The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-05-24

the parts absolutely necessary W tho oooio'
Thus gradually the knowledge OF tho art
of filing out a figured bass became less
and less general. and now, 80 far as doing
1t polyphonically is concerned 1t is almost
a 100; art. Since, then. the harmony ue-
signed by the composers could no longer
be supplied by the player OF the organ
or larpsichord, 1t became necessary to
write additional parts. Two methods nave
been adopted One is to write out only
a fully harmonized organ part. as Mendeis-
sohn did for Handles Israel in Egypt.
This method has never been satisfactory
because the increase in size in the modern
orchestra changes the entire relation be-
tween 1t and the organ. The other method
il to fill out the accompaniment with ad-
ditional Instruments, and this 10 the plan
commonly employed. Mozart, for exam
pie, wrote additional accomplishments for
HAndels Messiah" and still later Robert
Franz did so. The Franz score is the one
now usually heard. Franz performed a
similar office for Bach's 'Mignificat.'
which was sung at the recent Bethlehem
festival.
Some of the music in this same Mag
nif1cat' was left to us by Bach with only
a bass part as the accompaniment. 1t
was not even figured. The performance
of the music with only this bass part would
certainly not carry out the intention OF the
composer and Il is altogether necessary
that some one should supply the obvious
deficiency. The question arises, then, how
far is the editor of one Of these old scores
to go? The answer appears to be quite
direct that he has no right to do anything
contrary to the design OF the composer or
the general condition Of music in his day.
For example, Anton Seidl onca orches-
trated one of Bach's organ fugues, using
the whole resources of the Wagnerian
orchestra. and covering the transparent
polyphony of the old master with coat
Of many colors, such as he had never con-
ceived He was soundly berated for his
lack of knowledge of the duty he owed
to Bach
We must remember that in Bach's day
the body Of stringed Instruments used
in an orchestra was small Again, we
must not forget that the principal wind
Instruments were oboes OF various kinds
Next to them came trumpets and flutes.
Horns we're also employed. but much more
sparingly. Clarinets entered the orchestra
in the days Of Mozart. and the trombone
was used chiefly in the opera. The pro-
portion OF oboes and bassoons to strings
was much greater than 1t is now. All
these things have to be borne in mind by
the writer OF additional. accomplishments
in order that he may do justice to the COM
poser whose music he is trying to bring
up to date.
When therefore the writer Of the adj
ditions sits down to his work he IL almost
certain to find it necessary to struggle
continually sgs inst The temple ton to
infuse into the coloring of the score certain
personal predictions. II he Is fond of
infinitesimal nus noes such rs one hears
in the finest modern violin pls ying, he
will be tempted to forget that the back
ground OF Bsch's religious music WIS the
organ and that when this instrument wss
pla ying in comp, ny with oboes OF different
sorts. flutes and be ssoons. extreme deli
cacy Of nus nee must have been quite out
of the question. Instead of it there must
have been a broad, smooth, dignifed flow
Of tone wholly suitable to the inference
of the contemplative thought OF religious
text.
Hermann Kretschmar is undeniabiy skill
full in many Of his editions Of the scores
of Bach. For example, his version OF the
score Of the second Brendenburg concerto.
performed at the Bethlehem festival,
would have pleased Bach purists better
than that Of Motif, which Mr.. Wolfe used.
But the Kretschmar score contains an
organ or piano part and this was probably
the obst ecle in the way Of it's employment by
Mr.. Wolfe, who h I'd an incompetent organ
list to help him. Such part, Of course, was
..,s -i-t,, Al LIT :
the work 80 that it could be performed
as modern orchestral works always are
without a piano or organ part. He filed
out the harmony by giving the strings
more TO say, especially the cello. Pro-
vided the polyphonic thought Of Bach
is not altered or obscured, there is no OBJ
lection to this process. but Mr.. Kretsch-
mar, in his scoring Of the B minor mass,
advanced into debatable ground.
He filled his edition with minute ex-
preston m ,rks. Indeed he simply larted
his pages with them. and it must be
confessed that no one can find ground
for all of them in the original music.
Many are merely q at atement Of the per-
sonal taste OF Mr.. Kretschnar generally
very excellent taste, indeed. but not al
ways immaculate, and in this case decidedly
dubious.
The solo singers at the festival were not
unanimous in their method of treating the
appogiaturas and turns. Mr.. Wolfe
should have seen to it that they were, but
! here practical difficulties were naturally
encountered and criticism must have con-
sideration for the troubles of a conductor
who Ia also the manager Of festival. Mr.
Wolfe vas unable to engage some of his
solo singers until within two or three weeks
Of the date Of the first concert, and ii was
impossible for him to obtain a sufficient
number OF rehearsals to set the minor de-
tails of the solo singing in order. SO it
happened that in one instance two singers
in a duet sang the turns in different ways
; and that throughout the festival there was
some variety in the delivery OF the appeg-
giaturas
All students Of music know that an appcg-
giatura is a dminutive note written before
a principal note, They are of two kinds,
long and short, and il Ia now the custom
to call a short appoggi atura ar acciacatura.
Both kinds take their time value away from
the principal note-that is. they borrow
from it-but the acciacatura Is played or
sung 80 swiftly as to take almost nothing
while the long appogg 'atura IT. made longer
than the principal note and becomes the
accented tone Of the pair. The long appo e.
giatira is not ueed in modern nota ton.
The music can be and is written in differ