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Musical Courier 1913-12-10: Vol 67 Iss 24, 1913
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1MUSICAL COURIER
2VOL. LXVII.—NO. 24
3NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1913.
4WHOLE NO. 1759
6BERLIN CHOIR SINGS BACH'S PASSION MUSIC.
8Siegfried Ochs and His Philharmonic Choristers Perform Stupendous Work in Its Entirety—"Parsifal" Discussion—Weingartner Champions Festival Play—Others Consider It Decadent—Russian Composer's "Quo Vadis" Oratorio Fails at Berlin Premiere—Albert Spalding Gives Recital—New String Quartet by Klingler Introduced—Famous Boy Conductor Astounds St. Petersburg Musicians and Public—Spiering Reception in Honor of Mrs. H. H. A. Beach.
10Berlin, W., November 22, 1913.
12Bach's "Passion Music, According to Saint Matthew," was given again in its entirety, without any cuts whatever, by Siegfried Ochs and his Philharmonic Choir on "Bussstag," or the day of repentance. I wrote my impressions of the work last year when Ochs presented it in this completed form for the first time. Ochs is the only conductor who has ever given this gigantic oratorio exactly as it was conceived and exactly as it was intended to be given by the composer. It was a tremendous undertaking. The great length of the work itself made it necessary to present it in two parts, the first being given from 12 to 2.30 and the second from 7 till 9.30. Of course, the demands made on the powers of endurance of the performers and singers, as well as upon the listeners, are enormous. Nevertheless musical Berlin owes a great debt of gratitude to Siegfried Ochs for giving it an opportunity of hearing the "Passion" as designed by Bach himself. Yet critical voices have been raised and the brilliant conductor has met with all sorts of opposition. Some of the principal critics have complained that the oratorio is too long that it is too fatiguing for the public and that it is more effective in the old condensed form that was arranged for public performance more than eighty years ago by Mendelssohn. All of these objections cannot change the one great truth that if any composer ever had a right to be heard, as he intended his work to be heard, then that composer was Johann Sebastian Bach. The performance itself was admirable. The famous choir, the Philharmonic Orchestra and the Cathedral chorus of a hundred boys, as well as the soloists, all gave the best they had to give, with the result that this performance can go on record as one of the most gigantic ever heard in Berlin. Among the soloists Messchaert was particularly impressive.
14Excerpts from "Parsifal" were given at the Royal Opera on the same day. Those who have heard "Parsifal" at Bayreuth, as conducted by Dr. Karl Muck, could not feel particularly elated over the manner in which Edmund von Strauss conducted the fragments. His readings were anything but inspired. He is wholly lacking in dramatic force; and Gruening's voice is too passé to satisfy in the part of Parsifal. The rabid Wagnerians who see in "Parsifal" the climax of Wagner's productive efforts, and those who think that this work will hold undivided sway over the masses in Germany for the next decade or so, are, in my opinion, doomed to disappointment. I venture the prediction that the public at large will soon tire of "Parsifal," and that after a couple of years it will be relegated to the place where it belongs—Bayreuth. There are not a few musicians of importance—and they are not anti-Wagnerians, either—who consider "Parsifal" the beginning of a period of decadence in Wagner.
16The oratorio "Quo Vadis," by Felix Nowowiejski, was given its first Berlin rendition at the Garnisonkirche by the Pfannschmidt Choir. The work had met with an enthusiastic reception in various provincial towns, but here it fell flat. In the five dramatic scenes there is a lack of potency, both in the text and in the music. The score is a most remarkable melange. The ghosts of Handel, Palestrina, Wagner and Bruch flit about and leave no opportunity for individuality of expression. The composer has a certain degree of technical skill, but of what avail is that, if the source of inspiration is sealed up? It is not likely to be repeated in Berlin.
18Felix Weingartner recently delivered a lecture here on Wagner, but the lecture was not especially edifying, nor did the speaker offer anything new. He declared "Parsifal" to be a revelation and the last and mightiest word spoken by Wagner; he furthermore said it formed the
20AN AID TO THE COMPOSER.
21A machine that notes down the music while it is being played.
23close of a great productive period and that beyond it there could be nothing. A pretty strong statement this! Personally I incline more to the views of those who consider it decadent.
25A very successful recital was given by Edith Walker at Beethoven Hall with the assistance of Gustav Brecher. She sang a program of German lieder, including five folk-songs set by Heinrich Reimann. These were sung by Miss Walker in three different languages. Two rarely heard Schubert songs—"Hermann and Thusnelde" and "Der Hirt auf dem Felsen," the latter with clarinet—were of interest. Miss Walker was in exceptionally good voice throughout the evening, and her interpretations revealed a broad, intellectual grasp of the varied styles, while her delivery was characterized by feeling and temperament. How great a favorite the singer has become in Berlin was evidenced by the size of the audience, which completely filled Beethoven Hall. It requires something exceptional to draw out a full house in Berlin in these days. The singer was most enthusiastically acclaimed. A warm word of praise is also due to Brecher for his masterly piano accompaniments.
27Among the violinists of the week were two Americans, Albert Spalding and Roderick White. Spalding, supported by Coenraad von Bos at the piano, presented a program consisting of the Schumann D minor and the Mozart B flat major sonatas and Schubert's "Fantasie," op. 159. Spalding has added many cubits to his artistic stature since he was last heard in Berlin, four years ago. Above all, his tone is much rounder and fuller and warmer and he plays with a great deal more feeling and soul. Technically he was impeccable. The Schumann sonata has rarely been heard in such perfection. Spalding has already attained a high degree of perfection in his art and he evidently is still growing. Bos, whose work as an accompanist is so well known, made a splendid impression as an ensemble performer. He was a worthy partner of the violinist.
29Roderick White made his Berlin debut with the Philharmonic Orchestra at the Singakademie, securing a pronounced success. He was heard in Tartini's D minor concerto, the Saint-Saëns B minor concerto and Wieniawski "Faust" fantasia. White revealed himself both a superior virtuoso and an excellent musician. He draws a pure, noble and sympathetic tone from his violin, an excellent Strad, by the way, and his command of the fingerboard is admirable in all kinds of intricate passages. Furthermore, he plays with a refined style and his conceptions are legitimate and always in good taste, bespeaking the thinking and feeling musician. Even Tartini's antiquated concerto was effective in his hands, while his polished technic and virtuoso swing were displayed in a brilliant light in the Saint-Saëns and Wieniawski numbers. The "Faust" fantasia is a veritable test piece for the virtuoso; to the American's remarkably nimble and accurate fingers it offered no serious difficulties. In response to hearty and insistant applause the violinist contributed at the close of the program the prelude from Bach's G minor sonata for violin alone, of which he gave a most excellent reading, thus further proving his versatility. White will be heard again in recital on December 18.
31A new string quartet by Carl Klingler was introduced in the Singakademie on Thursday by the Klingler Quartet. It is smoothly written and well sounding music and it shows the composer to be well grounded in the technic of chamber music composition, but it is wholly devoid of inspiration. The themes are colorless and commonplace and not one of the four movements bears the stamp of individuality. Klingler, who is a teacher at the Hochschule, evidently has been too much under the influence of the Brahms cult, that is practised there, to write original music.
33The Flesch-Schnabel-Gerardy Trio gave its fourth and last concert of this season at Beethoven Hall on Tuesday before an audience that filled not only the auditorium to the last seat, but that also took up all available seating space on the stage. The great popularity of this organization is thoroughly justified and easily understood, for these three artists present standard chamber music works in a manner that leaves absolutely nothing to be desired. It is indeed rare that three such distinguished soloists combine to form a trio, and rarer still it is that each should suppress his strong individuality for the good of the ensemble, as is the case here. The ensemble of the three musicians is perfect. Their program this time was made up of Schubert's B flat major trio and the Tchaikovsky A minor trio, both of which were given magnificent renditions. Between the two trios Gerardy and Schnabel were heard in a very fine performance of Saint-Saëns' C minor sonata.
35Francis Macleannan came over from Hamburg, at the special request of Count von Huelsen, the general intendant of the Royal Opera, to sing the part of Bacchus in Richard Strauss' "Ariadne auf Naxos." This role has been sung here hitherto by Jadlowker and Kirchoff. Notwithstanding Jadlowker's great popularity with the public Macleannan secured a big success, holding his own in every particular with his celebrated colleague. The American has already become a prime favorite in Hamburg, where he is now singing all the principal tenor roles, and his wife, Florence Easton Macleannan, stands equally high in public estimation.
37Rudolf Berger has added the role of Tristan to his repertoire. He made his debut in the part at the Royal Opera, achieving an emphatic success. Vocally Berger was in excellent condition and his voice proved fully equal to the great demands of this most exacting role. He sang
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