New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-05-27

singing is to make new people out
of the citizens of the United States.
Yet nothing short of such marvellous
result is promised by the signers of
the call for the conference. By "free
participation in great forms OF COM
munal self-expression," the people of
the United States are to "free them
selves from dependence upon tradi-
lions of the past and create their own
traditions. EMBODIED and fortified in
a new unity, through music, they create
a new nation by the utterance of the
deeuest in the national soul and new
art by the perfecting of that utter
ance."
This is, OF course, nothing but the
widest sort of hyperbole. To the ex-
tent that participation in community
sings" Ito adopt the phrase the use of
which is in itself sign of cultural
decay may stimulate interest in ar
tistic choral music or congregational
song in the churches, the movement
may have beneficial results; whether
or not it is likely otherwise 20 elevate
popular taste is open to question. II is
significant that it is accompanied by
an effort to introduce a number OF
songs whose makers hope that they
may supplant the songs which, for one
reason or another, arc somewhat un-
grsciously recognized as our national
anthems. The songs which the crowds
sing, and the songs which ambitious
poetasters and composerlings would
like to have them sing, are all of the
folksong type. They are not folksongs,
though the best Of them are fine imita-
tons because they were inspired by
the spirit which creates true folksongs.
Folksong is the song Of the folk. II is
not popular song in the sense in which
the word is most frequently used; not
the song which is merely admired by
the people, but, in a strict sense, the
song which is created by the people.
1t is q body of poetry and melody
which, the world over, has come into
existence without the influence of con-
scious art; which has grown up as a
spontaneous utterance, and is, because
Of that fact, filled with a characteris-
tic expression of the feelings of a
people.
In this sense our community choruses,
when they sing the best of our popular
songs Chose Of Foster, for instance), do
not sing folksongs. Those of our songs
which are used as national anthems,
"The Star-Spangled Banner" and
America" are art songs; their melo-
dies were composed by English must
cians-their words by American poets.
They are none the worse for the Eng
lsh origin of their melodies-nor ought
that fact condemn them. The tune of
"God Save the King" has conquered
the civilized world. Until the outbreak
Of the present war it was the melody
Of the national hymns of Imperial
Germany and several of its constituent
monarchies and dukedoms. All efforts,
and there have been many, TO find a
substitute for it have failed.
For the hymns of Imperial Russia
and Austria, "God Save the King"
served as a model. Such a melody can
not be killed; nor can the two great
national tunes which il has inspired.
Democratic Russia may throw over the
text of "Boshe Zaria Chrani," but it
will never silence its superb melody.
The anthems of Great Britain, the Rus
STA of the Car and of Austria are phe-
nomenal inspirations, and unique. They
are closely related to folksong because
of their characteristic expressiveness.
So are a number of songs which have
lived in the hearts of the people of the
United States for half a century, and
which illustrate the fact that, while
civilization atrophies the faculty which
creates the phenomenon which We have
called folksong. as it does the faculty
which creates myths and legends. it is
sometimes galvanized into life by vast
calamities or crisis which shake the
foundations Of social or national exist
ence. Then we see the. results in the
best products Of popular musicisns. II
is a singular fact that the patriotic
songs of the American people during
the wars Of the Revolution and 1872