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Musical Courier 1891-11-11: Vol 23 Iss 612, 1891
78 lines. Read by computer on 22 September 2026. Printed page 541. See the scan on archive.org.
1Music in Berlin.
2Chamber Concerts.
4THE Joachim Quartet! Many a reader of mine, having once heard this chamber music organization, will, with a sigh of regret, join me in the exclamation: The inimitable, the only Joachim Quartet! What euphony there lies in the very name. And what a vista of soul and tone steeped performances of the classics it discloses before our mental eyes!
6It seems like emptying salt into the briny ocean to say anything whatsoever about this quartet of world wide fame. But I am about giving the readers of the COURIER a summary of Berlin's musical life, and to omit the Joachim Quartet concerts were equal to a description of Venice without mention of the Grand Canal, or a visit to Yellowstone Park without a view of the geysers; for, despite the brilliancy of the Bulow concerts and the innumerable artist recitals of the highest order, the Joachim Quartet concerts stand foremost in the estimation of musical Berlin. It is at these concerts where you may see all of Berlin's musical celebrities—Wagnerites and anti-Wagnerites, Liszt adorers and anti-Lisstianer. They all assemble peacefully in the venerable hall of the Sing Akademie, where these evenings are held. The wolf and the lamb quietly graze side by side, and the golden millennium apparently has arrived. Even the criticisms, usually as widely divergent as doctors' diagnoses, here meet in sweetest concord.
8And indeed it would be difficult to find a stronger organization the world over. Joachim, De Ahna, Wirth, Hausmann, all four are artists, pure and simple, and everyone of them is liked personally, which in the case of Joachim is augmented to universal admiration and adoration. And thus it comes that the Joachim Quartet concerts, attended as they are by the musical cream of the city, can be called veritable love feasts in the fullest sense of the word.
10As indicated above, artistic strength seems to be the particular feature of their playing. Virility of conception and execution, a certain firmness of tone and style, absolute accuracy of phrasing and dynamics—these are some of the ingredient parts of the particular feature referred to. As you may infer from this, their répertoire is more or less limited to the classical works of Beethoven, Haydn and Mozart. Of modern writers only Brahms has found grace before the eyes of the mighty ones, with here and there a new work of Herzogenberg and others writing in the classical vein. It is also quite evident that their forte lies less in mere beauty of tone or absolute flawlessness of ensemble, but rather in that musical intensity and artistic earnestness which is sure to appeal to one's highest instincts. Accordingly they play Beethoven best, and I almost would say the last quartets of Beethoven better than those of his earlier periods. To have heard one of these "last quartets," as played by the Joachim Club, is a never to be forgotten treat of the highest musico-intellectual order.
12How much admired these performances are may be gathered from the fact that the "dress rehearsals" usually held in the recital hall of the Royal High School for Music, on Potsdamer strasse, are being attended by as many as the hall will hold. That the passes to these rehearsals are much sought for goes without saying.
14In view of the all commanding Joachim Club, it was a daring feat for his pupil and friend, Mr. John Kruse, to organize the quartet bearing his name, and composed of Kruse, Markees, Muller and Dechert. It, of course, could not become a rival institution, nor was it intended as such; it is rather of a supplementary nature, inasmuch as Mr. Kruse and his associates cultivate the modern writers mainly, and many a quartet originally handed to Joachim is by him turned over to the younger club for performance. This pleasant relationship between the two clubs is further emphasized by the fact that whenever the older organization produces a quintet, sextet, or octet, the younger one is called upon to assist. Thus I heard a double quartet by old genial Spohr beautifully played by both clubs together. It is therefore but natural that the Kruse Quartet more or less follows the paths of what might be called "the Joachim traditions," and that to all human calculation they seem destined to some day assume the important position now held by their older prototype. That this day may be a far distant one no one wishes more sincerely than the gentlemen of the Kruse Quartet, I am sure. Different from these clubs just mentioned as to aim and purport is the one composed of Barth, De Ahna and Hausmann. For while the former play to a select congregation at the comparatively small Sing Akademie and at rather high prices of admission, the latter hold forth at the vast Philharmonie, and at popular prices from 2 marks down to 50 pfennings.
16I am glad to say that the Berliners avail themselves of this opportunity to such an extent that usually the vast hall is filled to overflowing. And I am also glad of the fact that besides, doing the cause of musical culture an inestimable service, the gentlemen referred to find it quite lucrative to popularize good music.
18To waste much time and space in describing their playing would be quite superfluous, as De Ahna and Hausmann already have been spoken of in connection with the Joachim Quartet, and as to Professor Barth, he is fast becoming famous the world over as an exponent of the classical style of pianism, both as teacher and concert player. I heard him play the Brahms concerto last winter, and for loftiness of conception, for virility of style and lucidity of technic, even in the most intricate passages, I know of very few pianists living who could compete with him. He is also regarded the best ensemble player of Berlin. Of course the club occasionally is assisted by other artists of the first rank, on which occasion they produce some of those delightful and rarely heard works for piano, strings and wind instruments by Mozart, Schubert, &c. The combination, despite its transparency, is so full of ever varying color that it reminds me of some beautiful water color, and I am surprised that our living composers (Brahms for instance) do not cultivate this line more than at present.
20That these evenings are considered the gala evenings of the popular club needs no further emphasis. Everybody is simply happy, and one of the happiest is
22Yours truly, F. X. ARENS.
23CHARLOTTENBURG, BERLIN, 11 Fasanen strasse, October 16, 1891.
25Seidl's Fourth Sunday Concert.
27THE fourth of the Seidl concerts at the Lenox Lyceum Sunday night was well attended and the excellence of the program was thoroughly appreciated. The orchestral novelty was an overture "Festival" by Philip Scharwenka, a well scored composition in overture form, the contents of which were more dramatic than festive. The second theme, which enters with a broad cantilena for the 'cellos, sounded something like Schubert in his B minor symphony, but the resemblance was transitory.
29Contraltos are not so plentiful in this city as to cause the singing of Miss Olive Fremstadt to be passed by. She is a new comer on metropolitan concert platforms, but a very welcome one, for she has rather a remarkable voice as to power, quality and range. Her lower tones are rich, full and of great volume, her upper notes brilliant and unforced. In fact her voice, as a whole, is flexible and well drilled, but she needs practice to make her singing artistically acceptable. She sang "Ah, don fatal," from Verdi's "Don Carlos," with plenty of fire, but lacking sadly in control and judgment. This was more manifest in her encore piece, a trashy ballad, which she delivered in a most artificial and amateurish fashion. Nevertheless, she is a distinct acquisition to the ranks of local singers.
31When the prelude to the third act of "Tannhäuser" had been given by the orchestra and had been so well played that Mr. Seidl was forced to bow his acknowledgment, Miss Maud Powell played the introduction and rondo by Saint-Saëns in the most finished manner, and showed her easy, elastic bowing, beautiful tone and vigorous style.
33The orchestra under Mr. Seidl played numbers by Wagner, Gillet, Chabrier and Tschaikowsky. Next Sunday night Miss Clementine De Vere, the popular soprano, and Franz Rummel, the well-known piano virtuoso, will be the soloists. In the audience last Sunday night sat the distinguished violinist Remenyi, fresh from his travels around the globe, looking as chipper as he ever did, despite his many moving adventures by flood and field.
35The Boston Symphony Orchestra.
37THE regular orchestral concert season was ushered in on Tuesday night of last week with the first concert of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. This ever welcome organization will give this season six instead of, as in former years, four concerts, and that the increase, in spite of the likewise augmented number of local orchestral concerts, is looked upon favorably by a New York musical public is evidenced in the fact that the subscription is the largest one so far experienced. This in itself is no small compliment to the visiting orchestra and its great conductor, Arthur Nikisch. It was commented upon that in spite of the announcement made by the management to the effect that the concert was entirely sold out, Chickerling Hall showed quite a number of vacant seats in the parquet. We are assured, however, that these seats were sold to a bold spectator, who subscribed for 200 seats for the entire season, but who on this occasion, because of the election night, was "left" with almost two rows of seats on his hands.
39As for the concert itself, it brought the following well chosen and interesting program:
41Overture, "Benvenuto Cellini"…………………….Berlioz
42Aria, "Ah Perfidio"………………………………….Beethoven
43Prelude, adagio and gavotte for string orchestra………….Bach
44Arranged by Bachrich.
45Aria, "O hall of song," from "Tannhäuser"………………Wagner
46Symphony No. 3, in E flat (Rhenish), op. 97…………….Schumann
48Berlioz's fantastic and yet in form and contents his very best overture at once showed both orchestra and conductor to the greatest possible advantage. No finer performance of this difficult work has ever been heard here; in fact it was simply electrifying. Mr. Nikisch's reading is at once original, highly intellectual and refined, and the magnificent orchestra followed each pulsation of his magic wand, every indication of rhythmic or dynamic shading with a readiness and faithfulness which were admirable.
50The three selected movements from Bach's unaccompanied violin sonatas showed a brilliancy and homogeneity of tone quality in the string orchestra which were perfectly exquisite, and as for precision the performance has never been equaled, although these three movements have frequently been heard here under Theodore Thomas. But if Bachrich's arrangement in itself deprives them somewhat of the genuine Bach simplicity which is so inseparable a part from his greatness, Mr. Nikisch's reading did not tend to decrease this detraction from the true style. To be quite sincere, his many and very abrupt changes from forte to pianissimo made a portion of these movements sound somewhat artificial and affected.
52The two first movements of the Rhenish symphony also did not quite come up to our expectations; they were both taken at considerably too slow a tempo, and in the last movement the counter accentuation in the syncopations became at times so pronounced as to make one for moments lose the sense of the right rhythm. But otherwise we have no criticism to offer, and the sweet andante and the ponderous E flat minor religious movement were absolute pearls of interpretation.
54Mrs. Nordica was not quite felicitous in the selection of her soli. The Beethoven aria especially demands a more dramatic and deeper colored voice than the lady possesses, and she did neither herself nor the composer justice in the interpretation of it. She is still, however, a remarkably handsome woman, and the upper portion of her voice is agreeable and sympathetic.
56Mapleson-Blumenberg Concert Combination.
58THE Mapleson-Blumenberg Concert Combination, which is meeting with such success on the road at present, has the following strong personnel:
60Laura Schirmer-Mapleson, prima donna soprano.
61Mr. Louis Blumenberg, the world renowned violoncello virtuoso.
62Miss Annette Reynolds, mezzo soprano; first appearance in America.
63Miss Anna Teresa Berger, the greatest lady cornet virtuoso.
64Mr. David Torrence, the celebrated baritone, from the principal London concerts.
65Mr. Heniot Lévy, the young Polish pianist.
67The Arion Concert.
69THE winter season of the Arion Male Chorus opened up most auspiciously last Sunday night. The beautiful concert hall, spacious as it is, hardly sufficed for the gathering of members and their families who had come to enjoy the first concert. And enjoy it they did, for throughout the entire evening the most outspoken enthusiasm prevailed.
71It must be said to Frank Van der Stucken's credit that he understands the art of making a program interesting. He always gives something new, and the novelties are well selected and deserving of a hearing; moreover, soloistic, orchestral and choral selections are well balanced and give a delightful variety. Especially was this the case last Sunday night, when the program almost suffered from an embarras de richesse of novelties. Rimski-Korsakow's "Antar" symphony opened the proceedings. It is program music pur et simple and with a vengeance. Excepting the second movement, which is intended to depict the pleasures of revenge and which is quite too ultra Russian for non-Muscovitian ears, it is a work full of the most interesting effects, both in orchestration, novel harmonies and thematic treatment. The themes themselves are, if not exactly grand, at least original and descriptive. We should like to hear parts of "Antar" again.
73The second orchestral novelty (for New York at least) were the two middle movements from E. A. MacDowell's suite, op. 42. An analytical review of this new work of the gifted American composer appeared in these columns last week; it will suffice therefore when we say that the "Summer Idyl" and the "Wood Goblins" are two really charming movements, exquisite in conception and most dainty in factura. They breathe the spirit of Raff's famous "Wald" symphony—at no loss, however, of originality. The orchestra, under Van der Stucken's direction, played both works admirably, exception having to be taken only at the English horn, which was anything but satisfactory.
75Of choral works heard here for the first time on this occasion Berlioz's "Cinq Mai," given under the title of "The Old Soldier," was especially interesting. Although one of the French master's earlier works, it is thoroughly characteristic and shows a melodic flow, which often forsook him in his later creations.
77Scarcely less well received, and deservedly so, was John R. Lund's new "Germanenzug" in D minor. It is a work full of vigor and inspiration; in fact undoubtedly the very best composition that has so far emanated from the young composer's fertile pen. The characteristics both of inven-
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