New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-01-27
An Anarch's Innocuous
Chamber Com
position.
MORE FRIGHTENED
THAN HURT
Some Uninjured Principles OF
Art-A Little Sermon for the
Pure In Heart.
BY ". y. KREHBIIL.

need not be inquired into either curiously
or carelessly. Mr.. Betti and his men
demonstrated 10 tho satisfaction OF the
largest audience that has yet attended
their concerts that there Is no moral ana
very little il any artistic obliquity IN
volyed In the composition. performance or
hearing OF Schoenberg's string quartet IN
- minor The audience not only sat the
performance out with exemplary patience
and gave II close attention. but appauded
at its conclusion, and apparently put the
stamp Of it's approval on the work. II IS
not easy to see now the good people could
have done less after any possible sting
which the composition possessed had been
DEITY extracted by bringing the quartet =
subscribers to a preliminary private hear
ing and formally asking an EXPIRES
sion Of opinion either by applause
or Kisses at the end. New Workers
are not accustomed to exhibitions
OF bad manners in public places, and the
surest way of getting applause in any
case is to invite Kisses. II was ingenious
pleading and served its purpose without
In the least affecting the Issue inVolVed'
That issue was not lifted into prominence
bv the music so much as IL was by the
hullabaloo raised by the preliminary an
nouncements. The quartet had nothihs
to do with the demonstrations Of dis
approval at concerts in Vienna and Lon
don. at which music written by Schoen-
berg was performed. That music IS Oh
latter day production; the quartet - an
early work and was composed before us
author became a proud anarch In art
as the word mongers have dubbed MN
or will soon call him. or course, all
anarchism is delightfully."- exciting, and
everybody who does not admire II IS d
reactionary. Phlistine. II we were dis
posed TO be captious about terms It might
be said that the latter term is not prop
erly applied by the self-elected cham
pions of progress" In German uni
versity cities all citizens not associated
with the student body are Philistines, as
In English university centres all VINO
are not of the gown are OF the town.
In view of the present tendency in music
"Philistine" is obviously a misnomer.
The contemptuous attitude toward learn
and anarchists who despise the academi-
clan, affect to eschew all his works and
arrogate to themselves the right to make
their own laws
The notion has been put forth indus
triously that Schoenberg is one of these
artistic anarchists. SO he is, according
to report, but not in this quartet-at
least not to any alarming extent. This
music is like the curate's egg-psrts OF
il are good, indeed very good. 1T does
not spoil enjoyment that its four move
ments are not separated by pauses, nor
that it's thematic material is distributed
through all of its parts. These things
arc utterly inconsequential. 1t is dis
appointing chiefly because it is so large
ly futile and because its moments or
beauty are separated by long and ARD
stretches Of impotent striving. Listen
ers of a serious bent of mind and trained
to patience can find mucn enjoyment
in IL.
Let that suffice for the music itself. n
few observations are challenged by the
unnecessary pleas put forward in us De-
half. Mr.. De Coppet invited the patrons
of the quartet to private hearing. MI.
Kurt SCHNEIDER read an essay to them
about the composer, and Mr.. Bett pre-
pared them for the hearing by telling
them Through Mr.. SCHNEIDER and a
brochure) why they ought TO admire H.
Here were the reasons: Because the COM
position illustrates great liberty of form
and absolute independence of part-wrlt-
ing. also. because it employs the lnstru-
ments i'm all their varied registers (ofteh
in the extreme ones, makes use OF or
chestral effects unusual in quartets ana
not one but several leading motives, in
the style of Wagner's dramas ana Liszt
symphonic poems.
Touching these things, it might be saio
that. standing alone, they are highly ui'-
important. if true. Liberty of form mlsh'
no pursued TO the extent of its complete
destruction Of il were possible 10 EN-
hodv an artistic idea without form, ano
~ tho result realized any Of the known OF
felt causes of beauty the destruc'ioi
would be justified Independence in part
writing is no virtue in itself; II 1t were
then music would, be reduced TO a mere
Mathematical process; or worse thar
that 10 a mere arbitrary whim.
four persons choose TO sing foui
melodies simultaneously and pursue
their individual courses with ironbounC
consistency regardless of consequences
90 the ear. nerves and feelings of thei
hearers, their behavior Is not admiraoi
because OF its independence LAoertl
does not mean license In music any NOR
than IL does I'm any of the other arts "A
LITTLE "a IL admirable to strain the voice
~ Instruments beyond their innate capac
Nv Cor characteristic expression. Pig
,,a,ts NAV be blended until they ceas
,o onnear 10 the eye, and when so blend
Cd they cease to be artistic material. ,
also NAV sounds. Noise which is j
regulated or misguided sound has neVe
heen and never will be an element OF az
soIute music so long as the art remain
on oxnression Of the ideal In its illustra
tive capacity as an element in mixed al
Iiiko the musical drama noise may hav
a purpose, not as an appeal to the sense
hut as a quickener OF the Imagination
Rut even here the aim must be TO produc
something upon which the imagnatio
NAV profltably dwell To reproduce I'll
noises of the city by means OF machine
which initiate the din of modern tram
and communal life. as has recently bee
done In Italy, where Internal Invention
constructed to groan. thunder, whist
detonate, gurgle. scrape and snort lei
their aid in a delineation Of THE AwakeI
ing OF the Capital" Nothing is art whic
kills the finer scnsibilities which ciyilizs