New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-10-17
MUSICAL COMMENT.
CHINESE MUSIC. IT'S INTRODUCTION IN
LOCAL THEATRES MUSICAL THEORY
AND PRACTICE IN THE GREAT PURE
KINGDOM-A CHINESE BALLAD.

Lovers al the drama have i"'N'| cN~''
with .pportunitics to learn something about
Chinese music. along with the possibilities OF
thinese-American life in the way Of dramatic
material Strains from Chinatown came with
."rbe Cat and the Cherub' to the Olympia and
l!clrcd to enhance IS colour locale, and no"
thc walls of ihe Manhattan Theatre echo nightly
no Celestial music. which helps to convey to un-
accustomed ears a sense OF the fashions ana
foiblrs the love and the hate OF singular peo-
Mo who are with US bu, not If US. and are less
md ,rst God by their neghhOrs than the inhablt-
ants or the south Sea Islands. Chinese bands
tav. also made their appearance in the dime
-.u.or1r,s and there is an episode in the Careless
hilarious and diycrting show given al the casino.
which Mi Kcrl.cr has tricHed out win music
which passed muster for Chinese but is Only
specimen Of that January music when IN 'he
long ago accompanied all kinds Of pageantry IN
pantommcs and oxtraVaganzas "l'h 'i'c'''''
subjects, II any one were 50 disposed lie "i's"'
now study tlie charac terlstics OF the mu9ca' arr
Of a pcorlc who make up one-iiith Oh the earl"
poru,atinn " hout coming in contact WIN Sill
gle representative of that people one might
,L,nL chat surh a subject would long ago have
recommended itself to musicians. but until the
national movement acquired sufficient sish'h-
canoe To compel the attention OF composers ioi
whom it opened new trains OF tnoush' anu ~
whom il brought new modes OF cxpreSS'oh' !"
was all but impossible even to make 'hcih bNc
&, r,esinr attention You may find Hungarian
melodies in the music or haydn anu oc""oc'''
o little Russian in Beethoven and Spanish in
Weber TO coninc the list to composers Oh the
,.cinnirg Of the century, but only one Chinese
1une in the entire classic repertory Weber made
an overture to Schillcr's ''Turandot' Gtself
fro the Italian of tOZI) out OF a
(,bir.s. time. but alas, this lonely specimen ~
@ musical anachronism. for the subject OF
."Turandot" IS not Chinese. but Persian since
fine rise. of the Scandinavian school we nave
heard many echoes from mountain ana fJoru III
our concert rooms. and Just now the RUSSIANS
ar. training our ears TO delight in harshnesses
which years ago would have driven the musical
lawmakers into lunatic asylums. fcrhaPS t"ey
will help other musicians To listen WIN patience
70 Chinese music II really ought not 10 COST
81 much effort as is necessary 10 receive SUM-
of the products OF the modern Russians win
crs,o. for all that is necessary in Chinese music
IS 10 learn To find the kernel OF melody ihsiue
the shell and husk Of noise which surround IT,
II l.. not necessary to cultivate taste Tor pro-
crcsslon which sets ones teeth on cage OF uS-
sonant harrnonics that tear their way INTO on"
oars ard threaten to XII all the fSth'u' ia'"'
ties Of that organ. Chinese music Is All tune anu
rhythm. harmony plays an entIrcy ihsishl"'" AM
role in e.. All the chords that II runs arr INV
combinations OF keynote and fourth ana h'!no''
and nth which result from IN" h"u'iSh "h''"
co,.rolj, ends pieces played on the instruments
of the banjo or guitar kind when IN" player
brushes his rIoctrum lack and forth across all
the strings # the instrument What is .rit IN
Chimes, music after melody and rhythm haV"
La fItf..l . lf