Books › The violinist, 1900 › scan 13
Scan 13
The violinist, 1900
18 lines. Read by computer on 3 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1A New Years Prospective
3NOT because we have faith in the particular efficacy of New Year affirmations, but because it seems most fitting in this special issue of THE VIOLINIST, do we take this occasion to reaffirm our faith in American musicians, American music and American makers, and call the attention of our readers to the many ways in which this faith is being justified.
5Situated as we are, so to speak, with our fingers on the pulse of the violin and orchestral world, we feel nothing but encouragement from the work done during the past year and the prospects which lie before us.
7Someone has observed that the rise of German music was preceded by an extraordinary development of interest in chamber and orchestral concerts and an unusual activity in the foundation of professional and amateur organizations for the performance of this class of music. If omens are worth anything, if the oft-proven theory that history repeats itself does not fail, we, in our country, stand upon the threshold of one of the greatest musical eras in our history.
9Never has there been such a deep-seated, widespread interest in the formation of amateur and professional trios, quartets and complete orchestral organizations. The musical ear of the nation seems to have awakened to the limitations of pianoforte music; to have become too sensitive to the finer shadings of harmony to sit content with brass band thunderings. They are demanding, more and more, orchestral renditions of standard works and where there is no organization for this purpose sufficiently near, are taking the matter into their own hands with no small degree of success.
11This movement, as many may suppose, is not confined to the larger cities to which culture is supposed to limit its visits. The leaven is working in the smaller towns, in many of which the popular town band has given way to the more popular town orchestra.
13Even where, as happens in some cases, the preponderance of cornets and other brasses might lead a full-fledged orchestra leader to doubt the applicability of the word "orchestra" to so stringless a combination, the very fact that the change of name was felt desirable and necessary is a gratifying omen of the trend of popularity and the musical ideals of the villagers.
15We have gone to this length in discussing this phase of our musical situation because we think it has a most important bearing on the development of American composition, which is undoubtedly the weakest department of our musical development.
17American players are proving their virtuosity at home and abroad. American teachers are daily displaying their ability to make the most of American talent. And American makers need no endorsement. Their creations are speaking for themselves in countless homes and concert halls. But extensive orchestral works from American composers are not as frequent as could be wished, and for this reason, if for no other, we should look upon the awakened interest of our people in ensemble playing as a cause for deep gratification. The greater the number taking an active interest in any art, the greater the possibilities for the development of the creative faculty in that art. From the largely increased number of students and performers of orchestral music we shall undoubtedly harvest a number of worthy works in the years to come.
The computer misreads some letters and numbers. Where a name matters to you, read the scan.