New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-01-08
MUSIC.
NeSC-York Symphony Orchestra.


The most noteworthy as we'll most beautiful
feature of the fifth concert of the New-York SYM
phony Orchestra in Carnegie Hall yesterday after
noon was the performance of Mr. C. NJ Loefter's
symphonic poem. lie Mort de Tintagiles. with the
assistance of the composer, who played the oooh-
cato part written for the viol d'amore. The COM
position had been heard in New-York twice before
at concerts of the Boston Symphony Orchestra I'M
der Mr.. Gericke's direction ION February 90 1901,
and January a, 1900. on both of which occasions
Mr.. Loeffer played the solo voice. The score has
now been published most beautifully by Schirmer
and the work thus been given Its final form. With
this FORM as compared with that in which it was
conceived and first worked cut we confess tnat
wholly satisfied Originally Mr.. Loeffer
employed two viole d'amore. and when the sym
phonic poem had its first performance in Boston
on January s. 1885, the solo instruments were played
by him and Mr. Kneisel. The Tribunes reviewer
present on that occasion and carried away
deep impression OF the tender pathos Win "iiiLh
the music imbued by the interminghng OF the
voices of the solo instruments as well as the poeu-
cal stimulus given by the instrumental CHARACTER
ization of Ygraine and Tintagiles and their tenn
peramental and emotional traits. their mournlui
surroundings, ptiful fate, common fear ana the
sweet, clinging, passionate love Tor each other'
Before the first New-York performance the score
had been revised and, though it gained somewhat
in compactness of form, we do not think II pene-
flied, except from prosaically practlcal point OIL
view from the elimination of one OF the SOLO IN
struments and the relegation of what was left OF
its mart tn solo violin 1t is moody music, and
the pIantvely haunting voice of the viol damore
is a singuarly beautiful and effective vehicle for
its proclamation. The fancy of the listeners was
more persuasively moved to surrender itself when
it could fashion the united voices of the solo IN
struments into the utterances of the children call
ing vainly to each other and frantcaly kissing te
iron barrier which kept them apart while the aWtA
doom apprehended by both was approaching But
these reflections partake wholly OF personal e4ud
ton None can sympathize with them who hears
the work only in its ultimate form
Mr. Loef1er's symphonic poem is based upon
MaeterIincks marionette drama of the same name
Those who deceived by the word Ttntaglles' turn
to the Arthuran legends for its explanation Will
return barren of suggestion. 1t has nothing TO DO
with the castle in which Arthur was born OF
Ygraine wife of the Duke of Tintagel, to Uther
Pendragon, who came to her in the likeness OF
the duke, who was dead Of that very hour tnough
the LADY knew 1t not. All that Maeterllnck bor-
rowed were the Ygraine and Tfntasei Wltn
its changed spelling Tintages is the child orotner
of Ygraine He is boy prince who is brought
across the water to a ruined castle on an lsland
where the old queen, his grandmother, lives, ana
also his two sisters. Nobody sees the face OF the
old queen, who has been crazed by the desire 10
rule except her maids who are as wicked as she-
At night Tintegiles is torn from the arms or MS
sister Ygraine, who loves him passlonateIy. ana
done TO death while she is maoly attempting TO
force open an iron door which separates her from
him. The last desperately hurried dialogue Oh lhe
it'll. ones and their kisses on the cruel oarrler
form Clls-EE
description OF the gloomy place to which he had
heen brought so that he might be put out or the
way of the wicked queens ambition the stormy
sea dashng agairs. the rocks below ana the I'M
happiness wbir2 had filed their little lives II
needed not the rhythmic rhetoric or MaeterIlhck
T, max, sucr subject pathetic or to lift IL into
a provirce fit for music, but the literary nVestl-
ture OF the story played a part in inspiring MT
IoefHe: as did also the death of the composer
Younger brother, which occurred at time when
! faIIa int hands.
NOT incidents though these are not wholly over
looked are the subject of Mr. Ioefners MUSIC
which after a fourth hearing, we are sun dole
indee1 more able and more willing than ever to
cbaracterfzc as strikingly beautiful music pro-
foundry beautiful music-music full OF hish INA
nation distinguished far beyond the general OF
modern works built up on radical cohceilS toucH
ING KEYS scales and harmonies, IN us iosicdlesS
Of development. it's proclamation or hoou VI
noetic sublimation its instrumental refinement ana
+bo Strange charm which lies in the 1ntervalllc
nec,,lfaritv Of its underlying scale Mr. Damrosch
Introduced it with few words OF characterlHd'ioi
and conducted it's performance with conlpiet7 ue
,.otiop The performance. indeed, was supremacy
admirable and persuasive. unapproached py any
4t offered during the rest of the concert, except
possbly from a purely technical point OF view
hv the Scherzo of Mendelssohn scotch sym
nhony in which the orchestra's Wood-wlnd choir
covered itself with glory
Cnbor,, and symphonic poem were associated
With single other number on the programme.
/ This was q melodramatic performance OF poem
entitled The Witchs Song by Ernst Won widen
brucb with illustrative music by Max ScInlilngs'
The statement printed the programme IhaI the
,,orL WAS new and was given for the first time In
New-York was not strictly correct. Inc poem was
read in the original German by A hoffman at
concert of the German Liederkranz on FEBRUARY H.
1904 The concerts of the Liederkranz. however
are not public affairs. and the work was. TO all in
fonts and purposes new to yesterdays audience
Mr. Bispham who introduced the work to the
,,eonIe of Chicago at concert of the Thomas Or
rhestra last November. read the lines yesterday
Nelodrama of this kind never makes an impression
which can be described unmixed. Words de-
claimed with the speaking voice are disturbed by
music music by such words. To make it some
thing more than merely toerable requires exalted
inspiration in three factors-the poet, the COM
poser and the interpreters We found inspiration
in none of these factors yesterday, and were
neither upfted nor edited. scarcely even interest
ed though that was duty. A fine audience heard
the concert. and all the participants won hearty
approval Mr.. Bispham less than Mr.. Damrosch
and Mr.. Loef1er. H E k
CTTMDiy NIGHT CONCERTS