The Washington times., 1935-11-27

The United States Navy Band
Symphony Orchestra, under the
leadership of Lieut.. Charles Ben
ter, has been enlarged and greatly
enriched as was evident in the
concert last night at the Navy
Yard Sail Loft.
The Sail Loft was filled almost
to capacity with a highly appre-
ciative audience, including the en-
tire personnel of the visiting Or.
questa Tipica Mexicana, who rose
to their feet in a body and cheered
Lieut.. Benter and the orchestra
at the end of maSterful reading
of Richard Strauss tone poem,
It'll Eulenspiegels Merry Franks"
Having heard this composition
played by some of the leading
symphony orchestras, including
the New York Philharmonic, we
make bold to say that we have
never heard such a clear-cut pre-
sentation of the :heme from any
French horn section as was heard
last night.
The much-advertised "Fantaisie
Dialogue" (Boellmann), for elec.
trio organ and orchestra, must
have been placed on the program
merely as novelty, as the organ
used last night evidenced little, if
any, tonal coloration. Nor was
this the fault of william Arbuckle,
who demonstrated the electric
novelty, as he had only one bank
of keys on the console, no foot
pedals and not more than a dozen
stops. Having heard an electric
organ made by a prominent cleo
trio clock manufacturer, which
has thousands of uSable tone
changes, two banks of keys and
foot pedals, the organ heard last
night was a disappointment.
While there are additions in the
violin section, the most notable
and telling new players are in the
violoncello and string bass Sec
tions. Lieutenant Benter now has
eight violoncellos and eight string
baSseS which furnish a heavy bass
background that is so necessary
to a correct orchestral balance.
The new orchestra platform, with
the successive steps, also throws
the sound out to the listene- in a
better balance than previously.
The theme shown above from
the second movement of Sym
phony No. l." by D. ShoStakovitch,
is introduced by the violinS and
then taken up SuceSSively by the
piano, piccolo, flute, clarinet and
baSSoon, each one seemingly Striv'
ing to capture the tune.
This movement. the scherzo, is
filed with many short subjects, as
if each section were businly en-
gagged in various arduouS tasks in
a wry. sardonic humorous vein.
The time changes into a memo
moSSo or trio which is pastoral
in nature.
The pastoral theme is given In
duet form. first with two flutes
two clarinetS and then the oboe
and violin. The baSSoon gives q
humorous rendition of the open
ing theme which Is developed.
Then both themes are combined
until q climax is reached when
the braSSeS play the pastoral
theme and the excitement con-
tinues until the end of the move
ment.
AS originally planned, this sym
phony was to have been used next
Sunday by the National Sym
phony Orchestra at Constitution
Hall, but it will be included in
stead on the next program, De-
cember IL. We shall continue the
study of this symphony as its per
formance is so imminent.
The Orquesta Tipica Mexi
cana, under the direction Of
Maestro Miguel Lerdo de Tejada,
will present a concert of Mexican
music tonight at the Pan-American
Union at 9 o'clock under the aus
piceS Of the charge d'affaires Of
Mexico.
The program follows: Marcia
Patriotica" (Tejada); "El Fai-
san" (Tejada); vocal solo. Gran.
ada" "a. Lara), sung by Jose
Rubio: "R psodia Mexicana'
(Corona); marimba duet, Poke
de Concerto" and "Staccato" (H.
Marin); folk troubadors, Laura
Rivas and Raimundo Perez; old
Mexican songs, "Perjura" CTe,
jada) and "Cancion Oaxaquena :"
(Alvez), sung by Adolfo Villegas:
La Mirimba" CA. Lara) and