The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-29
IN THE REALM OF MUSIC

Arthur NJ. Abel. in the Musical Courier.
TSHIS is the age of technic and We
find achievements in one field of
1 human endeavor reflected in an
other, although the two may have moth
ing in common. Since Emperor William
ascended the throne, quarter of CEN
tury ago, the progress that has been made
in music is in the last analysis but re-
Election of the immense leap forward
which the world has taken during this Pc
|Iiod in the realm of mechanical inven-
tions. Wireless telegraphy, the aeroplane,
the automobile. the Zeppelin air cruiser.
the x-ray the moving pictures. talking
machines-all these wonderful products OF
our time are startling manifestations Of
an age of supreme technical achievement.
In music, too, technic reigns supreme,
for IL cannot be denied that the advance
during the last two and half decades
has been chiefly of a technical nature.
And this is true both In the productive
and repr roductive fields of musical activ-
ity. One need only attend a ocntemporan-
eous music festival in Germany and lis
ten ~ tit programmes VI IbNCAtitS ioi
orchestras to come to realization of the
astounding strides that have been made
in the last few years in the requirement
of the technic of composition. What TO
a Robert Schumann was exceedingly diff
icult. almost impossible. is a mere bag
atelle ta scores of youthful composers.
scarcely out of the conservatory. In
point of brilliant orchestral coloring, bold
harmonic schemes and general structural
excellence. there are literally hundreds of
young composers today who begin where
Richard Wagner left off: and many of
them make a formidable showing so far
as the external trappings and aecoutre-
ments of musical productivity are con-
cerned.
In the real essence of composition, how
ever, in melodic invention, in distinctive
themes, in originality of utterance and
strong emotional elements. in fight of
fantasy-in short, In the real afflatus OF
the composer, inspiration-they are found
to be woefully lacking, almost to a man.
And it is safe to predict that musical pos
terity will erect no monuments to the
memories of all these brilliant techniclans.
Even with Germany's two representative
living composers, the two men who domi-
nate the situation here today. Richard
Strauss and Max Roger. the real musical
mission conveyed is quite overshadowed
by the brilliant colorng and wonderful or
chestration of the age and the astounding
contrapuntal skill of the other. Strauss
and Roger have advanced the technic or
I,,,t
their real moments of inspiration are
rare The same is true in still greater
degree of all the other German composers
of the day Thus we find the general pub
lie rallying around the standard of the
great German classicists, and Wagner and
Brahms with. ever greater enthusiasm
while it is becoming more and more in
different to latter day musical produce
tions. Even Strauss, the one really sue
cessful man of the day. finds the general
interest in his new creation short lived.
The public does not care for technic; it
wants the soul of music
In the field of instrumental activity we
find the same conditions prevailing. Tech
nical achievements and feats OF memoriz-
ing that would have dismayed the elect %
years ago are now everyday occurrences.
Here in Berlin the critics and even the
public, have seen so much of this that
they have become wholly indifferent to
dazzling feats of technic and memory.
Season before last Henri Marteau played
1s of the greatest violin concertos with
orchestra from memory during a period of
six weeks. The impression he made was
wholly incommensurate with the amount
Of effort put forth. Last winter Ossip
Gabrilowitsch repeated the feat playing
Is piano concertos with the Philharmonic
orchestra He was more successful, but
the general Verdict was that such feats
are not worth while. A few years ago an
other violinst, Alexander Sebald. played
in public in one evening all of the Bach
sonatas for violin alone, and on another
occasion all Of the "a Paginini caprices in
| succession. All there are extraordinary
feats and must challenge admiration.
After .all, what is their object? Have
these men done more than set up rec
ord for endurance? Boys in knee breeches
and girls in short dresses play the
Brahms, Tschaikowsky and Paganini con-
certos technically as if they were Kreut-
ger or Cramer etudes. We have had hum
dreds of such debutantes here during the
last few years. Where are they all? How
many have made name and become pub
lie favorites? Far less than ! per cent.
And why? Because these people have
no real art mission.
Up to date scientific methods for violin
and piano can and have advanced the
teehnic. but they cannot and have not
and never Will make great interpreters or
commanding personalities. With the uni
versal elevation of the technical stand