New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-03-14
MUSIC.
ar, rrNTEN NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
AND HoFMANN-ALso RICHARD
crpAI-SS AND ZOROASTER.


,-vevors Of musical entertainments not
..,,,g manifested any desire to encourage NOR
"...,,on either of the flesh or the spirit, In
~, centennial period. perhaps the reviewer can
=. :, nv devoting more time, more space and
detection than usual to review of some
-. musical occurrences. His will be the
.rce ~ writing after all his colleagues have
pp.,,,v cast OF their burden OF obligation, and
-, leaders, that Of being called back to the
".,,,deration Of matters with which under or
.,.,v circumstances they would have been
.,,s 70 cry quits twentyfour or forty-eight
so,r. AGO For both reviewer and reader there
,.v also be something rueful in the conclu-
,,,n safely TO he assumed at the outset OF such
discussion. that in this instance an agreement
,.,ween the reviewer and a great number Of
-, readers will be no more likely after all is
,.,s than before a word has been uttered.
TWO spectacles confronted us at the concerts
=, last Friday and Saturday afternoons which
.,s,. not 10 have been observed by one de-
.,ous Of pronouncing a Judgment which shall
5. free from the slack OF personal interest.
I'M, Hofrnann's recital il was made manifest
.,s. q personal cult has set in which will keep
.,A minds Of its devotees closed TO reason so
ing rs the spasm shall last. Cnwise all this.
sHeoiy leplOrdDIe also, OUT III az us-u ~ oii4-
-,,n that Il is hard 20 quarrel with 1t Who
,oss not wish 20 feel that II is his privilege 10
,.ar see and almost lay hands real genius?
m. spell which the child put upon US ten years
.go is upon us yet and shall feel no graf
ruds 10 any one who Will reverse the rod, spell
,sa charm backward and break the ties which
Mind us 10 the seat Of enchantment. At the
concert Of the Chicago Orchestra on Saturday
- sfs t y CbNiCns that there
a meeting Of two cults. both personal in their
nature Josef Holman played again, and in
consequence there was an audience Ike that
!, kind and numbers which heard him at Car
regie Hall on the previous day, but pretty
evenly divided between a determination TO
spotheosize the conductor and a passion 70
,sol,ze the pianist II is not pleasant to say
60 but il may be said in this season, and in
the same spirit that one might put on a hair
shirt that whenever Mr. Thomas comes 20 town
scores OF persons who are never seen at
,usical function otherwise, unless II be occa-
s,onallv az a concert Of the Boston symphony
Orchestra appear in the concert-room with
~, They are mostly gentle Of aspect and
doub,less also pure Of conscience. Years ago
their hands were washed in innocency, and
they have kept them unsuled by profane ap-
ulause ever since; only for Thomas are the
Mains ruddied but then in style Ike unto
the Alexandrian manner in which Nero had
his thousands drilled when he sang al Naples;
Mr. Thomas appears: there is Clapping with nat
hands, e. 'teste": he reaches the conductors
stand and bows: clapping with followed hands
i e. "bornbos": he concludes number;
stormy applause with followed hands,. e.
"jrnhrices" Does Il make any difference how
the music has been played? Alas. we fear not
The tribute is not 10 the music. but TO ThomaS
And this too, is amiable for who SO ungrate1uI
as 10 wish 10 forget what Thomas has been to
music in New-York, or 70 be willing 10 with
hold admiration for what he is doing IN the city
that sitteth and sprewleth al the foot or the
Great Lake? What is said here therefore can
only serve for penance. We must all wear our
rue. though We wear II with difference can
I, herb Of grace for Ills plucked on a Lenten
Sunday.
Mr. Thomas has come back to us with a better
band than he had when last he visited us ana
sufficiently chastened by experience or meilo"eo
by age 10 be willing 10 win our goodwin instean
Of demanding our appreciation at the mouth or
q blatant battery Of trombones. as ne did then
In no department except the wood~lnds, mas
he men who can compare with the Nlrtuosl
0. the Boston Orchestra. but he has cultlVated
most admra Bile spirit OF obedience, and 1t is
only once in a while that there is uncertainty
Of step in his ranks. The military metaphor
Is no, malapropos there is more Of pomp ana
parade than OF soulful utterance or simple
JOYOUS caroll!ng in the music which he gives US.
That he has an appreciation Of this we MINK
is indicated plainly enough in his programmes
A large percentage Of his pieces are enectlVe
not By virtue OF their IDEAS but because OF the
clothes which ingenious learning and trained
skill have hung upon the themes We have had
Rrnskv- X orsakow. Glazounow, Cesar Franck
and Richard Strauss and the greater part of
what they have given us is gorgeous splashes
0, color ike the wings with which Mr. Sargent
has made a wall In the Boston Pubic Library
thrice erudescent Like his musical colleagues
Mr Sargent deals in alegory. but MS wings
tae a face too awful in its beauty to be looked
upon whereas theirs often hide only vacancy
NJ Thomas has many admirers in New-York
who think he reaches the perfection OF his skill
as a conductor in his performances Of Bee
thoven's symphonies If their admiration means
anything. 4, means that they laud him for his
Effort 10 present beautiful music beautifully
wha, did they think Of his conduct on Saturday
afternoon when ne called in eighteen local musi-
clans and gave up half an hour 10 Richard
suausss Also sprach Zarathustra Is there
hidden In that mons,rOus tonal phantasmagoria
hat misbegotten offspring Of LISTS Dante
symphony. any artistic evangel which required
Thomas 10 come out Of the West that II
night be made clear? We do not believe the
listeners thought so after the agony was over
sowever hopeful they may have been at the he
ginning /, was an exhibition Of virtuosity-
hat was all-and, though generally creditable
y the highest degree 20 Mr Thomas and his
zen. IL was surpassed by the Boston orchestra
Performance Of the work three months ago
Then. al least the trumpet did not crack in the
noecile caricature OF cockcrow, when
strauss would have as believe Is Nietzsches
'al 10 holy laughter" and Mr.. hneisefs play
rg Of the solo violin made even the common
WAGES % the waltz movement interesting