New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-01-18
ORCHESTRA CONCERTS
Mr.. Pauer IN a Philharmonic
ConCert-A Hebrew RhapSody.

sioeratlon OF some features OF the affairs
Is therefore resumed here Outside the
playing OF Max Pauer. pianist the most
notable thing about the concert OF the
Philharmonic Society (Which was re-
| peated In Carnegie Hall yesterday after
| noon, or, at least the most commeudable,
was the fact that Beethoven's Pastoral"
symphony appeared with It's face washed.
When last IT was performed by the Phil
| harmonic Society, in January, 1910 its
score was soiled by changes and additions
made by the conductor, who wanted more
| noise In the delineation of the storm. and,
taking hint from Berioz's Fantastic"
symphony added part for a second pair
| or kettledrums, so that there might be a
more realistic representation of the crash
ing. rumblng and echoing OF thunder.
rms excrescence Mr.. Stransky has re-
| moved, he has also restored the normal
and natural phrasing Of the accompani.
ment figure I'm the Scene by the Brook
and for these things he is entitled to the
gratitude of all music lovers who believe
in preserving the purity and integrity OF
where the composer had as perfect A
vehicle for the expression Of his ideas as
! his latter-day WOuld-be improyer. IL
there was want Of impressyencss In the
performance, il was due TO a somewhat
| too rigid adherence to tempo. a lack OF
shading and failure to bring out the
! fun grace and beauty Of the meIodlc con-
! tours. But. at the best. there is always
some danger OF the symphony becoming
monotonous
IL seems singular, though IL is striking
! evidence OF the change OF taste which has
come over performers Gas rule listeners
have nothing to say in such matters) that
Mendelssohn's concerto in G minor for
pianoforte, which was played by the new
conner. Max Pauer. should have appeared
upon Philharmonic programme for the
first time In forty-seyeu years. In this
interim II has figured a Few times in the
concerts OF other organizations. but il is
possible that uine-tenths OF the listeners
in the audiences on Thursday evening and
yesterday afternoon heard the work for
the first time when Mr.. Pauer played IT
for them. Yet time was when II was one
Of the most popular OF all concertos OF
that period there IS a record In the amus-
Ing skit by Berl!oz. which tells OF IT'S per-
Torrance at an examination at the Con-
servatoire in Paris. when SO many pupils
played IL, one after the other. that at the
last the piauoforte began OF It's own &c
cord as soon as the pupil stepped upon the
platform and when the maddened jurors
smashed the instrument into flinders and
threw the fragments into the court below.
they were Mortified 10 sec the hammers
still bobbing VI and down amid the tang
led strings II was q brave thing FOR
Air. Pauer TO choose the old-fashiOned
concerto for his American debut. but. per-
haps. he no; only loves the lovely music,
but feels that We are on the eve Of a re-
version Of popular taste and that serene
old things are again 10 have their turn.
Certain 1t IS that our virtuosi must soon
break out Of the wheelcage In which they
have been running so long
For those Interested In Philharmonic
history II is recorded that the first per
Torrance OF the g minor concerto al
Philharmonic concert was By II q. Timm,
on January II. 1916. on May ~ Of the
same year Mr. Timm repeated IL by re-
quest" at festival concert" given In
Castle Garden for the purpose OF raising
money to build a Philharmonic hall. at
was at this concert that Beethoven's
Ninth Symphony had its first perform
ance on this side Of the Atlantic ocean,
on June 2. 1887, Richard Hoffman played
H. and his repetition Of II on March TO-
1876. is the last record Of Philharmonic
which we can find Meanwhile. on Jan
uary 10. 1852, Otto Goldschm'dt. being In
America as accompanist for Jenny Lind,
whom he married. about three We, ks
later, PLAYED the concerto under the diroc-
ton Of George Loder.
Mr. Pauer had excellent predecessors
and showed himself worthy OF them. TIE
music does not call for great depth OF
sentiment. but IL f. memorable In It's de-
maud for tasteful and finished style,
and the smoothness OF execution which Is
ALWAYS associated with music OF the pre-.
Beethovenian period And this 1t re-
celved AT the hands OF MIR. Pauer. who
also gave It ample tone. without toF'i'S
his instrument. and beautiful color.
A feature Of special interest IN the con
cert OF the Russian symphony Society IN
Aeollan Hall was the "Rhapsodie H"ora-
ioue." by Zoatariew. composer utterly
unknown here until Mr.. Safonoh called Mt.
,I,ecbuler's attention 20 this work ana
he gave IL performance in the last days
OF December. 1905. At that time the COM
posI,ion stood alone, so far az the knoWl-
edge OF this reviewer went, as an eHort
to utilize secular music of the RUSSIAN
Jews in the artistic forms. since theh'
but only within the last few months some
or tho songs Of the Jews OF Russia have
been exploited expcrimentally In German
,opcar, rooms. and IT IL possible that be-
fore long a new field Of artistic music
based upon a species of folksong pracu-
caIIy unknown to the outside world, VIII
ta inviting the attention Of connoisseurs
and students Of musical nationalsm.
The composition which Mr. AltschuIer
has introduced to New GOrks concert
goers though not highly original III con-
structlon. IL well knit and enecuNe
composition and it's thematc materlal
&c or a most interesting character. Inc
melodies. save one, have nothing III COM
mon with Russian folksong. They are
oriantaI in character. but their Oriental
Ism az reflected in the fundamental scale
OF the first theme in particular - ulie'
e,t,ated from a related characteristic OF
,ho folk music OF Hungary. Nallachia'
Arabia. Turkey and Egypt, IN that the
a,o,io in,erval-an augmented second con-
,atriro three semi-tanes-falls In DIFF
-, o,rt of the scale. In II there IL "A