National Republican., 1883-05-25
wEBER,s DIATRIBE.
Hts Savage Attack on a Beethoven
Symphony.
Music and Drama.


Music and Drama.
OF course there are good and bad musical
critics just as there are good and bad tailors;
the person who failed TO see the greatness Of
Beethoven was no doubt very stupid person,
unless we may charitably suppose that he
was very spiteful one. So at least one
would think If 1t did not happen that one of
the most violent antagonists of Beethoven
was himself man of undoubted genius
Weber in fact, the composer Of der Freis-
chutz." When n young man, he, like Schu-
mann, set up for a critic; but, less good
natured and less wise tnan schumann, he dc
termined to mako an onslaught on very
prominent man, and in an evil hour chose
Beethoven for the purpose. Like Schumann,
again, he disguis his criticism in the form
of kind of stoI You will find IL quoted
in one of those able pieces of musical
analysis which teorge Grove has con-
tributed to the fammes of the Crystal
Palace concert 8 curious pendant to
Schumann's al dative criticism Weber's
diatribe we'll de-, YES quotation-"It 1t is sup
posed to be dream, in which all the instru-
ments of the orchestra are heard uttering their
complaints after the rehearsal of the new work.
They are in serious conclave round the prin-
cipal violins, grave personages, whose early
years had been spent under Pleyel and Gy-
rowetz. The contrabasso is speaking. Il
have just como from tho rehearsal of
a symphony by one of our newest COM
posers mo. In b fat, and though, as you
know, 1 have tole. ably strong constitu-
tion, l could only just hold out, and
five minutes more would have shattered my
frame and burst the sinews of my life. l
have been made to caper about like a wild
goat, and to turn myself into a mere fiddle
to execute tho no-ideas of Mr.. Composer.
I'd sooner be dancing masters kit at
once, and earn my bread with Muller
and Kaur (the Strausses of the day..
The first violoncello (bathed in perspiration)
says that for his part he is too tired to speak,
and can recollect nothing like the warming
he has had since he played IN Chernbinis last
opera. Tho second violoncello is of opinion
! that the symphony is a musical monstrosity,
revolting alike to the nature Of the instru-
ments and the expression Of thought, and
with no intention whatever but that of mere
show-off. After this the orchestra attendant
enters, and threatens them with the Sinfo-
MIA Eroica If they are not quiet, and makes
| q speech in which he tells them that the
| time has gone by for cearness and force,
spirit and fancy, like the old masters,
| Gluck, Handel, and Mozart and that the fol-
lowing (evidently an intentional caricature
| of the fiat symphony is the lest Vienna
receipt for n symphony: First, slow
\ movement full Of short, disjointed, uncon-
nected ideas at the rate of three or four
notes per quarter of an hour; then q myste-
rious roll of the drum and passage OF the
violas, seasoned with the proper quantities
of pauses and ritardandos; and to end all, q
flu rious finale, in which the only requisite is
that there shall be no idea for the hearer to
make out, but plenty Of transitions from one
key to another-on to tho new note at once |!
never mind modulating !-above all things,
throw rules to the winds, for they only ham,
per a genius. At this point said Weber in
his own person, woke in dreadful fright
lest might be on the road to become either
great composer ora lunatic." l need
ha tell you that Weber in later life saw
the error of his ways. and was among Bee
| thoven's warmest admirers.