The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-01-17
p0RINSTEIN ON MUSIC.
.xv MEAS AND CLEARLY Pun
r.xcr,te Conposers-ssAesls OF Musio
S,r.st s.a Present Reviewed. Cenpared'
-. T.,,,,c,seS-Tho ~ ost Sublime FIGURE
. n..h and tho Most Vicious Lisst.


~" -. "a Present Reviewed, Compared,
- Cr,,iclsea-Tho Most eubisne FSxure
n..b and tho Most Vicious Lisst.
=. !, very rare that a musician OF Rubin
~ ,o,ihre records his views OF his fellows:
n. ~. pr,instsin has done this with breadth.
,.s..,obness, and learning. In "Conversa-
wv IInnn Music" which can be bought at
soa Hall Hebegins with the somewhat
e..,ino onipion that Bach. Beethoven. Schu-
ss". chonin, and tilinka are the monumental
49,. .o. ~ the art. There are others who may be
.,,. rightfully, but the aforesaid come first.
Ms.srt for example. In his operas touches the
,..,ost heights. yet opera Is only subordinate
s".,nh Of music. Opera is poor. because the
Snn,en voice cannot compete with the orches-
-. Isto Chopin and Ginka belonging In tho
Act Ave. no one has expressed more success
,r,,v than they composers individual emo
.,ns or the age In which they live. Rubin
vain entsrtains the notion that music can
.ronerly be descriptive He Is not altogether
~ advocate Of programme music" never
th.ess different ideas are treated in man"
,diforent enough to indicate their nature.
1 Ths Moonlight sonata" is rs clear repre-
..,ts,,on of its title as can we'll be imagined.
The same is true Of the Heroic Symphony"
~ ,sa.t so fsr as the second movement is CON-
canned which perhaps alone is heroic.
In Zach and Handel music received
,be "perfect stamp OF maturity" Bach
IL ;ncomparahy tho higher. but Handel
x,r,eL in a .le,d. the opera. which Bach never
attempted The We'll Tempered Clavier
Chord is q priceless product. II all Bach's
cautntas and masses or even the Passion Mu-
sic were lost and the Clavier Chord saved. 1t
would still be WELL He is perhaps the most
;mmeasurabe composer. There is more soul
in. cata,ena of Bach than in any operate aria
or church music ever written. He expresses
avery imaginable emotion In his fugues. In
fact. n time will come when IL will be said Of
Bach's music. as of Homer. that this was not
written by one but by many"
HAYDN il great man and remarkable In bis
art, but withal Ian amiable. smiling. careless.
contented old gentleman" Mozart is tho sun
ofmusc." flo has illuminated all its forms with
splenior His technique is immense. his mel
cdy di,in lii invention hardly surpassed.
COMPARED to him. Gluck was a stone. Yet
mankind feels that it may become dry and
rarched in the eternal Haydn Mozart sun
SHINE Action is lacking.
Then comes beethoven. He is the real
Colossus "Fidelio" is the greatest opera ex-
listing. though opera was not his forte. More
over. his sroate st works we're written after he
became deaf Schubert was the richest in nat
ural melody. and marvellous in creation. And
again Rubinstein repeats that Each. Beeth-
As ' MehuI. Gretry. CSeTubini. Spontini Rossi.
nj. and their like were composers Of vocal mu.
sic only. and hence not :" standard bearers Of
regarded as Weber. though il he spoke from
his oyn .. symTpathy only huoinstein would
which IS as It i largely On ACCOUNT Of the pure
beauty Of the Italian voice. 1t. was this that
"inssiyuiscsnt and an ipsrtistie.
ea Taass sna sy ha The
ehsTminF us The operetts Or the opera houSs il
x xs IT, as sa Ss srs ns
ssshs u IS iosins ground to the advantage Of
great qualities. He is, dramatic and able to
make use Of virtuosi; Next to him in FRANCE
aad M e
thepossession Of Frenchmen.
Chopin. the lard. the rhapsodist. the mind.
@o"n Hs aaws out
I bsHngs hs specf se e
Palestr. ma began music the organ and vocal
stand supreme in that. The second. the in;
fthe pano S and the orchestra cuiminat.
ed in Beethoven. The third epoch. the :" lyric
nd
and Chopin, has the first and the last for its
most distinguished representatives.
S1ss the mott In
sweden. Norway, England. in fact ali countries
n addition to the three great ones OF France.
more. or les, national color: but Glirka, the
Tnrs m h Esp a
ss!t have given this inferior instrument an en-
iirelr ',rw character They have freed it from
TIE scale aud passage style and adapted it to
the cantn with arpeggio accompaniment
Tile effect of the virtuoso upon art may be
Very great, When Beethoven struck q certain
certain a,!asi"; llanof"rte makers were imme-
s d,ate!y melted to tho PRODUCTION Of more
ns,En" zone. one. paganin although nc wrote
Having III 10 .amc manner; But the Vi rtuosi
lny"@, and advance" The modern players are
devoted 70 i.c critc:ion Of the present stand.
sa% sS o. 'snn T"WTsg was the last y tb
htdle. Dari'loGofthe cello. and Vinrdot-Garcia
oisong
WITH s"humann and Chopin there was an. lend
thra. ,,.r ,, EeriioI Wagner and List the
"Nnmrc. the most interesting Of the three. is
,i;n1I in mechanical combination. daE.
great "" or rE 9Ta his Work
from the orchestra t" the piano. and with the
t'l"rlnE at III" Instrumentation lost there
y n"ll'nE icit the great thoughts are not
mere. Wagner j. next in interest. He ap
pears :" many sided that it is hard to express
atS,nrlnl opinion Of him. yet for scarcely any
'" ms IDEAS has Rubinstein any particular
sEMlathy or respect. He doesn't like his use
~ sulrrnaturnI beings for heroes-their AZ
mrs ,aTs are not stirring. The Lett mOtirs become
tttncr romira in their abuse. Arias cannot be
NOR %an win rfyel'ologicai correctness
aIG, IA good thins Heis full OF little the
!lSSetlonable. Whatever his s. works I are. more
aver, meY nre not operas. in conception
demon Of music" fantastic. bewitchlng
soaring high and low. but false. insincrre
theatrical. and evil in principle" His flrs
EEttrl"i, that Of the virtuoso. was his best
sorry art" - '"''''''''A' wac oAo y
.,fcr the men who como after these Rubin
c Sern mas 10 particular attention. They are no
c"rn alhatadlns. and perhaps something ma!
srsn Sisn Of the downfall q the art was the in
rb aneh can never get beyond the Initiative
a anssy nave not the depth and power OF though
a pbreadth OF feeling which leads to creation
thnough the emotion of love Is 80 potent II
smem II fnds no echo for them in music. NJ
IIhh mas ever composed O love duet or
vn,muie song. Throughout the entire littl
MI n runs We ofphilosophical depression
var;otuo original interest. and covering q grea
variety Of relevant topics.