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Musical Courier 1898-05-18: Vol 36 Iss 950, 1898
95 lines. Read by computer on 26 September 2026, twice; the two readings disagreed in places. Printed page 8. See the scan on archive.org.
1ter than a dead letter. The difficulty is to discover now the difference between prejudiced and honest enthusiasm! There is trouble no matter what way people fix things—always something.
3M. Guilmant on Organ Work.
4All earnest musicians feel that a special stride has been made in the march of music in America by the visits of Alexandre Guilmant to the country. While an organ specialist he is one of the largest and broadest musicians in France in the big broad sense of the term "musician"; and while an exponent of the French school of musical art, he is at the same time one of the most enlightened and instructed musicians in Europe.
6In addition to the revelations offered by his playing, and the influence of his wise counsels upon our musicians during his last trip to our country, he was induced to combine a few thoughts on organ work for the Forum, every word of which should be reproduced here did space permit. Among them the following:
8"Organ playing may be divided into two schools. In one the organ is treated as an orchestra, the production of orchestral effects being sought. The other holds that the organ has so noble a tone quality and so many resources of its own that it need not servilely imitate the orchestra.
10"I belong to the latter school.
12"Berlioz said: 'The organ is Pope, the orchestra Emperor.' In other words each is supreme in its own way.
14"I am utterly opposed to the playing of orchestral works on the organ. While the playing of orchestral pieces on it in an attempt to reproduce the orchestral color of the original scoring is, to my mind, deplorable enough, the playing of such works as 'William Tell' or 'Semiramide' overtures is especially out of keeping with the character of the instrument.
16"It is true that I have myself arranged several works for the organ, but in each instance the composition had been previously played by the composer. Among these may be mentioned 'Marche Héroïque,' Saint-Saëns; prelude to the 'Deluge,' Saint-Saëns, and 'Romance,' Chauvet. 'Berceuse,' by Saint-Saëns, recently arranged, was done at the special request of the composer. At the same time M. Durand requested that I would transcribe the finale from Saint-Saëns' 'Suite Algerienne.' This I refused to do, because the piece is not in organ style.
18"As between organ and orchestra each has its great qualities and its faults. The organ has a certain solidity of resonance, while the orchestra's resonance is restless, feverish. The organ holds, sustains. On the other hand one of its great faults is lack of attack or a seeming slowness of response.
20"Many organists think it wise not to press down the key too quickly or too far. I think, on the contrary, that the full pressure of the finger should be made at once, and the key held down solidly until released.
22"As to pedaling, French organ pupils are now taught to hold the knees together and to use the heels much more than formerly. This method results in a quieter style of playing and gives greater smoothness in phrasing while it increases speed.
24"In America I have found many good organs. They are specially effective in the softer stops, such as the dulciana, flutes and gamba. But the full organ lacks resonance and energy and does not thrill. I do not think that the mixtures and reeds of the great organ should be included in the swell-box, as this weakens the tone and destroys proper balance. The pedals in American organs are not so clear and distinct as they should be. They lack the eight-foot and four-foot tone. The effect is the same, as if there were too many double basses in an orchestra and not enough violoncellos. The sixteen-foot open diapason in the great organ is so powerful that every organ should also have the milder sixteen-foot bourdon, which gives a mellow quality to the foundation stops. But, as a rule, the softer sixteen-foot stops are wholly lacking in American organs.
26"My opinion is that organ-builders should devote less time to mechanical improvements and more time to improving the voicing of their instruments. Mechanical appliances are multiplying so fast that very soon the organist will be unable to occupy himself with anything except the mechanism of his instrument, a tendency greatly to be deplored.
28"Organ playing should be essentially musical and as far as possible in the pure style of the organ. It should not involve the necessity of constantly changing the registration.
30"There is also too great tendency to use the vibrating stops, such as the voix céleste, tremolo and vox humana; so that when these effects are really called for they do not make the desired impression.
32"Both in Europe and in America a lively interest is evinced in all these questions, so vitally important to the organ, and it is to be hoped that, as a result, a taste for pure organ music and better instruments will be promoted. In France a society called 'the Schola Cantorum' has recently been formed with the object of reviving the ancient forms of church music and for the study of plain song, Gregorian chant and organ music. Were a similar movement initiated in America it would certainly bear good fruit.
34"As to organ music in France I should call Jean Titelouse the father of organ music in France. Like the Italian pioneers of organ music, he wrote pieces in the Gregorian tonality. Unfortunately, little by little his successors departed from the polyphonic style, with the result that organ music in France underwent a degeneration similar to that in Italy.
36"About the middle of the present century a well-known organist named Boëly endeavored to place French organ music on a more solid basis and to restore not only the old style of composition, but also of playing. He made a valiant attempt to introduce Bach and other serious composers, but he was unsuccessful. He simply sacrificed himself, as his efforts cost him dismissal from his church. M. Jacques Lemmens, from whom I had the honor of receiving instruction, was more fortunate. His efforts to introduce the best style of organ music in France began in 1852. His playing of Bach was a revelation to French organists, and formed the foundation of a more serious style of playing and composition.
38"Among the most famous organists and composers of France in recent years are César Franck, A. Chauvet, Saint-Saëns, Widor, of St. Sulpice; Eugene Gigout, of St. Augustin; Th. Dubois, who succeeds Saint-Saëns at the Madeleine; Clement Loret, of the Ecole Religieuse, and Th. Salomé. (M. Guilmant himself is one of the most important leaders of organ music and composition in France.)
40"Bach's music is polyphonic, and polyphony is true music. To its foundation upon this school is due the fact that there has been no decadence in music in Germany. There has been no advance in polyphony since the days of Bach. Such advance as has been made has been in originality and boldness of modulation. Wagner's music may be called 'omnintonic'; that is, modulating into all keys. But it is still polyphonic, and for that reason it is real music. The old church composers wrote their pieces in one key and the keys closely related thereto. Wagner swept the whole gamut of chromatic tonality. But both the old German church composers and Wagner are polyphonic, and the latter is but a logical evolution from the former.
42"For pure organ music Bach is and probably always will remain the greatest of all composers. Even with all the modern mechanical appliances that have been attached to the organ his works are still very difficult—perhaps the most difficult of organ compositions. He must have been a great organist, as he was a great composer. That he should have been able to play upon the organ of his day works so exacting in technic as his own is simply marvelous."
44F. E. T.
46A Pianist of Merit.
47Miss Helen Robinson, who has made such a favorable impression at the last concert of the Women's String Orchestra Society with Chopin's G minor Ballade, confirmed that impression at the Astoria Apollo concert Tuesday, May 10. Wednesday she played with Mr. Chapman's Choral Society at Hackensack. Miss Robinson is a graduate of the Lachmund Conservatory, having studied under Carl V. Lachmund the past four years.
49William M. Stevenson.
50William M. Stevenson has been working for several years past in a quiet, unpretentious way at his chosen profession, vocal music, in the city of Pittsburgh. Each year, toward the close of the season, a recital by his advanced pupils has been arranged and given before audiences of varying size, according to the auditorium selected. These recitals were, however, only a medium for the pupils to make a semi-public appearance. The local music critics did not attend, or, if present, failed to criticise the singing from a musical standpoint, a notice in the "society" or "musical" column being the extent of attention paid.
52This year Mr. Stevenson changed all this, making the concert a much more serious affair. He requested that a critic from THE MUSICAL COURIER should be present, who would give an honest, unbiased opinion of the results of his work and express an opinion as to how that work compared with what was being done in the large Eastern cities by the best vocal teachers. In furtherance of his plan a decidedly ambitious program was arranged, it being the original intention that all the numbers should be operatic selections, but, owing to the indisposition of one or two, at the last moment changes had to be made and the program sung was as follows:
54Quartet, Rigoletto……………………………………………..Verdi
55Miss Horner, Miss Smith, Mr. Marsh, Mr. Harris.
56To the Evening Star, Tannhäuser………………………..Wagner
57Mr. Chalmers.
58Merrily I Roam……………………………………………..Schleiffarth
59Miss O'Neil.
60Elizabeth's Prayer, Tannhäuser………………………….Wagner
61Mrs. Gilmore.
62Ah! So Pure, Martha………………………………………Flotow
63Mr. Marsh.
64Scena ed Aria, Faust………………………………………Gounod
65Miss Horner.
66If Laws Severe, The Jewess……………………………Halévy
67Mr. Harris.
68Trio, Ernani…………………………………………………….Verdi one of two readings
69Trio, Ernani………………………………………………….Verdi one of two readings
70Mrs. Gilmore, Mr. Cuneo, Mr. Chalmers.
71Good-by, Sweet Day………………………………………Vannah
72Miss Smith.
73The Bandolero……………………………………………….Stuart one of two readings
74The Bandolero……………………………………………..Stuart one of two readings
75Mr. Chalmers.
76O Mio Fernando, La Favorita……………………………Donizetti
77Miss O'Neil.
78Aria, Martha…………………………………………………..Flotow one of two readings
79Aria, Martha……………………………………………….Flotow one of two readings
80Mr. Cuneo.
81The 129th Psalm……………………………………………Edwin L. Walker one of two readings
82The 129th Psalm…………………………………………..Edwin L. Walker one of two readings
83Mrs. Gilmore.
84Quartet, Martha……………………………………………..Flotow
85Miss O'Neil, Miss Smith, Mr. Marsh, Mr. Chalmers.
86Postlude, Some of our National Songs…………………
88The concert took place in the beautiful Carnegie Music Hall before a large audience, who enjoyed and appreciated the music—not only enjoyed, but discriminated in a way that showed they knew whereof they applauded.
90The program was certainly an ambitious one, where many failures might have taken place or poor work been done, particularly as the singers were all young people who have studied at the most only two or three years, in many cases but little time outside their lessons being devoted to study. But all the work done was most excellent in every respect. They all knew how to sing! There was a freedom from amateurishness seldom seen in a pupils' recital—they were not nervous, fearing failure, for they knew so well how to sing that the tone production took care of itself, even if the voice failed to respond with its full strength before so large an assemblage.
92In the quartet from "Rigoletto" the women's voices were rather overbalanced by the men, but as Miss Horner was just recovering from severe hoarseness and Miss Smith is but eighteen years old, with her voice not at its full power yet, while Mr. Marsh has a large tenor voice and Mr. Harris is an unusually deep bass, this was not surprising.
94Mr. Chalmers, who sang the "Evening Star," from "Tannhäuser," in a broad style with much musical feeling, ought to be heard from in the future when a few more years added to his present nineteen have rounded out his voice into one of the great baritones of the day. The sweetness of his upper register is particularly noticeable, not a sweetness that lacks strength, for his voice is strong and full. To have achieved so much in three years shows conscientious work on his part and reflects the highest
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