The Washington times., 1921-12-07
.CAT-F|GHT TONES.
LEND COLOR To.
.CUb|ST|C MUSIC.
Stokowski Accompanies Feat
OF interpreting Schoenberg's
Mathematical Scores.

Enter the sgeometrician into music!
the fconoclast--some call him the
Bolshevik-in music, Arnold Schoen-
berg, on the program Of the Philadcl-
pnia Orchestra at yesterday concert In
the National Theater, set all Washing
Jon to discussing the why" for his
Five Orchestral Pieces" 1t brought
Leopold Stokowski. in a most interest
Ing exposition of his mental processes
In evolving anything out Of this mad
score, nearer to his public by his tell
ing or how. since 1912, he had been
returning to the work and at last
iound-what this audience heard yes
terday.
And what was it? Not music. But
see the modern trend, even though we
cast 1t out with the discordant devils
OF var. 1t took a master mind and a
master agination-entirely aside
from courage-to get the gripping,
ever-changing rhythm that Stokowski
made one feel compellingly. Two-four.
three-four, two-two, four-four time!
Very swift, very slow, soft. loud. Yct
withal 1t wasn't as bad as we had
been led to suppose.
Neither Melody Nor Noise.
1t bears, dare one say 1t? the logical
background of orchestral sound thtt
Debussy first brought into being. For
one who can sit In the silence alone
and feel vibrating primal elements Of
nature there comes a surging rhythm,
definite, though ever quickly chang
ing. No melody, oh, no! No story, oh.
no! But IL wasn't noise, either. Take
the second movement that Stokowski
said came through" to him first. in
tiny fragments of phrases there yet
ma r a fao all in MI OF ovnf
four time, vibrant, first slow. then
quick, in the final movement this
waltz rhythm is syncopated and alive.
1t means going on" in the sense of
tmpulsive movement, and so, If 1t Is
Schoenberg's little joke with his au-
diences because they had not acclaim
ed him a legitimate composer, they
see through him and find that he has
carried the mathematics of music to
the nth degree, has passed arithmetic,
algebra and reached geometry. Ergo,
the cubists.
Here's an impression Of the fourth,
the "'Peripetie" movement. Take it or
leave 1t, as you will. Fast. hurrying
sound; raucous, surprisingly soft. A
cello note, bang and blare of horns
cat-fight! Then up she goes, that
waltz rhythm in ascending sound, not
cadence. A sudden forte, an equally
sudden pianissimo, and then a Valid
weben. with apologies to Wagner, who
now seems melodiously sane).
Composer Mental, Not Human"
And there you are! as Henry James
says when he leaves his people sus-
pended in mid-air in their living, on
nm unresolved cadence of human ex-
perience. Only I don't believe Schoen-
berg is human, just mental, playing at
q checkerboard of notes upon a staff
and of tone values in an orchestra.
It's like going around with Alice, look
ing first into the thin mirror and then
into the fat mirror, while all the time
1t really is Alice herself. Yet that way
madness lies; we would not want It as
music, only as a welcome and highly
interesting contribution for which we
are grateful to Mr.. Stokowski
The concertf Lohengrin, Debussy
more exquisite than ever in his vague
ttone-painting, Sibelius splendidly he
roic.
But there was a new soloist, Yo-
landa Nero. who played the Liszt con-
.certo in A major, giving the whole
great piano work without pause. She
Is technician of heroic mold rather
in the old mold of piano playing that
is big and sweeping, but that does not
paint in many colored tones the many
beauties of the pianistic Liszt. Nine.
Nero was recalled many times, and
one would like to hear her play other
things to get fairer estimate of her.
Mention should be made of the new
first flute player of the orchestra,