Scan 12
Musical Courier 1897-11-24: Vol 35 Iss 925, 1897
59 lines. Read by computer on 26 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1Notes From Paris.
2PARIS, November 9, 1897.
4THERE is demand here for the "Stories of the Operas." Where are they? Singers have to hunt everywhere for information in regard to their roles, and then cannot find it.
6There is no need whatever for irregularity in receipt of THE MUSICAL COURIER. One has but to indicate the first occasion of non-receipt. To have to say "I have not seen THE COURIER for several weeks" is solely and purely negligence on the part of the non-receiver in making no announcement of the fact.
8One is at a loss to account for an evident error in parental training in America in regard to the finances of girls. Nothing is more common than the expression, "I am always out of money. I always spend more than I have, no matter how much I have. You see, I was brought up to have everything. Papa and mamma always let me have everything I wanted. I don't know a thing about saving or being economical."
10This is always spoken as a boast, never as a regret, and those who act the sentiment even more than they speak it are legion over here. With those not willfully extravagant there is a lack of order, system and calculation in money matters that cannot fail of being more or less disastrous. Trouble, of course, is logically inevitable in such cases for the persons themselves or for those upon whom they throw themselves when in tight places. For there are very many who do not in the least hesitate to place upon the shoulders of more careful people the burdens they have created by their "charming" and careless insouciance.
12No, not money. They do not ask for money exactly, but what is much worse, come abjectly helpless to know what in the world they are going to do. They front up against sympathy already burdened and engrossed by unavoidable care, and they set mind, heart and head to work in the most painful of operations—to create possibility out of impossibility, to find out conditions, to traverse the field of chance on every side as to ways out; to make perhaps visits, requests, demands and efforts at variance with good taste or judgment in the effort to lift the cloud from a thoughtless person, who has deliberately walked into the trouble just for the fun of it. And there is nothing sadder or more depressing to one who feels than this sort of effort.
14And the worst part of all is that senseless simper: "You see, I have always been supplied with everything."
16Parents who bring up their children to the idea that the code of life is to do and to have everything they want should arrange to be with such children all their lives to shield them from the consequences of this false and ignorant philosophy. I do not see by what right strangers should be called upon to supplement from their better regulated lives the want of self-discipline and common sense of which some people boast. Accident and misfortune are one thing, willful waywardness is quite another. It must be said that there is a class of well to do people which, in its anxiety to show how benevolent it is, relates the straits and difficulties of these "poor things" it has helped, quite ignoring the fact that neither justice, reason nor sense figured in the case and that the charity is only an encouragement of "shiftlessness."
18Of all the various shadings of man's selfishness toward woman there is none worse in its effect than the money-bag desire to make his daughters devoid of money sense, regardless of the effect of the loss on her character or future.
20Another case of perverted conscience (with parental consent) is the manner of coming abroad to buy a "prestige." For instance, a girl who has studied at home is sent over here to take a few lessons from a certain teacher or to "play before" a certain artist, so as to be able to say she did so. She goes into a class with the understanding that she becomes a member of it. After three or four lessons she leaves under some pretext and either goes to another to do the same thing or is ready to go home as "pupil of X."
22Or an artist "between the acts" of concert tours is prevailed upon by some mutual friend to have the young lady come some morning and play for him, or to play for him two or three times, which should then be called "lessons."
24To the moralist the funny part appears in the strain that is made to meet conscience by taking the two or three lessons, whereas no account is taken of the deception in making three lessons stand for three years in the minds of the people at home. Why make the half-way strain? Why not lie frankly and honestly, come over here for a couple of weeks and go back "to have to say," &c.
26The Paris "appearance" is about as great a fraud—the forced appearance in some boarding house, reception parlor or concert hall, the forced audience, the forced applause, the forced reports of "success"—all "to have to say." It is all so wretchedly demoralizing, disintegrating, belittling. And for what?
28Suppose by force of these false elements an engagement is secured once at home and the work is not appealing, how much better off is the person for her "prestige"? Results every year answer how much? If, on the other hand, a girl walks in off the street and sings for a director or conductor who wants a singer and pleases him, what is there to prevent his giving her a trial? If on the trial she pleases the public as she pleased him, is not that the person he is looking for, even if she came from Kamchatka? From what I know of agents and directors they are more anxious to come across such people than such people are to come across them. Anybody living, so far as I see, can get a hearing, just as anybody may get looked at on the street.
30"In America they won't hear us until we have been over here!"
32This phrase is on the tongue of every student in the place.
34The American public is perfectly right in feeling that an American to be a first-class artist must have the French school, the French style, the French flavor in her repertory, with the other necessary flavors. But when the American public insists on this it is by no means with the understanding that the American girl is to go to the expense of crossing the ocean on a packet boat just to buy a French label to tack on her concert program. In spite of the fact that every season the public discovers and mocks this label as soon as it appears, every girl persists in insisting that such a performance is absolutely necessary. And she says it with conviction.
36Agents, &c., frequently make the excuse that the foreign voyage is necessary in order to politely get rid of one who is lacking in other respects. I would suggest to such agents, however, that they at least say, "Go to Paris to study in Paris," not "Go to Paris to say you have been there." The latter, besides sounding very ignorant, is extremely misleading to the girls.
38If people had no interest whatever in mind when speaking of a musical performance except the good of musical art how different things would read, how different the artists would be, and how different the performances would be!
40The device on Louis Lombard's letter head is "Do it with thy might." So much stress is everywhere laid on this idea. I never could see why. Everybody is doing everything with his and with her might. Some of them are doing horribly bad work, some working holes into the ground, poor things, and some working in the most superficial manner conceivable. All are doing with their might.
42That is not the point. The point is to do things well. To do everything as well as it can possibly be done under the circumstance; to make every act a part of a perfection, without slight, shirk, negligence or deviation. The "might" will come of itself in such doing, and the result will always be all right no matter what its size may be. For that is all there is to truth.
44"Do it with thy might" is one of the most misleading of the cant phrases, which do not mean anything, but which are venerated just the same. "Do everything just right" would be much more helpful, and much less misleading.
46There is more musical nonsense in the form of improvisation than people have any idea of. People are in the habit of thinking that because the music is "made up," "created," it is necessarily "great and good," and no one leans to this conclusion more than the improvisator. The fact is that it can be the most tedious and monotonous musical effect possible. And this is the result of formlessness.
48One gifted even in harmony, melody and technical facility can play a series of pretty, even very good things, during an hour, and the effect on the unbiased listener is that of monotonous variety. It is the effect of a lot of colored skeins mingled in a basket of a collection of colored stones, or of a pile of colored silks on a counter. Without design there is no power in music. There is only agreeable noise. Most of the improvisation is without design. It is a simple stringing together of musical suggestions. The ordinary improviser on piano or organ makes enough music in twenty minutes to make fifty pieces of music.
50But no one of the suggestions is carried out, hence there is no piece of music. There must be a logic, a sequence, a cause, an effect, a beginning, middle and end with their relative branches grouped logically according to the prevailing sentiment. The groupement sense must be as natural an output from the instinct as the sense of chords and tones and forms. Without this the improvisor is not a composer and is never an interesting or powerful creator. Returning safely to the theme, and remembering motives does not even comprise this necessity. Eight-tenths of the improvisation done here in Paris is chaotic, but it passes as excellent improvisation. Why?
52Lovers of that exquisite and resourceful musical instrument, the Mustel Harmonium Celesta, will be interested to know that owing to the steady increase in their business salesrooms have been opened in the centre of the city of Paris, 46 Rue Douai, near Place Clichy. The rooms, which are fitted up in tasteful modern style, comprise a charming concert room in white and gold, in which many interesting concerts will be given this season.
54Alph Mustel, son of the founder of the house, is the writer of a charming collection of pieces for the orgue celest and harmonium. Vesper, Nox Atra, Lux, three Improvisations Symphoniques, Ballade Fantastique, Prelude, "Brises de Nuit," "Pensée Triste," "Nuit d'Orient," "Marche Nuptiale" and "Evocation" are among the most popular.
56One of the most beautiful specimens of this unique instrument was purchased by Clarence Eddy when last in France and taken to America. M. Guilmant is a great lover of the instrument and writes much for it. M. Toby is one of the most expert players on the orgue celeste in Paris.
58The Mondo Artistico is one of the best, if not the best, musical papers in Italy. Published weekly, it contains
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