high in the -descant--sweet, seductive, persuasive, impossible to mistake. Three -times this colloquy is renewed, with growing agitation, each time ending -with the terrified shriek of the child, while the flight and pursuit -continue with increasing speed, and the tempest grows apace. Finally the -Elf King loses patience, throws off the mask of friendly gentleness, -declares that if the child will not come willingly he shall use force, -and tries to take him by violence. The child shrieks for the third time -in an anguish of fear, for the touch of the elf is death to a mortal. - -The father, now himself frantic with terror, spurs on madly for home, -with the tempest crashing about him. He reaches his door at last and -dismounts in fancied security, only to find the boy dead in his arms; -and perhaps the most impressive moment of the whole composition is that -at its suddenly subdued, solemnly mournful close, when he stands at the -goal of his furious but futile race, and gazes, by the light of his own -home fire, into the dead face of his child. - - - Hark! Hark! the Lark - -Among the Schubert-Liszt transcriptions, the one which probably stands -next to the "Erlkoenig" in general popularity is the song "Hark! Hark! -the Lark at Heaven's Gate Sings!" the words being the well-known, -charming little matin song by Shakespeare which Schubert has set to -music with all his infallible insight into their exact emotional import, -and all his masterly command of musical resources, reproducing in the -melody and its harmonic background the effect intended in every line of -the text, filling every subtlest shade of feeling to a nicety, realizing -once again that ideal union, that perfect marriage of words and music, -so difficult and so rare with most song-writers, but which was a -distinguishing characteristic of Schubert's work. - -In his piano accompaniment Liszt has displayed even more than his usual -skill in preserving all the intrinsic beauty and precise poetic -significance of the original, besides giving to it an eminently -pianistic form. The music is bright, buoyant, joyous as the summer -morning, fresh as its breezes, light as its floating clouds, stirring -our hearts with the revivifying call of a new day, breathing hope and -happiness in every measure, while the airy rippling embellishments -remind us of the exuberant song of the skylark, as he rises exultantly -to meet the dawn, shaking the dew from his swift wings and pouring out -the plenitude of his glad heart upon the awakening earth in a sparkling -shower of music, like the bubbling overflow of some sky fountain of pure -delight. - -The player and listener will do well to have in mind Shelley's lines, -describing the "clear, keen joyance" of that "scorner of the ground," -the English skylark. - - - Gretchen am Spinnrad - -A striking contrast to the composition just described is afforded by the -equally able but intensely mournful transcription entitled "Gretchen am -Spinnrad." - -The text of this song is taken from Goethe's "Faust." It is the song of -Marguerite, sitting at her wheel, in the gathering dusk of evening, -spinning mechanically from the force of long habit, but with her -thoughts engrossed by memories of her lost happiness, her ruined life, -and blighted future. The mood is one of overwhelming melancholy, of -crushing despair, whose dark depths are fitfully stirred from time to -time by a rebellious surge of passionate but hopeless longing, as her -heart throbs to some passing recollection of departed joys and love's -fateful delirium. - -Her dashing but faithless lover, Faust, after winning and betraying her -affection, robbing her of the innocence and tranquil happiness of -girlhood, has abandoned her to face her bitter fate alone; and she moans -in her solitary anguish: - - "My peace is gone, my heart oppressed, - And never again will my soul find rest." - -The music perfectly voices the piteous sadness of her mood, with the -occasional intermittent outbursts of passion; while the monotonous hum -of the spinning-wheel, literally imitated in the accompaniment, as in -every good spinning song, seems in this case to adapt itself to the song -of the maiden, to harmonize with its sadness, to take on a corresponding -melancholy, reflecting the emotions expressed in her voice and words, as -a stream reflects the somber cloud that shadows it--a good illustration -of that universal principle in art, which invests inanimate things with -a fancied sympathy with human experiences. - -Nothing could be more complete or perfectly appropriate than the musical -treatment of this subject; but its unmitigated sadness probably prevents -its becoming a popular favorite; and its extreme, though not at first -apparent, difficulty places it beyond the reach of most amateur players. - - - - - Liszt: La Gondoliera - - -Like many of Liszt's contributions to piano literature, this dainty and -most pleasing little work is not exclusively his own; that is, it is not -an original melodic creation, but the admirably clever arrangement or -setting of an old Venetian boat-song. The melody has been in existence -for many decades, perhaps centuries, and may be heard by any one who -visits Venice, as sung by the gondolier in time to the swing of his -dextrously handled single oar. It is called "La Biondina in Gondoletta" -("the blond maid in a gondola"), and was originally composed by -Pistrucci, to words by Peruchini, and harmonized later by Beethoven, in -his folk-songs, entitled "Zwoelf verschiedene Volkslieder." - -It is a distinctly Italian melody, with no pretensions to great depth or -dramatic intensity, but simple, tender, and sweet, winning rather than -commanding--a lyric of the sensuously beautiful type, but not to be -despised, as it is a spontaneous product of the sunny-tempered, -warm-hearted children of the South. It contains no hint of the Venice of -mystery, of secret cruelty, of world-wide powers, of the Council of the -Ten, that masked midnight tribunal of former days; but breathes only of -Venice the fair, in her moonlit beauty--of Venice, "the Bride of the -Sea." - -Liszt's setting gives us not only the melody enhanced by effective -harmonic coloring and delicate embellishment, but a characteristic and -picturesque background of accompaniment suggesting the scene, the mood, -and the environment; the low murmur of the Adriatic, at the distant -water-gate, pleading to be admitted to the presence of his Queen; the -soft ripples stealing up the long winding canals, whispering their love -secrets under the palaces of Juliette and Desdemona, and creeping -fearfully beneath the Bridge of Sighs, and past the dreaded dungeons of -the doges; the silvery moonlight gleaming upon marble frieze and column, -and touching to soft brilliancy the fadeless tints of glass mosaic; the -dip and sway of the graceful gondola as it glides on its silent way -along those water streets between rows of stately buildings, every -carved stone of which is alive with history or with some romantic -legend. - -All these are delicately yet graphically depicted, while the boatman's -song rises and falls, seeming now near, now distant, as it is borne to -us on the varying breath of the light sea-breeze. The whole picture is -one of subdued evening tints, of half-disclosed, half-hinted outlines, -with a pervading mood of dreamy fancy, of wistful tenderness. It seems -to me one of Liszt's most perfect and ably sustained efforts in the -purely lyric, yet suggestively descriptive vein. - -At the close, the great, sonorous bell of St. Mark's Cathedral strikes -midnight, its grave, deep-toned voice majestically commanding the -attention. The F sharp here used to produce the bell effect, and at the -same time serving as bass in a prolonged organ-point throughout the -coda, is the actual keynote of the St. Mark's bell, ingeniously utilized -for this double purpose. Meanwhile, the last notes of the song die away -in the distance, and slumber, like a veil of mist floating in from the -summer sea, envelops the city. - - - - - The Music of the Gipsies and Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies - - -Liszt, in his able and unique but somewhat prolix work, entitled "The -Bohemians and Their Music in Hungary," which, so far as I can learn, has -never been translated into English, gives some most interesting -information concerning these much-played and much-discussed Rhapsodies, -their origin, character, and artistic importance, their relation to the -national music of the gipsies and the racial peculiarities of this -strange people, which I believe will be new to most readers. - -I present here what seem to me the most valuable facts and ideas in -Liszt's book in connection with these Rhapsodies, using, so far as -possible, his own words translated from the French. I have used the word -"gipsies" for "Bohemians" in the translation; this being the usual -English name for the race, as "Bohemian" is the French. - -It should be distinctly borne in mind that, contrary to the generally -prevailing impression, these so-called Hungarian Rhapsodies are not in -any sense derived from or founded upon national Hungarian music, or the -national life and racial traits of the Hungarians. The floating -fragments of wild, fantastic melody and strange, weird harmony which -Liszt has gathered and utilized in this form, came neither from the Huns -nor from the Magyars, whose blended tribes compose the present Hungarian -race; but they are of purely gipsy origin. It is distinctly and -characteristically gipsy music which Liszt has merely adapted to the -piano. His reasons for calling these works Hungarian Rhapsodies he -states as follows: - -"In publishing a part of the material which we had the opportunity to -collect during our long connection with the gipsies of Hungary, in -transcribing it for the piano, as the instrument which could best -render, in its entirety, the sentiment and the form of the gipsy art, it -was necessary to select a generic name which should indicate the doubly -national character which we attach to it. - -"We have called the collection of these fragments 'Hungarian -Rhapsodies.' By the word 'Rhapsody' we have wished to designate the -fantastically epic element which we believe we recognize therein. Each -of these productions has always seemed to us to form a part of a poetic -series. These fragments narrate no facts, it is true; but 'those who -have ears to hear' will recognize in them certain states of mind, in -which are condensed the ideals of a nation. It may be a nation of -Pariahs; but what difference does that make to art? Since they have -experienced sentiments capable of being idealized, and have clothed them -in a form of undisputed beauty, they have acquired the right to -recognition in art. - -"Furthermore, we have called these Rhapsodies 'Hungarian' because it -would not be just to separate in the future what has been united in the -past. The Hungarians have adopted the gipsies as their national -musicians. They have identified themselves with their proud and warlike -enthusiasms, as with their poignant griefs, which they know so well how -to depict. They have not only associated themselves in their 'Frischka' -with their joys and feasts, but have wept with them while listening to -their 'Lassans.' - -"The nomadic people of the gipsies, though scattered in many countries, -and cultivating elsewhere their music, have nowhere given it a value -equivalent to that which it has acquired on Hungarian soil; because in -no other place has it met, as there, the popular sympathy which was -necessary to its development. The liberal hospitality of the Hungarians -toward the gipsies was so necessary to its existence that it belongs as -much to the one as to the other. Hungary, then, can with good right -claim as its own this art nourished by its cornfields and its vineyards, -developed by its sun and its shade, encouraged by its admiration, -embellished and ennobled, thanks to its favor and protection." - -These compositions, then, according to Liszt's own statement, are called -"Hungarian" only by courtesy and a sort of national adoption. They are -called "Rhapsodies" because of their resemblance, in form, character, -and content, to those detached, fragmentary poems sung or recited by the -wandering bards, troubadours, and rhapsodists of the olden time--poems -embodying the collective sentiments, the heroic deeds, the touching or -stirring experiences of a people, which were later collected and welded -together, with more or less coherency, by some master mind, to form the -national epic of that people. This music, of an authentically gipsy -parentage, of which Liszt speaks as "the songs without words" of the -gipsies, and to which he has merely stood sponsor at its rechristening -and its introduction, in new civilized dress, to the musical world, is -the only art form in which this enigmatical race has ever expressed -itself--the only channel through which its ill-comprehended but intense -inner life of emotion, imagination, and vague idealism has found vent. -It is the inarticulate, but none the less expressive, cry of the soul of -a race struggling with that universal human longing for self-utterance. - -Liszt's aim, pursued for many years, at great pains and with masterly -ability, was to collect and preserve for the world at least certain -representative portions of this music, and construct from them a tone -epic of the gipsies, possessing, not only from the artistic, but from -the historical and anthropological standpoint, an interest and value -similar to that of other epics in verse, as, for instance, those of the -Greeks, the Persians, the Germans, the Finns, Scandinavians, etc. - -Of the actual history of the gipsies little is known, save that they are -the strangest and most anomalous people of the globe. Numerous theories -as to their origin have been advanced, only to be abandoned. But the -best belief of to-day is that they originated in India, being of the -lowest Soodra caste or Pariahs there, driven out by the terrible Mongol -invasions between the tenth and thirteenth centuries A. D. They first -appear to the historical world in Egypt, and their name, "gipsies," -given them in this country and Great Britain, is but a corruption of the -word "Egyptian"; and hence they were long erroneously supposed to have -originated there. In other countries they have received various names, -as Bohemians in France, Gitanos in Spain, Zigeuner in Germany, Zingari -in Italy. But they always and everywhere designate themselves as Romani, -or Roma Sinte, meaning, "Roma" (men) and "Sinte," probably from Scind, -or the Indus River. They did not appear in Western Europe till the early -part of the fifteenth century, first in Bohemia, then in France and -Germany, and thence they spread, in wandering bands, from natural -increase, and, perhaps, from further immigration, over most of Europe -and other large portions of the world, everywhere abused and hated, and -by most governments cruelly persecuted. The Austrian government, under -Maria Theresa, was the main, modified exception to this harshness. She -encouraged and protected them in some localities in Hungary, and, under -this more humane care, they have there lived, in very considerable -numbers, a more stable and localized life than elsewhere on earth, -affording some modifications and improvement of their general habits and -character, as nomad, oriental vagabonds. - -Liszt, in the book referred to, has eloquently and strikingly -characterized this strange people, as follows: "Among the nations of -Europe there suddenly appeared one day a people, whence no one could -definitely say. It cast itself upon the Continent without showing any -desire of conquest, but also without asking any right to a domicile. It -did not desire to appropriate to itself an inch of ground, but it -declined to give up an hour of time. It had no wish to conquer, but it -refused to submit. It avowed neither from what Asiatic or African -plateaus it had descended, nor from what necessity it had sought other -skies. It brought no memories; it betrayed no hope. Too vain of its sad -race to condescend to merge itself in any other, it was content to live -repulsing all foreign elements.... This is a strange people, so strange -as to resemble no other in any respect. It possesses neither country, -nor religion, nor history, nor any law whatever.... It permits no -influence, no will, no persecution, no instruction either to modify, -dissolve, or extirpate it. It is divided into tribes, hordes, and bands -which wander here and there, following each the route dictated by -chance, without communication with each other, largely ignoring their -collective existence, but each preserving, under the most distant -meridian, with a solidarity which is sacred to them, infallible rallying -signs, the same physiognomy, the same language, the same manners.... The -ages pass. The world progresses. The countries where they sojourn make -war or peace, change masters and manners, while they remain impassive -and indifferent, living from day to day, profiting by the preoccupations -caused by events which decide the fate of nations, to secure their own -existence with less difficulty.... This people that shares the joys, the -sorrows, the prosperities, and misfortunes of no other; that, like an -incarnate sarcasm, laughs at the ambitions, the tears, the combats, and -festivals of all others; that knows neither whence it came nor whither -it goes; ... that preserves no traditions and registers no annals; that -has no faith and no law, no belief and no rule of conduct; that is held -together only by gross superstitions, vague customs, constant misery, -and deep humiliation; this people, that nevertheless is obstinate, at -the price of all degradation and destitution, to preserve its tents and -its tatters, its hunger and its liberty; this people, that exercises -upon civilized nations an indescribable and indestructible fascination, -passing as a mysterious legacy from one age to the next, all defamed as -it is, offers nevertheless some striking and charming types to our -grandest poets; this people, so heterogeneous, of a character so -indomitable, so intractable, so inexplicable, must conceal, in some -corner of its heart, some lofty qualities, since, susceptible of -idealization, it has idealized itself; for it has poems and songs which, -if united, might perhaps form the national epic of the gipsies." - -It is from such a people, so understood and described by him, that Liszt -has taken the musical fragments inwrought into his Hungarian Rhapsodies; -and he reasons at length and ingeniously as to his right to call these -musical cycles parts of what could be enlarged and made to cohere into a -national tone epic. This people, being unfitted to express itself -nationally in any other mode save through its wonderful, though rude and -uncultivated, instinct for music, "as it drew the bow upon the strings -of the violin, inspiration taught it, without its seeking, rhythms, -cadences, modulations, songs, speech, and discourse. Hegel was not -wrong," says Liszt, "when he gives to the word 'epic' more of the -signification of the verb 'to speak,' or utter, than of the substantive, -'recital'; and these tone pictures are fragments of an epic, because -they speak sentiments which are common to all the race, which form their -inner nature, the physiognomy of their soul, the expression of their -whole sentient being." And therefore, in summary conclusion, Liszt says: -"Believing that the scattered fragments of the instrumental music of the -gipsies, properly arranged, with some understanding of the succession -necessary to make them reciprocally valuable, would afford the -expression of those collective sentiments which inhere in the entire -people, determining their character and customs, one feels himself -authorized to give to such a collection the name of National Epic." - -Regarded from a purely musical standpoint, the Rhapsodies have -occasioned much controversy and considerable adverse criticism on the -part of certain musicians who pride themselves on their loyalty to -conservative traditions. They have been decried as trivial, superficial, -and sensational; as lacking in depth and dignity, in symmetry of form -and nobility of sentiment. These critics seem to forget that the object -of all art is primarily, not instruction or elevation, or even abstract -beauty, but expression. Its mission is to portray, not exclusively the -highest and grandest emotions of humanity, but every experience, every -shade of feeling, every psychological possibility of the race, with -equally sympathetic fidelity. Humanity is the broad theme; and the -various forms of art, on which the specialist is apt to lay undue -stress, are only the means of expression, not the supreme end. That form -is best, in any given case, which best serves the artist's purpose. - -It should be remembered that the music under discussion does not purport -to embody the loftiest or profoundest sentiment which Liszt was -personally capable of feeling or portraying, but the life, scenes, and -moods of the gipsy camp, presented in the primitive, but spontaneous and -vividly graphic, tone imagery of the gipsies themselves. Who shall say -that, as a representative racial art, it is not precisely as legitimate, -as worthy, and as genuinely artistic as the characteristic national art -of the Germans, the Italians, or any other people? Who shall presume to -dictate to the artist what subject, or class of subjects, he may or may -not select for treatment? I repeat, all art has for its mission the -expression of life, all life; not the establishment or maintenance of -standards either of morals or emotions; still less of mere forms of -expression. Is not the gipsy maid, with her ungoverned caprices, her -moments of exuberant gaiety, or passionate grief, just as much alive, -hence as legitimate a theme for the artist, and certainly as interesting -and romantic a subject for art treatment, as the staid German -_Hausfrau_, or the frivolous American society girl? The beggar boy has -been as ably painted, and is considered as artistic a figure as the -king. Poets have sung the loves of shepherds and shepherdesses as fondly -as those of lords and ladies. Is not, then, a good portrayal of a gipsy -camp, whether in words, colors, or tones, just as legitimate a work of -art as an equally able picture of an imperial palace, or an imposing -cathedral? Will not "Carmen" live as long on the operatic stage as even -that paragon of all feminine virtues, "Fidelio"? Is not Don Juan as -immortal a personage in art as Lohengrin? Goethe says: "We have only the -right to ask three questions of any art work: First, what did the artist -intend? Second, was it worth doing? Third, has he succeeded?" Judged -from this, the only true standpoint of esthetic criticism, I venture to -maintain that the Hungarian Rhapsodies are just as good and just as -legitimate music, in their own peculiar way,--that is to say, they -fulfil the essential conditions of their special artistic purpose, as -well and as completely,--as the Bach fugues, or the Beethoven sonatas. - -Granting, if need be, that the Rhapsodies are sensational, heaven -protect us from music that produces no sensation! And, in this case, it -is the sensation, or startling effect, not of mere brilliancy, but of -the unfamiliar contact with the spirit of a race radically differing -from our own; not sensuous and superficial, but profoundly -temperamental, possessing all the fresh charm of new thought expressed -in a novel idiom. Granting again that their melodies are capricious and -fantastic, their harmonies strange and half-barbaric, their form -incoherent and wholly at variance with our established notions of -musical structure, all this but renders them the more characteristic. -The picturesque gipsy could not appear to advantage, nor as a typical -figure in conventional evening dress, with punctilious drawing-room -manners; and the sentiments imputed to him, to be true to life, must not -be those of the cultivated modern gentleman, expressed with the stately -precision affected by the scholastic world; but primitive, elementary, -to some degree chaotic, uttered with the rude force and directness of -the undeveloped nature. In brief, he must be represented against the -background and amid the surroundings which are his natural environment. - -These Rhapsodies are to be taken as rough but faithful self-portraitures -of the gipsies, strictly on their own standards of merit, as art works -in a department by themselves, with a pronounced individuality and a -definite purpose. They are sixteen in number, and all constructed on the -same general plan, made up, like mosaics, of widely varying fragments of -melody, each expressing some particular mood or phase of life, but -combined so as to give a comprehensive impression of the scenes and -conditions of gipsy camps, familiar to Liszt for many years, through -frequent and lengthy visits, as vividly described by him in the book -from which we have so largely quoted. - -Roughly speaking, the melodies so interwoven in the Rhapsodies may be -divided into three classes, all of which appear in about equal -proportions, and with their ever startling sharpness of contrast, in -each and all of these works: the "lassan," a slow, mournfully lugubrious -song, expressing the uttermost depths of depression; the "frischka," a -bright, playful, capricious dance movement, full of grace, humor, and -witching coquetry, and the "czardas," a furious, almost demoniac dance -portraying the dance delirium at its most intoxicating extreme, -resembling somewhat the Tarantelle of Spain and the Dervish dance of the -Orient. These three, with an occasional brief strain from a fugitive -love-song, shy and elusive as the notes of some timid night bird, or a -march-like movement of wild but distinctly martial character, formed the -crude material from which Liszt has wrought these always effective and -thoroughly pianistic compositions. A brief, special reference to two or -three of the best known among them will be sufficient to indicate an -intelligent interpretation of them all. - -The No. 6, for instance, begins with one of the march movements referred -to. It is rhythmic and pompous, with a bold, half-barbaric splendor. -Next comes one of the slower forms of the "frischka," which is often -sung in Hungary to the words of a half-tipsy drinking-song. Then follows -one of the most doleful of the "lassans," the words to which, in free -translation, run as follows: "My father is dead, my mother is dead, I -have no brothers or sisters, and all the money that I have left will -just buy a rope to hang myself with." - -The work closes with one of the wildest, most impetuous of the "czardas" -dances, which Liszt has wrought up to an irresistible, overwhelming -climax. - -The No. 12 begins with a slow, gloomy recitative delivered with an -impressive dignity so exaggerated as to border on the bombastic; a tale -of strange adventures, it may be, narrated by the chief of the tribe at -the evening camp-fire, while the flickering firelight plays upon the -picturesque figures grouped about against the somber background of the -pines, and the thunder mutters sullenly in the distance. Then a quiet -bit of lyric, evidently a love-song, gives a touch of softness to the -scene, and hints at a covert courtship among the shadows. Later, the -crisp, piquant music of the "frischka" calls the young people to the -dance, which gradually increases in speed and brilliancy, till it -finally merges in the "czardas," in which all join, and which is given -with the greatest possible dash and abandon. - -No. 15 is founded upon, and mainly consists of the Rakoczy March, -composed by a gipsy musician in honor of Rakoczy, that Hungarian -patriot, popular general, and hero, whose daring exploits as leader, in -the Hungarian struggle for independence, made him a prominent historical -figure of his time, and the idol of his countrymen. This march has been -adopted as the national march of Hungary, and Liszt's setting of it for -piano is among his most stupendous works. - -These few illustrations may serve as guides in forming a correct -conception of all the Rhapsodies. I have given to the foregoing article -more space than seems, at first thought, to be warranted; partly, -because it gives a somewhat unusual point of view in considering Liszt, -not only as a composer, but as a thoughtful and philosophic student of -esthetics, and as an eloquent, forceful writer; partly, because I hope -it may produce in the minds of some readers a more favorable, because -more justly discriminating, attitude of mind toward these Hungarian -Rhapsodies as musical art works; but mainly, because it emphasizes, with -the powerful support of Liszt's authority, certain general principles of -art which seem to me all-important, but which are too often ignored in -considering the special art of music. - - - - - RUBINSTEIN - 1830 1894 - - - - - Rubinstein: Barcarolle, in G Major - - -Strictly speaking, the "barcarolle" is an Italian boat-song--"barca" -being the Italian word for boat. But in musical terminology it has been -localized and signifies distinctly a Neapolitan boat-song associated as -exclusively with the Vesuvian bay as is the gondoliera with the lagoons -and canals of Venice. In each case it is the song of the local boatman, -sung to the rhythmical accompaniment of the swinging oar, and enhanced -in poetic charm by the beauty and romantic atmosphere of the -surroundings. In each case also it has served as a suggestive and -grateful artistic subject for musical treatment, used by nearly all the -modern composers, great and small, and one which is particularly suited -to the pianoforte and facilely adapted to its characteristic resources. - -In many respects the barcarolle, in this its idealized form as a musical -art work, closely resembles the gondoliera, similarly developed; for -instance, in its graceful six-eight rhythm, its gliding, swaying -boat-like movement, its suggestions of dipping oar and rippling water, -and in its sustained song-like melody which we may easily consider as -representing the voice of the boatman. - -These descriptive elements are common to all works of both classes, but -the characteristic mood of the typical barcarolle is less tender and -passionate, more cheery and fanciful than that of the gondoliera. It has -less of the human element, more of the sea and its slumbering mystery; -less of the lover's sigh, and more of the half-seen witchery of -sea-sprites and mermaids in the clear depths of inverted sky beneath. To -appreciate this mood to the full, one must have drifted, with suspended -oars, in a small boat, upon the far-famed bay of Naples, just as evening -fell, with the lofty banner of blue-black smoke waving majestically -above the summit of Vesuvius, in the distance, like the pennon of some -mighty earth giant, an ominous reminder of his terrible, through -slumbrous, power; with the city rising in the background, terrace on -terrace, from the water's edge to the stern old ducal castle, which -crowns the height and looms dark and forbiddingly against the sky, a -memory in stone, with the fairy island of Capri lying to seaward and the -cool breath of the Mediterranean filling the sails of the countless -fishing-boats gliding shoreward, while the boatmen sing to the subdued -accompaniment of the evening chimes softened by distance. Seen at midday -from the height, under the glare and scorch of the noonday sun, with the -discordant, jangling sounds of busy life rising harshly to one, like the -cries from some pit of torment, Naples seems a hell; but at the evening -hour, viewed from the bay, it is a veritable dream of heaven. - -No one has caught and embodied in music the mood and scene of this hour, -with its caressing coolness, its murmuring ripples, whispering secrets -of other days, like Rubinstein, though many have attempted it with more -or less success. Of his five barcarolles, all beautiful and -characteristic, the most faultlessly typical seems to me the one in G -major which I have selected for special mention. - -This is not only one of the most graceful and characteristic, as well as -most perfect in form and finish, but also decidedly the most realistic -of the five. The rhythmic play of the oars, the undulating movement of -the boat, and the constant plash of the water, are all vividly -suggested, and the melody of the boatman's song, original with -Rubinstein, is very appropriate and typical, heard in intermittent -fragments as if sung fitfully in broken snatches. The chords -accompanying the melody should be given lightly, though in nearly strict -time, in regular, rhythmic pulsations, but with a broken arpeggio -effect, that may well coincide with the representation of rippling -water, which idea is to be kept in mind. - -The passages in double-thirds, which form the principal difficulty of -the work, must be rendered with the utmost smoothness and delicacy. It -is a good plan to begin each passage with a very low and extremely loose -wrist, raising it gradually till quite high toward the middle of the run -and then lowering it as gradually and easily to the end. This insures -absolute flexibility and enhances the undulating effect. The following -little verses, by T. Buchanan Read, express exactly in words the mood of -this barcarolle, and I never play it without thinking of them: - - "My soul to-day - Is far away, - Adrift upon the Vesuvian bay. - My winged boat, - A bird afloat, - Glides by the purple peaks remote. - Across the rail - My hand I trail - Within the shadow of the sail. - With bliss intense - The cooling sense - Glides down my drowsy indolence." - - - - - Rubinstein: Kamennoi-Ostrow, No. 22 - - -Kamennoi-Ostrow is the name of one of a group of islands situated in the -Neva River, some miles below St. Petersburg, "Ostrow" being the Russian -word for island, and "Kamennoi" the specific name for this particular -island, signifying at once small and rocky. This island is a favorite -pleasure resort, both winter and summer, for the wealthy and -aristocratic classes of St. Petersburg; one of the imperial palaces is -situated upon it, besides many cafes, dance halls, summer and winter -concert gardens, and the like. In winter it is the objective point for -countless gay sleighing parties, in which the lavish Russian nobles vie -with each other in the display of elaborately decorated sledges, fine -blooded horses in glittering harness, and piles of almost priceless -furs. At this time the highway to and from the island is the smooth, -solid ice of the frozen river. In summer the transit is made by boat, -and the gaiety is higher during those gorgeous summer nights, when the -midnight sun, never quite vanishing below the southern horizon, floods -the scene with its wondrous, mystical light, unlike either moonlight or -the ordinary light of day, but described by enthusiastic beholders as -possessing a peculiar, magical charm wholly its own and scarcely to be -imagined by those who have never witnessed it. - -Rubinstein, who spent many years of his later life at St. Petersburg, -was naturally a frequent visitor at Kamennoi-Ostrow. In fact, on several -occasions he spent a number of weeks consecutively at one of its summer -hotels and became very familiar with all phases of gaiety at this -festive resort and well acquainted with most of its habitues. His set of -twenty-four pieces for the piano, entitled "Kamennoi-Ostrow," is a -series of tone sketches suggested by and representing various scenes and -personages which his sojourn there brought within his experience. The -No. 22, which is probably the best of the set and certainly the most -widely known, is intended as the musical portrait of a lady, -Mademoiselle Anna de Friedebourg, a personal acquaintance of Rubinstein, -to whom the composition is dedicated. It is a portrait drawn in tender -yet glowing tints against the soft background of the summer night, -outlining, however, the spiritual rather than the physical charms and -characteristics of the lady, affording us a conception of her -individuality as well as the mood of the surroundings. The first and -principal subject, a slow and song-like lyric melody, enunciated by the -left hand, with its peculiarly warm and mellow character, reminding one, -in color and quality, of the tone of the G string on the violin, is -intended to suggest the personality of the lady, or perhaps, more -strictly, the emotional impression which this personality produced upon -the composer; while the delicate, vibratory accompaniment of the right -hand indicates the poetic setting or background, the luminous midsummer -night, in one of those island pleasure gardens, the weird light -quivering down through tremulous leaves, the mingled scent of flowers -and faint sea-breezes, the hum of summer insects, and the whisper of the -reeds stirred by the lazily flowing river. - -Upon the dreamful hush of this audible silence sounds clear, but sweet -and silvery, the little bell of a Greek Catholic chapel, not far -distant, calling to midnight mass and ringing out at regular intervals, -with soft persistency, through the whole of the second strain or -movement. Below and subordinate to it is heard a curious series of -colloquial phrases of melody, subdued and fitful, like the fragments of -a murmured conversation, as if a low and interrupted dialogue were -taking place. Then the full, rich chords of the organ roll out upon the -quiet night, flooding it at once with ample waves of grave, solemn -harmony. This is followed by a brief passage of recitative in single -notes, suggesting the voice of the priest intoning the service within -the chapel. It is said to be an exact reproduction, note for note, of a -fragment of very ancient Hebrew music, once forming a part of the -religious exercises of the Jews and long ago incorporated into the Greek -Catholic service. - -Then comes an effective, but seemingly irrelevant, cadenza in double -arpeggios which, though pleasing, has no apparent connection either with -the subject or the mood of the rest of the composition, but which serves -indifferently well as a means of leading back to the first theme, -presented this time with full, flowing accompaniment in a more -impassioned guise, as if to indicate the deeper, more intensified -emotions developed by the romantic scene and poetic surroundings. - -The composition closes with a momentary return of the little -conversational strain, merely suggested and only just audible this time, -like whispered words of farewell; and then a few quiet chords of the -organ, lingering and slowly fading into the silence, as a pleasant -memory reluctantly dissolves into slumber. - - - - - GRIEG - 1843 1907 - - - - - Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite, Op. 46 - - -Grieg is the chief living exponent of Norwegian music, as Ibsen is of -its literature. "Peer Gynt" is a versified drama by Henrik Ibsen, to -which Grieg has written an orchestral suite of that name, from which -arrangements for piano have been transcribed, both for two and four -hands. - -The scenes, incidents, moods, and characters of Ibsen's drama are -essentially Scandinavian; wild, gloomy, fantastic, often vague and -incoherent to the reader of more classic and polished literature. Peer -Gynt, the hero, is a lawless adventurer, of wild and uncouth -personality, undisciplined instincts and passions, and most chaotic -career. - -The various parts of the Grieg suite are founded upon various scenes of -the drama, but the numbering of the different movements will mislead the -player, as the chronological progression of the drama is not always -adhered to in the music. The following is the order in which the numbers -should be presented to fit the scenes which they represent in the life -and adventures of Peer Gynt: (1) Peer Gynt and Ingrid; (2) Troll Dance; -(3) Death of Ase; (4) Arabian Dance; (5) Anitra's Dance; (6) Solveig's -Song; (7) Morning; (8) Storm; (9) Cradle Song. I have included in their -proper places two of the songs of Solveig, the principal heroine of the -drama, which Grieg has also set to music and which should be rendered by -soprano voice. - - - 1. Peer Gynt and Ingrid - -This is also called "Ingrid's Complaint" and _"Brautraub_," or the -robbery of the bride. It is the first of the scenes in the drama which -Grieg has rendered into music, and represents one of the earliest -escapades in the life of the hero, when he attended the rustic -festivities of a wedding in the neighborhood, and, seized with a sudden -infatuation for the bride, Ingrid, ran away with her to the mountains, -in the face of the assembled company. The first four measures, marked -"allegro furioso," suggest the furious movement and delirious excitement -of the flight and pursuit, contrasting ludicrously with the dazed, -helpless astonishment of the disappointed bridegroom. - -The following protracted plaintive minor strains embody the complainings -and reproaches of Ingrid, grieving for a life ruined and happiness -destroyed, from which Peer suddenly makes his escape, brutally leaving -her to her fate in the hills; and the first four measures are repeated -at the close, to indicate that the only lasting impression made upon him -by the whole affair was that of the exciting and triumphant moment of -his success. - - - 2. Troll Dance - -This is the most graphic of all the numbers, and is sometimes called "In -the Hall of the Mountain King." The _troll_ seems to be the Scandinavian -mountain spirit, but more of the nature of gnomes, kobolds, and goblins -than of the gentle elves and fairies of English lore. After deserting -the unfortunate Ingrid in the forest, Peer fled still deeper into the -rugged fastnesses, where he was surrounded at nightfall by a pack of -trolls, who alternately teased and entertained him with their pranks and -antics, until scattered at dawn by the sound of church-bells in the -distance. - -The grotesque character of this movement admirably depicts the uncanny -mood and nature of the trolls. The opening measures are light and weird, -fantastically suggesting the stealthy footsteps of the gathering pack of -trolls, emerging on tiptoe from the mists and shadows of the night, and -cautiously surrounding their uninvited guest. Little by little the -movement becomes more impetuous, as the hilarity and excitement -increase, until toward the close it grows to an incoherent whirl and -rush, above which ring out sharply the gruesome shrieks of the -infuriated goblins, balked of the continuance of their vindictive -delight in tormenting their victim, by the approach of dawn. - - - 3. Death of Ase - -On returning to his mother's hut in his native village, after these and -many other adventures, Peer finds her on her death-bed, and remains with -her through the night, during which she passes away, enlivening her last -hours with the most preposterous tales and pantomimes. This scene of the -drama, in spite of its solemnity and sadness, carries the fantastic to -the extreme verge of the grotesque. - -The illustrative music is cast in the mold of a "funeral march," without -trio and with but one well-developed theme. In it Grieg has emphasized -only the somber and tragical aspect of the situation, ignoring entirely -its touches of ghastly humor. The utter and crushing despair of a -wrecked and disappointed life, of shattered hopes and unrequited and -unappreciated maternal affection, sobs through its strains, enhancing -the pangs of approaching dissolution. Its mood is that of unqualified -gloom, unrelieved by a single vibration of hope or consolation. - - - 4. Arabian Dance - -In the interval which has elapsed since the death of Ase, our hero, now -in the prime of life, driven by his erratic spirit and love of -adventure, has landed upon the coast of Africa, after being fairly -hounded out of his own country by the ridicule and contempt of his -neighbors. This scene takes place in an oasis of the Great Desert, where -an Arab chief has pitched his tent, and where Peer, mounted on a stolen -white charger and clad in stolen silk and jeweled robes, has arrived in -the role of the prophet to the Bedouins. A bevy of Arabian girls are -dancing before him in oriental costume, pausing to render homage at -intervals to the supposed prophet, who reclines among cushions, drinking -coffee and smoking a long pipe. The music begins with a monotonous -rhythmical figure in the accompaniment, suggesting the beat of -tambourines and castanets, and the melody of the opening strain is weird -rather than bright, stealthily playful rather than openly gay, rising -soon to a considerable degree of excited movement. The trio, with its -double melody and its languorous warmth of cadence, tells of -increasingly involved figures in the dance and a more voluptuous, -seductive grace of motion among the dancers. Then the opening strain is -repeated, with its clash of tambourines, its tinkle of silver bangles -and anklets, and its mood of repressed, but jocose, humor, beneath a -flimsy veil of fictitious gravity. - - - 5. Anitra's Dance - -Anitra, the light-limbed and dark-eyed daughter of the chief, has won -the especial favor of the prophet, and dances alone before him after her -companions have retired. Peer is enraptured and promises to make her an -houri in paradise, and to give her a soul, a very little one, in return -for her love and service. She is not much tempted by the soul, but -finally consents to fly to the desert with him for the gift of the large -opal from his turban. Anitra's dance is more warmly subjective, more -distinctly personal in character than the preceding, at once lighter and -more rapid, more tender and winningly graceful, full of arch defiance, -playful witcheries, and the coquettish confidence of the high-born -maiden and practised solo-danseuse, certain of her power and bent on -using it to the full, for the complete subjugation of their prophet -guest. We can almost feel her smoothly undulating movements, her swift, -but seductive, changes of pose, and those sharp, stolen side-glances, -skilfully blended of shyness and fire, flashing from beneath her -drooping black lashes, fascinating, but dangerous, like lightning gleams -from a fringe of somber cloud. - - - 6. Solveig's Song - -Solveig, a Norwegian maiden of Peer's own village, the earliest and only -worthy love of his life, whom he has deserted in a spasm of virtue, -feeling himself unfit to remain with her, sits spinning at the door of a -log hut, in a forest far up in the North. She is now a middle-aged -woman, fair and comely, and as she spins she sings of her unfailing -faith in Peer's return, her own ever-constant love, and her prayers to -God to strengthen and gladden her lover on earth or in heaven. In the -music to this song Grieg has admirably depicted the character of -Solveig: beautiful, tender, joyous, and full of hope. The English -translation of the words, which is but a poor and inadequate -representation of the original, runs as follows: - - "Though winter departeth, - And fadeth the May; - Though summer, too, may vanish, - The year pass away; - Yet thou'lt return, my darling, - For thou, love, art mine. - I gave thee my promise, - Forever I am thine. - - "God help thee, my darling, - If living art thou; - God bless thee, O my darling, - If dead thou art now. - I will wait thy coming - Till thou drawest near; - Or tarry thou in heaven, - Till I can meet thee, dear." - - - 7. Morning - -This, the most musical and sensuously beautiful movement of the whole -suite, represents daybreak in Egypt, with the desert in the distance and -the great pyramids, with groups of acacias and palms in the foreground, -against a rosy eastern sky. Peer stands before the statue of Memnon in -the first hush of the dawn, and watches the rays of the rising sun -strike upon it, when, true to the ancient tradition, the statue sings. -Soft and mysterious strains of music, monotonous and prolonged, are -drawn by the sunbeams from the venerable stone. - -The melody of this movement is of extreme simplicity and lyric beauty, -pure and fresh as the dawn. Its cadences swell in power and volume as -the sun rises higher; and the full flood of light is transmitted into a -full flood of song, as the statue thrills and vibrates with the first -kisses of the ardent Egyptian sun. - -After the climax, which is full and joyous, but never passionate, the -music diminishes and dies away in broken snatches, as the statue, now -thoroughly impregnated with light and warmth, ceases to emit those -sounds with which it has been said to salute the daybreak for four -thousand years. - - - 8. Storm - -Peer Gynt, now a vigorous old man, is on board a ship on the North Sea -off the Norwegian coast, trying to discern the familiar outline of -mountains and glaciers through the growing twilight and gathering storm. -The wind rises to a gale; it grows dark; the sea increases; the ship -labors and plunges; breakers are ahead; the sails are torn away; the -ship strikes and goes to pieces, a shattered wreck, and the waves -swallow all. Peer, true to his nature, saves his life and adds to the -list of his sins by pushing a fellow-passenger from an upturned boat -which will not support both, and floating to shore. - -This, the final instrumental number of the suite, is by far the most -difficult, important, and pretentious of them all; and whether regarded -from a musical or descriptive standpoint, is unquestionably the crowning -effort of the whole work. It portrays the mood and the might of the -tempest with startling vividness, the blackness of the storm-racked -clouds, the rage of the wind-lashed waters, the shrieking of the gale -through snapping cordage, the almost human complaining of the noble -ship, struggling hopelessly with her doom. In brief, the strength, the -power, and the manifold phantom voices of the storm are simultaneously -and graphically expressed, and the mood and movement, both in duration -and completeness of development, exceed those in any of the other -numbers. At length, however, after the catastrophe, the force of the -storm is broken, the fury of wind and waves subsides, and the receding -thunder clouds mutter their baffled rage and threats of deferred -destruction more and more faintly as they disappear, and the light of -morning breaks upon the scene. Then softly, like the audible voice of -the sunlight, comes an instrumental transcription of Solveig's song of -love, previously sung, whose familiar strains symbolically express the -idea that her sleepless affection, her guardian thoughts and prayers -have watched over her loved one and brought him at last safely through -danger and tempest to his native shore. This symbolic use of Solveig's -song, with its suggestive significance, is in my opinion the happiest -and most poetic touch in the whole composition. - - - 9. Solveig's Cradle Song - -Solveig, the guardian angel of Peer's life, represents and appeals to -all that is good in his nature. Her influence, even in the midst of his -maddest escapades, has never wholly deserted him, and serves at last as -the magnet to draw him back to her and home. The last scene in the drama -represents Solveig, now a serene-faced, silver-haired old lady, stepping -forth from the door of the forest hut, on her way to church. Peer, who -in his chaotic fashion has become a prey to disappointment, to remorse, -and to fear of death, appears suddenly before her, calling himself a -sinner and crying for condemnation from the lips of the woman whom he -has most sinned against. Solveig sinks upon a bench at the door of the -hut. Peer drops upon his knees at her feet and buries his face in her -lap. The sun rises and the curtain falls as she sings her lullaby song -of peace and happiness. Grieg has set these last stanzas of the drama to -music under the title of Solveig's Wiegenlied, or Cradle Song. They are -translated as follows: - - "Sleep thou, dearest boy of mine! - I will cradle thee, I will watch thee. - The boy has been sitting on his mother's lap, - The two have been playing all the life-day long. - The boy has been resting at his mother's breast - All the life-day long. God's blessing on my joy. - The boy has been lying close in to my heart - All the life-day long. He is weary now. - Sleep thee, dearest boy of mine! - I will cradle thee, I will watch thee. - Sleep and dream thou, dear my boy!" - -These lines seem to indicate a transition from wifely love to maternal -love in the affection of Solveig, with the advent of age. - -The moral of the drama, not a very ethical one, but one which has -possessed the minds of many devoted women since the world began, appears -to be that in love alone is salvation. Whatever the errors and sins and -follies of the man, he is won at last and saved, even at the eleventh -hour, by the faith, the hope, and the love of one devoted woman. - - - - - Grieg: An den Fruehling (Spring Song), Op. 43, No. 6 - - -Among the very few strictly lyric compositions for the piano by -Grieg,--a vein in which he was singularly unproductive for so eminent a -genius,--this spring song must unquestionably take rank as the best, the -most evenly sustained throughout, the most perfect in form and finish, -and decidedly the finest as well as most emotional in quality. - -The opening notes of the right hand accompaniment fall light and silvery -as the soft drops of the April shower upon the waiting woods, when the -first faint shimmer of tender green begins to tint the tips of the -waving boughs. Then the melody enters in the left hand with subdued, -repressed intensity, warmly, sweetly vibrant, like the upper register of -that most passionate of instruments, the 'cello, a melody telling of -mild, languorous days and soft, dream-haunted nights, thrilled through -by the mysterious throbbing of a new life in the earth's long-frozen -veins; telling of Nature, surprised but radiantly happy, awakening at -the touch of her ardent lover, the sudden spring, from her ice-locked -sleep, like the slumbering, frost-fettered bride in the old legend of -Siegfried and Bruennhilde; telling of summer joys and brightness begotten -of their union, of bird songs, sweeter for the long silence, of -many-tinted flowers springing in fragrant profusion where the cold white -drifts of winter lay but yesterday, as if the snowflakes had all been -transformed to blossoms by the magic kiss of the sun; of love as sudden -as the spring, as tenderly sweet as its violets, strong as its rushing -torrents, but alas! too often as transient as its fleeting glories. This -sudden, startling thought of pain and disillusion strikes sharply across -the mellow, golden current of the stream with a somber threatening note -of danger and distress rising to a swift, strong climax of indignant -protest or fierce defiance, a contrasting reactionary mood common to -certain minds, like those, for instance, of Byron and Heine, aptly -illustrated by the following lines, translated from the German of -Amentor: - - "Sing not to me of spring, its flowers and azure skies, - Fleeting delusions all to cheat unwary eyes. - Talk not to me of love, its dreams of Paradise. - The charms of spring, the joys of love, are brilliant lies." - -But this dark mood is of but brief duration; it is soon exorcised by the -plenitude of sunshine and the exuberance of springtime happiness, and -the first melody returns with all its glowing beauty and seductive -sweetness, and with a fuller, more fluent, voluptuous accompaniment, -suggesting the mingled voices of many streams exulting in their new -freedom, or the irregular, intermittent sighs of May breezes, impatient -with having to rock all the baby leaves at once. - -This composition is technically of only moderate difficulty, but -requires for its proper delivery a fine taste, great warmth of feeling, -and a telling, sensuous quality of tone for the melody, while the right -hand accompaniment in the first movement is kept almost infinitely light -and delicate. The sudden burst of passionate pain and resentment in the -climax should be given with extreme intensity and a decided acceleration -of tempo, as well as increase in power; followed by an abrupt fall to a -caressing pianissimo, and a long lingering hold on the final chord just -preceding the return of the first melody, to accentuate the renewal of -the softer, sunnier mood. - - - - - Grieg: Voeglein (Little Birds), Op. 43, No. 4 - - -A charming and effective supplementary companion piece to the spring -song is that exquisitely, daintily fanciful, yet exceedingly brief piece -of descriptive tone painting, called "The Little Birds," published in -the same volume of lyrics with the preceding number. It may be played as -an added and appropriate coda to the spring song. It is one of those -graphically realistic productions which tell their own story. It -portrays very literally, by more than suggestive imitation, the blithe -twitter of the spring birds fluttering amid the dancing leaves and -sunlight, engaged in their delightful occupation of nest-building. -Notice, too, the sudden touch of facetious drollery, so characteristic -of Grieg, where the delicate little bird motive is abruptly transferred -to the bass register, producing a peculiarly comical, grotesque effect, -reminding one of the gutteral hilarity of the spring-awakened frogs in -some neighboring pool. - -Exceeding lightness and delicacy, combined with a certain playful -staccato effect, are the chief technical requisites for the correct -performance of this work, which, though small, will well repay careful -study. The tone produced should be crisp and bright, though never rising -above piano, and the tempo not exceedingly rapid. - - - - - Grieg: Berceuse, Op. 38, No. 1 - - -One of Grieg's most charming lyrics is this thoroughly unique and -characteristic Cradle Song. This has always been a most attractive and -facilely treated subject for piano-compositions, on account of the way -in which it lends itself to realistic handling. - -The general plan of these compositions is always substantially the same: -a simple, swinging accompaniment in the left hand, symbolizing the -rocking cradle, and a soft, soothing melody in the right, more or less -elaborately ornamented, suggesting the song of the nurse or mother -lulling the child to rest. - -An almost infinite variety of effect is possible, however, within these -seemingly narrow limits, dependent upon the differing ability and -personality of the composer, the diversity in melodic and harmonic -coloring, and especially upon the environment and conditions conceived -of by the writer as the setting or background of the picture. The range -of legitimate suggestion in this regard by means of such works is as -broad as that of human experience itself. For instance, the child -imagined may be the idolized prince of a royal line, rocked in a golden -cradle with a jeweled crown embossed upon its satin canopy, and guarded -by the loyalty, the hopes and pride of a mighty nation; or it may be the -sickly offspring of want and suffering, doomed from its birth to sorrow -and struggle and disappointment, to a crown of toil and a heritage of -tears; or perhaps it may be a fairy changeling, stolen by Titania in -some wayward caprice, rocked to sleep in a lily-cup upon crystal waves, -or watching, with large, wondering human eyes, the pranks of the forest -elves as they trace with swiftly circling feet their magic rings upon -the moss, or awaken the morning-glories upon the lawn with a shower-bath -of dew. - -The lullaby song of the mother may thrill with the sweet content and -rapturous joy of a life of love and brightness but just begun, and -seemingly endless in its forward vista of ever new and ever glad -surprises. Her fancies may be winged by hope and happiness to airy -flights in which no sky-piercing height seems impossible; or her voice -may vibrate with the songs of a broken-hearted widow, who guards the -little sleeper in an agony of loving fear, as the last treasure saved -from the wreck of her world. As the smallest plot of garden ground -possesses the capacity to receive and develop the germs of the most -diverse forms of vegetation, from the violet to the oak, from the -fragrant rose to the deadly poppy, so these modest little musical forms -are replete with an almost boundless potentiality of suggestion. - -In the case of this particular work by Grieg, the child portrayed is no -delicate rose-tinted girl-baby, downily cushioned upon silken pillows, -peeping timidly from a drift of dainty laces like the first crocuses -from the feathery snow of April, but the lusty son of a Viking stock, -with the blood of a sturdy race of fighters coursing red through his -veins, and with a will and a voice of his own, cradled in the hollow -trunk of a pine or the hide-lashed blade-bones of the elk, wrapped in -the skin of wolf or bear, and lulled to sleep by the rough, but kindly, -crooning of a peasant nurse. May we not fancy the refrain of her song -somewhat after the fashion of the following lines? - - "Oh, hush thee, my baby; - The time will soon come - When thy rest will be broken - By trumpet and drum, - When the bows will be bent, - The blades will be red, - And the beacon of battle - Will blaze overhead. - Then hush thee, my baby, - Take rest while you may, - For strife comes with manhood - As waking with day." - - - - - Grieg: The Bridal Procession, from "Aus dem Volksleben." Op. 19, No. 2 - - -One of the best known and most popular of Grieg's compositions is the -second movement of his piano suite entitled "Aus dem Volksleben" -(sketches of Norwegian country life), a work which portrays, with all -his graphic power and good-natured humor, a number of unique and -characteristic phases of the peasant life in Norway. This second -movement, at once the easiest and most pleasing number of the suite, is -intended as a realistic representation of the music of a primitive -peasant band, which leads a rural bridal procession, made up of -Norwegian countrypeople, on its way to the church. - -We may fancy ourselves seated on a bank by the roadside, with a jolly -company of villagers in picturesque holiday costume, listening to their -jests and gaiety as we await the rustic pageant. Soon our attention is -caught by the sound of distant music, gradually approaching, strange, -weird, uncanny music, as if the gnomes and trolls had left their work in -the secret mines and caverns of the mountains, where they are ever -forging new chains for the fettered earth-giants as their prisoned -strength increases, and had turned musicians for a frolic and come forth -into the light of day to join the festival. The rhythmic beat of drums -and cymbals, the shrill, strident notes of the fife, the quaint, -quavering tones of the pipe and clarinet, mingle in a strain jocosely -mirthful, rather than truly gay, and becoming more insistent as it -advances. - -There is no trace of tenderness, no hint of sweet anticipation, no -suggestive undertone of sacred solemnity, in this music. We miss the -warm color and tremulous, sustained effects of the violins, which with -us are always symbolic of love. It seems almost like a musical satire on -the tender passion; as if the divine but dethroned Balder (the God of -Love in Norse mythology), disgusted by the infidelity and ingratitude of -mankind, were employing all his wondrous power as a minstrel to -depreciate and deride this his best gift to humanity. But perhaps we do -not rightly appreciate the significance of the music. As it draws nearer -and nearer, growing stronger with every moment, we begin to suspect that -perhaps its very rudeness and primitive energy express more truthfully -than more delicate, dreamy, finely shaded cadences could do, the idea -that human love is one of the elemental forces of nature, underlying and -antedating all the subtilizing refinements of civilization, and destined -to outlast them, as the rugged granite of the northern mountains -antedates and will outlast all the crystal palaces of taste and luxury. - -On comes the procession, the music swelling and growing with every step, -till as it passes immediately before us it becomes an almost deafening -crash of dissonant instruments, each player with lusty good-will doing -his utmost to honor the occasion, outvie his comrades, and earn his -share in the wedding feast, by making his part most prominent in the -general din. First comes the band, then the bride and groom and the -bridesmaids in white, with wands and wreaths, a troop of children with -baskets of flowers, then a company of the immediate friends and -relatives of the bridal pair, with the older neighbors and acquaintances -soberly bringing up the rear. So they defile before us, and pass on -their way down the sunlit country road to the church, the music -gradually diminishing as it recedes into the distance, growing fainter -and fainter till only occasional shriller notes or louder fragments -reach us, and at last even these are sunk in the summer silence. - -This movement is in march time and form, and the strict, unvarying march -rhythm should be preserved throughout, absolutely without variation. The -tone should be crisp and clear, with but little singing quality, to -represent that of wooden wind instruments, but varying in degree from -the softest possible _pp_ to the most tremendous _fff_ which the -performer is capable of producing. The player is here afforded an -opportunity of testing his powers in that most difficult of all elements -in pianism--a long-sustained, evenly-graded crescendo and diminuendo. To -produce its true realistic effect, the music should emerge almost -imperceptibly out of silence, increase steadily, but by infinitesimal -degrees, to the greatest quantity of tone power which the instrument -will produce; then diminish as gradually and steadily till it dissolves -into silence again at the close; not stopping at a given point, but -simply ceasing to sound. Those who have heard Rubinstein render the -Turkish march from "The Ruins of Athens" will remember it as a masterly -model for this effect. - - - - - SAINT-SAENS - 1835 - - - - - Saint-Saens: Le Rouet d'Omphale - - -Saint-Saens, though himself a first-rate concert pianist and the -composer of some excellent things for the piano, notably in concerto -form, is, nevertheless, chiefly gifted and principally celebrated as a -writer for orchestra, having done his best, most original, and most -interesting work in this line. Among his many important compositions for -full orchestra, there are perhaps none which better represent his -individuality and peculiar style than his four "Symphonic Poems," of -which two have been selected for illustration here. This form of -composition, as well as its name, originated with Franz Liszt, whose -twelve "Symphonic Poems" are his most important contributions to -orchestra literature. In musical structure the symphonic poem -corresponds to the modern overture and to the pianoforte ballade, as -exemplified by Chopin, much more nearly than to the symphony proper. It -consists of a single movement, without different divisions and -pronounced differentiated parts, such as are to be found in the -regulation symphony, though it often expresses a wide variety of moods, -merging into one another without pause or interruption. - -Its only radical point of similarity to the symphony lies in the fact -that its first principal theme is subjected to an elaborate and logical -development in most cases, as in the symphonic allegro. It is distinctly -an outgrowth of modern romanticism and deals always with the somewhat -definite poetic thought, or some real or imaginary episode from life. It -is, in fact, program music of the most pronounced and uncompromising -type, and the special thought or episode is always indicated by its -descriptive title. - -The four Symphonic Poems of Saint-Saens are: (1) Le Rouet d'Omphale; (2) -Phaeton; (3) Danse Macabre; (4) La Jeunesse d'Hercule. - -I have selected for consideration here the first and third, entitled -respectively the "Rouet d'Omphale" and the "Danse Macabre"; the one -descriptive of a classic, the other of a medieval scene and tradition. - -The first, the "Wheel of Omphale," was suggested by the Greek myth of -Hercules and Omphale. The story of the pair is familiar to all readers -of classic mythology, and represents perhaps the most singular episode -in the checkered career of this hero and demigod. The legend runs as -follows: Hercules, having killed his friend Iphitus in a fit of madness, -to which he was occasionally subject, fell a prey to a severe malady, -sent upon him by the gods in punishment for this murder. He consulted -the Delphic oracle with a view to learning the means of escaping from -this disease. He was informed by the oracle that he could only be cured -by allowing himself to be sold as a slave for three years, and giving -the purchase money to the father of Iphitus as recompense for the loss -of his son. Accordingly Hercules was sold by Mercury as a slave to -Omphale, the Queen of Lydia, then reigning in that country, who had long -been desirous to see this strongest of men and greatest hero of his age. -He remained with her the allotted three years, and during this period of -slavery, by the wish of the queen, the warrior-hero assumed female -attire and sat spinning among the women, where his royal mistress often -chastised him with her sandal for his awkward manner of holding the -distaff, while she paraded in his lion's skin, armed with his famous -war-club. But if awkward at the distaff this son of Jupiter understood -other arts which he practised upon the Lydian queen; for in the -intervals of spinning he made love to her so successfully that from -their union sprang the race of Croesus, famous in antiquity. Some -authorities regard this legend of Hercules and Omphale as of -astronomical significance, while others give it a moral interpretation, -saying it illustrates how even the strongest and bravest of men is -demeaned and belittled when subjugated by a woman. - -The music opens with a playfully realistic introduction, consisting of a -series of light, rapid-running figures and graceful embellishments, -imitatively suggesting the roll and buzz of the spinning-wheels. A -series of delicate turns, each an audible circle, add their quota of -pertinent symbolism to the general effect. Soon the melody enters, -joyous, musical, yet with a certain arch mockery, enhanced by its odd, -piquant rhythm. It is the song of the spinning maidens, cheerfully -speeding their hours of toil with music and mirth, with occasional -irrepressible touches of gay raillery at the expense of the clumsy -captive warrior, whose long face and futile attempts at their handicraft -afford them vast amusement. Now and then a distinct burst of silvery -laughter is heard above the boom of the wheels, interrupting the strain. -Omphale, too, is there, admonishing, chiding, ridiculing the hero, as he -moodily pursues his unwonted and unwilling task with many a blunder and -comical mistake; yet we can fancy a half-tender smile softening her -reprimands and sweetening her playful chastisements. - -Then with a radical change of mood and movement comes the second -important theme, a broad, impressive, strikingly original melody in the -bass, half gloomy, half indignant, the mighty manly voice of Hercules, -uplifted in grave lament and dignified protest, deploring his hard lot, -defying its humiliations, reproaching his gay tormentors, rebelling at -his menial duties and unworthy surroundings, yet with a stern, proud -gravity, a grand fortitude which scorns alike weak complainings and -impotent petulance. It subsides at last into philosophic resignation and -sorrowful self-repression, as if consoled by the thought that his -punishment is after all just and his submission voluntary. - -Then the spinning movement is resumed and the first song virtually -repeated, though in a materially modified rhythm; and the work ends -playfully, as it begins, with a wonderfully realistic imitation of the -gradual stopping of the wheels, as their momentum exhausts itself and -little by little their speed slackens and they finally come to a -complete rest when abandoned by the girls, as sunset ends the day's -work. - -This composition is one of Saint-Saens' most genial and melodious -productions, as well as an excellent piece of descriptive work. It may -be rendered on the piano either in the four-hand arrangement by Guiraud, -or as transcribed for two hands by the composer himself. It is about -equally feasible and effective in either of these forms. - - - - - Saint-Saens: Danse Macabre - - -For the significance of the French word _macabre_ we must turn to the -Arabic _makabir_, signifying a burial place or cemetery. The "Danse -Macabre," therefore, is simply a "cemetery dance" or "Dance of Death." - -One of the most prevalent superstitions during the middle ages -throughout Europe, and especially France, was that of the "Danse -Macabre,"--a belief that once a year, on Hallowe'en, the dead of the -churchyards rose for one wild, hideous carnival, one bacchanalian revel, -in which old King Death acted as master of ceremonies. This gruesome -idea appears frequently in the literature of the period, and also in its -painting, particularly in church decoration, and a more or less graphic -portrayal of the "Danse Macabre" may still be seen on the walls of some -old cathedrals and monasteries. - -This composition, belonging as it does to the ultra-realistic French -school of the present day, is a vivid tone picture of the same "Danse -Macabre." At the head of the original composition, serving as motto and -undoubtedly as direct inspiration for the music, stands a curious -ancient French poem in well-nigh obsolete fourteenth century idiom. I -have made a free translation of these verses into English, as follows: - - On a sounding stone, - With a blanched thigh-bone, - The bone of a saint, I fear, - Death strikes the hour - Of his wizard power, - And the specters haste to appear. - - From their tombs they rise - In sepulchral guise, - Obeying the summons dread, - And gathering round - With obeisance profound, - They salute the King of the Dead. - - Then he stands in the middle - And tunes up his fiddle, - And plays them a gruesome strain. - And each gibbering wight - In the moon's pale light - Must dance to that wild refrain. - - Now the fiddle tells, - As the music swells, - Of the charnel's ghastly pleasures; - And they clatter their bones - As with hideous groans - They reel to those maddening measures. - - The churchyard quakes - And the old abbey shakes - To the tread of that midnight host, - And the sod turns black - On each circling track, - Where a skeleton whirls with a ghost. - - The night wind moans - In shuddering tones - Through the gloom of the cypress tree, - While the mad rout raves - Over yawning graves - And the fiddle bow leaps with glee. - - So the swift hours fly - Till the reddening sky - Gives warning of daylight near. - Then the first cock crow - Sends them huddling below - To sleep for another year. - -The composition opens with twelve weird strokes indicating the arrival -of midnight, struck out upon a vibrant tombstone by the impatient hand -of Death himself. There follows a light, staccato passage, suggesting -the moment when, in obedience to this awesome signal, the specters -appear from their graves and come tiptoeing forward to take their places -in the fantastic circle. Then comes a strikingly realistic passage where -Death attempts to tune up his fiddle, as he is to furnish the music for -the dance. It has been lying disused since the last annual festival, is -very much out of tune, and refuses to come up to pitch. In spite of his -best endeavors, the E string obstinately remains at E flat. The -repetition of this passage at intervals throughout the composition -suggests occasional hasty and ill-timed efforts to tune up. - -Now comes the first theme of the dance itself, light, fantastic, -suggestive of purely physical excitement and ghastly pleasure, and -graphically representing the imagery of the corresponding verse of the -poem. - -The second theme is slower, heavier, more gloomily impressive, with its -weird minor harmonies and its strongly marked rhythms, suggesting the -darkness and terror of that midnight scene, the gruesome gravity of old -King Death, as master of ceremonies, and the increasingly ponderous -tread of that ghostly multitude, to which the gray walls of the abbey -and the very ground itself seem to reel in unison. This is the moment -when "the sod turns black where each skeleton whirls with a ghost." - -Death again attempts to tune up his fiddle, with frenzied haste, and the -dance grows in speed and impetuous power. Later it is interrupted by a -lyric intermezzo, brief but pathetically sweet. It seems to be a -plaintive lament played in a momentary pause of the dancing, expressing -the sad memories and hopeless longings of the dancers, the real mood -which underlies the forced gaiety of this wild revel. It is -appropriately accompanied by the AEolian-like effect of the night wind -sighing among the cypress boughs. An onward rush follows, more furiously -impetuous than before, for just as in the small hours the boisterous and -frenzied merriment of the witches in "Walpurgis Night" grew apace, so -does this skeleton dance gradually reach an almost demoniac climax of -hilarity, as all unite in a grand finale, a thunderous whirl of hideous -merriment. Here the first and second dance themes are very ingeniously -woven together, appearing simultaneously in a piece of most grotesque -but effective counterpoint. - -Then comes a sudden hush, in which the distant crow of the morning cock -is distinctly heard, a signal that daylight is approaching and the revel -must end. With a wild hurry and scurry the specters betake themselves to -their graves once more, a final lugubrious wail from the fiddle closing -the composition, as Death is the last to leave the field. - - - - - Counterparts among Poets and Musicians - - -Those who have had sufficient interest to read any considerable number -of the foregoing chapters cannot have failed to perceive that, to the -mind of the author, the sister arts, music and poetry, sustain to each -other an even closer, more vitally intimate relation than the family -connection generally conceded to them. - -It is a kinship of soul and sympathy, as well as of race--a similarity -of aim and influence upon humanity; a similarity, even in the kind of -effect produced, and the means employed to produce it, which renders -them largely interdependent and reciprocally helpful. The purpose of -both is expression, chiefly emotional expression, descriptions of nature -and references to natural phenomena being introduced merely as -accessories, as background or setting for the human life and interest, -which are of primary importance. Both express their meaning, not through -imitated sounds or forms borrowed from the physical world, but by means -of audible symbols devised by man for this express purpose, which have -come by long usage and general acceptance to have a definite -significance, but require a certain degree of education to comprehend -them, and which are therefore more intellectual, more adapted to the -expression of the subtler phases of life, and more purely human in their -origin, than the media of form and color employed in the plastic arts. - -True, the one uses tones, the other words, as its material; but the -difference is by no means so radical as at first appears. Both exist in -time, while all other arts have to do with space and substance. Both -have but one dimension, so to speak,--namely, duration,--and owe -whatever of the beauty of form and proportion they possess to a -symmetrical subdivision of this given duration into correspondent parts -or sections, by means of accents, brief pauses, and rhymes or cadences. -Both may successfully treat a progressive series of moods or scenes, of -varying character, and fluctuating intensity, which is not possible in -the plastic arts, limited as they all are to the portrayal of a single -situation, a single instant of time, a single fixed conception. Both, -again, possess a certain warmth and inherent pulsing life, which is -their common, dominant characteristic, due to the heart-throb of rhythm, -which is lacking in all other arts. - -Even in the media they employ, there is a strong though subtle -resemblance; both appeal directly to the sense of hearing, which -scientists tell us is more intimately connected with the nerve centers -of emotional life than any other of the senses. In both cases the -immediate appeal is to the feelings and the imagination, without -recourse to intervening imagery borrowed from external nature. Both -embody the cry of one soul to another, and they are not widely divergent -in quality or effect. Language at its highest is almost song, and music -at its best is idealized declamation. All good poetry must be musical. -It should, as we say, sing itself; and all good music must be poetical, -conveying a distinctly poetic impression. - -To me every poem presupposes a possible musical setting, and every -worthy composition, a possible poetic text. Hence the language used, in -describing music, must of necessity, so far as the powers of the writer -permit, possess a generally poetic character. In all my thought and -reading, along this line, it has seemed to me, not only of extreme -interest, but of great practical value to every musician and writer, to -devote careful study to the analogy between these arts, to the -correspondences between artists, in these parallel lines of work, and -between their special productions in each, to obtain the widest possible -familiarity with both arts and their mutual relations, with a view to -letting each aid to a fuller elucidation and better appreciation of the -other. I have always grouped together in my mind Bach and Milton, -Beethoven and Shakespeare, Mozart and Spenser, Schubert and Moore, -Schumann and Shelley, Mendelssohn and Longfellow, Chopin and Tennyson, -Liszt and Byron, Wagner and Victor Hugo. - -Bach and Milton seem to me to occupy corresponding niches in the temples -of music and of verse, because of the strong religious element in the -personality of both, of their severe, involved, lengthy, sonorous, and -dignified style of utterance; their mutual disdain of mere sentiment and -softer graces, and their fondness for works of large dimensions and -serious import. Furthermore, because of the proneness of both to -religious and churchly subjects, and the corresponding position which -they occupy as veteran classics in their respective arts. - -The analogy between Beethoven and Shakespeare is almost too obvious for -remark. They are the twin giants of music and literature in their -colossal and comprehensive powers, in the breadth and universality of -their genius, and in the verdict of absolute superiority unanimously -accorded them by all nations, all schools, and all factions, both in the -profession and by the public. They are like the pyramids of Egypt; they -overtop all altitudes, cover more area, and present a more enduring -front to the "corroding effects of time" than aught else the world has -known. - -Mozart and Spenser resemble each other in their quaint and classic, yet -naive and sunshiny style, their abundance, almost excess of fancy, and -their fondness for supernatural, though for the most part non-religious -and non-mythological scenes, incidents, and characters; also in their -habit of treating startling situations and normally grievous -catastrophes without exciting any very profound subjective emotions in -their readers and hearers. Not that they are flippant or superficial in -character; far from it; but with them art was somewhat removed from -humanity. With Spenser literature was not life, and with Mozart music -was not emotion. We smile and are glad at heart because of them, but we -are not thrilled; we are pensive or reflective, but we rarely weep and -are never plunged into despair. There is a moral lesson, it is true, in -the feats of the knights and ladies in the "Faery Queen," as also in the -vicissitudes of that rather admirable scoundrel, Don Juan, but it is not -burned into us, as by a keener and crueler hand. Those who enjoy poetry -and music, rather than feel it, love it, or learn from it, are always -partial to Spenser and Mozart. - -No artistic affinity is more marked than that of Schubert and Moore. -They are both preeminently song-writers. Both had a gift of spontaneous, -happy, graceful development of a single thought in small compass. Both -are melodious beyond compare, and both wrote with an ease, rapidity, and -versatility rarely matched in the annals of their arts. Moore is the -most musical of poets, and Schubert, perhaps, the most poetic of -musicians. One of Moore's life-purposes was the collection of stray -waifs of national airs and furnishing them with appropriate words. -Likewise, one of Schubert's main services to art was the collection of -brief lyric poems and setting them to suitable melodies. Each reached -over into the sister art a friendly hand, and each, unawares, won his -chief fame thereby. Moreover, though clinging by instinct and preference -to the smaller, simpler, more unpretentious forms, each wrote one or two -lengthy and well-developed works, such as the "Lalla Rookh," with Moore, -and the "Wanderer Fantaisie," with Schubert, which gloriously bear -comparison with the masterpieces of their type from the pens of the -ablest writers in the larger forms. - -Shelley has been called the poet's poet, and Schumann might as aptly be -termed the musician's composer; because the subtle, fanciful, subjective -character and the metaphysical tendency of the works of both require the -keen insight and the fertile imagination of the artistic temperament, to -follow them in all their flights and catch the full significance of -their suggestions. With both, the instinct for form is weak, and the -constructive faculty almost wanting. Ideas and figures are fine, -profound, and astute, but there is a lack of lucidity, brevity, and -force, as well as of logical development, in their expression. A few -bits of melody by Schumann, such as the "Traeumerei," and an occasional -brief lyric by Shelley, like "The Skylark," have become well-known and -popular; but their works, in the main, are likely to be the last ever -written to catch the public ear. They appeal the more strongly to the -inner circle of initiates who are familiar spirits in the mystical -realm, whose language they speak. Where Shelley is the favorite poet, -and Schumann the favorite composer, an unusually active fancy and subtle -intellect are sure to be found. - -Mendelssohn and Longfellow are alike in almost every feature. Both are -in temperament objective and optimistic. Both are graceful, fluent, -melodious, tender, and thoughtful, without being ever strongly -impassioned or really dramatic. Both display superior and -well-disciplined powers, nobility of sentiment, and ease and grace of -manner. Perfect gentlemen and polished scholars, both avoid all radical -and reformatory tendencies, to such an extent as to lend a shade of -conventionality to their artistic personality, as compared with the -extreme romanticists of their day. Both have reached the public ear and -heart as no other talent of equal magnitude has ever done. Many of the -ballads, narrative poems, and shorter pieces by Longfellow, and the -"Songs Without Words," by Mendelssohn, have become so familiar as to be -almost hackneyed, even with the non-poetic and non-musical populace. - -Chopin is beyond dispute the Tennyson of the pianoforte. The same depth, -warmth, and delicacy of feeling vitalizing every line, the same polish, -fineness of detail, and symmetry of form, the same exquisitely refined, -yet by no means effeminate, temperament are seen in both. Each shows us -fervent passion, beyond the ken of common men, without a touch of -brutality; intense and vehement emotion, with never a hint of violence -in its betrayal, expressed in dainty rhythmic numbers as polished and -symmetrical as if that symmetry and polish were their only _raison -d'etre_. This similar trait leads often to a similar mistake in regard -to both. Superficial observers, fixing their attention on the preeminent -delicacy, tenderness, elegance, and grace of their manner and matter, -regard them as exponents of these qualities merely, and deny them -broader, stronger, sterner characteristics. Never was a grosser wrong -done true artists. No poet and no composer is more profound, passionate, -and intense than Tennyson and Chopin, and none so rarely pens a line -that is devoid of genuine feeling as its legitimate origin. But the -artist in each stood with quiet finger on the riotous pulses of emotion, -and forbade all utterance that was crude, chaotic, or uncouth. Both had -the heart of fire and tongue of gold. Tennyson wrote the model lyrics of -his language and Chopin the model lyrics of his instrument, for all -posterity. Edgar Poe said of Tennyson: "I call him and think him the -noblest of poets, because the excitement which he induces is at all -times the most ethereal, the most elevating, and the most pure. No poet -is so little of the earth, earthy." The same words might well be spoken -of Chopin. - -Liszt and Byron were kindred spirits, both as men and artists. Among the -serener stars and planets that move majestically in harmony with -heaven's first law, to the music of the spheres, they were like meteors -or comets, appearing above the horizon with dazzling brilliance, and -darting to the zenith, through an erratic career, reaching a summit of -fame and popularity, attained during his lifetime by no other poet or -musician, and setting at defiance all laws of art, of society, and of -morals. Brilliancy of style and character, haughty independence, -impetuous passion, a matchless splendor of genius, a supreme contempt -for the weaknesses of lesser mortals, combined with the warmest -admiration for their peers, are the distinguishing attributes of both. -Byron's devoted friendship for Moore and Shelley corresponds exactly to -Liszt's feeling for Chopin and Wagner. Liszt himself recognized this -affinity between himself and Byron. The English poet was for many years -his model and favorite author; many of his scenes and poems he -translated into tones, and his influence is marked in most of his -earlier compositions. The works of both are remarkable for a fire and -fury almost demoniac, alternating with a light and flippant grace, -almost impish. Both understood a climax as few others have done, and -both had the dramatic element strongly developed. Both were lawless and -dissolute, according to the world's verdict, yet scrupulous and refined -to an extreme in certain respects. Each scandalized the world, repaid -its censure with scorn, and saw it at his feet; and each left, like a -meteor, a track of fire behind him, which still burns with a red and -vivid, if not the purest, luster. - -Wagner and Victor Hugo are the two Titans of the nineteenth century, -having created more stir and ferment in the world of art and letters -than any other writers, contemporary or previous. Each is the leading -genius of his nation. They resemble each other in the pronounced -originality of their genius, their virile energy and productivity, and -their colossal force. Of both, the rare and singular fact is true, that -their productions all attain about the same level of merit. Most authors -and most composers are known by one or a few sublime creations. I know -of no others who have written an equal number of great works and none -that are mediocre or feeble. They are also alike in the circumstance -that while each has done fine work in a number of other departments, it -is the dramatic element which forms the strongest feature of their -artistic personality. Few French novels can compare with those of Victor -Hugo; but it is the powers of the dramatist displayed in the plot, -striking situations and characters, which constitute their chief merit; -and in his writings for the stage he has far surpassed all that he has -done as novelist. Likewise, while Wagner's orchestral works for the -concert room would alone have made him a reputation, it is by his operas -that he has made the world ring with his fame. Each had a sense of the -dramatic and a mastery of its effects not even approached by any other -artist. They bear, furthermore, a strong resemblance in their -revolutionary character and tendencies. Both were born pioneers, -innovators, reformers. Both headed a revolt against the reigning -sovereigns and the established government of their respective arts and -after a desperate struggle came out victorious. Both have been followed -by a host of disciples, belligerent and radical beyond all that the -annals of music and literature can show. They were like two powerful -battering-rams, attacking the bulwarks of classic prejudice and -conventionality. The revolution which Wagner brought about in opera was -exactly matched by Hugo with the drama. His "Hernani" was as great a -shock to the established precedents of the stage, as was Wagner's -"Nibelungen." Lastly, both display the unusual phenomenon of retaining -their creative power into extreme old age, and both died when life and -art and fame were fully ripe, with the eyes of the world upon them and -their names on every tongue. - - - FINIS. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Descriptive Analyses of Piano Works, by -Edward Baxter Perry - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSES OF PIANO WORKS *** - -***** This file should be named 44910.txt or 44910.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/4/9/1/44910/ - -Produced by Sean (scribe_for_hire@yahoo.com), based on -page images generously made available by the Internet -Archive -(https://archive.org/details/descriptiveanaly00perriala). - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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