New-York tribune., 1922-01-02
Coates Reveals
Dainty Trifles
In "Potpourri''
Symphony Orchestra Heard
i'll Series of Offerings by
John Gerard Williams.
Young Aspirant TO Fame
Carry Little Significance
Old-Fashioned Fragrance, as
Promised by Promoters.
Missing in Performance

In his second effort to win admirs-
tion for contcmporancous English
music. made at a concert OF the
Symphony Society in Aeolian Hall
yesterday afternoon, Mr.. Alfred
Coates made change Of tactics from
the fortiter in re of last Thursday and
Friday to the suaviter in modo. In
stead of another assault upon the
tympani of his listeners ears, as we'll
as the tympani Of the orchestra. such
as he made in Mr.. Holst's singular illu-
stration OF the music of the spheres,
dove in set OF little pieces called
''Potpourri," composed by young man
named John Gerard Williams. There
were nine of these pretty trihcs. and
they did not occupy many more
minutes in performance than their
number Originally composed for the
pianofortc, they we're transcribed for
orchestra by the composer at Mr.,
Coates's sugge stion. as the annotated
program informed us. The music was
as innocuous as the titles of the dit-
ferent pieces, and as our colleague Of
MANY wears. Mr.. William Winter
would in great probability have OBJ
served, were he alive and sitting in our
chair, they left the interesting pallor
upon the check of modesty undis-
turbed.
The music did not "exhale a faint,
old-fashioned fragrance, as the so
ciety's official annotator invited US to
think, and we were glad of that. 1t is
ri
weary of being asked by composers to
see and taste it also. An eminent
Niennese critic once expressed ms
horror at the idea of the @sthetician
yischer's speculation that there might
be ill-smellng music, and intimated
that something like it had been realized
in Tschaikofsky violin concerto.
That was at first performance OF the
work by Mr.. Brodsky, and the concerto
doubt, because audiences have lent
their ears and not their noses to its
apprecietion Sometimes we cannot
help but follow mad, flower dressed
Lear's advice and look with our cars.
al we did yesterday in "Scheherezade,
but we regret his request for civet to
sweeten our imagination IN the con
cert-room. and we smelled neither
lavender nor thyme, neither pinks nor
rosemary nor rue, nor lilies of-the-
valley in Mr.. Williams's potpourrl.
for which we could have found a prct
tier name.
No Hint OF Lavender
The dainty bits of melody. daintlly
tricked out with harmonic and instru~
mental devices. were appealing to the
ear, but they left riddles ungucssed
in respect of their titles and poetical
expositiens We DO not know why we
we're asked to accept the effect of
sustained high tone in the vioins Ca
pedal point above the melody as sug-
restive of lavender. Last Friday the
anne effect pictured the Asiatlc
steppes, and perhaps simultaneously
yesterday it was appealing to the i'm
agination as a botanical attribute in
Aeolian Hall and an astronomical IN
concert room only a block distant
List and Bodaazky were making the
Star of Bethlehem out of II in the
march of the magi from "Christus'
in Town Hall And we failed TO com
prehend the association OF any cary
ophyllaceous plant with the little hint
of january music which Mr. Williams
gave us in the second OF his cycle OF
fragments. it sounded as much and as
little like our delicious carnation pink
IS 1t uld ike rosemary ana rue. III
TACT. what was most obviously be-
trayed by all the little numbers vas
that they were ingeniously translated
pianoforte trifes. They were pleasant
TO listen to, but, Of little significance
in connection with British or any
other school of musical composition,
Rossini's Scrapbook Recalled
Mr.. Williams's nosegay. however. dis
closed prettier forms and colors than
the music, which Respighi developed
out of the fragments which Rossini
left unused in scrapbook and which
he had entitled "Rien." Out Of moth
iug. nothing might appropriately be the
motto Of the ballet. which Diaghileh
made out Of Rossini's left-overs with
the help of Respghi and Howard Carr.
Such labored nothngs, i'll so strange
style,
Amaze th' unlearned and make the
learned smile
Apparently Mr.. Coates spent so much
time over Mr.. Willamss flowers and
Rossini's dances, and in an effort to
put new signihcances or expressions
into Rim sky konsakoiT s "Schcherazadc"
that he left a good many rough edges
in the performance of the last. At
times it seemed as if the Symphony
Orchestra was in danger of becoming d
rather rude and uncouth instrument.