The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-01-13
USED SONG and STORY
MUSIC OF THE EID HAPPILY DIS
CUSSED BY MIR. LOUIS G.
ELSON
SECOND LECTURE OF SERIES

The Music OF Germany, France and
Austria Traced From the Thir-
teenth Century Down to the Days
of the Great Classical Masters
Ancient Singers and Their Songs
-Luther's Musical Productions.
Song and story were happily blended
by Mr.. Louis G. Elson at the Peoples
church last evening In his second mu-
steal lecture. The old songs were ex-
plotted as well as the new, and in Mr.
Elson the music Of the ED has an en-
thusiastc champion and artistic inter-
prefer. Although the audience was small
1t was evidently cultured and warmly
appreciatfve.
Practically there were six numbers on
the programme, but each one was rep
resentatfve Of widely varying epochs.
The music OF Germany, France, Austria
and Italy was traced from the thirteenth
century down TO the days Of the great
classical masters, Beethoven, Mozart.
Bach and others. No one knew said
Mr.. Elson, the origin Of folk songs But
from these seeds. planted as early, per-
haps, as the third century, had evolved
the grand symphonies of Mozart. The
greatest and most masterful composers
had never hesitated to avail themselves
of the musical love of folk songs.
First had come the ancient mime sing
ers, anteda ting the epoch Of the reforma-
ton many years. These had been fol-
lowed in Spain and France by The trou-
badors, and in Germany by the Meister,
,anglicized, master of singers. The trou-
badors, While singing of love, politics,
war and patriotism, had invariably ele-
waited the theme of Womanhood to a high
altitude. AT times their themes. how
ever, were trihe grotesque. One of
them, freely translated bore upon the
question, Can man love though mar
ried?"
Then, In German, there had come a
higher musical cult, and the mime sing
ers first, the Meister singers afterwards,
voiced the theme of woman in the alb
stract, besides treating of love and war
But while at times they dare not sing Of
politics, they braved many dangers and
the gieeful mime singers have told of
facts not related in history. These songs
were quaint yet beautiful. Mr.. Elson
Illustrated this by two numbers, accom-
panying himself on the piano. an old
mime song composed in 1887 and another
in 1900 The latter personified a cru
sader brave knight who sang with
marked expression of the glory of Ger
many and woman's love.
The mime singers had, at distant In
tervals, competed with each other for
prizes. With the advent of the Meister
singers these competitions had become
more frequent. And then these ancient
melodies had been preserved and we
now find them reproduced in Tam
hauser. The third act Is frightened and
localized by musical phrases of woman
hood original with the mime singers.
Here Mr.. Elson gave 1.-THE Evening
Star" from Tannhauser, as illustrative
of the truth of his explanation. One
of the ancient mime singers had stepped
down from the heights of melody to in
struct women on the subject of etiquette.
He had advised ladies Of the aristocracy
to cultivate sewing, cookery, surgery
and chess. In those days knights were
frequently wounded far away from
surgeon. 1t then became the duty Of
woman to minister to the disabled
knight until the arrival of a doctor.
Chess was recommended on account of
the well known hospitality of the times,
with the desire to entertain the coming
as well as speed the parting guest.
1t was understood that Martin Luther
had introduced choral, or congregational
singing. This was not true. 1t began as
far back as the third century in the
Catholic church. Here Mr.. Elson gave
the fourth number, an old Catholic carol
of the fourteenth century, composed on
the subject OF the tBlack Death" 1t
was true that Luther loved music and
had written 'Di Musica,' but he was not
the author of the many selections at
tributed to him. Hymnologists had taken
Luthers name In vain, for they had
claimed that as Luther had taken certain
street songs, catches and carols, and
adapted them to church music, they had
a right to adopt church music to secular
words claiming that they were but trans.
posing Luther's example. 1t was trus
that Luther had made the music of street
ditties bend to the service of religion.
One stanza Mr.. Elson quoted:
my heart is sore dismayed,
My mind has gone astray.
All for the love of pretty maid
l CHANGED to meet one day"
Mr.. Elson said that in Luther's time
the melody was not in the soprano, that
Is, it did not carry the air It.was in the
tenor. The alto in those days was termed
a high part Now It is the lowest, or
deepest female voice. But alto means
high, in the original Italian, and 1t was
given it's name because at that time the
alto parts were sung by male voices and
as between male and female voices there
is a wide range of compass.
One Of the songs of the days of Luther
was "a Strong Castle Is Our Lord The
same melody will be found in one OF
Bechs cantatas. Perhaps it might sur
prise some people to know that the great
Beethoven was the author of comic
song. Yet 1t was true, and Mr.. Elson
reproduced it with all the breezy swing
and cadence of number from an opera
bouffe. From the early folk songs Of
Germany 1t was a far cry to the present
German mannichor societies of exclusive
male voices. Yet they were evolved from
societies Franz Abt though some might
speak lightly of him, had done much In
the way of composing their songs We
fnG much good music in Austria In which
country many classical gems have been
produced. There was a kinship Of song
as well as of habit. No matter what
might be the language Of the words, the
music of those people engaged in the
same lines of business was similar.
Among sailors of different nationalities
Mr.. Elson had found this true. The
Chinese sailor, the least tuneful of any.
chanted a weird song, the burden Of
which was danger, as did the Danish,
German, or English sailor. And so there
was a kinship of melody found in the
music of highlanders in various countries,