New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-09-10
A MUSICAL PILGRIMAGE.
VII.
SONGS AND MUSIC AT OLD HEIDELBERG

-. ~ heidelberg University last week. music
n,aved avery significant role 1t is true that there
was scarcely an hour OF the day or night In which
ths beer halls the festival hall and the castle cellar
did not ring with the music of brass bands or the
so,gs Of the students; but after the multitude had
once become saturated with tho festival spirit
drawn from the beer kegs and the Great Tunl u
was only by courtesy that its vocal explosions
conld be called music and for the brass bands,
with the exception of the really excellent organiza-
tion which played daily in the Festival Hall, 1
have but in my life heard their equal rs
producers of cacophonous noises. That was shreo
wears ago in New London, when the Harvard boys
celebrated their unexpected victory over tales
gigantic crew by serenading Governor "aier'
The Governor has had good deal to DISTRACT HIS
mind since then. but Question whether no mas
ever got quite over the effects of that serenade III
fingers stubbornlv in my mind and not at all ike
benediction. Yet there were some musical FEATURES
associated with the festival which were interest
ing One was the performance of the festival ode
on the occasion Of the formal welcoming OF inc
festival guests by the Mayor of the town. Anotner
was the concert given by the Bach Nerein ana ''e
Akademischen Gesangveretn. assisted DIV hopert
Ueckmann volinist of Cologne, in the Heiiis geist
Kircbe Finally students of music and the lyric
literature of Germany were Interested IN the GIN
of the Baden Ministry Of Justice, Public worship
and Education tc the University.
For the musical tourist who feared that change
of scenes would too quickly eface The amiabe I'M
pressons of Heidelberg and its festival, there was
an agreeable and easily acquired remedy at hand;
he needed only select his railway literature from
J. Victor Won Schefers publications. "Gaude-
anus" would preserve the memory of the merry
student life IN perennial freshness and Ekkehard
would keep his imagination in glow if perchance
his Journey. like wine. led through Suabia. along
the edge of the Black Forest, past Hohentwiei,
with its ruins of the old castle where Ekkehard
read Virgil with the young but widowed Duchess
and held firmly to his monkish VOWS too long for
his own happiness, across the Baden See, along the
foot of the Saints where Ekkehard was healed OF
his heart wounds by the Alpine scenes and the
Jyalhari lied Had Scheife but lived few
months longer he would have shared the honors of
the Jubilee with the Grown Prince and Grand
Duke and The ovation which would have been
brought him by the thousands to whom he has
vouchsaed such swellings of the heart as no other
German writer of this century, would have
thousand times as sincere, and a hundred times
more enthusiastic as that which greeted the repre-
-ontatives of royalty. But the old singer of the
gores of heidelberg aud tina Rlank Forest voc
dead and doubtless. many of his admirers and
friends like his confrere Felix Dahn, remained
away from the festival because his absence would
change its Joys TO sorrows for them. Yet
Scheiel was present in his songs which
resounded through the streets. down from
the castle aud up from the Neckar inces5antly He
was present besides, in the ode which he put into
the hands of Vincenz Lachner for composition not
long before he died. Compared with some of the
songs in his "Gaudeamns" and "Trompeter,"
especially with the Ait Heidelberg der feline"
which ornamented a hundred house fronts. the
festival ode is an Indifferent production; yet II has
SOME of that eager bounding joyousness which is
so marked haracteristic of the poets work, and
deserves place among the Heidelberg students
songs The Jclosing lines, W bch are the BEST may
suffice to give an idea of the whole; an attempt to
render the poem into English would strip 1t Of all
its charm-ScheAels thoughts and their vehicles
are such intimate products of German emoti ons
that they will not endure transplanting:
He'll Allen die in wissenschacht
Nicht Muh, noch Arbet scheuchten,
Die manche Naeht duTchdaoht, durchwaoht
Und He'll der stsd wo schorfungspracht
Nit Weisheit TN VereiDe;
EN- brausend Hoch sol dir gobracht
Altheldederg, du Feline!
The music to the ode composed by Vincenz
Lachner an old friend of the poets. many of whose
peculiar songs he has set. Lachner is an old man
and lives at Carlsruhe. He is less VOL known
than his brother Franz whoat one time filled quite
significant place IN musical Germany.
Lachner had also composed festival march for
German Empire" for which the words had been
provided by Julius.Wolf. OF the latter composition
am unable to speak, but the march was very
commonplace affair. AS q composer Herr Lachner
is two generations behind the times. His setting
of SchefePs ode is good enough on the assumpt on
that IL was designed for prima rsta singing by che
entire gait herring The greater part of it is rather
commonplace melody in Eat, which is sung
throughout in unison by all the voices. Schefel
had taken for a motto the words of the Psamist,
{" This is the day which the Lord hath made; we
beScech
Thee, Q Lord Lord, beseech Thee, send prosper
ity." Lacnner set this motto as an Introductory
recitative for solo baritone and toward the close
he introduced the solo voice again. The accom-
panlment was set for military instruments, and in
college songs THE familiar IucRStied, for instance,
which Brahms treated with such irresistible hifmor
in bis Academic OVerture"), and g Die Wacht
am Rhen." This procedure was scarcely effective;
il seemed forced aud uncaled for. The melody had
the merit of being easily caught, and the veneer
able composer embraced every conceivable oppor-
tunty TO repeat his work. the street whlstlers had
added portion OF 1t tc their repcTtory before the
end OF the week.
For the egious portion of the celebration Philip
WDlirum, young and evidently jealous musician
OF Heidelberg, Lad organized choir of several
hundred voices by combining the Bach Verein and
the Akademischen Gesangverein. With this choir
aud band composed Of the Mannheim Court
Theatre orchestra. the Heidelberg City orchestra
ana lew amateur musicians he performed
several choral works of magnitude These
he utilized again On the morning of the last
day OF the jubilee at the concert already referred
to. The programme was composed as follows:
"Halleluah." chorus Handel; three short
liturgeal pieces two by Bach, one by A. scarlatt;
ChaconDe for violin solo, Bach Robert HeckmInnl
4Das Crosse Halleluiah1 ode by Klopstock. SCI
for chorus and orchestra by Philip Woifrum two
Chors.es arranged by Bach small choir a oapela)
"AIles Odein Nat" from the aLobcesangs
Mendelssohn air, Bach aud Adagio. from the
violin concerto. Beethoven Herr Heclmannl:
SWe praise Thee o Lord" from the q Detngen ~
Deum." Handel. This will be recognized as the
exceedingly dignified and tastefuly constructed
scheme and the pleasure which the music Afforded
was largely enhanced by the simplicity and rever-
ence whirh marked everything connected with the
concert. The singing Of the clorus, while com
mendable was not calculated to astonish one
familiar with the achievements OF the English and
American singing societies. / have heard much