New-York tribune., 1910-08-28
THE PI4NOFORTE.
Continued from third page.


Dosition is as singular as it is diverting. Dia-
belli. the publisher of many of Bcethovens COM
positions conceived a hanpy idea for a strohe
of business. He wrote simple waltz melody
and then asked fifty musicians whose names
were familiar to his patrons to write variations
on his bantling-Beethoven among them. II
was 1898 the year which the completion
of the Symphony in d minor with its choral
finale on Schers lode to JOY" Imagine what
must have been the amazement of Diabelli when
he received from Beethoven not one variation
but thirty three, and when he recognized. as he
did. that his nconsequentlal tune mad become
the germ of unrivalled masterpiece In the
publishers announcement of the work occurred |
these words: The most original forms and
thoughts. the most daring turns and harmones |
are exhausted in this work; all utilized for |
Iianoforte effects based a solid style of |
playing. The work is made specially interesting
by the fact that it was created a theme
which no one else would have deemed capable
Of treatment in a style in which exalted mas
ter stands alone among his contemporaries" On
his last visit to America DR.. Won Bulow played
these variations in New York at his concerts
in which he produced the last five sonatas. To
his penetrative mind it had been disclosed that,
as DR.. Bic says the variations constitute an
inner drama like the sonatas He provided
each with title in the manner of Schumann's
variations are last will and testament as were
the Goldberg Variations of Bach. From melody
to canon. from gloom to parody, from archaism
to anticipation Of the future, from popularity
to the philosophy of the hermit, from mysticism
to dance. from technical glitter to the mystery
of enharmonics, they lead us along three-and-
thirty raths to different realms"
Something remains to be said about the in
fuence of the mechanism of the pianoforte as
it existed in his day on the music which Bee
thoven wrote for the instrument. Sketches have
been found. dating from about 1885 to 1895,
which Indicate that he had it in mind to write
a panofofte method. In his childhood no doubt,
he studied on the cavichord which not
only III common use among the poorer classes.
but preferred to the harpsichord for pur-
poses of instruction In the Electors chapel
and the theatre at Bonn he played upon
the harpsiChord well organ Carl Czerny,
in his Outline of the Entire History Of Music
CUniriSs der ganeen Musikgcschicbtt) published
in 1851. says: Until 117O clavier music existed
only for harpschord and clavichords. About
this time the panoforte (HGmmcrcIdUjer) gradu-
ally became known. Very imperfect at first,
it soon began to excel the other keyed instru
ments, and in 1900 clavichords and harpsichords
already completely dspossessed. Clement
and Beethoven (between 1870 and 1910, by their
demands the performer, contributed much
TO the perfection of the planOfOrte and, in Lon
don. Clement took part also in its manufact-
ure. The pedals. previously called mutations,
into about 1902" From Junker we
knew that Beethoven used one of the pianofortes
made by Stein (Which had received the approval |
of Mozart in lIlD before he left Bonn. These |
instruments had damper pedal though it |
at first operated by the knee in the manner of
the swell on a cabinet, "American' organ |
About 1900 Beethoven used instrument made I
by Walther and Streicher. In 1903 he received |
Erard from Paris and in December, 1918 |
a BroadWood from London. In his at the
time of his death stood instrument specially
built for him by Graf, a Viennese manufacturer
1t had four unison strings throughout the scale
what like a theatrical prompter's box, to enable
the deaf man TO hear himself play This in
terestfng relic is the property of the Bee
thovenhaus Eerein and is preserved in the mu-
scum established by that society in the com
PoSer's birth house. The English instrument
was the gift of Ferdinand Ries, j. b. Cramer
G. G. Ferrari, c. knyVett and BroadWood in
1918. At the sale of Beethoven's possessions
after his death it bought by Spna the
publisher. who gave it to List in 1910 1t is
now IL The Nationo! Museum at Budapest to
which institution it was presented by Princess
Marie HOhenOhe daughter of