New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-12-30
MUSICAL COMMENT.
BETwEEN.ACTs REFLECTIONS AND Amen
DOTES

NJ The Messiah by the Oratorio Society on las
Thursday evening ought not to be passed oy w'ln"as
a word Of comment and protest The question
not one Of @purismv so called. but one OF musicas
intelligence and taste. Mr. Damrosch. In an orcneeus
built up on Of ten first volns. used four ooooss
four cIarnets four bassoons and four trumpe'e tou
phcmism for cornets). His reasons for doing SO arc
not far to seek by bis own statement IL was DIS AIM
10 restore the Handel orchestra but II he had nos
said this the explanation might have been found IN
the that the last English writer on Handel "i"
Rockstro Whose book converted the late DR. Damroscn
10 belief IN the correctness OF Messiah" reading
which Tho Tribune had previously urged for three
years in succession. recommends doubling OF tns
wood and trebing OF the 'rumpe@ a. ies'iVsa
performances Of the ora,oro. The question Is ona
that has been much discussed but not always in'oi-
lgently and in the discussion there has always been
too much appeal TO ancient usage and too ht,ie !"
the modern ear. The circumstance which Mr.. Dams
rosch seems 10 have overlooked is that the orchesre
OF MOzarts edition OF g. The Messiah is an en'ne1
different band from that contemplated By HAndeL
We say Contemplated by HandeF adVlscdiy' ~
the appeal made to the original score thcro wouo
be no wood-wind all to talk about. and trumpet"
in only four OF the numbers composing the oraforo-
But Handel used these instruments. nevertheless IN
conformity with the manner OF his time Mozars
SGT the accomplishments they are now universally
used Saving some brass ornaments OF QucsuohAo's
the big festivals in England and he scs
them 10 suit the instrumental apparatus "cn NC Wa
accustomed to use. and not the archaic band OF Han
ders time To double the wood winds and brass IN
an orchestra OF sixty men, was made painfuhy
apparent &c every discriminating ear last Thursdsys
is 10 destroy the beautiful purposes OF Mozart withcus
achieving those Of Handel There was no balance
of tone the strings being oyerweghted by the WING
instruments and the organ
Mozart's additional Accomplishments were compo'e1
haca txe
the Baroni' Won Swieten's oratorio performances IN
Vienna The parts for the woodwinds are nnins
out of the 6armonies with middle voices In sonchinS
Ike the manner which Handel himself and the coui-
posers of his day praced at the organ or hapsionod
II Mr. Damrosch had desired to restore the Handei
anuarats he should have put aside the Mozart add-
lions, used the organ Handel used It and In tho
utu passages doubled the vioins with oboes I'm the
proportion of one oboe to every three violins ana
the voloncellos and bases with bassoons IN equal
numbers Then. too. If he could have procured old
fashioned trumpets, with their clear and mellow tone.
he might used four Of them in the passages COM
posed for them by Handel, provided he could have
found four players But would then have heard
trumpets where heard none last THURSDAY ana
had brazen silence where had crashing noises las.
for instance, IN the "Glory to COD chorus.
in which Mozart starts his trumpets Just where
Handel had them leave of. and in the bass air
"Why do the MAJ usn where the four cornctisis rascd
din that was utterly subversive Of the composers
incntions) To give us tho organ plus the instru-
ments introduc ia lieu OF 1T by Mozart, ana then
double these fms Inens, was a sure way TO Destroy
the symmetry OF performance and render ths
middle voices opaque and clumsy And this waA
not Handelian.
Hero are few facts touching old orchestras which
are Interesting in OF this discussion At the last
performance of 90 The Messiah which Handel was adj
versed conduct The died before the time, however,
the orchestra consisted OF twelve vions three volas,
four oboes four bassoons, three viooncellos, two
double BASES trumpets, two horns and the hettia
drums. AT the famous Handel COmmemorauon In
1884 the band contained fortyeight first violins,
forty-seven seconds, twenfy-sx volas, twenty-ons
cellos fifteen double basses six flutes, twenty-sl1
ob0es twenty-six bassoons, one double bassoons
twelve horns twelve trumpets, six rombones, thres
pairs of drums and pair OF double drums
At performance in Westminster Abbey in 17els
nfs was the astounding force employed
40 Violins 40 BasSoons
AZ Violas IL Horns
Is Cellos % Trumpcts
81 Double bases Trombones
40 Oboes and flutes Serpent
pairs Of Drums.
These bands II must be borne in mind, were nsed
in the old manner the wood-winds being treated a.
rpicno instruments that doubled the strings in the
tUtt passages In the chOruscs. Mozars accompani-
ments were not used in England until 1913, when
Sir George Smart introduced them In bis orchestra
of fourteen first and fourteen second volins he
doubled the wood.winds except the flutes. What hs
did with the trumpets is not on record AT ths
concerts Of the Philharmonic Society Mr. Thomas
frequently doubles tho wind instruments, but hs
uses the extra players sparngly and only in loud
tutts The best solution Of the problem with refer
ence to THE Messiah would seem to be to use Rob-
ert Franzs edition based Mozart's additional ac-
compartments, and double the wind instruments in
the choral accomplishments, II the band and chorus
are very large
As bearing on the enjoyment Of the wag-
merriam operas at the Metropolitan Tho
sun" prints editorial which invites and
deserves serious attention BY Of its temperate
spirit The point raised by the writer the need
OF a curtailment Of the Wagneran operas, which now
occupy nearly II not quite, four hours at each
representation. Excisions have been made in every
of these operas, but they are still too LONG, In
view of the circumstance that large proportion OF
the audiences understand German and larger
! proportion has yet learned to go to the opera
! house for anything else than diversion But The
Sun. has overlooked the fact that Fidelo" every
opera In the Metropolitan list shares this fault with
| the Wagneran operas. Halevy and Meyerbcer the
pride the Paris Grand Opera, the creators OF
! the hveact monstrosities, and Rossin though ho
gave his Tell" but four acts. extended these four
until they filed the time of Meyerbeers five. Wagner
really paved the way for reform by adopting and
uarizng the three act form. but, unfortunately.
Rossni he neglected to consider the patience and
capacity Of audience when he came to the do
velopment of the three acts. 1t is only at Bayreuth
that Wagners dramas given without excisions.
and Herr sedl the Metropolitan has cut herocally.
especially In the Nibelung plays. He seems to have
done with good grace, too though he is Wagner
tie OF the Wagnetes Doubtless he realizes that tho
arguments against some Authorizations which no would
feel obliged respect in Germany have little II any
potency in countries whore German is foreign
| language.
This talk about over-long operas calls to mind tho
sad fate which Rossini's william Ter met after
IFS first production in Paris well story bear
ing on It. Tat famous first performance took place
ON August 3, lo19. Since then the second act alone