, 1874-09-20
MUSIC.
Tie "Writer-Demagogues Who Impede
the Advent Of tho Musical
Millennium.
Richard Grant White on Wagner
and List.

Public opinion should be the conservatory Of
Art where genius or talent is encouraged and
guided to full symmetrical Development but
it il too often bleak moor, wherein such germs
attain but stunted growth. America contains
the same natural musical taent Us other coun-
tres,-a fact patent to all VINO have to do with
it's education, and one OF which others may be
convinced BY obserslng."ho are the rising lumi-
na7ies in the musical world. Now, while this
talent may find as good instruction in this coun-
try in any other & assert this with entire con-
fldencs), why docsit
NEVER FULLY NATURE
it it renains at home? Why are Americas most
brilliant luninarIes found only among those who
1--we i'll Europe?
rhe answer is plain: In European countries,
public opinion upon musical matters being CEN
tralized to focus within the sphere OF the best
musicians, il N such condition that Arrgerms,
feeling it's influence, develop like natural vege-
tation in greenhouse; while, on the other
hand our teachers have no similar conserrato-
r,--no such genial atmosphere and rich soil in
which to COW seed; their rplanting-sround il little
better than . moor.
Upon our public opinion, tho two opposing
forces o1crtod BY the true artists and the musi-
cal dcma9oSues work constantly; but, in the do
centralized condition OF things, little progress in
one direction or the other can be seen. The in
s:inc1s Of our people incline toward the right;
10 the artistic element will ultimately prevail
is gaining ground ell the time, but
80 slowly that those who feel an
:. s.infnite longing" for the musical
millennium often lose patience with the dema-
gogues,-tAe teachers and writer's who are
nusically coarse-graiued and uneducated,-who
abound and effectively impede its advent
THE NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
is more formidable than hls brother Of the plat
form. because the latter finds many skilled
worknen OF his class TO expose al well as oppose
him. while the former, being generally man OF
literary skill finds scarcely an5 among the artists
~ho can 1ueas;lro pathological weapons with him,
and so meets little opposition other than gen
eral iuyectiye from the few who recognize his
peryeraity. This, however. has listic effect, for
tho facile writer. Echooled in logical expression,
with knowledge enough Of his topic to shr.yud
it neatly in technicalitlcs, appears to the mass
Of rca ;crs. who ara far better qualified to judge
OF q literary effort than OF mus!cal philosophy,
scholar altogether too strong for his reyllerB,
MR. RICHARD GRANT WHITE
u u
guage command admiration. I think it was his
pen which, so'no years Einco, produced satire
upon preteniers to the authorship OF g Rock Me
to Sleep, Mo,l,.r,"-a kee,er effnaion than
which would be hard to hnd1 His literary cs-
ploits have gained him the car Of the public,
ind he has Of late been addressing Lis cousiitu-
eucy upon the subject OF muhc I; bis music is to
him foreign language, tile gcuius OF which
he hns never tct.
In the June GainrY he handed Wagner over to
H.
ed of Li.zt. His first TRADE called forth cons4-
crable criticism. Of wlfch evidently etung
1,nl, for hlb second is accompanied by note
from the editor OF tho fasary:), claiming forhi1n
high place musical critic, sud adluclng,
].roof Of his right to it. q co:nmendateyy rot1co
from the excellent (but ve1y unmusicaD Rev.
John s. Dwight. Th1s fortified. Mr.. White
writes about List with positiveness Of asser-
tion which au educated ;n,sician would hesitate
to ASSUME, even If he held IF. VS. general con-
clu5lulB.
WHAT THOSE CONCLUSIONS ARE
NAV here be seen.
Tlat lrcariext Of composers. Franz Lsz ha. proba-
hy covered Music paper with his writings than
ao]lft ana nee,hosen o1d toResael; aou ~ al anat
time has hot produced musical idea that is worth
Of the buttons Of Ills OLD we've: palctots.-
not Which has character enough eTea is bad
nens, te recognized OF his L.zt, o. whom it
Hay the more he writes and the harder he
works. the does the stony sterity OF his mind
appear: Who spends the first part OF movenen: tn
couss. and the lasl III En,sidinE from climax that
has never heen reached who, dnaily, for every d.
Of His not done the p!auo-stool ought 10 sit on
the stool OF repentance.
do not propose to defend Liszt until an
opinion worth! to oppose Theodore Thomas IS
given US, defense il not needed. 1lC hope is
to thros some light upon the White species OF
musical critic. II he iH not vicious, the i'm
mediate subject Of my remarks Il Ignorant and
inpertinclit" as the majority Of bis critics call
hun. This appears plainly enough in his We
henaent and uncomprosnising mode of attack,
which, By have lutllua:ed 10 Intelligent muEl-
clan would care to adopt aganst person rever-
euced by the musical world who may be thus
described: A zane man of transcendent nat11ral
musical endowments, Of large general education.
Il perfect master of the whole technique Of lis
art, perfectly converaant with the whole musical
literature, one who las enjoyed the closest con-
tact with the greatest musical minds that nearly
half = century has seen. and one whose mind is
the Mecca OF all nalmusiciauaom. That
such person las not, in fifty years writing,
produced worthy idea Is q state ment by the
pleasant, look at its authors mind. Mr.. White
states that Liazt has written ''only fireworks of
difficulties" which he wonld hardly
have asserted had he prepared himself Tor his
discourse by research such as an honest writer
would have thought necessary. lie gives us bis
word that tho Introduction Of such "dlrerrcnt
keys as occur Ill Wagner and Liszt'a music vio-
lates tho laws Of harmony. To DO sure. he says,
in another place. that his victims compositions
remind him Of ''sermous IN which the sentences
were 'ccN put together and the language pure,
but, etc.,
THUS coSTRADIcT7SG HIMSELF.
and saving the necessity of explaining to any
one hut him that the laSB of harmony allow
sudden divergence from any one key to any
other. But 1t would require unusual stuck OF
patience to spend time in the consideration OF
the yagaries OF a man who talEs about the die
cord Of the sharp seventh OF the scale !" I'm his
article on Naguer). and rpeaks Of all air passing
" fro1a the domiuaut to the third Of the scale"
five notes removed. For tho benefit Of those
not versed in tcchncalltics, 1 will explain
that the *'sAarp seventh OF the ecalo - is moth
ing moro or less than the koJ-note;
and it is very severe upon The ecicnce of music
to call that. OF - the chord founded upon it.
dlscora: also, that the " dominant -" ~ five OF
the scale. between which ard ''the tliird there
il the interval Of a sixth in one direction and 4
third in another. In this latter tinssance, how
ever, . musician can g,1ess his r1eaning-
Mr. White quotes musical phrase that LIS
- cAS MARE NOTHING OF DIT SuSsE-'sE.
[ give the lrst section Of it:
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