New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-06-11

Conductor Oh the Litchh,
melodies which are used in ertensO
are the chants tn dutem IN nobis es.
etc. ("Thou, O Lord, art among usO,
IN menus tuas, etc. ("ln thy hands").
and the antiphon SolUe regina, which
has been a part Of the established
liturgy of the Catholic Church for
over 500 years. 1t is appointed in the
breviary to be sung either at the end
Of compline Cor the end Of vespers
when compllne is not sung) from the
Feast of the Holy Trinity to the Sat
urday before the first Sunday in Ad-
vent. II grew to be so great favor
tie in the Middle Ages that many
churches received testamentary lega-
cies for having 1t regularly sung. 1t
was much used in Italy by fishermen
and sailors at sea, and Luther preached
against its expression of veneration
for the Virgin Mother and the honor
paid to it by the ringing Of church
bells while II was singing. Possibly
IL was a survival Of this custom which
LED Mr.. Loefier to the use Of bells
in his symphony, though vesper bells
are not necessarily associated with
the famous hymn. The melody, given
in full elsewhere on this page, when
introduced by the voices, becomes the
c7ntus frmus of the slow movement
There Is a great deal Of this learned
polyphonic writing in the score. Not
only are short motives elaborated into
extended themes, but the themes them
selves are ingeniously combined. In
the BASES OF the first division its
second theme is included as well as
the theme Of the slow division.
Mr. Loefler's orchestra Is a large
one and his music is full Of novel and
striking instrumental color effects, but
these rest more upon devices Of COM
bnstion and manipulation than upon
the employment Of an unusual appara-
tus. In this respect, as in many other
ways, it differs greatly from Mr..
Grainger's experiment. In addition
TO what may now be said TO be the
normal symphonic orchestra, he has
an extra pair of kettledrums, a bass
drum, a ceesta, a pianoforte, nine
bells, = chorus Of mems voices and
xylophone. The last instrument IS
used very little, and the purpose Of
the composer in introducing il will
never be obvious. II produces a
macabre effect which is out Of keep
Ing with the spirit Of the piece. Had
il been employed in suggesting the
grotesquerie Of the gargoyles its
justification would have been reason
ably plain; but the gargoyles exist
only in the fancy Of the composer and
will never be apprehended by an audi
ence. One explanation Of the I'M
couth wooden gong-beats offers itself.
In the contemplative first part of the
work, before the introduction Of the
mems voices, the part in which Mr..
L0Cffler, according TO a short note on
the programme, would have the lis
tener recognize religious meditation
and alteration of nature. There is a
great deal Of the Passion mood
Parsifdl Stimmung, German would
say. Now, good churchmen know that
all bells are silent on Friday in Holy
Week, even the altar bell which gives
warning to the faithful Of the mysti-
cal moment Of transsubs sanitation. On
Good Friday this signal is given by
blow upon a block Of wood. Perhaps
NJ. LocfIler heard this sound while
listening to the chanting Of compline
in the old monastery at Marialach; at
any rate. some signals are conveyed
by abbots TO monachical choirs, by
means of wooden gongs.
This seems long, sidewise excur-
sion occasioned by a small incident
in large work Mr.. Loefiler's work,
however. is not only large its per-
Torrance consumes forty minutes),
il e Of a lofty seriousness which is
quite without parallel in recent COM
position and which. therefore, chal-
lenges inquiry at every point. More
over. after the first division, Mr.
Loefler plainly invites 70 a contem-
nation of the service Of compline by
quoting the chants literally. Till then,
If we ere to accept his note, his ef-
fort has been to put the audience In
the mood created by natural scenes
combined with the sounds Of religious
functions. "A lonely pilgrim winds
his way through a land OF ever
changing entertainments, land where
clouds pass like a procession Of nuns
over the mountains 10 descend above
n lake. changing it into a mysterious
gray soa-a land where shepherds
still pine to their focks." We con-
fess that We could not follow him in