New-York tribune., 1922-05-14

posed by Rubinstein, and to only one
Of his secular operas. The latter was
Nero" which was given at the Metro
politan Opera House long ago, in 1886,
by the National Opera Company
Whether an opera by Russian COM
poser had ever before been heard in
the United States may have been a
question in the minds of the curious:
but it was obvious then, as it is much
more obvious now. that "Nero" had
nothing in its music which marked it
as characteristic of any school Of com
position. Neither in subject, nor in
text, nor In style did it betray any of
the idioms which have achieved
widespread popularity since and which
give the performances of the Russian
company. now performing at the New
Amsterdam Theater, peculiar interest
in spite of the crudities and inadequa-
cies of the representations.
As a matter of fact. the American
public knew next to nothing of dis
tinctively Russian music generation
ago. We had heard little of
TschaikoTsky's orchestral music and
Borodin's fascinating sketch con the
Steppes." but that was all. In the
mind of this reviewer there is a be-
lief that before he became a recorder
Of musical things in New York a com
pany of Russian singers, headed by
Slaviansky, had produced Verstofrsky's
"Askold's Tomb" in some American
cities. This opera, in it's time, shared
popularity in Russia with Glnka's
Life for the Car an opera which
awakened n national feeling in Russia;
but of "Askold's Tomb we knew moth
p, ,,sI>o
a discovery of libretto printed, we
believe, in Philadelphia. What first
awakened our interest in the char
acteristic music of the Russian peo
pic was the singing of Slaviansky's
choir. and that we heard in London.
The choir was just returned from an
"American tour" but the phrase re-
ferred to South America. not the
United States. In 1882 we had heard
an air from "The Demon" by Rubin
stein. sung by Nine. Gerster at the
great music festival given by
Theodore Thomas at the 7tl Regiment
Armory, but that made as little a dis
tinctive impression then as it did yes
single extraneous scene, was per
formed at the New Amsterdam
NTONtu VI russian music
We are not retailing history for the
sake Of history The conquest of the
concert rooms Of the world bv the
school Gin all except church music the
only Russian school which lives in pop
ular apprehension is comparatively
recent thing. Music patrons who have
been such for a little more than a gen
Grafton can compass it with their mem
orles. Significant of its growth is the
fact that it was directly promoted by
the governments of the last two or
three Czars. Its culture was aristo-
cratic. though the idiom, rhythmical and
melodlc. used by the composers wa.
taken straight from the hearts and
lips of the Russian peasantry. Rubin
stein. though one of the most popular
composers fifty years ago, did little to
promote it, AS a matter of fact he
was out of sympathy with the young
chicks who, as Borodin said had been
hatched out of the eggs laid by Baa-
kireff. He said. not altogether incor-
rectly, that the school derived from
Berlioz and List and it's disregard of
conventional form annoyed him. But
ne confessed that its use of the ele-
nents Of folk-music might result in
tructlfication of music generally. He
his tastes and training prevented him
from being as strongly nationalistc as
ms young contemporaries. He put his
case humorously yet pathetically when
he said that Christians said he was
lew. Jews that he was Christian,
Germans said he was a Russian. Rus
slams that he was German, the Ro-
manticists that he was q Classicist, the
Ciassicists that he was Romantcist.
The late Dudley Buck. replying to
one of the remarks of this reviewer
and comparing it with a diane etrically
opposite opinion by Boston writer,
was more sententious than Rubnstein.
at seems" he wrote. good -naturedlv,
that am like Issachar-a strong ass
crouchlng down between two burdens"
Rubinstein's Ambitions
What this means in respect of Rubin
stein may have been obvious to some
persons who saw and heard "The
Demon yesterday. Rubinstein-ike
nearly every composer Eve are not
sure that Brahms was an exception in
his inmost heart, though he cave