, 1874-06-14
MuSlC AT THE " HUB"
mia Past Season --- Future
Prospects.
rhe Harvard Musical Association rs.
Theodore Thomas.
n111e Blood in Boston Art.
7ba Horn Of the Ungodly to Be Put
Down.
nlue Blood in Boston Art.

o,-t,r,o1denee Of The Chicago Tribune.

fzrrtsDo11denee Of The Chied1o Tribune.
Boston. June 10. 1874.
:, ths cou1ee OF the busy musical season just
-,osod, Boston has been called upon to support
something like ......
cso coscEgrs AND orEnAT1c ESTEnTAEsazESTs.
1,nro1d Of 100 Of the concerts given between
.,'a 1u, of October and tho middle Of May may
ss;r,v ho counted undor the head Of classical"
~ there we're 45 operatio representations.
11.aeo 1-, 1ctsr tcooped in over 100000. There
-ar. +vo Seasons Of italian opera, one of
.rsl.e pe1formances and one OF eleyeu.-by the
u.rat7ek and Strakosch trcupes, respectively;
.na n, English opera, consisting OF fourteen
concentrations, and eight performances OF
prcn.h opera bou1Eo. Not MI OF tho concert
.nter,rises havo made money, but most OF them
h.ya doue remarkably well.
TIE HARVARD MUSICAL ASSOCIATION
xh;eh becomes more and more oId-fogylsh every
.,,r-lost money by their concerts and the
,ecent t1iepnial festiYa! Of the Handel and Haydn
Society vas also losing speculation. Mr.. John
Dwight, editor Of Dnight's Journal Of Music,
xho is the ruddcr OF tie Harvard Mu6lcal Asso-
r;ation. and who contTlves to steer the concern
a. far avav from the popular" current as the
mo.t intense and bluest blooded Bostoninn
could desire. ascribes the financial failure
in his case to variety OF canees,
The chief of which is the abandonment
6. lie members gun7antoe-subscription. The
trnih of tho matter is, tho attendance at
the Harvard Concerts has been dropping of for
fereral vears past Their exclu5lyeuc35 has
driven AWAY tho outside public, and tho pro-
framIucs have latterly become so dry and musty
th:s even classical Boston cannot stand them
The deficit in the case Of
ia more to be regretted, but It is easily traceable
10 ll-julsed management The symphony con-
oerts given during the festival were not made as
attractive cs they might have been, and
the attendance on those occasions TAs much less
than at the eveninS-concerts. 1t Is unoouotealy
true. also, that too much was attempted, and
that too many entertainments we're given The
nroduction Of portion Of Eacls " Passion
Music" and two new works By native COM
posers, tho new oyatotio, "6t. Peter, by
1chn K. Paine. and setting of the Forty-sl1th
Psalm BY Dudley Buck,-we-o noble acMcye-
neuts, and the Society deserves high honor for
ng patience and labor, and for it's generally e1-
ceIlent performance of each OF the6o works.
TAe1o were given altogether, during the festival,
eleven public performances too many by four
or five. The actual loss incurred waa ~, 400,
and this is covered by guarantee fund OF nearly
ESQ 600. The guarantors Eave been assessed 10
per cent to meet tho deficiency.
Already concert and opera managers are busy
laYiug their plans for tho musical campaign Of
b74-5.
THEODORE rUoNAs,
WHO gave fifteen concerts in Boston in the sea-
sau lust East has signifled his intention at
giving us course Of six classical concerts, ut
iuteryals, next fall and winter. These will be OF
The highest order, and independent of his ordin-
~ concerts, if any such he iHds time and op-
po,tuplty to give. Probably no concert-mao-
aacr Inns done better here during the recent
season than Mr.. Thomas. He can count tho
entire musical community as his fr1enda and
supporters, except Mr. Dwight and his dozen or
TO associates of tho Harvard Concert Committee,
who, having coneert~enterpriss Of their own
to run, lre very jenlous of newcomers.
The Harvard Association is well enough
III its way, but, when it assumes to
be tho only trne coDEeTyator OF muElcal art,
and seeks to crowd everybody else from the
field it trcads on the toes Of the public. MIR.
Tlomas has done moro to cultivate and estab-
hsh correct musical taste IN this city aad
throughout the country than
ALL THE LOCAL ASSOCIATIONS PUT TOGETHER.
His concerts are invariably Of high character,
aud he has made the best muslc-sho immortal
works Of tao great masters-famlli2r to the
Easses and beloved by them. The Harvard
managers know all this, but they are annoyed
TO think that anyone outside Of their own little
ring should eject any good il this direction:
They are unwilling to sea TINT Thomas and
doug direct eood to item in GRE
etiuy = pubic 2o- them Or. rather,
tuey fear tint GOOD music Vii become so com.
mon that thew will iose their eclf-assuued Of
fees - the only tr7,a lcadcra in Art. At the end
of tie season the Harysrd managers were IN de-
srair. Tleodore Thumas had uot only given tho
publio better music thnn they could afford. but
bo Lad ciyen more Of it. Thomas had atforded
bis pstroug an opportunity to hoar and Judge tor
themselves resrecting tie claims OF the com
poserp of tho .11ey school." Tho Harvard gen
flemen nIace themselves in tho gtrnnre attitude
Of the dor in tho manper. who would not eat
himself or allow any other creature to cat.
Boaton mist receiye euch homoonath;o doees
"a these gentlemen for one or two Of them who
aro tie real directors Of tho enterprise,) choose
to dole out, md nothing else. This is
Ihe spirit of tho managers of the
H.zvard concerts. but not OF the members Of
Tie Harvard Association in general, who have,
year a!te: wear. manifested tier impatience un-
der the aiow and fogyish direction affairs hare
taken. Il was Question of serious doubt
whether the Association would 20 On with its
concerts another yelr; but, happily, the doubt
has been solved. and
ANOTHER SEASON OF co,cEnrs,
beginning Thureday .fternoon. Nor. s and con-
tinuipg fortnirhtiy to the number OF ten enter-
tainments. in 70 be eiren. 10 one interested in
The progress Of mnsical art desires to see such
concerts ciyen M E,xclnsi:e and ill-manascu
ss they aTe thar IN some ernod. 4 rot1rn In the