New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-12-27
MUSICAL COMMENT.
AFRO AMERICAN MELODIES AND THEIR
prcuLIARITIES-SOME QUESTIONS
ANsWERED-AMERICA
COMPOSITIONS.


.. u,r,..v notwithstanding that they betray
so.nt,cal attitude toward the position whlch mas
,r.nuently been taken by this Jourha" Oae Vi "'
Questions we confess we arc unaoe 10 u'ueiS'""'
hut lest the correspondent should 'mhk we are
u,no q we shall give It in his own words ana sh"i'
80 80 ,aLa nm the rest OF his inquiries seriatum'
10 osxs. "ran association alone. without pooo re-
,ot,on bring TO birth the genius OF National "i''
Question I-were any OF the negro songs . IN mel, n,h
pecuiar rhythmic ana zone qua'''i''
them direct from AFRICA ., ,,r
Irnaoubedy though few Of such songs arc cur
rent now and none Of :hom. so lar a. We .Ist
.n obi. 70 discover is used in Christian church
r.r,,ces or at ordinary merry makinss In 'he
secre, gatherings held fer tho purpose Oh p'acusi"s
snnerstitious rites which may larry oe iooN
rnon az relics OF African religions songs are useu
,h,ch enploy both words and music which came
..s,roo. ,rono Africa 1t has not been contended'
.or.y.r that these Songs In any sense 10 DC
lacked upon as American folh-sonGs. MI hle"piei
argues in his lectures and articles on the s"''eO'
that tho characteristic elements OF the slave SONGS
which he looks upon entitled TO the designation
are African in origin. but that they were ihouIueu
into the significant forms under influences wholly
native These elements spiritual Ohe erect OF
slave life). rhythmical and inierValnc' ne III
sists that the prediction for these elements Is III
heri,ed and not the fruit Of imitation 'housh ne
admits of course that hearing the ballads ana
hymn tunes Of the whites may have oeen IN
nuential in determining the ultimate form or some
OF tho melodies He holds 10 this opinion because
he has found the elements in African music. Inc
fayorite rhythmcal device called the Scotch snap or
catch Is also African, and is found IN the
patois songs Of Louisiana. which show French but
mt Scotch characteristics. 1t is therefore more
easily accounted for African relic than IN
any other way The intervall!c pecuiartles. with
the exception OF the employment or the hve-note
scale. which Is more Chinese than Scotch are
some o. them peculiar TO the slave songs. and can
only be accounted for the theory shat love for
such things Is bound up in the nature OF the negro
Question n-Are any OF the real negro melodies
Indigenous to our soil?
There being no history Of the melodies sung by
the negroes II is impossible answer the question
categorically. In a general way we should say
that all songs OF the negroes. with the possible
exception OF those reserved for the secret practices
already mentioned. indigenous. 1t Is great
pity tina, travellers are seldom sufficiently skfu
TO take down the music which they hear in strange
lands The number q volumes which have been
written about Africa is very large, but We are still
without scientific study Of the music Of the Afri-
can peoples and the examples which nave be-h
preserved are. out Of all proportion. few. Cnul we
have collections OF the melodies sung In the coun-
tries from which slaves were brought, COM
parative study such as is necessary 10 discuss the
question In all It's phases. IS impossible A useful
analogy is found. however In the case OF foix-taes
The prototypes Of the Uncle Remus stories about
Brer Rabbit and other animals are still 70 be round
In Africa. The germs we're brought hither like the
musical elements of the songs. and the present
form OF stories and is the result OF environ
ment.
Question HIAre any Of these So son purely the
7 am Speaking not OF the words. but the melody
With tho explanation previously given. we should
say yes: but such question cannot De answered
with exactness The "spirituals," whether sung
inachurch or camp-Ineeting. are OF course the fruits
OF negro lie in America: they could not have grown
I'D anywhere else and the negro characteristics are
most strongly stamped these songs for the
simple reason that they are the expression OF IN
tense emotion. The sadness produced by oppression
and suffering. the exaltation caused by ardent hope
the Wild gayety resulting from nature essen
TALLY careless. all the fruits OF slavery. and
therefore the results OF negro life In America
Question IV-Has the fact that the subject or
theme is either Indian negro any bearing on the
wider musical significance?
II We understand this correctly, we must reply
certainly not The value Of theme is matter
wholly independent Of It's origin What has been
urged in the which we fancy is haunting
the mind Of our correspondent is that GOOD musica
material may be found IN the folk music which mas
grown up in America and that. when permitted
10 influence the compositions Of a genius. II will
produce the desired effect. because 1t viii hit the
popular taste which has unconsciousy been formed
on II 10 a very great extent The songs OF the
negroes are not American fok-songs because they
are sung by negroes but because they speak
musical idiom which the Americans have learned
10 like On this point Dr. Dvorak is good Wit
ness In an article on Music in America winch
appeared in the Century Magazine" for Feoru-
airy. 1875. he said:
truly National music might be derived from the
negro melodies or Indian chants was leu 10
called plantation songs are indeed me most si ,n
ing ana anPs s sGe of iie wer bnt largely by
the observation that this seems 10 be iecosilizsa
All faces have their distinctively national songs
which they at once IecoSnze as liiCr owl"
is a proper question to ask what songs, thcn, DE-
long to the American and aPbgai a,' would SOB
him Oh The street 4 he were n sirange hnd ana
Mater how hardened he might be or how wretch
edy the tune were played? Their nrmDI, 10 Ne
We'll as the most beautiful. among thein' accord
Ing my estimation arc cer'an 9i .ni Of which
are dsnguishsd by ana Tpn brT Sonrs
but those Of Scotland and Ireland
orest,on y-Can we accept az a national music
a product Of African or American Indian meiody
when the Interpreter Is a pure Nducd"'9H
IL by Interpreter our correspondent means per-
former the question has bearing or significance
whatever. II he means the composer. VINO goes 20
African or Indian themes for suggestion or IL
sp!ration tho question becomes almost SHY. Ger
tainIy White to form the American
school not black men red DR.. Dyorak's symphony
IN T. minor quartet In ] and quintet in f. Hat are
the kind OF national music we want and they were
written by a white Czech But he has spoken so
well on this point that yield 20 hin again;
The point has been urged tina; many Of these
touching songs like those IF Foster. have not bei
composed by the negroes themselyes, but are IL"
work OF white men while others did not originate
on the plantations but were imported from AiTlca.
II seems TO me that this matters but title one
m ucn
because Lszt could not speak hungarian Inc I'm
portant thing Is that the inspiration for such music
should como from the right source and mat the
music Itself should be a true expression OF the PEG,
pies real feelings Whether the original
ntTE fH,. M