New-York tribune., 1920-11-07
Last Weeks Concert by
The Beethoven Association
Departure From Former Policy of Musical Organi-
zation Includes Quartet by Brahms
in Program

devoutly and beautifully played despite
the unfavorable atmospheric conditions
This began the concert and for its end
there came the Brahms quartet in which
Mr.. Harold Bauers eXquisitely finished
art was sympathetically united with that
Of Messrs. James Levey, H. Waldo
Warner and c. Warwick Evans, of the
English contingent. The weather was
abominable, but Aeoian Hall was filled
with listeners, among them the fine
flower Of the lovers of chamber music
who live in the city. In appearance, at
tention, discrimination and capacity for
enjoyment the audience closely resem-
bled an oldtime Kneisel Quartet gath
ering.
Between these numbers fell group
Of vocsl numbers. To MIR. Bauer's ex-
quisite pianoforte accompaniment Flor
ence Hinkle sang in English Beethovens
"Busslied'' (Ponitential Hymn, Mai
lied May song) and "Neuve Liebe,
Neues Leben' (New Love, New Life,
and then with accompaniment Of piano
J
and violoncello (Mr Evans). three Of
the songs arranged by Beethoven for
Thomson's collection of folksongs.
They were called "Scottish Songs" on
tie program, though one Of them and
that the one best sung by Miss Hinkle,
or rather Mrs. WitElerspoon, was Henry
Carey's "Saly in Our Alley" If the
program was in error in this it only
/ followed Beethoven, to whom all the
songs sent him for arrangement
/ English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Rus
sian, Danish, Spanish, Portuguese and
Swiss-were Airs Ecossais"
The singer sang the three songs with
lovely, equable tone and fine finish in
/ phrasng. though she took the most
, beautiful Of them all-"Faithfu
Johnnie'-in a painfully slow tempo
They are familiar enough, though we
confess that we never heard so ingra-
tiating an ensemble in them before
/ With their threescore companions.
which also came from Becthoven's
pen, they have historical interest, to
which attention can appropriately be
directed just now, when music, answer
ing to the World-spirit in other mani
festations, is full of popular express
sion That Beethoven made many ar
rangements of the kind for George
Thomson, of Edinburgh, is, or ought to
be. known to every student of musi-
I,
however, that they are an outcome of
q feeling for musical nationalism
which an emateur felt long before
professional musicians dreamed of it,
\ Collector of Folk Melodies
George Thomson was for fifty years
secretary to the board of trustees for
the Encouragement of Arts and Manu-
features in Scotland. He was the
friend OF Burns and Scott, both Of
whom he enlisted in the cause when he
began laboriously, painstakingly and
enthusiastically 10 collect the folk
melodies Of the British peoples He
was not scientific collector, like Mr
Frank kidson or Mr.. Cecil Sharp, or
any member of the present British
Folksong Society," but he had keen
appreciation OF melodies made by the
people and, what is more to the pur-
pose, convictioa that they might be
made to enter significantly into artistic
music For his first publications he
Che began in 1920 enlisted the services
of Haydn, Pleyel and Kozeluch ("Mis
erabilis," comments Beethoven on the
last in one of his letters). and when
Beethoven's star began to shine lu-
minously over all Europe he began nego-