The Washington herald., 1912-11-03
MUSIC LOVERS
GIVEN TRENT
More Than Five Hundred Attend
Lecture on Bach BY Daniel
G. Mason.
FINE ARTS SOCIETY
ELATED AT SUCCESS
First Venture Into Field Of Music
Portends Excellent
Season.

That Washington 10 deeply musical
when given an opportunity was proven
most conclusively last night when more
than 800 persons wers present At . lecture
on Bach given by Daniel Gregory Mason.
of New York, assistant professor Of music
in Columbia University. In the auditorium
of the new National Museum. under the
auspices Of the Washington Society Of
Fine Arts.
This was the FIRST time that the local
society Of fine arts has entered the field
Of music In its work in advancement Of
the arts, and II was most gratifying to
the ofncers and members CT the society
Ito learn that Washington has 20 many
serious and earnest devotees Of music.
The average American 10 fond Of say
ing that Bach. Beethoven. Mozart.
Brahms. &C.. are dull. Is 1t the music
The burden OF proof Is upon the listener.
The mere sound and fuery that signi-
fies nothing to the unframed ear may
be opening a new heaven to the compre-
hending mind. There II easy com.
placency in the boast Of dislike for the
ella ssical in music that savors OF conde-
scension toward an art that. in its high
est expression. transcends all others.
Well yerscd In Music.
Last night Mr.. Mason took his audi
ence back into the seventeenth century
and discovered for them the secrets Of
the rich variety and beauty Of Bach's
music. Mr.. Mason Is minutely intimate
with every step Of the development of
music: and this. added to a broad gen
eral culture. makes him a delightful
talker. He constantly illuminates his
subject by interesting analogies and rela-
tons.
He spoke Of Bach's music as the be-
ginning OF all music and as the mu-
sician's music. He said that Bach was
poor and unknown in his own day and
Is still only feebly appreciated. but that
he was the great founder Of both the
polyphonic and homophonic style. Every
great composer who came after him,
Mendelssohn. Schuman. Wagner. and In
our day. Max Roger and Richard
Strauss. were directly Influenced by him.
Mr.. Mason described the polyphonic
style as strands OF voices weaving in
and out like the interlacing strands Of
voice melody supported by a column Of
harmony. He spoke of the cadences or
musical motifs: Of imitation. transpo-
sition. contrast. and restatement as the
foundation Of the sonata and symphony
forms. as 1t was Of the old folk dances
and songs Of the early suites.
DeAnition Of "Fugue."
He drew . happy analogy between tho
cadences or periods trestfng places) Of
the homophonic style, and thu bases Of
a baseball diamond. and told how Beach
wrote the forty-eight fugues Of the wsd-
tempered clavichord, to show what
could be done on the newly equalized
(that is. newly tuned clavichord. Mr.
Mason gave q wag's definition Of q
fugue, as "A piece In which one voice
after another comes in and the audi
ence one after the other goes out
People complain said Mr.. Mason,
the fact is that no other music is SO
overlooking with melody. every voice in
a many-voiced composition singing .
separate and distinct melody. yet 80
dexterously worked in as to form to-
gether perfect harmony
Mr.. Mason illustrated his lectures on
the piano, playing a bouree for cello. a
study in both polyphony and homophony;
q two-part invention In F major: a fugue
from the well-tempered clavichord: the
d fat minor fugue from Book I: two ga
VOTES. one from the English suite. made
famous in Stevenson's letters as one of
his Suite Anglaise," and a bouree from
the violin sonatas.
The lecture was the first Of . series OF
FIVE being given by Mr.. Mason under the
auspices OF the Washington Society Of
Fine Arts the first Saturday nights Of
November. December. January. February.
and March. and from the attendance last
night the capacity Of the auditorium in
the new National Museum will be over.
taxed at the remaining lectures.