Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-03-07
NJ u SIC
ERNEST BLoCH.s america"

I
That admirable organization. the Bos-
ton Symphony Orchestra. under Serge
Koussevitzky, who has many friends
and admirers in Washington, made its
second and final appearance of the sea-
son at Polls Theater, yesterday after
noon. when the feature was the local
premiere of Ernest Bloch's prize-win-
| ming epic rhapsody, America"
! A large audience, led by Mrs. Herbert
| Hoover in the presidential box, showed
unusually alert anticipation of the epic
rhapsody In fact. so anxious had a
group of sincere Washington music low
ers become to hear this prize-win-
ming work that. when they found it
was liable to be Cancelled due to the
extra cost of erecting platform for the
National Capital Oratorio Association
chorus they went into their own pockets
and raised the amount. 1t was a high
ly laudable gesture, and 1t is to be hoped
that they felt the result merited the
expense. Certainly no fault could be
found with the work of the chorus.
The majority of Mr. Bloch'S very COM
mon-place phrases were clearly audible,
with admirable enunciation and tone,
There seemed no room for worry about
the life of THE Star Spangled Banner"
being threatened by this rather banal
verse and its setting.
AZ for the epic rhapsody as whole,
oua felt a decided qualification DO hear
a work considered sufficiently important
fcS Eve fcir:at:s eSsductors &C Reg
AWARDED ic the first prize of $4,000 and
to have burst forth practically stimuli
taneously with first performances OF 1t
by their respective orcheStras. Mr..
KouSSevitzky was one Of the five. Or
dinarily, but for the interest and initia-
tive of the aforementioned music low
ers, Washington, in the natural course
of Indifferent events. would not have
heard this work. which the whole coun-
try is animatedly discussing-except
perhaps via radiO-for several seasons to
come, perhaps never.
1t was Reginald de Koven. an Ameri-
can born in Middletown, Conn, who
had a song in his popular work, Robin
Hood" entitled 1T Takes Nine Tailors
to Make Man" Similarly, 1t would
seem that it takes more than dozen
years to make an American composer.
Specifically and even periodically,
perhaps that length of time is sufficient.
But not spiritually or emotionally. MT.
Bloch's sincerity and industry are quite
as unquestioned as his European point
of view He obviously loves his adopted
land and is intrigued by its folk tunes:
an accumulated assortment Of trio OF
racial backgrounds. and also by the
ballads of Stephen Collins Foster,
Americas greatest song writer. d
Ernest Bloch has proved clever
researcher among such themes, making
an undeniably variegated and well
organized patchwork quilt which would
grace any musical antiquarian'S collec-
ton. His use of Indian motives is to
the barbaric, blazing crudeness of their
native charm as the generally accepted
Indian" words "wigwam" and "Great
Spirit" ect, are to the real, cultural
Indian languages. In the second move
gnent, dedicated to the Civil War period,
one never falt the primitive passions
and power of the bitterest Of conflicts
that our country has ever known; one
only glimpsed them dimly down the
vague corridors of funeral dirges and
looked instinctively for silver screen
Birth of q Nation to WITTY them.
The Southern tunes and, in the third
movement. the jazz tunes had moments
wnen they seemed perilously close to
The better motion Cicture orcheStra's
medleys. even though they wore notice
cbly authentic symphonic cut of gar
ments. There were moments when, even ,
with the score before one, the mind OF
che listener at least Woulu Wailoel
YEARLY.
After all. American spirit is essential
~ energetic optimism, with sparkle and
snap in rhythms This rhapsody seemed
to lack such qualities. 1t was frequently
minor-keyed and pessimistic. In spite
of all its contrapuntal adroitness In
sorting a Message" out of a medley.
it distinctly had its dreary moments.
This clearly was not due to conductor
or orchestra.
Preceding the epic rhapsody yester-
day was Ravel's delightfully."- clever
orchestration of Moussorgsky's Pictures
at an Exhibition" which has not been
heard here for some time. 1t is amusing
and fascinating music, definitely pro- !
grammatic with the subtle delineation |
Of the conversation between two Jews
one of the best thinning in music OF
human characters ever written. 1t was |
performed. II. r.