, 1880-08-22

4 correspondent writes to The CHICAGO
TRIBUNE: II heard many Of the bands from
other cities. Our city bands were totally
eciipsed. I now think that we have no band
worthy Of the name. The appearance Of the
men, the style of playing, and the selection
Of music prove that we are a long way be-
hind other cities, Then again the sc-called
grand concerts! What miserable failurel
Bach's orchestra Of Milwaukee was much
superior to Balatka's, although the latterwas
much larger" 4 correspondent Of one Of
our morning contemporaries says:
Chcago's orchestra has again allowed grand
oppo1 tuutty to go By w'thuut doing Itself credit
or improving its uncnviuble reputation. We
have good musicians here. and the knights fur
nishcd ample means, maklng their arrange
ments mouths ago. that the musical part OF tho
they were most wornlly disappointed. Especial
Monday. and ut tho concerts On Wednesday
evening. It Is too uggravnling thar, when mu-
syt 80 naen tnat wald DC IN
kind, and with the idea of knight Tcmplarisu,
we are served mostly with picnic Tor worsci
music rendered SO badly that We fec! like re-
joicing that only few works Of any value were
attempted.
UnQuesttonably there is great deal Of
truth In the complaints Of both these CORE
spondents, and, "pity 'tis, tits So" It only
makes the matter more aggrayating that
there was annie time to have prepared good
music, and the allowance for the music
(S12,ooo) was also very generous. There
were over LOO military bands here aud three
wcllequIpped orchestras,-the Cincinnati,
Milwaukee, and Chicago,-in all over 5000
instruments, and yet there was no music one
can look back to with any pleasure. The
combined orchestra was one OF the largest
ever organized in this country, numbering
1C0 pieces, ten more than played In the Gin
cinnati Festival, and yet did not play single
number worthy Of the reputation Of the
players. The playing at the Jockey-Club
Park and the so-called ball was lauenta-
bly, poor, and tie procession music
was mainly distressing, as the bands were
located so near together that their music was
almost constant dissonance The three
concerts on Wednesday night were fiat fail
ures; not because the orchestras were DOOR.
but because the programs were poor and the
players were exhausted. The men were
marched three or four hours in the blazing
sun On Tuesday, kept playing in the intoler-
able heat Of the Exposition Building Tuesday
night, and then during Wednesday had to
p4nJ Ab tllo oocht}-IluD IAFk OeI0re going to
the concerts, with the additional burden of
having to play on the Lake Park hall the
night after the concerts were over; and all
this on two Of the hottest. days ever known
ia Chicago. II it were an outrage on the
TeInplars to stand two hours in the sun and
then march three more, what would they
have called it If every one Of them had been
compelled to blow horn or trombone all
that time?
But all this Is thing Of the past and is
ended, and there is '*no use in crying over
split milk" But there is matter pertaining
to the future that deserves SOME comment,
because 1t can be and should be remedicd. |
The Conclave music, unfortunate as it was,
has detinitly settled these facts: first, that |
we have no military bands in this city that
can compare with any Of the bands from
other large cities, or with some from the
country towns even; and, second, that our
orchestra is not only greatly inferior to the
cincinnati orchestra Of Michael Bran4 but |
Is also excel1ed by the Milwaukee orchestra
OF Christian Bach. though the latter is much
smaller, and was compelled to play In Far
well Hall, where only salamanders could
have stood the intolerable heat. These are