New-York tribune., 1903-01-16
MUSIC.
The Boston Orchestra.

The element of personal interest played large
and lovely part the third evening concert OF the
Boston Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall last
night Three OF the four numbers of the pro-
gramme invited particular attention and won an
increased amount of admiration from the fact that
either ...e performer or the composer had place
in or the affections of the listeners TO
specify: Mr. Schroeder, to whom New-York music
lovers bound by double tie principal OF the
orchestra's violoncello players and member OF the
knesel Quartet, played the solo OF the evening
The novelties of the programme were two cornpo-
sitions by C. NJ. Loefer. who shares the first violin
desk with Mr.. Kneisel; the symphony was DvoraKs s
From the New World which was conceived in
New-York and first performed by the Phil
harmonic Socetv. under the direction of Mr. Seldl,
in the presence and to the great delight OF the
composer.
Each of these incidents might furnish forth
text for extended discourse which, were it to take
its cue from the posture of last nights auolehCe'
would be pitched in a key of almost excited en-
thusiasm. The conquest of New-York by the men
from Boston is complete their offering is now
joyously received Attention is on tiptoe from the
beginning 70 the end OF the concerts and gratitude
as Well admiration speaks out of every round
of applause Mr.. Schroeder must have felt that
last night when after playing saint-Saens's con-
certo in A minor, which is not work of puissant
charm. though full of mods and becks and
wreathed smiles in its middle portion. he was re-
called again and again to the platform that he
might receive and over again the peoples as
So too. with Mr. Loeffier Of whose compositions II
would be a pleasure to speak ct greater length
than circumstances permit Diligent readers OF the
musical reviews in The Tribune may recall the
fact that Of them received words of praise IN
the final report on the last Worcester festival
when Mr. KnefseI brought it forward in that oity
1t is orchestral Interpretation, or musical para
phrase OF the fifth poem in Paul Ferlaines La
Bonne Chanson." beginning "Avant que tn ne ten
allies" The impression which 1t made four months
Cd foCtY ipI1T
foundy poetical and rhapsodic outpouring, In
which poets reflections on his love are olended
and smybolzed in passionate exclamatlons calleo
out by such beautiful natural phenomena as the
pang of the morning star, the call Of the quail IN
the thyme, the soaring song of the skylark, the
Joyous genufexons of the wheatields, the glitter
ing dew and the rising Musical delneatlons
suggestions of these things colored with hun
dred prismatic hues, float in Mr.. Loeffiers compo-
sition ardent yet tender song, wnlcn gives
voice to the swelling heart of the poet
This is idealzed programme music. The other
tour poem, while ideastic in purpose is more
realistic in matter and manner. 1t is an instru-
mental reading of Maurice Ronats 'Vilanelle du
Dable" whose first stanza provides the two bur
dens which, chanted and over, with varied
and fantastic reiteration. form the background OF
the series of whimsical pictures filling the poers
mind. Here is the stanza, together with Mr. PHILIP
Hae's prose rendering:
L,Enfer brnle. brnle. brale
Ricaneur au tmbre clair,
LIE Dable rode ct circule-
0IelFs a-burning, burning burning,
Chuekling in clear Staccato
The Devil prowling, runs abouto
Mr. Loeffier's musical imagination is fertile
of delineative device as that of Richard Strauss.
and it asks a nimble fancy and open receptivity
On the part Of listener if it is to be appreciated
in its fulness. The music might be left
without a verbal guide through its mazes'
as Strauss left his Till Eulenspiegel" and
still fascinate In fact, the suggestions which
Mr. Loefier's commentator offers sometimes
invite the reflection that the purposes Of the
composer were little too deep for music unaided
by the written word. They remind us again, as
once we were reminded by also sprach cara
thustra" that composers with all their height
ened capacity for expression, are still as naive III
purpose the programmatic musicians OF tnree
centuries ago Kuhnau in his sonata which told
the story of Gideon could ask his listeners 10 ac-
cept a theme as the symbol Of the dry fleece and
the wet ground, and its inversion as signifying
the wet fleece and the dry ground. Strauss
thought he could satrize science with fugue and
leave the riddle Of the universe unsolved by play
ing c as the root of the triad harmony OF B ma
ior And so Mr.. Loefier feels justified in parody-
ing "A la Villette to illustrate the word crapule
and becomes contrapuntal with revolutionary AIRS
"Ca ira and La Carmagnole," to give sinister
musical expression to the word 'magister 1t
"a all wildly edifying and diverting. because the
music is fantastic curious, edifying and dlvertlns
hut we would not hold brief for it against hard
headed and unmaginative critic. Ihere Is aiso
a singular device of mixed organ tones and Gre
gorfan chant in the piece which made capital
effect with Mr. w w Goodrich at the organ The
concert began with Schumann's overture TO Geho-
veva" and ended with the Dvorak symphony SYM
affan fiXyelI nla