New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-12-08
MUSIC.
A CONCERT OF FRENCH MUSIC.

After ,ol,1r,ino1,s announ cement the Boston SYM
phony Orchestra gave It's second evening concert a.
Carnegie Hall last night. under the direction OF
Vincent d'Indy. It was an evening devoted to an
effort at making propaganda for French music
NJ. d'Indy is a forward man in his school; there Is
scarcely anything good in it which he does not
represent-its elegance of expression first OF all
He produced some of his music; also some OF
that of his friends and contemporaries. Gabriel
Faure and Paul Dukas His own pieces were a
symphony in fiat, to which Mr.. Gerieke had al
ready given hearing. and a symphonic poem or
legend as he prefers to call it. entitled "sauge-
heurie, piece of delineative music which, 1t must
be confessed, is ingenious in purpose that in all
but its voice, it belongs to so long agone
that It scarcely seems worth while to dis
cuss it. Here is the formula Slow music
of an idyllic character nymph fairy
embowered in the wood; ripping and gurgiing
fgures-there is water in her environment Fanfares
from the horns. muted at first, then frank and
open voced-a prince comes a-huuting: 1nuted at
the cose-he hunters have gone the fairy has loved
a mortal and the little tragedy is over. kuhnau
would have known how to do IL two hundred years
ago, though he would not have known how to dis
pense the magical orchestral tones which are at Ie
disposal Of NJ d'Indy. These tones were, indeed
the most admirable things about last nights con
cert. The French composers of the decadent school
(there were no others represented last night nave
all the daring of the German Strausses' Hauses-
gers Schillings and Rigers, but they remain latin
sense
indulge in platitudes of musical thought but they
will cIothe their commonplace tastefully and eie-
gantly In nothing NJ. dIndy so interesting last
night in making this demonstration He IS
only musical scholar, but his whole art rests
on scholarship. He is ingenious manipulation OF
formularies. Were he half ingenious in the IN
vention of beautiful themes he is in the handling
of such material as he selects Especially in the
matter of Instrumentation he would surely be
of the choice and master spirits of the age.
But he is not. His symphony was quite indi-
geshble and incomprehensble last night it
last season. though it had the advantages of
second hearing and individually authoritative in
depreciation. NJ d'Indy conducted inteligently,
soundly, lucidly, and the orchestra followed his
every direction with obvious sympathy. But again
there must have been many in the room who found
their powers of analysis and description COM
pIetely bewidered they when first
they heard the work. There is reason
to change the opinion expressed in this journal
before: That it irritated interest was I'M
denabIe; that with all It's tncomprehensible sngU-
larities it published sincerity the part of the
composer was equally unquestionable; but what It
all meant either absolute illustrative music,
we are still as unable to fathom were a
year ago We must still want for its essential ac-
cessories possibly a preliminary debauch with
hasheesh, moving pictures by the impressionists
who paint red houses with blue pigments Odor-
dissemination machines such as Apuleius describes
in his Golden ASS" fitting scenes from Die
Meistersinger" Tristan und Isolde" and a photo
graph of a page from GoIdmark's "sakuntala'
overture. Mr.. dIndy most politely received
politely; that he persuaded his hearers TO ad-
mire the music of the young Frenchman whose
cause he is representing this visit should not
dare assert II. E. X.