New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-09-06
THE BEETHOVEN CENTENARY


Now Arc oA-There can be no doubt tnat
nt,onsl festiya should be held in national mettOPo
~ The fact that Beethoven wss porn III Do ~ :,
eouree 4 rood excuse for celebrating tuo 0en'o 80
his birth In one Of the most commOh'pla.0 .ho
IN an Europe; bat II 10 to be deeply resre'teu
great composer did not draw his nrst Orea. ~ that
vienna or Dresden, even in Leipsic OF ~" go
90 night have had q celebration worthy OF nis l
Even were he native of come queer village ~ .no
plicity might have excused any snorVco"e .oroIis
ulaoe: but Bonn is neither village nor o. ~ a..
pe,ne the sest Of noted university 1t mas oss M Us
stmplicity II 1t ever had any, while IL ma"i0o 100.
,oarc,al activity Many generations OF cocKhey 'o
nave claimed for their own, and the innaptan's ~ ."
m the alert to make money out OF tnem An0 0" 49,.
hotels are oyerrun by Englishmen In t"eeu suns .,
now there is also influx OF Germans anu P'0 N
lOdginss have sensbly increased , .
The festival is not failure, because INC i"u'
anaral thing has received magnificent interpretation
and to amateurs the recollection OF these sPien"s
chestral and choral performances VIII always W
pleas,lre but to those who expected 10 see sou
uprising of the German people to 90 nonor " 'uo
orv ~ their most admired composer the AFFAIR mas po
. S,sannointment Bonn is crowded, but no more 30
,h on the occasion of any local festivy. few music
dsalers and the picture stores where portrs oi tue
composer are sold, have probably done WE'LL wne INC
lkeepers have reaped fine harvest The nrst OUT
ward and visible sign Of the festival was manest az
noon on Saturday. the 18th inst when small numoer Oh
men approached the bronze Beethoven statue in the
MHnsterplaz, and, in feebly disheartemng manner
heean TO arrange Of evergreen trees OF sutaoe
distance from the monument Late IN the afternoon
they had nearly completed the task and early the next
day other men came and decked the statue with green
earlauds At the same time, the first rehearsal was
taxing place in the Beethoven Halle, an edifce but
only last year. when the Centenary would nave Deeh ce
brated but for the sudden outbreak OF the war Inc
members Of the orchestra had held on Friday morning
an early rehearsal which listeners we're admitted
80 NhA apnad az
hearsal took place. the Sinonia ErocG and the Mass
being essayed Saturday, there was another carry
drill the orchestra performing the Ninth symphony anu
the vocallsts the chorus from the Ruins OF Athens
In afternoon, there was further rehearsal Oh tue
symphony in minor and Of the AiSSa SO'enn's Inc
nrce OF entrance to these rehearsas about fifty
cents The general subscription price TO all the concerts
is six thalers, being about n go
The first concert took place the evening of Sunday
the goth inst. beginning at O'clock with BeethoVehs
Mtssa Solennis This work Of colossal difeuy' ana
Beethoven himself, it is said never heard II cretaoy
performed though since his death, it has been given
several times both Germany and in England In lSo
II was performed BOnn on the occasion OF the inaugu
ration Of the Beethoven statue, List conducting About
ten wears AGO Costa had produced in London, though
with several alterations, which greatly lncensed
tho German musicians. 1t has never been gwen
In New-York TO my knowledge. The vocal
parts, especially for soprano and tenor run
high and are very trying to the singers the chorues De-
quite
elaborate ntrcacy to sung with absolute velocity-at
least such was the time given by the conductor Ferd
nspd Hitler of Cologne. Yet the performance through
out was magnificent success, the different parts beng
taken up with unerTng precision In the entire MASS
could detect error and that was when the altos
the weakest point in the chOrus-fahed TO lead on IN
phrase allotted to them by the composer ct the opening
Of Of the numbers.
The applause throughout liberal, especially after
the fugne movements the difficulty Of which seemed to
otaA hut Tho aft
number which excited the veest interest the Bene
ftetus an exquisite movement in tweveeght time sung
by the four soOsts Frau OttOAvsleben (sopranO) Frau
Amalie Joachim (altO). Herr VOgl tenor), and Herr
Bchuze Cbasso with violin oboligdto played by LndWg
Btraus Of London. more finished and delightful per
tormance than this seldom the good fortune OF even
German public TO enjoy and the applause was more
than tantamount to q call for an encore The only re-
spopse made to this enthusiasm In the bows and
.mes Of the delighted conductor In the DOnd pdcenI
the including movement-the orchestral accOmpani-
uent WAS especially fine, and the Mass concluded amid
the most genuine enthusiasm.
kThs performance took place on a hot August night
A. AL early period the evening Herr Hitler gave drec-
lions to all the windows prObaby to enhance the
musical eec while the native amateurs near the doors
were very careful to keep them hermetcally sealed.
After this careful preparation 200 gasjes were lighted
and the happy audience complacenty sweltered amid
occasional calculations Of "htihmitch" or Wunder-
teh6, ," When the intermission arrived, they poured
their threats in sbawls and handkerchefs, while the
more prudent among the men donned their oVercoats
The thermometer in the open air was at about $50 Fab
r,nheit though what extreme hight the mercury rose
inside Of the building beyond my power to determine.
In tie garden the good folks drank beer ate tiny
little dals Of cecream sold at the rate Of IL cents
thimblcful The chorus singers discussed the difficult
points in the music the rival conductors from other
towns found fault with Herr Killers tempt his style, and
his figure the rival tenors in the audience expressed
COO1fa oIn abo
(which nobody else could perceivel; the man who had
once heard an orchestra in Vienna complained bitterly
of the brass instrumental the foreigners present
bered nj the absence such List and Wagner
from the Beethoven Centennial the band Of fire.
en on hand In queer costumes seemed very well salts
led that no had broken out to demand their
Efforts: and everybody supremely happy In his or
her way. 1t was Of Teutonic bliss upon which
Apollo and Pan, and Orpheus and st. Cecilia and any
other Pagan deity Christian saint might have smiled
with benignant approval.
But when half hour had thus passed away, all
bastened back to the hall to hear the fifth symphony
Hnler tapped the desk, and repeated sibation OF
sshe like sounds directed against beated indi-
yiduals who just scufng into their seats Then
there came mighty silence, and, at the signal stroke,
the broke forth into sound The beat was for
goen every eye directed toward the platform, and
every car devoted TO the splendid Interpretation Of the
great composition, while each individual musician, from
first violin TO kettle drum seemed TO give up his very
SOUL rs well hearest physical energy to the work in
hand. The audience was almost painfully silent in its
close attention where at favOrte phrases,
wildly enthusiastic listener not daring to applaud as
yet would wrgge ecstatcsy in his seat If this were
Ieally too much bliss for human endurance. Then,
when the symphony over, there rose q shout
Of triumph from the excited audience, who screamed
waved Wit delight while the musicians