Evening star., 1939-01-08

In the triple capacity OF composer,
conductor and pianist, conducting
the orchestra from the piano.
The program will also include
the first Washington performance
of Charles Tomlinson Critics SYM
phonic poem, "The Pleasure Dome
Of Kubla Khan" and of the pre-
lude and est Annes" Fugue in
E-f1at major by Johann Sebastian
Bach, as orchestrated by Frederick
Stock, conductor of the Chicago
Symphony. The program will be
completed by J. c. Bach's "Sinfonia
In B-flat."
Ernest Schelling, who was born
in Belvedere, N. j., was a musical
prodigy from his fourth year, when
he made his first public appearance
as pianist in Philadelphia. Several
years later 1t was decided to send
him to Europe for study and at
the age of eight he became a pupil
Matthias. Two years later he was
pupil of Lechetizky and at this
time the young student met and
played for the great composer
Brahms.
When i'll health interrupted his
career as pianist, the young Amer
ican returned to this country to
enter the University of Pennsyl-
vania. But his pianistic bent was
not to be denied and when he was
20 he arranged to play for Paderew-
ski, who was then giving a concert
in Philadelphia. The latter agreed
to take the young man as his only
pupil. Under Paderewskis guidance,
the young pianist developed into
one OF the most distinguished Amer
lean artists.
Composer OF a number of works for
orchestra and piano, Mr.. Scheuinp
will be represented by an early
composition and a more recent one
on Wednesdays program. "A Victory
Ball." his most famous work, was
begun in New York in 1922 and
was completed in the summer of
that year in Switzerland. The first
performance of the work was given
by the Philadelphia Orchestra on
February % and "a, 1923, at Phila-
delphia with Leopold Stokowski con-
Quoting.
Concerning the significance of the
work, the composer has explained:
Il had come back from Europe still
very much under the impression of
the cataclysm. much troubled for
the future. and was amazed to find
that so few seemed to remember
what the war really had meant, with
its sacrifice of life and youth. I had
wondered, when watching the seeth-
ing mass of humanity at some
cabaret, what our boys would think
of it all, and had sinister vision
| similar to the one that made me
write my 1914 impression in the
variations for piano and orchestra
called Impressions From an Artists
Life I came across Alfred Noyes'
poem, "A Victory Ball. while in this
mood and was impelled to use it as
the basis of an orchestral fantasy.
The Fantastic Suite was COM
posed in 1867 and first played
under Mengelberg at the Con-
certgebouw in Amsterdam, with Mr..
Schelling as pianist. on October 10,
1907. Scored for very large or
chestra, the work is in four move
ments: Allegro marziale, scherzando
motto leggiero, intermezzo (adagio)
and Virginia reel Cmolto vivace) &.
The last movement uses the melodies
of Dixie" "Old Folks at Home" and
Yankee Doodle as part of its
thematic material. Mr.. Schelling
has explained it was written during
period of intense homesickness
while he was in Europe.
The Critics composition is one of
the finest pieces of tonal painting in
the modern American symphonic
literature. Based on Coleridge's poem,
its sensuous harmonic schemes.
showing the influence but also the
assimilation of the French I'M
pressionistic composers, give a
splendid musical impdession of the
great poem.
The complete program for Wednes-
day follows:
'The Pleasure Dome Of Kubla Khan"
Critics
.sinfcnia in Flat" -J, c. Bach