New-York tribune., 1920-05-23
"A Glimpse ofthe Orchestral
Situation i'm New York
Quality of Concerts Reduced by Quantity; Players
Lacking to Supply Rival Organizations; Tech.
nique Menaced by Demand for 'sJaxx''

Metropolitan Opera House and the
Hippodroms.
More Concerts, Yet q Greater Deficit
In 1880
IL would be quite proper, interest
ing and within the province of a
reviewer Of the city's musical affairs
to consider the financial side Of the
undertakings which have been outlined
and which can only be characterized
as stupendous in magnitude and dar-
Ing. But this We need not do except
as tho rather appalling activity in
vites to speculation as to the artistic
consequences which are likely to fol-
low it. The orchestral season Of
1920 brought forth more concerts
Of this character than any in the his
tory Of the city. That is stating the
case mildly, very mildly. 1t would be
no exaggeration to say that during
the season New York heard more mu-
sic of the symphonic type than all the
capitals Of Europe combined, and. since
there were large audiences at all the
| concerts, that more New Yorkers
heard this music than were in at
tendance at the symphony or Phil
harmonic concerts, as they are almoct
universally called, in London, Paris,
Berlin. Vienna Hamburg, Budapest,
Cologne, Munich, Mannheim and all
the other centers Of classical music
united. Ponder that fact moment.
Now add to 1t another: every one Of
these large concert organizations has
ended the season with a large deficit.
Next season there will be a larger
number Of concerts and a correspond
ingly larger deficit all around. If
the audiences have been larger than
ever, why is this SO? Because the ex-
ptnses Of concert giving have steadily
risen for years. Will they be less
next season? No. Why not? Be-
cause the demands Of orchestral mu-
sicians have made the meat they feed
on. This union Of musicians federated
with that of labor generally is con-
sidering large number Of changes
in its bylaws to make the employers
pay more than they are now paying.
Like other artisans, they are demand
ing more pay and less work.
In these demands they are upheld
by the action Of the employers, who
are bidding against themselves. Or
chestras are generally spoken of as
composed Of four departments or
choirs: the strings, wood-winds, brass
winds and percussion. In not one of
these classes is there g. sufficient
number Of players in New York to
supply the organizations which are
! spoken of as permanent. In two choirs
1t is no exaggeration to say that there
are not enough players entitled to be
called artists--that is, musicians who
are artistically etacient-in the United
States to meet the need which the null
tiplication of orchestras has created
in New York City. We refer to tho
wood and brass winds.
"Jazz" Destroys Efficiency
Moreover, the demand for trombone
players, for what are called "jazz" bands,
has not only made it difficult to keep
them in symphony orchestras, but it is
destroying their artistic efficiency. The
principal characteristic of "jazz" music is
the vulgar sliding from tone to tone. To
produce this effect resort must be had
to unnatural contortions Of the lips
and forcing of the breath. This plays
havoc with the embouchure of the mu-
sician, and, if persisted in, inevitably
units him for artistic music. We must
not 60 into technicalities in an article
like this;e nor is it necessary. 1t Is
enough to point out that the need Of a
correct and sensitive embouchure is so
essential that in the good orchestras
Of Europe there are always a double
set of wind-instrument players and no
oboist or horn player. fcr instance,
is expected to play two Gays In sue
cession, or more than two or three days
week. When Schuch, director of the
Royal Opera at Dresden. visited New
York IN the Conried regime he spoke
with panied amazement Of the policy
Of the Metropolitan Company's man.
agement in compelling its musicians to
play every day. What would he have
thought Of 15o operatic performances
in 1873 days?
Some orchestral players have aban-
doned high class music to play in the
"jazz" bands at hotels and restau-
rants where there is dancing, the reason
being that they can command wages
as high as $125 a week for such work.
When the dancing mania has died out,
as it must when the world returns to
moral and physical health, these musi-
clans will be unfit for the higher
reaches Of their art. Not only their
ability but their taste also will be viii
ated. One need not be moralist to see
how the dance music of to-day (the
Blues" type sspscially) has kept pace
in degeneracy with the dance itself.
In the early days Of the one-step and
its fellows a considerable amount of
beauty was recognizable in the compost
tinns hroucht forward by Mr. Europe