New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-12-18
MUSIC.
THE KNEIsEL QUARTET.

THE KNEIsEL QUARTET
Mr. Joseffy aided Mr.. Kneisel and his harmonious
fellows from Boston at their concert of chamber
music in Mendelssohn Hail. and the company gave
a transportingy beautiful Illustration OF what
ensemble playing and ought to be The pianist $
participation increased the already large interest
which the lovers Of music have In the Kneise con-
certs. and the ordinary room was not large enough
to hold the audience; 30 the ante-room was also
thrown open. and for two hours with reverent at
tenton nearly thousand people, wise enough.
gifted enough and gentle enough to love the purest
form Of music. listened TO fine an Interpretation
OF that branch OF the art could be heard IN a
years journey. There were three numbers IN the
list. and Mr.. Joseffy took part in two OF them
With Mr.. Schroeder he played Beethoven's sonata
in major for panoforte and violoncello' WIN
Messrs Kneisel, Roth, Svecensk ana ochi oeu'i
Schumann's quintet. The loneliness or the hlss'o
which the Beethoven sonata has In these oa!' "a
famboyant vtrtuosity was emphasized oy us %
ISOLATION with the opening number or the e'ehi.'s
which was a quartet for strings by 1scha'how shy,
in r Oh % which Mr. Kneisel brought FORWARD
for the first time here. Not that TINS coinposiUOH
was in any sense designed to make sho"S pa'auo
Of technical proficiency. but because IN II INC 'oii
poser seemed to be striving to put language mo
the four Instruments which did great zeal OF
violence TO their native capacity ana TINS 10
tendency which has been cultivated 80 long anu
so assiduously by composers TOT tho Vioioiioe"o'
who are mostly performers on the instrument that
,alIsd N hear year in and year out are become
most "tolerable and not TO be endured In the oio
sonata by Beethoven the cello talks pure music IN
the language Of the cello. and in listening 10 the
fine sympathetic performance which 1t received
last night the soul Of musc-lover was hlieo
with delight instead OF being possessed with
mad desire to take the instrument out OF the
hands Of the player and saw off all OF the nhger-
board that extends beyond the neck
The Tschakowsky quartet Is an irritating COM
rttsftN
closed in 1t. but both in thought and treatment II
is strained, fantastic and bizarre Moments Oh
great beauty out Into moments IN "hich pieaS-
ure and admiration give place to puzzieo curiosity
as to what the music is striving ror' ana Some
times into something akin 70 vexation at what
seAms N he mere exploitation Of musical learning.
II is Muscovte In daring and Its Indifference 10
conventions we'll as the comforts OF the ears oi
those who hear II. but we could near no'hihS
characteristic Of the Russian school in Its themes,
neither in structure nor in spirit The highest
measures OF the evening came with the quintet
which II open to criticism at all may have been
thought occasionally forced IN the matter OF
tempo But It beautifully worked out fuii OF
fascinating detail. exquisite in tone. fresh and
spontaneous In utterance. and most admiraole In
its Illustration OF unity Of conception
THE BOSTON ORCHESTRA IN BROOkLfN.
A. the second afternoon concert by the Boston
Symphony Orchestra in Brooklyn yesterday MI
Paur brought forward fascinating novelty IN the
shape Of Rimsky Korsakows orchestral SUITE
.scherazade" The work is In four movements. and
there IL a hint Of the symphonic plan In the con-
trasted moods Of the different subdivisions although
the set forms are not adhered TO. The composer
gives hint OF the poetical contents OF MS WORK rs
a whole in the title and also by providing super
ecriptions for each movement Thus the mist
ALLEGRO which has an Introductory largo Is called
THE Sea and Sindbads Ship the second. andan-
tino The Story OF the Calender Prince; the third
also andantino The Young Prince ond the Young
Princess: the fourth allegro motto FestVa al
Bagdad: the Sea. The ship goes to pieces against
q rock surmounted by a bronze MISREPRESENTATION
This would seem to be an explicit programme at
first blush but 1t is plain that the composer did not
w1sh II 10 furnish more than a few hints, SO as to
make the minds Of his listeners susceptible to his
music When Sindbad went 10 sea he was wrecked as
q rule vet the first movement contains no storm; II
ts. superb water picture in tones, with the ship
floating proudly and buoyantly on tho heavfng bill
1ows There are three calender princes (royal
nendicants Lane calls them) In the Arabian
Nights Tales which lie at the bottom OF the poetic
scheme (as II suggested by the title "ScherazadeD
and all of them tell Of their adventures but whether
It is the story the guilty lovers who were blasted
into charcoal that OF the prince who was Trans
rnogrifed into ape, or that OF the noio al
who destroyed the magnetic mountain by hui'e
m. bronze horseman which surmounted IL INTO 'no
sea II would be hard to tell. There is some mar
,ial music In this movement which indicator 'no
ers, STORY 10 be that which was In the composer
mind. but TO attempt to translate any one Oh '.e
stories into music would be very like trying 70 n
tones describe IAN Enslishman who mao gone
abroad. changed his religion and forgotten MS UNI
brella"-as was suggested in brief NOTICE OF f'oh
ard strausss Also sprach Zarathustra yesterday
The third movement may be taken as musioA
celebration OF the story OF Prince CatnaraiNainA"
and the Princess Badoura. though all that thefo
IN the music 10 point TO that tale are the c'rcuh
stances that the movement In made up OF t"o
rr.,odies which are as like each other as were he
prince and Princess and that the second melody mas
a suggestion Of Chinese color in the employment OF
the snare drum, triangle. cymbas and tamoourlhe
A rnus,cal storm follows a fete In the last move
rnent which comes TO deliciously peaceful enoing
Tn q all the earlier themes are used including that
~ the narrator Schehsraze herself, which the com
Ooser makes to pervade the entire comPosiuo.ia
IRE music is full OF Oriental spirit ana coor anu
ronderfuy Ingenious In It's orchestration;,, rs s
Roston oiayers and especially 70 III the Iauieesss
tsste and rnusc,anship Of Mr. Kneissl VINO playeo
,be violin solos into a high light 1here war ~.
~. other instrumental number In the Broo,hSymn
.cbsme and that was RATS symphony I'm w aluy.
ppatr,een the two numbers Mr. Bspham sang the
FAMILIAR air from Marschners Hans Helhhs
oPERErTA FOR CHARITY.
cu,sr, and sullivan's operetta, '"rhc Mikado'
Ill, -. ner,orno.d at the waldorf-Asto this even