El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-07-24

| the true critic can DO great good, eS-
pecially in emancira:ing us from pro-
vncialsm. We all OF us have TOO
much reverence fer Europe and
European musical work. Great as
European ISLANDERS are, we need not
! be ahiect copyists. The European
| CLAM T. dazzles US too much. We have
| oct to Il point in music where we can
afford 10 be more independent. One
! other fault in criticism is the schO d of
| negative critics, always pulling down,
never building up. Such men do
harm. They discourage the composer.
Schumann was great because of mis-
generosity and his desire to encourage.
). [ believe that it is possible to
train critics in professional manner.
A special course might be made. L
cannot see why it should not exist.
! But it ought to have thorough must
cal education as basis. I he student
in such branch ought to be able to
play some Instrument, have a llnOwl-
edge of harmony, counterpoint, and be
able to analyZe musical form. He ought
to be thorough in musical history and
aesthetics. He ought to know some
thing of Instrumentation. Ii short, he
ought to be som thing of musician
to Start with. The critics course of
study ought to be supplementary to
musical education. He ought to have
wiring. knowledge of some foreign
tongue, German or French, and, of
cour.e, a good training in English. In
sho [. course of study in musical
criticism would be an entire musical
edu alton bent toward a special pur-
pose.
". S. b. Mathews. the well-known
Chicago critic, replied to the circular
as follows:
First-The supply of expert musical
criticism does not equal the demand,
and especially does not equal the need.
There is very little expert musical
criticism in the country Twenty or
thirty man are probabl Y about as many
as can be found regularly engaged up
on daily newspapers commenting upon
musical subjects, who are at the same
time music. Il ana literary men. 40
which desirable qualifications | should
add lovers OF their kind.
Secoud-I believe that intelligent
musical criticism in the daily press
would have direct influence upon the
public taste in musical matters, al
though it would not be so decisive as
many persons imagine. Criticism is a
sort of moonlight, which shiues at
ce tain periods of the month, and
during its shining certain plants grow
better than during the dark Of the
moon. Nevertheless, the moOuligh hit is
very far from being a torrado-like
force which overturns things aud
breaks th ngs. Musical crit. cism ats
in this quiet way. 1t is true that |
here ignore the kick that an incisive
critic SIN sometimes awakens from the
party whose work has been commented
upon. | do not regard this cOnvulsive
motion, however. as OF any gnllcdnCc
in the case. 1t is d local disturba nee
which all parties can afford to disre-
gard, and as u matter OF fact usually
do disregard. The influence of the
criticism is mild and persuasive, and |
think in the long run sonnet mes in
fluent al.
Tnird-I believe it would be posi-
BILE to give certain amount of train
ing to a young musician that would be
of benefit to him as d critic. There
undou btedly would be dam ers apper
tanning to this ready-made manufac-
ture of highly finished product. like
an expert musical critic. The worst
of it is that these well trained young
fellows are so horr bly, bumptious, aid
The better you train them and the
earlier you turn them out the more
bumptiOus they are, and consequently
the less Influential. If course in
modeety and in the philosophy of olive
and let live" could he added to the
specifically aesthetic and musical
Sluuy III III" pfcpdId tOiy COuIoS, p5f-
naps certain part of this oumptious-
ness might be avoided. This, however,
[ leave for wiser heads. As YOU very
we'll know the most of US who are d.
iDg musical criticism, or have done it,
have grown up with the country
through a sort of a ''survival," which
our personal mOdesty assures us must
necessarily have been that ''Of the fit
test
FOURTH think there is distinct
need for sound musical criticism In the
smaller cities of the l nitsd States, but
in order to be useful it should occupy
itself III ainiy with the quality of the
music as art and with the principles
represented and with Judging the per
formances with reference to their
value from an art standpoint, rather
than from the standpoint OF purely
technical perfection. Especially should
this be the case when local efforts are
to be discussed and the appearances of
amateurs. Good is done by the COM
ments Of a musical perform ince when
| Il tfOrdS p easure to those who hear 1t
| and awakens in them or encourage in
| Them u love of purcr art. Good is
| done by the comments of a musical
| performance when something of the
| attractiveness AID uplifting influence
| of the performance is c1rrled over to
| the reader. am not sure whether
| destructive criticism does much good.
! II awalfcn5 great deal Of hostility,
aud if / had to give any advice to ID
! Young man entering upon u career of
| musical criticism, one of the first prin-
ciple5 would be not to take up the call
| ing of fOolkillcr unless supported by u
| faith amounting to inspiration that
this is the one particular calling IN life