New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-10-13
How Not to Sing;the Chorus
"Glory to Coda CUES
ton of Musical
Interpretation.

this and other Engiish-speaking' ana Eng
,lish-singing lands. in pursuance OF an old
and beautiful custom. are just now pre-
pairing TO perform Handlers Messiah In
the Christmastide. Operas come and
operas go with the changing currents OF
fashion, bait this monumental compost
tion holds It's sway unalterahy over the
hearts and minds Of millions. 1t is rock
amid the surges, the one firm foundation
of choral societies. The more it is rallied
at, scoffed at by smart critics who wish
ito show themselves progressively sneer-
dng ut old things, the more its history
covers them with confusion. 1t exempt
HES like no other work the Nbeauty OF
Iaanplicaty aud the simplicity OF true
beauty II scourges with its every
measure the smethods OF latter-day COM
lposers The more they show their I'M
lpotence by pfling up tonal apparatus IN
Ian EFFORT to be expressive, the more
eloquent do itsifew and simple voices APP
Epear The cult which II has created mas
hroduced an interesting phenomenon a
tparadox such as has never before existed.
kFor decades composers have recruited
their army Of instruments until music
tpsper Of normal size will no longer hoio
Ithe notes, normal platforms or instru-
mental pits no longer hold the players
hut for little more than a decade some
hoH the best musicians of England have
lstriyen to restore the conditions under
(which Handlers work was performed
when 10 first came into the'world. strings
land trumpets. the two latter only spar
kngly, are all the instruments which ap-
kpear in the score. To them Handei adoeo
Ian organ part. improvised by the player
Snnd horns, eboes and drums. as ne FOUND
then, at his disposal but so long as he
hived he depended chiefly upon the organ
Ito supply the color which Is deemed SO
Essential to-day. Mozart set the example
khe cannot be said to have set fashion,
for nobody since his time has been able
70 do the work as he did III or providing
1.-THE oratorio with additional accompani-
inants: and out of the liberty which he
took because there was no organ In the
lroom In which the oratorio was to be per-
horned for the first time In Vienna, there
igraw the lLcsnse which ended in such an
sovarloading of Handel's score that II be-
came pious duty to rescue 1t from desc
'cration So. some twelve years ago. SIT
Frederick Bridge began an agitation ID
England in favor Of a return TO Handlers
text in its purity. He did not succeed IN
lpersuading a large number Of people that
what Mozart had done was Of evil, but
he did awaken desire to have as clean
a taxi as possible. The first fruits OF his
agitation in the publishing houses was
the appearance of-Professor Prout's edi-
ten, which was used by the Oratorfo
Society here ten years ago. and has been
used ever since Professor Prout was not
q uurist In the sense that Sir Frederick
Bridge was one. He aimed at prac-
ticable score, score which should meet
modern requirements without doing 100
much violence to Handel. He retained
all Of Mozart's additions which he thought
authentic Johann Adam Hitler had addeo
TO Mozart), but In cases where questions
OF taste were concerned he left their use
optional. His greatest service, perhaps.
was his publication Of the vocal parts
and his prescriptions touching an au-
sthentic method Of performances. though IN
one particular, in which he was never
Needed go far as this writer knows, he
WAS suilty of the error which IT is the
purpose Of the present article to correct.
The text for the homily Is found In
new edition Of the vocal score OF the
Iorstorio, published by @. Schlrmer. This
score Is edited by T. Tertius Noble, an
excellent Englishman. organist and choir
master of York Minister, According to
the titfe-page hts work has been revised
saccording TO Handel's original score by
Max spicker" Under the circumstances
AZ IN dificult TO say where praise and
blame for the merits and dement's Of the
gworis are TO be placed. However, as the
ione point TO which particular attention
lts ~ be paadis set forth In the PREDATORY
l,natter, which bears the name OF Mr..
ispicker, II is. likely that he is to be held
Irresponsible, Let the text be quoted In
full;
WE seize this occasion to direct atten-
Mon 10 another important matter, whicn
9nught TO be mentioned, II for no other
reason because It Is unnoticed IN all the
,pther vocal scores. We refer TO the chorus
E'0lory 20 God." page 81 ono. I'D, Here
lS%ns s ssssss n a5s g sasaae
lsfSho" las from afar and rather softly
and only thus should this chorus De per
Horned. 4 appears to us that rely s1,ns
acT this number, there can be no doubt
yhat ne Intended a gradual approach
INSTRUMENTATION Of this solemn chant %
a. n an Increasingly urgent, divinely In
ie6fred announcement, followed by an
edually gradual deorescendo Withdrawal
sSdpporting evidence Is found in the post
Jude which, after a grand fortfsstnro oil
insfed otdnissirno. The authenticity of the
Heading has occasionally been called IL
louAstion. with argument both In speech
and writing; but such questioning can
| rest only on a lack OF acQuaintance--or
an fnexact acquaintance-wtth Handel
lorigfnal score. &c. In order TO. settle this
kifnportant point definitely we publish at
the beginning of this edition fac-simile
OF the hrst page OF this chorus from
lEianders original manuscript, which
forever.
The facsimile. from the original auto
graph, which was made accessible TO all
Handel Students by the photo-lithographic
copy published by the Sacred Harmonic
Society of London In 1868, is also printed
on this page to aid in the demonstration
that the '1nexact acquaintance" with the
score is the possession of Mr.. spicker.
not o. those who have called into oues-
ton the authenticity OF the reading
which Mr.. spicker sets forth 90 IL II
were a new discovery. Here bit Of local
history becomes appropriate The proper
Interpretation Of the chorus GLORY to
God" was a subject or discussion In
New York over thirty years ago. Some
ten years after the publication or the