New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-10-05
New Music by a
Finnish Composer
Ia Presented Here
Selim Palmgren Gives a Re-
cital of His Own Piano
forte Compositions: Old
Elements in New Dress
By Fl. f. krehbicI

Tho musical aftermath OF the war
is to be felt In the season which is
now opening, and it is much to be
hoped that mona of it will be less
interesting than that which came under
observation in Aeolian Hall last night.
though Mr.. Selim Palmgren, who gave
p concert OF his pianofortc music with
the help of Mr. Percy Granger, provided
considerable food for reflection. 1t
was his music which invited comment,
however, not his playing. AS pianist
he gave us nothing which we would
rot gladly have dispensed with. Last
Sunday we attempted to convey an
impression made by him and Mr..
Granger in the performance at Pitts
field of piece for two panofortes
Which he calls "A Masked Ball" but
the result of our effort after being
filtered through a telegraph operator.
r. typesetter, a copy editor and proof
reader was so confused and bcwilder-
Ing that the offspring was scarcely
JeCOEDlLaDlc DY AUS ldJHSAs to III
preston was repeated last night and
so the report may also be reiterated
with the needful correction. 1t was III
effect that two pianofortes were so be-
labored. becudgled and bethumped as
10 excite the commiseration of the
audience The poor, unoffending in
struments could not resent the treat
ment bestowed upon them, though their
heart strings seemed nigh to bursting.
They showed their white teeth IN Il
complainant or contemptuous grin, but
could not close their mouths nor drop
their lids. Had they done this upon
the fingers Of their tormentors they
would doubtless have received as much
applause as did their torn entors, and
deserved more.
Mr. Palmgren is q representative of
the Finnish school of composers, not
by reason of anything which we could
discover in his music, but because OF
his birth and artistic environment
This school is affiliated with that of
Scandinavia and Russia. though it
derives as the phrase goes) from the
Germans, who were the educators of its
founders. Racially the Firms are, in
all likelihood, Monaghan, and more
nearly related to the Magyars than to
the Slavic and Germanic stocks, which
have Influenced them for centuries
But in their folksong they have pre-
served some strongly marked char
acteristics, and in the music of the
best of their representatives whom we
have heard some of the weird and
rnournful spirit Of their national epic
ia Enthusiastically reflected. Admirers of
the "Kalevala" have felt this while
listening to some of Sibeliuss COM
positions, notably the orchestral pieces,
The Swan of Tuonola" and "Lemmin-
II q
Mr.. Palmgren is far from being a
Sibelius, however, and if he commands
a national or even g personal, iodiom,
we have not yet been permitted to
observe the fact He produced, last
night several groups of solo pieces
ten preludes, descriptive pieces with
such titles az Evening Whispers,
"The Snowfalees." Caprice Barbara"
moonlight" "The Pinwheel and THE
Hunter and the Squirrel,,,,besides
THE Masked Ball" already alluded to,
and n Neanolitan tarantele for two
panofortes. In them was discernlble
strone and clear sense of purpose,
evidenced in symmetrical structure and
proper respect for melody. But It
was only in the harmonization, espe-
cially the abrupt and restless excur-
sion into musical fields of tonality, that
anything like novel utterance could be
found. The iodiom was sometimes as o. q
as Stephen Heller and the thought and
expression less beautiful, at no time
comparable with Schumann, from whom
he borrowed his poetical formulas. 1t
was unfortunate for him that he COM
PEELED recognition of this fact by bring
ing into juxtaposition two such merely
pretty and closely allied pieces as
"The SnowfaSes" and q section OF
nocturne, which he called "Twinkling
Stars" The snowfakes twinkled and
the stars were fucculent. Had the
titles been reversed it would have eX-
Ted M snecial wonder Schumann
was the prince OF those rare program
rratists who proclaimed not the things
which he intituled, but the mood and
essence OF the things, and in this str'v-
ing, though it was apparent in one or
two of his Preludes, Mr.. Palmgr n
Jagged far behind him even with the
help (which we cannot but feel Is
purely suppositious, even IN the case
Of the Young revolutlonaries. Of today
Of the potent means Of modern har-
mony.