New-York tribune., 1921-05-15
The Costliness of Conductors

This cult of conductors, which lis
carried on in the name of artistic prog
ress and with mu@h honest conviction,
| is, to say the least, costly to its devo-
| tees. 10 has added little or nothing to
| the artistic status of the community,
for years. So far as the capacity or
Willingness OF the people Of New York
to patronize orchestral concerts is con-
cerned, the handwriting seen by Mr..
I Mackey and his associates In midsea-
son has been ON the wall for years.
During these years the monetery de-
mands of conductors have steadily
grown, and with them the complacency
of their generous patrons, Conditions
have changed, of course, since the days
! when the Philharmonic Society was
content to give a'dozen or sixteen con-
certs in season and divide the money
paid by the public (there were no
Macenases them among its members.
They took share and share alike. ex-
cept the conductor, who, at the last,
received eight shares as his salary.
The annual receipts ranged in sixty
years from less than $4,000 TO nearly
$4,000, and the players for their share
$3.50; but whether the remuneration
amounted to nothing (the late Mr..
Joseph Mosenthal once received moth
! ing and paid $25, having been prevent
oA al OF 4o
little or to much, the members were
proud of their association and devoted
to their art. Mr.. Thomas on more than
one occasion after years labor
ings back into its treasury. This pride
in the organization and devotion to art
went by the board when the Philhar-
monic Society was reorganized and the
orchestra became permanent" body.
The men work under rules, fixed by
union, which are aimed solely at the
getting of as mach money as possible
for a minimum Of labor. Their exac-
tions threaten disaster to orchestral
music, but it seems ungracious, even
unjust, to blame them severely, in view
of the fact that the plans for the next
season Of the Philharmonic Society
contemplate salaries to conductors to
the amount of 100000 at least.
There are questions of art which
have been raised by existing conditions
which can be more advantageou dis
cussed at another time. Here, and
now, we can only express our surprise
that men familiar with stupendous
business enterprises should give so lit
tie heed in the administration of these
concert organizations to principles
which they recognize as valid.
How have the attractive powers of
the conductors been demonstrated?
Great displays Of enthusiasm were
aroused by the concerts conducted by
Mr.. Mengelberg. They we're largely
genuine and to a commendable extent
artistically justified, though the arti-
fetal stimulus of claque was deplor-
ably in evidence, especially at the clos
ing meeting. But did the public rush
to the Mengelberg concerts? BY no
means. In spite of the newspaper
stories and other reclame Carnegie
Hall remained at the closing concerts
as at the opening ones, fourth
empty. We do not wish to be too COM
mercially logical in our deductions and
say, as we might, that the value to or
oh - NJ
dicated by the audiences at the Phil
harmonic concerts was at least one
| fourth greater than that Of Mr. Men
| gelberg. We are content to let the Ma
tional Symphony phenomenon demon
strate what has long been obvious, that
| New York has a surfeit of orchestral
concerts.
The Conflict With the Union
Conductors and their salaries are a
disturbing factor in the orchestral
| situation, but not the only one, The
continual increase in the demands of
/ the players which, like the demands Of
other laborers confederated in unions.
| look steadily toward more money and
| less work, has brought the matter Of
orchestral concerts to a critical pass.
Here the managers of the rival or
| chestras have not been guiltless, for
| by entering into competition for the
| services of musicians, seducing them
from one band into another, they did
much to put themselves into the pre-
dicament in which they found them
selves during the season just ended
The patrons, or hackers or guarantors,
however one may wish to style them,
OF the Philharmonic Society and Ma
tional Symphony Orchestra have
agreed to merge their interests in the
next season; and, though the new or
chestra will be somewhat larger than
either of the old ones, from sixty to
| eighty men who have had steady work
this season will be omitted from the
| Philharmonic roster next year. This is
causing a ferment in the musicians
union. So is the fact that Mr.. Mengel-
berg seems to have been empowered