Evening star., 1940-05-15

WS1 90 Ny VIC AoAy ACpA COCIltd"
tives of the congress and OF the
different republics who were pres
ent in the D. A. r. hall. The pro-
gram was long one, lasting two
hours and consisting of the over
ture to Beethoven's "Egmont," /"
Brahms symphony in c Minor" !"
Barber's "Adagio," Fernandez's
ceremonial dance, "Batuque";;
Straus' Don Juan," symphonic
poem, and Ravel's LA Valse."
It was red-blooded music that the
veteran conductor gave his distin-
guished listeners last evening, mu-
sic that eXulted in ample volume
and freedom and richness of tone.
1t started nobly with the "Star
Spangled Banner" the audience
standing at attention, and finished
with the graceful rhythm and mod
ernistic touch of Ravels waltz.
From the beginning, it was marked
by release of tone seldom reached
by an ensemble group or coura-
geously permitted by conductors.
Yet the superb musical insight of
Toscanini was observant of nuances
and of contrasting effects. The
lesser threads of this tapestry of
sound were as important as the
major design in the reading of this
master musician.
The foundation of Toscanini's di-
recting is laid on exactness of
rhythm and the space of time he is
willing to allow for achieving an
effect. In the latter, he stands
unique for few conductors have the
feeling for, or the poise to take time
for, one effect to register before be-
ginning another. This unusual
combination of perfect rhythm yet
broadness in the musical line gives
spaciousness to the orchestra's
playing that is in the end more sat-
isfying than impetuosity or intel
1ectual conceptions that have their
appeal yet manage to destroy the
bigness of the music performed.
Two other points to stand out
with unusual clarity were the sharp
accents and the skillful drawing
forward of phrase by some inner
section of the orchestra to a moment
of prominence without altering the
general line in the slightest. The
charm of these passages hidden in
the larger idea of a work need
skilled manipulation to be appre-
ciated and Toscanini understands
the delicacy and importance of their
emphasis to an extraordinary degree.
Startling contrasts in style, idea
md presentation were offered by
Samuel Barber's "Adagio" and Os-
car Lorenzo Fernandez's "Batuque,"
the novelties of the program. The
"Adagio," written for strings, is a
highly poetic work with the theme
given expression by the celli. The
orchestra played it beautifully, with
3dyllic effect. Swinging into the
rhythmic "Batuque" from the Bra
xilian suite, "Reisado do Pastoreio,"
Its primitive drum beat and mount
ing exaltation were powerfully por-
trayed in Mr.. Toscanini's perform
ance. 1t is an intriguing work with
its wild melodies rising and falling
to the ceaseless beat of the drum.
The playing of the Beethoven,
Brahms and Strauss numbers by
the N. B. G. Orchestra in Toscanini's
Interpretation is well known. The
"Egmont" overture was given an
inspired reading as was also the
dramatic Strauss symphonic poem.
The Brahms Symphony was pre-
sented in robust manner, stress being
laid on clarity of form and its more
sturdy emotional qualities with less
attempt to discover the poet under
Brahms rugged exterior. The con-
cluding number, Ravels LA Valse,"
was the least satisfactory of the pro-
gram in the matter of presentation.
Since its last appearance here the
N. B. c. Symphony Orchestra has
improved appreciably technically, its
tone being more mellow and it's per-
formance smoother. The members
of the orchestra shared the ovation
given the esteemed conductor after
each number, the enthusiastic ap-
plause being continually punctured
by loudly called "bravos" from ar
dent admirers.