New-York tribune., 1903-05-12

touch with both Lesson and sermon and this end
used 70 consult early in the week with the preach
ers, who also in the habit Of borrowing their
subjects from the Gospel lesson of the day. II
not a high grade OF poetry that was evolved
though that which Bach employed furnished him a
welcome vehicle for his descriptive and dramatic
style OF composition. The point is significant here
After the Reformation IN Germany the church or
ganizstion fell sufficiently into the background to
ena BILE the individual 10 feel direct personal rea
tionship with his Creator and Redeemer, and the
mysteries OF the Atonement were permitted TO af-
feet his Individual emotions. AS result the
writings of the religious poetasters, especially
those OF the pietistc sscts. disclosed tamil
iarty in the handling of the person of the worries
Redeemer which was only little less shocking
than the eroticism which disfgures many Sun
day school songs OF to-day. There is an example
in the cAntata. 'sleepers. Wake The hymn itself
is exalted in expression imagery and feeling down
TO the last stsnza, when Of the Bacchic 10
and the medieval refrain, In dulci jubilo, give
one pause. But note the added portions After
the first stanza Of the hymn, which tells of the
awakening calls of the watchnan from the walls
the summons the virgins TO trim their lamps
and prepare for the wedding feast, a tenor pro-
claims the coming Of the Bridegroom and describes
him in a paraphrase from Solomons song: be
hold he coneth leaping upon the mountains. skip
ping upon the hillsi My beloved is like roe or q
young hart; and the roe or young hart IS bring
ing the wedding feast! Now, we have some frank
dramatic Characterization (Which has been dis
creatly avoided in the English version of the can
80
tatal. There is a duet between the Believing
Soul (soprano) and Jesus" (bass). The former.
standing with lamp trimmed and burning, implores
Jesus TO open the banquet room. Jesus responds;
Y come, I have opened the banquet room for the
heavenly feast! I come. lovely Soul,' Then fol-
lows the second stanza of the hymn; Zion hears
the voice of the watchman on the walls. Her heart
leaps with Joy: she awakes; arises TO meet her
Beloved (''friend" in Luthers version of the Song
of SongsO He comes in spIendor. mighty in Grace
and Truth, and Zion invokes Him: Come Jesus,
Son Of God, VII follow Thee into the nan OF
Joy and hold the love feast" Thus Nicolal. Enter
again the poetaster: The Bridegroom bids them
enter Jesus: Il viii place thee upon my heart
and breast as seal and bring the light OF JOY 10
thy sorrow -dinmed eyes. Forget, Q SOUL the IeaI
and pain which thou vast forced 10 suffer. upon
my left hand shalt thou rest, and with my right
will embrace thee'' CKiss thee in the Germany
Then the two voices blend in a love duet: My
friend is mine. And am thine, Our love no poWr
shall sever; With thee I'll feed, amongst the roses
Where 10y ending never, With bliss shall COM
bine": or words TO that effect. This, suppose. is
all well and good for those who are steeped in the
canonical Interpretation of Canticum Canticorum,
but see little difference between il and the beu-
lah' song:
Gather me tenderly close to thy bosom;
Faint with thy loveliness, there let me dle-
sSucb stuff is shocking to religion and common
sense" said my old Methodist friend, the Rev Dr
Wentworth, long ago, and agree with MIN,
whether the instance comes from the church OF
Luther or the doggerel Of the modern SUNDAY
school and Salvation Army.
But Bach's rnusc-that is a different matter, al
though its climaxes reached in the stanZas OF
the hymn and the rest might easily be spared
were it not for the historical study. The reclta-
tives and duets are in the style which Bach would
have employed had he written opera Despite
his visits to Dresden to hear the pretty opera
music of Hasse and his confreres it is Impossible
TO imagine Bach. except i'll his humorous excur-
sons writing operate airs or duets in any other
manner than that exemplifed in his church can
tatas. My Heart. Ever Faithful is about as
near an approach he ever made to sheer mot
rnere) tunefulness and II is miracle Of learning
So the old conrapuntal wig rests upon these duets
an5 neither makes nor mars their character either
as sacred secular music but OF that more Fos-
siby. another occasion 1t is IN the treatment
of the verses of the chorae that the genius OF the
old Lefpsic cantor looms up. In the opening num-
her three vocal parts and all the voices of the
orchestra except that Of the horn (Which give out
the hymn tune in unison with the soprano cAolf)'
execute q contrapuntaI piece Of marvellous COM
plexity vet perfect clarity. All is busting activity
as If preparations were making for the wedding
feast. It is 4 sea OF sounds rolling and tossing
get overspread with smile Numerous ike oid
ocean in bright sunlight. The melody of the sec
ond stanza is sung by the tenoTs Of the choir and
embroidered by the volins and v!oas in unison, the
harmonic substratum being supplied by the work
ing Of the figured bass. The last verse Of the
chorale sung in fun harmony with the orchestra
sustaining the various voices. The first recitative
is accompanied by the continue only, the first duet
by the continue and violno pccolo obbligato, the
bass recitatve by the string quartet including the
vioIino piccolo the succeeding duet by continue
and oboe obbligato. Concerning the treatment of
the archaisms in the piece, hope TO speak on an
other occasion.
The text Of the 'Magnihcat' need not occupy us
long. It the familiar song Of the Virgin as set
down in Luke i, $3.50. It's appropriateness IN a
celebration of the nativity is obvious, and that Bach
50 used it is plain from the fact already mentioned
that in the original of it he interpolated pieces
in German and Latin from the Leipsic form of ser
vice These interpretations were a verse OF the
Christmas hymn Won .Himmel hoch, da koInm
ich her" which. tradition says, Luther wrote and
ro1rDoseI for his children portion of "Freut
eJ.ch una jubiliret." another German christmas
HYMN: the Gloria in eXcesis. and portion OF an
old Christmas hymn beginning "Nifga Jesse
Horit This last contains within itself some naive
German lines which plainly recall the old custom Of
..Kindelwiegen' Grading the Christ child Which
used 10 be praetsed in the German churches ana OF
which rbe alto aria ''Sumbsr, Beloved is lovely
relic in the Christmas OTatoro. Bach first wrote
a. ..AFesnjfrat" I'm F-hat. and this version was
r,,bshed by Sinl-ocl1 in ISL. AfterU-ard . revised
and improved version in . was found, and this IS
tie one published by the German Bach Hoclety
used in Cincinnati in 1875 and here tonight Rooer'
Franz called attention to. it in an enthusiastic
monograph published 1863. but the performances
of it have not been many, despite the fact thal II
is 4 strikingY characteristic WORK ana KS pieVi'S
- .o,,c;seness ought to recommend il to singing
sncietjes that hesitate 10 venture upon the minor
mass or either of tho Passions. There are twelve
mum ber in the work, each devoted to verse OF me
f.artfcie and ending with the GLORIA patri. rive
Of tho numbers are choruses, five arlas one a due'
for alto ard tenor and one trio Tor two sopranos
nd sro The cboruses are all in five parts The
orchestra consists Of the usual strings TWO nutes'
three truflpots whose parts offer the usual dilE
entities: organ and continue with solo instrumehts
ike the oboe d'amors. used obbigato' IN some oi
/ the solos 49,, .t,-.
,rbe music 81 tie "Nagnncat.'' more than tna'