The Washington times., 1903-06-21
GOSSIP OF THE DRAMA FROM MANY POINTS OF VIEW =

groundlings of contemporaneous Ger
many are as the prattle of children be-
side the utterances of a Socrates.
A New Light.
There is substantial ground for believ-
ing that the next composer who shows
genuine mastership and ascends by di-
vine right of genius to a seat in the au-
gust senate Of the lords OF song will be
an opener of wholly new paths. The les
sons Of musical history cannot be disre-
garded. The polyphonic period. in which
the intensely intellectual abstraction OF
the fugaI principle was worked out to
the limit of it's fecundity. most certain
ly came to an end with Bach. Fugues
have been made since the day of the au-
thor OF the "Kunst der Fuge.'' but only
over his patterns. Only Beethoven SUI,
ceeded in breathing a single semblance
OF individuality into music OF this type.
and even his work owes it's power to its
obedience to laws firmly established be-
fore his time.
The writer's of the classic period gave
us the fully developed sonata form,
which embodied within itself the funds
mental principles of harmonic, as dis
tinguished from polyphonic music. There
is. to be sure, nothing to prevent flu
ture composers from using the classic
sonata. For many high and inspiring
purposes of musical art it cannot be ex-
celled But il is not wholly suited to
the proclamation of the message. to the
utterance of the individual communica-
ton. which every composer since Bee
thoyen seems 10 think ii the CHIEF pur
pose Of music to give forth.
Beethoven himself found it advisable
to make certain notifications in the
outward features of the CORN in order
to give it a greater pliability. Sehu-
mann went still further in his union of
all four movements OF the d minor
symphony and his employment of the
same themes in different pcrts of tho
work. Later composers have followed
his lead. LISTS symphonic poem"
may be set aside for the moment IS a
separate branch of form. but we are all
familiar with the program note which
tells us that the composer "in order to
give the work organic unity has intro
duced the theme OF the opening move
ment again in the finale" This is done
over and over in works in the sonata
form.
From the symphonic poem to the tone
poem of Strauss and others is hardly a
step. yet there is a difference between
the two. The change is in the direc-
"a. e eta -,
themes, after the manner Of the Wag-
merriam drama, and Of exhausting the re-
sources Of thematic development in the
expression of emotional movement ami
variation.
Awaiting the Pathfinder.
All Of these notifications of the sim
pie classic method Of instrumental COM
position appear to the thoughtful OBJ
/ server to be manifestations of the un-
settled conditions Of a period of transit
! ticn They obviously have no fnality.
! They do not come upon the mind with
! the conviction of inevitableness. Some
thing which music is striving to reach
/ lies above and beyond them. Even N
( lyric drama where the tremendous
power of Wagners majestic works con-
WINGED US all that the problem had, al
least for that department Of the art
been finally solved, there are evidences
OF unrest. and the utter impracticabil-
ity Of the Wagnerian system for general
use stands confessed.
With music in this state II is not al
all remarkable that no great composer
is in sight, for when he comes he will
be a newer Of wood and a drawer o.
water We shall unQuestionably mis-
understand him at first. Cor he will bt
ahead Of US all. But when We come q
read his message Alright we shall CRY
out. as Wagner did about Beethoven
Let US then celebrate the great path
finder IN the wilderness % the degen
Grated Paradise. w. J. Henderson. fl
the New York Sun.