New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-04-19
MUSIC.
SOME MUSICAL BENEvOLENCEs

OF beneVolence has irradiated the music which has
hlied the first three days following the departure
oi the operate hurry bury. The reference does not
go alone TO the concert which Nine Breua gave
IA Mehoessohn Han last night for the benefit of the
idriiy or German colleague Of hers left desolate
and destitute by the death within fortnight of
both rather and mother For that cause appeal was
nade frankly in the name of charity but there
were gracious amenities also in Mr. Elephants song
recital on Monday and in recital given by NJ
Marteau IN the hall of the New-York College of
Music on Tuesday afternoon. Over these three
occasions there lowered a spirit of seriousness
gentieness and kindness. drew them out OF
tne sway OF conventional consideration.
Inc circumstances surrounding Nine. Brema's
charity concert somewhat anomalous Only
those Americans who have attended the Wagner
festivals at Bayreuth since 1884 knew Fritz Plank
lot whose children Nine. Brema gave the con-
cert huge man. ungainiy in appearance and
movement, veritable FaIstaff the effect of whose
iiiSt appearance was always TO cause a smile, but
whose art purged his clay in a. moment
ana set one to marvelling at his embodiment of
rorhanticism and ideality-that Fritz Plank
mere was something suggestive of the unswervable
hdeIlty OF great dog 10 his in his death as
hurwenal in Tristan und Isolde" hut there was
also something infinitely pathetic and ennobing In
the suggestion, and few Of the OF thousands
VINO have seen 1t ever saw it without paying the
tribute of tears. 1t was only natural that woman
big. warm and impulsivc Of heart like Nine
Brema should turn the pity with which the fathers
simulated death the mimic stage often filled her
INTO practical, helpful pity for the children
the actor left uncared for when died last Janu-
ary in the midst OF his career. Planks wife had
long been an invalid, and she followed her husband
INTO the grave ten days later The twenty-five years
OF their married life had brought them eight
children, and the cost of rearing such family
exhausted the resources of Plank who could not
aspire to be more than what he was-a member of
the stock company at Carsruhe He had TO re-
main among his friends, who were willing TO look
kindly at his huge bulk and critically only at his
The benevolent aspect Of the two recitais men
toned may have been less consciously present in
the purposes OF Messrs. Bispham and Marteau but
they were there. nevertheless. It was kindness
IN Mr. Bispham, after his many concerts. not to
repeat conventional list of songs and to give in
stead an eloquent exposition of recent experiment
by distinguished men in art-form which may be
traced back to the time when the dfthyramb be-
came megred into the Attic drama The result of
that experiment is nothing to the present pur-
pose. II has already intimated In this journal
that It did not seem convincing Monday, neither
TennysOn's poem Richard Strauss's music
gaining from this union. Such gain the basic
principle Of the Greek tragedy Of the Italian
while still in the hands of its Forentine inventors
and Of Wagners lyric drama, in each of which
art manifestations, words and music joined
in wedock in the belief that each factor would be
raised TO higher power by the union. Yet can
imagine ''Enoch Arden recited with Strauss's
illustrative music by a master of vocal expression
and producing profound effect upon the minds
ana emotions or congregation OF gentle Souls
prepared 10 observe deep symbolism in the music
and unappalled by the gmcrack sentimentalism of
the poem and Its boluses of balderdash. why, oh!
Why did not the composer Of It'll Eulenspiegel'
and Also Sprach Zarathustra" compose some of
his holy laughter for Tennyson's concluding
lines? Here opportunity for def applica-
ton OF the critical paddleD
Marteau's benevolence was OF yet different kind
A virtuoso Of the first rank, he comes New-YOrk
and at quasi-pubIic recital devotes two-thirds of
hi nv Amer ipan
posers. With Mr. August spanuth (whose jour
nalistic duties -Zeitung' not per-
mftted make him forget that he is artist as
well as critic he played a sonata for pianoforte
and violin by Henry Schoenefeld, and with Alex
ander Lambert a composition Of the same kind by
Bruno Oscar Klein. Here practical kind Of
benevolence calculated advance the accomplish
ments ot American musicians in public apprecia-
ton by giving them what they most need-an ex-
hibitien Such work is all the more beautiful be-
cause 1t is unselfsh and even self-sacrifcing on
the part of itir Grant virtuosi, who rule, can
not afford play anything their tours, except
the show pieces that have been prepared for the
purpose All who know the Of technical
labor required keep them 'in form will under
stand what this means; II is the burden of the
tale about the hours spent finger exercises by
piansts and vocalises by singers. But those who
know NJ Marteau know that he is something more
than a virtuoso. He has broad, generous gen
timely artistic nature and finds a great deal OF
satisfaction wherever he goes IN extending such
public hearings their works. He has no nation
alistic prejudces TO crafty. and IN Scandinavia
U here he is most popular, he gives German and
French programmes as well Morse II his
desire to exalt the valleys make low the noun
tains and hills the crooked straight and the rough
places plain for young composers which led
him 70 bring forward sndtngs concerto at
his first appearance with the Philharmonic
Society this season. And what he has done here
he IS doing everywhere. The Schoenefeld sonata,
which he played with Mr.. Spanuth's excellent
help last Tuesday. is the one that carried off a
urize of $50 which he himself had offered He
has played II Parts. and Immediately after his
arrival here gave II in Washington with Miss Mills.
We shall doubtless hear Of its performance IN other
cities There is much that is admirable about the
work and an encouraging tang Of Americantsm in
the second subject OF the first movement calcu-
lated TO keep up the hope IN the eventual OF
tional style Of musical expression. On the whole,
however the composition did not hold first place
in company with Mr.. Kleins sonata, which, by
singular coincidence had its first performance in
New-York on the same evening a sonata by
another New-York muscian-Reinhold L. Her
MANN November 1881 That Is a long time ago,
and Mr. Klein has composed much since, but moth
ing which we can recall refreshng!y sponta-
neous and possessed OF more conscious strength
than the first movement of this sonata which Mr..
Lambert (xho played It with NJ. Marteau on Tues
day) produced with the help OF Mr.. Sam Frankie
al Steinway Hall shortly after his return from
Europe sixteen years ago. NJ Marteaus playing
in the sonatas, a well group of solo pieces,
was thrilling IN its warmth, vitality, hythrnlcal
incisiveness. energy and purity.
IT is 10 be feared that the for all OF
Nine Bremas efforts in behalf Of the children Of
Fritz Plank scarcely justified her generous expend:-
ture of time money and energy. Mendelssohn Hall
held but a small audience last night. But il was
Of fine fibre ana kindly also keenly apprecative
Of the singers artistic qualities. Those quail