The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-06-26
THE CARNIVAL OF SOUND.
1IUSICIL SUCCESSES md FAILURES
OF THE BOSTON FESTIVAL.
The Jubilee EstheticalIy Considered
An Incomprehensible Medley - The
Phenomenal Voice OF Leutner-About
the Mighty Chorus, and what Abt
Thinks of 1t.
From the New York World ]

| Thinks of 1t.
From the New York World
! BosroN, June l9.
The musical part of the Peace Jubilee has
now been developed sufficiently to enable one
to Judge Of its aesthetic merits. Let me say
then In review that 1t presents 10 the mnsi-
clan or the critic one of the most inc0mpre-
henslble radleys of successes and failures
that he was ever called 10 express an intelll-
gent opinion upon. On Monday the opening
| performance of s'Old Hundred" promised
| new order of dynimlcs for the chorals an
| nounced. But on the second day the NAL
treatment of the British anthem and the fall
Ing off in the power OF the chorus In Its treat
| ment of the chorals from the oratorios betok-
ened disaster. "Old Hundred" was an
event; "God save the Queen" was mag
| nifled imbeclity and chaos. The
ssRienzl" overture, played by the enor-
nous orchestra with more strings and brass
than were ever before brought together, was
remarkable for the new effects wrought solely
by the aggregation OF Instruments. me
| "'Tannhauser" overture to-day was unWieldy
| dIssonance. The soloists are similarly situ-
ated. Herr Bendel, the pianist, who pounds
| the instrument as kitchen maids co steak 10
make 1t soft and tender, and was purposely
| provided with on iron-clad instrument III
which every quality had been sacrificed TO
impregnabillty, vainly shook his msjes,,o
| OF the mast classical, or perhaps / shouta say
one of the most diScreetly mel0dious OF per-
formers. barely secured u reception, and was
| not even recalled. Bendel proved tumultu-
! GUS failure, though he is unqneslisnably an
artist OF the spasmodic excellence, and God
being set down among anvils and guns
and 6i1den pipe sweetly. But the COM
paratively unknown lat least unknown
here) soprano, Nine. Peschka-Leulner,
| won O magnificent triumph. and be-
came the star of the jubilee. Her phenome
nal voice Is. exactly The prize which Americans
60 mad over. We're Il possible for her 10 ex-
| tend her visit into starring tour throughout
| the large cities, believe she would win more
money Than is ln possession oil the monarch
who retains her services OF salary. II you
will Imagine magnificent looking woman,
| with voice not only extending three octaves
from register to register, but possessing In its
lower and middle notes some Of that wonder
| full capacity for which CaialaDi was noled, and
who executes all the runs and cadenZas, and
even the etaccato f1orature with which Carot.
| ia Patti amazed rs. yon will seo Leutner.
Here, then, was great success belcnsing
| exclusively to the jubilee and labelled In view
| OF all managers and ouen.eared agents, Hands
Off" But this success was surrounded with
| failures. Rrdersdorf who undertook to Sing
| the s.Ipflam matue," stabbed the eight thons-
and with false notes and strained herself be-
yond endurance 10 fill the void of the Coli
scum.
So it was with the chorus. Here they we're
grand and there they were grotesque. NOW It
nA .nQmmAr
tongs. In the chorus from Costa's sell" they
were not only kept we'll In hand, but really
gave to the composition some of the character
the composer intended. In the British an
them the unmeasuredI elements that had been
summoned reeelled The ocean of ENG cnGrus US
The defensive, and the. conductor shook his
wand supplicatingly in all directions like
civil officer appealing to mob. But 1t was
| vain. The enormous enginery oil this storm
could n6 be righLed 10 twinkllng. The wind
blew and the rain OF voices fell, the sopranos
welled over In uumanageable pillows,
and the basses dashed themselves In thun-
derous fury against the beetllng organ,
and 1or moment the grand efforts OF the
man who had invoked this dreadful monster
seemed not unlike those OF Dame Parting.
ton with her broom, when she undertook to
regulate the Atlantic. But,1on the other
hand, Strauss has been success, and two or
and proper. To continue The schedule, the
operatic music was the most delantly improp-
er and unoperatic that I ever heard. we
might pardon the daily throes OF the anvil
chorus, excited for no other purpose than 10
exhibit the Boston fremen, but when 1t came
to Meyerbeer's grand scena, that magnificent
"Benedlction of the Ponlards," than which
there has been written no concerted piece 30
frausht with the Intensity Of human passion,
and so involved In It's exquisite portrayal OF
conflicting emotions, we could hardly pardon
the temerty which put 1t into The mouths of
rural chorlsters, aud exhibited 1t tangled
and cOlorless like q noisy congT 'gational
chant. Dramatic music, written up TO a par.
tcular situation, cannot be treated IN this
herding manner. 1t is true there was
reserve of voices for these special pieces
called q musical bouquet, which bouquet was
culled. from the amateur parterres OF the
whole Union. But 1t was demonstrated that
bouquet could no more sing this emotional
music with the spirit that alone gave II ex-
cuse for existence than rainbow could ride
circus horse. The best thing they could do
| was to 60 through the motions. Failure also
beset the pet idea Of having Abt's sentimental
dilty, "The Swallows" sung by the twenty
thousand. 1t woudn'C be sung in that way,
and even If 1t had consented, everybody knew
that 1t would be much better done by solita-
~ young lady In back parlor on a moonlight
evening in autumn. The worthy German song
writer himself conducted Its performance.
The chorus got up to look at him, and the ALL
dience stood on their seats, and after all per-
haps they were satisfied. Bnt musically it was
an unsentimental, unnatural and ungracefnl
performance, and the singers themselves ap-
peared TO take but little interest In 1t.
spoke to Abt about 1t afterwards. He
shrugged his shoulders and smiled, and tried
TO convey to me by the corner OF his eye that
he thought it was grand ''hoom-poog." And [
dare say 1t was. So you will see that the fail.
ures and successes are evenly mixed In the
programme. The effects sought 10 be OBJ
tanned by the monster chorus are problematl-
cal at best. The best authorities are not sure
that The increase Of majesty In on extraordI.
nary number of voices compensates the loss of
accuracy and delicacy. They are pretty
we'll convinced, however, that Increase OF
numbers does not give Increase of power.
The increase is always In quality, not In
strength, and they agree that there are only GER
tain forms and Kinds Of compositions which
can be safely entrusted 10 such choruses. The
projectors Of the Peace Jubilee seem to think
that anything which can be appropriately sung
by one voice can be appropriately snng by
twenty thousand concertedly. This is mis-
take as big as the Coliseum ilself-nay, bigger;
1t Is the size Of Boston.
There js however another feature of this