Scan 458
Grove's dictionary of music and musicians: ed. by J. A. Fuller …, Volume 5, 1910
10 lines. Read by computer on 3 September 2026. Printed page 416. See the scan on archive.org.
1the more elaborate treatment of the inner part of the string quartet, the frequent subdivision of violins, violas, violoncellos, the use of chromatics in horn and trumpet parts, etc., there is a peculiar charm in the very sound of Wagner's wood-winds and brass. It is fuller than Beethoven's, yet singularly pure. And the reason for this is not far to seek. Wagner rarely employs instruments unknown to Beethoven, but he completes each group or family of wind instruments with a view to getting full chords from each group. Thus the two clarinets of Beethoven's orchestra are supplemented by a third clarinet and a bass-clarinet if need be; the two oboes by a third oboe or a corno-inglese (alto oboe); the two bassoons by a third bassoon and a contra-fagotto; the two trumpets by a third trumpet and a bass trumpet, etc. The results got by the use of these additional instruments are of greater significance than at first appears, since each set of instruments can thus produce complete chords, and can be employed in full harmony without mixture of timbre unless the composer so chooses.
3To account for the exceptional array of extra instruments in the scores of the 'Nibelungen' it is enough to say that they are used as special means for special ends. Thus at the opening of the 'Rheingold' the question is what sound will best prepare for and accord with dim twilight and waves of moving water. The soft notes of horns might be a musician's answer; but to produce the full smooth wavelike motion upon the notes of a single chord, the usual two or four horns are not sufficient. Wagner takes eight, and a unique and beautiful effect is secured. Again, in the next scene, the waves change to clouds; from misty mountain heights the gods behold Walhall in the glow of the morning sun. Here subdued solemn sound is required. How to get it? Use brass instruments piano. But the trumpets, trombones, and tuba of Wagner's usual orchestra cannot produce enough of it; he therefore supplements them by other instruments of their family; a bass trumpet, two tenor and two bass tubas, a contrabass trombone, and contrabass tuba; then the full band of thirteen brass instruments is ready for one of the simplest and noblest effects of sonority in existence. At the close of 'Rheingold,' Donner with his thunder-hammer clears the air of mist and storm-clouds; a rainbow spans the valley of the Rhine, and over the glistening bridge the gods pass to Walhall. What additional sounds shall accompany the glimmer and glitter of this scene? The silvery notes of harps might do it: but the sounds of a single harp would appear trivial, or would hardly be audible against the full chant of the orchestra. Wagner takes six harps, writes a separate part for each, and the desired effect is attained.
5In 'The Ring,' in 'Tristan,' the 'Meistersinger,' and 'Parsifal,' the notation of all that pertains to execution, tempi, gradations of sonority, etc., has been carried out in the most complete manner possible. The composer's care and patience are truly extraordinary. Nothing is left to chance. If the conductor and the executants strictly follow the indications given in the scores, a correct performance cannot fail to ensue. The tempo and the character of each movement, and every modification of tempo or character are indicated in unmistakable German (for instance, in 'Rheingold,' p. 1, 'Ruhig heitere Bewegung,' which in the conventional Italian terms would have been 'Allegretto piacevole,' or something equally misleading); doubtful changes of time; cases where the notation would seem to suggest a change of tempo, whereas only a change of metre occurs, while the musical pulsation, the actual beat, remains the same — are indicated by equivalents in notes and elucidatory words. Thus in 'Tristan,' p. 69, where 2-2 changes to 6-8, the latter is marked J. = J; that is to say, the dotted crotchets shall now be taken at the rate of the preceding minims.1 The number of strings necessary to balance the wind instruments employed is given — in the 'Nibelungen' it is 16 first violins, 16 seconds, 12 violas, 12 violoncellos, and 8 contrabasses. When the violins or other strings are divided, the number of desks that shall take each part is shown. To secure specially delicate effects the number of single instruments required out of the total is indicated, etc., etc.
7It remains to add a few words as to the quality of the average performances of Wagner's works. For a good many years past his name has appeared more frequently on the play-bills in Germany than that of any other composer. Performances of his early and even of his later works have been surprisingly numerous, and, it must be said, surprisingly faulty. Putting aside shortcomings with regard to stage management, properties, machinery, incomplete chorus and orchestra, insufficient rehearsals, etc. — all of which can be set to rights without much real difficulty — a glaring evil remains, an evil so great that it seems to threaten the very life of Wagner's art. Among innumerable performances, not one in a hundred is free from the most barbarous and senseless cuts; in many instances mere shams and shabby makeshifts are offered to the public! If an aria be omitted in an opera of Mozart's (take the first act of 'Nozze di Figaro' for an instance), the audience will lose so many bars of beautiful music, and one of the characters will in so far appear at a disadvantage. Cut an equivalent number of bars in the Finale of the same opera, and the case is already different — the balance of an entire section appears marred, the action disturbed, the sequence of musical effects crude. But in
91 Many a disastrous quid pro quo might be avoided if this simple method of noting the relation of one tempo to another were adopted. [See the article TEMPO, ante, p. 68.]
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