Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-01-04

The Boston SYMPHONY Orchestra last
evening played in excellent style about
as unintercsting an orchestral program
as has been given in Philadelphla TOT
long time The concert opened with
the Manfred" symphony or rather
symphonic form. for it has little OF the
real symphony about it except the
ccherzo, as the second movement Shou'u
be called. its best movement by IN"
way, OF the four Tschaikowsky him.
self refused to include It in his sym
phonies and with good reason for no
one can accuse that composer of lack
of the symphonic feeling. "Man'red
was well performed by the Boston
orchestra. but It is not Tschaikowsky
n his best There Is the fun knowledge
Of the orchestra that Is shown in all
his orchestral compositions and there
Is an excess Of the melancholy of the
later works. but there is little of the
poignant Tscnaikowsky melody that
makes un the body of the Fifth and
Sixth symphonies that followed It,
The second number was the Saint
Saens Fifth concerto for piano and or
Chestra. superby played by Alfred Cor
tot. In spite OF the cXuuisitely crisp
touch of Mr.. Cortot and the undouhtcd
technique which the concerto demands
and which the solOist possesses. there
Is little real music In the composition.
The first movement is a tour de force
of virtuosity and was executed by the
aolost in a faultless manner and with
great brilliancc but left little impress
sion except that Of admiration for the
ability of Mr.. Cortot TO play SO many
notes in 80 short a space of time, not
exactly the reason for the performance
of an elaborate concerto. The second
movement. an exceedingly militant an
dante let pretty much the same i'm
preston, but tn" second theme of the
finale is real music, and 1t was so in
tcrpretcd bv the sOloist and the Or
Chestra. Mr.. Cortot brought out all
tn" technique Of the concerto. which is
composer has put into It, which is
little. The work gives no chance for
the performer to show his interpretative
abilities.
Tho concluding number was Bala-
kireff,s "lslamCy," orchestrated by
Alfredo Casella. Evidently Mr. Mon
toux has exhausted the orchestral liter
ature, for this Is the second time IN
two concerts that the Boston orchestra
has given Philadelphia audiences COM
positions In other forms arranged for
orchestra. \ month ago he dipped into
the Mrndclssohn octet and this time
into the even VaSter literature OF the
piano
The chief claim to fame Of "Islamey'
IL that 1t Is probably the most difficult
composition for the piano ever written
The same might almost hold good for
ltS orUhcstration by Mr.. Casella. lie
has arranged II for an astounding num-
Der of Instruments. most Of which seem
10 he playing all the time with the
10 pnNh Ia ~.
entail color which might have been dis
played with more reserve In the use of
the instruments. In due justice to the
Boston orchestra 1t Is only fair to say
that the work was splendidly performed,
but, after all, 1t seemed to be hardly
worth the work evidently put upon it.
with rCCollaCtionS Of a recent perform
anCc of "SChchera1ade" in mind, il
would have been interesting to know
what ItImsGy- -korsakoff. with his vast
orchestral knowledge and true Oriental
feeling, would have done with an ar
rangement Of "lslamey."