The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1885-04-30
The Development of Modern Music.

The Development of Modern Music
The entertainment at the. Methods
School on Friday evening, although some
thing quite out Of the accustomed routine
of soirees in our city, was able, none thu
less satisfactorily, to meet the demands o.
the popular ear. 1t consisted of a lecture
by Prof. Ayres on the "Origin and Devel
opment OF Modern Instrumental MusicY
accompanied by Illustrations on the piano
OF its several stages of progression up to
the time in which it attained its
present state of perfection. This
is only one Of series of lectures
which Prof. Ayres has delivered be-
fore his music class at the Institute. and
while we do not know that this method Of
romoting the study Of the art of music,
by an occasional Investigation of its his
tory. and an insight into both the public
and private lives of its great masters and
teachers. is generally in vogue in our in
stltutes, 1T certainly seems fraught with
lncalculable advantages for interesting and
melting lis students to greater attain
ments III instrumental music. We con-
graduate DR.. Harris upon this spirit Of
Observation-Disclosures lately introduced into
his faculty.
Prof. Ayres handled his topic in on adj
mirable way from beginning to end. not
withstanding he had obstacles to surmount
from the start. in the profundlty of his
subject, the necessity of condensing it to
suit the limits Of a brief hour. and the eX-
IRENE difficulty Of lecturing on the science
OF music before a general audience. His
powers Of concentration, however, met in
remarkable degree the exigencies of the
occasion. Technicalities were only intro
duced when unavoidable, and his patience
and self possession through all interrupt
lions was unbounded. His preliminary re-
marks, leading him back to the dim ages in
search Of the origin of all art--namely, the
demands Of the emotional for outward forms
OF manifestation-disco music among
her sister arts and tracing her course
thencefrom forms essentially rude in their
incipiency, but improving as the emotional
capacities of humanity enlarged, presents
her as developed in the beginning of the
century by Bach and Handel.
AT that epoch the centre of all music was
harmony and its acme the fugue
With Philip Emmanuel Bach, however,
music, taking new bent, found express
sion in the modern classic form, the
sonata, which further developed by
Haydn and Mozart successfully. reached a |
brilliant elimination in the theories and |
practices of the great Ludwig Won Beetho- !
ven. Prof. Ayres' lecture bore evidence
of most untiring research and thorough |
acquaintance with every department of |
his art. He possesses many of the requI-
sites OF successful lecturer, his Ian
guage throughout being singularly chaste
and pure, frequently flashing forth gems
Of thought worth remembering and pre-
serving. The incidents in the lives of the
great composers and the alluSion, particu-
larly. to the last days of the lllustrious
Beethoven were recited with true dramatic |
effect, securing the undivided attention of
his audience. Following the lecture were
The piano illustrations of the four periods
Of development in the history of the
sonata, only emitting the production by
Haydn, which on account of the unfor-
bad condition of the piano he
deemed it inexpedient to attempt. The
Moonlight sonata, by Beethoven, closing
the programme, was beautifully and skill
fully rendered, despite the faulty instru-
ment. Prof. Ayres, although an enthu-
siast on the subject Of his art, is by no
means an unpleasant one and succeeds in !
quite enthusing his listeners. notwith-
the ear of the general public is
not yet attuned to the high pitch at which I
he aims in his lectures. Taking it all to-
gether, the exercises were most instruc-
tive and enjoyable.