Omaha daily bee., 1905-08-06

HC&n&QI OuLWelBnS all others, viz: the
80 non-musical husband of the musl-
cal wife. 1t suppose it would be rank disre-
spect to refer to him as 1.-The rag-time
husband" however, that is what he really
is. He likes THE Good Old Summer Time"
and Just Kiss Yo'self Goodbye" and will
go gleefully to hear park band, but a
classical concert makes him groan with
WEAKNESS, and to drag him to one is
bigger bargain than most women want to
enter into. OF all the hideous things, the
worst is to go to hear something that you
particularly care for, Cnusic the theatre,
readings), with person who sits beside you
yawning with ennuL I'd like to convert the
unmusical husbands, but falling that, why
is 1t that their helpmeets who care for music
cannot go bravely to good recitals alone
or with some woman friend? Last winter
heard a girl friend, twenty-five years old
say that she missed Ysaye when she was
crazy to hear him, because her brother
couldn't take her! To me the situation
seemed absurd Women nowadays can go
about alone with such absolute safety. Men
do not give up their pet amusements when
they marry (at least they shouldn't, and
the woman who asks II is very foolish) f;
why should a wife give up the things she
is fond Of? For some unknown reason
music is the first thing to disappear in the
background, that Is here I'm the west. An
appreciation of good music doesn't confer
the same degree of culture and ample edu-
cation out here that II does in the east.
We have not arrived at that stage Of cos
mopolitan life. When our prominent bust
ness men begin to take an interest in that
side of AFFAIRS we shall have something
solid to stand on. our commercial life is
growing; we have city clubs, country clubs,
boulevards fine horses, good clothes. The
time is pretty nearly ripe TO begin on music
aud good paintings. and the phase OF exist
ence which caters to beauty in all its var
ious forms. If the wives who really love
good music stay away from II because
they don't like to leave their husbands;' %
what is left but ruin and desolation? The
entire fabric OF a possible structure Is
rent. contend that these wives ought To
go to all good concerts and occasionally
inveigle their husbands for a number OF
I two A beginning must be made somehow.
| -
Sir Edgar Elgar while in New York
stirred up a fine hornets nest when he
made bold to critcise the American ma
| tional airs. I was moved TO make a few
remarks on the subject myself last week.
The following communication covers a little
more surface and is most apropos:
| OMAHA, Aug. 4-To the Musical Editor
/ of The Bee: Your remarks in last Sunday s
| issue anent the criticisms OF Sir Edward
| Elgar on the American and English ma
! tional" airs were pat enough, but hardly
| went as far some OF us might wish. II
/ will be admitted without dispute that the
| airs that have been cOnsecrated as ma
| tional" are crude and but a little ways re-
i moved from barbarie, but when one con-
| siders the end, do not the means appear
| justified In this instance2 The so-called
| national airs were NOT Assigned for the
| edifcat ton OF musically cultured people, but
are primarily intended for the uses OF the
| masses, and such as have written scores are
/ to be rendered on the simplest OF musical
/ Instruments II would be absurd 10 under
| take a Beethoven symphony or a Mozart
mass on the hfe and drum, just as the
4 rendition Of Yankee Doodle" In its sim
/ plicity by full orchestra would be alb
| surd. But consider the effect When one