New-York tribune., 1922-12-03
Honegger Pantomime Shows
Sacrifice Of All Sense
and Feeling in Effort
to Win Air of Novelty
Brahms Number Exquisite
yisi.ingPlayers, UnderBaton
of Mon,eux, Give Choice
Reading of Snner Music
By n. &. Krehbiel

only Russian music with which America
was familiar fifty years ago. The rive
considered themselves revoluiionnries,
but most Of their artistic principles
we're, metaphoneally speaking, as old az
the hills. Borodin, who las also Cisar
Gull spoke for them, said that Balaki-
ron was the hen that laid the eggs out
Of which the chicks came. The eggs
were all alike, but no sooner were the
chicks hatched than each adopted a
plumage Of its own and few away TO
foek By itself
In music Il Is hard to be original,
ard now Paris (which IL France. but
will not be for long) has It's six"
whose names are Georges Auric. Louis
Durey (Mr. Philip Hale tells us he is
already an outsider fact which may
fave US from him), Darius Milhaud,
Francis Poulenc. Germaine Tailleferre
end Arthur Honegger. Some Of Mil
hhrd's music Was played here a few
years ago without disturbance OF the
'oundation Of even the foothills Of the
irt OF music. Yesterday afternoon az
carnegie Hall Mr.. Monteux, with his
excellent band from Boston. made trial
y New York's ears, nerves and good
iature with a symphonic psntomime. or
'antomimie symphony, by Honegger en-
Tiled Horace Vietorieux" II was n
isring assault, but we fancy that not
doratius bu. the art Of music came out
TictoriOus. though the Rurieular nerves
~ the audience were subjected to a
aorrendous trial.
Symphony Chaotic and Pulling
great deal Of music is played az
orchestral concerts nowadays which
ought 90 he accompanied by moving
pictures or pantomimists. We have
said this before and meant IL in all
seriousness. Yesterday We felt no
need Of a pictorial Accompaniment 70
the mined symphony" because we
realized two minutes after the orches-
ira began that ears and fancy would
not have been helped in the least by
either pictures or action. The COM
poser had told Us that he was delincat-
iag the tale from Roman legendary
history Of the combat between the
Horatii and the Curiatii, and the mur-
GER by the victorious Horatius Of his
lister Camilla because Of her con-
fessed love for one Of the men whom
he had slain. So far as we could
ludge from the music itself we do not
tnoV fif il had TO be an Horatian story
shy Il should not have been that Of the
one-eyed Horace (Horatius Coeles)
aho held the bridge against the Etrus-
ran army and swan across the Tiber
in his armor. That or any other tale
which might be associated in fancy
with trumpet alarms, strangled wood.
winds, roll Of drums and the noise OF
mob. relieved at intervals by sup
posediy sentimental droolings and
winnings. We could not guess az any
- ka ~ nd :
of Horatiug were getting their wind
pipes siitten, and could only by an
effort eontrive 70 fancy that Cam
lila had received her quietus when the
din came TO an abrupt stop. This shows
that Mr.. Honegger's programmatie
music OF the advanced order. When
descriptive music began (Which means
that when music OF one order had Us
origin in limitations OF the sounds
made BY beasts and birds) IL was pos
sible TO do something like this. Years
ago we were initiated into the bear
elan Of the Iroquois Indians MP in the
Five Nations Reserve in Canada. necr
Brantford. The Cayuga chief who
marched US up and down room dur
ing the ceremony grunted song as he
ala so. We noted the sequence OF
tones and the words, which sounded
like "Ook-wah-lee. ook-wah-lee," and
when we asked for an Interpretation
we're told That's tho way bear walk
on log" And IL w quite satisfactory
because il was savage music.
School Renounces All Codes
Bot Mr. Honegger is an educated
musician. plainly cerebral, possibly
HOnething more. Il is the something
more than the cerebral quality OF hi!
composition that discounts US. The in
genious Mr.. Philip Hale, 10 whose pro
gram notes we turned for guidance
irtimAtes that the Six (now reduced q
the Five by the ostracism Of Dureyl
have no code OF law which they all re.
spect, no rule Of artistic conduct, nd
set principle except that each one shall
do as he pieases. Yet &T. Honeggsi
has studied with good masters. and
has made u plain, even in this dis
tressful tone phantasmagoria. that h'
knows the techniques OF musical com
position. Why. he even invcnts a
theme and pursues Il fugally for 4
little space. We don't know why. but
We know that he does because w
heard the short fugato. Knowing th'
rules, however, he applies them, sp
parently 1--WE must not forget the mod
n
learned prOfessor) 70 defeat the end
for which they were contrived.
"Honegger Is perhaps one the las
musicians 20 have felt the spell o
Wagner and proftably TO have assimi
lated IT," says Milhaud 1--WE are agar
beholden 10 Mr.. Hale for the informa
tion.l The evidence lies. perhaps. in hi
association Of themes with the people
of his story, and his contrapunta
treatment. Bat WaRner's themes arr
nearly always ilinminative, and his in
terweaving OF them makes for beauty
Characteristic when the drama demand
Il. absolute frequently. He does no
mix them mdddily and unintsrmit
tently.
Under the fret impression We fee
that Mr. Honeeger's themes have Al
little likeness 20 the personages an'
passions Of bis story IS they have q
. problem in Euclid. nnd that hii
application 20 them Of the technics o.
onpoxition is not for the purpose o.
achieving agreeableness Of sensation
20 arouse and. elevate the fancy ol
imagination, to create what we ma,
timidly term beauty. or arouse emo
sions which might have sn uplift, bu'
TO provide a bewiiderment OF sense
and feeling. with he may say Is un'
conventional, unexpected and novel.
Public Verdict Desired
II he does these things there arr
plenty Of modern esthctieisns who vii
say that he has created art and that
n we do not admire it now we shall
uhen we become familiar with r.
That proposition we doubt. u could
easily be put 20 = test. however. Let
q All-a.r.. lar NJ Dam rnach. Mh D