New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-03-13

appear that that prediction IS already Iu'"l' 81,
We repeat it we do not know OF siheie ill.,
any Leading critic on NOhPs amazing anu '.'"'
tive combination of all the faults anu u'i', 70 ~
chile in work of this class in It's comple'eu i"i'"
tn iustiry the use of language SO haiSh "Hu -
inc a point must Do established when 'io e''n'0
ohove have not met and this IS. tha1 Ino 'o"uo'
Nobrs book cannot rely upon MS s'"VT -
fao+. that his carelessness, his weakness oi
memory his lack of critical peicep''o"I ne Rio
LII feeble Judgment his stubborn preluu'cee' il'o
10Y aIiors his iupotency Of calm reasoning
1 H. ,o,,ndIcss solfconceit render his DOCK Ut
-, mil and void as an authority on the IacIs ol
uootbovrn's history. 1t is obvious that oooh may
H. rovor IN had IN construction, loose IN lts style
bophostic in expression. Astounding ID irrelevant
matter and vet be worthy of an esscntlal reprouuc
ron in another language, provided II oe correct as
=, facts: for the rcprOducer can eApurga'e at VIII
and write in n style of his own Hence we proposo
20 sbo, that Nolls book is utterly untrustworthy ;
that il not only accepts the mistakes ana errors Vi
nrovious writer's on Beethoven but adds aDuA-
dainty others OF his own; whence 10 lhterpolato
rc,rar il fullcs that, as his errors are the hases
of large portions vi the high-sounding padding OF
his volumes, with their correction the supelstr"c-
lures fall -
Ills castles topple on their builders head
If indeed action be more eloquent than words the
acts of Herr NGhl for dozen or more years last
past render him n most important witness to our
charge of his general lOOscnrss and extreme mac
curacy of statement.
To enable the reader to appreciate duly the force
Of this witnesses evidence, u somewhat pr0tracted
DEPRESSION here is unavoidable. In 1866 appeared
the first in 1871 the second, volume OF WORK
which, as the reader is explicitly informed IN the
PREDATORY letter, was not intended rs critical bI"G
raphy of Beethoven the composer but simply ne
of Beethoven the man. II was prolesSedly hoihlhE
more than an effort tC silt all known ana discover
able, printed and manuscript, materials Tor the
mans personal history; to save the WI eat ana east
the tares upon the dunShll that at length tie
musical public might have the pian truth Ill >tritt
chronological order and free from all needless cpl
sodcs and essays at fine writing. lis design was
NOT 70 nrepare sweet sentimental reading for the
dclcctation OF any beloved female readers ~" my
dear LADY Observation-Disclosures to whom Nohl
delights to address HIMSELF but to purge the trfa
turc on Beethoven Of the multtudmous maccma-
cics mistakes bunders, pcrvcrsons. tabrlcatlons'
fctons and ialsehoods made current b. The prcJu-
dccs and ncompctcncc of Just such authors a, Herr
Ludwig Nohl That gentleman honorcd those vol
uucs with long reviews in the NCRc Zri'schrU fdr
U,,jt in which he launches the feeble shafts of his
ridicule and sarcasm against them for being pre-
cisely what they profcsscdy were intended to be-
lie gravcly informs the reader that, as to book
where throughout nothing bnt Facts Stare MS IN
fine face and nowhere Subordmatlon ct them To
some leading lofticr object appears, at last a
feeling Of the utter lack OF organization must ne
awakened: for mere chronological order produces
no organization "-whateycr this may mrar
Apain: Facts and ever facts fly about 80 iIat one
loses his head complctely.' Moreover he assures
the reader, OF the NrIt ZischiiH that the u;lu'NN
author knows nothing of music; has no astH'uH
perception; is incapable ui any lofty e"nr'"l[a-
lions: hut what above all else provokcs the rlo-
Guent disgust contempt and scorn OF Herr Nohl -
"bIs shallow morality &C.; his pcdantIc morality :;
"a certain pcdautic. moral estimation of conduct ;
"a certain moral scrupu!oGourss. or scrHpnonS
moralit," So far rs We are able to nudge from
reasonably thorough knowledge Of the TWO volumes
in question the wrath e Herr NChl IN this matter
of morality was aroused by the view gwen IN them
of BccthGycns character, in VIII" Incidentally MS
very strict opinions upon the sacIednc,s at IN"
married relation came up. To illustrate; Suppose
Hans Won Bulow had been Bccthoycu's contempt
rary and had sacrificed present position ana cmoI-
umcnts with his future prospects. IN order To To-
move to vienna and there supcrintcnd the master r
works Beethoven would NOT have rewarded nm 10y
se,lucinc his wife, running away with hc' ana
her children. and leaving the husband AMI i"t"'r
TO wander Tie wide world alone
Pcrhap, the most amusing Of Nohi' STRUCTURES -
that "a false understanding Of independence OF
labor DIV which he mean, mistaken conception
of an outbor's right, had prevented the writer
under review freely to appropriate What was not
the fruits of his own researches This * double
edged it justIics 10y implication ms own praeilrr
To- convey the nise it call and is a lament that
the rival volumes ignore the existence Of his own
that Herr Ludwig Nohl whcIc appears in them
a. an authority in Beethoven banning. The
trutb is that save some "reminiscences OF certain
AGED persons there was nothing TO quote IN ms
hook cxccpL his error, and aesthetics, which Cod
forbid! and his memory is 50 very trcachcrouS that
one hestatcs to trust even his reports OF conNorsa
tions. For instance, in his first volume OF Bee
thoycn's letters %. ID he makes Alex. Thayer, Of
Vienna" state that. from his examination Of
church registers Julia GuicciaI,li married IN 1901.
There is not a VOID OF truth IN this; yet Noll
meant well enough; his memory OF the convcrSa-
ton was all wrong In the second collection Of
Becthovcns letters ,p. 80. he gives the "eNprcss
statement of Mad. QrlkcnstocH HrcntanO, that her
ac0uaIntancc with Beethoven began in 1910 In
b,s Bccthoycns Lie" published but a few months
later we read d. '3ls) that the composer was well
known in her family in 1892. Had Mad. Brrntano
at the age of cighty.soyen 50 lost her memory that
she forgot eighteen years Of acquaintance with such
"A man rs Ludwig van Beethoven! Nohls silent
correction Of his shows where the weakness of
memory lqy Madame Caroline van Beethoven is
given By N0hl as his authority for divers state
mcnts in his various publications. One 0l them is
of such Il nature that if that excellent woman,
whom we happen 10 know personally, really mode
il she not only uttered an unmitgatcd falsrhood,
hut one which ISLANDERS the memory OF an uncle
who was her benolactor and for Yeas member OF
her household it is. Of course, her reporters, not
'.r own memory that is in fault. Both the articles
IN the Noao ZciischrW are very diycrting reading
their moral being that the book 10 buy and read is
the one aboundng in lofty aesthetics; in political
fran Il