The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-05-10
IN BETHLEHEM WITH BACH.
A REMARxABLE MUSIC FESTIVAL
4 WEEK LONG.


thing Of beauty nor joy even for few
brief hours. But out In the little town OF
Bethlehem, Pa. will begin tomorrow 4
people will listen to the works At The su.
preme master Of tho most profound and
complex form Of music. the polyphonic.
Bethlehem II about to hold Ito third festival
Of the music Of Johann Sebastian Bach,
and 40 great was the fame Of the previous
two that this one 10 to b the most ambi.
tious Of tho kind ever attempted In this
country. A little over three years ago Both.
lehem. for moro than 4 century home Of
religious music. was unknown - such Ia
the outer world But on March n. 1900
IN the old Moravian Church, Bach's minor
mass was given In ito entirety for the
first time in America. Some wandering
bisybotiies OF the press made record Of this
significant incident and when It became
known that in May. 1901. the Same church
would he the scene Of three days festival
of Baoh's music. In which tho Christmas
Oratorio.' the st Matthew Passion" and
the B minor mass would all be performed,
mon began to wonder what manner Of com.
munity It was that In tho calm seclusiou
Of the Lehish Valley prepared such musical
wonders.
This year another festival was ann ounced,
more opulent In riches Of the old time than
the last previous one. Beginning tomorrow
it will continue till Saturday n ight and while
the same three great works that were heard
two years ago will be It's central figures,
the plan Il now more elaborate and inter-
esting. The moving spirit In the ont or
prise and tho author Of the plan Of the
programmes IL J. Fred Wolfe, the organ
list Of the Moravian Church. He will con-
duct the concerts and he II was who organ
lied the Bethlehem chorus Of ITO fresh
and vigorous voices He II was who In
spired the singers with an enthusiasm, quite
uncommon and who made them willing to
ling to contemplate.
The festival In tho course OF its six days
IL to present music Of Bach treating OF the
life Of Christ. The first two days embody
the Christmas thought, tho birth Of the
Savior. Al a sort Of prelude tomorrow
evening will be sung the cantata, .Seepers
Wake and the -Magn ihcat." These will
he followed on Tuesday by the great Christ
mas oratorio. The next two days deal
with the accomplishment Of the mission
OF Christ upon earth. the Wednesday music
serving a. a sort OF Introduction to that Of
Thursday. On the former day will be given
the second Brandenburg concerto for
orchestra, and the two solo cantatas,
Strike. oh strike. long looked for hour
and Il with my cross stat gladly wander
On Thursday the masterpiece Of all
orstorio. the marvellous st. Matthew
Passion, will be sung. The last two days
deal with the Ascension and the proclama.
ton of the faith OF the church On Friday
the Easter cantata, AThe heavens laugh
and the Ascension cantata. God goeth up
with shouting will be sung. and on Satur-
day the festival will come to an end with
tho B minor mass, In which, though using
. Catholic form. Bach expressed With over.
whelning eloquence the Protestant spirit.
The scheme Is admirable in It's purpose,
for it preserves the fundamental beauty of
the Bethlehem idea. namely. the religious
thought. 1t makes the festival logical in
Idea and places before the nearer In a
striking order some Of the most potent
utterances Of the greatest
Of all Protestant composers
How does it happen that this minor
city has marched 80 speedily
~ P1sItlOu III luc IOIelTOHC Oh MUSICAL
In this land'
Bethlehem 10 two hours' ride from New
York by the Black Diamond express on
The Lehigh Valley Railroad. 1t Is hfty-1ve
npiles north OF Philadelphia, and has a
population Of about p, 200. including that
of South Bethlehem. which 10 the seat OF
Lehigh University and the famous Bethle-
hem Steel Works. Bethlehem proper has
lbout 5000 souls Of whom 1900 are Mo-
ravians. and these dominate the religious
md musical life Of the town. But no
mere oataloguing Of figures and facts can
give any conception Of the sweet seclusion
II this town. It's pristine freshness pre-
'erved throughout . century and half
II modern progress it's purity of atmos-
5here, and its gentle self-centring Of
interests. For Bethlehem, indeed, the
railroad and the telegraph bring close the
busy world beyond the mountain, but they
10 not mar the peacefulnees Of the place
itself. On festival morning Bethlehem
might be thousand miles from any Am-ri-
IAN city.
Whence came the concentred musical
ife Of this town? It came with the Mo- |
-Avian founders. who were oolonists from |
aernnhut, tho ancient home OF their Church.
These Moravians wore originally part Of
;hs Church Of the Bohemian Brethren,
which had q definite existence - for back
"a l4t7. They had split on from the original
organization and had settled in i7z2 on
he lands Of the pious young Count Tin
sendorf, In Saxony close to the Austrian
frontier. In i7s; Hnsendorf became their |
srst Bishop and to him much OF thu organiza-
ION and discipline Of the Church 10 trace
lble. Tho members OF the comm unity
wore divided into 'bands,' which mot to |
experiences. pray and sing, Then
here was . special division into "choiu," |
which, consisted respectively Of unmarried |
nen, unmarried women. married couples,
widowsn, widows. boys and girls. This |
q still maintained.
The church exercised a strict supervision
'ver all the acts Of it, memhers. even to
matters Of trade. Love feasts were intro
luoed BY Zinxendorf and are still kept
Up. He taught that death was the begin
ling OF . Joyous journey. and 1t Was there
ore celebrated by the BOUNDING Of chorale
" tr,Impets, or moro lately by trombones,
md each 'ohoir' had Ito speoifed death
uns. The service Of tho church was
damned on litursiosl lines. and to-day has
au,lly resemblance TO that Of the Church
{ England, the radical difference being the
Employment of the Lutheran ohorale In