The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-26

question az nero musicianship. Form
10 thing Of the grammarians. to be dis
clissed behind closed doors by astbmatic
persons who believe in musty unterpoints
and the rules Of the game. A great vital
imagination defying alike gods and men
and capable Of shaping his dreams, a man
OF humor. malice. irony, above all else
irony. tenderness. pity and tho marrow
OF life, love-al these qualities plus an
Internal or celestial IL you like the word
better--scienoe must tho composer Of
Don Quixote possess.
Strauss calls his work Fantastic varia-
tions on a theme Of lrnightly character
For the benefit Of the musically pious let
me add that 1t u in the form-broadly--
of Thsmd con VGriasione and Finale.
Therein Strauss may be said to mock his
own idealism, as Heine and Nietzche once
Knocked theirs The realism is after all
realism of fantasy; for the narrative deals
with what the Knight Of the Rueful Coun-
tenance imagined and W it'll what his trusty
squire thought Of him. With his character
istio fair for an apt subject Strauss rec
ognized In the semi-dreamlife Of Don
Quixote a theme pat for treatment. and
how he has treated it! That magnificent
gift Of irony l@Bon Dieu. may never lose
my irony" cried in desperation famous
Frenchman,l inherent in every sentence
he utters, here expands soil worthy of II.
A garden of curious and beautiful flow ers,
flowers Of evil as well as good, blooms in this
score. Its close contains some of the most
affecting and noble pages in modern musical
literature, as poignant as Tschaikowsky o,
as dignifled and dramatic as Richard Wag-
ner's.
There is no interruption in the different
sections Don Quixote "is enacted" by the
solo violoncello, the viola represents
Sancho Panzo. Perhaps Strauss indulged
In sly witticism at the expense Of the ro-
mantle Berlioz and his viola solo in He rold
in Italy."l We first see-some hear. others
see-Don Quixote reading orack-brained
rome noes Of chivalry. There ere themes
grandiose, mock heroic and crazy In their
gallGntry. Queer hRrmonies from time
to time indicate the profound mental dis
turbance Of the knight. He envisa ges
the ideal woman; giants attack her; he
ihntiCo W biit IeSCue. ltlG lNutIk vi OitC
instruments, tuba included, produces the
idea OF slow creeping ms dness and turbu-
lent COMMENCEMENT Of ideas. Suddenly
his reason goes and with a crazy glissundo
on the harps and a mutilated version Of
the knightly theme the unfortunate man
becomes quite mad. From music to ml d.
ness is but a step after all. Don Quixote
is now Knight Errant.
Then follows, after q new theme rich in
chare cteriza ton, the theme of Sancho
Panza, for the bass clarinet and bass tuba;
lster always on the viola. The fat should
era, big paunch and mean. good-nn tured,
lying, gluttonous. constant fellow are
limned with startling fidelity that Gusta We
Dor6 or Daniel yierge have never attained
for music C; n give the sense Of motion;
1t is par excellence the art of narration.
The ten variations which ensue are
masterpieces We no longer ask for the
normal eight bar euphonious melody, for
the equable distribution of harmonies, for
order. rhythm, mass and logic; but, with
suspense unconcealed. follow the line of
the story, amazed, delighted. perple xed
angered, piqued, nterested-always inter-
ested by the magic of the narrator. The
adventure with the windmills; the victor
ious battle against the host of the great
emperor Alifanfaron; dialogues of Knight
and Squire; he meeting with the Penitents
and the knights overthrow: his vigil the
meeting with mis- Dulcnea: the ride through
the air; the journey in the enchanted boat;
the combat with the two magioans; the
combat with the Knight of the Silver Moon.
and the overthrow ot Don Quixote and his
death, are SO many aanyases upon which
are painted with subtle, broad. ironio and
naive strokes the memorable history above
limited at. The realistic effects notably
the use Of the wind machine in Variation
VII are not distasteful Muted brass in Va
ration II. suggests the plaintiye m-d-d-h-a
OF a herd of sheep The grlInting OF pigs
growing of BOOSTERS. roaring Of lions and
missing of snakes we:a Srudely initiated
by the classic masters. while in the Wagner
mllsic-dramas msy be discovered quite a
geological collection Nor is the wind
machine SO formidable IL it is said to be
1t is all effect utilized 10 represen, the
Imaginary flight through The air IN wild
gale OF Knight and Squire on wooden
Pegasits No know chat Il is pure imagi-
nation, for j growing tremoio OF the double
basscs on one note tells IT,. iislenvr thai tn.
solid earth Res really scypr been aban-
dored.
Throughout, there ure many ravishng
touches of tenderness. Of aiccere romance;
and the finale is very pathetic. His reason
rot rnur,n,gIlIlty taI Il.
poor, lovable Knight, recognizing his aber-
ration, passes gently away. Here Strauss
utilities device as old AZ the hills, and but
lately heard in the 3 minor symphony Of
Tschaikowsky. 1t lis sort of bGsso ostinato.
the tymPa"i obstiEaeiy tapping one tone
as the soul of the muchtriod man takes
fight. Perhaps the accents OF n deep
seated pessipism may he overheard here
for l believe Richard Strauss too great
a nature to remain content with his sue
cesses. He recalls to me the little nlezzotint
of John Martin in which Sadak in search
of the waters of oblivion painfully oreeps
over the cruel edges of terrifying abysses
to misty heights where still more appalling
dangers await the intrepid soul
Strauss has only begun. A master
styiist, realst in his treatment Of his
orchestral hosts, psychologist among
psychologists, a master of a new and gener-
Gus culture. thinker. above all al inter-
prefer of poetic and heroic types of human
ity. who shall say 10 him: Dare no fur
Their. His audacity is only equallcd by his
mental serenity. In all the fury Of his