Evening star., 1936-09-16
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
BY MARGARET CERMOND.
MASTERS OF RUSSIAN MUSIC. BY
M. d. CalyocOreSsi and Gerald Ahra-

ham. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Brief biographies Of fourteen of Rus
sia's distinguished composers are con-
tanned in this original and scholarly work
which is contribution of major value
to music libraries, to students and to
those for whom great music has now
become frequent and intimate source
of aural pleasure and spiritual resur-
rection.
The book is important for several
reasons. In the past few years vast
quantity OF hitherto unavailable material
has been discovered which has completely
changed the relation of newly found
knowledge to former limited information
concerning the masters of Russian music
and the compositions which their genius
produced. Documents, letters and other
materials formerly published under CEN
sorship or suppressed entirely have been
revised with full freedom of facts, and
though most OF them are in Russian
libraries and archives and are accessible
only to those who can read Russian, the
supply OF information is both abundant
and trustworthy. Comments by Andrei
Rimsky-Korsakof, Varvara Komarova,
Serge DAMN, Keldysh and other noted
Russian scholars on the original manu-
scripts confirm the authenticity of the
facts from which these fourteen bio
graphical sketches are compiled. In
bringing them together in one volume
the authors have produced the first work
OF its kind to appear in any language,
including Russian.
An uncommon amount Of great music
has come out of Russia, yet as q land
OF composers that country is compara-
lively one Of modern birth. There is
reason, OF course, to suppose that the
people OF Russia, in common with all
the races of the earth, have enjoyed an
abundance of music since the beginning
OF its history, for music is the oldest of
all the arts. Many native musicians of
minor achievement are identified with
the cultural growth of the nation and an
array Of foreign artists entertained court
audiences during the eighteenth CEN
tury. But it was not until 1904 that Rus
sia's first son destined to become a note
worthy composer was born. Michael
Glinka dabbled in music, as he seems
to have dabbled in everything else for
the most Of his life, without much sue
cess until 1925, when he began work
SAA AAAS AA4oo AioJOl SOillpOolLlOIl.
From Glinka to Alexander Scriabin,
who was born in 1872, the biographies
include those Of Alexander Dargomyjsky,
Alexander Serof, Mily Balakiref, Cesar
Cui. Alexander Borodin, Petrovitch Mus
sorgsky, Peter Tchaikovsky, Nicholas
Rimsky-Korsakof, Anatole Liadof, Alex
ander Glazunof, Sergei Liapunof and
Sergei Taneief.
In addition to many hitherto unpub-
lished facts concerning these masters
whose music made Russia q birthplace
OF composers many erroneous statements
in earlier biographies have been cor
rected by the authors of this work, and
many misconceptions concerning the
lives and characters of the composers and
the circumstances in which their crea-
tionS were produced have been disproved
and the facts related. No living COM
poser except Alexander Glazunof, who last
month observed his seventy-first birthday
anniversary, has been included in these
sketches. and no attempt has been made
to combine study of their music with
the stories of their lives except to define
the peculiarities and idiosyncraSies of the
compositions as indicative of the point
OF motivation from which the men and
their music should be studied. Complete
indices of chronology and photography
accompany comprehensive index of
general information.
y +
THE SKIES ARE FALLING. BY Wini-
fred Pack. New York: Frederick A.
Stokes Co.
Here Is rather delightful novel con-
corning tho Nd ~ fax
whose ancestral homestead in the south
west OF Scotland exercises an influence
from which there is no escape in any
quarter Of the globe.
The Dalcarrys are headstrong, fast
living lot, selfish, quarrelsome and not
inclined to be industrious. The elder
Dalcarry has died and under the ancient
law Of primogeniture the eldest son has
come home to assume his rightful
mastership Of the sadly encountered
estate. Nigel Dalcarry has been in India
for years. He has believed for a long
time that he hates the old home and
never wants to return to it. But he
has returned, with his wife and their
two children, and he knows that how
ever much his wife hates the place and
his people, he is bound to it and that
he loves it as passionately as all the
Dalcarrys have always loved and been
dominated by it.
As to plot, the layout is simple johnnie
Hunt, whose social position is at the
bottom of the scale SO far as the elite
Dalcarrys are concerned, holds an enor-
nous mortgage on the estate. The elder
Mrs. Dalcarry, q dominant old tyrant
who thrives on family fights, has not
spoken to her sister for years because
she forsook the church of her family
and became Roman Catholic. The old
lady hates the church of Rome. She is
further incenSed because her favorite
son intends to become priest and her
only daughter has also become q Cath
olic. Nigel and Waite hate the church
as intensely as does their mother, and
Nigel's wife is an out-and-out atheist.
In an effort to save Dalcarry from
the clutches Of Johnnie Hunt, Mrs. Dali
carry undertakes to patch up the quar-
rel with her wealthy sister by making
pretended friendly call. Lady Mildar-
roch suffers q collapse during the visit
and dies a few days later, leaving all
Of her wealth to Patrick, who is, in turn,
expected to leave 1t to the church. The
family clings to Patrick, but he Is
obliged to make a business trip, and
while away he also dies. But he has
made no will Meanwhile Nigel's eldest
son, by q former marriage, has fallen
in love with Johnnie Hunts daughter,
and his unguessable twins have taken
advantage Of the domestic turmoil to
gather UP some of the family cards and
on calling I1non .Johnnie Hunts Socia llv