The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1910-10-25


longing for the alb
sent one. Our meetings in the
house of God are accompanied by de-
votional songs. Sad and somber mu-
sic ascends in the house of mourn
Ing, and yet, what relief this music
is to sorrowing hearts, With the
sound of drum and trumpet and the
clang OF the cymbal the soldier plum
ges Into the smoke and carnage of bat
tie, and even the trained horses dance
and curvet in time with the music
and strain at the reins which restrain
them and learn the meaning OF the
different bugle calls. Love, anger. sor-
row, enthusiasm, pain-all the pas
sions and emotions Of the human soul
can be. and are, expressed in mu-
sic
The progress which has been made
In the composition of music and in the
building Of musical instruments of
every kind is enormous. The print
tive instruments of the ancients and
their monotonous music, or the instru-
ments OF barbarous or semi-civilized
| people and the intolerable noise which
they call music cannot be compared
with the expressive harmony Of our
music or with the multitude of beau
full and powerful musical instruments
and in the execution of musical pieces
our age has doubtless advanced furth-
er than any preceding time. In COM
position. however. In the art of pro-
ducing musical pieces, the past cen
fury undoubtedly had greater masters
than the present.
At the opening OF the nineteenth
century the musical leadership, which
Italy had enjoyed for a considerable
period, had passed to Germany, and in
the twentieth century 1t appears as If
Germany would also lose this exalted
position In its turn, for in the field
OF art no nation can long hold the
leadership. Perhaps the industrial
and commercial development of Ger
many may be one of the causes why
the number of its great composers is
decreasing; for though prosperity is
no obstacle to the enjoyment and cul
tivation Of art. yet it does not seem to
form specially favorable soil for the
growing masters Of this noble art.
When the nineteenth century
dawned Bach. Haendel and Mozarr
had raised German music to a pin
| nacle of glory, and Beethoven ant
, lection as today. Chamber music has
Haydn were at the zenith OF theil
splendid powers, while List, Weber
Kreutzer and Schubert had begun
their immortal careers. Before Bee
thoven died, Mendelssohn, Schuman1
and Wagner had been born. This wa.
therefore a golden age of music will
I an unexampled array of peerless mas
tiers and unequalled musical works
Comparing the present age with tina
. glorious time, we are compelled t.
l. admit that today there are no giants
r In musical composition, for the three
+ greatest composers of the present, Ed
ward Grieg, Anton Dvorak and Rich
: ard Strauss, only the last named
Il German, do not reach up to the stand
n ard of the heroic age.
But though there are today no Ger
man composers of commanding &c
= MUS, yet there has never been tim
: when their works were so highly es
: teemed and produced with such pei
reached the highest stage Of develop
ment in Germany.
|. In England also musical educatio
t. has reached high degree of perfet
s tion but England never produce
II many composers and none of con
e handing genius. Richard Elgar ha.
l. however. succeeded in meeting with s
It much approval that he is being reel
oned among the great composers. TIL
g majority of British and Irish con
f. posers, hJwever are content to TO
ID low In the footsteps of German MAJ
4 tiers; the later ones, though followin
2, their own ideals, love to walk abroa
b In the mantle of Wagner or Brahms.
1t France has for three centuries o.
s cupied a prominent place on the MI
steal stage and her great MASTER
l. Boieldieu, Auber. Herold, Adam an
Chopin offer much that is interestin
2 and valuable Yet it must be az
e mitted that here the tendency wa
q mainly to write for the opera and fo
the production of light and frivolou
y music. OF more serious and noble
= ~harocter are the modern music;