The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-01-15

D the HIbI NlOlnlNL SlOOl CiObt W AAb iini ioa
chord az he should, he could both hear
and see the player and 80 Keep himself
and the rest of the orchestra in time.
any one went astray he could easily be
corrected hy the sound OF the harpsichord,
for it carried we'll through the body OF
other instruments.
in Haydn's day it came tobe the eus'oi''
70 nave both a conductor and hp'F
chordist, and most OF the symphoiheo "
the father Of orchestral concert nuH,o
were performed in this manner
London, for instance. Haydn sat at Vu'
hsrpsichord and Solomon beat time men
delssohn conducted his symphony "
minor IN London in 1870 sitting az ','o
piano Spohr introduced the baton ~
England in 1920, or rather reintroduceo
+ ~ Tor IL had simply fallen into disuse tneio
as 1t had on the Continent many yeN''
earlier
Toward the close OF the eighteenth cen
fury and in the beginning OF the nineteehN'
theinierpreting conductor began to deVeioP'
and with him the baton has always Deeh
the wand Of office. Johann Karl Stanitz'
who lived from 1919 till 1901 and who was
long the director OF the Mannheim orohes-
ira was the first conductor 10 give close
study TO the technics OF orchestral per
Torrance. His younger contemporary,
Francois Joseph Gossec. born i7SS' oieo
1929, founder OF tho Concerts des Anna
/ tours in Paris, also made specially OF
orchestral technics.
! These two men opened mp the methods
Of expression which later conductors
] utilized in interpretation Before Gossec
had passed away Spohr. Mendelssohn and
Weber. the first great modern conductors
who had Ideas about the authoritative
reading OF masterpieces, had appearesd.
Mr.. Safonors action in laying away the
baton is not 30 si gnlicant as It looks Doubt
less in the days when orchestral performers
were less thoroughly drilled In the routine
Of their profession than they are now, they
not infrequently lost the time, and few
sharp raps Of the baton were necessary TO
restore order. Opera conductors often
have TO strike the desk with the baton
when tine choristera begin TO go astray
But orchestral players rarely stray out
Of time In these days. They have learned
to count very accurately. Russell, the big
drum player at the opera a few years ago,
could count so well that he could leave his
seat when he had sixtY bars rest, go out and
get a drink and drop into his chair again
just In time TO play his next thump But
that was not so hard as one might think.
Az long as the players can SEQ the beat
it is not essential that 1t should be made
with baton. A much more interesting
question Ia whether so much beating. either
with hand or baton. Is required Some
conductors make SO many bewilderng
demonstrations that they certainly must
confuse rather than asset their nen.
1t is hardly credible that the convulsivc
heavings OF the shoulder, the rocking and
swaying OF tho body, the writing OF the
neck, and the mysterious cryptography OF
the hands are all OF value in leading an
orchestra TO play according TO the ooncep'
ton Of the conductor.
The popular notion OF conducting is as
amusing as it Is erroneous. Too many
people think that conductor begins the
performance Of composition in state Of
apathy, that he becomes emotionally eI'
cited by the music. and that he then pro-
oeeds to exude some sort OF a mysterious
magnetism which so affects his orchestra
that it plays with much eloquence.
What actually takes place is this: TIT
conductor sits down with cigar or a pip'
in an easy chair at his home and reads thu
score Conductors-that is, some con
ductors can read orchestra scores just a
other people read newspapers. The printed
page is audible to their mental ears. From
this reading they make an analysis Of thu
work, deciding upon a plan of interpreta
ton. They work this plan out in detail
and then they are ready for rehearsal.
At rehearsal the conductor tells his play
, ers how he desires to have certain effeot
, brought out He has this passage and tina
played over and over again till he got
what he desires When he has his mel
drilled according to his ideas, he Is read,
for performance
At the performance he endeavors b,
signs and looks to remind the players o
, what he told them at the rehearsal. II h
, finds that a crescendo is growing too rapid
= he will restrain 1. II he finds that som
4 solo passage or polyphonio effect Is no
coming out sufficiently he will signal {
= have il brought out more. And 30 O
a through the whole bagful OF orchestrs
: tricks.
+ All Of this may be done simply and un
= ostentatiousy, for the orchestra alone. o
It may he done in the most SNOWY fashion
when there ~ always room for suspioio,
q that u good deal Of the fuss is made 70
the sake Of the effect it has on the aud
h enoe.
t 1t would be interesting for once to hav
/ an orchestra perform behind screer
3 Too many persons hear with their eyes
They sit and watch a conductors franti
movements as If these were the agenc
= which produced the music.
Now why should we see people perforI
r music? Why does any one have to glu
e his eyes to symphony orchestra which
4 performing symphony Of Beethoven
Is the wagglng OF bow arms inspiring
4 Are the pulled cheeks Of hornists poetic
[ Is there emotional balm in the resolut
+ hammering Of tynpanistl
or course the ideal way to listen to a syn
II phony is with your eyes shut. See nothinl
. hear everything. Shut out the FOOLS
Il world. with its Ratchet faced danes VIII
hate music, but think it honorable to be re
/. gardsd as devotees and the bored men VIII
: 20 because their womenfolk drag them.
Al Shut out the silly laces and furbelov
l. with which common folk have the ba
z taste to smear themselves when they 9
q into the presence Of naked genius. Shl
~ tho yvrations OF the eemaphoric nm