Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-13
M u SIC
by HELEN FETTER.

ing, beating time with her foot
ana Swaylng just as Marian Kirby
so perfectly initiated in her pro-
gram Tuesday. The members OF
the little congregation joined in
! with equal casualneSS and rich
tone and the man sitting at the
little reed organ playing the SIM
pie accomplishments .tjuSt such
accompanimentS as John Niles has
in his songs joined in ever sc
often in the singing.
- x
tOF the recently written compost
tions given during the festival,
Ernest Bloch'S Sonata for Violin
and Piano." written in 1920, won
the greatest applause and seems
to have the most to it. It is virile.
inspired writing with rich themes
handled with intelligence and
filled with the warmth of the
flame of real art.
EmerSon'S Whithorne'S "Quin-
tet," beautifully played by the
Gordon String Quartet and Harold
Bauer, was a work by a living
American of whom this country
may we'll be proud. 1t may not BE-
great music, but 1t certainly is
muSicianly writing and interesting
/ to listen to.
Paul Hindemith's Concerto, -
written last year, started with II
bland Bach-like air, but soon be-
came diSSonantly diSilluSioning.
It certainly made no deep impress
sion when followed by the trc-
mendouS mastery of Bach, Die
Kunst der Fuge," in the excellent
orcheStration by Wolf gan G
GraeSer.
1T was quite apropos that on the
opening day of the festival the
| Musical Quarterly" the editor of
which is Carl Engel, chief of the
music division of the Library OF
Congress, should make its October
appearance containing an article
in the back entitled Concert AID.
POPS in the Library of Congress-"
In this clever article from the pen
of Mr.. Engel, which was originally
written for the volume of essays
presented to DR.. Herbert Putnam,
April 5, 1929, to commemorate the
| thirtieth anniversary of his ap-
pointment as librarian to Con-
greSS, the dedication reads: MIR
President, Mr.. Secretary of the
Fine Arts, Ladies and Gentlemen"
Quite a significant dedication.
May it become practically useful
in it's entirety long before 2025
Particularly interesting seem the
| following excerpts:
I'VE lost the habit of going to
concerts when mechanical genius
freed the appeal of music and
musician fromsthe narrow bounds
of a locale, when the musical
creator and interpreter discovered
in the perfected machine a help
mate instead of a foe, and the
artist could safely launch upon
the sea of space tone freighted
with all the riches of the soul.
If, without abdicating our
right of choice, we revert tonight
to a bygone custom, the reason is
that exactly 100 years have passed
since the first concerts were given
in this little hall. They formed
a departure, they inaugurated a
new era in the development of our
national library. I shall not recite
! the many and varied causes that
have contributed to this develop
ment, inspiring as their recital
would be. Their effect is patent
to all. This venerable building was
but the first rampant in what is
now a mighty citadel of the writ
ten and printed page. With the
aid of forward-looking and gen.
erous citizens, our Government
has been enabled to rear an I'M
paralleled establishment for the
propagation of art and learning.
"As we look back upon the past,
we realize that when in 1925 Con-
gresS quite complacently'-I Dor
row the words of former IL
brarian of CongreSs-allowed its
library to accept the first money
provided by a private individual
| for the performance of music un-
der Government auspices, il
earned our lasting gratitude. An
almost casual touch opened the
Doors to larger opportunity, to
higher service. The full Signifi-
canoe of the move may have es-
capped the legislative and execu-
tive branches of that day. At
least no chronicle relates that a
representative of either attended
officially those first nights. Time
has wrought many changes. The
presence tonight of the Chief
Executive and of a member of his
cabinet alone declares one capital
difference. And the ENJOYS of the
foreign national unions present
here again attest that music-that
all art, all Science-forms one of
the strongest bonds of interna-
tional harmony.
Perhaps I should remind you
that, in the former calendar, this
day was the 30th of October. For
100 years. the library has marked
it-with music-aS the birth date.
some $50 years ago, of the woman
who gave to the music division
this hall and the endowment that
perpetuateS her name and her
ideals. The Elizabeth Spraguc
Coolidge Foundation has borne
rich fruit; it has upheld musical
standards and furthered musical
advance. And the founder proba-
bly, little dreamed that, thanks tc
her, the Library of Congress would
some day be the only place where
four players. especially trained tc
handle the obsolete string inStru-
ments, would keep up the tradi-
lions of the string quartet; OF
where occasionally pianoforte
| could cfiIi ha heard