The Washington times., 1938-03-12
.Sy m phony
BY Bach at
Cat h e d rail

The next major event on the
musical calendar, the concerts oi
the National Symphony apart, is
the performance Of "The Passion
According to st. Matthew" by
Johann Sebastian Bach. 1t is
scheduled to take place in the
Washington Cathedral, on the eve
ming of Monday, March %, at
o'clock.
The Washington Choral So
ciety, members of the National
Symphony, to the number Of 80
which, doubtless is a larger en-
semble than ever served the
composer, will answer to the
baton of Louis Potter. AS is
always the custom the organ
will be used and, in place of the
harpsichord called for by Bach,
the modern pianoforte.
OTHER SUBSTITUTIONS
This is a logical substitution
and not the only one made nee
essary by the passage Of time.
For Bach used four flutes, four
oboeS d'amore, two oboeS d1
Caccia and the usual strings.
Modern oboes replace the oboe
d'amoure. The English horn is
substituted for the deeper voiced
oboe di Caccia.
One leaves a performance OF
the st. Matthew Passion" con-
vinced that it is the greatest
piece of devotional music ever
written, only to revise that opin-
ion at the next hearing Of the B
minor Mass, of Bach. Then 1t
may we'll happen that a first
class performance of "The Mes
siah" will persuade the enthuSi-
asst of the danger of all superla-
tiveS.
CHURCH IDEAL SETTING
Still the impression of the st.
Matthew Passion" is ineradi-
cable. 1t should be heard as
Bach intended it, in the setting
of a great church. When Men
delssohn revived it a century
after Bach composed it, it was
done in the church for which
he wrote it-St. Thomas in
Leipsic. Washington is fortu-
nate, therefore, to hear it in the
Cathedral. It is difficult to
establish the devotional atmos-
phere in the concert hall, and
some one is sure to disobey the
Injunction against applause,
which never should interrupt it.
To modern ears the ancient,
contrapuntal idiom is almost as
novel as modern disSonance. 1t
seems complex to the extent Of
unintelligibility. The lay listener
should accept it as an impreS-
sion without effort even at su-
perficial melodic analysis.
BEAUTY INESCAPABLE
An unknown language should
not offend him when one con-
Siders the habit of American
audiences in relation to opera
and song recital; the difference
being that here it is the musical
language that is strange. No
verbal Interpretation will aid
him. It is a forgotten tongue
for all except the musician, Yet
the sound of it, if not the sense,
will reach even the layman as
something of ext raordinary
beauty and some melodic frag-
mentS he will grasp.
Then there are the chorals
which are simple enough and in
a familiar idiom. Bach used
them with a rare sense of the
dramatic, though he intended
the congregation to sing them.
Doubtless Mr.. Potter would be
deeply offended at any i'm
promptu assistance from the
listeners.
PUBLIC INVITED
Mr.. Potter has not announced
his SoloistS. His organist will be
Lyman McCrary and his harpsi.
chordiSt (pianiSt) Villa Semple.
The chorus numbers 200. The
public is invited to the perform
ance.
A performance of 'The Mes
siah" will take place tonight at
the Washington Missionary Col
lege. A chorus Of ITS voices,
orchestra and organ will answer
the baton of George w. Greer.
The National Symphony Or
cheStra, at the last of its Stu
dents Concerts, March 10, in
Constitution Hall, at II o'clock,
will present as soloiSt, Shirley
Levin, 13-year-old pianist. Miss
Levin won this honor in a con-
test arranged by the Washing
ton Music Teachers Association.
She has studied exclusively in
Washington since her sixth
year with Mrs. Lucia Mckenzie
Hendley.
X X
Charles Edward Russell, dis
tinguiShed muSicologist and
historian, will speak at the
Y. w. C. A. music hour tomor-
row at 5 o'clock. He will give
a symphonologue covering the
programs of the National SYM
phony for March. Illustrations
will be presented by Margaret
TolSon, pianist.