Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-08-07
Chamber Music Z +
At Baden-Baden

as demonstrated. The concert ended
with more Illustrations of the German
vitaphone, which did not seem nearly
as good as the American one.
These two concerts should have
come first in the festival instead az
third and fourth, respectively, for they
Illuminated in other ways the cham
ber music which preceded them. One
fact in particular stood out for this
reviewer at least. and that was the
startling fitness and even likeness Of
certain modern chamber music to ma.
chinery. 1t was noticeable in all the
varied forms presented, whether IL
was in sString quartet by BoleSlaV
Martini or by Alban Berg: whether in
Il Duo for Violin and Plano" by Max
Butting, or sonata for cello and
piano by Hermann Reuter-; in a small
Cantata for womens trio. tenor, violin
and piano. by Hans Eisler. or. lastly.
in a piano sonata by Bella Bartol5,
The only exception was a string quar-
tet by Dalmatian composer. kTsto
Odab, which showed. in spite of its
dull rendition by the Amar Quartet.
some of the talent. if not the genius"
of that passion" without which no
art is lasting. Machinery has indeed
| entered the imaginationS of men," to
quote one OF it's devotees, George An
thcil. when we find it's monotonous
whirring and pounding and its dull,
grating of metal upon metal in cham
| Der music. where we are supposed to
| find the tonal art in it's most refined
| essence.
! The fifth concert of the festival was
| devoted to- four little operas with kan
merOrchester-"Die Prinzessn auf der
| Erbse," after Anderson's text, with
music by Ernst Toch; THE Abduction
of Europe" an opera.mnute in eight
| scenes by Darius AIilhaud "Maho-
gonny." q 'song-act" by Bert Brecht
| and Kurt WE'LL, and lastly. Hin und
| Zuruck," a sketch by Paul Hindemith.
| OF the four. Mahogany" a mad.
| fantastic skit on a communistic caba-
ret. with four men and two women
| singing crazy, nonsensical songs in
| English, showed the most originality,
vitality and talent. Broadway. how.
ever. could have done better with It
| 1t made tremendous sensation. and
when some one in the audience whis-
tied. one of the four 'bums" on the
stage whistled back. The princess
on the Pea" was charmingly done,
| and the music again revealed Ernst
| Toch's qualities of surface brilliance-
| qualities which have made him
prime favorite with his audiences. both
| in Frankfort and in Baden-Baden.
Mlhauds opera showed little imagi-
nation and less music, while Hindc-
mith's Hin ind Zuruck," another
crazy skit in which the entire action
| is repeated backward, was merely
clever. The idea itself has been bet
| ter carried out by CharIot's Revue, If
memory serves me correctly.
J This Chamber Music Festival at
| Baden-Baden was begun in 1921 i'm
Donaueschingen by the Society of the
Friends OF Music under the patronage
of Prince Max Egon Won Fuerstenberg,
and took place there annually until
I this Summer. It's main object has
| been apparently to encourage the ex-
perimental movement Of the younger
| generation. Some of this generation,
! however, like BartolS, are men in their
| forties. who evidently have not yet
| found that which they are seeking. for
! that which they are making cannot
even now, even after six years of IA
miliar'ty with it, be called music.
| Music Ns not made in Il laboratory.