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diff --git a/30560.txt b/30560.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b19c4ec --- /dev/null +++ b/30560.txt @@ -0,0 +1,13870 @@ +Project Gutenberg's Music: An Art and a Language, by Walter Raymond Spalding + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Music: An Art and a Language + +Author: Walter Raymond Spalding + +Release Date: November 28, 2009 [EBook #30560] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MUSIC: AN ART AND A LANGUAGE *** + + + + +Produced by Adam Buchbinder, Linda Cantoni, and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This +book was produced from scanned images of public domain +material from the Google Print project.) Music transcribed +by Linda Cantoni. + + + + + + + + + +[Transcriber's Note: Obvious printer errors have been corrected. +Questionable text is marked with a [Transcriber's Note]. A macron over +a letter is represented by an equal sign, e.g., punct[=u]s. A caron +over a letter is represented by a v, e.g., Dvo[vr]ak.] + + + + +MUSIC: AN ART AND A LANGUAGE + + +BY + +WALTER RAYMOND SPALDING + + +_Price $2.50 net_ + + +THE ARTHUR P. SCHMIDT CO. + +BOSTON +120 BOYLSTON STREET + +NEW YORK +8 WEST 40th STREET + +Copyright, 1920, by THE ARTHUR P. SCHMIDT CO. + +International Copyright Secured + +A.P.S. 11788 + + + + +TO MY COLLEAGUES +IN THE DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC +AT HARVARD UNIVERSITY + +WILLIAM CLIFFORD HEILMAN, EDWARD BURLINGAME HILL, +ARCHIBALD THOMPSON DAVISON, EDWARD BALLANTINE + + + + +SUPPLEMENTARY +ILLUSTRATIONS + +for + +_MUSIC: +an ART and a LANGUAGE_ + +Vols. I & II now ready + +(_Schmidt's Educational Series No. 257-a, b_) + +Price $1.00 each volume + + + + +Preface + + +Although "of the making of books there is no end," this book, on so +human a subject as music, we believe should justify itself. A +twenty-years' experience in teaching the Appreciation of Music at +Harvard University and Radcliffe College has convinced the author that +a knowledge of musical grammar and structure does enable us, as the +saying is, to get more out of music. This conviction is further +strengthened by the statement of numerous students who testify that +after analyzing certain standard compositions their attitude towards +music has changed and their love for it greatly increased. + +In the illustrations (published in a Supplementary Volume) no +concessions have been made to so-called "popular taste"; people have +an instinctive liking for the best when it is fairly put before them. +We are not providing a musical digest, since music requires _active +cooperation_ by the hearer, nor are we trying to interpret music in +terms of the other arts. Music is itself. For those who may be +interested in speculating as to the connection between music and art, +numerous books are available--some of them excellent from their point +of view. + +This book concerns itself with music _as_ music. It is assumed that, +if anyone really loves this art, he is willing and glad to do serious +work to quicken his sense of hearing, to broaden his imagination, and +to strengthen his memory so that he may become intelligent in +appreciation rather than merely absorbed in honeyed sounds. Music is +of such power and glory that we should be ready to devote to its study +as much time as to a foreign language. In the creed of the music-lover +the first and last article is familiarity. When we thoroughly know a +composition so that its themes sing in our memory and we feel at home +in the structure, the music will speak to us directly, and all books +and analytical comments will be of secondary importance--those of the +present writer not excepted. Special effort has been made to select +illustrations of musical worth, and upon these the real emphasis in +study should be laid. + +The material of the book is based on lectures, often of an informal +nature, in the Appreciation Course at Harvard University and lays no +claim to original research. The difficulty in establishing points of +approach makes it far more baffling to speak or write about music than +about the other arts. Music is sufficient unto itself. Endowed with +the insight of a Ruskin or a Pater, one may say something worth while +about painting. But in music the line between mere statistical +analysis and sentimental rhapsody must be drawn with exceeding care. +If the subject matter be clearly presented and the analyses +true--allowance being made for honest difference of opinion--every +hope will be realized. + +The author's gratitude is herewith expressed to Mr. Percy Lee Atherton +for his critical revision of the text and to Professor William C. +Heilman for valuable assistance in selecting and preparing the musical +illustrations. + +W.R.S. + +Cambridge, Massachusetts + _June_, 1919 + + + + +Contents + + +I. PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS 1 + +II. THE FOLK-SONG 18 + +III. POLYPHONIC MUSIC; SEBASTIAN BACH, THE FUGUE 33 + +IV. THE MUSICAL SENTENCE 50 + +V. THE TWO-PART AND THREE-PART FORMS 69 + +VI. THE CLASSICAL AND THE MODERN SUITE 73 + +VII. THE RONDO FORM 81 + +VIII. THE VARIATION FORM 85 + +IX. THE SONATA-FORM AND ITS FOUNDERS--EMMANUEL +BACH AND HAYDN 91 + +X. MOZART. THE PERFECTION OF CLASSIC STRUCTURE +AND STYLE 108 + +XI. BEETHOVEN, THE TONE-POET 122 + +XII. THE ROMANTIC COMPOSERS. SCHUBERT, WEBER 160 + +XIII. SCHUMANN AND MENDELSSOHN 172 + +XIV. CHOPIN AND PIANOFORTE STYLE 188 + +XV. BERLIOZ AND LISZT. PROGRAM MUSIC 202 + +XVI. BRAHMS 228 + +XVII. CESAR FRANCK 255 + +XVIII. THE MODERN FRENCH SCHOOL--D'INDY AND DEBUSSY 280 + +XIX. NATIONAL SCHOOLS--RUSSIAN, BOHEMIAN AND +SCANDINAVIAN 300 + +XX. THE VARIED TENDENCIES OF MODERN MUSIC 326 + + + + + _Music is the universal language of mankind._ + + --LONGFELLOW. + + + _Music can noble hints impart, + Engender fury, kindle love; + With unsuspected eloquence can move + And manage all the man with secret art._ + + --ADDISON. + + + _Music is the sound of the circulation in nature's veins. It + is the flux which melts nature. Men dance to it, glasses + ring and vibrate, and the fields seem to undulate. The + healthy ear always hears it, nearer or more remote._ + + --THOREAU. + + + _To strike all this life dead, + Run mercury into a mold like lead, + And henceforth have the plain result to show-- + How we Feel hard and fast, and what we Know-- + This were the prize, and is the puzzle!--which + Music essays to solve._ + + --BROWNING. + + + _All music is what awakes from you when you are reminded by + the instruments._ + + --WHITMAN. + + + + +Music: an Art and a Language + + + + +CHAPTER I + +PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS + + +In approaching the study of any subject we may fairly expect that this +subject shall be defined, although some one has ironically remarked +that every definition is a misfortune. Music-lovers, however, will +rejoice that their favorite art is spared such a misfortune, for it +can not be defined. We know the factors of which music is constituted, +rhythm and sound; and we can trace the historic steps by which methods +of presentation and of style have been so perfected that by means of +this twofold material the emotions and aspirations of human beings may +be expressed and permanently recorded. We realize, and with our inborn +equipment can appreciate, the moving power of music; but to define, in +the usual sense of the term definition, what music really is, will be +forever impossible. The fact indeed that music--like love, electricity +and other elemental forces--cannot be defined is its special glory. It +is a peculiar, mysterious power;[1] quite in a class by itself, +although with certain aspects which it shares with the other arts. The +writings of all the great poets, such as Milton, Shakespeare, Browning +and Whitman, abound in eloquent tributes to the power and influence of +music, but it is noticeable that no one attempts to define it. The +mystery of music must be approached with reverence and music must be +loved for itself with perfect sincerity. + +[Footnote 1: For suggestive comments on this point see the essays +_Harmonie et Melodie_ by Saint-Saens, Chapters I and II.] + +Some insight, however, may be gained into the nature of music by a +clear recognition of what it is _not_, and by a comparison with the +more definite and familiar arts. Music consists of the intangible and +elusive factors of rhythm and sound; in this way differing +fundamentally from the concrete static arts such as architecture, +sculpture and painting. Furthermore, instrumental music, _i.e._, music +freed from a dependence on words, is not an exact language like prose +and poetry. It speaks to our feelings and imaginations, as it were by +suggestion; reaching for this very reason depths of our being quite +beyond the power of mere words. No one can define rhythm except by +saying that rhythm, in the sense of motion, is the fundamental fact in +the universe and in all life, both physical and human. Everything in +the heavens above and in the earth beneath is in ceaseless motion and +change; nothing remains the same for two consecutive seconds. Even the +component parts of material--such as stone and wood, which we +ordinarily speak of as concrete and stationary--are whirling about +with ceaseless energy, and often in perfect rhythm. Thus we see how +natural and vital is the art of music, for it is inseparably connected +with life itself. + +As for the other factor, sound is one of the most elemental and +mysterious of all physical phenomena.[2] When the air is set in motion +by the vibration of certain bodies of wood, metal and other material, +we know that sound waves, striking upon the tympanum of the ear, +penetrate to the brain and imagination. Sound is a reciprocal +phenomenon; for, even if there were systematic activity of vibrating +bodies, there could be no sound without some one to hear it.[3] Good +musicians are known for their power of keen and discriminating +hearing; and the ear,[4] as Saint-Saens says, is the sole avenue of +approach to the musical sense. The first ambition for one who would +appreciate music should be to cultivate this power of hearing. It is +quite possible to be stone-deaf outwardly and yet hear most beautiful +sounds within the brain. This was approximately the case with +Beethoven after his thirtieth year. On the other hand, many people +have a perfect outward apparatus for hearing but nothing is registered +within. + +[Footnote 2: See Chapter II of Gurney's _Power of Sound_, a book +remarkable for its insight.] + +[Footnote 3: It is understood that this statement is made in a +subjective rather than a purely physical sense. See the _Century +Dictionary_ under _Sound_.] + +[Footnote 4: Il y a donc, dans l'art des sons, quelque chose qui +traverse l'oreille comme un portique, la raison comme un vestibule et +qui va plus loin. + +HARMONIE ET MELODIE, CHAPTER II.] + +Combarieu, the French aesthetician, defines music as "the art of +thinking in tones."[5] There is food for thought in this statement, +but it seems to leave out one very important factor--namely, the +emotional. Every great musical composition reveals a carefully +planned and perfect balance between the emotional and intellectual +elements. And yet the basic impulse for the creation of music is an +emotional one; and, of all the arts, music makes the most direct +appeal to the emotions and to those shadowy, but real portions of our +being called the imagination and the soul. Emotion is as indispensable +to music as love to religion. Just as there can be no really great art +without passion, so we can not imagine music without all the emotions +of mankind: their loves, joys, sorrows, hatreds, ideals and subtle +fancies. Music, in fact, is a presentation of emotional experience, +fashioned and controlled by an overruling intellectual power. + +[Footnote 5: _La musique, ses lois, son evolution_, by Jules +Combarieu.] + +We can now foresee, though at first dimly, what is to be our line of +approach to this mystery. One of the peculiar characteristics of music +is that it is both the most natural and least artificial of the arts, +and as well the most complicated and subtle. On the one hand it is the +most natural and direct, because the materials of which it is +constituted--that is, sound and rhythm--make an instinctive appeal to +every normally equipped human being.[6] Every one likes to listen to +beautiful sounds merely for their sensuous effect, just as everyone +likes to look at the blue sky, the green grass and the changing hues +of a sunset; so the rhythm of music, akin to the human heart-beat and +to the ceaseless change and motion, which is the basic fact in all +life, appeals at once to our own physical vitality. This fact may be +observed at a symphony concert where so many people are wagging their +heads, beating time with their hands or even tapping on the floor with +their feet; a habit which shows a rudimentary love of music but which +for obvious reasons is not to be commended. On the other hand, music +is the most complicated of all the arts from the nature of its +constituent parts--intangible, evanescent sounds and rhythms--and from +the subtle grammar and structure by which these factors are used as +means of personal communication. This grammar of music, _i.e._, its +methods of structure and of presentation, has been worked out through +centuries of free experimentation on the part of some of the best +minds in the world, and thus any great musical composition is an +intellectual achievement of high rank. Behind the sensuous factors, +sound and rhythm, lies always the personal message of the composer, +and if we are to grasp this and to make it our own, we must go with +him hand in hand so that the music actually lives again in our minds +and imaginations. The practical inference from this dual nature of the +art we are considering is clear; everyone can derive a large amount of +genuine pleasure and even spiritual exaltation, can feel himself under +the influence of a strong tonic force, merely by putting himself in +contact with music, by opening his ears and drinking in the sounds and +rhythms in their marvellous variety. The all-sufficient reason for the +lack of a complete appreciation of music is that so many people stop +at this point, _i.e._ for them music is a sensuous art and nothing +more. Wagner himself, in fact, is on record in a letter to Liszt as +saying, in regard to the appreciation of his operas: "I require +nothing from the public but healthy senses and a human heart." +Although this may be particularly true of opera, which is a composite +form of art, making so varied an appeal to the participant that +everyone can get something from its picture of life--historical, +legendary, even fictitious--as well as from the actors, the costumes +and the story, the statement is certainly not applicable to what is +called absolute music, where music is disassociated from the guiding +help of words, and expressed by the media of orchestra, string +quartet, pianoforte, and various ensemble groups. For in addition to +its sensuous appeal, music is a language used as a means of personal +expression; sometimes in the nature of an intimate soliloquy, but far +more often as a direct means of communication between the mind and +soul of the composer and of the listener. To say that we understand +the message expressed in this language just because we happen to like +beautiful sounds and stimulating rhythms is surely to be our own +dupes. We might as well say that because we enjoy hearing Italians or +Frenchmen speak their own beautiful languages we are understanding +what they say. The question, therefore, faces us: how shall we learn +this mysterious language so as readily to understand it? And the +answer is equally inevitable: by learning something of the material of +which it is composed, and above all, the fundamental principles of its +structure. + +[Footnote 6: Just as some people are color-blind there are those who +are tone-deaf--to whom, that is, music is a disagreeable noise--but +they are so few as to be negligible.] + +In attempting to carry out this simple direction, however, we are +confronted by another of the peculiar characteristics of music. Music, +in distinction from the static, concrete and imitative arts, is always +in motion, and to follow it requires an intensity of concentration and +an accuracy of memory which can be acquired, but for which, like most +good things, we have to work. We all know the adage that "beauty is in +the eye of the beholder" and that any work of art must be recreated +in the imagination of the participant. The difficulty of this process +of recreation, as applied to music, is that we have, derived from our +ordinary daily experiences, so little to help us. Anyone can begin, at +least, to understand a work of architecture; it must have doors and +windows, and should conform to practical ideas of structure. In like +manner, a painting, either a portrait or a landscape, must show some +correspondence with nature herself, and so we have definite standards +to help our imagination. But music has worked out its own laws which +are those of pure fancy, having little to do with other forms of +thought; and unless we know something of the constructive principles, +instead of recreating the work before us, we are simply lost--"drowned +in a sea of sound"--often rudely shaken up by the rhythms, but far +from understanding what the music is really saying. As the well-known +critic, Santayana, wittily says, "To most people music is a drowsy +revery relieved by nervous thrills." + +Notwithstanding, however, the peculiar nature of music and the +difficulty of gaining logical impressions as the sounds and rhythms +flood in upon us, there is one simple form of cooperation which solves +most of the difficulties; that is, familiarity. It is the duty of the +composer so to express himself, to make his meaning so clear, that we +can receive it with a minimum of mental friction if we can only get to +know the music. All really good music corresponds to such a standard; +that is, if it is needlessly involved, abstruse, diffuse, or turgid, +it is _in so far_ not music of the highest artistic worth. In this +connection we must always remember that music does not "stay put," +like a picture on the wall. We cannot walk through it, as is the case +with a cathedral; turn back, as in a book; touch it, as with a statue. +It is not the expression of more or less definite ideas, such as we +find in prose and poetry. On the other hand, it rushes upon us with +the impassioned spirit of an eloquent orator, and what we get from it +depends almost entirely upon our own intensity of application and upon +our knowledge of the themes and of the general purpose of the work. +Only with increased familiarity does the architecture stand revealed. +Beethoven, it is said, when once asked the meaning of a sonata of his, +played it over again and replied, "It means that." Music is itself. +The question for every music-lover is: can I equip myself in such a +way as to feel at home in this language, to receive the message as +directly as possible, and finally with perfect ease and satisfaction? +This equipment demands a strong, accurate memory, a keen power of +discrimination and a sympathetic, open mind. + +Another paradoxical characteristic of music on which it is interesting +to reflect is this: Music is the oldest as well as the youngest of the +arts, _i.e._, it has always[7] existed generically, and all human +beings born, as they are, with a musical instrument--the voice--are +_ipso facto_ musicians; and yet in boundless scope of possibilities it +is just in its infancy. For who can limit the combinations of sound +and rhythm, or forecast the range of the human imagination? The +creative fancy of the composer is always in advance of contemporary +taste and criticism. Hence, in listening to new music, we should +beware of reckless assertions of personal preference. The first +question, in the presence of an elaborate work of music, should never +be, "Do I like it or not?" but "Do I understand it?" "Is the music +conveying a logical message to me, or is it merely a sea of sound?" +The first and last article in the music-lover's creed, I repeat, +should be _familiarity_. When we thoroughly know a symphony, symphonic +poem or sonata so that, for example, we can sing the themes to +ourselves, the music will reveal itself. The difference between the +trained listener and the person of merely general musical tendencies +is that the former gains a definite meaning from the music often at a +first hearing; whereas, to the latter, many hearings are necessary +before he can make head or tail of the composition. Since the creative +composer of music is a thinker in tones, our perceptions must be so +trained that, as we listen, we make sense of the fabric of sounds and +rhythms. + +[Footnote 7: From earliest times, mothers have doubtless crooned to +their infants in instinctive lullabies.] + +It is evident from the foregoing observations that our approach to the +subject is to be on the intellectual side. Music, to be sure, is an +emotional art and so appeals to our emotions, but these will take care +of themselves. We all have a reasonable supply of emotion and +practically no human being is entirely deficient in the capacity for +being moved by music. We can, however, sharpen our wits and strengthen +our musical memories; for it is obvious that if we cannot recognize a +theme or remember it whenever it appears, often in an amplified or +even subtly disguised form, we are in no condition to follow and +appreciate the logical growth and development of the themes themselves +which, in a work of music, are just as real beings as the "dramatis +personae" in a play. The would-be appreciator should early recognize +the fact that listening to music is by no means passive, a means of +light amusement or to pass the time, but demands cooperation of an +active nature. Whether or not we have the emotional capacity of a +creator of music may remain an open question; but by systematic mental +application we _can_, as we listen to it, get from the music that +sense which the composer meant to convey. Music--more than the other +arts--demands, to use a happy expression of D.G. Mason, that we +"mentally organize our sensations and ideas"; for the language of +music has no such fixed grammar as verbal modes of expression, and the +message, even when received, is suggestive rather than definite. In +this way only can the composition be recreated in our imaginations. +For acquiring this habit of mind, this alertness and concentration, +the start, as always, is more than half the battle. Schumann's good +advice to young composers may be transferred to the listener: "Be sure +that you invent a thoroughly vital theme; the rest will grow of itself +from this." Likewise in listening to music, one should be sure to +grasp the opening theme, the fundamental motive, in order to follow it +intelligently and to enjoy its subsequent growth into the complete +work.[8] + +[Footnote 8: In this connection we cannot refrain from suggesting the +improvement which should be made in the concert manners of the public. +How often, at the beginning of a concert, do we see people removing +their wraps, looking at their neighbors, reading the programme book, +etc., instead of concentrating on the music itself; with the result +that the composition is often well on its way before such people have +found their bearings.] + +Every piece of music, with the exception of intentionally rhapsodic +utterances, begins with some group of notes of distinct rhythmic and +melodic interest, which is the germ--the generative force--of the +whole, and which is comparable to the text of a sermon or the subject +of a drama. This introductory group of notes is called, technically, a +_motive_ or moving force and may be defined as _the simplest unit of +imaginative life in terms of rhythm and sound_, which instantly +impresses itself upon our consciousness and, when heard several times, +cannot be forgotten or confused with any other motive. A musical +theme--a longer sweep of thought (to be explained later)--may consist +of several motives of which the first is generally the most important. +Just here lies the difference between the Heaven-born themes of a +truly creative composer and the bundle of notes put forth by lesser +men. These living themes pierce our imaginations and sing in our +memories, sometimes for years, whereas the inept and flabby tunes of +certain so-called composers make no strong impression and are +forgotten almost as soon as heard. Motives obviously differ from each +other in regard to the intervals of the tones composing them, _i.e._, +the up and down relationship in pitch, the duration of the tones and +their grouping into metric schemes. But a real motive is always terse, +concise, characteristic and pregnant with unrevealed meaning. The +chief glory of such creative tone-poets as Beethoven, Wagner, Brahms +and Franck is that their imaginations could give birth to musical +offspring that live for ever and are loved like life itself. The first +step, then, in the progress of the appreciator of music is the +recognition of the chief motive or motives of a composition and the +development of power to follow them in their organic growth. This +ability is particularly necessary in modern music: for frequently all +four movements of a symphony or string-quartet are based upon a motive +which keeps appearing--often in altered form and in relationships +which imply a dramatic or suggestive meaning. A few of such motives +are cited herewith, taken from works with which, as we proceed, we +shall become familiar. + +[Music: CESAR FRANCK: _Symphony in D minor_] + +[Music: BRAHMS: _First Symphony in C minor_] + +[Music: TCHAIKOWSKY: _5th Symphony_] + +[Music: DVO[VR]AK: Symphony _From the New World_] + +It is now necessary for the student to know something about the +constructive principles by which large works of music are fashioned; +not so much that he could compose these works himself, even if he had +the inspiration, but to know enough, so that the reception of the +music is not a haphazard activity but an intellectual achievement, +second only to that of the original creator. Every genuine work of art +in whatever medium, stone, color, word or tone, must exhibit _unity of +general effect with variety of detail_. That is, the material must +hold together, be coherent and convince the participant of the logical +design of the artist; not fall apart as might a bad building, or be +diffuse as a poorly written essay. And yet, with this coherence, there +must always be stimulating and refreshing variety; for a too constant +insistence on the main material produces intolerable monotony, such as +the "damnable iteration" of a mediocre prose work or the harping away +on one theme by the hack composer. In no art more than music is this +dual standard of greater importance, and in no art more difficult to +attain. For the raw material of music, fleeting rhythms and waves of +sound, is in its very nature most incoherent. Here we are not dealing +with the concrete, tangible and definite material which is available +for all the other arts, but with something intangible and elusive. We +know from the historical record[9] of musical development, that, only +after centuries of experimentation conducted by some of the best +intellects in Europe, was sufficient coherence gained so that there +could be composed music which would compare with the simplest modern +hymn-tune or part-song. And this was long after each of the other +arts--architecture, sculpture, painting and literature--had reached +points of attainment which, in many respects, have never since been +equalled. + +[Footnote 9: Compare Parry's _Evolution of the Art of Music_, passim +and D.G. Mason's _Beethoven and his Forerunners_, Chapter I.] + +Before carrying our inquiries further, something must be said about +the two main lines of musical development which led up to music as we +know it to-day. These tendencies are designated by the terms +_Homophonic_ and _Polyphonic_. By homophonic,[10] from Greek words +signifying a "single voice," is meant music consisting of a _single_ +melodic line, as in the whole field of folk-songs (which originally +were always unaccompanied) or in the unison chants of the Greeks and +the Gregorian tones of the early church, in which there is _one +melody_ though many voices may unite in singing it. Later we shall see +what important principles for the growth of instrumental music were +borrowed from the instinctive practise associated with the folk-song +and folk-dance. But history makes clear that the fundamental +principles of musical coherence were worked out in the field of music +known as the _Polyphonic_. By this term, as the derivation implies, is +meant music the fabric of which is made by the interweaving of +_several_ independent melodies. For many centuries the most reliable +instrument was the human voice and the only art-music, _i.e._, music +which was the result of conscious mental and artistic endeavor, was +vocal music for groups of unaccompanied voices in the liturgy of the +church. About the tenth century, musicians tried the crude +experiment,[11] called Organum, of making two groups of singers move +in parallel fifths _e.g._, + +[Music: Tu Patris sempiternus es Filius.] + +but during the 13th and 14th centuries a method was worked out by +which the introductory tune was made to generate its own subsequent +tissue. It was found that a body of singers could announce a melody of +a certain type and that, after they had proceeded so far, a second set +of singers could repeat the opening melodic phrase--and so likewise +often a third and a fourth set--and that all the voices could be made +to blend together in a fairly harmonious whole.[12] A piece of music +of this systematic structure is called a _Round_ because the singers +take up the melody in _rotation_ and at regular rhythmic periods.[13] +The earliest specimen of a Round is the famous one "Sumer is icumen +in" circa 1225 (see Supplement of musical Examples No. 1), which shows +to what a high point of perfection--considering those early +days--musicians had brought their art. For, at any rate, by these +systematic, imitative repetitions they had secured the first requisite +of all music, coherence. This principle, once it was sanctioned by +growing musical instinct, and approved by convention, was developed +into such well-known types of polyphonic music as the Canon, the +Invention and the Fugue; terms which will be fully explained later on. +It is of more than passing interest to realize that these structural +principles of music were worked out in the same locality--Northern +France and the Netherlands, and by kindred intellects--as witnessed +the growth of Gothic architecture; and there is a fundamental affinity +between the interweavings of polyphonic or, as it is often called, +_contrapuntal_[14] music and the stone traceries in medieval +cathedrals. During the 13th and 14th centuries northern France, with +Paris as its centre, was the most cultivated part of Europe, and the +Flemish cities of Cambrai, Tournai, Louvain and Antwerp will always be +renowned in the history of art, as the birthplace of Gothic +architecture, of modern painting and of polyphonic music.[15] A great +deal of the impetus towards the systematic repetition of the voice +parts must have been caused by practical necessity (thus justifying +the old adage); for, before the days of printed music, or even of a +well-established tradition--when everything had to be laboriously +written out or transmitted orally--whole compositions could be +rendered by the singers through the simple device of remembering the +introductory theme and joining in from memory whenever their turn +came. Compositions in fact were often so recorded.[16] The following +old English round (circa 1609) shows clearly how the voices entered in +rotation. + +[Music: + +1 Three blind mice, three blind mice + +2 ran around thrice, ran around thrice; The + +3 miller and his merry old wife ne'er laugh'd so much in all their +life.] + +For a Round in strict canonic imitation by the famous English composer +William Byrd (1542-1623) see the Supplement, Example No. 2. In due +time singers of that period became likewise very proficient in +improvising free parts about a given melody or _cantus firmus_, a +practice indicated by the term "musica ficta" which was beneficial in +stimulating the imagination to a genuine musical activity. + +[Footnote 10: In comparatively recent times the term has been widened +to include music in which there is one _chief_ melody to which other +portions of the musical texture are subordinate; _e.g._, the +homophonic style of Chopin in whose works the chief melody, often in +the upper voice, seems to float on underlying waves of sound.] + +[Footnote 11: For a complete account of these early attempts which +finally led to part-writing see Chapter IV in the first volume of the +_Oxford History of Music_.] + +[Footnote 12: An historical account of this development as far as it +is ascertainable may be found in the fifth chapter of Pratt's _History +of Music_.] + +[Footnote 13: Consult the article on the Round in _Grove's +Dictionary_.] + +[Footnote 14: A rather crude English adaptation of the Latin term +"Punctus contra punctum" which refers to the notes as punct[=u]s +(plural) or dots which were pricked with a stylus into the medieval +manuscripts. In this phrase the emphasis is on the _contra_, +signifying a combination of _different_ melodies and rhythms, and +calling attention to that higher importance which, everywhere in art, +is caused by contrasted elements.] + +[Footnote 15: For an interesting account of this tripartite activity +see Naumann's _History of Music_.] + +[Footnote 16: See the facsimile of the original manuscript of "_Sumer +is icumen in_" cited in the first volume of the _Oxford History of +Music_, pp. 326-332.] + +We can now begin to realize the importance of polyphonic music. In +fact, it is not too much to assert that _systematic repetition_ in +some form or other (several aspects of which we shall describe in due +season) is the most important constructive principle in music, +necessitated by the very nature of the material. This statement can be +corroborated by a glance at almost any page of music considered merely +as a _pattern_, quite regardless how the notes sound. We observe at +once that some portions of the page look much or exactly like other +portions. Frequently whole movements or long parts of a work are based +entirely upon some terse and characteristic motive. Famous examples of +this practise are the first movement of Beethoven's _Fifth Symphony in +C minor_ which, with certain subsidiary themes to afford contrast, is +entirely based on the motive: + +[Music] + +the Finale of Wagner's opera _The Valkyrie_ (see Supplement, Example +No. 3) the chief motive of which + +[Music] + +is presented in every phase of modulatory and rhythmic development, +and the middle portion of the _Reconnaissance_ from Schumann's +_Carnaval_ (see Supplement, Example No. 4.) + +Music, just because its substance is so elusive and requires such +alert attention on the part of the listener, cannot continually +present new material[17] without becoming diffuse; but instead, must +make its impression by varied emphasis upon the main thought. +Otherwise it would become so discursive that one could not possibly +follow it. From these historical facts as to the structure of music +certain inferences may be drawn; the vital importance of which to the +listener can hardly be exaggerated. As polyphonic treatment (the +imitation and interweaving of independent melodic lines) is the +foundation of any large work of music, be it symphony, symphonic poem +or string quartet, so the listener must acquire what may be called a +_polyphonic ear_. For with the majority of listeners, the whole +difficulty and the cause of their dissatisfaction with so-called +"classic music" is merely lack of equipment. Everyone can hear the +tune in the soprano or upper voice, for the intensity of pitch makes +it stand out with telling effect; and, as a fact, many of the best +tunes in musical literature are so placed. But how about the tune when +it is in the _bass_ as is the case so frequently in Beethoven's +Symphonies or in Wagner's Operas? Some of the most eloquent parts of +the musical message are, indeed, often in the bass, the foundation +voice, and yet these are entirely ignored by the average listener. +Then what of the inner voices; and what--most important of all--when +there are beautiful melodies in _all parts_ of the musical fabric, +often sounding simultaneously, as in such well-known works as Cesar +Franck's _Symphony in D minor_ and Wagner's _Prelude to the +Mastersingers_! As we face these questions squarely the need for the +listener of special training in alertness and concentration is +self-evident. A very small proportion of those who attend a symphony +concert begin to get their money's worth--to put the matter on a +perfectly practical plane--for at least 50% of the musical structure +is presented to ears without capacity for receiving it. In regard to +any work of large dimensions the final test is this: can we sing all +the themes and follow them in their polyphonic development? Then only +are we really acquainted with the work; then only, in regard to +personal like or dislike, have we any right to pass judgment upon it. +The absurd attitude, far too common, of hasty, ill-considered +criticism is illustrated by the fact that while Brahms is said to have +worked for ten years on that Titanic creation, his _First Symphony_, +yet persons will hear it _once_ and have the audacity to say they do +not like it. As well stroll through Chartres Cathedral and say they +did not think much of it! + +[Footnote 17: For a simple, charming example of persistent use of a +motive see Schumann's pianoforte piece _Kind im Einschlummern_, No. 12 +of the _Kinderscenen_.] + +We must now speak of the two other manifestations of the principle of +_repetition_. Fundamentally, to be sure, they are not connected with +polyphonic music; the third type, in fact,--restatement after +contrast--being instinctively worked out in the Folk-Song (as will be +made plain later) and definitely ratified as a structural principle by +the Italian opera composer Alessandro Scarlatti in the well-known Aria +da capo. These further applications of the principle of imitation are +_Transposition_, _i.e._, the repetition of the melodic outline, and +often of the whole harmonic fabric, by shifting it up or down the +scale; and the _Restatement_ of the original melody after an +intervening part in contrast, thus making a piece of music, the +formula for which may be indicated by A, B, A. Anyone at all familiar +with musical literature must have observed both of these devices for +securing coherence and organic unity; in fact, the principle of +restatement after contrast is at the foundation of any large work, and +supplies the connecting link between the structure of the Folk-Song +and that of the most elaborate modern music. A convincing illustration +of the use of Transposition may be found in Schumann's _Arabesque_, + +[Music] + +and in the opening theme of Beethoven's _Waldstein Sonata_, op. 53. + +[Music] + +It was a favorite device of Beethoven to impress the main theme upon +the hearer by definite repetitions on various degrees of the +scale.[18] For an elaborate example of Transposition nothing can +surpass the opening movement of Cesar Franck's _D Minor Symphony_, the +entire first part of which consists of a literal repetition in F minor +of what has been previously announced in D minor. + +[Footnote 18: Another well-known example is the first theme of the +first movement of the _Sonata in F minor_ (_Appassionata_) op. 57. +This the student can look up for himself.] + +Pieces of music which embody the principle of _Restatement after +Contrast_ are so numerous that the question is merely one of selecting +the clearest examples. In the Folk-Songs of every nation, as soon as +they had passed beyond the stage of a monotonous reiteration of some +phrase which pleased the fancy, _e.g._ + +[Music: _ad infinitum!_] + +we find hardly one in which there is not a similarity between the +closing measures and something which had gone before. (See Supplement, +Example No. 5.) For the most elementary artistic experience would +establish the fact that the only way to avoid a monotonous repetition +of the same theme is to change to a different one. And the next step +is equally axiomatic--that, presupposing the first theme gives +pleasure on its initial appearance, it will be heard with heightened +pleasure at its reappearance after intervening contrast. A +psychological principle is herein involved which cannot be proved but +which is self-justified by its own reasonableness and is further +exemplified by many experiences in daily life. Sweet things taste the +sweeter after a contrast with something acid; we like to revisit old +scenes and to return home after a vacation. No delight is keener than +the _renewal_ of some aesthetic experience after its temporary +effacement through a change of appeal.[19] This practice is associated +with the inherent demand, spoken of above, for Variety in Unity. No +theme is of sufficient import to bear constant repetition; in fact, +the more eloquent it is, the more sated should we become if it were +continued overlong. Monotony, furthermore, is less tolerable in music +than in the other arts because music cuts deeper, because the ear is +so sensitive an organ and because we have no way of shutting off +sound. If a particular sight or scene displeases, we can close our +eyelids; but the ear is entirely unprotected and the only way to +escape annoying sounds is to take to flight.[20] We inevitably crave +contrast, change of sensation; and nothing gives more organic unity +than a return to whatever impressed us at the outset. This cyclic form +of musical expression, early discovered through free experimentation, +has remained the leading principle in all modern works, and--because +derived directly from life and nature--must be permanent. We return +whence we came; everything goes in circles. We can now understand +still more the need of a strong and accurate memory; for if we do not +know whether or not we have ever heard a theme, obviously the keen +pleasure of welcoming it anew is lost to us. Furthermore, this +principle of Restatement has in modern music some very subtle uses, +and presupposes the acquisition of a real power of reminiscence. For +example, Wagner's tone-drama of _Tristan and Isolde_ begins with this +haunting motive + +[Music] + +which, with its dual melodic lines, typifies the passionate love of +the two chief characters in the story. After three hours or more of +tragic action and musical development this motive is again introduced +in the very closing measures of the drama, to show that even in the +presence of transfiguring death this love is still their guiding +power. + +[Music] + +[Footnote 19: For some additional comments on this broad principle see +the first Chapter (passim) of Parry's _Evolution of the Art of +Music_.] + +[Footnote 20: Everyone has experienced the agony of hearing the +beginner practice, in an adjoining room, the same piece for hours at a +time!] + +For those who can appreciate the significance of such treatment, this +reminiscence is one of the most sublime touches in all musical drama. +The fascinating orchestral Scherzo of Richard Strauss's _Till +Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks_ likewise begins with a characteristic +motto, + +[Music] + +which says, in the language of music--I now have a story to tell you +of a certain freakish character; and then we are regaled with the +musical portrayal of a series of Till's pranks. As an Epilogue, +Strauss improvises on this opening theme as much as to say--you have +listened to my musical story, now let us indulge in some reflections +as to the fate of poor Till, for after all he was a good fellow. (See +Supplement, Example No. 6.) + +It is evident, therefore, from the foregoing examples that the basic +principles of musical structure are coherence, refreshing variety and +such unity of general impression as may be gained chiefly by a +restatement, after contrast, of themes previously heard. Our +subsequent study will simply illustrate these natural laws of music in +their wider application. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +THE FOLK-SONG + + +In the preceding chapter we made some general inquiries into the +nature of music and of those methods by which emotion and thought are +expressed. We shall assume therefore that the following facts are +established: that in music, by reason of the intangibility and +elusiveness of the material, sound and rhythm, the principle of Unity +in Variety is of paramount importance; and that the hearer, if he +would grasp the message expressed by these sounds and rhythms, must +make a _conscious_ effort of cooperation and not be content with mere +dreamy apathy. Furthermore, that Unity and Coherence are gained in +music by applying the principle of systematic Repetition or Imitation. +(We shall see, as we continue, how Variety has been secured by +contrasting themes, by episodical passages and by various devices of +rhythmic and harmonic development.) + +We may now investigate the growth of musical structure and expression, +as manifested in the fields of the Folk-Song and of Polyphonic music, +beginning with the Folk-Song--historically the older and more +elemental in its appeal. We cannot imagine the time when human beings +did not use their voices in some form of emotional outpouring; and, as +far back as there are any historical records, we find traces of such +activity. For many centuries these rude cries of savage races were far +removed from anything like artistic design, but the advance towards +coherence and symmetry was always the result of free experimentation--hence +vitally connected with the emotions and mental processes of all human +effort. One of the most significant of the many sayings attributed to +Daniel Webster is that "Sovereignty rests with the people"; and it is +an interesting inquiry to see what wider application may be made of +this statement in the field of art. For it is a fact that there has +seldom been an important school of music, so-called--in any given +place and period--which was not founded on the emotional traits, the +aspirations and the ideals of the people. Surely one of the distinct +by-products of the Great War is to be the emancipation of the art of +music, along with that of all the other arts. Such a realization of +its nature and powers will result that it shall no longer be a mere +exotic amusement of the leisure and wealthy classes, but shall be +brought into direct touch with the rank and file of the people; even, +if you will, with the so-called "lower classes"--that part of humanity +from which, indeed, it sprung and with which it really belongs--just +human beings, just people. So in music also we may assert that +"Sovereignty rests with the people." Although all art reflects popular +sentiment to a certain extent, in no one of the arts--as painting, +sculpture and architecture--is there such a vital record of the +emotions and artistic instincts of humanity as we find in the realm of +folk-song.[21] During the early period of Church music, while +theorists and scholars were struggling with the intricate problems of +polyphonic style, the people in their daily secular life were finding +an outlet for their emotions, for their joys and sorrows, in song and +in dance. This instinct for musical expression is universal, and just +because the products of such activity were unfettered by rules, they +exercised in process of time much influence upon the development of +modern style. Folk-songs are characterized by a freshness and +simplicity, a directness of utterance, which are seldom attained by +the conscious efforts of genius. "Listen carefully to all folk-songs," +says Schumann. "They are a storehouse of beautiful melody, and unfold +to the mind the innate character of the different peoples." They are +like wild flowers blooming unheeded by the wayside, the product of the +race rather than the individual, and for centuries were only slightly +known to cultivated musicians. It should be understood that words and +music were inextricably bound together and that, with both, dancing +was naturally associated; the very essence of a people's life being +expressed by this tripartite activity. Tonal variety is a marked +feature in folk-songs, many of them being in the old Gregorian modes, +while others show a decided inclination to our modern major and minor +scales. Great is the historical importance of Folk-music, because in +it we see a dawning recognition of the principles of instrumental +form, _i.e._, the need of balanced phrases, caused in the songs by the +metrical structure of the words, and in the dances by the symmetrical +movements of the body; a recognition above all, of the application of +a definite system of tonal-centres, and of repetition after contrast. +In fact, as we look back it is evident that the outlines of our most +important design, that known as the Sonata Form are--in a rudimentary +state--found in folk-music. Folk-melodies and rhythms play a large +part in the music of Haydn, Schubert, Chopin, Liszt, Brahms, Grieg, +Tchaikowsky and Dvo[vr]ak. It seems as if modern composers were doing +for music what Luther Burbank has done for plant life; for by grafting +modern thought and feeling on to the parent stock of popular music, +they have secured a vigor attainable in no other way. Thus some of the +noblest melodies of Brahms, Grieg, and Tchaikowsky are actual +folk-tunes with slight variation or original melodies conceived in a +folk-song spirit.[22] + +[Footnote 21: For an eloquent presentation of the significance of +Folk-music see the article by Henry F. Gilbert in the _Musical +Quarterly_ for October, 1917.] + +[Footnote 22: For an able account of the important role that +folk-melodies are taking in modern music see Chapter V of _La Chanson +Populaire en France_ by Julian Tiersot.] + +As music, unlike the other arts, lacks any model in the realm of +nature, it has had to work out its own laws, and its spontaneity and +directness are the result. It has not become imitative, utilitarian or +bound by arbitrary conventions. As Berlioz says in the _Grotesques de +la Musique_: "Music exists by itself; it has no need of poetry, and if +every human language were to perish, it would be none the less the +most poetic, the grandest and the freest of all the arts." When we +reach the centuries in which definite records are available, we find a +wealth of folk-songs from the Continental nations: Irish, Scotch, +English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, etc.[23] In these +we can trace the transition from the old modes to our modern major and +minor scales; the principles of tonality and of rudimentary +modulation, the dividing of the musical thought into periodic lengths +by means of cadential endings, the instinct for contrast and for the +unity gained by restatement. No better definition of Folk-songs can be +given than that of Parry in his _Evolution of the Art of Music_ where +he calls them "the first essays made by man in distributing his notes +so as to express his feelings in terms of design." In folk-tunes this +design has been dominated by the metrical phraseology of the poetic +stanzas with which they were associated; for between the structure of +melody and that of poetry there is always a close correspondence. In +Folk-songs, therefore, we find a growing instinct for balanced musical +expression and, above all, an application of the principle of +Restatement after Contrast. The following example drawn from Irish +Folk-music[24]--which, for emotional depth, is justly considered the +finest in the world--will make the point clear. + +[Music: THE FLIGHT OF THE EARLS] + +[Footnote 23: The same statement is true of the Oriental nations, the +Arabians, Persians and Greeks, who are left out of the enumeration +only because their development in many respects has been along +different lines from ours. For suggestive speculations as to early +music among all nations see _Primitive Music_ by Richard Wallaschek.] + +[Footnote 24: For illuminating comments on the Folk-music of all the +English-speaking peoples see Chapter XII of Ernest Walker's _History +of Music in England_. The famous Petrie collection of Irish Folk-tunes +should also be consulted.] + +The statement is sometimes made that the principles of our modern +system of tonality and of modulation are derived from Folk-music. This +is only partially true, for pure Folk-songs always developed under the +influence of the old medieval modes, long before the establishment of +our fixed major and minor scales. Furthermore, as these were single +unaccompanied melodies, they showed slight connection with modulation +or change of key in the modern sense of the term--which implies a +system of harmonization in several voices. It is true that there was +an instinctive and growing recognition of the importance of the three +chief tonal centres: the Tonic or Keynote, the Dominant (a perfect +fifth _above_) and the Subdominant (a perfect fifth _below_) and at +times the relative minor. All these changes are illustrated in the +melody just cited; _e.g._, in the fourth measure[25] there is an +implication of E minor, in measures seven and eight there is a +distinct modulation to D major, the Dominant, and in the ninth measure +to C major, the Subdominant. This acceptance of other tonal +centres--distant a fifth from the main key-note--doubtless arose from +their simplicity and naturalness, and was later sanctioned by +acoustical law; the interval of a perfect fifth having one of the +simplest ratios (2-3), and being familiar to people as the first +overtone (after the octave) struck off by any sounding body--such as a +bell or an organ pipe. The Venetian composers, notably Willaert, had +also quite fully developed this principle of Tonic, Dominant and +Subdominant harmony in order to give homogeneity to their antiphonal +choruses. Even to-day these tonal centres are still used; for they are +elemental, like the primitive colors of the spectroscope. But +modulation, in the modern sense of a free shifting of the centre of +gravity to _any one_ of the twelve semitones of our chromatic scale, +was not developed and accepted until after the acoustical reforms of +Rameau, and the system of tuning keyed instruments embodied in that +work called the _Well-tempered Clavichord_ of Sebastian Bach. Both +these men published their discoveries about the year 1720. + +[Footnote 25: In counting the measures of a phrase always consider the +first _complete_ measure,--_never_ a partial measure--as _one_.] + +As we have just used the term _modal_, and since many Folk-songs in +the old modes sound peculiar or even wrong (hence the preposterous +emendations of modern editors!) because our ears can listen only in +terms of the fixed major and minor scales, a few words of explanation +concerning the nature of the medieval modes should here be given. +Their essential peculiarity is the freer relationship of tones and +semitones than is found in the definite pattern of our modern scales. +It is of great importance that the music-lover should train himself to +think naturally in these modes; for there has been a significant +return to their freedom and variety on the part of such modern +composers as Brahms, Tchaikowsky, Dvo[vr]ak, d'Indy, Debussy and +others, and some of their most individual effects are gained through +the introduction of modal types of expression. The following modes are +those most commonly employed in the formation of Folk-songs. + +[Music: DORIAN] + +[Music: PHRYGIAN] + +[Music: LYDIAN] + +[Music: MIXOLYDIAN] + +[Music: AEOLIAN] + +[Music: IONIAN] + +The Dorian mode, at the outset, is identical with our modern minor +scale; its peculiarity lies in the _semitone_ between the 6th and 7th +degrees and the _whole_ tone between the 7th and 8th. An excellent +example of a modern adaptation of this mode may be found in Guilmant's +March for organ (see Supplement, Example No. 7). The mysterious +opening measures of Debussy's opera _Pelleas et Melisande_ also owe +their atmosphere to this mode, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The Phrygian mode is one of the most individual to our modern ears +with its first step a _semitone_ and with the _whole_ tone between the +7th and 8th degrees. Under the influence of harmonic development there +was worked out a cadence, known as Phrygian, which is often found in +modern music, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The opening measures of the slow movement of Brahms's _Fourth +Symphony_ are an excellent example of a melody in the Phrygian mode, +_e.g._ + +[Music] + +The contrast between these measures, with their archaic flavor, and +the sudden change in measure four to the modern tonality of E major, +is very striking. Bach's well-known choral, _O Sacred Head now +wounded_ also begins in the Phrygian mode, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +For a beautiful modern example of this Phrygian mode see the +introduction to F.S. Converse's _Dramatic Poem Job_, for voices and +orchestra. + +The Lydian mode is identical with our major scale except for the +semitone between the 4th and 5th degrees. That this change, however, +gives a very characteristic effect may be seen in the passage by +Beethoven from his String-Quartet op. 132--_Song of Thanksgiving_ in +the Lydian mode (see Supplement Ex. No. 8). The Mixolydian mode is +also identical with our modern major scale except for the _whole_ tone +between the 7th and 8th degrees. This mode has had very slight usage +in modern music; because, with the development of harmony,[26] the +instinct became so strong for a leading tone (the 7th degree)--only a +semitone distant from the upper tonic--that the original whole tone +has gradually disappeared. The Aeolian Mode, mainly identical with our +customary minor scale, has the characteristic whole tone between the +7th and 8th degrees. Examples of this mode abound in modern +literature; two excellent instances being the first theme of the +Finale of Dvo[vr]ak's _New World Symphony_, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +and the following passage from the _Legend_ for a capella voices of +Tchaikowsky, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The Ionian mode corresponds exactly with our modern major scale, and +the common people among all nations early showed a strong predilection +for its use. The Church, in fact, because of this popularity with the +people, named it the "modus lascivus" and prohibited its use in the +ecclesiastical liturgy. One of the very earliest Folk-tunes +extant--"Sumer is icumen in" (already referred to)--is in the Ionian +mode and, according to Cecil Sharp,[27] the majority of English +Folk-tunes are in this same mode. + +[Footnote 26: The chief reason for this leading tone, in addition to +the natural tendency of singers to raise their voices as near as +possible to the upper tonic, was so that the dominant chord, the third +of which is always the 7th degree, might invariably be a _Major_ +Triad.] + +[Footnote 27: For many suggestive comments on the whole subject see +his book _English Folk-Song_.] + +We now cite a few typical folk-songs (taken from national sources) +which, in their structure, show a natural instinct for balance of +phrase and oftentimes for that organic unity of effect gained by +restatement after contrast. + +[Music: THE TRUE LOVERS' FAREWELL + +Old English] + +The pattern of this song, in the Aeolian mode, is A, A, A, B. Unity is +secured by the three-fold appearance of the first phrase; and a +certain balance, by having the second phrase B twice as long (four +measures) as A. + +[Music: THE SHIP IN DISTRESS + +Old English] + +The formula of this characteristic song in the Dorian mode is A, A, B, +A; merely an extension, through repetition, of the simple type A, B, A +which, in turn, is the basis of the fundamental structure known as the +three-part form. This will later be studied in detail. It is evident +to the musical sense how complete a feeling of coherence is gained by +the return to A after the intervening contrast of the phrase B; +evident, also, that this song is a perfect example of the principle of +unity combined with variety. + +We further cite a few examples from Scottish, Irish, French, Hungarian +and Russian sources. They all illustrate quaint melodic intervals and +an instinct for balance and symmetry. + +[Music: WANDERING WILLIE + + Here awa', there awa', Wanderin' Willie, + Here awa', there awa', haud awa' hame. + Come to my bosom, my ain only dearie, + O tell me thou bring'st me my Willie the same.] + +This song[28] expresses that note of pathos often found in Scottish +folk-music and is noteworthy also because the lyric poet, Robert +Burns, wrote for it words of which we give the first stanza. + +[Footnote 28: The example quoted, together with others equally +beautiful, may be found in the collection edited by the Scottish +composer, Hamish MacCunn. See, as well, the _Cycle of Old Scotch +Melodies_ arranged for four solo voices with pianoforte accompaniment +by Arthur Whiting.] + +[Music: WOULD GOD I WERE THE TENDER APPLE BLOSSOM] + +This Irish tune[29] is certainly one of the most perfect that can be +imagined, remarkable alike for its organic unity, gained by the +frequent use of the first ascending motive, and for the manner in +which the successive crises are reached. Note in particular the +intensity of the final climax, in measure 13, attained by a repetition +of the preceding phrase. + +[Footnote 29: For Irish folk-songs the best collections are the one by +Villiers Stanford and a _Cycle_ by Arthur Whiting, prepared in the +same way as that just cited on Scottish melodies.] + +[Music: EN PASSANT PAR LA LORRAINE AVEC MES SABOTS] + +This charming song[30] from Lorraine exemplifies that rhythmic +vivacity and lightness of touch so characteristic of the French. + +[Footnote 30: Taken from an excellent collection of _Chansons +Populaires_ edited by Julien Tiersot.] + +Observe the piquant effect, in the final phrase, produced by the +elision of a measure; there being in the whole song 31 measures +instead of the normal 32 (16 + 16). + +[Music: Old Hungarian Folk-song] + +Hungarian folk-music[31] is noted for its syncopated rhythm and its +peculiar metric groupings. It is also often highly embroidered with +chromatic notes; the Hungarian scale, with _two_ augmented intervals, +being an intensification of our minor mode, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 31: The best popular collection of Hungarian melodies is +that by Francis Korbay, the texts for which were translated and +arranged by the American novelist, J.S. of Dale. It is well known what +artistic use has been made of Hungarian melodies and rhythms by +Schubert, Liszt and Brahms.] + +Russia is fortunate in her musical inheritance; for not only has she a +wealth of folk-songs, but her famous composers, Balakireff, Borodin +and Rimsky-Korsakoff--who are men of letters as well--have published +remarkable editions of these national melodies. The Russian folk-songs +express, in general, a mood of sombreness or even depression--typical +of the vast, bleak expanses of that country, and of its downtrodden +people. These songs are usually in the minor mode--often with sudden +changes of rhythm--and based on the old ecclesiastical modes, the +Russian liturgy being very ancient and having an historical connection +with that of the Greek church. The folk-music of no nation is more +endowed with individuality and depth of emotion. Five characteristic +examples are herewith cited: + +[Music: I] + +[Music: II] + +[Music: III Harmonized by RIMSKY-KORSAKOFF] + +[Music: IV] + +[Music: V] + +This last melody is of particular significance, because Tchaikowsky +has used it so prominently in the Finale of his Fourth Symphony. + +The growing interest in folk-music in America is a tendency concerning +which the progressive student should inform himself. For a national +basis of creative work, our country has always been at a disadvantage +in comparison with nations which, as their birthright, have much music +in their blood. Moreover, with the exception of the tunes of the +aboriginal Indians and the plantation melodies of the Negroes, it has +been asserted that America could boast no folk-songs. Recent +investigations have shown, however, that this is not entirely true. +Cecil Sharp, Henry Gilbert, Arthur Farwell and other musical scholars +have proved that there are several regions of our country, settled by +colonists from England, Ireland and Scotland, where folk-songs exist +practically in the condition in which they were first brought over. +One of the best collections of such material is the set of so-called +_Lonesome Tunes from the Kentucky Mountains_, taken down by Miss +Lorraine Wyman and Mr. Howard Brockway directly from the mountaineers +and other dwellers in that region. These melodies have great +individuality, directness and no little poetic charm. It is certainly +encouraging to feel that, in this industrial age, there are still +places where people express their emotions and ideals in song; for a +nation that has not learned to sing--or has forgotten how--can never +create music that endures. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +POLYPHONIC MUSIC; SEBASTIAN BACH + + +We have traced, in the preceding chapter, some of the fundamental +principles of design in musical expression, as they were manifested in +the Folk-music of the different nations. All music of this type was +homophonic, _i.e._, a single melodic line, either entirely +unaccompanied or with a slight amount of instrumental support. Hence +however perfect in itself, it was necessarily limited in scope and in +opportunity for organic development. Before music could become an +independent art, set free from reliance on poetry, and could attain to +a breadth of expression commensurate with the growth in other fields +of art, there had to be established some principle of development, far +more extensive than could be found in Folk-music. This principle[32] +of "Thematic Development"--the chief idiom of instrumental music--by +which a motive or a theme is expanded into a large symphonic movement, +was worked out in that type of music known as the Polyphonic or +many-voiced; and Polyphonic music became, in turn, the point of +departure for our modern system of harmony, with its methods of key +relationship and of modulation. As we have stated in Chapter I, the +principle of systematic repetition or imitation--first discovered and +partially applied by the musicians[33] of the early French School and +by the Netherland masters--finally culminated in the celebrated vocal +works (a capella or unaccompanied) composed by Palestrina and his +contemporaries for the Roman Catholic Liturgy. Up to this point the +whole texture of music had been conceived in connection with voices; +but with the development of the organ, so admirably suited for +polyphonic style, and the perfection of the family of stringed +instruments, the principles of polyphony were carried over and applied +to instrumental treatment. The composer who, through his constructive +genius, most fully embodied these principles[34] was John Sebastian +Bach (1685-1750). We are now prepared to explain the characteristics +of polyphonic music and then to analyze some typical examples from +Bach and other polyphonic composers. The essential difference between +homophonic and polyphonic style is implied by the terms themselves. +When there is but one melody, the skill of the composer and the +attention of the listener are concentrated upon this single melodic +line; and even if there be an accompaniment, it is so planned that the +chief melody stands out in relief against it. The pre-eminence of this +chief melody is seldom usurped, although the accompaniment often has +interesting features of its own. As soon as we have more than one +melody (whether there be two, three or still others) all these +voice-parts may be of coequal importance, and the musical fabric +becomes an interwoven texture of a number of strands. The genius and +skill of the composer is now expended on securing life and interest +for each of these voices--soprano, alto, tenor, bass--which seem to be +braided together; and thus a much more comprehensive attention is +required of the listener. For instead of the single melody in the +soprano, or upper voice, of the Folk-song, we now must listen +consciously to the bass and to both of the inner voices.[35] Too much +emphasis cannot be laid upon the recommendation that, in appreciating +music, the first task is to train the ear to a wide range of +listening. These differences in style are often apparent just as a +pattern of design--to be seen from the following examples: + +[Music: Homophonic Style. Irish Folk-Song] + +[Music: Polyphonic Style. BACH: Fugue in C Minor] + +[Footnote 32: The statement might be qualified by saying that, since +Beethoven, instrumental style has become a happy mixture of homophony +for the chief melodies and polyphony for the supporting harmonic +basis. Stress is laid in the above text on the polyphonic aspect +merely to emphasize the matter under discussion.] + +[Footnote 33: Notable names are Leonin and Perotin, both organists of +Notre Dame at Paris.] + +[Footnote 34: Although this is not the place to set forth all the +details of this development, in the interest of historical justice we +should not think of Bach without gratefully acknowledging the +remarkable work of such pioneers as the Dutchman, Sweelinck +(1562-1621), organist at Amsterdam; the Italian, Frescobaldi +(1583-1644), organist at Rome, and--greatest of all, in his +stimulating influence upon Bach--the Dane, Buxtehude (1636-1707), +organist at Luebeck. Sweelinck and Frescobaldi may fairly be called the +founders of the genuine Fugue, and there is a romantic warmth in +Buxtehude's best work which makes it thoroughly modern in sentiment.] + +[Footnote 35: In connection with the statement that music has +developed according to natural law, it is worth noting that the +four-part chorus early became the standard for both vocal and +instrumental groups for the simple reason that there exist two kinds +of women's voices--soprano and alto, and two of men's voices--tenor +and bass. Originally, the chief voice in the ecclesiastical chorus was +the tenor (teneo), because the tenors _sustained_ the melody. Below +them were the basses (bassus, low); above the tenors came the altos +(altus, high) and still higher the sopranos (sopra, above).] + +In the latter example it is evident that there is an interweaving of +_three_ distinct melodic lines. + +The polyphonic instrumental works of Bach and his contemporaries were +called by such names as Preludes, Fugues, Canons, Inventions, Toccatas +and Fantasies; but since a complete account of all these forms would +lead too far afield, we shall confine ourselves to a description of +the Canon, the Invention and the Fugue. A Canon (from the Greek +[Greek: Kanon], meaning a strict rule or law) is a composition in +which there is a _literal_ systematic imitation, carried out to the +end, between two or more of the voices (often with subsidiary voices +filling in), and may be considered a kind of musical dialogue in which +the second, or answering, part reenforces the message previously +uttered by the leading voice. This imitation may take place at any +degree of separation; and Canons are in existence at the interval of +the second, third, fourth, fifth, etc. The most effective Canons, +however, are those in which the answering voice is an octave away from +the leading one. Although the Canon is not a form employed frequently +by modern composers for an entire composition, Canonic imitation +appears so often in all large works for orchestra, string quartet or +ensemble combinations, that the music-lover should acquire a certain +ease in listening to a structure of this type. The Canon, moreover, is +an integral factor in the style of Cesar Franck, d'Indy and Brahms; +and illustrations of its use abound in their works. The organ is +particularly well suited to the rendition of Canons; since, by its +facilities for tone-color, the two voices may be clearly contrasted. +Those interested in organ literature should become acquainted with the +following excellent examples: The _Canon in B-flat major_, op. 40, by +Guilmant; the 4th movement of the _Fifth Organ Symphony_ by Widor; the +Canon in B minor, op. 54, by Schumann; the _Canon in F-sharp major_, +op. 30, by Merkel, and the set of _Ten Canonic studies_, op. 12, by +G.W. Chadwick. In other fields of composition the following should be +cited: The set of _Pianoforte Pieces in Canon form_, op. 35, by +Jadassohn; a like set by Rheinberger, op. 180; the _Canonic Vocal +Trios_, op. 156, by Reinecke and the famous Canon from the first act +of Beethoven's opera _Fidelio_. There is also a beautiful bit of +Canonic imitation between two of the upper voices in the introduction +of Berlioz's _Carnaval Romain Overture_ for orchestra. One of the most +appealing Canons in modern literature is the setting for soprano and +barytone, by Henschel, of the poem _Oh that we two were Maying_ by +Charles Kingsley. This example alone would sufficiently corroborate +the statement that the firmness of structure inherent in the canonic +form is perfectly compatible with genuine freedom and poetry of +inspiration. In the first movement of Cesar Frank's _Symphony in D +minor_, at the recapitulation (page 39 of the full score) may be found +a magnificent example of the intensity of effect gained by a canonic +imitation of the main theme--in this instance between the lower and +upper voices. Possibly the finest example of canonic writing in all +literature is the Finale of Cesar Franck's _Sonata in A major_ for +Violin and Pianoforte in which, for several pages, there is an +eloquent dialogue between the two contrasting instruments. The +movement is too long for citation but it should certainly be procured +and studied. In the Trio of the Scherzo in Beethoven's _Seventh Sonata +for Violin and Pianoforte_ there is a free use of canonic imitation +which will repay investigation. Lastly, the _Aria with 30 +Variations_--the so-called _Goldberg Variations_ of Bach--is a perfect +storehouse of every conceivable canonic device. + +A few standard examples are to be found in the Supplement. These +should be played over and studied until they are thoroughly +familiar--not only for the pleasure to be derived, but for the +indispensable training afforded in polyphonic listening. + +Ex. No. 9 Canon by Thomas Tallys (1510-1585). + +Ex. No. 10 Canonic Variation by Schumann from the _Etudes +Symphoniques_. + +Ex. No. 11 of Bach's _Goldberg Variations_. + +Ex. No. 12 Canon in B-flat minor, op. 38, Grieg. + +Ex. No. 13 Canon in F-sharp major, op. 35, Jadassohn. + +One of the most simple and direct types of polyphonic composition is +the form known as the _Invention_ in which, as the term implies, the +composer--through his _inventive genius_ and by means of the +polyphonic devices of imitation and transposition--develops to a +logical conclusion some short and characteristic motive. We are +fortunate in having from Bach himself, that consummate master of +polyphony, two sets of such Inventions: fifteen for two voices, and +fifteen for three. These flights of fancy--in which art so subtly +conceals art--though originally composed for the clavichord and +harpsichord (the precursors of the pianoforte), are very effective on +our modern instrument and should be in the possession of every +music-student.[36] A brief analysis is now given of the first one in +the set for two voices, and Nos. 4, 8 and 10 in this set are +particularly recommended for study; also Nos. 2, 6 and 14 among those +for three voices. The opening motive + +[Music] + +is the foundation of the entire composition and is at once imitated, +canonically, in the lower voice. Then the two voices play about, with +figures clearly derived from the motive, until we reach, in measures +three and four, a systematic downward transposition of the material. +Such transpositions or shiftings up or down in pitch are called +_Sequences_. They are very frequent in all polyphonic composition, +give a strong sense of unity to melodic progression and are generally +carried out in groups of three, _i.e._, the original figure and two +repetitions. After the sequence the music naturally works toward the +most nearly related key (the dominant) and in the seventh measure +reaches in that key its first objective. These Inventions of Bach, as +well as the Dance forms soon to be studied, are almost invariably in +what is known as _Two-part_ form, _i.e._, the music consists of two +main divisions, clearly marked off by cadences[37]; the first of which +modulates to the dominant or some related key while the second part, +starting in this key, works back to a final close in the home key. In +Inventions it early became customary in the second part to begin with +the same motive as the first--but in the _opposite_ voice. Thus we +see, in the Invention now being discussed, that the seventh measure +begins with the original motive in the bass which, in turn, is +imitated by the Soprano--a process just the reverse of that in the +opening measures. + +[Footnote 36: The best edition is that by Busoni, published by +Breitkopf and Haertel.] + +[Footnote 37: This technical term as well as others will later be more +fully explained.] + +[Music] + +In pieces in this Two-part form the second portion is generally longer +than the first; for the composer, by the time he has reached this +second part, may consider the material sufficiently familiar to be +expanded and varied by excursions into more remote keys, and by more +intricate manipulations of the chief motive. In measure 11 we find a +modulation to D minor and then, after some free treatment of the +motive, we reach--in measure 15--a cadence in A minor. A long +sequential passage brings us, through a modulation to the subdominant +key of F major (in measures 18 and 19), to a strong closing cadence in +the home key. It should be noticed that in this Invention and in some +of the dance forms there is shown a strong leaning towards a +tripartite division of the material as is indicated by the _three_ +cadences in measures 7, 15 and 22. Since, however, the middle part is +lacking in any strong _contrast_--which is such an essential factor in +the fully developed three-part form--it seems better to consider this +piece, and others like it, as a tendency rather than as a complete +embodiment of tripartite arrangement. It is expected that the music +lover will take these Inventions for what they really are and not +search in them for those notes of intense subjectivity and dramatic +power so prevalent in modern music. They are merely little pieces--a +"tour de force" in polyphonic ingenuity; music rejoicing in its own +inherent vitality. Accepted in this spirit they are invigorating and +charming. + +The form in which polyphonic skill reaches its highest possibilities +is the Fugue; and the immortal examples of this form are the Fugues of +John Sebastian Bach, found in his _Well-tempered Clavichord_ and in +his mighty works for the organ. The fundamental structure of a fugue +is implied in the term itself (from the Latin "fuga"--flight); that +is, in a fugue the main theme or subject is always announced in a +single voice, and the remaining voices, appearing successively in +accordance with definite principles of key-relationship, seem to chase +each other about and to flee from pursuit. The several stratified +entrances of the subject are relieved by intermediate passages called +"Episodes." An Episode, as shown by the derivation ([Greek: ipi +hodos], by the way), is something off the beaten path--a digression; +and it is in these episodical portions of a fugue rather than in the +formalistic portions that the genius of the composer shines forth. +This is especially true of Bach, for almost any well-trained musician +can invent a subject which will allow of satisfactory fugal treatment +according to accepted usage; but no one save Bach has ever invented +such free and fanciful episodes--so daring in scope and yet so closely +connected with the main thought. The general effect of a fugue is +_cumulative_: a massing and piling up of voices that lead to a +carefully designed conclusion which, in some of Bach's organ fugues, +is positively overwhelming. A fugue may be called a mighty crescendo, +like the sound of many waters. There is a popular conception, or +rather _mis_conception, that a fugue is a labored, dull or even "dry" +form of composition, meant only as an exhibition of pedantic skill, +and quite beyond the reach of ordinary musical appreciation. Nothing +is farther from the truth, as a slight examination of musical +literature will show. For we see that the fugal form has been used to +express well-nigh every form of human emotion, the sublime, the +tragic, the romantic; very often the humorous and the fantastic. When +we recall the irresistible sparkle and dash of Mozart's _Magic Flute +Overture_, of the Overture to the _Bartered Bride_ by Smetana, of the +Finale of Mozart's _Jupiter Symphony_, and of many of the fugues in +the _Well-tempered Clavichord_, it is evident that to call a fugue +"dry" is an utter abuse of language. It is true that there are weak, +artificial and dull fugues, where the composer--frankly--had nothing +to say and merely filled out the form; but the same may be said of +every type of composition, _i.e._, among them all are examples +inspired and--less inspired. This, however, is no indictment of the +fugue _per se_, against which the only thing to be said is that it +requires on the part of the listener an exceeding concentration. Some +of the masterpieces of the world being wholly or partially in the +fugal form, it is the duty of those listening to polyphonic music to +train their powers to the same seriousness of attention expected and +freely given in the appreciation of an oration, a drama or a +cathedral. These latter manifestations of artistic expression, to be +sure, are less abstract than the fugue and more closely related to +daily life. Yet no effort is more repaying than the mental and +emotional energy expended in listening to the interweavings of a good +fugue; for, conscious of missing the periodic divisions of the +Folk-song, we have to listen to more than one melody at a time. A +fugue being a composition, as the French say, of "longue haleine," +our attention, in order to follow its structure, must be on the "qui +vive" every moment. The fugue, in fact, is an example of the intricate +and yet organic complexity found in all the higher forms of life +itself; and whenever a composer has wished to dwell with emphasis on a +particular theme, he almost invariably resorts to some form of fugal +treatment, strict or free. The most effective media for rendering +fugues are the chorus of mixed voices, the organ (by reason of its +pedal key-board always making the subject in the bass stand out +majestically) and the stringed orchestra which, with the "bite" of the +strings, brings out--with peculiar sharpness--the different entrances +of the subject. The student should become familiar with standard +examples in each of these classes and should, above all, seek +opportunity to hear some of the organ fugues of Bach performed on a +really fine instrument. A few well-known fugues are herewith cited in +order to stimulate the student to some investigation of his own. In +all the Oratorios of Handel and in the choral works of Bach, such as +the B minor Mass, may be found magnificent fugues--as free and vital +in their rhythmic swing as the ocean itself. Particular attention +should be called to the fugue in the Messiah "And by His stripes we +were healed [Transcriber's Note: And with His stripes we are healed]." +One of the most impressive fugues in modern literature is the a +capella chorus _Urbs Syon Unica_ from H.W. Parker's _Hora Novissima_. +From among the organ works of Bach everyone should know the Fugues in +G minor, in A minor, in D major[38] and the Toccata and Fugue in D +minor. These have all been transcribed for the pianoforte by Liszt and +so are readily available; they are often played at pianoforte recitals +by Paderewski and other virtuosi. In hearing one of these masterpieces +no one can remain unmoved or can fail to reverence the constructive +genius which fashioned such cathedrals in tone. For orchestra we have +the Prelude to Puccini's opera _Madama Butterfly_, and the beginning +of the Prelude to the third act of Wagner's _Mastersingers_. There are +striking fugal passages in Beethoven's Symphonies, _e.g._, the first +movement of the _Heroic Symphony_ and the rollicking Trio of the +Scherzo in the _Fifth Symphony_. In more modern literature there is +the fugal Finale to Arthur Foote's _Suite for Orchestra_ and in +Chadwick's _Vagrom Ballad_ a humorous quotation of the theme from +Bach's _G minor Fugue_ for organ. One of the most superb fugues in +free style is the last movement of Cesar Franck's _Prelude, Choral and +Fugue in B minor_ for Pianoforte. This movement alone would refute +all charges of dullness or dryness brought against the fugue by the +unthinking or the unenlightened. A good fugue, in fact, is so full of +vitality and demands such _active_ comprehension[39] on the part of +the listener that it is not difficult to imagine where the dullness +and dryness are generally found. + +[Footnote 38: Whenever Percy Grainger performs this fugue in his own +arrangement for pianoforte, he always electrifies an audience.] + +[Footnote 39: It is worthy of observation that, for those who will +listen to them intelligently, fugues do not merely demand such a state +of mind but actually _generate_ it.] + +At this point by an analysis of a fugue from the _Well-tempered +Clavichord_, let us explain some of the technical features in fugal +structure. We shall then be in a position to understand the more +subtle devices of fugal treatment and to appreciate more +enthusiastically some additional comments upon Bach's style in +general. + + +FUGUE IN E-FLAT MAJOR, NO. VII, IN THE FIRST BOOK. + +[Music: Subject + +Counter-subject + +Answer] + +This fugue in three voices begins with a graceful subject, announced +in the upper voice. In the third measure this is answered by an +imitation of the subject in the alto; while the opening voice +continues with a contrasting part called the counter-subject.[40] As +the whole subsequent fabric is organically derived from these two +motives, both subject and counter-subject should be played frequently +and so committed to memory. Observe also the contrasts in rhythm and +melodic outline between the subject and counter-subject. In measures +4 and 5 we have a short sequential passage leading, in measure 6, to +the third entry of the subject in the bass. Then after another +sequential passage, which includes an emphatic assertion of the +subject in the soprano (measures 11 and 12), we enter upon a long +episode which leads, at measure 17, to our first objective point of +rest--a cadence in C minor. With the entry, in this measure, of the +subject in the alto we have an interesting example of what is termed +"shifted rhythm;" the subject beginning on the third beat instead of +the first, as at the outset. In the middle portion of the fugue we +have two appearances of the subject in the related keys of C minor +(measures 17 and 18) and G minor (measures 20 and 21). Then, following +two very vigorous sequences, a modulatory return is made to the +subject in the home key, and with its normal rhythm at measure 26. A +repetition, in more brilliant form, of one of the previous episodes, +in measures 31 and 32, gives a strong impression of unity; leading in +measures 34 and 35 to a last appearance of the subject, with a +beautiful change in one of the intervals (E-flat-G-flat). The closing +measures establish the main tonality of E-flat major, rendered still +more expressive by the counterpoint associated with the last chord. As +to the general structure of this fugue, it is evidently tripartite, +the first part A presenting the material, the second part B affording +variety by modulating into different keys, and the third part A' +reasserting the material of A and bringing the composition to a +logical close in the home key. (See Supplement Ex. No. 15.) + +[Footnote 40: It is left to the teacher to explain to the student the +key-relationship of Subject and Answer, and the difference between +fugues, tonal and real; for as these points have rather more to do +with composition they play but a slight part in listening to a fugue.] + +We should now acquaint ourselves with the more subtle devices of fugal +treatment; although but one of these is employed in the fugue just +studied, which is comparatively simple in structure. I. Inversion; the +melodic outline is turned upside down while identity is retained by +means of the rhythm, _e.g._ + +[Music: BACH: 3rd English Suite + +Theme + +Inversion] + +An excellent example from an orchestral work is the theme of the third +movement of Brahms's _C minor Symphony_, the second phrase of which is +an Inversion of the opening measures, _e.g._ + +[Music: Inversion] + +II. Augmentation and Diminution; the length of the notes is doubled or +halved while their metrical relativity is maintained, _e.g._ + +[Music: BACH: Fugue No. 8, Book I + +Theme + +Augmentation] + +[Music: BACH: Fugue No. IX, Book II + +Theme + +Diminution] + +Augmentation is very frequent in modern literature when a composer, by +lengthening out the phraseology of a theme, wishes to gain for it +additional emphasis. Excellent examples are the closing measures of +Schumann's _Arabesque_, in which the reminiscence of the original +motto is most haunting, _e.g._, + +[Music: Motto] + +[Music: Motto augmented] + +the Finale of Liszt's _Faust Symphony_, where the love theme of the +Gretchen movement is carried over and intoned by a solo baritone with +impressive effect, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Music: In augmentation + +_Das ewig Weibliche_] + +III. Shifted Rhythm; the position of the subject in the measure is so +changed that the accents fall on different beats, _e.g._ + +[Music: BACH: Fugue No. V, Book II + +Subject + +Shifted] + +IV. Stretto; (from the Italian verb "stringere," to draw close) that +portion of a fugue, often the climax, where the entrances are +_crowded_ together, _i.e._, the imitating voice enters before the +leading voice has finished, _e.g._ + +[Music: _Fuga giocosa_, J.K. PAINE, op. 41 + +Subject] + +The effect is obviously one of great concentration and dramatic +intensity--with a sense of impending climax--and its use is by no +means limited to fugal composition; being frequently found in all +large symphonic works of the classic and modern school. For a +magnificent example of the climactic effect produced by a Stretto, +witness the last part of Bach's Fugue in G major (see Supplement, Ex. +No. 16). + +Although there is considerable complexity in any complete fugue, and +although it requires great concentration on the part of the listener, +we should avoid thinking of the form as mechanical in any derogatory +sense, but rather as a means to a definite artistic end. Certainly no +greater mistake can be made than that of considering Bach, the supreme +master of polyphonic writing, as too austere, too involved, for the +delight and edification of every-day mortals. Bach means brook, and +the name[41] is most appropriate; for Bach is a never ceasing stream +of musical life, the fountain-head from which spring the leading +tendencies of modern music. In these days when stress is laid on the +romantic element in music, on warm emotional appeal, it is well to +consider the quality so prevalent in Bach of spiritual vitality. +Exactly because the romantic element represents the human side of +music, it is subject to the whims of fashion and is liable to change +and decay. Bach carries us into the realm of universal ideas, +inexhaustible and changeless in their power to exalt. Schumann says +that "Music owes to Bach what a religion owes to its founder"; and it +is true that a knowledge of Bach is the beginning of musical wisdom. +By some, Bach is considered dry or too reserved for companionship with +ordinary human beings. Others carelessly assert that he has no melody. +Nothing can be further from the truth than these two misconceptions. +Bach surely is not dry, because his work abounds in such vitality of +rhythm. As Parry says, in his biography, "No composer ever attained to +anything approaching the spontaneity, freshness, and winsomeness of +his dances, such as the gavottes, bourrees, passepieds and gigues in +the suites; while many of his great choruses and instrumental fugues +are inspired with a force of rhythmic movement which thrills the +hearer with a feeling of being swept into space out of the range of +common things." The charge of a lack of melody is the same which used +to be brought against Wagner. Instead of there being no melody, it is +_all_ melody, so that the partially musical, who lack the power of +sustained attention, are drowned in the flood of melodic outpouring. A +strong claim, in fact, may be made for Bach as a _popular_ composer in +the best sense of the term. Many of his colossal works, to be sure, +are heard but seldom, for they require the most highly trained +executive ability. But if the average music-lover will become familiar +with the French and English Suites, with the Preludes and Fugues of +the _Well-tempered Clavichord_, with some of the Violin Sonatas, he +will find for his imagination and mental machinery a food which, once +enjoyed, becomes indispensable. For his music has that greatest of +qualities in art as in human relationships--it wears well and _lasts_. +We all know that books which reveal everything at a first reading are +soon thrown aside, and that people whose depth of character and +sweetness of disposition we discern but slowly, often become our +life-long friends. Music which is too easily heard is identical with +that which is immediately forgotten. The first impulse created by any +great work of art is our longing to know it better. Its next attribute +is its power to arouse and hold our steady affection. These +observations may be applied literally to Bach's music, which can be +heard for a lifetime, never losing its appeal but continually +unfolding new beauties. Furthermore, in Bach, we feel the force of a +great character even more than the artistic skill with which the +personality is revealed. In this respect Bach in music is quite on a +par with Shakespeare in literature and Michael Angelo in plastic art. +With many musicians, there is so disconcerting and inexplicable a +discrepancy between their deeds as men and the artistic thoughts for +which they seem to be the unconscious media, that it is inspiring to +come into touch with one who rings true as a man whatever demands are +made upon him; whose music is free from morbidity or carnal blemish, +as pure as the winter wind, as elemental as the ocean, as uplifting as +the stars. In Bach let us always remember the noble human traits; for +the universal regard in which his work is held could never have come +merely from profound skill in workmanship, but is due chiefly to the +manly sincerity and emotional depth which are found therein. The +revival of his works, for which the world owes to Mendelssohn such a +debt, has been the single strongest factor in the development of music +during the 19th century; and their influence[42] is by no means yet at +an end, as may be seen from the glowing tributes paid to him by such +modern composers as Franck, d'Indy and Debussy.[43] + +[Footnote 41: Beethoven, commenting on the name, majestically said: +"He is no brook; he is the open sea!"] + +[Footnote 42: For a very suggestive article on this point by Philip +Greeley Clapp see the Musical Quarterly for April, 1916.] + +[Footnote 43: Some eloquent comments on Bach's style and significance +may be found in Chapter III of _The Appreciation of Music_ by Surette +and Mason.] + +Two additional fugues are now given in the Supplement (see Nos. 17 and +18) for the consideration of the student: the _Cat-Fugue_ of Domenico +Scarlatti, with its fantastic subject (said to have been suggested by +the walking of a favorite cat on the key-board) and the _Fuga Giocosa_ +of John Knowles Paine, (the subject of which is the well-known +street-tune "Rafferty's lost his pig"). This latter example is not +only a brilliant piece of fugal writing but a typical manifestation of +American humor. + +Several eulogies of the fugue are to be found in literature; three of +the most famous are herewith appended. + + "Hist, but a word, fair and soft! + Forth and be judged, Master Hugues! + Answer the question I've put you so oft: + What do you mean by your mountainous fugues? + See, we're alone in the loft." + + --Browning, _Master Hugues of Saxe-Gotha_. + +Throughout, a most fantastic description of fugal style. + + "Whence the sound + Of instruments, that made melodious chime, + Was heard, of harp and organ; and who mov'd + Their stops and chords was seen; his volant touch + Instinct through all proportions, low and high, + Fled and pursued transverse the resonant fugue." + + --Milton, _Paradise Lost_, Book XI. + + "Then rose the agitation, spreading through the infinite + cathedral to its agony; then was completed the passion of + the mighty fugue. The golden tubes of the organ which as yet + had but sobbed and muttered at intervals--gleaming amongst + clouds and surges of incense--threw up, as from fountains + unfathomable, columns of heart-shattering music. Choir and + antichoir were filling fast with unknown voices. Thou also, + Dying Trumpeter! with thy love which was victorious, and thy + anguish that was finishing, didst enter the tumult; trumpet + and echo--farewell love and farewell anguish--rang through + the dreadful Sanctus." + + --From De Quincey's _Dream Fugue in the "Vision of Sudden + Death_." + +Truly a marvellous picture of the effect of a fugue in a great +medieval cathedral! + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +THE MUSICAL SENTENCE + + +Before passing on to an explanation of the fundamental types of +musical structure, we must give some idea of the constituent parts of +the _Period_ in music. Every art has its units of expression: the +straight line, the curve, the arch, the poetic stanza and the prose +sentence. Just as poetry and prose are a series of stanzas or +sentences, so a musical composition is a succession of definitely +organized portions of thought and emotion, in terms of rhythm and +sound. In the heart of a composition, to be sure, we often find a +great freedom in the phraseology, comparable to blank verse or to a +rhapsodic kind of prose; but with few exceptions, such as a Fantasie, +every composition always _begins_ with one or two periods which, in +regard to subdivision, balance and directness of statement, are +carefully planned and are complete in themselves. Before it is +possible to follow intelligently the structure of a musical sentence +we must gain a clear idea of what is meant by the frequently used +terms Tonality and Modulation. Since the evolution and acceptance of +our three modern scales:[44] the major, the minor and the +chromatic--which gained their sanction chiefly through the +investigations and compositions of Bach and Rameau--every melody and +the accompanying harmony are said to be in a certain "tonality" (or +"key") which takes its name from the first tone of the scale in +question, _e.g._, C, E-flat, F sharp, etc. Hence this first tone is +called the Tonic or chief tone and from it ascend the other tones of +the scale. That is, a melody in E-flat major will employ only those +tones found in the scale of E-flat major, and is said to be in that +"key," or "tonality." The same would be true of the harmony involved, +_i.e._, the chords would consist of combinations of the different +tones of this scale. When a melody, as is often the case, employs +tones _not_ found in the scale in question, these are called +_chromatic_[45] changes, and may or may not effect a "modulation" or +departure into another key, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 44: It is assumed that the music-lover has, as his +birthright, an instinctive knowledge of the grouping of tones and +semitones in our modern scales. Those who may wish to refresh their +knowledge are recommended to the second Chapter in Foote and +Spalding's _Harmony_, and to the chapter on Scales in Parry's +_Evolution of the Art of Music_.] + +[Footnote 45: Color in music is brought about chiefly through their +use.] + +The most important means of gaining unity and coherence in a +composition is to have it written in a clearly defined tonality, +especially at the outset. This definite tonality is the "centre of +gravity," so to speak, about which the whole composition revolves. If +this tonal centre were uncertain or wandering, we should have a +feeling of vagueness and perplexity which, except for special dramatic +effect, is never found in works of the great composers. Thus we speak +of a Symphony in C minor, of a Quartet in F major and of a Sonata in +B-flat minor;[46] this foundation key being comparable to the basic +color-scheme of a painting. There is also a particular aesthetic +effect and color-appeal associated with each key; and the listener +should train himself to be sensitive to the brilliance of such keys as +D major and E major, the richness of B major, the dignity of E-flat +major, the almost cloying sweetness of D-flat major and of G-flat +major and the tragic depth of B minor and G minor. No piece, however, +should remain for long in the same key; for music cuts so deeply into +the consciousness that there would result an intolerable monotony.[47] +Even in the simplest folk-songs, therefore, we often find manifested +an instinct for those changes of tonal centre which are technically +called "Modulations." All the keys founded on the twelve semitones of +the chromatic scale are related--though in varying degrees of +closeness; and in modern music, no matter how complex the modulations +often sound, we may be sure that the composer plans them as carefully +as the painter adjusts his color-scheme. For definite acoustical[48] +and harmonic reasons, however, the keys most closely related to a +given tonal centre are those situated a perfect fifth above--the +Dominant; a perfect fifth below--the Subdominant; and the Relative +Minor, the key-note of which is a minor third below, _e.g._, A minor +in relation to C major, C minor to E-flat major. The relative minors +of the Dominant and Subdominant also bear a close relationship to a +given tonic; and into these _five_ keys is made a large majority of +the modulations in any piece of music.[49] + +[Music: + +Subdominant Tonic Dominant + +Relative Relative Relative +Minor Minor Minor] + +[Footnote 46: As for example the famous one of Chopin.] + +[Footnote 47: Even great composers have at times made this mistake, +_e.g._, Mendelssohn in the first movement of the _Scotch Symphony_, +where the interminable length of the portion in A minor (of all keys!) +is simply deadening in its effect. Compare also the _Prelude to the +Rheingold_; where, however--for dramatic purposes--to depict the world +as "without form and void" Wagner remains in the key of E-flat major +for some 150 measures!] + +[Footnote 48: It is left to the teacher to explain, by the ratios +found in the overtones of the Harmonic Series, the validity of this +statement.] + +[Footnote 49: Some modern theorists, _e.g._, Calvacoressi (see the New +Music Review for September, 1909) have thought that the dominant +relationship was "overworked." It is true that the great charm of +modern music is its freedom and boldness in modulation; but the +dominant keys can never be entirely abandoned, for the relationship +between them and a tonic is as elemental as that between the colors of +the spectroscope.] + +Beginning with Beethoven, a modulation into what are known as the +_mediant_ keys became frequent; and is, in fact, a favorite change in +all modern music--the mediant keys being those situated half-way +between a Tonic and Dominant or a Tonic and Subdominant, _e.g._ + +[Music: Sub-mediant Mediant] + +Anyone at all familiar with Beethoven's style will remember how often +his second theme, instead of following the more conventional line of +dominant relationship, is in a mediant key. Good examples may be found +in the first movement of the _Waldstein Sonata_ and in the first and +last movements of the 8th Symphony. A little thought will make clear +that the relationships just set forth include nearly all the possible +ones save those of 2nds and 7ths. Even into these apparently distant +keys, _e.g._, to D-flat major or to B major from C major, modulations +may easily be made by means of the "enharmonic"[50] relationship found +in that frequently used modern chord--the Augmented Sixth, _e.g._ + +[Music: C major B major C major D-flat major] + +[Footnote 50: Two tones are said to be "enharmonic" when, although +written differently, they sound the same on an instrument of fixed +temperament like the pianoforte, or organ, _e.g._, D-sharp and E-flat, +E and F-flat. A violin, however, can make a distinction between such +notes and often does.] + +Next to rhythm, modulation is the most stimulating and enchanting +element in music. No composition of any scope can be considered truly +great unless it abounds in beautiful modulations. Certain composers, +to be sure, have in this respect more genius than others--notably +Schubert, Chopin, Wagner and Franck whose music seems to waft us along +on a magic carpet of delight. But just as Unity depends upon a +definite basic tonality, so Variety is gained by this very freedom of +modulation. Without it is monotony; with too much modulation, an +irritating restlessness. By the perfect balance in his works of these +two related elements a genius may be definitely recognized. + +The simplest and on the whole most frequent type of musical sentence +or period consists of eight measures, subdivided into two balancing +phrases of four measures[51] each--the component parts plainly +indicated by various cadences and endings soon to be explained. These +four-measure phrases are often, though not invariably, still further +subdivided into two sections of two measures each. Let us now +corroborate these statements by an examination of the opening sentence +of the Scherzo of Beethoven's _Second Sonata for Pianoforte_. This +concise sentence is an epitome of the chief principles of organic +musical expression. At the outset[52] we see the leading motive, which +consists of an ascending broken chord twice repeated. We see also + +[Music] + +the first phrase of 4 measures and the second phrase[53] of similar +length, alike subdivided into two sections of 2 measures each. In the +third measure we find a modulation into the dominant key (indicated by +the D-sharp) and in the fourth measure a cadence with a feminine +ending in this key. The second--or after--phrase corresponds exactly +to what has gone before: we have the same repetition of the motive in +a different part of the scale; and finally, in the 8th measure, a +cadence in the home key, also with feminine ending. + +[Footnote 51: This assertion holds for most of our Western European +music; though in Hungarian and Scotch music we find a natural fondness +for phrases of _three_ measures, and the Croatians are known for their +phrases of _five_ measures so often used by both Haydn and Schubert. +But it is true that we _tend_ to think in groups which are some +multiple of 2, _i.e._, either 4, 8, 12 or 16 measures.] + +[Footnote 52: Always count the first _complete_ measure as _one_.] + +[Footnote 53: The two phrases are often designated Thesis and +Antithesis.] + +[Music] + +When the sentence is played, it is evident how unsatisfactory would be +the effect if a complete stop were attempted at the 4th measure; and +how symmetrical and convincing is the impression when the eight +measures are considered an unbroken sweep of musical thought.[54] +There are, in fact, a few complete compositions in musical literature +which contain but a single sentence of eight measures. As an example +may be cited the song from Schumann's _Lieder Album fuer Jugend_, op. +79, No. 1. (See Supplement No. 19.) For purposes of practical +appreciation[55] it is enough to state that a cadence is an accepted +combination of chords (generally the tonic, dominant and subdominant) +which indicates that some objective, either temporary or final, has +been reached. When the dominant chord or any dominant harmony is +immediately followed by the tonic the cadence is called perfect or +final, and may be compared to a period in punctuation, _e.g._ + +[Music] [Music: CESAR FRANCK] + +[Footnote 54: In listening to a clock it is impossible to think of the +ticks singly, or otherwise than in groups of two: an accented beat and +an unaccented; although the beats are of equal strength and duration. +This principle of dual balance is derived from the rhythmic pulsation +of the human heart and, as we shall see, runs through all music.] + +[Footnote 55: Whenever this book is used in class, the teacher can +easily explain, on the pianoforte and by charts, the different +cadential effects. For those who have sufficient harmonic insight +Chapter XIV in Foote and Spalding's _Modern Harmony_ is worth +consulting.] + +A reversal of this order produces what is called the half-cadence, +akin to the semicolon, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The union of the subdominant and tonic chords is known as the Plagal +Cadence, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +and always gives a feeling of religious dignity and impressiveness. +Magnificent examples may be found in the closing measures of Wagner's +Overture to the _Mastersingers_ and of Brahms' _First Symphony in C +minor_. In the final cadence of Debussy's humorous piece for +pianoforte, _Minstrels_, the effect is burlesqued, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +When dominant harmony is followed by some unexpected chord we have the +so-called Deceptive Cadence, which is not unlike the mark of +interrogation (?) or even exclamation (!) _e.g._ + +[Music: WAGNER: _Overture to the Mastersingers_] + +[Music: TCHAIKOWSKY: _5th Symphony_] + +This last cadence gives an effect of dramatic surprise--certainly an +exclamation of great force. One of the glories of modern music is the +daring novelty of cadential effect which has been achieved by such +composers as Franck, Debussy and Ravel; the student should try to +become more and more familiar with such harmonic combinations. A +beautiful example[56] is cited from Cesar Franck's _Sonata for Violin +and Pianoforte_. + +[Footnote 56: See also the strikingly original cadences in Debussy's +_L'Isle joyeuse_.] + +[Music] + +The two endings for phrases are classified as Masculine and Feminine +and they correspond exactly to the same effects in the metre of a +poetic stanza. When the second chord of the cadence, whatever it may +be, coincides with a _strong_ beat, _i.e._, the first beat of the +measure, the ending is Masculine, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +When the chord is carried over to a weak beat of the measure the +ending is Feminine, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +We now give two more examples of the eight measure Sentence which +clearly exemplify the principles just stated, _e.g._ + +[Music: BEETHOVEN: 3rd Sonata] + +In this vigorous and clear-cut sentence we find in the 4th measure an +effect of surprise and suspense; for the chord on the first beat is an +inverted position of the dominant chord in the dominant key. Both the +endings are masculine, _i.e._, the chords which end the phrases +coincide with the strong beats. + +[Music: BEETHOVEN: 1st Sonata] + +This graceful sentence is noteworthy for the clear division of the +first phrase into two contrasting sections; whereas, in the second +phrase, a climactic effect is gained by having no marked subdivision. +In the fourth measure occurs a good example of a half-cadence. All the +endings are feminine, _i.e._, the cadential chord occurs on a _weak_ +beat of the measure.[57] + +[Footnote 57: Another interesting eight-measure sentence may be found +at the beginning of the slow movement of Beethoven's Eighth Sonata, in +which every section differs from any one of the others; in the opening +sentence of the first movement of the Tenth Sonata--noticeable for the +indefiniteness of the cadences until the final close is reached in +measure 8, and in the first sentence of the Allegretto of the Sixth +Sonata which is one long sweep, with only the faintest indications of +subdivision.] + +Music, however, would be very rigid and would seem measured off with a +yard-stick if the sentences were equally of eight measures. The +"sing-song" effect of much so-called popular music is due to the +stereotyped metrical pattern. You can always tell just where and how +you are coming out. In order to gain a free and elastic phraseology, +composers early began to combine three four-measure phrases into a +_twelve_ measure sentence. It is obvious that with three phrases there +can be more subtle effects of contrast and balance than with two, as +the following chart makes plain: + + ____________ +/ \ +A Contrast B Contrast C + \____________/ +(4 measures) (4 measures) (4 measures) + balance +\______________________________________/ + +[Music: BEETHOVEN: 6th Sonata] + +In this sentence it is evident that we cannot stop at the 8th measure +and that our first definite conclusion is in measure 12. Let the +student observe the varied melodic outline in the three phrases, and +question himself as to the types of cadence and ending. + + +MINUETTO OF BEETHOVEN'S FIRST SONATA.[58] + +[Footnote 58: Lack of space will prevent hereafter the citation in +actual notes of the examples from Beethoven. His works are readily +accessible, and it may even be assumed that every music-lover owns the +Pianoforte Sonatas.] + +In this beautifully constructed twelve-measure sentence we have the +main motive of the entire movement set forth in measures 1 and 2; +then a contrasting secondary motive in measures 3 and 4. The second +four-measure phrase, _i.e._, measures 5, 6, 7 and 8, repeats the +material exactly, but with a modulation into the relative major. In +measures 9 and 10 we find the secondary motive appearing in the alto +voice (which should be brought out in performance), and in measures 11 +and 12 a free ending in the relative major. The closing measures, 13 +and 14, give an echo-like effect, which will be explained when we come +to extended sentences. Such a sentence is not to be considered as one +of 14 measures, although the literal counting gives that number; for +the first complete cadence occurs in the 12th measure at the end of +the third four-measure phrase; the remaining measures being +supplementary.[59] + +[Footnote 59: Another excellent example of a 12 measure sentence with +an extended cadence may be found at the beginning of the first +movement of the Third Beethoven Sonata.] + +The last type of simple, normal sentence is that of 16 measures, +divided into 4 phrases of 4 measures each. A clear distinction must be +drawn between two successive sentences of 8 measures and the long +sweep of a genuine 16 measure sentence. In the latter case there is no +complete and satisfactory stop until we reach the cadence in the 16th +measure. + + +FIRST SENTENCE OF THE FIRST MOVEMENT OF THE TWELFTH SONATA. + +No difficulty will be found in following the cadences and endings of +this sentence, the long-drawn out lines of which give an impression of +repose and tranquillity. Two more excellent examples of 16 measure +sentences may be found in the Adagio of the Fifth Sonata, and in the +Scherzo of the Third; the latter movement is remarkable for the +polyphonic treatment of the opening motive. + +Although the three types of sentence just studied, _i.e._, of 8, 12 +and 16 measures are the normal ones, and would include a majority of +all sentences--especially in smaller works--in large compositions +there would be an unendurable monotony and rigidity were there +invariably to be cadential pauses at every 4th measure. We all know +the deadening effect of poetry which has too great uniformity of +metric pattern; and verses of "The boy stood on the burning-deck" type +are considered thoroughly "sing-song." It is obvious that elasticity +may be gained, without disturbing the normal balance, by expanding a +sentence through the addition of extra measures, or contracting it by +the logical omission of certain measures or by the overlapping of +phrases. + +The simplest and most common means of enlarging a sentence is by the +extension, or repetition, of the final cadence--that effect which is +so frequent in the chamber and symphonic music of Haydn, and which has +its comic manifestation in the so-called "crescendo" of the Rossini +Operatic Overture.[60] + +[Footnote 60: For a burlesque of this practise see the closing +measures of the Scherzando movement of Beethoven's Eighth Symphony.] + +[Music: HAYDN: _Quartet, op. 74, No. 2_] + +As Haydn was an important pioneer in freeing instrumental structure +from dependence on the metre of words, his periods are always clearly +organized; the closing measures of this example seem, as it were, to +display a flag, telling the listener that the first breathing-place is +reached. Very often both the fore-phrase and the after-phrase have +cadential prolongations, an example of which may be found in Haydn's +Quartet, op. 71, No. 3. The two following illustrations (the first +movement of Beethoven's Fifth Sonata and the third movement of the +Fourth) furnish remarkable examples of extended 16 measure sentences; +each sentence being normal and symmetrical at the outset and then, as +the fancy of the composer catches fire, expanding in a most dramatic +fashion. Sometimes the additional measures, in an extended sentence, +are found at the start; a clear example of this is the first sentence +(with its repeated opening measure) of the Largo of the Seventh +Sonata. Sentences are also often expanded by the insertion of one or +more measures in the middle of the phrase, _e.g._, the beginning of +the first movement of the Seventh Sonata and the corresponding place +in the Fourth. In the former sentence the first phrase is perfectly +regular, but as we reach our final cadence only in the tenth measure, +we must account for some additional measures. The polyphonic imitation +of the descending motive of measure 5 makes clear that this measure +has two repetitions. In the latter case we reach the end of the +sentence in the 17th measure and careful counting, and consideration +of the melodic outline, will convince us that the 9th measure, +emphasized by the _sf_ mark, is repeated. + +When an extra measure is systematically introduced into each phrase of +4 measures we have what is known as "five-bar rhythm"--so prevalent in +the works of Schubert and Brahms. + +[Music: SCHUBERT: _Sonata in E[flat] major_] + +[Music: BRAHMS: _Ballade in G minor_] + +As everyone is familiar with the latter composition, only the melody +is cited. This propulsion of the mind forward beyond the accustomed +point of rest always produces a stimulating rhythmic effect.[61] + +[Footnote 61: Other charming examples of five-bar rhythm may be found +in Schubert's Quartet in A minor, op. 29, and in the opening choral +(St. Anthony) of Brahms's _Orchestral Variations_, op. 56a.] + +The normal phraseology of four and eight measures is altered at times +by the _omission_ of certain measures. This often takes place at the +beginning of the sentence, as may be seen from the structure of the +so-called Anglican chant, familiar to all Protestants, _e.g._ + +[Music: SAVAGE] + +The beginning of Mozart's _Overture to Figaro_ is also well known, +_e.g._ + +[Music] + +The elision of a measure often takes place in the middle of a phrase +as may be seen from the theme of Mendelssohn's familiar _Spring-Song_. + +[Music] + +Just as in the case of the systematic insertion of an extra measure, +which produces "five-bar rhythm," so when a measure is omitted in each +phrase which would usually consist of four measures, we have +"three-bar rhythm." This gives an effect of great concentration and +intensity and is a prevalent feature in Scottish and Hungarian +folk-music, _e.g._ + +[Music: Scotch] + +[Music: Hungarian] + +Additional examples of three-bar rhythm may be found in the Scherzo of +Beethoven's Tenth Sonata and in the Minuet of Mozart's _G minor +Symphony_--the latter, one of the most striking examples in +literature. + +When a measure is systematically omitted from the normal structure of +the 8 measure sentence we have "seven-bar rhythm"; of which beautiful +examples may be found in the Scherzo of Beethoven's Sonata in B-flat +major, op. 106, and in Mozart's Quartet in F major, No. 23. As these +examples are readily accessible they are not quoted. The humorous +effect produced, in the Beethoven example, by the unexpected elision +of the 7th measure is very marked. + +Flexibility in the structure of a sentence is often gained by what is +known as "overlapping"[62] of phrases, _i.e._, where the closing +measure of a sentence, the 8th or 12th for example, is identical with +the first measure of the following phrase. A clear example is this +passage from the first movement of Beethoven's Third Sonata, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 62: This effect is clearly brought out in symphonic music +where one portion of the orchestra, with a certain tone color, may be +ending a phrase at the same moment at which another part, with a +contrasting tone color, begins. An excellent example is the first +theme of the Slow movement of Schumann's Second Symphony (measures +7-8).] + +As the principles of sentence-formation are closely involved with the +general subject of rhythm, something must be known about the number of +beats within the measure itself. While it is true that we Anglo-Saxons +tend to think in terms of 2 and 3 or their multiples, _i.e._, our +customary measures consist of 2 or 4 beats or of 3, 6, 9 and 12, in +modern music--particularly that of other races (the Slavs, Hungarians, +etc.)--we often find measures with 5 and 7 beats and even phrases +containing a mixture of rhythms. Three excellent examples of +compositions with measures of 5 beats each are the Slow Movement of +Chopin's Sonata in C minor, op. 4, the F-sharp major portion of +d'Indy's Symphonic Variations, _Istar_, and the second movement of +Tchaikowsky Sixth Symphony, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +A delightful example of a melody with 7 beats a measure is the Andante +Grazioso of Brahms's Trio in C minor, op. 101--the result undoubtedly +of his well-known fondness for Hungarian music, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The following theme from Tchaikowsky's Quartet in F major, +notwithstanding the time signature, certainly gives the effect of a +long, seven-beat measure, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Those who wish to do a little investigating of their own in the field +of modern music will find interesting examples of 5/4 and 7/4 metres +in Ravel's _Daphnis and Chloe_, in d'Indy's Sonata for Violin and +Pianoforte and in the Ballet music of Stravinsky. + +We even find passages where, for special effect, the usual beats are +elided or extra beats inserted. Schumann was one of the most daring +experimenters in this respect and such fantastic effects are frequent +in his pianoforte works--notably in the _Carnaval_, op. 9, and in the +_Phantasiestuecke_, op. 12, _e.g._ + +[Music: SCHUMANN: _Carnaval_] + +With reference to all the foregoing principles and comments the +music-lover is cautioned against the assumption that music, from the +standpoint of the composer or the listener, is merely a matter of +mechanical counting; or that the "swing" of music is as regular as +that of a sewing-machine. But, as order is Heaven's first law, it is +true that music tends to move in definite, symmetrical groups; and +where departure is made from this practise the effect is one most +carefully planned. The matter deserves earnest consideration, for, in +what is known as the "rhythmical sense," Americans--as a people, in +comparison with foreign nations--are still woefully deficient. As +rhythm is the basic element in all music, there is nothing in which +the listener should more definitely train his faculties than in +intelligent cooperation with the freedom of the composer. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +THE TWO-PART AND THREE-PART FORMS + + +Now that a clear insight has been gained into the formation of the +normal sentence, we are in a position to understand how sentences may +be combined to make complete compositions. The simplest and most +primitive structure is that which contains _two_ complete sentences; +dividing itself naturally into _two_ parts and hence known as the +Two-Part Form. This form by reason of its simplicity and directness is +often found in the short pianoforte pieces of Schumann, Tchaikowsky, +Brahms, Grieg and Debussy. For a long period there was no attempt at +differentiation between vocal and instrumental style; music, in fact, +during the 15th and 16th centuries was often entitled "buon da cantare +ou suonare," _i.e._, equally well suited for voices or instruments. +When instrumental players were in search of pieces, they simply +transferred to their instruments the voice-parts of the Madrigals and +Canzonas which were then so fashionable.[63] With the development of +instruments--especially of the Violin family--and with the desire for +an instrumental style which should be independent of words, principles +of coherent design had to be evolved; and they were suggested by the +definite metre in the stanzas of the Folk-song and, above all, by the +symmetrical phrases of the Folk-dance, used to accompany the +_rhythmical_ motions of the body. By a utilization of these principles +of balanced phrases, of contrasted keys and of periodic themes, +instrumental music gradually worked out a structure of its own,[64] +of which we find examples in National dances and in the compositions +of such pioneers of instrumental style as the Italians Corelli and +Vivaldi, the Frenchmen Lully, Couperin and Rameau, and the Englishman +Purcell. + +[Footnote 63: For a complete account of this process see Parry's +_Evolution of the Art of Music_, p. 115 _seq._] + +[Footnote 64: This book makes no attempt to give an historical account +of the development of instrumental form. The subject is set forth +comprehensively in the article on Form in Grove's Dictionary (Vol. II, +p. 73) and in the Fifth and Sixth Chapters of Parry's _Evolution of +the Art of Music_.] + +[Music: + + Viens dans ce bocage belle Aminte, + Sans contrainte L'on y forme des voeux; + Viens, Viens dans ce bocage belle Aminte, + Il est fait pour les plaisirs et les jeux.] + +In this rhythmic and sprightly dance of exactly 8 measures (an old +French _Tambourin_ taken from Weckerlin's _Echos du Temps Passe_) we +see clearly the influence of the metrical stanza of words and of the +balanced phrases in the instrumental part, necessary to accompany the +steps of the dancers. The melody of the accompaniment was played on a +flute or some simple kind of pipe, and the bass on a Tambour de +Basque--a rude form of drum, which repeated continually the tonic and +dominant of the key; the same effect which we associate with the +Bagpipe and Hurdy-gurdy. + +[Music: PURCELL: Jig.] + +In this Jig, which was a favorite type with the English +peasantry--divided into three sentences of exactly 8 measures +each--the dance rhythm is very sharply defined. From various +dance-patterns a structural type was gradually evolved, of which the +chief features will now be indicated. The music was divided into _two_ +distinct halves and it became the convention to gain length by +repeating each half--in the early days of the form, _literally_ (with +a double bar and sign of repeat); later, as composers gained freedom, +with considerable amplification. Each half presented the _same_ +material (it was a _one_-theme form) but the two halves were +contrasted in _tonality_, _i.e._, the first part, beginning in the +home-key, would modulate to some related key--generally the dominant; +the second part, starting out in this key, gradually modulated back to +a final cadence in the original key, and often--especially in Haydn +and Mozart--repeated the entire main sentence of the first part. The +general effect of such a form has been wittily described[65] as +resembling the actions of "the King of France who, with twenty +thousand men, marched up the hill and then marched down again"--but he +surely had no exciting adventures in between! It is evident that this +form, while favorable to coherence and unity, is lacking in scope and +in opportunity for variety and contrast. It did, however, emphasize +the principle of recapitulation; in fact it became the convention (as +we shall see in the dances of the Suite) for the closing measures of +the second part to be an exact duplicate in the home-key of that which +had been presented at the end of part one. We shall observe, as we +continue our studies, that the trend of musical composition gradually +swung over to the Three-part form, the essential feature of which is +restatement after _intervening contrast_. + +[Footnote 65: See _The Appreciation of Music_ by Surette and Mason, p. +36.] + +For illustrations of the Two-part Form see the Supplement Nos. 20, 21, +22, 23, 24. + +Only in such comparatively simple examples as those just cited is +found this perfect balance in the length of the two parts. We often +observe extended sentences in the first part; and it became the custom +for the second part to be considerably lengthened, to include +modulations into more remote keys and even to display certain +developments of the main material. For a striking example of a +movement which, although definitely in Two-part form, (_i.e._, it is +in two clear divisions and has but _one_ theme) is yet of considerable +scope and variety, see the Allegretto of Beethoven's Fourth Sonata. It +was, in fact, this instinct for contrasting variety in the second +part[66] which (as can be shown from historical examples)[67] +gradually led to the developing and establishment of the Three-part +form. + +[Footnote 66: As an illustration of this tendency see the Scherzo of +Beethoven's Second Sonata, the second part of which has a new theme of +its own, although the movement as a whole is clearly in Two-part +form.] + +[Footnote 67: See _The Sonata Form_ by W.H. Hadow, Chapter III.] + +The essentials of this structure, so frequent in all pianoforte +literature, are the existence of _three_ distinct _parts_--hence the +name: a clause of assertion in the home-key; a second clause, +affording a genuine _contrast_ to the first part in regard to key, +melodic outline and general treatment, and a third clause of +reassertion, which shall repeat--either literally or in varied +form--the material of part one.[68] In the Three-part form, as +employed in the classic Minuet and Scherzo, each of the three parts +_taken by itself_ is in complete Two-part form; and as the third part +was generally a literal repetition of part one, it was not written +out, but at the end of the middle part (called the Trio, because it +was originally written in three-voiced harmony) we find the direction +"Minuet or Scherzo da capo," meaning a return to the first part. A +coda or tail-piece is often added to round out the form. As the +student will become thoroughly familiar with the Three-part form, in +connection with the classic Symphonies soon to be studied (each +Minuet, Scherzo or Trio being an example), our illustrations show the +use of this form in independent pieces and are chiefly taken from +modern literature; the object being so to interest the student in the +beauty of these compositions as to convince him that in all good music +content and design go hand is hand. For examples[69] see Supplement +Nos. 25, 26, 27. + +[Footnote 68: The three-part form is derived partly from the Italian +"da Capo Aria" and partly from the fundamental instinct for +restatement which we have seen in the Folk-song.] + +[Footnote 69: Additional illustrations, which will repay study are the +following: the Allegretto of Beethoven's Sixth Sonata; the Schubert +Impromptu, op. 90, No. 4; Brahms's Intermezzo, op. 117, No. 1 and the +Ballade in G minor, op. 118, No. 3, and for orchestra--in extended +treatment--Debussy's _Prelude a l'apres-midi d'un Faune_.] + + + + +CHAPTER VI + +THE CLASSICAL AND THE MODERN SUITE + + +No sooner had the Two-and Three-part forms become accepted as definite +means of instrumental expression, than composers were eager to try +their skill in combining dance-movements in such forms into larger +groups. These compositions--known in France as Ordres, in Germany as +Suites and Partitas and in England as Lessons--though all the +movements were in the _same key_, yet showed considerable variety by +reason of the contrast in the dance rhythms. They were, moreover, +simple, direct and easily understood of the people.[70] This +development was furthered by the perfecting of two groups of +instruments: The violins, by the great Italian masters; and those +precursors of our modern pianoforte, the harpsichord, clavichord and +spinet. We find, consequently, the Italians--of whom Corelli was most +prominent--combining these dances into groups called Sonate da Ballo: +and the French composers Couperin and Rameau, developing the +possibilities of keyed stringed instruments in graceful pieces to +which fantastic titles, such as _La Poule_, _Le Rappel des Oiseaux_, +etc., were often given. The greatest master of instrumental style in +these early days was the Italian, Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757). He +was famous both as composer and performer--the first, in fact, of the +long line of key-board virtuosi--and in his compositions in dance form +and in those of a more abstract type there is a sparkling fancy and an +adjustment of the thought to his instrument, which will keep them +forever immortal.[71] + +[Footnote 70: For an interesting and comprehensive account of this +development see Grove's Dictionary, Volume IV, article on the Suite.] + +[Footnote 71: For extensive comments on Scarlatti's style see _The +History of the Pianoforte and Pianoforte Players_ by Oscar Bie, pp. +68-90.] + +The grouping together of dance forms reached its highest development +through the genius of Sebastian Bach in the so-called _French and +English Suites_.[72] In these compositions--in the Partitas and in the +orchestral Suite in D major, which contains the well-known Aria, often +played in transcription for Violin solo--the dance-forms are not +employed literally but are made a vehicle for the expression of varied +types of human emotion and sentiment. Nor should we overlook the +twelve _Harpsichord Lessons_ of Handel--especially the superb Fugue in +E minor in the Fourth Suite--which are noteworthy for their vigor, +though, in freshness and delicacy of invention, not to be compared +with Bach's. + +[Footnote 72: These titles, according to Parry (see his life of Bach, +Chapters IV and XII passim), were not given by Bach himself but were +assigned, in the case of the French Suites, to denote the delicacy of +treatment found therein, and in the English, a certain massive style.] + +We now give a tabulated list of the customary dance forms, both as +found in the Classic and the modern Suite or used as independent +pieces; and we shall then analyze those which have the most +characteristic rhythmic pattern. + + +LIST OF DANCES + +_______________________________________________________________________________ +NAME | ORIGIN | METER | FORM | CHARACTER +___________|______________|__________|____________|____________________________ +Allemande | Suabian | 4/4 | Two-part | Moderately quick; + | | | | flowing, with a rather + | | | | rich harmonic texture. + | | | | +{Courante | French | 3/4, 3/2 | Two-part | Running, lively; the 2/2 +{Corrente | Italian | | | type always with a change + | | | | of meter at the cadences. + | | | | +Sarabande | Spanish | 3/2, 3/4 | Two-part | Stately, dignified; often + | | | | noble and even + | | | | dramatically pathetic. + | | | | +Hornpipe | English | 4/4 | Two-part | Rapid, merry, energetic. + | | | | +{Gigue | Italian | 6/8, | Two-part | Very lively, rollicking, +{Jig | giga, an | 12/8, | | even jocose. + | early violin | 4/8 | | + | | | | +Gavotte | French | 4/4, 2/2 | Two-part | Moderately fast; + | | | | well-marked rhythm, + | | | | often stately. + | | | | +Bourree | French | 4/4 | Two-part | Lively, vigorous. + | | | | +Minuet | French | 3/4, 3/8 | Two-part | Moderately fast; dainty, + | | | | graceful, courtly. + | | | | +Passepied | French | 3/4 | Two-part | Light, delicately animated. + | | | | +Loure | French | 6/4, 4/4 | Two-part | Rather slow, stately. + | | | | +Pavane | Italian | 2/4 | Two-part | Solemn, impressive. + | | | | +Galliard | Italian | 3/2, 2/2 | Two-part | Lively, merry. + | | | | +{Branle | French | 4/4, 3/4 | Two-part | Lively, with great abandon. +{Brawl | English | | | + | | | | +Polonaise | Polish | 3/4 | Varied | Dignified and courtly, but + | | | | with life. + | | | | +Mazurka | Polish | 3/4 | Varied | Great range of speed and + | | | | effect; at times sustained + | | | | and pathetic, often + | | | | bright and lively. + | | | | +Polka | Bohemian | 2/4 | Generally | Merry, animated. + | | | three-part | + | | | | +Furiant | Bohemian | 3/4 | Varied | Very lively, even frenzied. + | | | | +Waltz | German | 3/4 | Two-part | Graceful; varied in effect; + | | | or | at times lively, often + | | | three-part | slow. + | | | | +Bolero | Spanish | 3/4 | Three-part | Brisk, well-marked rhythm. + | | | | +Tarantella | Italian | 6/8 | Varied | Very lively, impassioned. + | | | | +Saltarello | Italian | 6/8, 3/4 | Varied | With quick, jumping + | | | | rhythm. + | | | | +Rigaudon | French | 2/4, 4/4 | Varied | Lively, gay. + | | | | +March | Found in | 4/4 | Varied | Stately, with marked + | every nation | | | rhythm. + | | | | +Csardas | Hungarian | 3/4, 2/4 | Varied | Impassioned; with great + | | | | variety of effect. + | | | | +Halling | Scandinavian | 2/4 | Varied | Fresh, vigorous, + | | | | out-of-doors atmosphere. + | | | | +Tango | Mexican | Varied | Varied | With reckless abandon. + | | | | +Habanera | Spanish | 2/4 | Varied | Graceful; with + | | | | characteristic rhythm. + | | | | +Seguidilla | Spanish | 3/4, 3/8 | Varied | Fantastic; sometimes + | | | | stately, sometimes gay + | | | | and lively. + | | | | +{Jota, | Spanish | 3/4 | Free | A kind of waltz, but with +{often | | | | more freedom in the +{Jota | | | | dancing, and of a vigorous +{Aragonesa | | | | and fiery nature. + | | | | + | | | | +Malaguena | Spanish | 3/8 | In couplet | A dance of moderate + | | | form | movement, accompanied by + | | | | guitar and castanets; + | | | | languorous and sensual in + | | | | mood. + | | | | +Siciliano | Sicilian | 6/8, | Two-part, | Graceful; of a Pastorale + | | 12/8 | three-part,| nature. + | | | often a | + | | | Rondo | +___________|______________|__________|____________|____________________________ + +The four indispensable movements of the classic or 18th century Suite +were the Allemande, the Courante, the Sarabande and the Gigue; and, +between the last two, it became customary to insert an optional number +of other dances--the most usual being the Gavotte, Bourree, Minuet and +Passepied. In effect, the Suite was a kind of "international +Potpourri" of the dances most in vogue, and affords us a vivid +reflection of the manners and customs of the period. Many of the +English Suites begin with an elaborate polyphonic Prelude. We shall +not give a detailed analysis of all these dance movements; for the +main characteristics the tabulated list will suffice, and in the book +of Supplementary examples (see No. 35) will be found the 6th French +Suite complete. It will be more useful to center attention on those +dances which, in rhythmic pattern, are especially typical and are most +frequently employed in modern music; and we shall select, as examples +drawn from various sources, those dances which make a direct appeal. +The most characteristic of the dances are the Sarabande, the Gavotte, +the Minuet and the Gigue; and with the last, as exemplifying the same +spirit, may be grouped the Rigaudon, Furiant, Tarantella and +Saltarello. + +The Sarabande is a slow, stately dance; always in triple meter +indicated by 3/2 or 3/4. Its striking features are the frequent +occurrence of the rhythmic pattern + +[Music] or [Music] + +in which it is evident that there is a strong accent on the weak +beats; and the prevalence of feminine endings in the cadences. The +Sarabande always displays great depth of emotion--often of a tragic +and impassioned kind; and, in the Suite, seems to have served the +composer for the same outpouring of feeling which we associate with +the slow movement in the later Sonata or Symphony. The example cited +in the Supplement (See No. 28)--taken from one of Bach's Sonatas for +'cello--is considered one of the most beautiful in existence. Other +eloquent Sarabandes may be found in the Second and Third English +Suites and in Handel's noble Air "Lascia ch'io pianga" from the opera +of _Rinaldo_. Two fine modern examples of this dance are the second +number in Paderewski's _Humoresques de Concert_, op. 14, and the +second number in the set of pieces by Debussy, _Pour le +Piano_--_Prelude_, _Sarabande_, _Toccata_. Composers sometimes employ +the Sarabande rhythm for its inherent beauty, or for dramatic purposes +without indication of the fact. Examples are the theme for variations +in Beethoven's Sonata, op. 109, and the opening measures of the +_Egmont Overture_ where, by means of the characteristic Spanish +dance-rhythm, an atmosphere of oppression and dejection is +established, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The Gavotte is an energetic yet dignified dance in duple rhythm (it is +almost always played too fast)--the characteristics of which are its +beginning on the half-measure and its strongly marked cadences. One of +the most stirring examples is that cited from the Third English Suite +(See Supplement No. 29) which, with its subdued middle portion, La +Musette,[73] is an early example of tripartite arrangement. Other +gavottes[74] are the favorite one from the Fifth French Suite, that +from Handel's opera _Ottone_ (so often played in organ or pianoforte +transcriptions) and, from modern literature, the charming one in +d'Albert's _Suite for Pianoforte_, op. 1. + +[Footnote 73: So-called because it is written on a sustained bass note +or pedal point; a feature of the Musette (the French name for Bagpipe) +being its persistent drone bass on the tonic and the dominant.] + +[Footnote 74: An interesting example may also be found in Grieg's +_Holberg Suite for Pianoforte_.] + +The Minuet is of particular interest, not alone because of the many +beautiful examples of its use but because it is the only dance which, +carried over from the Suite, has remained an integral movement of +Symphonic compositions. The Minuet, in its older form, was a stately +dance; the derivation of the term (French menu) referring to the +dainty steps of the dancers, always in 3/8 or 3/4 metre and beginning +on the first beat of the measure. By Haydn the character of the Minuet +was considerably changed; the tempo becomes much faster, the music +begins on the third beat of the measure instead of the first and the +mood is one of playful humor--at times even of downright jollity. In +the Minuets of Mozart the peculiar characteristics are grace and +tenderness rather than rollicking fun, _e.g._, the charming examples +in the E-flat major and G minor Symphonies. Concerning the +transformation by Beethoven of the Minuet into the Scherzo, with its +fantastic and freakish atmosphere, we shall speak more fully in +connection with his Symphonies. Of the examples cited in the +Supplement (see Nos. 30 and 31) the former, from the first Finale of +Mozart's opera _Don Giovanni_, remains one of the most famous minuets +in existence; and the two from Rameau's opera, _Castor and Pollux_, +are of inimitable spontaneity and rhythmic grace. They are grouped in +contrasting, tripartite arrangement. In modern literature every one +knows of the melodious example for Pianoforte by Paderewski (No. 1 of +the _Humoresques de Concert_) and the _Menuet Italien_ by Mrs. Beach; +that in the last scene of Verdi's _Falstaff_ is also well worth +acquaintance. + +The last of the particularly characteristic dances is the Gigue with +its counterparts mentioned above. This is a rapid, animated dance in +6/8, 3/8, 12/8, 12/16 (sometimes 4/4) with marked rhythm; the term +being derived from giga (German, geige)--an early name for fiddle--on +account of the power of accent associated with the violin family. The +Gigue is always the closing number of Bach's Suites, in order to give +a final impression of irrepressible vitality and gaiety, and is +treated with considerable polyphonic complexity; in fact, his gigues +often begin like a complete Fugue. They are all in clear-cut Two-part +form; and it became the convention for the second part to treat the +motive in _inverted_ form. The example cited from Bach's Fifth French +Suite (see Supplement No. 32) is unsurpassed for rhythmic energy; the +closing measures sound as if all the bells of heaven were ringing. The +example of Mozart (see Supplement No. 33) is noteworthy for its daring +use of the dissonant element and for its free modulations. Of the +counterparts of the gigue the following are excellent examples: The +Rigaudon--the Finale of Grieg's _Holberg Suite_, the vigorous one from +Rameau's opera _Dardanus_, and MacDowell's independent piece in this +form, op. 49, No. 2; the Furiant--the Finale of Dvo[vr]ak's _Suite for +Small Orchestra_, op. 30 (accessible in an effective pianoforte +arrangement for four hands); the _Tarantelle_--Chopin's independent +piece in this rhythm, op. 43, and the brilliant Finale of +Rheinberger's Pianoforte Sonata for four hands, op. 122; the +Saltarello--the last movement of Mendelssohn's _Italian Symphony_ and +the main portion of Berlioz's _Carnaval Romain Overture_. One +additional example is cited (see Supplement No. 34), a Courante by D. +Scarlatti, to give an example of his pianoforte style. In connection +with these dances, especially the Sarabande, Gavotte, Loure, Pavane, +Polonaise and Tarantelle, there should be read the articles treating +of each dance in Grove's Dictionary; for these dances are so closely +connected with human activity that a knowledge of their development +broadens our horizon in many matters pertaining to social life and +civilization in general. As to specific examples of the less usual +dances, many of the quaintest are found in the works of the early +English composers: Byrd, Bull, etc., in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book, +_e.g._, _The Lord of Salisbury his Pavan_. An excellent example of the +Loure is the well-known arrangement from Bach's third 'Cello sonata. +Chopin, in his works, has glorified both the Polonaise and the +Mazurka; Bizet, in his opera Carmen, has used the Habanera and the +Seguidilla, and there is a wonderful use of the Habanera rhythm in +Debussy's descriptive piece _Soiree dans Grenade_. The French composer +Ravel in his pianoforte piece _Pavane pour un enfant defunt_ has used +with remarkable effect the stately rhythm of that dance. The Spanish +composers, Albeniz and Granados, frequently employ national dance +rhythms in their pieces. The French composer Chabrier's _Bourree +Fantasque_ is a dazzling modernization of the old form; and his +_Espana_ for full orchestra fairly intoxicates us with its dashing +rhythms based upon the Jota and the Malaguena.[75] Debussy's +well-known piece _Hommage a Rameau_ is in the style of the Sarabande. +The allusions in literature to these dances are so frequent that only +a few can be cited. The very spirit of the Jig is given in Pope's line +"Make the soul dance upon a jig to Heaven." In speaking of the antics +of Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night, Shakespeare remarks--"I did +think by the excellent constitution of thy leg that it was formed +under the star of a Galliard." One of the most remarkable works of the +English composer John Dowland (born 1562) is entitled _Lachrymae, or +Seven Teares, figured in seven passionate Pavans_. + +[Footnote 75: For a vivid description of these dances see Chabrier's +_Lettres a Nanette_, Paris, 1910.] + +The Suite, by reason of its freedom in combining different rhythms and +moods, has appealed vividly to modern composers; and the literature of +our times contains a number of Suites which should be known to the +music-lover. In these modern Suites no attempt is made to conform to +the old conventional grouping of dances. The movements are in +different keys, are often based on rhythms of an exotic or +ultra-nationalistic type--as in Tchaikowsky and Dvo[vr]ak, or may +employ any material suggested by the fantastic imagination of the +composer--as in Debussy and Ravel. Among the most attractive modern +Suites may be cited: The _Peer Gynt_ (put together from incidental +music to Ibsen's play) and the _Holberg_ by Grieg; the two +_L'Arlesienne Suites_ by Bizet (written to illustrate Daudet's +romantic story)--the first, with its dainty Minuet and brilliant +Carillons (Peal of bells); Dvo[vr]ak's _Suite for Small Orchestra_, +op. 39, with its sprightly Polka and impassioned Furiant; +Tchaikowsky's five Orchestral Suites of which the best known are the +_Casse-Noisette_ with its exotic rhythms and novel orchestral effects, +the _Mozartiana_ and the third which closes with a brilliant +Polonaise; Brahms's _Serenades_ for orchestra; Charpentier's +_Impressions of Italy_ in which there is an effective use of Italian +rhythm and color; MacDowell's _Indian Suite_, with several of the +themes based on native tunes; the fascinating orchestral Suite +_Adventures in a Perambulator_ by John Alden Carpenter; Arthur +Whiting's _Suite Moderne_ for pianoforte; _Stevensoniana_, (based on +stanzas from Stevenson's _Child's Garden of Verses_) an orchestral +Suite in four movements by Edward B. Hill; Debussy's _Suite +Bergamasque_ in which is found the oft-played _Clair de Lune_; +Ravel's[76] _Mother Goose_, a delightful work--and by the same +composer the _Daphnis and Chloe_ Suite, the material drawn from an +opera of the same name. In modern literature easily the most +celebrated and brilliant example of this type is the _Scheherazade +Suite_ (based on the Arabian Nights) for full orchestra by +Rimsky-Korsakoff. This work in the genuine poetic quality of its +themes, in its marvellous descriptive power and in the boldness of its +orchestral effect remains unsurpassed. + +[Footnote 76: See also _Le Tombeau de Couperin_ in which is a very +novel Rigaudon.] + + + + +CHAPTER VII + +THE OLDER RONDO FORM + + +One of the earliest instrumental forms to be worked out[77] was the +Rondo, which is merely an extension of the _three-part_ principle of +"restatement after contrast" and which, by reason of its logical +appeal, has retained its place to this day. Originally the Rondo was a +combination of dance and song; that is, the performers sang and danced +in a circle--holding one another's hands. The music would begin with a +chorus in which all joined, one of the dancers would then sing a solo, +after which all would dance about and repeat the chorus; other solos +would follow, the chorus being repeated after each. The characteristic +feature, then, of this structure is the _continual recurrence_ to a +principal motive after intervening contrasts--hence the name Rondo +(French, Rondeau); exemplifying a principle found not only in +primitive folk-songs and dances but in literature, _e.g._, many of the +songs of Burns and the Rondeaux of Austin Dobson. For it is obvious +that the form answers to the simplest requirements of unity and +contrast. Frequent examples of the Rondo are found in all early +instrumental composers: Bach, _e.g._, the charming one in C minor in +his third Partita; Couperin, Rameau, Haydn and Mozart. It is found +also in vocal works, _e.g._, Purcell's well-known song "I Attempt from +Love's Sickness to Fly." From the standpoint of modern taste, however, +Beethoven was--with few exceptions--the first to treat the form with +real genius; and so our illustrations are taken chiefly from his +works and from those of his successors. Although there need be no +arbitrary limit to the alternation of the chief part with the +subsidiary portions--in fact, Beethoven's humorous _Rondo Capriccio, +On a Lost Farthing_ has as many as _eleven_ sections--it gradually +became conventional for the form to consist of _five parts_: a first +presentation and two repetitions of the main theme together with two +contrasting portions called _Episodes_, to which a free Coda was often +added. The form would then be A, b, A', c, A'', Coda--A' and A'' +indicating that the repetition need not be _literal_, but often varied +rhythmically and harmonically; not, however, so as to obliterate the +original outline. For in a well-constructed Rondo the main theme must +be one of such direct appeal that we _look forward_ to hearing it +_again_; and the successive repetitions must be so planned that we can +easily enjoy this pleasure of reminiscence. It also became customary +not to block off the sections with rigid cadences but often to insert +modulatory passages, thus securing a continuous flow of thought. This +practise we see particularly in Beethoven and Schumann. The form which +we are discussing is the so-called Older Rondo Form, clearly derived +from the dance described above. Beginning[78] with Beethoven, however, +we find numerous examples of a different kind of rondo treatment which +developed in connection with the Sonata Form--to be explained later. +The Rondo-Sonata Form, as it is generally called, is in fact a hybrid +type, with certain features derived from rondo structure and certain +from the pure sonata form. The Finales to Beethoven's Sonatas, when +entitled Rondos, are--with few exceptions--of this Rondo-Sonata type. +An excellent example, which should be well known, is the Finale of the +Sonata Pathetique. Although there are many cases of _free_ treatment +of the rondo principle, they are all based on one or the other of +these two fundamental types. Schumann was extremely fond of this Older +Rondo Form, as may be seen from his frequent practice of writing two +Trios to the Scherzos of his Symphonies. A moment's thought will make +clear that a Scherzo with two Trios and the customary repetitions will +conform exactly to the pattern given above, _i.e._, A, b, A', c, A'' +Coda, _e.g._, Scherzo, First Trio = First Episode, First return, +Second Trio = Second Episode, Final return and Coda--five portions in +all, or six when there is a Coda. For convincing examples see the +Scherzos of the First and Second Symphonies. Schumann's well-known +_Arabesque_ for pianoforte, op. 18, is a beautiful, clear-cut example +of the form; with an interpolated modulatory passage between the first +episode and first return, and a poetic Coda which has, for its closing +measures, the chief motive in augmentation (already referred to on p. +45). To show Schumann's partiality for this form the student may be +referred to Nos. 2 and 8 of the _Kreisleriana_ (op. 16) and to Nos. 1, +2 and 3 of the "Nachtstuecke" (op. 23). The third of the _Romances_ +(op. 28)--a remarkably free example in the grouping of the material +and in the key-relationship--is cited in the Supplement (No. 37). An +excellent example (readily accessible), popular by reason of its +freedom of treatment, as well as for its inherent sparkle and dash, is +the Finale of Weber's Sonata in C major, op. 24--the so-called _Moto +Perpetuo_. The most famous example of this form in classical +literature is undoubtedly the Finale of Beethoven's _Waldstein +Sonata_, op. 53, with its melodious and easily remembered first +subject, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Music] + +its two episodes in A minor and C minor (which afford most dramatic +contrasts to the lyric quality of the main subject) and its glorious, +long-extended Coda of about three pages.[79] + +[Footnote 77: For a complete account of the historical development see +the article on Form in Grove's Dictionary Vol. II and Hadow's _Sonata +Form_, Chapter IX.] + +[Footnote 78: There is an early example in the Rondo of Mozart's +Sonata for Pianoforte in B-flat major.] + +[Footnote 79: For a complete detailed analysis of the movement see +Prout, _Applied Forms_, pp. 120-121.] + +As stated above, the Older Rondo-Form has not become obsolete; indeed, +by reason of its possibilities for emphasis and contrast it has +commended itself to modern composers. Striking examples may be found +in the Finale of Brahms's Pianoforte Sonata in F minor, in the Finale +of Tchaikowsky's Fourth Symphony and, above all, in the Symphonic +Poems of Strauss, _Don Juan_ and _Till Eulenspiegel_, in which the +form is admirably adapted to the dramatic needs of these descriptive +works. Additional examples, which can be readily procured, are the +Slow Movement of the _Sonata Pathetique_, op. 13, Beethoven's +well-known _Andante in F major_--remarkable for its brilliant +Coda--and his Rondo, already cited, _On the Lost Farthing_. (See +Supplement No. 38). Although there is a certain stiffness in this form +these examples afford the student excellent rudimentary practise in +ease of listening. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +THE VARIATION FORM + + +Monotony, as previously suggested, is more unendurable in music than +in any of the other arts. We should therefore expect to find musicians +inventing new devices to vary their thoughts so that the interest of +the hearer might be continually sustained and refreshed. Thus there +gradually grew up the form known as the Varied Air--a term meaning the +presentation of the same musical material under different aspects. As +far back as we can trace the development of instrumental structure, +there appears this instinct for varying a simple tune by +embellishments of a rhythmical and melodic nature. Examples abound in +the works of the early Italian masters, in the harpsichord pieces of +the English composers Byrd and Bull[80] and in the music of Couperin +and Rameau. But all these Variations, however interesting from a +historical point[81] of view, are very labored and lack any real +poetic growth. They are, moreover, often prolonged to an interminable +length--one example, as late as Handel, consisting of an Air with +sixty-two Variations; prolixity or "damnable iteration" being as bad a +blemish in music as in any of the other arts. In the early days of +instrumental composition, about all that composers could do was "to +put the theme through its paces." That is, there was no unfolding of +the poetic possibilities of the melody. The successive variations were +all in the same key; the harmonic basis was practically unchanged and +the treatment consisted of dressing up the theme with stereotyped +embellishment-figures and of systematic rhythmic animation--produced +by the addition of more and more notes to each time unit. A standard +illustration of this type of Variations is the so-called _Harmonious +Blacksmith_ of Handel from his _Suite in E Major_. This piece owes +whatever popularity it may have preserved to the sturdy swing of the +main theme and to the fact that it makes no demand on the attention of +the most untrained listener. In fairness we should state that on the +harpsichord--with its contrasting stops and key-boards--for which the +piece was composed, there is possible more variety of effect than on +the modern pianoforte. + +[Footnote 80: We would cite the piece entitled _Les Buffons_ by Bull, +and Byrd's variations to the popular tune the _Carman's Whistle_, +which latter have considerable archaic charm and distinction; for Byrd +was a real genius. These are readily accessible in popular editions.] + +[Footnote 81: Consult the comprehensive article on Variations in +Grove's Dictionary, Vol. V.] + +Three collateral early forms deserve a passing mention because, +notwithstanding a certain rigidity of structure, they have been used +by the great masters for the expression of sublime thoughts. These are +the Ground Bass (or, as it is sometimes called, the Basso Ostinato), +the Chaconne and the Passacaglia[82] which, in modern literature, is +well represented by the magnificent "tour de force" that serves as the +Finale to Brahms's _Fourth Symphony_. By a Ground Bass is meant a +theme, continually repeated, in the lowest voice, each time with +varied upper parts. An excellent example (see Supplement No. 39) is +the Aria "When I am laid in earth" from Purcell's Opera _Dido and +Aeneas_. It is evident that the persistent iteration of a striking +phrase in the bass gives an effect of dramatic intensity, as may be +seen in the sublime "Crucifixion" of Bach's _Mass in B minor_.[83] +The Chaconne and Passacaglia are old dance forms (examples of the +former being found in Gluck's Ballet Music) and are closely related to +the Ground Bass; since, in the majority of cases, we find the same +procedure in the announcement of the theme and in its subsequent +treatment. Two examples of the Chaconne from standard literature are +the famous one of Bach in D minor for solo violin and Beethoven's +thirty-two Variations in C minor for Pianoforte. The Passacaglia is of +importance as shown by the striking example for organ in C minor by +Bach on the following theme: + +[Music] + +Whoever has heard this majestic theme, which seems to bear the sorrows +of the world on its shoulders, announced on the deep-sounding pedals +will gain a lasting impression of the grandeur of Bach's style. + +[Footnote 82: For the derivation of the term consult the interesting +article in Grove's Dictionary, Vol. IV.] + +[Footnote 83: A work before which Schumann said every musician should +prostrate himself in adoration.] + +By the time of Haydn, the technical skill of composers had improved +sufficiently so that we find in his works some genuinely interesting +examples of the Variation form, _e.g._, the set on the well-known +Austrian hymn from the _Kaiser Quartet in C major_--in which each of +the five variations has a real individuality--and the _Variations in F +minor for Pianoforte_: remarkable as an early example of the varied +treatment of _two_ themes. + +Most of Mozart's Variations are based upon popular themes and, in +general, may be considered as virtuoso pieces to show off the agility +of the performer. We find occasional examples, as in the Clarinet +Quintette and in the Sonata in D major, which are of more intrinsic +worth. + +The genius of Beethoven first revealed the full possibilities of the +form. In fact, so remarkable was his work that such creative composers +as Cesar Franck and d'Indy consider the basic principles for our +modern development of music to be found in the Fugue of Bach and the +Varied Air of Beethoven. For, deadly dull as is the Variation form +when treated in a stereotyped manner, by very reason of its freedom +from arbitrary rules it may be a most elastic medium for the +expression of poetic genius. The composer has but to invent a striking +characteristic theme, rich in potential development, and then to let +it develop for as long as he can retain the interest of his hearers. +Likewise for a great orator the simple rule is to state a theme on +which something worth while may be said and then by presenting it in +new lights and with copious illustrations to drive the truth home. The +principal and significant changes which we owe to Beethoven are the +following: complete freedom in variety of key, so that at times (as in +his op. 34) each variation is in a new key; a frequent omission of the +rigid stops at the end of each variation, _e.g._, the Slow movement of +the _Fifth Symphony_ and the third movement of the _Trio_, op. 96, so +that a continuous flow of thought is preserved; the practice, so often +followed in modern literature, of founding variations on a double +theme--of which the Finale of the _Heroic Symphony_ is a striking +example. But the chief advance in Beethoven is the entirely new +conception of what variations should be; not, according to him, mere +mechanical manipulations of the subject matter, but vital products of +the imagination, as varied as the members of a human family having the +same mother. Beethoven's variations, in fact, often seem like a series +of character-pieces, each with its own individuality and yet retaining +an organic relationship to the main thought. His fondness for the form +and his mastery over it is seen by the frequency of its use in the +last Sonatas and String-Quartets. Every composer since Beethoven has +written one or more works in the Variation form; but we can mention +only the most beautiful examples and then pass on to the daring +conceptions of the modern school. The Variations by Schubert in his +String-Quartet in D minor on the Song, _Death and the Maiden_, will +amply repay study, and so will the _Variations Serieuses_, op. 54, for +the pianoforte by Mendelssohn. As for Schumann, he was very happy in +the use of this form, and his _Symphonic Etudes_, op. 13--in wealth of +fancy and freedom of treatment--are quite unparalleled. His Variations +for two pianofortes, op. 46, deserve also to be known. Among the +finest examples since Beethoven are the numerous sets by Brahms, +remarkable alike for emotional power, for free and yet logical +treatment of the material and for solidity of workmanship. They +include the _Variations on a theme from Handel_ for pianoforte, op. +24; the set for orchestra, op. 56a, on the _St. Anthony Choral_ of +Haydn; and the two sets, op. 35, on themes from Paganini--universally +conceded to be the most brilliant examples for the pianoforte in +recent literature. + +To speak now particularly of the modern school, there are five +compositions in this form which, for their daring novelty and +sustained eloquence, should be familiar to every music-lover and heard +as often as possible. For they are elaborate works which must be +thoroughly known to be understood and loved. (1), There is the set in +Tchaikowsky's Pianoforte Trio in A minor, op. 50; noteworthy for +freedom of modulation and for the striking individuality given to the +different transformations of the theme--two of the changes being to a +Waltz and a Mazurka. (2), _The Symphonic Variations_ for Pianoforte +and Orchestra of Cesar Franck, based on two contrasting themes, one in +the minor mode and one with modulations to the major. The variations +are not numbered and there are no rigid stops; throughout the work +Franck's marvellous power of modulation and rich harmonic texture are +eloquently manifested. (3), The _Istar_ Variations for orchestra by +d'Indy is one of the most original works in the whole field; in that, +for dramatic reasons connected with the subject, the usual order is +_reversed_ and the variations come _first_, gradually becoming more +and more simple until we reach the theme itself, pure and unadorned. +(4), The Symphonic Poem, _Don Quixote_, of R. Strauss, a complex set +of Variations on _three_ themes which typify respectively the +characters of Cervantes' story; the Knight, his attendant, Sancho +Panza and Dulcinea. The variations are not confined to a merely +abstract or formal treatment of the material but set before us a +picture of the attributes of the characters and a description of some +of their spectacular adventures. (5), Lastly the _Enigma Variations_ +for orchestra by Elgar, so-called because the identity of the basic +theme is not revealed. The variations are character-pieces which for +individuality and charm are a lasting glory to the genius of the +composer.[84] + +[Footnote 84: For a detailed account see the third volume of D.G. +Mason's _Appreciation of Music_ series.] + +We shall now analyze, with suggestive comments, two[85] of the +well-known sets of Beethoven: the first movement of the Sonata, op. +26, and the _Six Variations on an original theme_, op. 34. The +variations from the Sonata are an early work; but, although definitely +sectionalized and with only one change of tonality, they clearly +reveal Beethoven's freedom of conception and his aversion to +stereotyped treatment. The theme itself is a suave, appealing melody, +already cited as an example of a sixteen-measure sentence, and +admirably suited for variation purposes, since it arouses at once the +expectation of the listener.[86] The first variation is a kind of +shadowy, mysterious outline of the theme just presented, as if the +composer were musing upon the latent possibilities of his material. +There is a quickening of interest in the second variation which, with +the theme in the bass, may be likened to a 'cello solo of a mildly +bravura nature. (Note the fantastic accents on weak beats in measures +18, 22, 23, and 24.) In the third variation comes a complete contrast +in mood; the key is changed to A-flat minor and the theme is +transformed into an elegy, all its joy crushed out. The movement +abounds in impassioned dissonances, always emphasized by _sf_ marks, +and the throbbing pulsations of the bass--in the second phrase--give a +tragic intensity of feeling. With the fourth variation there enters +that spirit of playfulness so characteristic of Beethoven--the +movement being, in fact, a miniature Scherzo. The fifth and last +variation is an idyllic revery in which the composer reviews and +amplifies the many beautiful fancies which his imagination has +conceived, and closes with a coda, based on the motive of the main +theme, of tranquillity and satisfaction. + +[Footnote 85: These compositions are not printed in the Supplement, as +it may be assumed that the student can readily procure them. They are +published in a number of editions.] + +[Footnote 86: For some illuminating comments on the whole Sonata see +Baxter Perry's _Descriptive Analysis of Pianoforte Works_. (The +Theodore Presser Co.)] + +The set in F major, op. 34, is a striking illustration of Beethoven's +fondness for mediant relationship, since no two variations are in the +same key; the tonic of each being a _third_ below that of the +preceding. The Key-scheme is F, D, B-flat, G, E-flat, C minor; and +then, through the descent of a fifth, back to the home-key, or in +actual notes: + +[Music] + +The first variation is a highly embellished treatment of the opening +theme; the melodic outline being merely hinted at in unimportant parts +of the phraseology, _e.g._ + +[Music: original theme] + +[Music: 1st Variation] + +Written in the old ornate style, it is of interest chiefly for the +pianistic effect. In the second Variation we have a change both of +time and key; the impression being that of a distant march for men's +voices or for soft trombones. The third Variation, again with change +of time and key, illustrates Beethoven's fondness for a subtle +outlining of the theme. In the fourth Variation the theme is +transformed into a Minuet of graceful swing; and in the next Variation +a strong contrast is afforded by the Funeral March, the minor mode +being used for the first time. The last Variation--in the +home-key--gives a brilliant summing up of the characteristic features +of the theme. Note especially the reminiscent effect of the closing +measures. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + +THE SONATA-FORM AND ITS FOUNDERS, EMMANUEL BACH AND HAYDN + + +We have now set forth, with representative illustrations, all the +fundamental forms of instrumental music, _i.e._, the Canon, Fugue and +Invention, the Two and Three-part forms, the Rondo and the Varied Air. +Through the perfecting of these means of expression music became a +living language of communication, ready for that development which, +through the genius of the Classic and Romantic masters, it was +destined to show. The essential feature of all the above forms is the +emphasis laid on _one theme_. This is strictly true of the polyphonic +forms, the Canon, Fugue[87] and Invention and of the Two-part form; +and although in the Three-part form we have a second theme, this is +merely for contrast and is often of rather slight import. The same +comment holds true of the Rondo where, notwithstanding the new +contrasting themes of the episodes, the centre of attraction is the +_single main theme_, to which constant recurrence is made. Obviously +the Varied Air is the expansion of a single theme. But the principal +characteristic of the Sonata-Form, now to be studied, is that we find +therein _two themes_ of coequal importance, which may well be compared +to the hero and heroine of a novel or the two leading characters in a +drama. It is true that a composer will often in the creations of his +imagination show a marked preference for one theme over the other; +just as, in the family group to which the child owes its life, either +the man or the woman is likely to be the stronger character. But as +there can be no child without two parents, so the organism of the +Sonata-Form derives its vitality from the presence and interaction of +two living musical personalities, the first and second themes. The +first theme is so called because it is the one first presented and +because it generally furnishes the prevailing rhythmic pulse of the +movement. Yet the second theme,--exactly as important in its own way, +is often of a greater beauty; its title of "second theme" implying +nothing of a secondary nature, but merely its position in order of +appearance. No greater step was ever taken in the growth of musical +structure than this introduction of a second coequal theme; for the +principle of duality, of action and reaction between two forces, runs +throughout nature both human and physical, as is seen from the import +of the terms: man and woman, active and passive, positive and +negative, heat and cold, light and darkness. The first theme, in fact, +often resembles, in its vigor and directness, a masculine personality; +while the second theme, in grace and tenderness, resembles the +feminine. As long as music confined itself to the presentation of but +one main theme it was hampered by the same limitations which beset the +early Greek tragedians, in whose primitive plays[88] we find but one +chief actor. The introduction of a second theme can not be attributed +to _any single man_; indeed it resulted from a tendency of the times, +the demand of which was for more homophonic melodies rather than for +an elaborate polyphonic treatment of a single one. Embryonic traces of +a second theme we find in D. Scarlatti (see Supplement No. 40) and in +Sebastian Bach himself.[89] Scarlatti,[90] in fact, was often hovering +close to the Sonata-Form and in the example just cited actually +achieved it. The systematic employment of the second-theme principle, +however, is commonly attributed to Emmanuel Bach (1714-1788), although +an undue amount of praise, by certain German scholars, has been given +his achievements to the exclusion of musicians from other nations who +were working along the same lines. Any fair historical account of the +development of the Sonata-Form should recognize the Italians, +Sammartini and Galuppi; the gifted Belgian Gossec, who exercised such +a marked influence in Paris, and above all, the Bohemian Johann +Stamitz (1717-1757), the leader of the famous Mannheim Orchestra, of +whom we shall speak further when we come to the orchestra as a medium. +In many of Stamitz's Symphonies we find the essential first-movement +structure (_i.e._, tripartite grouping with a clear second theme) and, +as Riemann says in his _Handbuch der Musikgeschichte_, "Their sincere +phraseology, their boldness of conception and the masterly _thematic +development_ give Stamitz's works lasting value. Haydn and Mozart rest +absolutely upon his shoulders."[91] + +[Footnote 87: Except in the comparatively rare cases where we have a +Fugue on two subjects.] + +[Footnote 88: Illuminating comments on this point will be found in +_Outlines of Musical Form_ from W.H. Hadow's _Studies in Modern Music_ +(2nd Series).] + +[Footnote 89: See the prelude in D major of the second book of the +_Well-tempered Clavichord_.] + +[Footnote 90: For further information consult the first chapter of +J.S. Shedlock's _The Pianoforte Sonata_.] + +[Footnote 91: For an extended account of this development see the +second chapter, Vol. II, of _The Art of Music_ (The National Society +of Music, N.Y.). See also Chapter XIX of Pratt's _History of Music_.] + +The other marked characteristic of the Sonata-Form is the _second_ +part which is known as the Development Section; for, as we shall soon +explain, the structure as a whole is tripartite. In this portion of +the movement the composer has an opportunity to improvise, as it were, +with his material, using one theme or both as already presented. Dry +and labored development sections may, of course, be found in certain +Sonatas and Symphonies, but in the great works of such masters as +Beethoven, Brahms, Tchaikowsky and d'Indy the development is the most +exciting part of the movement. The hearer is conducted through a +musical excursion; every device of rhythmic variety, of modulatory +change and polyphonic imitation being employed to enhance the beauty +of the themes and to reveal their latent possibilities. + +Before going further, it is well to point out a confusion which often +arises between the terms Sonata and Sonata-Form. When we speak of +Sonata-_Form_ we mean invariably the structural treatment as to number +of themes, key-relationship, etc., of _any single_ movement within a +series.[92] By the term Sonata is meant a composition generally in +three or four movements, _e.g._, First Movement, Slow Movement, Minuet +or Scherzo and Finale; of which, in most examples of the classic +school, the First Movement--and often the last--were in Sonata-Form. +An alternative name, indeed, for Sonata-Form is First Movement Form. +Beginning with Beethoven, however, composers began to exhibit great +freedom in the application of the Sonata-Form. We find Sonatas of +Beethoven, notably the set op. 31, in which every movement (even the +Scherzo) is in Sonata Form or a modification thereof; on the other +hand, there are compositions, entitled Sonatas, in which not a single +movement is in pure Sonata-Form, _e.g._, Beethoven's Twelfth Sonata, +op. 26. These comments apply equally to many other large instrumental +works. For a symphony is merely a Sonata for Orchestra, a +String-Quartet a composition--of the same general type--for four solo +instruments[93] and there is, furthermore, a large group of ensemble +compositions: Sonatas for Violin (or any solo-instrument) and +Pianoforte; Trios, often for unusual combinations, _e.g._, Brahms's +_Trio for Violin, Horn and Pianoforte_; Quintets and even Septets--in +all of which the distinction must be made between the terms Sonata and +Sonata-Form. Nor is there any rigid rule in regard to number of +movements or the moods expressed therein. The classic Sonata, Symphony +or Quartet, as we have stated above, generally contained three or four +movements, of which the first would be direct and vigorous in +nature--a summons to attention--cast in sonata-form, with a wealth of +material organically treated, and requiring from the listener +concentrated attention. The second movement was generally much simpler +in form, affording relief after the tension of the preceding +movement--its themes of a lyric nature, often with great depth of +emotion, sometimes even of tragic import. The third movement, Minuet +or Scherzo, would portray the light, humorous side of life; and the +Finale, joyful and optimistic--its themes often bearing strongly the +sense of finality--would close the work with a general feeling of +satisfaction. It was Beethoven who first modified these principles to +suit his own poetic needs. Thus we find some of his Sonatas with only +two movements; some have three, some have four. One of Schumann's +Symphonies contains five movements and Rubinstein's _Ocean Symphony_ +seven! When we reach the modern school, we shall see further freedom +as to number, order and type of movements. + +[Footnote 92: The form is also sometimes used independently, as in +Brahms's _Rhapsody in G minor_ and often, of course, in the Overture.] + +[Footnote 93: _I.e._, 1st Violin, 2d Violin, Viola and Violoncello.] + +We are now prepared to sum up the essential characteristics of the +Sonata-Form; for there is no structure in which it is more important +for the music-lover to acquire the art of listening easily, naturally +and with a minimum of friction. The Sonata-Form is the instrumental +form "par excellence"--the Gothic Cathedral[94] of music--and has +retained its place, not because of any slavish regard for form as +such, but because it has been worked out, perfected and utilized by +the greatest of the composers. Any form with a beginning, a middle and +an ending, _i.e._, presenting material worthy of consideration, which +allows this material to grow and realize its inherent possibilities +and then sums the matter up in a convincing, objective close; which, +furthermore, exemplifies the great principle of Duality, _i.e._, +reveals _two_ musical personalities, has as little need for +argumentative sanction as a tree or a human being. The Sonata-Form--often, +to be sure, with free modifications--predominates in all the large +instrumental compositions of the Classic, Romantic and Modern +Composers, notably of such men as Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms, Cesar +Franck, Tchaikowsky, d'Indy and Sibelius. Anyone unable readily to +follow movements in this form, if he thinks he is receiving the +complete message of the music, is his own dupe. It would be as logical +to expect to enjoy the beauties of architecture without perceiving the +difference between a nave and a bowling-alley. The obvious way to +understand the meaning of a language is to know something of the +principles of structure and expression in that language. Music is in +very truth a language; and far too many people get from it nothing +save the appeal which comes from its emotional power. This exciting +experience is important, we may frankly acknowledge, but there are no +reasons, save apathy and indifference, why the hearer should not have +all this and more too. There is no conflict between warm emotions and +an intelligent, well-trained mind. They should go hand in hand; and in +any complete artistic appreciation each is indispensable.[95] + +[Footnote 94: See the eloquent comments on this analogy by d'Indy in +his _Course in Composition_, Vol. II, Chap. 5.] + +[Footnote 95: "Art is not more a riot of the passions than it is a +debauch of the senses; it contains, no doubt, sensuous and emotional +elements, the importance of which there is no need to undervalue, but +it is only artistic if it subordinate them to the paramount claims of +reason." W.H. Hadow, _Studies in Modern Music_ (second series), +preface.] + +The three main divisions of the Sonata-Form, with their essential +features, are the following: (1) the Exposition, in which two themes +in different tonalities are announced for the consideration--and, as +the composer hopes, the pleasure--of the hearer. In the works of Haydn +and Mozart this contrast of key was invariably that of Tonic and +Dominant, _e.g._, C major and G major, or of major and relative minor, +_e.g._, A-flat major and F minor. Beginning, however, with Beethoven +great emphasis has been laid on _mediant_ relationship, _e.g._, C +major and E major or C major and A-flat major; and in modern +composers[96] this more stimulating change has largely superseded the +former tonic and dominant grouping, _e.g._, Brahms's _Third Symphony_. +We thus see that the harmonic feature of the Exposition is _Duality_ +of Key-relationship. Between these two main themes there is always a +modulatory connection or Bridge Passage which, in the time of Haydn, +was generally of a very perfunctory, stereotyped character. Wagner +once sarcastically remarked that Haydn's transitions reminded him of +the clatter of dishes between courses at a royal feast. In Mozart we +find the bridge-passage more deftly planned, more organically +connected with what precedes and follows; but it was Beethoven who, in +this portion of the movement, first revealed its possibilities. +Throughout his works the bridge-passage is never a mere mechanical +modulation or a floundering about until the introduction of the second +theme, but is so conceived that the interest of the hearer is +increasingly aroused until, at the entrance of the second theme, he is +in the highest state of expectancy.[97] A bridge-passage of this kind +often has a subsidiary theme of its own, or even several melodic +phrases, and is planned as carefully as the action by which a +dramatist leads up to the entrance of his heroine. After the second +theme we generally find a closing theme to round out the Exposition as +a whole. This practice dates from Haydn and has been much expanded by +modern composers. Witness the glorious climactic effect in Cesar +Franck's _Symphony_ and in Brahms's _D major Symphony_ of the closing +themes in the Expositions of the first movements. For many years it +was the invariable custom to repeat the Exposition, and in Classic +Symphonies we always find a double bar with marks of repeat and two +endings. This practice was not an integral part of the form but was +adopted so that the hearer, by going over the themes of the Exposition +twice, might follow more intelligently their growth in the +Development. With the advance in public appreciation this repeating of +the Exposition has been largely abandoned; for there is no doubt that +to begin all over again, when a certain objective point has been +reached, breaks the continuous flow of the movement.[98] + +[Footnote 96: Some composers have also experimented with still freer +key-relationships.] + +[Footnote 97: For striking examples see the Expositions of the first +movements of Beethoven's _Third Symphony_ and of Tchaikowsky's _Sixth +Symphony_.] + +[Footnote 98: The ultra-conservative attitude of Brahms is shown by +his retention of the double bar and repeat, although this is often +ignored by modern conductors.] + +(2) The Development, for which the Germans have the happy name of +"Freie Phantasie," or free phantasy; the composer thus giving rein to +his imagination and doing whatever he pleases, so long as he holds the +interest of his hearers and neither becomes verbose nor indulges in +mere mechanical manipulation. There are, alas! developments in which +the composer exhausts his themes and his hearers too;[99] but on work +of this kind, since it is not real development but labored jugglery, +no powder need be wasted. Beethoven began the practice, in his +Developments, of not confining himself to the themes of the Exposition +but of introducing an entirely new theme, whenever the main material +had fulfilled its purpose. The single most exciting factor in a good +development is the freedom and wealth of modulation revealed by the +daring genius of the creator; the effect being Plurality of +Key-relationship, in distinction from the two closely related keys of +the Exposition. It would often seem as if we were taken up into high +mountains or borne away to distant seas. For illustrations of this +"free phantasy" note the end of the Development in the first movement +of Beethoven's _Second Symphony_ where, after great stress has been +laid in the Exposition on the two basic keys of D major and A major, +we are left in the distant tonality of C-sharp major and are then +whirled back, by a dramatic change, into the home-key of the third +part. One of the most interesting studies in the workings of a great +mind is to observe how Beethoven, in his developments, allows the +excitement to subside and yet never entirely die out, and how deftly +he leads the hearer onward to the summing up of the main themes of the +exposition. + +[Footnote 99: It was probably a development of this kind which called +forth the characteristic comment from Debussy who once remarked to a +friend at a concert, "Let us flee! he is going to develop."] + +(3) The Recapitulation or Resume, in which both the themes of the +Exposition are reasserted, each in the home key--a strong final +emphasis thus being laid on _Unity_ of Tonality. The bridge-passage +has to be correspondingly changed, for now the modulation is between +two themes _both_ in the _same key_. To achieve such a modulation is +quite a "tour de force" as every musician knows, and often taxed the +ingenuity even of the great Beethoven. The skill by which he always +made the second theme sound fresh and vital is astounding. For a case +of "academic fumbling"--mere treading of water--in this adjustment of +key relationship, see the Recapitulation of the first movement of +Brahms's Second Symphony. To secure unbroken continuity and to avoid +vain repetitions[100] there is no portion of the Sonata-Form which has +been more modified by the inventive genius of modern composers and by +the tendency exemplified in the Symphonic Poem (to be explained in due +season). The general validity of Restatement, as shown in the +Recapitulation of the Sonata-Form, cannot be questioned; for that +depends, as so often pointed out, upon the human craving to enjoy once +more, after intervening contrast, something which has originally given +pleasure. Furthermore this sound psychological principle finds an +analogy in our own life: with its early years of striving, its middle +period of development and its closing years of climactic retrospect +and satisfaction. There is a corresponding structural treatment in the +denoument of a drama. In the classic composers, the Recapitulation is +almost always a literal repetition of the Exposition, although +Beethoven began to be freer, _e.g._, in the climax of the Coriolanus +overture, where he modifies the form to meet the dramatic needs of the +subject.[101] Modern composers, however, have felt that much of this +repetition was superfluous; and when they do repeat both themes, one +or the other is freely varied and made still more eloquent. For +examples, see the resume of the first movements of Franck's +_Symphony_, of Brahms's _First Symphony_ and of Tchaikowsky's +_Sixth_. The Recapitulation is often abridged by omitting the first +theme altogether and dwelling exclusively on the second; as for +example, in the Finale of Schumann's _Fourth Symphony_ and in +Sinigaglia's Overture, _Le Baruffe Chiozzotte_.[102] + +[Footnote 100: See Gretry's amusing comments on the Sonata-Form cited +by Romain Rolland in the essays _Musicians of Former Days_.] + +[Footnote 101: See also Wagner's comments on the _Third Leonora +Overture_, cited by Ernest Newman in his _Musical Studies_, pp. +134-135.] + +[Footnote 102: Additional illustrations of this treatment may be found +in Chabrier's Overture to _Gwendoline_ and in the first movement of +F.S. Converse's _String Quartet_.] + +It remains to speak of the beginning and end of the Sonata-Form. With +Haydn it became the custom, not necessarily invariable, to introduce +the body of the movement by a Prelude which, in early days, was of +slight texture and import--often a mere preliminary "flourish of +trumpets," a presenting of arms. In Mozart we find some examples of +more artistic treatment, notably in the Overture to the _Magic Flute_ +and in the prelude to the C major Quartet with its stimulating +dissonances. But in this case, as in so many others, it was Beethoven +who first showed what a Prelude should be: a subtle means of arousing +the interest and expectancy of the hearer; the effect as carefully +planned as the portico leading to a temple. To usher in the theme of +the Exposition in a truly exciting manner every means of modulation +and rhythm is employed; famous illustrations being the introductions +to the first movements of the Second, Fourth and Seventh symphonies; +and, in modern literature, those of the first movements of Brahms's +_First Symphony_ and of Tchaikowsky's _Fifth_. It also became +customary to prolong the end of the movement by what is termed a Coda; +the same tendency being operative that is found in the peroration to a +speech or in the spire of a cathedral, _i.e._, the human instinct to +end whatever we attempt as impressively and completely as possible. +This Coda, which, in Haydn and Mozart, was often a mere iteration of +trite chords--a ceasing to go--was so expanded by Beethoven that it +was the real glory of the whole movement. In fact so many eloquent +treatments of the main material were reserved for the Coda that it +often became a _second_ development; and such was its scope that the +form may be considered to have _four_ parts instead of three, _i.e._, +1, Exposition, 2, Development, 3, Recapitulation, 4, Coda; parts 4 and +2 balancing each other in the same way as 3 and 1. For two of the most +famous examples in all Beethoven literature see the Codas to the First +movement of the _Third Symphony_ and to the Finale of the _Eighth_. + +We now present a tabular view of the Sonata-Form summing up the +features just commented upon. + + +THE SONATA-FORM OR FIRST-MOVEMENT FORM + +___________________________________________________________________________ +A | B | A' +Exposition | Development | Recapitulation +__________________________|___________________________|____________________ + | | +Introduction (optional) | Free treatment and | First Theme, +First Theme | expansion, especially | connecting passage +Modulatory bridge-passage | modulatory and rhythmic, | leading to +Second Theme | of the themes already | Second Theme (often +Closing Theme | presented | in home-key, but +(Duality of | Sometimes new material | not always) + Key-relationship) | introduced | Closing Theme + | (Plurality of Key) | Coda + | | (Special stress + | | laid on the main + | | tonality. Unity of + | | Key) +__________________________|___________________________|____________________ + +For actual musical examples it seems best to begin with the works of +Haydn. This exclusion of Philip Emmanuel Bach is not meant to minimize +what we owe him for his preliminary efforts in formulating the +tripartite Sonata structure, with its two themes and its Development +portion. Haydn is on record as saying that it was his study of six +Sonatas of Emmanuel Bach which laid the foundations for his own +instrumental style. But on the whole, the compositions of Emmanuel +Bach are of interest rather from a historical point of view than from +one purely artistic. The object of this book, furthermore, is not to +give a complete account of the evolution[103] of the Sonata-Form; but, +accepting the existence of standard works which employ this form, to +enable the student to gain a more complete appreciation of those +works. P.E. Bach wrote in the so-called "galant style"[104] of the +period which has, for our modern ears, too much embellishment and too +many meaningless, rhapsodic passages. He made a sincere effort to +invent pure instrumental melody, _i.e._, musical expression suited to +various instruments that should be unhampered by the too definite +balance of the dance forms, by polyphonic complexities or by the +conventional artifices of operatic style. But though he wrote +skilfully for his instrument and though his style has a certain quaint +charm, on the whole it is lacking in genuine melodic warmth and +feeling. These qualities alone keep works immortal.[105] + +[Footnote 103: Those interested in this development should consult +_The Pianoforte Sonata_ by J.S. Shedlock, and above all, d'Indy's +_Course of Musical Composition_, Part III.] + +[Footnote 104: This, according to d'Indy, was so-called because +pleasing to the ladies who played an important part in the elaborate +court ceremonial of that day.] + +[Footnote 105: Six of P.E. Bach's Sonatas edited by von Buelow are +readily accessible and some excellent comments upon the most +significant ones may be found in Shedlock (see above).] + +In Josef Haydn (1782-1809) we are face to face with a musician of a +different type. Haydn is popularly known as the father of the Sonata, +the Symphony and the String-Quartet; but, according to Edward +Dickinson,[106] this estimate is something of an exaggeration, for "it +overlooks the fact that a large number of composers were struggling +with the same problem and working along similar lines. Haydn was +simply the greatest in _genius_ of the instrumental writers of his +day. His works have lived by virtue of the superiority, _i.e._, the +greater spontaneity and vitality, of their contents. He should be +called the 'foster-father,' rather than the father of the symphony and +quartet for he raised them from feebleness to strength and authority." +To him must be given the honor of establishing the types of +instrumental composition which became the foundations of modern music. +Haydn, moreover, was the first musician since Sebastian Bach who had a +real personality which may be felt in his works. To speak of a piece +of music as "Haydnish" conveys as distinct a meaning as to refer to a +poetic stanza as "Miltonic." When Haydn arrived on the scene, +music--through the labors of many earnest workers--had become a +language of definite expression, with a logical grammar and with +principles of structure. The time was ripe for the use of this +language in a more artistic way, _i.e._, for a more intense personal +expression and for more subtle treatment of the material. The composer +could count upon the public following his points; and with Haydn, +whose heart beat in sympathy with the common people, music begins to +be a truly popular art. + +[Footnote 106: See his _Study of the History of Music_, p. 154.] + +The striking features in Haydn's works are three: (1) The wealth of +spontaneous and sparkling melodies, for he was born with this lyric +gift and never had to cudgel his wits for a tune. That instrumental +melody could make such sudden progress as we find between the dryness +of Emmanuel Bach and the freshness of Haydn, was long a puzzle to +scholars, and only recently has the proof been submitted that Haydn +was largely of Croatian ancestry. Now the Croatians of Southern +Austria are one of the most musical races in the world, with a wealth +of folk-songs and dances. Haydn therefore did not have to "invent" +melodies in the ordinary sense of the term; they were his birthright. +Many of his melodies are adaptations of actual folk-songs[107] or +original melodies coming from an imagination saturated with the +folk-song spirit.[108] For this reason they seem like wild flowers in +their perennial freshness and charm. (2) The precision and clarity +with which his ideas are presented. These qualities were due to his +well-balanced and logical intellect that impressed everyone with whom +he came in contact. His style, moreover, was the result of +indefatigable labor, for he was largely self-taught. If the balance of +his phrases and the general symmetry of his style seem to our modern +taste a bit excessive, we must remember that he was a pioneer and +could run no risks in the way of non-acceptance of his message through +puzzling complexities. Everything must be so clear that the ordinary +mind could at once accept it. Nor is the "sing-song," "square-toed" +element so prevalent in Haydn as is commonly supposed. In his melody a +distinct feature--no doubt of racial origin--is his fondness for odd +rhythms of three, five and seven measures, of which examples abound in +the Quartets. In his Minuets and Finales there is a rollicking effect +of high spirits which could never have been attained by mere labored +pedantry. In his mature works we find a pervading spontaneity which is +one of the outstanding examples in all literature of "art concealing +art." Never do these works smell of the lamp, and let us remember it +is far easier to criticize them than to create them.[109] + +[Footnote 107: See for example the _Salomon Symphony in E-flat_, every +movement of which is founded on a Croatian folk-song.] + +[Footnote 108: For a comprehensive account of this whole subject +consult the _Oxford History of Music_, Vol. V, Chapter VIII, and +Mason's _Beethoven and His Forerunners_, essay on Haydn.] + +[Footnote 109: Witness for example, the attitude taken by Wallace in +his _Threshold of Music_, pp. 148-153.] + +(3) The skillful and eloquent manner in which Haydn adapted his ideas +to his favorite media of expression: the orchestra and the +string-quartet. Although he wrote a number of pianoforte sonatas, +these works, on the whole, do not represent his best thought. For they +were composed in the transitional period between the waning influence +of the harpsichord and the advent of the pianoforte, not yet come to +its own. But as for the orchestra, Haydn established[110] the grouping +of the three so-called choirs of strings, wood-wind and brass; to +which were gradually added the instruments of percussion. In his works +we begin to enjoy orchestral effect for its own sake: the dashing +vivacity of the strings, the mellowness of the wood-wind, the +sonority and grandeur of the brass. Instrumental works had formerly +been composed in black and white, but now we have the interplay of +orchestral colors. No less paramount was Haydn's influence in the +handling of the four solo instruments known as the String Quartet. In +his Quartets the voices are so highly individualized that it seems as +if four intelligent and witty persons were holding a musical +conversation. Such melodic and rhythmic freedom were hitherto unknown +and his style became the point of departure for modern practice.[111] +Both Mozart and Beethoven, those great masters of the String-Quartet, +acknowledged their debt of gratitude to Haydn. His success in +establishing the formation of the orchestra and the string-quartet was +chiefly due to the inestimable advantage he enjoyed of being, for so +many years, chapel-master to those celebrated patrons of music the +Princes Paul and Nicholas Esterhazy, at whose country-seat of Esterhaz +he had at his disposal, for free experimentation, a fine body of +players.[112] Here Haydn worked from 1762 until 1790; and, to quote +his own words, "could, as conductor of an orchestra, make experiments, +observe what produced an effect and be as bold as I pleased. I was cut +off from the world, there was no one to confuse or torment me and I +was forced to become original."[113] + +[Footnote 110: For the early and significant achievements in +orchestral effect of the Mannheim Orchestra under its famous leader +Stamitz, see _The Art of Music_, Vol. 8, Chapter II.] + +[Footnote 111: For interesting comments on the String Quartets see +Hadden's _Life of Haydn_, pp. 174-175.] + +[Footnote 112: _The Oxford History of Music_, Vol. V, Chapter I, and +_The Present State of Music in Germany_ by Burney present a vivid +picture of the times and of the results of 18th century patronage.] + +[Footnote 113: For an entertaining account of the two London visits, +which took place during the latter part of his career, see the essay +_Haydn in London_ by Krehbiel in his _Music and Manners_.] + +As to the formal side of Haydn's work, he is responsible for several +distinct improvements. The different divisions of the movement are +more clearly defined--sometimes perhaps, as we look back, a bit +rigidly--but no more so than was necessary for a public just beginning +to follow easily the main outlines of the form. Haydn leads up to his +objective points in a clear-cut, logical way and there is little of +"running off into the sand" or of those otherwise aimless passages so +prevalent in Emmanuel Bach. In his best works, notably in many of the +Quartets, there is also more individuality secured for the second +theme;[114] although for highly personified and moving second themes +we have to await the greater genius of Mozart and Beethoven. Whenever +we are inclined to call Haydn's style old-fashioned we must remember +that he wrote before the note of intense personal expression--the +so-called subjective element, prominent in Beethoven--had come to the +fore. The time just prior to Haydn had been called the "Pig-tail +period" (Zopf-Periode) in reference to the stiff and precise dress and +manners which had their counterpart in formality of artistic +expression. Only towards the end of his career do we feel that breath +of freedom in life and art which was generated by the French +Revolution (beginning in 1791) and by the many political and social +changes of that stirring period. From Haydn on, much more attention +should be paid to the content and meaning of the music than to the +formal handling of the material. In all worthy music, in fact, the +chief point of interest is the _music itself_ which speaks to us in +its own language of sound and rhythm. A knowledge of form is but a +means to an end: for the composer, that he may express himself clearly +and convincingly, and for the listener, that he may readily receive +the message set forth. In Haydn's music we find the expression of a +real personality--though of an artless, child-like type, without great +depth of emotion or the tragic intensity of a Beethoven. Haydn was not +a philosopher, or a man of broad vision. During his epoch, artists +hardly dared to be introspective. His imagination gave birth to music, +simple though it was, as freely as the earth puts forth flowers; but, +although he wore a wig, he had a heart which was in good working +operation even in his sixty-fourth year when, during his London visit, +he fell in love with a charming widow, Madame Schroeter, whom he would +have married had not his wife been still alive. + +[Footnote 114: In many cases Haydn's second theme is merely a varied +version of the first.] + +We should acquire the catholic taste to enjoy every composer for what +he really was and not criticise him for what he was not--a state which +would imply necessarily different conditions. In criticism there is no +worse error, or one more often made, than that of blaming Haydn +because he was not Beethoven; or, in our times, Tchaikowsky because +his music does not resemble that of Brahms. Blase pedants often call +Haydn's music "tame"; we might as well apply that adjective to the +antics of a sportive kitten. As for the "amiable prattle" of his style +we do not speak in a derogatory way of the fresh, innocent voices of +children, though we need not listen to them continually. Haydn, in +short, is Haydn,[115] and the vitality and sincerity of his works +will always keep them immortal. In these feverish days we may dwell +upon the simplicity of "Papa Haydn," as he was affectionately called; +who would kneel down before beginning work, and who inscribed his +scores "In nomine Domini." His modest estimate of his own powers +cannot fail to touch our hearts. "I know," he said, "that God has +bestowed a talent upon me, and I thank him for it. I think I have done +my duty, and been of use in my generation by my works; let others do +the same." + +[Footnote 115: Haydn's life is of great interest in showing the traits +which are reflected in his music. Everyone should read the biography +in Grove's Dictionary, Vol. II, p. 348, and the excellent life by M. +Brenet in _Les Maitres de la Musique_.] + +We shall now make a few comments on the illustrations in the +Supplement (see Exs. No. 41 and 42): the Finale of the _Sonata for +Pianoforte in E-flat major_ and the first movement of the so-called +_Surprise Symphony in G major_. Haydn, of all composers, needs little +verbal elucidation; his music speaks for itself and everyone must be +sensitive to its vitality and charm. We regret that it is not +practical to give examples from the Quartets which, in many +respects--especially in the Minuets with their inexhaustible +invention[116] and their bubbling spirits--represent Haydn at his +best. But the real effect of his Quartets is so bound up with +idiomatic treatment of the strings that in any transcription for +pianoforte the music suffers grievously. It is through the score, +however, that everyone should become familiar, with the contents of +the Quartets in C major, op. 76, and D major, op. 64; the Finale of +the latter being one of the supreme examples in all chamber +literature[117] of rhythmic vitality. + +[Footnote 116: Haydn himself used to speak of his melodic invention as +"a stream which bursts forth from an overflowing reservoir."] + +[Footnote 117: In every large city there are, of course, frequent +opportunities to hear the Quartets of Haydn played by such famous +organizations as the Flonzaley Quartet etc. The student is urged to +take advantage of these occasions.] + +The Finale of the E-flat sonata, in strict Sonata-form, begins with a +lively eight-measure phrase which is at once repeated a tone higher. +The extension of the sentence shows Haydn's freedom in phraseology; +for, beginning with measure 17, we should have to count the measures +1, 2, 3, 3a, 4, 5, 6, 6a, 7, 7a, 8, 8a. In the second theme, which +begins in the 44th measure, note the piquant dissonances[118] coupled +with sforzando accents. Haydn surely liked spice as well as anyone! +The rest of the Exposition is taken up with closing passages which +accentuate the tonality of the second theme--B-flat major. The +Development needs no comment, as the correspondence between the +original material and Haydn's treatment is perfectly clear. The +Recapitulation is a literal repetition of the Exposition, with the two +themes as usual in the tonic key. The movement may be considered an +example of Sonata-form in its clearest manifestation, hence an +excellent one for preliminary analytical study. + +[Footnote 118: Those who erroneously think that there is nothing of +the dissonant element in Haydn should examine the Prelude to _The +Creation_--a real anticipation, in its use of the chromatic element, +of _Tristan and Isolde_.] + +In the first movement of the _Surprise Symphony_, before the body of +the work begins, we have an early example of the Prelude. This slow +Prelude, short though it be, is most carefully planned; with its +crescendo from _pp_ to a _sf_ forte and its free modulation it arouses +a genuine feeling of expectancy. The first theme of the Exposition +(Vivace Assai) is a happy illustration of Haydn's sparkling rhythm, +and as tossed off by the violins is of irresistible gaiety. The reader +is asked to remember that the comments on this symphony--and on all +subsequent symphonic works--are based upon the orchestral score; also +that the composition, when separated from its orchestral dress, +necessarily loses much of its real eloquence. Thus the first theme, of +a folk-dance character, is a typical violin melody; only strings--with +their incisiveness and power of subtle phrasing--can fully express its +piquancy. For private study or for class-room work, a practical +version is that for four hands; or better still, when possible, the +arrangement for two pianofortes.[119] The second phrase of the first +theme is considerably expanded by repetition, as if unable to stop +from sheer exuberance, but finally reaches a cadence in the dominant +key in the 32nd measure. We are at once taken back, however, to the +home-key of G major; and, in measure 40, the first theme is repeated, +this time delicately embellished with phrases on the flute. From now +on, by reason of the emphasis laid on the key of D major, it is +evident that we are in the transitional passage and are heading +towards the announcement of the second theme. It must be said that +Haydn does not drive very straight at his mark; though it is a +pleasant touch of variety in measures 55-57 to introduce the main +theme in the minor mode, and though the fiery violin passages in the +following measures give an air of considerable excitement. What stands +for the second theme begins in measure 67. This portion of the +movement has no theme with genuine individuality, but consists of +running passages--based exclusively on tonic and dominant harmonies in +the new key, and of little import save one of general vivacity. It is, +however, decidedly alive--not stagnant or flabby--and in the orchestra +it all "comes off." We are rewarded, finally, by a clear-cut closing +theme of jaunty rhythm, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +which Haydn liked so much that it is presented twice, the second time +slightly embellished. The Exposition closes with the conventional +insistence upon a strong cadence in the key of the second theme. The +Development begins with some rather fragmentary treatment of the first +theme; then, after some fugitive modulation into flat keys, contents +itself with running passages and a series of iterated notes. Of +organic and sustained development, such as Haydn indeed sometimes +attained, there is little trace. Even so we must be chary of sweeping +condemnation; for there are well-planned dynamic contrasts and the +instruments are used in such a natural way--especially the figure in +the double basses (measures 149-153)--that the scene is one of +animation, though perhaps no more than one of aimless gambols. There +is sufficient modulation, so that the principle of Plurality of key is +carried out. We are suddenly but gracefully led back, in measure 155, +to the repetition of the first theme, thus beginning the +Recapitulation. This portion, with certain abbreviations, is an almost +exact duplication of the first part and emphasizes the main tonality +of G major. That Haydn was not forced to this literal repetition +through any lack of fancy is shown by the skilful amplification of the +first theme, in measures 177-184. The whole movement sparkles with +sunshine; and those ponderous "heavy-weights" who criticise it because +it is not deep or "soulful" are looking for qualities which the music +does not pretend to contain. It is the work of a wholesome, +cheerful-hearted man expressing through his favorite language his joy +in life. In listening to the music we have the same delight as in +wandering by the side of a rippling brook. The three remaining +movements of the Symphony require little comment; being readily +accessible they are not given in the Supplement. The second movement, +a set of stereotyped variations, contains the explosive chord which +gave to the work its descriptive title. Needless to say that this +chord does not "surprise" _our_ modern ears to any great extent. The +Minuet is one of Haydn's best--full of queer antics in rhythm and +modulation. The Finale (Allegro di molto), in the Rondo Sonata form, +is the acme of Haydn's vivacity and is a "tour de force" of brilliant +writing for the strings. In many passages they seem fairly to burn. + +[Footnote 119: All symphonic scores give a much better effect when +performed on two pianofortes than in a four-hand arrangement for a +single instrument. The freedom in control of both pedals possessed by +each player secures a greater richness and sonority of tone and it is +much easier to make prominent voices stand out in relief.] + +Haydn's position in the development of music is of the first +importance. Whatever his works may "mean," they contain a rhythmic +vitality which will keep them alive for ever, and their "child-like +cheerfulness and drollery" will charm away care and sorrow as long as +the world shall last. + + + + +CHAPTER X + +MOZART. THE PERFECTION OF CLASSIC STRUCTURE AND STYLE + + +Although Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus[120] (1756-1791), was, in regard to +art problems, no more of a broad thinker than Haydn (Mozart and +Schubert being pre-eminently men whose whole nature centered in +music), yet on hearing his works we are aware that aspects of form and +content have certainly changed for the better. In the first place he +was more highly gifted than Haydn; he had from his infancy the +advantage of a broad cosmopolitan experience, and he was dimly +conscious of the expanding possibilities of musical expression. It is +a perfectly fair distinction to consider Haydn an able, even brilliant +prose-writer, and Mozart a poet. Haydn we can account for, but Mozart +is the genius "born, not made"--defying classification--and his +inspired works seem to fall straight from the blue of Heaven. Whereas +Haydn, Beethoven and Schubert were all of very lowly parentage[121] +(their mothers being cooks--a blessing on their heads!), Mozart's +father and mother were people of considerable general cultivation, and +in particular the father, Leopold Mozart, was an educated man and +somewhat of a composer himself, who since 1743 had been in the service +of the Archbishop of Salzburg, as director of his private orchestra. +An excellent violinist, he had written and published a treatise on +violin playing, which for many years was the standard work on the +subject. Both parents were noted for their good looks, were, moreover, +of strong character and highly respectable in every way. Among their +several children two early exhibited unusual precocity--Maria Anna, +born in 1751, and Wolfgang, still more highly gifted. The stories of +the boy's skill and general delicacy of perception may be exaggerated, +but we have sufficient valid evidence to convince us that he was a +phenomenon absolutely "sui generis." Thus, he began to improvise +between three and four, actually to compose little pieces (which we +have), when he was five, and to perform in public when he was six! In +that very year and continuing for nineteen years (until Mozart had +reached the age of twenty-five) began the memorable series of concert +tours--eleven in all--comprising Vienna, all the chief cities of Italy +and Germany, even Paris and London. These tours the father planned and +carried through with the utmost solicitude and self-sacrifice--not to +exploit the talented children, but to give them a comprehensive +education and artistic experience, and eventually to secure for his +son some distinguished post worthy his abilities. It is quite +impossible to rehearse all the details of these trips. For one who +wishes to investigate for himself they truly make fascinating reading. +A single incident, however, will show how clearly defined were the two +personalities which made up the complete Mozart; and of which one or +the other was in the ascendant throughout his life. As a man, Mozart +was light-hearted, witty--even volatile--fond of society, dancing, and +a good time generally; not of the strongest intellectual power, +judged by modern standards, but, as shown by his marvellous dramatic +insight, by no means the debonair light-weight he is often +represented. Yet whenever music was under consideration he was a +changed being; he became instantly serious, and would suffer no +disrespect to himself or to his art. During the last sad years of his +career in Vienna, when he was in actual want for the bare necessities +of life, a publisher once said to him, "Write in a more popular style, +or I will not print a note of your music or give you a kreutzer." +"Then, my good sir," replied Mozart, "I have only to resign myself and +die of hunger." + +[Footnote 120: Amadeus (the beloved of God).] + +[Footnote 121: We may appropriately state that in regard to ancestry +and environment all four of the so-called Viennese masters, Haydn, +Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert are distinct refutations of the claims +so persistently made by German scholars that everything good in music +we owe to the Teutons. Haydn was largely Croatian; Mozart was strongly +influenced by non-Teutonic folk-music (Tyrolese melodies frequently +peep out in his works); Schubert's forebears came from Moravia and +Silesia; and Beethoven was partly Dutch. If there be any _single_ race +to which the world owes the art of music it is the Italians, for they +invented most of the instruments and hinted at all the vocal and +instrumental forms. We may be grateful to the Germans for their +persevering appropriation of what others had begun; only let them not +claim _all_ the credit.] + +In Mozart's works, in distinction from the unconscious, naive +folk-song type of Haydn, we find highly wrought instrumental melodies; +although such was his inborn spontaneity of expression that we are +never aware of the labor expended. His works are quite as clear as +those of Haydn, but they show a more conscious individuality of style. +They are not so artless, and the phraseology is more elastic--less cut +and dried. There is a higher imaginative vitality; trite, mechanical +repetitions are in general avoided, climaxes are led up to in a more +subtle manner, and a great gain is made in real organic development. +For Mozart, as a master of polyphonic treatment, is second only to +Bach. The most striking single feature in his work is the ceaseless +flow of expressive melody, notably those wondrous tunes found in his +operas, such as "Voi che sapete," "Batti, batti" and numerous others. +He had travelled so widely, so keen was his power of assimilation that +his melodic style embodied and enhanced the best qualities of +contemporary Italian, French and German practice. And yet his innate +genius was of sufficient strength to achieve this result without +lapsing into formal eclecticism. Whatever suggestions he took he made +wholly his own; and his music is nothing if not individual in its +inimitable charm and freshness. Whereas Haydn's music often smacks too +prominently of the soil, with Mozart we have the fine flower of a +broad artistic culture. In his best symphonies and string quartets the +art of music made a distinct advance and began to be capable of +expressing the universal emotions and aspirations of mankind. + +The reactive influence--each upon the other--of Haydn (1732-1809) and +Mozart (1756-1791) is a most interesting feature of the period.[122] +By the time Mozart was ripe for his best work Haydn had formulated and +exemplified the main lines of instrumental structure. From this +preparatory work Mozart reaped such an advantage that in his last +compositions there is a spontaneous flowering of genius--a union of +individual content with perfect clarity of style--which has kept them +alive to this day. Haydn's last symphonies, the two Salomon sets +composed for his London tours, show in their turn abundant signs of +the stimulating influence of the younger man. The perennial importance +of form and style cannot be better understood than by recognizing the +fact that both Tchaikowsky and Richard Strauss, two of the most +fearlessly independent of modern composers, have considered Mozart as +their ideal. But even if in Mozart's best works we are not beyond the +preponderating influence of form over substance, they must be judged +on their own intrinsic merits and not with reference to progress made +since--of which, nevertheless, they were an important foundation. His +technique was quite sufficient to express what he had to say. We +seldom feel that the contents are bursting through the form, that the +spirit is too great for the body. Purity of conception and +faultlessness of workmanship were still the desiderata of music. The +world had to wait for a Beethoven before the hearer should be shaken +out of himself by a spiritual power, of which the music at best was +often an inadequate expression. This statement is meant to contain no +disparagement. Because Beethoven was more elemental we must never +belittle the genius of his predecessor. Any familiarity with Mozart's +works will convince us of the gratitude we owe him for his original +harmonies, for the stimulating contrapuntal texture and for the +perfect finish and care for detail found therein. Could we be forever +content with "abstract music"--that which justifies itself by a +fulfilment of its own inherent laws--Mozart's music would remain the +acme of the art. His fame to-day rests upon his string quartets, his +three principal symphonies, and--above all--the operas, of which Don +Giovanni and the Marriage of Figaro are noted examples. For consummate +character-drawing (so that, as Rubinstein remarks, "Each acting +personage has become an immortal type"), for interest sustained by +unflagging musical vitality, for a combination of humor and +seriousness and for ingenious and characteristic handling of the +orchestral forces, these works were unequalled until the advent of +Wagner and even to-day in their own field remain unsurpassed. The real +charm of Mozart--that sunny radiance, at times shot through with a +haunting pathos--eludes verbal description. As well attempt to put +into words the fragrance and charm of a violet. Hazlitt's fine phrase, +apropos of performance, says much in a few words. "Mozart's music +seems to come from the air and should return to it," and the ecstatic +eulogy of Goethe, to whom genius meant Mozart, should be familiar to +all. "What else is genius than that productive power through which +deeds arise, worthy of standing in the presence of God and of Nature, +and which, for this reason, bear results and are lasting? All the +creations of Mozart are of this class; within them there is a +generative force which is transplanted from age to age, and is not +likely soon to be exhausted or devoured." + +[Footnote 122: For extended comment, see the _Oxford History of +Music_, Vol. V, p. 246, _seq._] + +In studying Mozart's works the special points to be noticed are these: +the wider sweep and freer rhythmic variety of the melodic curve; the +more organic fusion of the different portions of a movement--Mozart's +lines of demarcation being perfectly clear but not so rigid as in +Haydn; the much greater richness of the whole musical fabric, due to +Mozart's marvellous skill in polyphony. The time had not yet come when +the composer could pique the fancy of the hearer by unexpected +structural devices or even lead him off on a false trail as was so +often done by Beethoven. Both Haydn and Mozart are homophonic +composers, _i.e._, the outpouring of individual melodies is the chief +factor in their works; but whereas in Haydn the tune is almost +invariably in the upper voice, in Mozart we find the melody appearing +in any one of the voices and often accompanied with fascinating +imitations. See, in corroboration, any of the first three movements of +the _G minor Symphony_ or the slow movement of the _E-flat major +Symphony_. In the structure of music Mozart made slight changes; the +forms were still fresh--having just been established by Haydn--and +Mozart with his genius filled them to overflowing. His one important +contribution to the development of instrumental form was the +Pianoforte Concerto; but, as a consideration of this would lead us too +far afield, the student is referred to the life of Mozart in Grove's +Dictionary and to the Oxford History, Vol. V. The literature[123] +about Mozart and his works is voluminous. Our chief attention +nevertheless should be centered on the works themselves rather than on +what anyone else writes about them. Certain of these criticisms, +however, are so suggestive and illuminating that the student should +become familiar with them. + +[Footnote 123: We recommend especially the refreshing essay by Philip +Hale in _Famous Composers and Their Works_; the chapter on Mozart in +_Beethoven and His Forerunners_ by D.G. Mason; and, as throwing light +on aspects of his personality which are little known, "_Mozart +Revealed in his Own Words_" by Kerst-Krehbiel (see especially the +chapter on Mozart's religious nature, p. 142 and passim); the +fascinating _Reminiscences of Michael Kelly_, a personal friend of the +composer; and, above all, the monumental life of Mozart, unhappily as +yet incomplete, by Wyzewa and St. Foix. The third chapter of Vol. II +of _The Art of Music_ is also well worth reading; and in _Mozart's +Operas, a Critical Study_ by E.J. Dent are found valuable comments on +his dramatic style, so prominent a feature in many of his instrumental +works.] + +As illustrations[124] for comment we select the _F major Sonata for +Pianoforte_, the _G minor Symphony_, the _Magic Flute Overture for +Orchestra_ and the little known but most characteristic _Adagio in B +minor for Pianoforte_. Here again, as in the case of Haydn, we must +regret that it is impracticable to give examples from the chamber +music: the String Quartets, the Quintet in G minor or from the +entrancing Clarinet Quintet. Any familiarity with Mozart's genius is +very incomplete which does not comprise the C major Quartet, +especially its heavenly Andante Cantabile; likewise the E-flat major +Quartet in the slow movement of which are the following poignant +dissonances--a striking anticipation of _Tristan and Isolde_. + +[Music] + +[Footnote 124: The first three compositions are not given in the +Supplement, because readily available in several standard editions. +The same recommendations, as given in connection with Haydn, apply to +the performance of the _G minor Symphony_.] + +The F major Sonata is selected to illustrate Mozart's pianoforte style +because it bubbles over with typical Mozartian melody and because the +Sonata-form is the basis of all three movements; in the first and last +strictly employed and in the slow movement somewhat modified. The +structure, while just as clear and easy to follow as that of Haydn, +represents an advance in the sustained interest of the transitional +passages and in the organic treatment of the Development--this being +particularly true of the Finale--the middle portion of the first +movement being not so significant. The Sonata, without prelude, begins +with a soaring, lyric melody in which the customary eight measure +formation is expanded to twelve measures. This expansion is brought +about by an imitative treatment of the fifth measure and is a +convincing example of the flexible phraseology so prominent a feature +in Mozart's style. A balancing sentence of eight measures, with an +extended cadence, brings us to the transition which is to introduce +the second theme. Observe the increasing animation of the rhythm and +how the fresh entry of the second theme (in C major) is enhanced by +the insistence on the contrasting tonality of C minor. In measure 41 +there begins the second theme, a graceful melody that is repeated with +heightened fervour and then expanded by means of various modulatory +and rhythmic devices--the interest, for a number of measures, being in +the bass. In measure 71 we have a piquant closing theme which ends in +the "good old way" with some rather formal groups of cadential chords. +The Development is short and, save for the dynamic contrasts in the +middle part, not of particular import. But though a bit naive it is +neither labored nor dull. The Recapitulation with the necessary +adjustments of key (both themes appearing in F major) corresponds +exactly to the Exposition. In the opening melody of the Slow +movement--a dreamy, sustained Adagio--we see the beautiful use Mozart +made of the "turn," _e.g._, + +[Music] + +employing it not as meaningless embroidery or to cover up deficiencies +in the instrument but as an integral factor in the melodic line, thus +anticipating Chopin and Wagner with his "essential turn." The movement +is in abridged[125] Sonata-form, _i.e._, there is a regular Exposition +with two themes in the tonic and dominant and a corresponding +Recapitulation, but the Development is entirely omitted and in its +place we find merely two modulatory measures which take us back to the +third part. Such a form arose from the feeling that the Slow Movement +should be one of direct melodic and emotional appeal and should not +concern itself with protracted discussion of the material. The two +closing measures are of a wondrous serenity, peculiar to Mozart. The +Finale, Allegro assai, in complete and elaborate Sonata-form, is one +of superb vigor and dash, the happiest example possible of Mozart's +"joie de vivre." It begins with a brilliant running theme in free +phraseology, and then, after a cadence in measure 14, is at once +followed by an out and out Waltz tune of a very seductive swing.[126] +This is developed to a brilliant climax and then closes _pp_ in a +delicate, wistful manner. The transition, with some canonic imitations +and stimulating sequences, leads us to the second theme at measure 50. +This--one of Mozart's loveliest melodies--is rather exceptionally in +the dominant minor (_i.e._, C minor) and with its mood of pathetic +revery affords a wonderful contrast to the headlong dash of the first +theme. This melody alone would prove that Mozart had his moments of +deep emotion. In measure 65 begins a long closing portion which +resumes the exuberant mood characteristic of the Exposition as a +whole. The Development at first is based upon modulatory changes in +the first theme; and then, towards the middle, occurs a passage which +seems to be a counterpart of the second theme, save that it is in the +major mode. We are now carried onward through a series of passages, +with pungent dissonances and imitative phrases, to a fortissimo +dominant chord; thence through a descending cadenza-like passage we +are whirled back to the Recapitulation. In material and treatment this +corresponds exactly to the Exposition and has the same pianissimo +ending. Such an effect was a touch of genuine originality and was a +delightful contrast to the conventional flourish of trumpets with +which the Finale of the period was expected to end. Music is often +most impressive when most subdued. + +[Footnote 125: This modification became a favorite with Beethoven, +notable examples being the Slow movement of the Fifth Sonata, where +the Development is represented by a single chord; the Slow movement of +the D minor Sonata, op. 31; and, above all, the Allegretto Scherzando +of the Eighth Symphony, where a series of contrasted accents keeps the +interest alive and leads most deftly to the Recapitulation.] + +[Footnote 126: In measures 20 and 21 may be found some striking +syncopations--an anticipation of what now-a-days is known as +"rag-time."] + +The G minor Symphony is universally acknowledged to be the highest +achievement of 18th century instrumental music and is also premonitory +of that subjective spirit peculiar to the 19th century. It will remain +immortal so long as human beings are capable of being touched by a +sincere revelation of emotion combined with a perfection of utterance +which seems fairly Divine. This delicate treatment and this exquisite +finish are two prominent characteristics of Mozart's style. Truly the +Symphony is the quintessence of Mozart in terms of sound and rhythm, +and we need but to listen to his message and receive it with grateful +appreciation. The work contains the four customary movements, all of +them (save the three-part Minuet and Trio) in complete Sonata-form. +The first movement begins at once with a gracefully poised theme sung +by the violins, a theme which may be likened in its outlines to the +purity of a Greek statue. The entrancing effect of this melody cannot +be realized except on the orchestra, for it seems to float on the +gently pulsating chords of the violas like a beautiful flower. +Everyone who hears the work is at once arrested by this highly +original treatment, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The transition is short but leads us in a happy state of expectancy +through a change of rhythm from the graceful outlines of the first +theme to the vigorous phrase + +[Music] + +and by a bold run, thrice repeated, to the entrance of the second +theme in measure 43. This theme, in the customary relative major +(B-flat), illustrates Mozart's fondness for the chromatic element +which gives to many of his melodies such a haunting appeal. The +closing portion, beginning at measure 71, is an example of Mozart's +spontaneous skill in polyphonic writing. It is based entirely on the +motive of the main theme in delightful imitations tossed about by +different sections of the orchestra. The second part is a genuine +Development, since the musical life never flags in its contrapuntal +vitality; the theme appears in all parts of the texture--upper, inner +and lower voices--and we are carried vigorously onward by the daring +modulations. Just at the close of the Development we see Mozart's +constructive skill in the fusion of this part with the subsequent +Recapitulation. A series of drifting chromatic chords in the flutes +and oboes, like light fleecy clouds, keeps us in a state of suspended +wonder when quietly there emerges the first theme and the return home +has begun. It is one of the truly poetic touches in musical literature +and has been often imitated--especially by Tchaikowsky in his _Fifth_ +and _Sixth Symphonies_.[127] The Recapitulation corresponds exactly +with the Exposition, but an added pathos is given to the second theme +by its appearance in the tonic key of G minor. Observe the impassioned +intensity of the climax in measures 13-19 (counting back from the +end). The mood of dreamy contemplation with which the Slow Movement +begins cannot be translated into words; why attempt it? We have the +music which, coming from the divinely gifted imagination of the +composer, reveals in its own language a message of pathetic longing +and ideal aspiration. The movement is very concise but in complete +Sonata-form, and with an orchestration felicitous in the treatment of +the horns and the wood-wind instruments. The Minuet, noteworthy for +the three-measure rhythm of the opening phrase, + +[Music] + +shows clearly the new life which Mozart infused into the old form by +his remarkable polyphonic skill. Note at the outset of the second part +the vigorous effect of the theme in the bass and the frequency of +biting dissonances. The charming grace and simplicity of the Trio are +indescribable; here again we find an eloquent use of the wood-wind +group. The Finale, in complete Sonata-form, begins with a perfectly +balanced periodic theme, presented in Two-part form, _i.e._, two +sentences of eight measures, each repeated. If from our present +standpoint we feel that the tone of this movement is a bit light to +follow the serious thoughts of the preceding movements, let us +remember that it was composed when the Finale was meant merely to "top +off" a work; and that, if it radiated a general atmosphere of sunshine +and satisfaction, its purpose was fulfilled. For the Finale, which, +like the glorious splendor of an autumn day, is the crowning objective +towards which the other movements have been striving, we must wait for +Beethoven and his modern successors. In fact we may express the +general trend of a Haydn or a Mozart Symphony by a decrescendo, thus +[decrescendo symbol] _i.e._, the real genius of the composer is shown +in the first three movements; whereas, beginning with Beethoven, we +find an organic climactic effect[128] from the first movement to the +last, thus [crescendo symbol]. But to carry such criticisms too far is +ungracious and unjust. Mozart's themes, both the first and the second +(beginning in measure 55), with their tripping contredance rhythms, +fill our hearts with life and carry us irresistibly onward. And the +Development has some surprises in store, for now the dramatic genius +of Mozart asserts itself. Note the bold leaps and daring modulations +of the opening measures. Nothing trite or formal here! The strong +polyphonic treatment of the first theme, beginning in measure 120 and +sustained with unflagging energy for seventy measures, makes this one +of the most stimulating developments in symphonic literature, not +excepting Beethoven himself. The Recapitulation, in subject matter, is +an exact duplication of the Exposition and allows us to recover +gradually from our excitement and to return to the ordinary world of +men and events. The presentation of the second theme, however, shows +Mozart's mastery of melodic variation. The substance is the same, but +the import of the melody is intensified, _e.g._ + +[Music: Exposition] + +[Music: Recapitulation] + +[Footnote 127: See the Waltz movement of the _Fifth Symphony_ and the +second movement of the _Sixth_.] + +[Footnote 128: This expanding of interest is distinctly felt in +Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, in Brahms's First, in Tchaikowsky's Fifth +and in that by Cesar Franck.] + +The Overtures to Mozart's three operas: The _Marriage of Figaro_, _Don +Giovanni_ and the _Magic Flute_ are of particular interest, not only +for the beauty of their contents but because they are our earliest +examples of the Overture fashioned in complete Sonata form. Originally +the Overture had been a prelude to the opening of a play, a prelude of +the lightest and most meagre nature. Examples, beginning with +Monteverde, abound in all the early Italian opera composers.[129] +Lully of the French school and Alessandro Scarlatti of the Italian +were the first to amplify these beginnings and to establish a definite +standard of structure. In both schools this standard represented an +application of the Three-part form principle; the French arranging +their contrasts, slow, fast, slow (the so-called French overture--of +which we have an example in Handel's Messiah) and the Italians, fast, +slow, fast (the so-called Italian Overture). Although Gluck +(1714-1787) did much to establish a more dramatic connection between +the overture and the play, even the best of his Overtures, Iphigenia +in Aulis, is a rather loosely expanded tripartite structure with a +good many meaningless passages. But Mozart, coming after Haydn's +definite establishment of the Sonata-form and with the growing +interest of the public in instrumental music for its own sake as an +incentive, could take advantage of these circumstances to display his +genius and to delight his hearers with a piece of genuine music. This +he did and his operatic overtures are of such distinct import and +self-sufficiency that they are often detached from the opera itself +and played as concert numbers. The Magic Flute Overture is also +noteworthy because of the polyphonic treatment of the first theme +which is a definite fugal presentation in four voices. The second +theme, beginning in measure 64, and soon repeated, is light and +winning, meant to supplement rather than to contrast strongly with the +first theme, which indeed keeps up at the same time, in the inner +voices, its rhythmic impetuosity. The Exposition ends with a graceful +closing phrase, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +and the usual cadence in the dominant key. It is considered that the +Adagio chords for the trombones, interpolated between the Exposition +and the Development, are suggestive of the religious element in the +play that is to follow. The Development is remarkable for the spirited +imitative treatment of the first theme, for the bold way in which the +voices cut into each other and for the fusion of its closing measures +with the Recapitulation. The chief feature in this brilliant passage +is a piling up of the theme in stretto form (see measures 148-153). +The Recapitulation is somewhat shortened and the melodic outline of +the second theme is slightly changed; otherwise it corresponds with +the Exposition. After the closing phrase we have some pungent +dissonances, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Rossini, it is said, was never tired of eulogizing this Overture and +certainly for spontaneity and vigor it is unrivalled.[130] + +[Footnote 129: For a complete account of this development see Grove's +Dict. Vol. III under _Overture_ and the Oxford History, Vol. IV, page +286, _seq._] + +[Footnote 130: Its companion in modern literature is the Overture to +the _Bartered Bride_ (by the Bohemian composer Smetana), which also +begins with a brilliant fugal treatment of the theme.] + +The last illustration from Mozart is his _Adagio in B minor_ (see +Supplement No. 43) an independent piece, far too little known, in +complete Sonata-form. The haunting pathos in the theme, the exquisite +loveliness in the whole fabric instantly reach the hearer's heart. +Analytical comment seems quite unnecessary; a child can "follow" the +music, but only he with a ripe knowledge of human life can begin to +fathom its deep mystery.[131] When we see such modern passages as the +following, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 131: For some illuminating comments on this subtle character +of Mozart's creations see the Stanford-Forsyth History of Music, p. +254.] + +Tchaikowsky's love for Mozart's music is readily understood. Indeed, +we cannot refrain from urging everyone to cultivate such a love +himself; for in the works of Mozart are found a purity, a sanity and a +delight in creation which keep them alive and make them in very truth +"things of beauty and a joy forever." + + + + +CHAPTER XI + +BEETHOVEN, THE TONE-POET + + +As Beethoven was such an intensely subjective composer, a knowledge of +his personality and environment is indispensable for a complete +appreciation of his works.[132] + +[Footnote 132: Hence is given a more extended biographical account +than in the case of former composers.] + +Beethoven, Ludwig van (1770-1827), born at Bonn on the Rhine, though +his active career is associated with Vienna, may be called the first +thinker in music; for at last the art is brought into correlation with +man's other powers and becomes a living reflex of the tendencies and +activities of the period. Notwithstanding the prodigious vitality of +Bach's work, we feel that his musical sense operated abstractly like a +law of Nature and that he was an unconscious embodiment, as it were, +of the deep religious sentiment of his time and of the sturdy +independence of his race. At any period and in any place Bach would +have been Bach. Beethoven's music, however, in its intense personality +and as a vivid expression of the ideals of his fellow men, was +different from any the world had heard before. There were three +paramount advantages in his equipment: first, Beethoven was a strong +character who only happened to find in music his most suitable means +of self-expression. The full import of his works cannot be understood +unless he is recognized, great creative artist that he was, as first +and foremost a unique personality. Had he not written a note of music +we should have sufficient historical evidence to assure ourselves of +the vigor of his intellect and the elevation of his ideals. Whereas +Haydn and Mozart are to be judged purely as musicians, in Beethoven it +is always something underlying the musical symbols which claims our +allegiance. Furthermore he had the inestimable advantage of finding +the mechanical structure of instrumental music carefully formulated by +his predecessors. The stone had been quarried, the rough cutting done +and the blocks lay ready for a genius to use in the erection of his +own poetically conceived edifice. And these forms were still fresh and +vigorous; they had not yet hardened into formalism. In Beethoven's +works we rarely find form employed for its own sake, as a mere "tour +de force" of skilful workmanship, rather is it made to adapt itself to +the individual needs of the composer. Finally Beethoven's career +coincided with momentous changes and upheavals in the social, +political and artistic world. He is the embodiment of that spirit of +individualism, of human freedom and self-respect which found its +expression in the French Revolution, in our American War of +Independence and in the entire alteration of social standards. +Beethoven at all costs resolved to be himself. With him music ceases +to be a mere "concourse of sweet sounds"; it must always bring some +message to the brooding human soul, and be something more than a +skilful example of abstract ingenuity. These personal tendencies of +Beethoven were fostered by the spirit of the times, and his music +became in turn a vital expression of revolt against existing +conditions and of passionate aspiration towards something better. He +was the first musician to free himself from the enervating influence +of having to write exclusively for aristocratic patronage. Such was +the social emancipation of the period that he could address himself at +first hand to a musical public eagerly receptive and constantly +growing. His representative works could never have been composed in +the time of Haydn and Mozart; for though in formal structure the +logical development of preceding methods--Beethoven being no reckless +iconoclast--in individual content they reveal a freedom of utterance +which took its rise in tendencies hitherto unknown. Beethoven's mighty +personality and far-reaching influence can not be stated in a few +formulae. An extensive library covering his life and times is +accessible to the interested layman, and a thorough appreciation of +his masterpieces is a spiritual possession which everyone must gain +individually. Since Beethoven's works compel a man to think for +himself, the constructive power of the creator must be met with an +analogous activity on the part of the receptive hearer. The +symphonies, for example, are more than cunningly contrived works of +musical art; they are human documents of undying power to quicken and +exalt the soul which will submit itself to their influence. +Beethoven's great instrumental compositions are few in number in +comparison with the voluminous and uneven output of his predecessors. +Thus from Haydn we have 125 symphonies, from Mozart about 40, from +Beethoven 9. Of Haydn's symphonies possibly a half dozen have +permanent vitality; of Mozart's four; of Beethoven's all, with the +possible exception of the experimental first. Condensation of subject +matter, conciseness of style, a ceaseless exaltation of quality above +quantity are the prominent features in Beethoven's work. All adipose +tissue is relentlessly excised, and the finished creation resembles a +human being in perfect physical condition--the outward mechanical +organism subservient to the spirit within. + +Beethoven's life is of supreme interest and importance, for his music +is the direct expression of himself, of his joys and sorrows. His +ancestry raises many perplexing questions as to the influence of +heredity and the sources of genius. In the first place Beethoven was +not a pure-blooded German, but partly Flemish on his father's side. +His paternal grandfather, Ludwig van[133] Beethoven, was a man of +strong character and of a certain musical aptitude, who had migrated +from the neighborhood of Antwerp to Bonn where he served as court +musician to the Elector of Cologne. The paternal grandmother early +developed a passion for drink and ended her days confined in a +convent. The son of this couple, Johann (the father of the composer) +was a tenor singer in the court chapel at Bonn and soon became a +confirmed drunkard. He seems to be a mere intermediary between +grandfather and grandson. In 1767 he married a young widow, Maria +Keverich, a woman of warm affections and depth of sentiment, whose +life was bound up in the care of her gifted son. The tender love +between Beethoven and his mother was a bright spot in his early years, +in many ways so sordid and unhappy. Unfortunately she was delicate, of +consumptive tendencies, and died when Ludwig was but seventeen. "She +has been to me a good and loving mother," he writes, "and my best +friend." As we ponder on such facts and then consider for what +Beethoven stands, we can only exclaim, "God works in a mysterious way, +his wonders to perform." It was early seen that the young Beethoven +had unusual ability, and so the shiftless father, with the example of +Mozart's precocity before him, submitted the boy to a deal of enforced +drudgery in the way of harpsichord and violin practice. He had one +good teacher however, Neefe, who records that the boy of thirteen +played the harpsichord with energetic skill and had mastered the +Preludes and Fugues of the Well-Tempered Clavichord. Beethoven's +general education was sadly neglected, and when he was thirteen +practically ceased. These deficiencies were a source of mortification +all his life. He spelled atrociously, was never sure of his addition +and subtraction and so was often involved in altercations with +landlords and washerwomen. By nature Beethoven was of strong, eager +intellect. He became an omnivorous reader, and later in life acquired +a working facility in Latin, French, Italian and English. The first +period of his life ends with his departure in 1792 for Vienna, whither +he was sent by the Elector to study with Haydn. In summing up its +special incidents we are struck first by the vivid and lasting +impression which Beethoven, in spite of his lowly origin and +deficiencies in education and cultivation, made upon wealthy and +refined people of distinction, simply through his extraordinary +personality and unmistakable sincerity. Two of these friends were the +von Breuning family, including the charming daughter Eleanore--one of +Beethoven's early loves--and the cultivated and influential Count +Waldstein, in whose companionship he became acquainted with the German +poets and with the dramas of Shakespeare. For a vivid picture of these +boyish years the student is recommended to the Romance, _Jean +Christophe_ (by Romain Rolland) which, though somewhat idealized, is +mainly on a historical basis. Two of Beethoven's most unique +characteristics date from this period. First, his constant habit of +drawing inspiration directly from Nature, of which he was a passionate +and persistent lover. He says of himself "No one can love the country +as I love it. Here alone can I learn wisdom. Every tree exclaims to me +'Holy, Holy, Holy.'" In long walks through wood and field he would +allow his thoughts to germinate, giving himself up utterly to creative +emotion. When in this state of mind Madame von Breuning used to say +that he was in his "raptus." Consequently, in comparison with the +works of previous composers, which often have a note of primness and +artificial restraint--they smell a bit of the lamp and the +study--those of Beethoven have the elemental power of Nature herself, +especially shown in the vigor and variety of the rhythm. Second, he +would always carry sketch books in which to jot down ideas as they +came to him. These he would polish and improve--sometimes for +years--before they took final shape. Many of these sketch books[134] +have been preserved and edited, and they illustrate, most vividly, +Beethoven's method of composing: slow, cautious, but invincible in its +final effect; an idea frequently being altered as many as twenty +times. At the age of twenty-two he was chiefly known as a pianist with +wonderful facility in improvisation; his compositions had been +insignificant. The next eight years--up to 1800, when Beethoven was +thirty--were spent in acquainting himself with the Viennese +aristocracy and in building up a public clientele. Then follows the +marvellous period until 1815 in which his power of inspiration was at +its height, and which gave to the world a body of work for magnitude +and variety never surpassed: all the symphonies except the Ninth, the +first twenty-seven pianoforte Sonatas, five concertos for pianoforte +and orchestra, the opera of Fidelio, several Overtures, numerous +string quartets and ensemble chamber music. We realize even more +vividly the heroic and sublime character of Beethoven when we learn +that, as early as 1798, there began the signs of that deafness which +altered his whole life. By nature he was hypersensitive, proud and +high-strung, and these qualities were so aggravated by his malady that +he became suspicious, at times morose, and his subsequent career was +checkered with the violent altercations, and equally spasmodic +renewals of friendship, which took place between him and his best +friends. His courage was extraordinary. Thus we find him writing: +"Though at times I shall be the most miserable of God's creatures, I +will grapple with Fate, it shall never pull me down." On the artistic +side this affliction had its compensations in that it isolated the +composer from outer distractions, and allowed him to lay entire stress +on the spiritual inner side of his art; certainly this is one of the +strongest notes in his music--the pure fancy manifested therein. As a +deaf musician he is comparable to the blind seer who penetrates more +deeply into the mysteries of life than those whose physical eyesight +is perfect. Beethoven's closing years form a period of manifold +complications, caused by the care of his scapegrace nephew, by his +settled deafness and precarious financial position. Yet he grimly +continued to compose, his last works being of titanic dimensions such +as the Choral symphony, the Mass in D and the last Quartets and +Pianoforte Sonatas. Beethoven died on March 26, 1827; nature most +appropriately giving a dramatic setting to the event by a terrific +storm of hail and snow, lightning and thunder. It would take too long +to dwell on the many characteristics of the man Beethoven. Power, +individuality and sincerity were stamped upon him, and his music is +just what we should expect from his nature. He embodied all the +longings, the joys and sorrows of humanity, and gave them such burning +utterance that the world has listened ever since. + +[Footnote 133: The prefix van is not a symbol of nobility.] + +[Footnote 134: See the two _Beethoveniana_ by Nottebohm.] + +To touch now upon a few of the formal aspects of Beethoven's work, as +far as verbal analysis can help, it may be asserted that he is the +acknowledged master of the Sonata Form as Bach was of the Fugue, and +in his hands this form, and also the Air with Variations, were raised +to a potency the influence of which is felt even to-day. From +beginning to end every portion of the Sonata Form was made over and +vitalized. Instead of the perfunctory "flourish of trumpets" which +served previous composers for an introduction, this portion with +Beethoven deftly leads on the hearer to a contemplation of the main +work, and is as carefully planned as the porch of a great Cathedral. +For examples, witness the continually growing excitement generated in +the introductions to the Second and Seventh Symphonies, the breathless +suspense of the introduction to the Fourth, and the primeval, +mysterious beginning of the Ninth. And then what a difference in the +character and emotional suggestiveness of the themes, that with +Beethoven are actual human voices, dramatic characters, which once met +can never be forgotten. As Lavoix says of the Fifth Symphony, "Is not +this a drama in its purity, where passion is no longer the attribute +of a theatrical work, but the expression of our own individual +feelings?" No longer are the transitions mere mechanical connections, +but a portion of the structure which, though subsidiary, is yet +organically developed from that which precedes and inevitably related +to that which follows. In the development section we find the real +Beethoven. Here his marvellous freshness of invention found full play. +Such inexhaustible fancy, such coherence of structure, such subtlety +of transformation were unknown in former times, when development was +often as lifeless as the perfunctory motions of an automaton. +Beethoven's developments are no mere juggling with tones; they are +vast tonal edifices, examples of what the imagination of man +controlled by intellect can achieve. Possibly Beethoven's greatest +skill as a musical architect was shown in his treatment of the Coda, +which became the crowning climax of a movement, a last driving home +with all possible eloquence of the message heretofore presented. The +end of previous compositions had too often been a mere ceasing to go, +a running down, but in Beethoven there is usually a strong objective +point towards which everything converges. + +Fully conscious as he was of the throbbing human message it was his +mission to reveal, we may be sure that Beethoven spared no effort to +enhance the expressive capabilities of music as a language. Certain +aspects of his style in this respect are strikingly noticeable in +every one of his representative works. First, the marvellous rhythmic +vitality. Note the absence of the former sing-song rhythm of Haydn; in +its stead we hear the heart-beat, now fast, now slow, of a living +human being. No longer can the hearer in dreamy apathy beat time with +his foot. Second, his use of the fiercest dissonances to express the +heights and depths of our stormy human existence. In listening to +contemporary works nothing should persuade us more strongly to a +sympathetic tolerance, or at any rate to a suspension of judgment, +than the fact that many of Beethoven's most individual cries (surely +in his case the outward expression of what he heard within, those very +outbursts which to-day ring longest in our consciousness) were +considered at the time of their creation as the ravings of a mad-man. +Dissonances, both acoustically and psychologically, are a vital +principle in music. In no respect was his music more original than in +his Promethean boldness in their use. One of his favorite conceptions +was that music should strike fire from the soul of man; it was not +meant to lull the hearer into a drowsy revery, but to awaken his +spiritual consciousness with a shock at times positively galvanic. A +third feature is his subtlety in expression, as is shown by the minute +indications in which every page of his work abounds. The crescendos, +often leading to a sudden drop to pianissimo, the long stretches of +hushed suspense, the violent sforzandos on unimportant beats, the +plasticity of periodic formation, all these workings of a rich +imagination first gave music its place as the supreme art of human +expression. + +A word must be spoken concerning two forms which we owe to Beethoven's +constructive genius. In place of the former naive Minuet, so +characteristic of the formal manners of its time, he substituted a +movement with a characteristic name--the Scherzo, which opened up +entirely new possibilities. No mere literary distinction between wit +and humor[135] can explain the power of Beethoven's Scherzos; only +through his own experience of life can the hearer fathom their +secrets. The expression of real humor, akin to that spirit which is +found in Cervantes, Swift, Mark Twain and Abraham Lincoln, was a +genuine contribution of Beethoven. Deep thinkers alone are capable of +humor which, to quote a recent writer, is "that faculty of imagination +so humane and sympathetic in its nature that it can perceive at the +same time serious and jocose things. It can feel the pathos of a scene +on life's stage and yet have an eye for the incongruities of the +actors. It is imagination, the feel of kinship with the universal +human soul." Beethoven's Scherzos are as varied as life itself. Who +can forget the boisterous vitality of this movement in the Eroica, +which quite sweeps us off our feet, the haunting mystery of the +Scherzo of the Fifth Symphony, or listen unmoved to the grim +seriousness, alternating with touching pathos, in the Scherzo of the +Ninth? Secondly, his conception of the Air and Variations was so +different from anything previously known that he may fairly be called +its creator. With him variations became poetic transformations, and +the notable works in this form of Brahms, Tchaikowsky, Franck and +d'Indy are only freer manifestations of Beethoven's method. Upon two +last features, his use of titles and his individualizing of the +orchestral instruments, we cannot dwell in detail. Although program +music in its literal sense dates back several centuries, +Beethoven--far more than was customary before--used external +suggestions or incidents, often intimate subjective experiences, as +the quickening impulse to his imagination. We know from his own words +that, while composing, he generally had some mental picture before +him. Very often we are not given the clue to his thoughts, but the +titles, familiar to every one, which he did use, such as the _Heroic_ +and _Pastoral_ Symphonies, the _Coriolanus_ and _Egmont_ Overtures, +those to several of the Sonatas, are full of import and show clearly +that he was engaged in no mere abstract music making for its own sake. +These works are the point of departure for the significant development +of modern music along this path. With Beethoven the orchestra began to +assume its present importance, and the instruments are no longer +treated as mere producers of sound and rhythm, but often as living +beings. How eloquent is the message of the Horns in the Trio to the +Scherzo of the _Heroic_! Berlioz compares the double basses in the +Fifth Symphony to the gambols of sportive elephants, and instances +might be multiplied. But words are futile in describing the wonders of +Beethoven. A striking tribute is that of Professor John K. Paine. "In +instrumental music Beethoven is pre-eminent, from all points of view, +formally, aesthetically and spiritually. Like Shakespeare's, his +creations are distinguished by great diversity of character; each is a +type by itself. Beethoven is the least of a mannerist of all +composers. His compositions are genuine poems, which tell their +meaning to the true listener clearly and unmistakably in the language +of tones, a language however which cannot be translated into mere +words." + +[Footnote 135: The derivation of the word is worthy of note; it means +moisture, juice, something not dry. Humor is certainly the juice of +human nature.] + +We are now in a position to approach intelligently, enthusiastically +and reverently the mighty works of Beethoven which, though built upon +the foundations of Haydn and Mozart, yet take us into an entirely new +world of power and fancy. For illustrations we select the first +movement of the _Third_ or _Heroic_ Symphony; the _Seventh Sonata in D +major_ for Pianoforte; the _Fifth Symphony in C minor_ (entire) and +the _Coriolanus_ Overture. In regard to the symphonies it is +understood that the emphasis on certain ones and the omission of +others implies no ultra-critical attitude. Each of Beethoven's +symphonies has its characteristic attributes and each is the work of a +genius. But just as in Nature some mountains are more majestic than +others, so concerning the nine symphonies we may say that their order +of excellence as endorsed by the consensus of mankind would be as +follows. The First Symphony is somewhat experimental, composed when +Beethoven was working out his technique of expression. It is closely +modeled on the style of Haydn and, though showing certain daring +touches and though perfectly direct and sincere, is not of marked +individuality. In the Second Symphony a long advance is made, for we +find numerous traits which are thoroughly distinctive of the genius of +Beethoven: the exciting Prelude to the first movement; the heavenly +Larghetto, one of the first slow movements of real emotional power; +the rollicking Scherzo (note the fantastic touches in the Trio) and +the splendor of the last pages of the Finale, which can only be +compared to a sunset with its slowly fading colors and its last burst +of glory. The general style of the Second Symphony however is that of +Haydn and Mozart, though raised to the highest pitch of eloquence. In +the Third Symphony the complete Beethoven steps forth. It was his +declaration of independence, and in this work, as he himself said, he +began a completely new line of activity; it was also his own favorite +among the symphonies.[136] Heretofore there had been no such +impassioned utterance as is revealed in the first movement of this +Third Symphony and there have been few, if any, to equal it since. The +Fourth Symphony is an entrancing work and shows Beethoven's +inexhaustible variety of mood; since, save for the "grand manner" +peculiar to all his works, it differs strikingly from the Third and +the Fifth. It was composed during the happiest period of Beethoven's +life and is related in its whole character to his emotions and +aspirations at that time.[137] The slow movement is the most sublime +love-song in music. The Fifth Symphony is undoubtedly the most popular +of them all, in the true sense of the term.[138] The reason for this +verdict is the unparalleled combination in a single work of the +emotional intensity found in the first movement, the touching appeal +of the slow movement, the mystery, followed by the reckless display of +spirit, in the Scherzo and the paean of rejoicing which rings through +the Finale. The Sixth or Pastoral, Beethoven's one excursion into the +realm of tone-painting based on natural phenomena, is of interest more +as a point of departure for the work of his successors than for its +intrinsic message. The conception of the possibilities of musical +description has so widened since Beethoven, and the facilities for +orchestral color so increased, that this symphony, though it has many +characteristic beauties, sounds a bit old-fashioned. The Seventh is +one of the most original of them all, incomparable for its rhythmic +vitality--the Apotheosis of the Dance, as Wagner called it.[139] If +rhythm be the basis of music and of life itself, this symphony is +thoroughly alive from start to finish, hence immortal. The Eighth is +the embodiment of Beethoven's (possibly) most individual trait--his +abounding humor. Never before had symphonic music played such pranks +as are found here, especially in the Finale. The Symphony is in fact a +prolonged Scherzo[140]--the third movement (a Minuetto) being merely +for contrast. The Ninth Symphony, composed in the philosophic period +of Beethoven's life, when he was attempting still greater heights, is +a vast work, the first three movements purely instrumental, and the +Finale, for the first time in symphonic literature, a union of solo +voices and chorus with the instrumental forces. The text was taken +from Schiller's "Ode to Joy." The spirit of the poem made a strong +appeal to Beethoven's humanitarian and democratic aspirations and +there is no question of the grandeur of his conception. But it is not +carping criticism to say that his thoughts were too heaven-soaring for +a perfect realization through any earthly means. Beethoven moreover +was seldom happy in writing for the human voice--he thought in terms +of the instruments--and it is not to be denied that there are several +passages in the Finale which consist of mere boisterous shouting. No +one save believers in plenary inspiration can give to this Finale the +whole-hearted admiration that is paid to the three instrumental +movements which are pure gold; especially the seraphic Adagio and the +Gargantuan Scherzo with its demoniacal rhythmic energy. To sum up the +foregoing estimates, if the student is forced to select and cannot +become equally familiar with all of the nine symphonies, a reasonable +order of study would be the following: the Fifth, the Third, the +Seventh, the Eighth, the Fourth, the Ninth, the Second, the Sixth and +the First. See Supplement No. 44. + +[Footnote 136: See Beethoven, Kerst-Krehbiel, p. 45.] + +[Footnote 137: Read the appropriate essay in _Beethoven and His Nine +Symphonies_ by Sir George Grove.] + +[Footnote 138: Vox populi, vox Dei.] + +[Footnote 139: D'Indy, however, in his _Beethoven_ (p. 61, English +translation) dissents from this view; not at all convincingly, it +would seem to us. For the basic rhythm of each movement is on a +definite dance metre and the theme of the first movement is a regular +Irish jig (Beethoven at one time being very much interested in Irish +folk-dances) with its typical three final notes, _e.g._ + +[Music]] + +[Footnote 140: It was written, to use Beethoven's own words, in an +"aufgeknoepft" (unbuttoned) condition, _i.e._, free, untramelled, +rather than straight-laced, swaddled in conventions.] + +We shall now make a few comments[141] on the first movement of the +_Third_ or _Heroic Symphony_, merely to stimulate the hearer's +interest, for the music may be trusted to make its own direct appeal. +After two short, sonorous chords, which summon us to attention, the +first theme, allegro con brio, with its elemental, swinging rhythm, is +announced by the 'cellos. It is often glibly asserted that these notes +of the tonic triad are the whole of the first theme. This is a great +misconception, for although the motive in the first four measures is +the generative basis for the entire movement, the arresting, dramatic +note of the theme is the C-sharp in measure five. This theme in fact +is a typical example of Beethoven's broad sweeps of thought; for +prolonged with secondary melodic phrases in the first violins and +flutes, its real close does not come until the 13th measure, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 141: These are based in this work and in all Symphonic +compositions on the full orchestral score (in the Peters edition); the +student is therefore recommended to adopt this practise. For in +Beethoven and all orchestral writers the thought and expression are so +integrally bound up with the tone color and idiom of the various +instruments that when their works are reduced to another medium much +of the eloquence is lost. For those who cannot handle an orchestral +score there are adequate arrangements for 2 hands, 4 hands and for 2 +pianofortes in several standard editions. Those who have an advanced +pianoforte technique should certainly become familiar with the +virtuoso-transcriptions of the Beethoven Symphonies by Franz Liszt.] + +After a varied repetition of the first motive of the theme, there +occurs a passage (measures 23-33)[142] which illustrates one of the +most characteristic features in all Beethoven's work, _i.e._, those +sharp dislocations of the rhythm, indicated by the sforzando accents +(_sf_) on beats usually _unaccented_ and often coupled with strong +dissonances. Although the basic rhythm is triple, the beats for +several measures are in groups of two quarter notes or their +equivalent, one half note, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 142: It is an excellent practise to number the measures of a +score in groups of _10_.] + +No longer can we drift along in dreamy apathy; our vitality is +quickened as by the gusts of a tornado. There have been those who for +the first time in their lives were jarred from the even tenor of their +way by these impassioned onslaughts. When Beethoven's Symphonies were +first played in Paris, it is reported that the operatic composer +Boieldieu was much disconcerted, because, as he said, he liked +"musique qui me berce." The transition (measures 43-81) is a +remarkable example of Beethoven's power of creating ever more and more +excitement and expectancy. It contains _three_ subsidiary melodic +phrases, each of increasing rhythmic animation, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +and fairly whirls us into the beautiful contemplative theme at measure +81. This theme embodies some entrancing modulations into remote keys, +and then, after one of Beethoven's typical passages of hushed +pianissimo (beginning in measure 97) we are led through a series of +sforzandos, crescendos and titanic ejaculations to the overpowering +dissonances in measure 145, which with the tonic chord close the +Exposition in the dominant key. The Development (measures 164-396) is +extremely long and varied, but a perfect manifestation of spontaneous, +organic treatment--each portion growing inevitably from what has +preceded and marching irresistibly onward to its objective goal. Every +modulatory, rhythmic and polyphonic device is employed to vary and +intensify the message; yet, notwithstanding the diversity of the +material, we are held spellbound by the directness and coherence of +the thought. Such is Beethoven's passionate insistence on the right to +speak out just what he felt that in one stupendous passage (measures +246-277) it seems as if the very Heavens were falling about our heads. +At measure 282 a theme of ideal repose is interpolated--just the +contrast needed after the preceding cataclysm. The Development proper +is renewed in measure 298 and after a repetition of the interpolated +theme in measures 320-335 the rhythm of the first theme asserts itself +in all its majesty, carrying us upward to a veritable table-land of +sublimity. From this we are brought down through a series of +decrescendo, modulatory chords, like drifting mists, to an almost +complete cessation of musical life--nothing but a pianissimo tremolo +on the strings. From this hush there floats in upon us the rhythmic +motive of the first theme; then, with a _ff_ chord of the dominant, we +are suddenly brought back into the sunshine of the main theme, and the +Recapitulation has begun. This portion with certain happy changes in +modulation--note the beautiful variant on the horn in measures +406-414, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +--preserves the customary emphasis on the main tonality of E-flat +major, ending in measures 549-550 with the same dissonances which +closed the Exposition. Then are declaimed by the full orchestra those +two dramatic outbursts which usher in the Coda and which may be +likened to "Stop! Listen! the best is yet to come." The blunt, +intentional disjunction of the harmony adds weight to the assertion, +_e.g._ + +[Music] + +Here we have a convincing illustration of Beethoven's individual +conception that the Coda should be a second and final development; +special points of interest and treatment being held in store, so that +it becomes a truly crowning piece of eloquence. Observe how the +reappearance of the interpolated theme balances the Coda with the +Development proper and how the various rhythms of the Exposition are +concentrated in the last page. Finally a series of bold, vibrato leaps +in the first violins--based on the dominant chord--brings this +impassioned movement to a close. + +A lack of space prevents the inclusion in the Supplement of the rest +of the Symphony, but the student is urged to make himself familiar +with the three remaining movements: the Marcia Funebre, the Scherzo +and the Finale. The Funeral March is justly ranked with that of Chopin +in his B-flat minor Sonata and that of Wagner in the last act of the +_Goetterdaemmerung_ as one of the most eloquent in existence, and +contains melodies so touching that they could have come only from the +very soul of Beethoven. Especially noteworthy is the aspiring melody +of the middle, contrasting portion (Maggiore) where the spirit, freed +from earthly dross, seems to mount to the skies in a chariot of fire. +The third part, where the minor mode is resumed, abounds in dramatic +touches; especially that fugal passage, where the ecclesiastical tone, +combined with pealing trumpets, brings before us some funeral pageant +in a vast, medieval cathedral. The Coda, beginning in A-flat major, +with an impressive mood of resignation, illustrates at its close a +psychological use of programmistic effect; for the first theme, +treated as a real person, disintegrates before our very +eyes--becoming, as it were, a disembodied spirit. Nothing can show +more clearly than this passage the widening of the expressive powers +of music which we owe to the genius of Beethoven. The same effect with +a slightly different dramatic purpose is found at the end of the +_Coriolanus_ Overture. + +The Scherzo, allegro vivace, in triple time, but marked _one_ beat a +measure = 116 (almost two measures per second!), is unsurpassed for +sustained brilliancy and daring rhythmic changes. It is so +idiomatically conceived for orchestra that only the barest idea can be +gained from a pianoforte transcription. The prevailing background is a +mass of shimmering strings, marked by Beethoven "_sempre pp e +staccato_" and against this stands out a buoyant, folk-song type of +melody on the oboe. After some mysterious and fantastic modulations a +_ff_ climax is reached which leads to the famous syncopated passage +where the orchestra seems to hurl itself headlong into space, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The Trio, with its three hunting horns, gives a fresh, woodland note +typifying Beethoven's love of nature. Some mysterious modulations lead +us back from the dim recesses of the forest to the sparkling animation +of the Scherzo. In this part of the movement Beethoven plays one of +his characteristic practical jokes; for, just where we expect the same +syncopated effect as before, the time is changed from 3/4 to 2/2, the +duration of the measure remaining the same, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +This effect may be likened to the uproarious guffaws of a giant. The +Coda has a clear reminiscence of the dramatic C-sharp in the main +theme of the first movement, _e.g._ + +[Music][143] + +[Footnote 143: D-flat being the enharmonic equivalent of C-sharp. +[Transcriber's Note: The music notation contains a D-flat.]] + +Such an organic connection between movements begins to be very +frequent in Beethoven's works. + +The Finale, Allegro molto, has caused considerable difficulty to the +commentators for reasons known only to themselves. Different forms are +assigned to it by different critics; one regrets the falling off of +inspiration, another asserts that the movement "does not fulfill the +requirements which the human mind makes of art; it leaves us +confused." Poor Beethoven! But why all this pother? If the inner +evidence of the music itself be any justification for structural +classification, this wonderful, inspired Finale is a series of free +Variations[144] on a double theme of which the parts are related to +each other as Soprano and Bass, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 144: The variations are not numbered and the demarcations +indicated only by certain cadential objective points.] + +By beginning the first two variations with the less important of the +two melodies (_i.e._, the _bass_) Beethoven is simply indulging in his +fondness for piquing the fancy of the hearer by starting him on a +false trail--not giving away, as it were, his real purpose too soon. +Yet from the first announcement of the leading melody in the Third +Variation it assumes increasing importance, through successive +appearances in E-flat major, B minor, D major and C major, until after +a long fugal development we reach the inspired passage (Poco Andante +con espressione), _e.g._, + +[Music] + +in which the main theme is stated first in its noble simplicity and +then enhanced by an obligato melody on the oboe. It is one of the most +eloquent passages in all symphonic literature. At its last appearance +the real theme comes fully to its own--for the _first_ time in the +_bass_, that fundamental voice--where it is declaimed _ff_ in gorgeous +splendor by all the lower instruments of the orchestra. It is evident +that not even the most inspired genius can sustain such a flight for +ever, and after this magnificent paean the workings of Beethoven's +imagination resemble those of Nature herself. Following a tranquil +intermediary passage in A-flat major we enter upon one of those long, +mysterious periods of hushed suspense which may be compared to a long +expanse of open country or to the fading lights on the sea at sunset. +The last page, beginning with the Presto, is sheer orchestral +jubilation of the most intoxicating kind. We may picture an +enthusiastic gathering, with hats thrown aloft and shouts of triumph +ringing from every throat. It is of historical interest to know that +the theme of this Finale must have been a favorite with Beethoven, for +he had used it in three former works: a _Contre-dance_, as the basis +for a set of _Pianoforte Variations_ and in the _Ballet Music to +Prometheus_. It may not be too fanciful to trace a dramatic +relationship between its use in portraying the daring spirit who first +stole fire from Heaven and as the crowning message of a work meant to +glorify all heroic endeavor. A thorough familiarity with this movement +will repay the student not only as exemplifying Beethoven's freedom of +expression but indeed as a point of departure for so many modern works +in free variation form. See Supplement No. 45. + +To illustrate Beethoven's Pianoforte compositions we shall now analyze +the _Seventh Sonata in D major_, op. 10, No. 3. Only wholesale +hero-worshipers consider all of the thirty-two Sonatas of equal +significance. It is true that, taken as a whole, they are a storehouse +of creative vitality and that in each there is something, somewhere, +which strikes a spark; for everything which Beethoven wrote was +stamped with his dominating personality. But the fire of genius burns +more steadily in some of the Sonatas than in others. It is the very +essence of genius to have its transcendent moments; only mediocrity +preserves a dead level. It is therefore no spirit of fault finding +which leads us to centre our attention upon those Sonatas which have +best stood the test of time and which never fail to convince us of +their "raison d'etre": the _Appassionata_, the _Waldstein_, the +_C-sharp minor_, the _Pathetique_, the _Sonata in G major_, op. 14, +No. 2, and _all_ the last five, especially the glorious one in _A-flat +major_, op. 119. It is futile to deny that some of the early sonatas +are experimental and that certain others do not represent Beethoven at +his best, being more the result of his constructive power than of an +impelling message which had to be expressed. The D major Sonata has +been selected for study because, though composed in Beethoven's first +period, it is thoroughly characteristic, and because its performance +is within the powers of the average intelligent amateur. The full +beauty of the later Sonatas can be realized only by great virtuosi who +devote to them years of study. The work is in four movements: the +first, complete Sonata-form; the second, modified Sonata-form; the +third, Three-part; the Finale, a freely treated Rondo-Sonata-form. The +first movement, Presto, begins with a vigorous presentation of the +main theme which ends in measure 22 with the last of three _ff_ +octaves. The unusually long transition, containing a subsidiary theme +in B minor, is remarkable for its onrushing excitement and for the +playful false leads which usher in the second theme. After a brilliant +cadence in the dominant key, one would suppose this theme might be +announced in measure 53, but not so; after three measures of cantabile +melody, progress is interrupted by a group of descending octave leaps. +A second attempt is now made, this time in A minor, only to be +thwarted by a still more capricious octave descent. This time, +however, after a dramatic pause, we are rewarded with a clear-cut, +periodic melody beginning in measure 66, against which the rhythm of +the first theme keeps up a gentle undercurrent. Some interesting +modulations develop into a series of descending octaves which, +accompanied by _sf_ chords, lead to the closing portion. This +brilliant passage accentuates the dominant key of the second theme. +After a short tranquillo phrase and some free imitations of the main +theme we repeat the Exposition, or go on to the Development ushered in +by a bold change to the mediant key of B-flat major. After several +appearances of the main theme in the bass, Beethoven takes a leaf out +of D. Scarlatti's book and revels in some crossing of the hands and +some wide leaps. The Recapitulation corresponds exactly with the first +part until we reach the Coda in measure 298, which affords a striking +example of Beethoven's power of climax. After a long period of +suspense an imitative treatment of the first theme, with kettle-drum +effect in the bass, leads to a stringendo ascending passage which +closes with two crashing dissonances and two peculiarly grouped +chords, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +They have a hard, cutting brilliance all their own and give just the +touch of color needed to finish this dazzling movement.[145] + +[Footnote 145: By Beethoven everything is carefully planned. Note in +performance the contrast of mood suggested by these final chords and +the sombre register of the opening chords of the Slow Movement.] + +In the Slow Movement, Largo e Mesto, there is a depth of emotion quite +unparalleled in the early history of music.[146] Certainly no composer +since Bach had uttered such a message. As soon as the movement begins +we are convinced that it represents the outpouring of a soul capable +of deep meditations upon life and its mysteries, and with the +eloquence at its command to impress these thoughts upon the hearer. +The number of themes and their key relationship are those of +Sonata-form, but instead of the usual development we have a new +contrasting theme of great pathos in the major mode. Observe the +poignancy of the dissonances, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +in the second theme of the Exposition which begins in measure 17, and +the passionate outcries in measures 35 and 37 of the middle portion. +Just before the Recapitulation, in measures 41-43, is an early example +of Beethoven's fondness for instrumental recitative--music speaking +with a more intimate appeal than words. The movement ends with an +impassioned Coda which, beginning with the main theme in the bass and +working up, more and more agitato, to a powerful climax, dies away +with mysterious fragments of the opening measures. The dissonant +element so characteristic of the whole movement is retained to the +end, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 146: According to d'Indy it is more truly pathetic than the +entire so-called _Pathetic Sonata_.] + +The growing importance of dissonance may be seen from a comparison of +this movement with the average slow movements of Haydn and Mozart +These, although they have serenity and grace, beauty and finish of +form, and are sincere manifestations of the genius of their creators, +are yet lacking in passion. This placid mood and amiability of style +is shown by the comparatively slight employment of dissonances. By +unthinking and uncultivated persons dissonances[147] are often +considered as something harsh, repellant--hence to be avoided. But +dissonances contain the real life and progress of music. They arouse, +even take by storm our imaginations and shake us out of our +equanimity. Consonant chords represent stability, satisfaction and, +when over-used, inertia. The genius of the composer is shown in +establishing just the _right proportion_ between these two elements; +but if there is to be any disproportion let us have _too much_ rather +than too little dissonance, for then, at any rate, the music is +_alive_. Since Beethoven the whole development of music as a human +language shows the preponderating stress laid on dissonance; to this +fact a knowledge of the works of Schumann, Chopin, Wagner, Debussy and +Franck will amply testify.[148] The same analogy holds equally in all +realms of life, human and physical. The truest development of +character depends on the warring elements of good and evil. Honest +discontent is the first step to progress. Dissonance is the yeast of +music and should be welcomed for its invigorating influence. + +[Footnote 147: A frequent confusion of thought is shown in the use of +the words "discord" and "dissonance." A discord is an unrelated noise, +as when one bangs with both fists on the key-board. A dissonance is a +logical introduction of intervals or chords made up of jarring factors +for their stimulating effect upon the imagination.] + +[Footnote 148: Two of the greatest innovators in this direction, +Scryabin and Stravinsky, have been working in our own day, and there +is no doubt that by their daring experiments they have enlarged the +expressive powers of music. While it is obvious that the dramatic +effect of to-day stimulates the experimentation of tomorrow, +contrariwise, the immediate contribution of each innovator is to +render more clear the work of his predecessor, up to that moment the +confessed iconoclast.] + +The third movement, Minuetto, may be taken as a reply to Haydn's +well-known wish "Oh! that some one would write us a new Minuet." Well, +here it is--with all the grace and charm of the 18th century type and +yet with more import, especially in the Coda with its haunting +retrospect. The rhythmic formation of the opening sentence would be +clearer if two measures had been thrown into _one_, for the swing is +clearly that of a 6/4 measure. The Trio, with its Scarlatti-like +crossing of the hands, is a playful bit of badinage, affording a +delightful contrast to the Minuetto. Such genuine variety in mood +makes the Three-part Form of lasting worth. + +The Finale, Allegro, with its capricious fortissimo outbursts and +unexpected sforzandos is a characteristic example of Beethoven's +freedom of utterance. Any cast-iron conception of form was entirely +foreign to his nature; instead, he made form the servant of the freest +flights of fancy. The movement begins as if it were to be worked out +in the so-called Rondo Sonata-form--a hybrid, tripartite structure +related to the Sonata-form in that it has _two_ themes in the first +and last portions, and to the Rondo in that the middle portion is a +free Episode instead of the customary development of former material. +The salient feature by which this form may always be recognized is +that the Exposition closes with a _definite return_ to the first +theme--thus emphasizing the Rondo aspect--instead of with an expanded +cadence based upon the second theme. As we have stated before (see +Chapter IX), many of Beethoven's Finales are in this mixed form, clear +examples of which may be found in the last movements of the Fourth, +Eighth and Twelfth Sonatas. The Finale of the Twelfth Sonata has been +included in the Supplement in order to make this important form +familiar to the student. To return now to the Finale of the sonata we +are studying. Its first two portions correspond exactly to the usual +practice in the Rondo-Sonata form just explained; _i.e._, we find in +the Exposition a first theme, a modulatory transition, a second theme +(beginning in measure 17) and a definite repetition of the first +theme, in measures 25-32. Then, after two measures of bold modulation, +begins the middle, episodical passage which, closing with a whimsical +cadenza-like passage, leads back to the beginning of the third part. +After a complete, slightly varied appearance of the first theme, +Beethoven does not repeat the second theme, as we should expect, but +allows his fancy to indulge in a series of brilliant passages, +exciting modulations and dynamic contrasts. All this freedom is held +together by insistence on the fundamental rhythmic motive (measures +72-83). A final embellished statement of the first theme ushers in the +fiery Coda, in measure 92, which ends with a long running passage; +beneath, we hear reminiscences of the main theme. It is often stated +that Beethoven's Sonatas are lacking in pianistic effect, and it is +true that his pianoforte works do not bring out the possibilities of +color and sonority as we find them, for example, in Chopin and +Debussy--the orchestra and the string-quartet being indeed his +favorite media of expression. Yet during his entire early career +Beethoven was famous as a performer and improviser on the pianoforte +and some, at any rate, of his deepest thoughts have been confided to +that instrument. That he was not at all insensible to the beauty of +pianistic effect for its own sake is shown by the syncopated, shadowy +chords in measures 101-105, the whole justification for which lies in +their enchanting sound.[149] + +[Footnote 149: For a very clear tabular view of the structure of this +Sonata see d'Indy's _Cours de Composition Musicale_, Book II, p. 332.] + + +SYMPHONY NO. 5[150] + +[Footnote 150: This is not given in the Supplement. See preceding +remarks apropos of the Third Symphony. The comments are based, as +usual, on the full orchestral score.] + +The _Fifth Symphony in C minor_, op. 67, is deservedly popular because +it is so human; a translation, in fact, of life itself into the +glowing language of music. Beethoven's emotional power was so deep and +true that, in expressing himself, he spoke, like every great +philosopher, poet or artist, for all mankind. Which one of us in his +own experience, has not felt the same protests against relentless Fate +that find such uncontrollable utterance in the first movement? Who, +again, is untouched by that angelic message, set before us in the +second movement, of hope and aspiration, of heroic and even +_warlike_[151] resolution, mingled with the resignation which only +great souls know? The third movement (Allegro)--in reality a Scherzo +of the most fantastic type, though not so marked--might well typify +the riddle of the Universe. We indeed "see through a glass darkly," +and yet there is no note of despair. Amid the sinister mutterings of +the basses there ring out, on the horns and trumpets, clarion calls to +action. While we are in this world we must live its life; a living +death is unendurable. The Finale, Allegro maestoso, is a majestic +declaration of unconquerable faith and optimism--the intense +expression of Beethoven's own words, "I will grapple with Fate, it +shall never pull me down"--to be compared only with Browning's "God's +in his heaven, all's right with the world," and the peroration to +Whitman's _Mystic Trumpeter_, "Joy, joy, over all joy!" No adequate +attempt could be made to translate the music into words. The Symphony +is extremely subjective; indeed, autobiographic. For all historical +details as to its composition, the reader is referred to the Grove +essay,[152] and for eulogistic rhapsodies nothing can surpass the +essay of Berlioz, that prince of critics. We shall content ourselves +with a few comments of a structural nature and then trust the student +to seek a performance of the work by a good orchestra. Of the first +movement (Allegro con brio)[153] the dominant characteristics, +especially in comparison with the wealth of material in the _Heroic_, +are conciseness and intensity. It starts at once, without prelude, +with the motive--one of the tersest in music--from which is developed, +polyphonically, the first theme, _e.g._ + +[Music[A]] + +[Footnote 151: This interpretation of d'Indy is based upon the +prevalence in the movement of the conventional martial rhythm [Music] +and carries, we must acknowledge, considerable weight. It is, however, +distinctly subjective and prevents no one from gaining quite a +different impression. We should be more inclined to accept the views +of the noted French scholar had he not been so wide of the mark, while +speaking of the Seventh Symphony, as to deny any appearance of +dance-rhythm in the first movement But the Irish composer, Villiers +Stanford, has shown conclusively that the theme is based upon the +rhythm of an Irish Hornpipe. Thus do the wise ones disagree! +Meanwhile, we others have the _music itself_.] + +[Footnote 152: _Beethoven and his Nine Symphonies_ by Sir George +Grove.] + +[Footnote 153: Beethoven's favorite mark of tempo and expression.] + +[Footnote A: There are also some _p_ holding notes on the bassoons.] + +Everything is concentrated in the highest degree and the assault upon +our consciousness is of corresponding power. A tempestuous transition +leads to two short _sf_ chords and then in measure 59, announced _ff_ +by the horns, appears the first phrase of the second theme, based on +the same motive as the first, but in the relative major (E-flat), +_e.g._ + +[Music] + +It is answered by a second phrase of marked simplicity and +loveliness--a mood, indeed, of resignation. This is only momentary, +however, for the relentless rhythm of the chief motive continues to +assert itself in the basses until, as it gathers headway after a short +closing phrase (95-99), it is thundered out _ff_ by the full orchestra +in a series of descending groups. The Development continues the same +resistless impetuosity. Note the grim effect of the empty fifths and +fourths in measures 126-127. Once only is there a slackening of the +titanic, elemental drive--in the mysterious passage (212-239) where +the pent-up fury of the composer seems to have exhausted itself. It is +only, however, a lull in the storm which breaks forth with renewed +energy in the Recapitulation and Coda. Observe the pathetic commentary +which the solo oboe makes upon the main theme at the outset of the +third part (268)--a flower growing out of the debris of the avalanche. +The Coda begins, at measure 374, with a passionate insistence upon the +fundamental rhythm, driven home with sharp hammer-blows and, as in all +Beethoven's symphonic movements, furnishes an overpowering climax, not +a mere perfunctory close. The second Movement, in A-flat major, is a +series of free[154] Variations (five in number) based on a theme, +Andante con moto,[155] of great rhythmic vitality, peculiarly rich and +suave--announced, as it is, by 'celli and violas in unison, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 154: Free, in that they are not numbered and are not +separated by rigid cadences; in that episodical passages--often of a +rhapsodic nature--are interpolated.] + +[Footnote 155: The tempo is often taken by conductors too slowly, thus +losing much of its buoyancy.] + +The first two presentations of the theme are in each case followed by +a passage of martial character which bursts triumphantly into C major. +There is an orchestral touch of great beauty and originality in the +first and second variations (beginning in measures 49 and 98 +respectively), where a solo clarinet--later a flute, oboe and +bassoon--prolongs a single tone which seems to float above the melody +like a guiding star.[156] A passage of special significance is that in +measures 123-146, where Beethoven indulges in a touching soliloquy +upon his main theme. It is mysteriously introduced by the repetition, +eight times, _pp_, of the dominant chord (the simplest medium of +suspense) which seems to say "Hush, I have something most intimate +reveal." The Coda (Piu Moto) begins with a mood of wistful reverie, +but the clouds are soon dispelled and the movement ends in radiant +sunshine. + +[Footnote 156: While listening to this passage one is instinctively +reminded of Keats's "Bright and steadfast star, hung aloft the +night."] + +The salient structural feature in the last two movements[157] is that +they are merged together; there is no pause after the Scherzo; and +the movements are further interlocked by an interpolation, in the +middle of the Finale, of a portion of the preceding Scherzo--a kind of +inter-quotation or cross reference. This composite movement is a +striking example of the organic relationship which Beethoven succeeded +in establishing--between the different movements of the symphony. +Prior to him, it is fair to say--to use a homely simile--that a sonata +or a symphony resembled a train of different cars merely linked +together, one after the other; whereas the modern work, as +foreshadowed by Beethoven, is a vestibuled train: one indivisible +whole from beginning to end.[158] But before the Fifth Symphony there +had been no such systematic unification; for it is not too much to say +that the whole work is based upon the persistent iteration of a single +note in varied rhythmic groups. Thus in the first movement we find +continually the rhythm [Music]; in the second, in several places +[Music]; in the Scherzo [Music]; and in the Finale [Music]. +Furthermore a C, repeated by the kettle-drums for fifty measures, is +the chief factor in the connecting link between the Scherzo and the +Finale. We shall observe this tendency to interconnection still +further developed by Schumann in his Fourth Symphony, by Liszt in the +Symphonic Poem[159] (to be treated later), and a climax of attainment +reached in such highly unified works as Cesar Franck's D minor +Symphony and Tchaikowsky's Fifth. To return to the Scherzo, well +worthy of note is the Trio, in free fugal form (its theme announced by +the ponderous double basses), because it is such a convincing +illustration of the humorous possibilities inherent in fugal style. +The way in which the voices chase each other about--compared by +Berlioz[160] with the gambols of a delighted elephant--and their +spasmodic attempts at assertion, produce an effect irresistibly droll. +The humour is as broad as that of Aristophanes or Rabelais. Words are +powerless to describe the thrill of the last fifty measures which +launch us into the Finale. We may merely observe that this long +passage, _pp_ throughout until the last molto crescendo, and with the +rhythmic element reduced to a minimum, makes more of an impact upon +our imagination than that of the loudest orchestral forces ever +conceived. We are reminded of the effect of the "still, small voice" +after the thunders on Sinai. The Finale, with its majestic opening +theme in fanfare, contains a wealth of material and is conceived +throughout in the utmost spirit of optimistic joy and freedom.[161] +The Exposition has a subsidiary theme of its own, beginning at measure +26, which reappears with rhythmic modification (diminution), and most +eloquently announced by the bassoons, in the first section of the +final Coda. After the brilliant second theme (45-63) there is an +impressive closing theme (with some biting _fp_ dissonances) which +forms the basis of the Presto portion of the Coda. The Development is +a marvellous treatment of the second theme, in imitation, modulation +and climactic growth; the rhythm [Music], so vitally connected with +the whole work, persisting with stupendous energy. In the final +measures it would seem as if Beethoven were storming the very heavens. +Here occurs the quotation from the preceding Scherzo which binds the +movements together and serves as a point of departure for a still +greater climax. It seems unreasonable to expect a higher flight, but +the genius of Beethoven is equal to the effort. If, before, we have +reached the heavens, now we pierce them. The brilliant Coda--note the +ascending runs for the piccolo--is in three sections, the first based +on the subsidiary theme, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +the second on the closing theme in quickened tempo, _e.g._, + +[Music[B]] + +and the third, a canonic treatment of the opening fanfare, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +in which the orchestra seems to tumble head over heels in a paroxysm +of delight. The movement closes with prolonged shouts of victory and +exultation.[162] + +[Footnote 157: Taken separately, the movements are perfectly normal; +the Scherzo in the usual Three-part form and the Finale in complete +Sonata-form.] + +[Footnote 158: There are traces of this striving for organic unity in +several of the early Sonatas, notably in the _Sonata Pathetique_, +where the motive of the first theme of the Finale is identical with +that of the second theme of the opening movement _e.g._ + +[Music: 1st Movement] + +[Music: Finale] + +Also in the C-sharp minor Sonata, op. 27, we find a case of melodic +relationship between a phase in the introductory meditation and the +main theme of the Minuet.] + +[Footnote 159: A Symphonic Poem is a descriptive composition for +orchestra which incorporates many of the customary symphonic moods; +but the form is free, largely dependent on the poetic basis, and the +structure is without stops, being one continuous whole.] + +[Footnote 160: His exact words are--"Le milieu (the trio) ressemble +assez aux ebats d'un elephant en gaiete--mais le monstre s'eloigne et +le bruit de sa folle course se perd graduellement."] + +[Footnote 161: Its motto might well be Browning's famous lines: "How +good is man's life, how fit to employ all the heart and the soul and +the senses forever in joy."] + +[Footnote B: This pianoforte figure being a very inadequate substitute +for the restless tremolo of the violas, _i.e._, [Music].] + +[Footnote 162: For suggestive comments by the noted critic E.T.A. +Hoffmann, one of the first to realize the genius of Beethoven, and for +a complete translation of his essay on the Fifth Symphony see the +article by A.W. Locke in the Musical Quarterly for January, 1917.] + + +THE CORIOLANUS OVERTURE + +This dramatic work is of great importance, not only for its emotional +power and eloquence, but because it represents a type of Program +music, _i.e._, music with a suggestive title, which Beethoven was the +first to conceive and to establish. From the inherent connection +between the materials of music (sound and rhythm) and certain natural +phenomena (the sound and rhythm of wind, wave and storm, the call of +birds, etc.) it is evident that the possibility for Program--or +descriptive--music has always existed.[163] That is, the imagination +of musicians has continually been influenced by external sights, +sounds and events; and to their translation into music suggestive +titles have been given, as a guide to the hearer. Thus we find +Jannequin, a French composer of the 16th century, writing two +pieces--for _voices_!--entitled "_Les cris de Paris_" and "_La +Bataille--defaite des Suisses a la journee de Marignan_;" in the +former of which are introduced the varied cries of street venders and +in the latter, imitations of fifes, drums, cannon and all the bustle +and noises of war. In the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book there is a +Fantasie by John Mundy of the English school, in which such natural +phenomena as thunder, lightning and fair weather are delineated. There +is a curious similarity between the musical portrayal of lightning in +this piece[164] of Mundy and that of Wagner in the _Valkyrie_. In the +_Bible Sonatas_ of the German composer Kuhnau (1660-1722) we have a +musical description of the combat between David and Goliath. Anyone at +all familiar with the music of Couperin and Rameau will recall the +variety of fantastic titles assigned to their charming pieces for the +clavecin--almost always drawn from the field of nature: birds, bees, +butterflies, hens, windmills, even an eel! It is but fair to state +that we also find attempts at character drawing, even in those early +days, as is indicated by such titles as _La Prude_, _La Diligente_, +_La Seduisante_.[165] Haydn's portrayal of Chaos, in the Prelude to +the _Creation_, is a remarkable mood-picture and shows a trend in +quite a different direction. All these instances corroborate the +statement that, in general, composers were influenced by external +phenomena and that their program music was of an imitative and often +frankly literal kind. From what we know of Beethoven's nature and +genius, however, we should imagine that he would be far more +interested in the emotions and struggles of the soul and we find that +such indeed is the case. With the exception of the _Pastoral Symphony_ +with its bird-calls and thunderstorm and the _Egmont_ Overture with +its graphic description of a returning victorious army, his program +music invariably aims at the description of character and the manner +in which it is influenced by events--_not_, be it understood, at a +musical portrayal of the events themselves. This difference in type is +generally indicated by the terms _subjective_ and _objective_, _i.e._, +program music is subjective, when it deals with the emotions and moods +of real or historical persons; objective, when it is based upon +incidents or objects of the actual world. It is evident that in +subjective program music an adjustment must be made, for the dramatic +needs of the subject are to be considered as well as the inherent laws +of music itself. We may state that the widening of the conception of +form, so marked in modern music, has been caused by the need of such +an adjustment; for as composers became more cultivated, more in touch +with life and of more richly endowed imagination, the arbitrary +conventions of strict form had perforce to yield to the demands of +dramatic treatment. This implies not that program music is without a +definite structure, only that the _form_ is _different_--modified by +the needs of the subject. As there is no other point in aesthetics +which has caused more loose thinking, a few further comments may be +pertinent. Some critics go so far as to deny the right of existence to +all program music.[166] Of course there is good as well as bad program +music, but to condemn it _per se_ is simply to fly in the face of +facts, for a large proportion of the music since Beethoven is on a +poetic basis and has descriptive titles. Others claim that they cannot +understand it. But that is their loss, not the fault of the music; the +composer writes it and it is for us to acquire the state of mind to +appreciate it. Another misleading allegation, often heard, is that a +piece of program music should be so clear and self-sufficient that the +hearer needs to know nothing of the title to derive the fullest +enjoyment. But this simply begs the question. As well say that in +listening to a song we need to know nothing of the meaning of the +text. It is true that in listening to Beethoven's _Coriolanus_, for +example, any sensitive hearer will be impressed by the vitality of the +rhythm and the sheer beauty of orchestral sound. But to hold that such +a hearer gets as much from the work as he who knows the underlying +drama and can follow sympathetically the correspondence between the +characters and their musical treatment is to indulge in reckless +assertion. The true relationship between composer and hearer is this: +when works are entitled _Coriolanus_, _Melpomene_, _Francesca da +Rimini_, _Sakuntala_, _L'apres-midi d'un Faune_, _The Mystic +Trumpeter_, _L'apprenti Sorcier_, and the composers reveal therein the +influence such subjects have had upon their imagination, they are +paying a tacit compliment to the hearer whose breadth of intelligence +and cultivation they expect to be on a par with their own. If such be +not the case, the fault is not the composer's; the burden of proof is +on the listener.[167] Let us now trace certain relationships between +the drama of _Coriolanus_ and the musical characterization of +Beethoven. The Overture was composed as an introduction to a tragedy +by the German playwright von Collin, but as the play is obsolete and +as both von Collin and Shakespeare went to Plutarch for their sources, +a familiarity--which should be taken for granted[168]--with the +English drama will furnish sufficient background for an appreciation +of the music. The scene before the city gates is evidently that in +which Volumnia and Virgilia plead with the victorious warrior to +refrain from his fell purpose of destruction. The work is in +Sonata-form, since the great Sonata principle of _duality_ of _theme_ +exactly harmonizes with the two main influences of the drama--the +masculine and the feminine. It is of particular interest to observe +how the usual methods of Sonata-form procedure are modified to suit +the dramatic logic of the subject. The work begins Allegro con brio, +with three sustained Cs--as if someone were stamping with heavy +foot--followed by a series of assertive _ff_ chords for full orchestra +(note the piercing dissonance in the 7th measure), which at once +establishes an atmosphere of headstrong defiance. The first theme, +beginning in measure 15 with its restless rhythm, is not meant to be +beautiful in the ordinary sense of the term--"a concourse of sweet +sounds"; rather is it a dramatic characterization, a picture in terms +of music, of the reckless energy and the fierce threats which we +naturally associate with Coriolanus. The theme is repeated and then +the transition develops this masculine mood in an impassioned +manner--observe the frequency of _sf_ accents and the crashing +dissonances[169]--until a sustained note on the violins, followed by a +descending cantabile phrase, brings us to the second theme, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 163: A complete account of this development may be found in +the first two chapters of Niecks's _Programme Music_.] + +[Footnote 164: For an excellent description of this piece, as well as +others of the period, see the volume by Krehbiel _The Pianoforte and +Its Music_.] + +[Footnote 165: A comprehensive and invaluable description of the works +and style of Couperin and Rameau may be found in the _History of the +Pianoforte and its Players_ by Oscar Bie. For an early example of what +is now called "poetic atmosphere" everyone should know Couperin's +piece _Les Barricades Mysterieuses_ which is more suggestive when +played on the clavecin with its delicate tone.] + +[Footnote 166: A favorite term of opprobrium is that the program is a +"crutch."] + +[Footnote 167: There are several essays which will help the student +toward clear thinking on this important subject: the valuable essay +_Program Music_ in Newman's _Musical Studies_, the article on the +subject in Grove's Dictionary, and the exhaustive volume by Niecks; +some of his views, however, are extreme and must be accepted with +caution. Above all should be read Wagner's interpretation of +Coriolanus in his essay on the Overture (English translation by W.A. +Ellis).] + +[Footnote 168: Twenty-five years' experience as a college teacher, +however, has proved that _too much_ may be taken for granted!] + +[Footnote 169: It is unfortunate that the diminished seventh chord +does not sound so fierce to our modern ears as it undoubtedly did in +Beethoven's time, but that is simply because we have become accustomed +to more strident effects.] + +This theme, in distinction from the first, typifies the appeal for +mercy made by the women in the drama. No contrast could be stronger +than that between these two themes--the first, impulsive, staccato, of +sweeping range, and in the minor; the second, suave, legato, +restrained and in the major. They show indeed how powerfully +Beethoven's imagination was impressed by the subject. After an +eloquent expansion of the second theme there follow several stormy +measures (the deprecations of the women are at first of no avail) that +lead through a crescendo to a closing theme, at measure 83, in which +the mood of defiant assertion is strongly marked. The exposition +closes in this mood, in measure 100, and the following Development +accentuates it through several successions of restless, crescendo +passages until a _ff_ descent sweeps us back to the Recapitulation, in +measure 151. It is now evident that the furious intentions of the +warrior have raged themselves out, for not only is the theme which +represents him much shortened but it loses somewhat of its former +fiery intensity. From here on, the trend of the music is largely +modified by the dramatic demands of the subject. That the appeals of +the women are beginning to prevail is evident from the emphasis laid +on the second theme, which gives its message no less than _three_ +times, instead of the single appearance which we should expect in the +usual Recapitulation. The third appeal, in measures 247-253, is +rendered most pathetic by being expressed in the minor mode. In the +Coda there are fitful flare-ups of the relentless purpose, but that +the stubborn will has been softened is evident from the slowing down +of the rhythm, in measures 285-294. Finally, in the wonderful closing +passage, we have a picture of broken resolves and ruined hopes. The +theme disintegrates and fades away--a lifeless vision. Although much +of the structure in this overture is identical with that which +prevails in absolute music--for, after all, the composer must be true +to the laws of his medium of expression--there is enough _purely +dramatic_ treatment to justify the foregoing analysis. Beethoven, at +any rate, called the overture Coriolanus, and we may be sure he meant +it to _represent_ Coriolanus and to be something more than a skillful +combination of sounds and rhythms. + +We now add a few last words on the quality of Beethoven's themes in +his moments of supreme inspiration. The unshaken hold which his music +has upon the affections of mankind is due chiefly to two striking +characteristics: first, the way in which he dramatized everything--themes, +instruments, even _single_ notes, _i.e._, treating them as actual +factors in life itself rather than as artistic abstractions; second, +the spirituality and sublimity in his immortal message. The first +quality is exemplified in a number of passages, notably in the first +movement of the Violin Concerto and in the Finale of the Eighth +Symphony. In the opening measures of the Concerto the use of the +single note D-sharp, and the entry _pp_ of the F natural in the +following passage--in each case, entirely disconnected from the normal +rules of musical grammar--are most dramatic, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +At the mysterious entrance of the F natural in this passage it would +seem as if some mighty spirit were suddenly looking over our shoulder. +In the Finale of the Eighth Symphony what can be more startling than +the sudden explosive entrance of the unrelated C-sharp--before the +orchestra continues its mad career--which can be compared only to the +uproarious laughter of Rabelais himself, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +There are numerous examples in Beethoven showing his dramatic use of +such orchestral instruments as the bassoons, horns, kettle-drums and +double basses. Possibly the most striking[170] is the Slow Movement of +the G major Pianoforte Concerto--that inspired dialogue, as it has +been eloquently called, "between Destiny and the human soul," in which +the touching appeals of the solo instrument are constantly interrupted +by the sinister mutterings and forebodings of the strings. Observe +especially the closing measures where the basses, alone are heard +_pp_, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 170: See, however, the octave leaps of the kettle-drums in +the Scherzo of the Ninth Symphony.] + +A spiritual quality escapes verbal definition; but just as we can feel +it in certain characters, and just as we recognize the sublime in +nature and in such works of art as a cathedral or a Shakespearian +Drama, so we may find it in the following specific examples from his +works: the Trio of the second movement of the Seventh Symphony; the +Slow Movement theme of the B-flat major Trio and the Slow Movement of +the Sonata op. 109. (See Supplement Nos. 47, 48, 49.) Anyone who +allows these themes to sink into his consciousness is carried into a +realm of ideality where he begins to recognize the truth that "the +things which are unseen are eternal." Music of this transporting power +is far above that which merely excites, amuses or even fascinates; and +of such music Beethoven is the poet for all time. + +We have referred above to the voluminous literature extant concerning +Beethoven. Several scholars, in fact--notably Alexander Thayer and Sir +George Grove--have devoted a large part of their lives to finding out +all there is to be known about his life and works. Obviously the +layman cannot be expected to become familiar with this entire mass of +historical and critical writing. The following books, however, may be +considered indispensable aids to those who would become cultivated +appreciators of Beethoven's masterpieces: the _Life of Beethoven_ by +Alexander Thayer--a great glory to American scholarship; the life in +Grove's Dictionary; the illuminating Biography by d'Indy (in French +and in English); _Beethoven and his Nine Symphonies_ by Grove; the +_Oxford History of Music_, Vol. V; and the essay by Mason in his +_Beethoven and his Forerunners_.[171] We cite, in closing, a +eulogy[172] by Dannreuther--in our opinion the most eloquent ever +written on Beethoven's genius: + +"While listening," says Mr. Dannreuther, "to such works as the +Overture to Leonora, the Sinfonia Eroica, or the Ninth Symphony, we +feel that we are in the presence of something far wider and higher +than the mere development of musical themes. The execution in detail +of each movement and each succeeding work is modified more and more by +the prevailing sentiment. A religious passion and elevation are +present in the utterances. The mental and moral horizon of the music +grows upon us with each renewed hearing. The different movements--like +the different particles of each movement--have as close a connection +with one another as the acts of a tragedy, and a characteristic +significance to be understood only in relation to the whole; each work +is in the full sense of the word a revelation. Beethoven speaks a +language no one has spoken before, and treats of things no one has +dreamt of before: yet it seems as though he were speaking of matters +long familiar, in one's mother tongue; as though he touched upon +emotions one had lived through in some former existence.... The warmth +and depth of his ethical sentiment is now felt all the world over, and +it will ere long be universally recognised that he has leavened and +widened the sphere of men's emotions in a manner akin to that in which +the conceptions of great philosophers and poets have widened the +sphere of men's intellectual activity." + +[Footnote 171: Suggestive comments from a literary point of view may +also be found in these works: _Studies in the Seven Arts_, Symonds; +_Beethoven_ by Romain Rolland--with an interesting though +ultra-subjective introduction by Carpenter; _The Development of +Symphonic Music_ by T.W. Surette; _Beethoven_ by Walker; _Beethoven_ +by Chantavoine in the series _Les Maitres de la Musique_. As to the +three successive "styles" under which Beethoven's works are generally +classified there is an excellent account in Pratt's _History of +Music_, p. 419.] + +[Footnote 172: This passage is to be found in the Life in Grove's +Dictionary.] + + + + +CHAPTER XII + +THE ROMANTIC COMPOSERS. SCHUBERT AND WEBER + + +During the latter part of Beethoven's life--he died in 1827--new +currents were setting in, which were to influence profoundly the trend +of modern music. Two important, though in some respects unconscious, +representatives of these tendencies were actually working +contemporaneously with Beethoven, von Weber (1786-1826) and Schubert +(1797-1828). Beethoven himself is felt to be a dual personality in +that he summed up and ratified all that was best in his predecessors, +and pointed the way for most of the tendencies operative since his +time. For the designation of these two contrasting, though not +exclusive, ideals, the currently accepted terms are Classic and +Romantic. So many shades of meaning have unfortunately been associated +with the word Romantic that confusion of thought has arisen. It is +also true that the so-called Romanticists, including poets and +painters as well as musicians, in their endeavors to break loose from +the formality of the Classic period, have indulged in many irritating +idiosyncracies. We are beginning to see clearly that a too violent +expression of individuality destroys a most vital factor in +music--universality of appeal. Yet the Romantic School cannot be +ignored. To its representatives we owe many of our finest works, and +they were the prime movers in those strivings toward freedom and +ideality which have made the modern world what it is. The term +Romantic is perfectly clear in its application to literature, from +which music borrowed it. It refers to the movement begun about the +year 1796 among such German poets as Tieck, the two Schlegels and +Novalis, to restore the poetic legends of the middle ages, written in +the Romance dialects, and to embody in their own works the fantastic +spirit of this medieval poetry.[173] In reference to music, however, +the terms Classic and Romantic are often vague and misleading, and +have had extreme interpretations put upon them.[174] Thus, to many, +"romantic" implies ultra-sentimental, mawkish or grotesque, while +everything "classic" is dry, uninspired and academic. How often we +hear the expression, "I am not up to classic music; let me hear +something modern and romantic." Many scholars show little respect for +the terms and some would abolish them altogether. Everything, however, +hinges upon a reasonable definition. Pater's well-known saying that +"Romanticism is the addition of strangeness to beauty" is fair; and +yet, since strangeness in art can result only from imaginative +conception, it amounts to nothing more than the truism that romantic +art is imbued with personality. Hence Stendhal is right in saying that +"All good art was Romantic in its day"; _i.e._, it exhibited as much +warmth and individuality as the spirit of its times would allow. +Surely Bach, Haydn and Mozart were real characters, notwithstanding +the restraint which the artificialities of the period often put upon +their utterance. On the other hand, work at first pronounced to be +romantic establishes, by a universal recognition of its merit, the +claim to be considered classic, or set apart; what is romantic to-day +thus growing to be classic[175] tomorrow. It is evident, therefore, +that the terms interlock and are not mutually exclusive. It is a +mistaken attitude to set one school off against the other, or to prove +that one style is greater than the other; they are simply different. +Compositions of lasting worth always manifest such a happy union of +qualities that, in a broad sense, they may be called both romantic and +classic, _i.e._, they combine personal emotion and imagination with +breadth of meaning and solidity of structure. + +[Footnote 173: For a more complete historical account see the article +"Romantic" in Grove's Dictionary and the introduction to Vol. VI of +_The Oxford History of Music_. _Rousseau and Romanticism_ by Professor +Irving Babbitt presents the latest investigations in this important +field.] + +[Footnote 174: Some very sane comments may be found in Pratt's +_History of Music_, pp. 427, 501, 502.] + +[Footnote 175: "A _classic_ is properly a book"--and the same would be +true of a musical composition--"which maintains itself by that happy +coalescence of matter and style, that innate and requisite sympathy +between the thought that gives life and the form that consents to +every mood of grace and dignity, and which is something neither +ancient nor modern, always new and incapable of growing old." + +Lowell, _Among My Books_.] + +Beginning, however, with Schubert and Weber--the two first +representatives of the romantic group--there is a marked novelty of +content and style; and if we drop the terms and confine ourselves to +the inner evidence of the music itself, we note a difference which may +be felt and to a certain extent formulated. To take extreme types for +the sake of vivid contrast, let us compare the compositions of Haydn +and Mozart with those of Berlioz and Liszt. In the former there is +repose, restraint and a perfect finish in the structural presentation; +a feeling of serenity comes over us as we listen. In the latter, a +peculiar intensity of expression, an attempt to fascinate the listener +by the most intimate kinds of appeal, especially to the senses and +fancy, regardless of any liberties taken with former modes of +treatment. The purely classical composer is always master of his +subject, whereas the romanticist is often carried away by it. +Classical works are objectively beautiful, commending themselves to +everyone like works of nature, or, let us say, like decorative +patterns in pure design. Romantic works are subjective, charged with +individuality and demand a sensitive and sympathetic appreciation on +the part of the hearer. It is evident that many of these tendencies +are found clearly outlined in the works of Beethoven. In fact, as has +been said, he was not only the climax of the classical school, but the +founder of the new era--opening a door, as it were, into the +possibilities of a more intense, specialized form of emotional +utterance and a freer conception of form. These special +characteristics were so fully developed by Beethoven's successors, +Schubert, Weber, Schumann, Chopin, etc. that they are always grouped +together as the Romantic School. A striking feature in this whole +Romantic group is the early flowering of their genius and the +shortness of their lives--Weber, forty years, Schubert, thirty-one, +Schumann, forty-six, Mendelssohn, thirty-eight, Chopin, forty. In the +case of all the composers we have hitherto studied, with the exception +of Mozart, their masterpieces have been the result of long years of +patient, technical study and hence show that finish and maturity of +style which come only with time. But the precocity of the Romanticists +is astounding! Many of Schubert's famous pieces were composed in his +earliest manhood; Mendelssohn's _Midsummer Night's Dream_ Overture +dates from his sixteenth year; Schumann's best pianoforte works were +composed before he was thirty. The irresistible spontaneity and vigor +of all these works largely atone for any blemishes in treatment. We +feel somewhat the same in the case of Keats and Shelley in comparison +with Milton, and are reminded of Wordsworth's lines, "Bliss was it in +that hour to be alive, but to be young was very Heaven."[176] Why +expect senatorial wisdom and the fancy of youth in any one person! + +[Footnote 176: Compare also the definition of genius by Masters in the +_Spoon River Anthology_: + + "In youth my wings were strong and tireless, + But I did not know the mountains. + In age I knew the mountains + But my weary wings could not follow my vision-- + Genius is wisdom and youth."] + +A most important distinction between a classical and a romantic +composer is the knowledge and love of literature shown by the latter. +Although Haydn kept a note-book on his London tours, and although we +have a fair number of letters from Mozart, in neither of these men do +we find any appreciation of general currents of thought and life. In +many of Beethoven's works we have seen how close was the connection +between literature and musical expression. All the Romantic composers, +with the exception of Schubert, were broadly cultivated, and several +could express themselves artistically in words as well as in notes. +They may not have been on this account any better composers, as far as +sheer creative vitality is concerned, but it is evident that their +imaginations were nourished in quite a different way and hence a novel +product was to be expected. Romantic music has been defined as a +reflex of poetry expressed in musical terms, at times fairly trembling +on the verge of speech. Music can not, to be sure, describe matters of +fact, but the Romantic composers have brought it to a high degree of +poetical suggestiveness. Thus the horn-calls of Weber and Schubert +remind us of "the horns of Elfland faintly blowing" and much romantic +music arouses our imaginations and enchants our senses in the same way +as the lines of Keats where he tells of "Magic casements opening on +the foam of perilous seas in fairy lands forlorn," the chief glory of +which is not any precise intellectual idea they convey, but the +fascinating picture which carries us from the land of hard and fast +events into the realm of fancy. Schumann claimed that his object in +writing music was so to influence the imagination of the listeners +that they could go on dreaming for themselves. A second characteristic +is the freedom of form. Considering that a free rein to their fancy +was incompatible with strict adherence to traditional rules, the +Romantic spirits refused to be bound by forms felt to be inadequate. +Although this attitude sometimes resulted in diffuseness and +obscurity, on the whole (as Goethe says of romantic literature) "a +wider and more varied subject matter and a freer form has been +attained." The chief aim of romantic art being to arouse the +imagination, we find a predilection for the use of solo wood-wind +instruments, which are capable of such warmth and variety of +tone-color. Whereas in the classical masters, and even generally in +Beethoven, the melodies are likely to be the upper voice of a harmonic +mass, or assigned to groups of instruments, Weber and Schubert in +particular showed the eloquence to be gained by the use of such +warm-blooded _solo_ instruments as the horn, the oboe and the +clarinet. Schubert fairly conjures with the horn, often holding us +spellbound with its haunting appeal, _e.g._, in the well-known second +movement of the C major Symphony, the calls of which, as Schumann +said, "seem to come from another world." Schubert was anything but a +thinker, and reflected unconsciously the tendencies which were in the +air; but his wonderful gift of lyric melody was thoroughly in keeping +with the individual expression for which Romanticism stood. He said +himself that his compositions were the direct result of his inmost +sorrows. He was steeped in romantic poetry and the glowing fancy in +his best work leads us to condone the occasional prolixity referred to +by Schumann as "heavenly length." Schubert was well named by Liszt the +most poetic of musicians, _i.e._, a creator of pure beauty which +enthralls the imagination of the hearer. Why expect the work of any +one composer to manifest all possible merits? If we crave dynamic +power of emotion or sublimity of thought we may have recourse to Bach +and Beethoven; but the spontaneous charm of Schubert never grows old; +and it is not without interest to note that his music fulfils the +definition of one of the most poetic composers of our time, Debussy, +who claims that music is chiefly meant "to give pleasure." + +We note these same tendencies in Weber as shown in the overtures to +his three Romantic operas, _Der Freischuetz_, _Euryanthe_ and _Oberon_, +which are the foundations of the modern art of dramatic orchestration, +_i.e._, the intensification of certain ideas and situations by the +special tone color and register of solo-instruments or by a novel use +of customary means, _e.g._, the divided violins in the mysterious +passage of the _Euryanthe_ overture. Another favorite means of +arresting the attention was by modulation; not used in a constructive +sense, simply to pass from one point to another, or to connect themes +in different keys, but to furnish the ear with a purely sensuous +delight, corresponding to that which the eye derives from the +kaleidoscopic colors of a sunset. The works of Schubert, Chopin and to +a lesser degree of Schumann abound in these shifting harmonies by +which we seem to be wafted along on a magic carpet. A final +characteristic, shared by all the Romantic composers, is the +prevalence of titles--the logical result of the close connection +between music, literature and the world of outward events,--thus +Mendelssohn's Overture to the _Midsummer Night's Dream_ with its +romantic opening chords, his _Hebrides_ Overture, the musical record +of a trip to Scotland, and Schumann's _Manfred_, from Byron. Liszt +even went so far as to draw inspiration from a painting, as in his +_Battle of the Huns_, and again from a beautiful vase in _Orpheus_. + +We shall now make a few specific comments on the style of Schubert and +Weber and then analyze some of their representative works. Schubert +was a born composer of songs, and though his works for Pianoforte, +String quartet and Orchestra were of marked significance and have +proved of lasting value, the instinct for highly individualized, lyric +melody predominates, and all his instrumental compositions may fairly +be called "Songs without words."[177] It is evident that the +solo-song, unencumbered by structural considerations, is one of the +best media for expressing the Romantic spirit, and many of its fairest +fruits are found in this field. Schubert's songs are often tone-dramas +in which the expressive powers of music are most eloquently +employed.[178] Note the poetic touches of character-drawing and of +description in the _Young Nun_ (see Supplement No. 50). Schubert's +pianoforte compositions are miniature tone-poems, mood-pictures--their +titles: _Impromptus_ and _Moments Musicaux_, speak for themselves--making +no pretense to the scope and elaborate structure of movements in +Sonata-form,[179] yet of great import not only for their intrinsic +beauty but as the prototypes of the numerous lyric and descriptive +pieces of Schumann, Brahms, Grieg, Debussy and others. Their charm +lies in the heart-felt melodies and surprising modulations. While +neither sublime nor deeply introspective, they make the simple, direct +appeal of a lovely flower. In the development of music they are as +important as the modern short story in the field of literature; which, +in distinction to the old "three-decker" novel, often really _says +more_ and says it so concisely that our interest never flags. This +tendency to the short, independent piece had been begun by Beethoven +in his _Bagatelles_ (French "trifles"); but these, as has been aptly +said, were "mere chips from the work-shop" whereas in a short piece of +Schubert we find the quintessence of his genius. He was a prolific +composer in the field of chamber music, and the Trios for Violin, +'Cello and Pianoforte, the A minor Quartet, the C major Quintet and, +above all, the posthumous Quartet in D minor, which contains the +entrancing Variations on the song _Death and the Maiden_, are still as +fresh as when they were composed. In these works we do not look for +architectonic power--we must admit, in fact, at the risk of seeming +ungracious, that Schubert is diffuse at times--but our senses are so +enthralled by the imaginative freedom and by the splendor of color, +that all purely intellectual judgment is suspended. The magician works +his wonders; it is for us to enjoy. We have from Schubert seven +complete Symphonies and the so-called _Unfinished in B minor_, _i.e._, +the first two movements and the fragment of a Scherzo. Of these the +_Fourth_ (_Tragic_), composed in 1816, foreshadows the real Schubert +and is occasionally heard to-day. But the immortal ones are the B +minor and the C major, the latter composed in 1828 (the last year of +his life) and never heard by its author.[180] Of this work Schumann +said that "a tenth Muse had been added to the nine of Beethoven." This +symphony is specially characterized by the incorporation of Hungarian +types of melody, particularly in the first and in the last movement. +It is indeed a storehouse of beauty, but the "high moments" are in the +last two movements--the fairly intoxicating Trio of the Scherzo, which +seems as if Nature herself were singing to us, and the gorgeous Finale +with its throbbing rhythms. The first movement is laid out on a vast +scale and holds the attention throughout, but the second movement, +notwithstanding its wondrous theme, suffers from a lack of +concentration; the sweetness is so long-drawn out that we become +sated. + +[Footnote 177: Schubert was of incredible versatility and fecundity; +he literally tried his hand at everything: operas, church-music, +ensemble combinations. Since, however, he exercised little power of +selection or revision much of this music has become obsolete. The joke +is well-known that he could set a theatre notice to music, and his +rule for composing was "When I have finished one song I begin +another."] + +[Footnote 178: For an original, though at times rhapsodic, study of +Schubert's vocal style see H.T. Finck's _Songs and Song Writers_, and +the last chapter of the Fifth Volume of the Oxford History.] + +[Footnote 179: Schubert did compose a number of Pianoforte Sonatas in +the conventional form, but with the exception of the one in A minor +they seem diffuse and do not represent him at his best; they certainly +have not held their own in modern appeal.] + +[Footnote 180: For the account of its exciting discovery in Vienna by +Schumann in 1838, after a neglect of ten years, see the life of +Schubert in Grove's Dictionary.] + +As examples[181] for analytical comment we select the Menuetto in B +minor from the Fantasia for Pianoforte, op. 78; the fourth Impromptu +in A-flat major from the set, op. 90, and the B minor Symphony for +orchestra. The Menuetto, though one of Schubert's simpler pieces--the +first part in an idealized Mozartian vein--yet exemplifies in the Trio +one of the composer's most characteristic traits, the predilection for +those bewitching alternations,[182] like sunlight and shadow, between +the major and the minor mode. + +[Footnote 181: For lack of space no one of these compositions is cited +in the Supplement, but they are all readily available.] + +[Footnote 182: This tendency is prevalent in folk-music, especially +that of the Russians and Scandinavians. Schubert, however, was the +_first_ to make such systematic and artistic use of the effect. For a +beautiful modern example see the Spanish folk-dance by Granados, +_e.g._, + +[Music]] + +The Impromptu in A-flat major, one of several equally fine ones, is +notable for the wealth of its iridescent modulations and for the note +of genuine pathos and passion in the middle portion in the minor mode. +Schubert might well say that his most inspired music came from his +sorrows. + +The _Unfinished Symphony_ requires less comment and elucidation than +perhaps any other symphonic composition. The two movements are in +definite Sonata-form--the first, strict, the second, with +modifications; but the quality of the themes is quite different from +that to which we have been accustomed in classical treatment. Instead +of the terse, characteristic motive which, often at first +uncompromisingly bare, impresses us as its latent possibilities are +revealed, we have a series of lyric, periodic melodies which make +their instant appeal. In Schubert everything sings; thus in the first +part of the Exposition of the Allegro we have _three_ distinct +melodies: the introductory phrase, the accompaniment figure which has +a melodic line of its own, and the first theme proper. In any +consideration of this work from a pianoforte version we must always +remember how much the beauty and eloquence of the themes depend upon +the solo instruments to which they are assigned. For Schubert was one +of the first, as well as one of the greatest, of "Colorists." By the +use of this pictorial term in music we mean that the tone-quality of +certain instruments--the mellow, far-echoing effect of the horn, the +tang of the oboe, the passionate warmth of the clarinet[183]--appeals +to our sense of hearing in the same way in which beautiful colors--the +green grass, the blue sky, the hues of a sunset--delight our sight. A +striking example of Schubert's genius in utilizing tone-color to suit +structural needs is found in the transition beginning at measure 38. +This is a single tone on the horn (with a modulatory ending) announced +_forte_ and then allowed to die away, _i.e._, _sf_ [decrescendo +symbol]. So powerful is the horn in evoking a spirit of suspense and +revery that this tone introduces the beautiful, swaying second theme +more impressively than a whole series of routine modulations. The +Development speaks for itself. Though there is little polyphonic +treatment, it holds our interest by reason of the harmonic variety and +the dramatic touches of orchestration. In Schubert we do not look for +the development of a complicated plot but give ourselves up +unreservedly to the enjoyment of pure melodic line, couched in terms +of sensuously delightful tone-color. The transitional passage of the +Recapitulation (measures 231-253) illustrates Schubert's fondness for +modulation just for its own sake; we care not what the objective point +of the music may be--enthralled, as we are, by the magical shifts of +scene. In the Second Movement, likewise, the chief beauty--especially +of the second theme--consists in the lyric quality, in the color of +the solo instruments, the oboe, clarinet and horn, and in the +enharmonic changes, _e.g._, where, in measures 80-95, the theme +modulates from C-sharp minor to D-flat major. Note in the orchestral +score the charming dialogue in this passage between the clarinet, oboe +and flute. The Development, based upon the second theme, with some +effective canonic treatment, shows that Schubert was by no means +entirely lacking in polyphonic skill. At any rate he can work wonders +with the horn, for at the close of the Development (measures 134-142) +by the simple device of an octave leap, _ppp_, he veritably transports +the listener, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The Coda has a dream-like quality all its own. + +[Footnote 183: So appropriately called by Berlioz the "heroine of the +orchestra."] + +Weber's permanent contribution to musical literature has proved to be +his operas--a form of art not treated in this book. But the whole +nature of his genius was so closely related to the Romantic spirit, as +shown in the intimate connection between literature and music, in his +descriptive powers and his development of the orchestra, that for the +sake of comprehensiveness some familiarity should be gained with the +essential features of his style. Of Weber it may be said with +conviction that there is hardly a composer of acknowledged rank in +whom style, _i.e._, the way and the medium by which musical thought is +presented, so prevails over the substance of the thought itself. There +are few if any of Weber's melodies which are notable for creative +power, and as a harmonist he was lamentably weak. It has been +scathingly said, though with considerable truth, that all his melodies +are based upon an alternation of tonic and dominant chords![184] But +when we consider what his themes are meant to describe, the pictures +they evoke and their orchestral dress, we must acknowledge in Weber +the touch of real poetic genius. To quote Runciman[185]-- + +"If you look, and look rightly, for the right thing in Weber's music, +disappointment is impossible, though I admit that the man who +professes to find there the great qualities he finds in Mozart, +Beethoven, or any of the giants, must be in a very sad case. Grandeur, +pure beauty, and high expressiveness are alike wanting. Weber's claim +to a place amongst the composers is supported in a lesser degree by +the gifts which he shared, even if his share was small, with the +greater masters of music, than by his miraculous power of vividly +drawing and painting in music the things that kindled his imagination. +Being a factor of the Romantic movement, that mighty rebellion against +the tyranny of a world of footrules and ledgers, he lived in a world +where two and two might make five or seven or any number you pleased, +and where footrules were unknown; he took small interest in drama +taken out of the lives of ordinary men and enacted amidst every-day +surroundings; his imagination lit up only when he thought of haunted +glens and ghouls and evil spirits, the fantastic world and life that +goes on underneath the ocean, or of men or women held by ghastly +spells." + +[Footnote 184: A striking illustration of this progression (surely +Weber's most characteristic mannerism) is naively supplied by +Weingartner; when, in his own orchestral arrangement of Weber's +_Invitation to the Dance_, for the final climax he assembles all the +leading themes in combination--an effect made possible only by their +common harmonic basis.] + +[Footnote 185: This whole article is well worth reading and may be +found in that breezy though somewhat erratic volume called _Old Scores +and New Readings_.] + +Weber's present-day fame rests upon the Overtures to his three operas +of _Der Freischuetz_, _Euryanthe_ and _Oberon_, which are often played +in detached concert form and hold their own for their romantic glow +and for the brilliancy of orchestral effect. By employing for his +thematic material the leading melodies of the operas themselves Weber +has created what may be called epitomized dramas which, if we have any +knowledge of what the titles imply, present us with realistic +pictures. For the use of special tone-color to enhance the dramatic +situation Weber is the precursor of that type of orchestration which +has reached such heights in Wagner and other moderns. From the above +comments it is evident that only the barest idea of the Overtures can +be gained from a pianoforte version; we have selected _Oberon_[186] +because it suffers less than either of the others. Everyone, however, +should become familiar with the mysterious, boding passage in the +introduction to _Der Freischuetz_ (taken from the scene in the Wolf's +Glen) and the Intermezzo from _Euryanthe_ for muted, divided +strings,[187] which accompanies the apparition of the ghost. This is +_genuine_ descriptive music for it really _sounds ghostly_. (See +Supplement No. 51.) + +[Footnote 186: Not given in the Supplement since good arrangements for +two and four hands are numerous. To gain the real effect the student +is strongly advised to consult the orchestral score.] + +[Footnote 187: The genesis of so many similar effects in modern music, +notably in Wagner.] + +The _Oberon Overture in D major_, begins with the intoning of the +motto of Oberon's magic horn, and then follows a passage for muted +strings (piano e adagio sostenuto) and for delicate combinations of +the wood-wind instruments, which gives us a picture of the moonlit +glens of fairyland, peopled with airy spirits. The vision is +dispelled by a sudden _ff_ chord for full orchestra which, from its +setting, is one of the loudest effects in music, thoroughly +characteristic of Weber's penchant for dramatic contrast. The main +body of the work (allegro con fuoco) opens with a dashing theme for +the strings of great brilliancy, most typical of Weber. Though we may +feel that it has little substance (note the tonic and dominant +foundation of the harmony) we cannot be insensible to its abounding +vigor. It is not alone the ponderous things which should move our +imaginations; even a soap-bubble is a wonderful phenomenon. The theme +is expanded to a climax, in measure 28 (counting from the allegro), of +great sonority and considerable harmonic boldness. After some +reminiscent appearances of the introductory horn-call, a +long-sustained dominant note introduces the second theme which seems a +bit cloying, to be sure, but is just suited to the melting tone-color +of the clarinet. The closing theme borders on triviality; the +Exposition ends, however, with some exceedingly brilliant +improvisations on the rhythmic figure of the main theme. The following +Development is rather flimsy and we need expend upon it no critical +powder. Weber was a great colorist but not a great architect. These +qualities are united only too seldom. In the Recapitulation, which is +shortened by the omission of the second theme--rather overworked in +the Development--he is once more on his own ground of rhythmic life +and dazzling orchestral color. At the close we are convinced that the +overture has accomplished its purpose of graphically depicting the +revels of Fairy-land. + +Although they are seldom[188] played to-day, no account of Weber would +be complete which entirely passed over his compositions for the +Pianoforte, _i.e._, the four Sonatas, the concert piece in F minor and +the originally conceived _Invitation to the Dance_, often played in +the orchestral version of Berlioz which is so much better than the +inflated, bombastic one by Weingartner. Weber is classed as one of the +founders of the "brilliant school" of pianoforte playing which, +chiefly through the genius of Franz Liszt, has done so much to enlarge +the sonorous and coloristic possibilities of the instrument. Here +again Weber's fame rests more upon his influence than upon lasting +achievement; as to the importance of this influence, however, there +can be no doubt. + +[Footnote 188: Perhaps the whirligig of time may restore them; who can +say?] + +The student will be repaid for informing[189] himself as fully as +possible concerning Weber's career and artistic ideals, for he was a +genuine though early exponent of Romantic tendencies. Of marked +versatility, of no mean literary skill and of such social magnetism +and charm that he might properly be considered a man of the world, as +well as an artist, Weber was thus enabled to do pioneer work in +raising the standard of musicianship and in bringing the art of music +and ordinary, daily life into closer touch. + +[Footnote 189: The life in Grove's Dictionary is well worth while; +there are essays by Krehbiel and others and, above all, the +biographical and critical accounts in the two French series: _Les +Musiciens Celebres_, and _Les Maitres de la Musique_.] + + + + +CHAPTER XIII + +SCHUMANN AND MENDELSSOHN + + +In distinction from pioneers like Schubert, slightly tinged with +Romanticism, and Weber who, though versatile, was somewhat lacking in +creative vigor, Schumann (1810-1856) stands forth as the definite, +conscious spokesman of the Romantic movement in German art just as +Berlioz was for art in France. He was endowed with literary gifts of a +high order, had a keen critical and historical sense and wrote freely +and convincingly in support of his own views and in generous +recognition of the ideals of his contemporaries. Many of his swans, to +be sure, proved later to be geese, and it is debatable how much good +was done by his rhapsodic praise to young Brahms; whether in fact he +did not set before the youngster a chimerical ideal impossible of +attainment. Schumann early came under the influence of Jean Paul +Richter, that incarnation of German Romanticism, whom he placed on the +same high plane as Shakespeare and Beethoven. An intimate appreciation +of much that is fantastic and whimsical in Schumann is possible only +through acquaintance with the work of this Jean Paul. Schumann's first +compositions were for the pianoforte--in fact his original +ambition[190] was to be a pianoforte virtuoso--and to-day his +permanent significance depends on the spontaneity in conception and +the freedom of form manifested in these pianoforte works and in his +romantic songs. Here we have the "ipsissimus Schumann," as von Buelow +so well remarks. Schumann's pianoforte style is compounded of two +factors: first, his intensely subjective and varied imagination which, +nourished by the love of Romantic literature, craved an individual +mode of expression; second, a power of concentration and of organic +structure which was largely derived from a study of Bach and of the +later works of Beethoven. Schumann saw that the regularity of abstract +form, found in the purely classical writers, was not suited to the +full expression of his moods and so he worked out a style of his own, +although in many cases this was simply a logical amplification or +modification of former practice. In his pianoforte compositions, then, +we find a striking freedom in the choice of subject, which is +generally indicated by some poetically descriptive title, _e.g._, +_Waldscenen_, _Nachtstuecke_, _Fantasiestuecke_, _Novelletten_, +_Kreisleriana_, _Humoreske_, etc. The danger in this form of subject +matter is that it often degenerates into sentimentality coupled with a +corresponding spinelessness of structure. This danger Schumann avoids +by a style noticeable for terseness and structural solidity. His +effort was to give significance to every note; all verbiage, +meaningless scale passages and monotonous arpeggios were swept away, +while the imagination was aroused by the bold use of dissonances and +by the variety of tone-color. A thoroughly novel feature was the +flexibility of the rhythm, which breaks from the old "sing-song" +metres and abounds in syncopations, in contrasted accents, and in +subtle combinations of metrical groups; every effort being made to +avoid the tyranny of the bar-line. + +[Footnote 190: Because of an unfortunate accident to one of his +fingers this ambition, however, had to be abandoned. The world thereby +gained a great composer.] + +Schumann's career was peculiar in that, beginning as a pianoforte +composer, he tried successively every other form as well--the song, +chamber music, works for orchestra, and for orchestra with solo voices +and chorus--and won distinction to a greater or less degree in every +field save that of the opera. Notwithstanding the beauty of poetic +inspiration enshrined in the four symphonies, a grave defect is the +quality of orchestral tone which greets the ear, especially the modern +ear accustomed to the many-hued sonority of Wagner, Tchaikowsky, +Debussy and others. These symphonies have been called "huge pieces for +four hands" which were afterwards orchestrated, and the allegation is +not without truth, as real orchestral glow and brilliancy is so often +lacking. Each one, however, has notable features, _e.g._, the sublime +Adagio of the 2d, and the touching Romanza of the 4th, and each is +worthy of study; for Schumann in certain aspects furnishes the best +avenue of approach to the modern school. In the Fourth Symphony he +obliterates the pauses between the movements and fuses them all +together; calling it a Symphony "in einem Satze" and anticipating the +very same procedure that Schoenberg follows in his String Quartet which +has had recent vogue. Schumann's chief contribution to the development +of the German Song lay in the pianoforte part, which with Schubert and +Mendelssohn might properly be called an accompaniment, however rich +and varied. But in Schumann the pianoforte attains to a real +independence of style, intensifying in the most subtle and delicate +way every shade of poetic feeling in the text. In fact, it is often +used to reveal some deep meaning beyond the expressive power of words. +This is seen in the closing measures of "Moonlight" where the voice +ceases in suspense, and the instrument completes the eloquence of the +message. Schumann's great achievement as a literary man was his +founding, in 1834, of the _Neue Zeitschrift fuer Musik_, to which he +himself contributed many stimulating and suggestive essays, opposing +with might and main the Philistinism which so pervaded the music of +his time. He even established an imaginary club, called the +Davidsbund, to storm the citadel of Philistia. + +The best eulogy of Schumann is the recognition that many of the +tendencies in modern music, which we now take for granted, date from +him: the exaltation of freedom and fancy over mere formal +presentation, the union of broad culture with musical technique, and +the recognition of music as the art closest in touch with the +aspirations of humanity. He was an idealist with such perseverance and +clearness of aim that his more characteristic work can never die. + + +DES ABENDS. + +The _Fantasiestuecke_[191], op. 12, of which this piece is the first, +amply justify their title, for they abound in soaring thoughts, in +fantastic, whimsical imaginings and in novel modes of utterance and +structure. Every number of the set is a gem, _In der Nacht_ being +perhaps the most poetic of Schumann's short pieces for the pianoforte. +They are thoroughly pianistic and evoke from the instrument all its +possibilities of sonority and color. In point of texture they +illustrate that happy combination, which Schumann worked out, of lyric +melodies on a firmly knit polyphonic basis. They are also +programmistic in so far as Schumann believed in music of that type. +There is no attempt to tell a detailed story or to have the music +correspond literally to definite incidents. The titles merely afford a +verbal clue to the general import and atmosphere of the music. Thus in +regard to the piece under consideration, the mere mention of eventide +is supposed to be enough to stimulate thought in any one with a +sensitive imagination, and the music is a suggestive expression of +Schumann's own intimate reveries. The piece is in extended two-part +form--each part repeated--and rounded out with an eloquent Coda. The +rhythmic scheme is of particular significance for it illustrates not +only the composer's fondness for inventing new combinations, but, as +well, suggests most delicately the mood of the piece. It would +evidently be false art to write a piece, entitled Evening, in a +vigorous, arousing rhythm, such as might be associated with a noon-day +sun, when we often see the heat-waves dancing over the fields. On the +other hand Schumann, by a subtle blending of triple time in the main +upper melody and duple time in the lower, suggests that hazy +indefiniteness appropriate to the time of day when the life of Nature +seems momentarily subsiding and everything sinking to rest, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +In many measures of the second part (_i.e._, 21-24) the accent is so +disguised that it seems as if we were in a twilight revery, quite +apart from matters of time and space. + +[Footnote 191: As the music is readily procurable the student should +make himself familiar with the entire set.] + + +WARUM? + +This piece is a happy illustration of the intensity of meaning and the +conciseness of structure which Schumann gained by the application of +polyphonic imitation. It is difficult to say exactly what _Warum_ +signifies. It was characteristic of the Romantic unrest of the German +mind to question everything--especially "Why am I not more happy in +love?" The motto may be considered a Carlyle-like "everlasting why." +At any rate the composition is an example of music speaking more +plainly than words; for no one can fail to recognize the haunting +appeal in the theme with its long-drawn out final note after the +upward leap. It is a real musical question, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +_Grillen_, the next piece in the set, deserves careful study. It is +too long to present as a whole, but we cite the middle part (See +Supplement No. 52) as it is such a convincing example of syncopated +effect (_i.e._, the persistent placing of the accent on weak beats), +and of elasticity in the metric scheme. + + +_Novellette in E major._ + +This piece illustrates the vigor and massiveness of Schumann's +pianoforte style. Note the sonority gained by the use of widely spaced +chords. For the brilliant effect demanded, there should be a liberal +use of the damper pedal.[192] We likewise find, beginning with the +third brace, some characteristic polyphonic imitations which give to +the movement a remarkable concentration. In the middle contrasting +portion it seems as if Schumann had taken a leaf out of Chopin's +book--a beautiful, lyric melody floating on an undercurrent of +sonorous, arpeggio chords. The theme is presented in dialogue form, +first in the upper voice, next in an inner voice and finally in the +bass. (See Supplement No. 53.) + +[Footnote 192: A beautiful contrast may be made by playing the section +in F major with the "una corda" pedal throughout.] + + +SONG, _Mondnacht_. + +No estimate of Schumann would be fair or comprehensive without some +mention of his songs; upon which, together with his pianoforte +compositions, his immortality tends more and more to rest. +Notwithstanding the many poetic and dramatic touches in Schubert's +accompaniments, those of Schumann are on the whole more finely +wrought; for he had the advantage of Schubert in being, himself, a +pianist of high attainment, thoroughly versed in pianistic effects. +His imagination was also more sensitive to subtle shades of meaning in +the text and he was inspired by the wonderful lyrics of Heine, +Eichendorff and Chamisso who in Schubert's day had written very +little. Special features of Schumann's songs are the instrumental +preludes and postludes, the prelude establishing just the right +setting for the import of the words and the postlude commenting on the +beautiful message which the voice has just delivered. In _Mondnacht_, +for example, (as previously mentioned), note how the voice stops in +suspense and in what an eloquent revery the accompaniment completes +the picture. (See Supplement No. 54.) + + +OVERTURE TO _Manfred_. + +This Overture, the first of a set of incidental numbers which Schumann +composed to illustrate Byron's dramatic poem, represents some of his +most typical inspiration, and so is well worthy of our study. The +music is labored at times, especially in the Development, and the +orchestration is often dry and stereotyped. But the conception was a +powerful one, and there is a genuine correspondence between the nature +of the music and the spirit of the poem. It is evident that the +subject made a deep impression on Schumann, whose own imagination, +addicted to mysterious and even morbid broodings, was strongly akin to +that of Byron's fictitious character. The composition is program music +of the subjective order, comparable to Beethoven's _Coriolanus_, +_i.e._, the themes are dramatic characterizations: the first typifying +the stormy nature of Manfred; the second, with its note of pleading, +the mysterious influence over the recluse of the spirit of Astarte. As +in all works of this kind the music cannot be readily appreciated +without a knowledge of the poem which it illustrates.[193] As for the +structure, Schumann clings too closely to the Sonata-form. The music +is eloquent just in proportion as he gives his fancy free rein; where +he tries to force the themes into an arbitrary mould, the result is +unsatisfactory--especially the development, which is neither very +dramatic nor interesting from a purely musical point of view. The work +opens with three spasmodic syncopated[194] chords, and then follow +twenty-four measures (lento and at first pianissimo) of a preludial +nature with suggestions of the Manfred theme. The movement becomes +gradually faster and more impassioned until, in measure 26, we reach +the presentation of the first theme (allegro agitato) which, with its +frequent syncopations, is characteristic of Manfred's restless +nature. The transition begins in measure 39; at first with a +repetition of the main theme, which soon modulates to F-sharp minor, +in which key the second theme enters, in measure 51. This theme--in +three portions--seems to embody different aspects of the feminine +influence of Astarte. The first portion, measures 51-61, with its +undulating, chromatic outline, may be said to typify the haunting +apparition so real to Manfred's imagination and yet so intangible; the +second, 62-67, contains a note of impassioned protest, and the third, +68-77, is a love message of tender consolation. If this interpretation +seem too subjective, a careful reading of the drama where Astarte +appears (pp. 284-285 in the Everyman's Edition) will, we believe, +corroborate it. The rest of the Exposition consists in a treatment of +the Astarte motive, primarily of a musical nature; though there is a +real dramatic intensity in measures 96-103, which are an expansion of +the love message with its characteristic "appoggiatura." The +Development, beginning in measure 132, is a striking example of how +difficult it was--even for an exponent of freedom in musical +expression like Schumann--to break loose from the shackles of +arbitrary form. The musical thought is kept in motion, to be sure, but +that is about all; for the treatment is often very labored, and +nothing is added to the dramatic picture. The world had to await the +work of Tchaikowsky, and Strauss for a satisfactory adjustment[195] +between the demands of dramatic fitness and the needs of musical +structure. In the Coda, beginning measure 258, Schumann--now that he +is free from considerations of structure--gains a dramatic effect of +truly impressive power. The horns, supported by trumpets and +trombones, intone a funeral dirge of touching solemnity (evidently +suggested by the closing death scene of the drama) while, above, hover +portions of the Astarte motive, as if even in his death her influence +was paramount in Manfred's imagination, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Notwithstanding certain blemishes, this Overture at the time of its +composition was a landmark in the development of program music, and if +to our modern tastes it seems a bit antiquated, this is largely +because of the great progress which has since been made.[196] + +[Footnote 193: The poem is easily procured in a volume of Everyman's +Library.] + +[Footnote 194: These chords are an amusing example of a "paper +effect," for unless you watch the conductor's beat, it is impossible +to feel the syncopation. There being no first beat proper, the chords +are syncopated against the air!] + +[Footnote 195: For pertinent comments on this point see Newman's essay +on Program Music, pp. 134-135, in his _Musical Studies_.] + +[Footnote 196: In studying this work consult, if possible, the +orchestral score. For those who need a condensed two-hand arrangement, +the Litolff edition is to be recommended.] + + +SYMPHONY IN D MINOR. + +This Symphony is selected from Schumann's four, both for the peculiar +romantic beauty of its themes and because the form in which it is cast +makes it an important connecting link between the freedom of +structure, instituted by Beethoven, and the Symphonic Poem of Liszt +and other modern composers. All of Schumann's symphonies contain +genuine beauties and should be familiar to the cultivated musician. +Perhaps the first in B-flat major is the most sustained, and it has a +freshness and buoyancy summed up in its title, the _Spring_, by which +it is popularly known. The exuberance of the Finale is pure Schumann +and is expressed with an orchestral eloquence in which he was +frequently lacking.[197] The Second Symphony is notable for its +sublime Adagio, Schumann's love-song--comparable to the slow movement +of Beethoven's Fourth. At some future day, conductors will have the +courage to play this movement by itself like a magnificent Torso, for +indubitably the other movements have aged beyond recall. The Third +Symphony, known as the _Rhenish_ (composed when Schumann was living at +Duesseldorf on the Rhine) is significant for its incorporation of +popular melodies from the Rhineland, and for the movement, scored +chiefly for trombones and other brass instruments, which gives a +picture of some ceremonial occasion in the Cologne Cathedral. + +[Footnote 197: It is more than a matter of mere chronology to realise +that the D minor Symphony was composed in the same year as the B-flat +major. It was afterwards revised and published as No. 4, but the +vitality and spontaneity of its themes come from the first gush of +Schumann's inspiration.] + +The Fourth Symphony is an uneven work, for there are many places where +Schumann's constructive power was unequal to his ideal conceptions. We +often can see the joints, and the structure--in places--resembles a +rag-carpet rather than the organic texture of an oriental rug. But the +spontaneous outpouring of melody touches our emotions and well-nigh +disarms criticism. Schumann had constantly been striving for a closer +relationship[198] between the conventional movements of the symphony; +and his purpose, in the structural treatment adopted, is indicated by +the statement published in the full score--"Introduction, Allegro, +Romanze, Scherzo und Finale _in einem Satze_" _i.e._, the work is to +be considered as a _continuous whole_ and not broken up into arbitrary +movements with rigid pauses between. The long drawn-out +Introduction,[199] with its mysterious harmonies, leads us into the +land of romance, and a portion of this introduction is happily carried +over and repeated in the Romanze. The First movement proper, from +_Lebhaft_, seems at first as if it were to be in the customary +Sonata-form; the Exposition beginning with two themes in the normal +relationship of minor and relative major, though to be sure the second +theme is more of a supplementary expansion of the first than one which +provides a strong contrast. But after the double bar and repeat, this +first theme is developed in a free preludial manner as if it were +continually leading up to a climax. We are finally rewarded by a new +theme of great warmth which amply makes up for any lack of +individuality in the second theme proper, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 198: We find traces of this tendency in the First Symphony, +where the Slow Movement and the Scherzo are linked together, likewise +in the Second, where the motto of the first movement is repeated at +the end of the Scherzo.] + +[Footnote 199: The analysis is based, as usual, on the orchestral +score; for class-room study there are excellent editions for two and +four hands.] + +The rest of the movement consists of additional improvisations, rather +too rigidly sectionalized, on the first theme and a second appearance +of the interpolated theme. This theme, with rhythmic modifications, +serves also as the basis for the brilliant Coda; for there is no +Recapitulation proper, and it is evident that the movement is an +extended prelude for what is to come--a first portion of the work as a +whole. After a dramatic pause,[200] which enhances the feeling of +expectancy (so prominent in the first movement) followed by a +sustained modulatory chord, the Romanze begins with a plaintive theme +in A minor. The mood is that of an idealized serenade, and in the +original score the accompaniment for the oboe melody was given to the +guitar[201] to secure the appropriate atmosphere. After the first +statement of the theme there is an interpolated quotation of the +characteristic passage from the introduction, which serves to bind the +movements together both in structure and in relationship of mood. The +movement is in clear-cut three-part form and the middle contrasting +section in the major mode reveals a sustained descending melody played +by the body of strings, which is delicately embellished by an obligato +variant given to a solo violin, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 200: Concert-goers may well be reminded that there should be +_no_ applause between the movements of this work. One of the most +pernicious ideas of the public is that as soon as the music ceases, +handclapping should begin; whereas a complete silence is often the +very means the composer employs for intensifying what has been said +and preparing for what is to come. Let us ponder the cryptic remark +attributed to Mozart that "the rests in music are more important than +the notes."] + +[Footnote 201: This was afterwards withdrawn as impracticable. What a +pity that Schumann wrote before the harp as a member of the orchestra +had come into its own. For the mood which he was trying to establish +compare the scoring of this Romanza with that in the Slow movement of +Franck's Symphony.] + +At first the 'cellos, also, re-enforce this melody. + +[Music] + +The effect is that of an ethereal voice commenting on the beauty of +the main theme. This obligato part is of special significance, since +with rhythmic change it forms the chief theme of the Trio in the +following movement. The Romanze closes with a simple return to the +plaintive oboe melody, this time in D minor. The tonality is purposely +indefinite to accentuate the wistful feeling of the movement--the last +chords having the suspense of a dominant ending. After a short pause +we are at once whirled into the dashing Scherzo which seems to +represent the playful badinage of a Romantic lover. The Trio affords a +delightful reminiscence of the Romanze and, from a structural point of +view, is an early example of the principle of "transformation of +theme"[202] which plays so important a role in the works of Liszt, +Franck, Tchaikowsky and Dvo[vr]ak. For the melody, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +is a rhythmic variant of the former obligato of the solo violin, and +has this characteristic, which gives a peculiar note of surprise, that +it always begins on the third beat of the measure. Following a +repetition of the Scherzo the movement ends eloquently with a +coda-like return to the Trio which, after some modulatory changes, is +broken up into detached fragments, seeming to vanish into thin air. +There is no pause between the end of the Scherzo and the introduction, +based on the theme of the first movement, which ushers in the Finale. +This movement is in Sonata-form with a modified Recapitulation--_i.e._, +the first theme is not repeated--and with a passionate closing theme, +_e.g._, + +[Music] + +which atones for the intentional incompleteness with which the first +movement ends. The main theme is a compound of a vigorous march-like +motive, closely related to one of the subsidiary phrases of the first +movement, and a running figure in the bass--the derivation of which is +obvious. After a rather labored transition[203]--surely the most +mechanical passage in the whole work--we are rewarded by a melody of +great buoyancy and rhythmic life, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 202: In Brahms, who was something of a conservative as to +freedom of form, there is a striking example in the connection between +the second movement and the Finale of the Third Symphony.] + +[Footnote 203: Schumann was a true poet in the spontaneity of his +themes, but often an unsuccessful architect when connecting them.] + +The free Fantasie begins with a contrapuntal working-out of a figure +taken from the first theme, but it suffers from a persistent emphasis +on what, after all, is an uninteresting rhythm [Music]; there is, +furthermore, a rigid grouping of the phrases in twos and fours. +Schumann's instinct was a wise one in omitting the main theme of the +Recapitulation and in leading, as soon as possible, to the repetition +of the delightful second theme--the gem of the movement--which now +makes its orthodox appearance in the tonic. After some ejaculatory +measures, which remind us of the beginning of the Development, we have +the impassioned closing theme, referred to above, which ushers in the +free and brilliant Coda, worked up contrapuntally with ever increasing +speed. The movement ends with Schumannesque syncopations. The D minor +Symphony, thus, although not a perfect work of art, is a significant +one and repays intimate study. A long life may safely be predicted for +it by reason of the fervor and charm of its melodies. An important +historical status it will always hold, for it is the honorable +ancestor of such great symphonies as Cesar Franck's in D minor and +Tchaikowsky's in E minor, in which we find the same freedom of form +and the same fusion of material attempted by Schumann's daring +spirit.[204] + +[Footnote 204: For a detailed and illuminating study of this symphony +and of Schumann's style in general see the last essay in _Preludes and +Studies_ by W.J. Henderson. Another excellent essay may be found in +_Studies in Modern Music_ by W.H. Hadow.] + +Closely connected with Schumann, chronologically and also by certain +executive associations, _e.g._, the Leipsic Conservatory, is the +career of Mendelssohn (1809-1847). There was much in common between +the two; they both were extremely versatile, of strong literary bent +and naturally drawn to the same media of expression: pianoforte, solo +voices and orchestra. And yet, so dissimilar were the underlying +strains in their temperaments that their compositions, as an +expression of their personalities, show little in common. Schumann, as +we have seen, was fantastic, mystical, a bold, independent thinker, +the quintessence of the Romantic spirit. Mendelssohn, on the other +hand, though not lacking in poetic fancy and warmth, was cautious--a +born conservative; and his early classical training, together with the +opulent circumstances of his life, served as a natural check upon the +freedom of genius. His dazzling precocity--witness the _Midsummer +Night's Dream_ Overture, composed while he was in his seventeenth +year--and a great popular success were surely not the best stimuli to +make him delve into the depths of his imagination. Undoubtedly he did +a valuable service, in his day, in uniting the leading tendencies of +the two schools: the exuberant fancy of the Romantic, and the reserve +and finish of the Classic. He has been aptly called a "Romanticist +with a classical equipment." If any appraisement be necessary to the +detriment of one or the other, it must be conceded that Schumann was +the greater genius. A just estimate of Mendelssohn's work is +difficult, for his career was so meteoric and in his life he was so +overvalued that now, with the opposite swing of the pendulum, he is as +often underrated. He was assuredly a great artist, for what he had to +say was beautifully expressed; the question hinges on the actual worth +of the message. With perfect finish there often goes a lack of power +and objective energy; somewhat the same difference that we feel +between skillful gardening and the free vitality of Nature. Although +Mendelssohn's music delights and charms there is a prevailing lack of +that deep emotion which alone can move the soul. And yet a composer +whom Wagner called "the greatest of landscape painters" and whose best +works have stood the test of time can by no means be scorned. His +descriptive Overtures for orchestra: the _Hebrides_, the _Midsummer +Night's Dream_ and the _Fair Melusine_; his _Variations Serieuses_ for +Pianoforte and some of the _Songs without Words_[205] contain a +genuinely poetic message, flawlessly expressed. As for the pianoforte +music, when the _Songs without Words_ are called "hackneyed" we must +remember that only compositions of truly popular appeal ever have +sufficient vogue to warrant the application of this opprobrious term. +In the pianoforte _Scherzos_ and in the _Rondo Capriccioso in E major_ +there is without doubt a vitality and a play of fancy easier to +criticize than to create. The prevalent mood in Mendelssohn's music is +one of sunny-hearted lightness and emotional satisfaction; and if this +be a one-sided presentation of life, it is no more so, as Pratt well +says in his _History of Music_, than the picture of gloom and sorrow +which certain other composers continually emphasize. The fact that his +descriptive Overtures, just mentioned, have been surpassed--owing to +the recent expansion in orchestral possibilities of tone-color--must +not blind us to the beauty of their content, or make us forget the +impetus they have given to modern composers. No one could possibly +find in the _Hebrides_ Overture that subtle descriptive fancy or that +wealth of orchestral coloring which exists in Debussy's marvellous +_Sea Pieces_; and yet the Mendelssohn composition is a genuine +reflection of nature in terms of music and can still be heard with +sustained attention. Wagner[206] praises highly its orchestral +effects; and a modern scholar, Cecil Forsyth,[207] considers the +tone-painting quite irresistible. A sincere tribute of admiration +should also be paid to Mendelssohn's _Concerto for Violin and +Orchestra_. Written in the most idiomatic style for the solo +instrument and containing real _violin melodies_ it is still one of +the few great works in its class. Any final critical estimate of +Mendelssohn--no matter how earnest the effort to be absolutely +fair--is inevitably involved with personal prejudices. If his music +appeals to any one, it is liked extremely and no one need be ashamed +of enjoying it, for it is sincerely felt and beautifully expressed. +Mendelssohn, himself, doubtless knew perfectly well that he was not +Bach, Beethoven or Schubert. For those whose natures crave a more +robust message, more fire and a deeper passion, there are the works of +those other composers to which they may turn. + +[Footnote 205: Several of these were constantly played by both +Paderewski and De Pachman, two of the greatest virtuosi of our day: +surely a convincing tribute!] + +[Footnote 206: See the _Oxford History of Music_, Vol. VI, pp. 80-84. +Anyone who cares to see what Wagner owed to Mendelssohn may compare +the opening theme, and its treatment, of the _Fair Melusine_ Overture +with the music of the Rhine Maidens in the _Rheingold_.] + +[Footnote 207: See his treatise on Orchestration, p. 194.] + +Let us now analyze the _Midsummer Night's Dream_ Overture,[208] "his +first and highest flight" to quote Schumann. In this work we do not +find a characterization by musical means of the emotions of the +dramatis personae, as in the _Coriolanus_ Overture; and there is +little specific correspondence between the type of theme and definite +incidents, except possibly at the beginning of the Recapitulation, +where the low tones of the Bass Tuba[209] may be thought to represent +the snores of Bottom, as the fairies hover about him. Anyone familiar +with Shakespeare's play--and such a knowledge is indispensible for a +complete enjoyment of the music--will see that Mendelssohn's object +was to give a broad, general picture of the fairy world and to +intensify, by his music, the fancy and humor found in the play. The +introductory sustained chords, pianissimo, are a happy illustration of +his deftness in tone-painting; for, assigned to the ethereal flutes +and clarinets, they constitute, as Niecks ingeniously expresses it, a +"magic formula" which ushers us into the moonlit realm of fairyland. +The first theme in E minor (Allegro di molto: throughout _pp_ and +staccato), announced by the strings, is a graphic representation of +the playful antics of the nimble elves and fairies. Its course is +twice interrupted by a peculiar, prolonged chord which seems to say, +"Hush! you are listening to the activities of beings not of this +every-day, humdrum world." The first theme has a second part in E +major (beginning at measure 62) of a pompous, march-like nature, which +may be thought to represent the dignity of Duke Theseus and his train. +The Overture being in complete Sonata-form, there occurs at this +point a short transition based on the rhythm of the first theme; +followed by a lovely cantabile melody--the second theme proper--that +typifies the romantic love pervading the play. This theme also is +expanded into several sections; the first of which may portray the +clownish Athenian tradespeople, and the second, the brays of Bottom +after he has been transformed into an ass, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 208: This is exceptionally effective in the four-hand +version--in fact, it was often played as a pianoforte duet by his +sister Fanny and himself--although the real poetic effect is +inseparably connected with the orchestral treatment.] + +[Footnote 209: Originally these tones were played by the Ophicleide or +Serpent (now obsolete).] + +The free fantasia, an improvisation on the first theme--although +containing a few perfunctory manipulations--sustains interest, as a +whole, by its modulations and by the suggestive orchestral effects. +The closing measures, where the pizzicato 'cellos and double basses +seem to imitate the light, tripping footsteps of the elves, is +genuinely realistic. The Recapitulation, which begins with the same +chords as the Introduction, is an illustration of bondage to classic +practise; for here they have no dramatic significance and are merely a +concession to routine procedure.[210] The first theme and the +transition, however, are effectively abridged so that the second +theme, by far the most appealing in the whole work, stands out in +greater prominence. Then follows a brilliant expansion of the closing +portions of the second theme, until we reach the Coda. This begins +with a reminiscence of the first theme which fades away into a +modified presentation of the Duke Theseus theme, followed by four +long-drawn out Amens.[211] These may signify the blessing which, in +the play, the elves bestow upon the Ducal house. The Introductory +chords dissolve the dream which the music has evoked, and we are back +once more in the world of reality. + +[Footnote 210: This, after all, is a rather subtle point for a boy of +seventeen to be called upon to consider. Perhaps if he had been that +kind of a boy he might not have written the Overture at all!] + +[Footnote 211: The ecclesiastical formula for an Amen being the +so-called Plagal cadence of subdominant and tonic chords.] + +To suggest the attitude which we of to-day should take towards +Mendelssohn--he may justly be admired as a musician of great natural +gifts, of high ideals and of unusually finished technique in many +branches of composition. It is ungracious to censure him because he +lacks the gripping emotional power of a Beethoven or a Wagner. Those +who indulge in such narrow criticism condemn only themselves. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV + +CHOPIN AND PIANOFORTE STYLE + + +Although Chopin (1809-1849) was less aggressively romantic than others +of the group we have been considering, in many respects his music +represents the romantic spirit in its fairest bloom. Not even yet has +full justice been done him--although his fame is growing--since he is +often considered as a composer of mere "salon-pieces" which, though +captivating, are too gossamer-like to merit serious attention. Chopin +was a life-long student of Bach; and much of his music, in its +closeness of texture, shows unmistakably the influence of that master. +Together with Schumann, he broke away from the strict formality of the +old classic forms and instituted the reign of freely conceived +tone-poems for the pianoforte: the form being conditioned by the +poetic feelings of the composer. As far as fundamental principles of +architecture are concerned, his pieces are generally simple, modeled +as they are on the two and three-part form and that of the rondo. When +he attempted works of large scope, where varied material had to be +held together, he was lamentably deficient, _e.g._, in his Sonatas. In +fact, even in such pieces as the Etudes and Scherzos, in the +presentation of the material we find occasional blemishes. But there +are so many other wonderful qualities that this weakness may be +overlooked. In spite of a certain deficiency in form, Chopin is +indisputably a great genius. Far too much stress has been laid on the +delicacy of his style to the exclusion of the intensity and bold +dramatic power that characterize much of his music to a marked +degree. Though of frail physique,[212] and though living in an +environment which tended to overdevelop his fastidious nature, Chopin +had a fiery soul, which would assert itself with unmistakable force. +His music by no means consists solely of melting moods or languorous +sighs; he had a keen instinct for the dissonant element (witness +passages in the G minor Ballade); he was a daring harmonic innovator; +and much of his music is surcharged with tragic significance. A born +stylist, he nevertheless did not avoid incessant labor to secure the +acme of finish. So perfect in his works is the balance between +substance and treatment, that they make a direct appeal to +music-lovers of every nation. In listening to Chopin we are never +conscious of turgidity, of diffuseness, of labored treatment of +material. All is direct, pellucid; poetic thoughts are presented in a +convincingly beautiful manner. He was a great colorist as well, and in +his work we must recognize the fact that color in music is as distinct +an achievement of the imagination as profound thought or beauty of +line. Chopin's position in regard to program music is an interesting +subject for speculation. Few of his works bear specifically +descriptive titles; and it is well known that he had little sympathy +with the extreme tendencies of Berlioz and Liszt. Yet there is, in +general, something more than an abstract presentation of musical +material, however beautiful. The varied moods aroused by the Ballades +and Nocturnes, the actual pictures we see in the Polonaises, must have +had their counterpart in definite subjective experiences in the life +of the composer, and so from a broad psychological standpoint--even in +the absence of explanatory titles--we may call Chopin a thoroughly +romantic tone-poet; indeed, as Balzac says, "a soul which rendered +itself audible." + +[Footnote 212: He was born of a Polish mother and a French father, and +these mixed strains of blood account fundamentally for the leading +characteristics of his music. From the former strain came the +impassioned, romantic and at times chivalrous moods, prominent in all +Polish life and art; and from the latter the grace, charm and finish +which we rightly associate with the French nature. For side-lights on +Chopin's intimacy with George Sand see the well-known essays by Henry +James and Rene Doumic.] + +As Chopin composed so idiomatically for his chosen instrument, the +pianoforte, to which he devoted himself exclusively,[213] no +understanding or adequate appreciation of the subtleties of his style +is possible without some knowledge of the nature and attributes of +this instrument which, in our time, has become the universal medium +for the rendering of music. All of Chopin's works were not only +published for the pianoforte but were conceived in _terms_ of the +pianoforte; his style in this respect being quite unique in the +history of musical art. For there are noble and poetically inspired +thoughts of many composers which may be satisfactorily presented +through a number of media: pianoforte, organ, string-quartet or +voices. This fact has been the cause of many so-called transcriptions +of orchestral or string-quartet music for the organ. A composer, +furthermore, often publishes a work for a certain instrument when the +inner evidence shows that, during the period of creation, he actually +had some other medium in mind. Beethoven's Sonatas abound[214] in +effects which, for their complete realization, require an orchestra; +so that, notwithstanding the beauty of the thought, his style is often +anything but pianistic. In certain of Cesar Franck's pianoforte works +we are conscious of his predilection for the organ, as the spirit of +the music demands a sustained volume of sound which the organ, with +its powerful lungs, alone can give. But if the full beauty of Chopin's +conception is to be gained, his music must be played on the pianoforte +and on nothing else. The pianoforte has, to be sure, several +limitations; it is not per se a loud instrument in comparison with a +trumpet or an organ, and the whole nature of its tone is +evanescent--that is, as soon as the tone is produced, it begins to +fade away, [decrescendo symbol]. This latter apparent limitation, +however, is in fact one of its most suggestive beauties; for nothing +is more stimulating to the imagination than the dying away of a +beautiful sound, as may be felt in the striking of a clear-toned bell, +or in the wonderful diminuendo of the horn. This effect, inherent in +pianoforte tone, should be more utilized rather than deplored, +especially since dwelling on a delightful harmony or a single dramatic +note is a definite characteristic of "tempo rubato"--that peculiar +feature of Chopin's rhythm. The pianoforte can neither steadily +sustain a tone [sustaining symbol] nor increase it [crescendo symbol]; +achievements for which the strings and the wind instruments are so +valued. On the other hand, the instrument has the merits of great +sonority and marvellous coloristic possibilities; and when music is +composed for the pianoforte by one who understands its secrets and, +furthermore, when it is properly played, it is quite the finest[215] +instrument ever yet brought under the control of a single performer. +Again, the pianoforte is not meant for great rapidity of utterance, +such as, for instance, we associate with the violin, the flute or the +clarinet. It is, in fact, often played _too fast_, sounding like a +pianola or a machine rather than an instrument with a soul. If there +be no lingering over the notes, beautiful effects have no opportunity +to be heard. Rapidity and brilliance on the pianoforte do not depend +on so many notes per second but on vitality and precision of accent. +These admirable qualities of the instrument are due to the great +number of vibrating metal strings (in a modern concert-grand, about +two hundred and thirty, _i.e._, three strings to each of the twelve +notes of the seven octaves, save for a few of the lowest bass notes); +to the large sounding board (about twenty-four square feet, on the +largest model), and above all to the damper pedal which Rubinstein--so +appropriately--calls the soul of the pianoforte. The very term +Pianoforte implies a wealth of meaning; for a special glory of the +instrument is its power of shading, its flexibility of utterance, from +piano to forte or vice versa. The limits themselves, to be sure, are +not so striking as in certain other instruments, _e.g._, the +pianoforte cannot produce the almost ghostly whisper of which the +clarinet is capable, nor can it equal the trumpet or the trombone in +intensity or volume. But it can produce a very beautiful pianissimo; +and if a sense of relativity be kept, and soft effects begun quietly +enough, it can be made to sound with remarkable brilliancy. The +pianoforte should always be played with a keen regard for this power +of shading, of nuance; the tones should undulate like the winds or the +waves. Anything like the steady sostenuto level for which the organ +shows itself so fitted is, except for special effects, entirely +foreign to the nature of the pianoforte. Nor should we ever attempt to +make it, per se, a loud, overpowering instrument. Its forte and its +brilliancy are purely relative; and, when forced to do something +unsuited to its real nature, it protests with a hard, unmelodious +tone. + +[Footnote 213: The few exceptions being the Polish Songs, the Trio for +Violin, 'Cello and Pianoforte and the orchestral accompaniment to the +two Concertos.] + +[Footnote 214: There will occur to every one numerous passages in +which the pianoforte is expected to be a kettle-drum, or where the +figuration is far better suited to the violin than to the hand in +connection with keys.] + +[Footnote 215: This by reason of its combined powers in melody, +harmony and rhythm. Some of these qualities it shares, to be sure, +with the organ; but the organ is inherently lacking in rhythm, and its +solid, block-like tones do not exercise the same fascination upon the +imagination as do the fleeting sounds of the pianoforte. It is, of +course, possible and desirable to enjoy both instruments--each in its +own proper sphere, and each for its characteristic effects.] + +Likewise the two pedals,[216] when their technical names are +understood, imply their own meaning, just as their popular +designations hint at the way in which they are often abused. The pedal +employed by the _right_ foot, properly called the "damper pedal," is +so named because, by its action, _all_ the dampers of the key-board +may be raised simultaneously. This allows the strings to vibrate +together and to send forth great waves of colored sound like those +produced by an Aeolian harp; an effect similar to that heard when a +sea-shell is held to the ear. The pianoforte, in fact, has aptly been +called "a harp laid on its back" to which the action of keys has been +applied. Accordingly an open, flowing style (arpeggio) is one of the +idioms best suited to its nature. To secure proper contrast, a +massive, chordal style is sometimes employed by such composers as +Schumann, Brahms and Franck--even at times by Chopin himself; but that +the extended arpeggio (often merely two voices, with the body of tone +secured by the pedal) is the norm may be seen from almost any page of +Chopin's compositions. The resonance and carrying power of these waves +are intensified by raising the lid[217] of the pianoforte; for then +they are brought to a focus and projected into space. The effect +produced by raising the dampers is appropriate and beautiful, not +alone with consonant chords but, at times, equally with chords that +are unrelated; which, were they sustained for long by an organ, would +be intolerably harsh. But the tone of the pianoforte is so fleeting +that such a mixture ensures great brilliance and warmth without undue +jargon, and is thus akin to the blending of strange colors by modern +painters. Many people, in fact, play the pianoforte with too _little_, +rather than too _much_, pedal; or with too much pedal used the wrong +way! A definite attempt should be made to cultivate a feeling for +color and warmth of tone; a hard, colorless tone on the pianoforte +being a great blemish as it is so unnecessary. The following passage +illustrates the above points. + +[Footnote 216: It is understood that all the comments are based on the +action of a concert-grand pianoforte, since on an upright or a +square--because of mechanical limitations of space--the effects are +quite different.] + +[Footnote 217: In this connection, even at the risk of seeming to +preach, let the advice be given that _nothing_ should ever be put on +top of a grand pianoforte: neither flowers, afternoon tea-sets, +bird-cages, books, nor even an aquarium! For the lid is not merely a +cover, but an additional sounding-board, and must always be in +readiness to be so used. The pianoforte as a coloristic instrument, in +short, is completely itself _only_ when played with the lid raised.] + +[Music: CHOPIN: _Barcarolle_] + +There is really no such thing on the pianoforte as a "pure" single +tone. It is an acoustical law that no tone exists by itself, but +always generates a whole series of overtones[218] or "upper partials," +as they are called, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 218: An instrument designed to reinforce these upper tones, +so that they may be clearly heard, is to be found in any Physical +Laboratory. That these tones really vibrate "sympathetically" may be +proved by striking _ff_ [Transcriber's Note: Music example indicates +_sf_] this note [Music: C2 With damper pedal] and then pressing down +_very lightly_ the keys of G and E just above middle C, thus removing +the individual dampers of these notes. In a quiet room the tones are +distinctly audible. For another rewarding experiment of the same +nature, see the Introduction to the first volume of Arthur Whiting's +_Pedal Studies_ and the well-known treatise of Helmholtz.] + +Even what we call the perfectly consonant chord of C major, _e.g._, +[Music] would be slightly qualified and colored by the B-flat, and +this effect has actually been utilized by Chopin in the final cadence +of his Prelude in F major, No. 23, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +In this example the E-flat must be very delicately accented and _both_ +pedals freely used. + +Let it be clearly understood, therefore, that the damper +pedal--popularly but erroneously called the "loud pedal"--has nothing +to do with "noise" as such. Its purpose is to amplify and color the +waves of sound and these waves may vary all the way from _pp_ to _ff_. +The dynamic gradation of pianoforte tone is caused by the amount of +force with which the hammer strikes the wires; and this power is +applied by the attack and pressure of the fingers. The damper pedal +will, to be sure, reinforce fortissimo effects, but logically it is +only a _means_ of _reinforcement_ and should never be used so that a +mere "roar of sound" is produced. The normal pianoforte tone, however, +is that brought forth in connection with the damper pedal, and only to +gain an effect of intentional coolness and dryness do we see in +pianoforte literature the direction "senza pedal"; passages so marked +being often most appropriate as a strong contrast to highly colored +ones.[219] + +[Footnote 219: For a complete and illuminating treatise on the pedals +and their artistic use, see the aforesaid two volumes of _Pedal +Studies_ by Arthur Whiting (G. Schirmer, New York).] + +An important adjunct of the instrument, though even less intelligently +used, is the pedal employed by the left foot; that popularly known as +the "soft pedal," but of which the technical name is the "una corda" +pedal. By this device on a grand pianoforte the whole key-board is +shifted from left to right, so that the hammers strike but _two_ wires +in each group of three, and the third wire of the set is left free to +vibrate sympathetically. Thus a very etherial, magical quality of tone +is produced, especially in the upper ranges of the instrument. In the +middle register, passages played forte or fortissimo will have a +richness comparable to the G string of a violin. The effect is +analogous to that of a viol d'amour which has, as is well known +(stretched underneath the strings, which produce the actual tone) a +set of additional strings, freely vibrating. Although this "una +corda"[220] pedal may be used in a dynamic sense to reduce, as it +were, the size of the instrument, its chief purpose is coloristic, +_i.e._, to make possible a _special quality_ of tone. This statement +is proved by directions in pianoforte literature as far back as +Beethoven, in whose Sonatas we find the dynamic marks of _f_ and _ff_ +coupled with the proscribed use of the una corda pedal. In any case, +this left-foot pedal should not be abused; for, just because the tone +quality produced thereby is so beautiful and characteristic, it soon +becomes, if constantly employed, rather cloying. The dynamic gradation +of tone is primarily a matter for the control of the fingers, _i.e._, +the touch. The damper pedal is for sonority and color; the una corda +for special shades, and all three factors--touch and the two +pedals--are combined in pianistic effects which only a trained +technique and artistic judgment can regulate.[221] + +[Footnote 220: The term dates from the period when this pedal +controlled three shifts: una corda, due corde and tre corde; the +hammer striking respectively one, two or three strings. The whole +mechanism is well implied in the German word _Verschiebung_, _i.e._, +the shoving along--so frequent in Schumann's works, _e.g._, the middle +part of his _Vogel als Prophet_ from the _Waldscenen_, op. 82, No. 7.] + +[Footnote 221: American pianofortes also have a middle pedal called +the "sustaining pedal," by which tones in the lower register may be +prolonged. It has not proved to be of great value, though there are +occasional passages, _e.g._, the closing measures of the second +movement of Cesar Franck's _Violin Sonata_, where it may be +effectively employed.] + +Even a slight analysis of Chopin's style proves that it is based upon +logical inferences, drawn from the series of overtones as they are +generated and reinforced by the very nature of the pianoforte. From +the wide spacing of the lower tones of the series Chopin derived the +extended grouping of his arpeggios, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +[Music: Prelude, No. 19] + +so that the _chord_ of the _10th_, instead of the former grouping +within the octave, may be considered the basis of his harmonic scheme. +By this means a great gain was made in richness and sonority. Another +striking feature of Chopin's style is found in those groups of +spray-like, superadded notes with which the melody is embellished. It +is evident, in many cases at least, that these tones are not merely +embroidery in the ordinary sense. Rather do they represent a +reinforcement of the overtones, ideally or actually present, in +connection with bass tones and chords used in the lower part of the +musical fabric. As a striking example[222] see the long series of +descending non-harmonic tones in the Coda of the _B major Nocturne_, +op. 9, No. 3, and note the delicate colors in the closing arpeggio +chord (to be played with a free use of both pedals). + +[Footnote 222: For a commentary on this passage see D.G. Mason's essay +on Chopin in _The Romantic Composers_.] + +[Music] + +In general, Chopin's style is homophonic--wondrous lyric melodies +which seem to float on waves of richly colored sound. But there is +also much subtly used polyphony, _i.e._, delightful phrases in inner +voices and imitative effects between the different parts. In +comparison, however, with Schumann's style (which is largely on a +polyphonic basis) Chopin is a decidedly homophonic composer.[223] A +great deal of interesting and instructive reading on Chopin is +available and the following works are especially recommended: _Chopin, +the Man and his Music_ by Huneker; the _Life of Chopin_ by Niecks; the +essay on Chopin in Mason's _Romantic Composers_ and in Hadow's +_Studies in Modern Music_; the volume on Chopin by Elie Poiree in the +series _Les Musiciens Celebres_; and the same by Louis Laloy in the +series _Les Maitres de la Musique_; the _Life_ by Liszt (well known +and most valuable as coming from a contemporary and brother musician); +finally a somewhat rhapsodic essay by H.T. Finck in _Chopin and Other +Essays_. + +[Footnote 223: For a detailed analysis of many special features of +style see the volume by Edgar Stillman Kelly, _Chopin the Composer_.] + +We select, as being thoroughly representative, the following works for +comment: the first Prelude, the A-flat major Etude, the F-sharp minor +Mazurka, the E-flat minor Polonaise, the Barcarolle and the C-sharp +minor Scherzo.[224] + +[Footnote 224: To save space, no one of these pieces except the +Barcarolle is given in the Supplement, since they are readily +accessible. The _Barcarolle_, however, is given in order to make it +better known; for although it is one of the most inspired and +beautifully expressed of all Chopin's works, it is heard comparatively +seldom. The best editions of the works are those of Kullak, Mikuli and +Klindworth.] + + +PRELUDE IN C MAJOR, OP. 28, NO. 1. + +This Prelude, the first of the set of 24, is an excellent example of +the sonority Chopin gained from widely extended chords in the bass; by +the use--characteristically bold--of dissonances (measures 13-20), and +by the sensuous richness of the closing measures, in which a wonderful +wave of sound is produced through the damper pedal, in connection with +the blending of the tonic, dominant and subdominant chords. The +prelude is a kind of intensified Bach and may well be compared with +that prelude in the same key which begins the immortal well-tempered +Clavichord. All the Preludes, for their poetic import, finished style +and pianistic effect, are masterpieces of the first rank. Schumann +well says of them: "They are sketches, eagle's feathers, all strangely +intermingled. But in every piece we recognize the hand of Frederic +Chopin; he is the boldest, the proudest poet-soul of his time." + + +ETUDE IN A-FLAT MAJOR, OP. 25, NO. 1. + +This etude, deservedly popular, may be considered the example _par +excellence_ of Chopin's style. The lyric beauty of the melody, the +fascinating modulations, the shades of color alike justify the +following rhapsodic comments of Schumann, "Imagine that an Aeolian +harp possessed all the musical scales, and that the hand of an artist +were to cause them to intermingle in all sorts of fantastic +embellishments, yet in such a way as to leave everywhere audible a +deep fundamental tone and a soft, continuously singing upper voice, +and you will get about the right idea. But it would be an error to +think that Chopin, in playing this etude, permitted every one of the +small notes to be distinctly heard. It was rather an undulation of the +A-flat major chord, here and there thrown aloft by the pedal. +Throughout the harmonies one always heard in great tones a wondrous +melody, while once only, in the middle of the piece, besides that +chief song, a tenor voice became prominent. After the etude a feeling +came over one as of having seen in a dream a beatific picture which, +when already half awake, one would gladly once more recall." + + +MAZURKA IN F-SHARP MINOR, OP. 6, NO. 1. + +As Franz Liszt says in his life of Chopin, "The Mazurka is not only a +dance, it is a national poem, and like all poems of conquered nations, +is shaped so as to let the blazing flames of patriotic feeling shimmer +out through the transparent veil of popular melody." The chief +peculiarity of the Mazurka (which is always in triple rhythm, with a +latitude in speed from Presto to Mesto) is the scheme of +accentuation--the normal accent on the first beat being systematically +transferred to the second and third beats. We also find in the Mazurka +frequent indications for the use of the so-called "tempo rubato," a +proper conception of which is so essential in the performance of +Chopin's music. Tempo rubato--so often abused!--literally meaning +borrowed time, is simply free rhythm emancipated from rigid, +scholastic bonds. As Huneker well says, "Chopin must be played in +curves" with emotional freedom; just as the heart, when excited, +increases the speed of its pulsations, and in moments of calm and +depression slows down. The jerky, really unrhythmical playing of +certain performers reminds us of a person suffering from _palpitation_ +of the heart. Liszt's description of the rubato is most suggestive: "A +wind plays in the leaves, life unfolds and develops beneath them, but +the tree remains the same." In Chopin, accordingly, the ground rhythm +should always be preserved, though varied with subtle, and yet logical +fluctuations. + + +POLONAISE IN E-FLAT MINOR, OP. 26, NO. 11. + +The Polonaise[225] is the great national dance of the Poles; an +impassioned and yet stately pageant in which, as Liszt says, "The +noblest traditional feelings of ancient Poland are represented." This +dance--or rather, processional march--is always in triple rhythm and +based on a definite rhythmic formula: either [Music] or [Music]. The +frequent feminine endings are also a characteristic feature, _e.g._, +the cadence in the well known military Polonaise in A major: + +[Music] + +To return to the example being considered,--it is in Three-part form +(A, B, A, with Coda) the first part in the minor mode; the second part +beautifully contrasted by being in B major--introduced by the implied +enharmonic change from E-flat to D-sharp. This first part, remarkable +for its passionate, headlong impetuosity, should dispel any idea that +Chopin was a weak sentimentalist. Although of a delicate constitution +he certainly had a fiery soul. The second part, sotto voce--note the +feminine endings--reminds us of the muffled music of a military band +as it passes by. + +[Footnote 225: For an account of its origin see the chapter in +Huneker's book and the article on the Polonaise in Grove's +Dictionary.] + + +BARCAROLLE IN F-SHARP MAJOR, OP. 60. + +This composition, in many ways the most wonderful single piece we have +from Chopin, is the quintessence of his genius. It seems, in fact, to +contain everything: appealing melodies, wealth of harmony, bold +dissonances (note in particular the 6th and 7th measures of the Coda), +brilliant embellishments; and withal, it is written in a pianistic +style which, for richness and warmth of color, is quite unsurpassed. +It is also most sincerely conceived, intensifying the suggestiveness +of the descriptive title. Would that objective program music were +always so true to life and to the real nature of music! It is in free +three-part form, the first part of a calm nature in which we are +rocked on gently undulating waves; a more rhythmic second part where, +as Kullak says, the bass seems to suggest the monotonous steadiness of +oar-strokes; an interlude, marked "dolce sfogato," introduced by some +delightful modulations, as if in a quiet nook the poet were dreaming +of the beauties of love and nature; an impassioned return to the chief +subject, together with a partial presentation of the middle portion; +and finally a long and brilliant coda. The composition is unique in +romantic literature for its power to arouse the imagination, or, as +Schumann so well says, "to set people romancing for themselves." + + +SCHERZO IN C-SHARP MINOR, OP. 39. + +The four Scherzos, for passion and eloquence, rank among Chopin's most +characteristic works, though it seems impossible to trace a logical +correspondence between the former classic meaning of the term +"Scherzo" and the contents revealed to us in these poems; save that +they are all in triple rhythm, hence on a dance-form basis. As Niecks +well says, "There is in them neither frolicsomeness nor humor"--such, +for example, as we find in Beethoven's Scherzos--and he suggests that +"Capriccio" might be a less misleading designation. But, however +inexplicable the title which Huneker thinks Chopin may have applied in +serious jest, there is no doubt of the uncompromising dignity of the +utterance, and there is often a grim irony, a wayward scorn, which a +liberal interpretation might well consider attributes of humor. These +were marked traits in Chopin's nature, and the Scherzos are their +revelation in terms of music. Schumann's well-known comment is +apropos--"How is gravity to clothe itself if jest goes about in dark +veils?" This Scherzo (Presto con fuoco) is in extended three-part +form; the dominant note of the first part being one of feverish +agitation, which expresses itself in spasmodic outbursts. The second +part, with its broad cantabile melody of a hymn-like character, +reveals a calmer mood. The last note of each phrase is adorned +throughout with lovely coloristic embellishments. After a return to +the first theme, the second part is also repeated; this time with +striking modulatory changes which strongly resemble the mood of +Wotan's Farewell, in the third Act of Wagner's _Valkyrie_. A long and +fiery coda of new thematic material closes the work. The major ending +is like a shaft of light dispelling storm-tossed clouds. + +Chopin's works are so instinct with genius and have proved to be so +immortal that they may well be considered as ideal witnesses to the +triumph of quality over mere quantity or sensational display. To-day, +when we suffer from musical bombast, their refined message is of +special significance. + + + + +CHAPTER XV + +BERLIOZ AND LISZT. PROGRAMME MUSIC + + +There is no doubt that Hector Berlioz (1803-1869), however varied the +appeal of his music to different temperaments, is an artistic +personality to be reckoned with; one not to be ticketed and laid on +the shelf. Although a century and more has elapsed since his birth the +permanent value of his music is still debated, often amusingly enough, +by those who seem unaware that, whatever the theoretical rights of the +case, in practice his principles are the reigning ones in modern +music. As Berlioz stands as the foremost representative of program +music and never wrote anything without a title, it is certain that +before his music or influence can be appreciated, the mind must be +cleared of prejudice and we must recognize that modern program music +is a condition--an artistic fact, not a theory--and that the tendency +towards specific, subjective expression (whether manifested in song, +opera or symphonic poem) is a dominant one among present day +composers. It is true that all music is the expression in tones of the +imagination of the composer; true, also, that music must fulfil +certain conditions of its own being. But imaginations differ. That of +Berlioz, for example, was quite a new phenomenon; and as for the +working principles of musical composition, they are as much subject to +modification as any other form of human experimentation. Berlioz, +himself, says that he never intended to subvert the laws of music, +only to make a new and individual use of them. As he was no abstract +maker of music, his autobiography--one of the most fascinating in the +history of art, only to be compared with that of Benvenuto +Cellini--should be familiar to all who would penetrate the secrets of +his style. Berlioz's compositions, in fact, are more specifically +autobiographic than those of any other notable musician. Both in his +music and his literary works are the same notes of passionate +insistence on his own point of view, of radical dislike for accepting +conditions as they were (he says of himself that he loved to make the +barriers crack) and of fondness for brilliant outward effect. In +considering Berlioz, one is always reminded of Matthew Arnold's lines +on Byron, who resembles Berlioz so closely. + + "He taught us little; but our soul + Had felt him, like the thunder's roll. + With shivering heart the strife we saw + Of passion with eternal law; + And yet with reverential awe + We watch'd the fount of fiery life + Which served for that Titanic strife." + +Only realize that Berlioz's _Fantastic Symphony_ was composed but +twenty-one years after Haydn's death, and compare the simple, +self-centered Haydn with the restless, wide-visioned Berlioz, of a +mentality positively omnivorous; who, in addition to his musical +achievements, was a brilliant critic and _litterateur_, a man of +travel and wide acquaintance with the world. Then indeed you will +appreciate what an enormous change had come over music. A mere mention +of the authors from whom Berlioz drew his subjects: Shakespeare, +Goethe, Byron, Scott, Virgil, Hugo, shows the wide range of his +reading and the difference in output which would inevitably result. +The previous impersonal attitude towards music is shown by the very +names of compositions which, broadly speaking (till the beginning of +the 19th century) were seldom more than Symphony, Sonata, or Quartet, +No. so and so; while the movements, in an equally mechanical way, were +known by the designations of tempo: allegro, adagio, andante, +etc.--those "senseless terms," as Beethoven himself says. Beginning +pre-eminently with Berlioz, composers have had more highly cultivated +imaginations, much more to say; and the wider range of emotion +resulting therefrom has necessitated differences of form and +treatment. A frequent misconception on the part of the layman is that +worthy music should be so constructed that the hearer be spared all +mental exertion. As long as it was certain that a composer would +present just so many themes in a prescribed order and treated in the +routine fashion, listening to music was a comparatively easy task. +Since Berlioz, music has made ever greater demands on the hearer; who +only when his receptivity is of an equal degree of cultivation with +the creative power of the composer, can grasp the full meaning of the +music. The first step, therefore, toward an appreciation of Berlioz is +to recognize the peculiar, picturesque power of his imagination, +which was of an entirely new order, and may be called musico-poetic in +distinction from purely musical activity. This form of double +consciousness is equally necessary on the part of the hearer. As +Debussy, the modern French composer, so well says, people often do not +understand or enjoy new music because it differs from "une musique" +_i.e._, from a conventional and unvarying type which they have in +their mind. The real effect of Berlioz's "_Carnaval Romain_" Overture, +to take a simple example, is to complement and intensify the mental +picture which any well-read person--or better still, any one who has +actually visited Rome--will have of this characteristic incident in +Italian life. If the work be considered merely as abstract music, +notwithstanding the stimulation and delight caused by the rhythmic +vitality and by the orchestral effects, the real poetic purpose of the +composer remains unfulfilled. This peculiar quality of Berlioz was +partly the result of his fiery excitable temperament and partly the +reactive effect of the environment in which he found himself. What an +amazing group in Paris (beginning about 1830) was that with which he +was associated! De Musset, de Vigny, Liszt, Rossini, Meyerbeer, +Balzac, Dumas, Chopin, Heine, Delacroix, Gericault: young men +representing every art and several nationalities, all under the lead +of Hugo, that prince of Romanticists; their object being--revolt from +conventional standards and a complete expression of their own +personalities. Hugo, as he says in the famous preface to Cromwell, was +tearing down the plaster which hides the facade of the fair temple of +art; Dumas had just demolished Racine; Gericault and Delacroix, by +their daring conceptions, were founding our modern school of painting. +Into this maelstrom of revolution, Berlioz--he of the flaming locks, +"that hairy Romantic" as Thackeray calls him--flung himself with +temperamental ardor; for he was a born fighter and always in +opposition to someone. The audacity and dramatic energy of his +compositions are but the natural result of the tendencies of the +period. Berlioz's early career is of extreme interest to us +English-speaking people, because the first strong stimulus to his +imagination came from his acquaintance with the dramas of Shakespeare. +In 1827, some of the dramas, (such as Hamlet, and Romeo and Juliet) +were played in Paris by an English company, and their effect upon +Berlioz was overwhelming. He would wander about the streets raving of +Shakespeare; he promptly fell in love with the most beautiful actress +in the troupe--Henrietta Smithson, whom he later married[226]--and +then began the frenzied period of composing and concert giving, which +came to a climax in the _Fantastic Symphony_ first performed in 1830. +Berlioz's courage and perseverance are shown by his winning the Prix +de Rome, after four failures! His two years in Italy (his picture may +still be seen at the Villa Medici), replete with amusing and thrilling +incidents, were, on the whole the happiest period of his stormy life. + +[Footnote 226: For a convincing account of this tragic marriage see +the volume of _Recollections_ by Ernest Legouve.] + +But we must pass to some brief comments upon the characteristics, pro +and con, of his style. In the first place it was extremely original; +showed little or no connection with former composers; has had no +imitators, and cannot be parodied. Berlioz likewise possessed great +range of emotion--though he rarely touched the sublime; a power of +laying out works on a vast scale, and, in general, of achieving with +unerring certainty the effects desired. The poet Heine said that much +of Berlioz's music reminded him of "primeval monsters and fabulous +empires." And what a master he was of rhythm!--one of the greatest in +music! Prior to his work, and that of Schumann among the Germans, the +classic rhythms were becoming rather stereotyped; and the vigorous +elasticity introduced by these two composers has widened incalculably +the range of dramatic effect. But his indisputable claim to lasting +recognition is his genius in the treatment of the orchestra. Berlioz +had an inborn instinct for sensuous tonal effect for its own sake, and +not as the clothing of an abstract idea. With him the art of making +that composite instrument, the orchestra, give forth the greatest +beauty and variety of sound became an end in itself; and from his +ingenious and innovating effects has been evolved the orchestra as we +hear it to-day. Berlioz thought, so to speak, in terms of orchestral +color. In his melodies we do not feel that the drawing, the contour of +the pure line, is the chief thing; but that the assignment of the +melody to just the right instrument, and the color-effect thereby +produced, are integral parts of the conception. Notwithstanding the +fact that some of his effects are extravagant or at times bizarre, he +must be credited with revealing possibilities in orchestral shading +and color which, still further developed by Wagner, Strauss and +Tchaikowsky, have become conventional means of expression. Some of his +most celebrated and satisfying works, in addition to those mentioned, +are the _Harold in Italy_ Symphony, with its personification by a solo +viola of the chief character; the _Romeo and Juliet_ Symphony, for +both vocal and instrumental forces (of which the ball-scene with its +wondrous love-melody and the _Queen Mab_ Scherzo--unequalled for +daintiness--represent his highest attainments as a tone-poet) and, +most popular of all, the _Damnation of Faust_ based on scenes from +Goethe's poem. The bewitching incidental pieces for orchestra alone, +such as the _Ballet of Sylphs_ and the _Rakoczy March_, are often +played at symphony concerts, and are familiar to everyone. Certain +blemishes in Berlioz's music are obvious and need not be +over-emphasized. There is often more style and outward effect than +real substance. His works excite, but how seldom do they exalt! For he +was frequently deficient in depth of emotion and in latent +warmth--qualities quite different from the hectic glow and the +feverish passion which his French admirers, Tiersot and Boschot, claim +to be genuine attributes of musical inspiration, of power to compel +universal attention. We of other nations can only firmly dissent. +Without question his work has never succeeded in calling forth the +spontaneous love of a large body of admirers.[227] In an eloquent +passage the conductor and critic Weingartner sums up the case: +"Berlioz will always represent a milestone in the development of +music, for he is the real founder of the modern school. He did not +approach that ethical depth, that ideal purity which surround +Beethoven's name with such unspeakable glory, but no composer since +Beethoven, except Wagner, has enriched music with so many new means of +expression as this great Frenchman. Berlioz, Liszt and Wagner are the +heroes of the last half of the 19th century, just as Haydn, Mozart, +Beethoven, Weber and Schubert were of the first." + +[Footnote 227: It is understood that this is merely a personal opinion +of the writer and might well have been prefaced by the Socratic "it +seems to me." Too much criticism reminds us of wine-tasting--Mr. +So-and-So likes port, Mr. So-and-So sherry. The object of fair-minded +appreciation is to understand clearly just what each composer set out +to do, _i.e._, what was the natural tendency of his individual genius; +then the only question is: did or did he not do this well? It is +futile to blame him because he was not someone else or did not achieve +what he never set out to do.] + +As Berlioz is, if possible, even more idiomatic for the orchestra than +Chopin for the pianoforte, no conception of the real quality of his +message can be gained from transcriptions, however good. His +works[228] must be studied at first hand in the orchestral score and +then heard in performance by an excellent orchestra. Some preliminary +acquaintance and appreciation, however, of characteristic features in +his style is possible from arrangements and so we select for comment +the following works and movements: The _Fantastic Symphony_, the +_Carnaval Romain_ Overture, the _Ballet des Sylphes_ and the _Feux +Follets_ from the _Damnation of Faust_, the _Pilgrim's March_ from the +_Childe Harold_ Symphony and the Slow Movement from the _Romeo and +Juliet_ Symphony.[229] There is much valuable and stimulating +reading[230] about Berlioz and his influence; for, as Theophile +Gautier acutely remarks, "S'il fut un grand genie, on peut le discuter +encore, le monde est livre aux controverses; mais nul ne penserait a +nier qu'il fut un grand caractere." The _Symphonie_[231] +_fantastique_, op. 14, _episode de la vie d'un artiste_, in five +movements is significant for being the first manifestation of +Berlioz's conviction that music should be yet more specifically +expressive, since it is founded on a characteristic theme, called +l'idee fixe which typifies the heroine, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 228: The best edition is the complete one, beautifully +engraved and with critical comments, by Malherbe and Weingartner. This +is expensive, but should be found in any large library.] + +[Footnote 229: The only citations possible in the Supplement are the +Overture and portions of a few of the others.] + +[Footnote 230: Particularly to be recommended are the following: the +essay in _Musical Studies_ by Newman; that by R. Rolland in _Musiciens +d'aujourd'hui_ (in French and in English); _Berlioz et la societe de +son temps_ by J. Tiersot; the essay in _Studies in Modern Music_ by +Hadow; Berlioz's own _Memoires_ (in French and in English) and his +entertaining essays, _A Travers Chants_, _Grotesques de la Musique_ +and _Soirees d'Orchestre_; the excellent resume of Berlioz's writings +in the _Amateur Series_ by W.F. Apthorp; the _Symphony since +Beethoven_ by Weingartner; and, above all, the monumental work by +Boschot in three parts--_La Jeunesse d'un Romantique_, _Un Romantique +sous Louis Philippe_, _Le Crepuscule d'un Romantique_. There is an +amusing but far from convincing assault against Berlioz as a programme +composer and, to a certain extent, against Romanticism in general, in +the _New Laocoon_ by Professor Irving Babbitt.] + +[Footnote 231: On the title page of the autograph copy of the full +score is inscribed the following quotation from King Lear: "As flies +to wanton boys are we to the Gods; they kill us for their sport."] + +This theme, with modifications appropriate to the changes in the +character and the environment, is repeated in each movement. As for +the theme itself, frankly it does not amount to much; it certainly +fails to take our emotions by storm or sing itself into our hearts. +Berlioz's harmonization is very bald, and as to his attempts at +development,[232] the less said the better. Of course whatever Berlioz +writes for the orchestra _sounds_ well; of that there is no doubt. But +this is not enough; any more than we are convinced by a person's +statements or arguments merely because he happens to have a beautiful +speaking voice. This dramatization of a musical theme was, after all, +nothing iconoclastically new and Berlioz is perfectly right in +claiming that he was merely extending the possibilities of that same +type of theme as is found in Beethoven himself, _e.g._, in the +_Coriolanus_ Overture and to a certain extent in the Fifth Symphony. +If, furthermore, we look back from the dramatic and highly personified +use made of themes in modern music, in the works of Strauss, +Tchaikowsky, Franck and even Brahms (_e.g._, his First Symphony with +its motto-theme) we can see that this symphony of Berlioz is an +important link in a perfectly logical chain of development. This +melody, then, l'idee fixe, appears in each of the five movements; +undergoing, however, but slight purely thematic development, being +introduced and modified primarily for dramatic purposes. In the second +movement,[233] _Un Bal_, two phrases drawn from it are sung _pp_ by +the clarinet as an indication that, amid the gaieties of the dance, +the vision of the beloved one is ever present. In the _Scene aux +Champs_ it is modified and eloquently declaimed by the flute and oboe, +_e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 232: Dannreuther, in his essay in the Sixth Volume of the +_Oxford History of Music_, speaks of the peculiar process of +"rabbeting" which serves Berlioz in the place of counterpoint, and the +criticism, though caustic, holds much truth.] + +[Footnote 233: This movement is also of interest as an early example +of the Waltz among the conventional symphonic moods. The example has +been followed by Tchaikowsky in the third movement of his Fifth +Symphony.] + +At the close of the movement occurs one of Berlioz's most novel and +realistic effects--the imitation of the rumbles of distant thunder +produced by four kettle-drums tuned in a very peculiar way (see page +75 of the orchestral score, Breitkopf and Haertel edition). In the +fourth movement, _Marche au Supplice_, four measures of l'idee fixe +are introduced just at the moment when the head of the hero is to be +chopped off. This is done for purely theatric purposes and certainly +makes our flesh creep--as Berlioz no doubt intended. The most +spectacular effect, however, is in the last movement, _Songe d'une +Nuit du Sabbat_, where the theme is parodied to typify the degraded +appearance which the beloved one takes in the distorted dreams of her +lover, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The impression made by the Symphony depends largely upon the attitude +of the hearer. In this work we are not to look for the sublimity and +emotional depth of a Bach or Beethoven any more than we expect a +whimsical comedy of Aristophanes to resemble an epic poem of Milton. +But for daring imagination, for rhythmic vitality and certainty of +orchestral effect, it was and remains a work[234] of genius. + +[Footnote 234: For further comments on this Symphony see Mr. Mason's +essay in the _Romantic Composers_, an essay which, while thoughtful, +strikes the writer as somewhat biased.] + + +THE CARNAVAL ROMAIN OVERTURE + +(SEE SUPPLEMENT NO. 57) + +This work is one of Berlioz's most brilliant pieces, with an +orchestral life and color all its own. The material is taken from his +opera _Benvenuto Cellini_;[235] the checquered career of this artist +having made an irresistible appeal to Berlioz's love of the unusual +and the spectacular. The body of the work is based on the Italian +national dance, the Saltarello; and with this rhythm as a steadying +background Berlioz achieves a continuity sometimes lacking in his +work. The mere thought of the sights, sounds and colors of that +important event in the life of Rome would be enough to inflame his +susceptible imagination, and so here we have Berlioz at his very best. +The overture begins, allegro assai con fuoco, with a partial +announcement of the saltarello theme by the violins and violas, freely +imitated by the wood-wind instruments, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 235: For an entertaining account of the subject matter of +the opera see Chapter VII of Boschot's _Un Romantique sous Louis +Philippe_.] + +After a sudden prolonged silence and some crescendo trills the first +periodic melody is introduced, sung by the English horn--the tune +taken from an aria of Benvenuto in the first act. The melody is soon +repeated in the dominant key by the violas and then, treated +canonically, by the 'cellos and violins. The canon really tells and +shows that Berlioz, as is often alleged, was not _altogether_ lacking +in polyphonic skill. The rhythm is now gradually quickened and leads +to the main body of the work, in 6/8 time, based on the Italian +folk-dance--the Saltarello which, as its name implies, is of a +"skipping" nature. The music is freely developed from the two +following themes; there is no second theme proper, _e.g._ + +[Music: (_a_)] + +[Music: (_b_)] + +Toward the close there is a return to the introductory melody which is +treated contrapuntally by the bassoons and other wind-instruments. The +saltarello resumes its sway and is worked up to a fiery ending; +especially brilliant are the closing chords scored for full brass with +trills on the cornets. + +Two of Berlioz's most poetically conceived descriptive pieces are the +_Menuet des Feux-Follets_ and the _Ballet des Sylphes_, incidental +orchestral numbers from the _Damnation of Faust_; for they illustrate +convincingly what one means by the claim that Berlioz thought in terms +of orchestral color and suggestion. To give a musical picture of such +airy and fantastic imaginings by the mere repetition of conventional +formulae would obviously be of no avail. Berlioz's genius is equal to +the situation; and as we listen to the music we can really see the +flickering of the Will o' the Wisps and feel the graceful swaying of +the Sylphs as they hover about the sleeping Faust. To suggest the +Feux-Follets Berlioz ingeniously gives the theme to two piccolos in +thirds, which are supported by a rich but subdued mass of wind +instruments, horns and trumpets, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +With equal felicity does he create the picture of the delicate, +graceful Sylphs. Any boisterous rhythmic activity would be quite out +of place; and so, above a sustained ground tone on muted 'cellos and +basses (which continues through the piece), and the slightest +suspicion of motion on the second violins and violas, there floats in +the first violins one of the most perfectly rounded and exquisite +melodies in existence, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +In the closing measures there is a charming shadowy dialogue between +kettle-drums (struck with sponge-headed sticks) and harps, in +harmonics, carrying out Berlioz's stage directions--"Les esprits de +l'air se balancent quelque temps autour de Faust endormi et +disparaissent peu a peu." The piece ends with a chord barely whispered +on the clarinets, _pppp_, which, as Hadow aptly suggests, reminds us +of vanishing soap bubbles. + +Berlioz's most sustained and perfect work, both in content and +treatment, is universally acknowledged to be the _Harold en Italie_ +Symphony[236] in four movements for full orchestra and solo viola. +There is little actual correspondence between the scenes of Byron's +poem and the musical portrayal; and in fact, as Liszt says, "The title +clearly shows that the composer wished to render the impression which +the magnificent nature of Italy could not fail to make on a soul such +as that of Harold languishing in sorrow." The significant features of +the work are the melody for solo viola, recurring[237] in each +movement, which typifies Harold--that "melancholy dreamer," _e.g._, + +[Music] + +and the dazzling sensationalism of the Finale (Orgy of Brigands) +which, when it was once played "con amore" by a fine orchestra, called +forth from Berlioz the following eulogy,--"Sublime! I thank you, +gentlemen, and I wonder at you; you are perfect brigands." The finale +is also notable in that the opening portion is a reminiscence, a +passing in review, of the chief themes of the preceding movements. +Berlioz, we may surmise, was following the precedent established by +Beethoven in the finale of the _Ninth Symphony_, and, although his +treatment is rather mechanical and lacking in any such dramatic logic +as justified Beethoven, a certain organic connection between the +movements is undoubtedly secured. A portion of the second movement, +_March of Pilgrims_ singing the evening prayer, is cited in the +Supplement (See No. 58) chiefly because it is one of Berlioz's noblest +inspirations, giving an eloquent picture of a procession approaching, +passing by and losing itself in the distance--a long crescendo and +diminuendo. At every eighth measure the March melody is interrupted by +the muffled chant of the pilgrims, very effectively scored for brass +instruments, pianissimo. In the middle of the piece a contrast is +gained by the introduction of a religious chant. The closing measures +of this movement are of haunting beauty--a mysterious effect being +produced by an intentional mixture of tonalities (the sustained B in +the flute and oboe being answered by a C on the horns and harp, while +beneath are heard fragments of the March theme in the main key on the +pizzicato double basses).[238] Berlioz's most pretentious orchestral +composition is that called in the full title "Romeo and Juliet, +dramatic symphony, with choruses, vocal solos, and a prologue in +choral recitative, composed after Shakespeare's tragedy." +Notwithstanding many touches of genius, it is a very uneven work and +is too much a conglomerate of styles--narrative, lyrical, dramatic, +theatric and symphonic--for the constructive ability of the author to +weld into a living whole. There are several portions which, however +noble and glorious may have been Berlioz's conception,[239] and +however inspired by Shakespeare's genius, do not "come off." Two of +the numbers, on the other hand, are worthy of the highest praise--the +_Love Scene_ and the _Queen Mab Scherzo_. Of the latter Saint-Saens +writes--"The famous Scherzo is worth even more than its reputation. It +is a miracle of lightness and gracefulness. Beside such delicacies and +transparencies the _finesses_ of Mendelssohn in the _Midsummer Night's +Dream_ seem heavy." The main theme is fascinating in its daintiness +and sparkle, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Berlioz considered the _Love Scene_ his finest inspiration and there +are few pieces comparable with it for passionate utterance. The +orchestration is wonderful for richness and variety.[240] + +[Footnote 236: For an extended analysis of the work and also for an +account of the alleged connection of the virtuoso Paganini with its +composition, see the essay in Niecks' _Program Music_. There are, in +addition, interesting comments in _Stories of Symphonic Music_ by +Lawrence Gilman.] + +[Footnote 237: An early example of the modern principle of +transformation and transference by theme.] + +[Footnote 238: A striking illustration of "association of ideas" may +be gained from a comparison of the end of this movement with the +closing measures of Strauss's _Thus Spake Zarathustra_; it seems +incredible that Strauss did not have Berlioz's effect in his mind.] + +[Footnote 239: See the _Memoires_ for a rhapsodic account of his state +of mind at this time--"basking in the warm rays of Shakespeare's +imagination and believing it in his power to arrive at the marvellous +island where rises the temple of pure Art."] + +[Footnote 240: For extended comments and a long citation of the actual +music see the Sixth Volume of the _Oxford History of Music_.] + +After a careful study of the foregoing examples the reader, we hope, +is in a position to make a fair estimate of Berlioz's power and to +realize his great significance. It should be understood that this +music is intensely subjective and so requires a sympathetic and +cultivated attitude on the part of the listener. To the writer at +least, there remains one vital lack in Berlioz's music,--that of the +_dissonant element_. It often seems as if his conceptions could not be +fully realized for want of sheer musical equipment, largely due to +insufficient early training. For what is music without dissonance? +Surely "flat, stale and unprofitable" even if, in Berlioz's case, this +deficiency is offset by great rhythmic vitality and gorgeous color. +Yet in his best works[241] there is such a strong note of +individuality, indeed such real character, that they are deserving of +sincere respect and admiration, although by everybody they may not be +deeply loved. We should, furthermore, always remember that, if +Berlioz's poverty of harmonic effect is sometimes annoying, he never +falls into the humdrum ruts of those who have had a stereotyped +academic training. His genius was unhampered by any conventional +harmonic vocabulary, and hence it could always express itself freely. +That he was a real genius no one can fairly doubt. + +[Footnote 241: For valuable analytical comments on Berlioz's +orchestral style see Vol. VIII, Chapter X, of the _Art of Music_ +(Cesar Saerchinger, N.Y.), and for biographical details and matters of +general import, Vol. II, Chap. IX.] + +All the qualities which have been enumerated as typical of the +romantic temperament: warmth of sentiment, broad culture, love of +color and the sensuous side of music, freedom of form, and stress laid +on the orchestra as the most eloquent means of expression, reach their +climax in Franz Liszt (1811-1886). Born near Vienna of a Hungarian +father and a German mother, but chiefly associated with Paris, Weimar, +Budapest and Rome, he is certainly the most picturesque and versatile +figure in the music of the 19th century; for he worked and won fame as +a pianoforte virtuoso--probably the greatest the world has known--as a +prolific composer for pianoforte, orchestra and voice, as a teacher, +conductor and man of letters, and withal spent a large part of his +time, strength and fortune in helping young artists and in producing +works which otherwise might never have seen the light. His life is of +constant and varied interest, so spectacular at times that it seems +like a fairy tale.[242] As a mere boy he began to receive adulation +for his precocity; at the height of his career he was loaded with +honors and wealth; in his old age he was a favorite with everyone of +distinction and influence in France, Germany, England and Italy. +Nevertheless he preserved, throughout, the integrity of his character +and the nobility of his disposition. Whatever may be the final +estimate of his powers as a creative artist, as a man he has earned +nothing but eulogy;[243] for seldom has any one been freer from the +faults of vanity, petty jealousy and envy which so often mar the +artistic temperament. Liszt's generous encouragement and financial +support of Wagner in the struggling days of his unpopularity have +never been surpassed in the brotherhood of art. + +[Footnote 242: The best biographies in English are the one by Huneker +and that in Vol. 2 of Grove's Dictionary.] + +[Footnote 243: For a lively description of his influence as a +pianoforte teacher see _Music Study in Germany_ by Amy Fay.] + +Liszt is akin to Berlioz in many respects; we feel the same natural +tendency to derive musical inspiration from external sources, poetic, +pictorial or from the realm of Nature. Purely as a musician, however, +Liszt was far greater, with a wider vocabulary and more power in +thematic development. His work also is somewhat uneven; moments of +real beauty alternating with passages which are trivial, bombastic or +mere lifeless padding. When we bear in mind Liszt's unparalleled +versatility, his output in quantity and variety is so amazing--there +being well over 1,000 works of about every kind--that it is unfair to +expect the style to be as finely wrought as the original conception is +noble. A serious and unbiased study of his best compositions will +convince one that Liszt is entitled to high rank as a musician of +genuine poetic inspiration. The average music-lover is prone to dwell +upon him as the composer of _Les Preludes_, the _Hungarian +Rhapsodies_, and as the somewhat flashy transcriber of operatic +potpourris, such as the _Rigoletto Fantasie_. But _Les Preludes_, +notwithstanding a certain charm and the clever manner in which the +music (without becoming minutely descriptive) supplements the poem of +Lamartine, is yet barred from the first rank by its mawkishness of +sentiment and by its cloying harmonies. The most significant among the +symphonic poems are _Orpheus_ with its characteristic crescendos and +diminuendos; _Tasso_ of great nobility and pathos, and _Mazeppa_, a +veritable tour de force of descriptive writing. To hear any one of +these masterpieces can not fail to alter the opinion of those who may +have considered Liszt as exclusively given over to sensational +effects. As for the _Hungarian Rhapsodies_, which Liszt intended as a +kind of national ballade and so, for the basic themes and rhythms, +drew largely on Hungarian Folk music, here again the public, with its +fondness for being dazzled, has laid exclusive stress on the flashy +ones to the detriment of those containing much that is noble and of +enduring worth. In his transcriptions of standard songs Liszt did as +valuable a public service as any popularizer, and has thereby made +familiar the melodies of Schubert and Schumann to hundreds who +otherwise would know nothing of them. In considering Liszt's +pianoforte works we must remember that he was a born virtuoso with a +natural fondness for exploiting the possibilities of his instrument, +and with an amazing technique as a performer. When the sincerity of a +composer is in question there is a great difference as to what should +be the standard of judgment, whether the work be for orchestra or for +pianoforte. In writing for orchestra the composer naturally centres +himself on the pure ideas and their treatment, as the execution is +something entirely external to himself. In works for pianoforte, +however, the composer who is also a virtuoso will often, and quite +justifiably, introduce passages of purely pianistic effect which in +other circumstances would amount to a confession of deficient +imagination. That Liszt at times abused his facility in decoration +need not be gainsaid, and yet how poetic and eloquent are his best +pianoforte compositions!--the _Etudes_, the _Waldesrauschen_, the +_Ballade_ and, above all, the _Sonata in B minor_.[244] Much unjust +criticism has been expended upon Liszt for treating the pianoforte +like an orchestra. As a matter of fact he widened, in a perfectly +legitimate way, the possibilities of the instrument as to sonority, +wealth and variety of color-effect. According to the testimony of +contemporary colleagues, Rubinstein, Taussig and von Buelow who, had +they not been convinced of his supremacy, might well have been +jealous, Liszt was incontestably the greatest interpreter of Bach, +Beethoven and Chopin; and his power as a Beethoven scholar is attested +by the poetically annotated edition of the Sonatas. It is often +asserted that Liszt lacked spontaneous melodic invention. This is a +hard saying unless taken in a relative sense. We may grant that Liszt +was neither a Schubert nor a Mozart, and yet recognize in his works +some extremely haunting melodies. His creative power was acknowledged +by Wagner and in a very practical manner. In fact, after a comparative +study of their works, one is amazed at the number of melodies which +Wagner borrowed from Liszt and at the generous complaisance of the +latter. The reactive influence of Liszt and Wagner, each upon the +other, is an interesting chapter in the development of modern art. +Liszt was undoubtedly encouraged in his revolutionary aims by Wagner's +fiery courage. Wagner, on his side, owed much to Liszt's unselfish +generosity; and with his more powerful constructive gifts worked up +into enduring form motives which, internal evidence clearly shows, +came from Liszt himself. + +[Footnote 244: For a most entertaining description of this work see +the Huneker Biography, pp. 64-70.] + +Just a few closing words as to Liszt's specific contributions to the +expansion of musical structure. He was an advanced leader in the +"program school," being endowed with considerably more constructive +power than Berlioz, who often fell between two stools: in that while +his subject demanded the freest treatment, he lacked the vigor to +break away from the formal routine of his classic models. In Liszt's +orchestral works, however, the term "Symphonic Poem"--one of his own +invention--is fully justified, _i.e._, they are _symphonic_ in that +they have organic unity, although this is not attained by preserving +the classic number and arrangement of themes; and they are also +_poetic_, being not a presentation of abstract tone patterns, but +illustrative of some external idea which shapes the course of the +music entirely to its own needs.[245] The distinguishing quality of +the Symphonic Poem is its unbroken continuity. Although objective +points are reached, and while there are broad lines of demarcation +with reference to the varied moods of the poem to be illustrated, +there are _no rigid stops_--everything is fused together into a +continuous whole. Liszt was an advocate of persistent development, +_i.e._, the music going out into space like a straight line instead of +returning on itself. Inner evidence shows, however, that although he +avoided many needless and conventional repetitions, he could not +entirely throw overboard the cyclical law of restatement; for there is +not one of his _Symphonic Poems_ which does not repeat, at the end, +thematic material already heard. Liszt carried the principle of theme +transformation still further than Berlioz; and, as a German, tended to +lay stress rather on the psychological aspects of character than on +those outward theatric events which appeal to French taste. The +difference is well shown by a comparison of the _Damnation of Faust_ +with Liszt's _Faust_ Symphony, considered his most inspired orchestral +work. Liszt must not be forgotten as a song-writer, especially for his +settings to Goethe's poems; which, as Huneker says, are masterpieces +and contain, in essence, all the dramatic lyricism of modern writers, +Strauss included. In these songs the instrumental part is of special +import; Liszt in pianistic treatment anticipating Hugo Wolf with his +"Songs for Voice and Pianoforte," _i.e._, the voice and the instrument +are treated as coequal factors. + +[Footnote 245: For stimulating comments see _The Symphony since +Beethoven_ by Weingartner, pp. 71-86.] + +The works of Liszt selected for analytical comment are the Symphonic +Poem _Orpheus_, the _Faust_ Symphony and the Pianoforte Etude, +_Waldesrauschen_. The student, however, should become familiar with +several others[246] of the Symphonic Poems, notably _Tasso_, _Les +Preludes_ and _Mazeppa_; with the Pianoforte Sonata in B minor in one +movement, in which Liszt works on the same plan as Schumann in the +Fourth Symphony; with the descriptive pianoforte pieces and etudes; +and with the songs, of which _Kennst du das Land_, _Die Lorelei_ and +_Du bist wie eine Blume_ are beautiful examples. + +[Footnote 246: An enlightening and comprehensive account of each of +these may be found in Niecks's _Programme Music_ already referred to. +See also Chapter VII, pp. 141-155 in Vol. VI of the _Oxford History_ +for what is perhaps a rather biased point of view. There is an +excellent tabulation of the themes from _Les Preludes_ in Mason's +_Romantic Composers_.] + + +SYMPHONIC POEM, ORPHEUS + +In this work, as must always be the case in poetically suggestive +music, the composer trusts to the general intelligence and insight of +the listener. For a mere mention of the name Orpheus may well call up +the vision of a majestic, godlike youth proclaiming his message of joy +and peace to soften the unruly passions of men and animals. + +It is said that Liszt's imagination was kindled by a beautiful +representation of Orpheus playing on the lyre, which decorates an +Etruscan vase in the Louvre. The aim of the music was thus to +intensify and supplement the visual effect. The Poem begins with soft, +sustained calls on the horns, creating a mood of expectancy, +interspersed with modulatory arpeggios on the harp serving to complete +the legendary picture. In these Symphonic Poems, we must always +observe how closely the nature of the themes and the whole import of +the music are involved with the orchestral dress. For Liszt, though +not perhaps so brilliant and sensational as Berlioz, was equally a +great master of orchestral coloring and poetic suggestion by means of +appropriate instruments; often, too, more delicate and refined. In +measure 15 begins for sustained strings the stately march which +typifies the gradual approach of Orpheus. The second phrase of the +march, beginning in measure 38, has received the compliment of being +appropriated, almost literally, by Wagner in the second act of the +_Valkyrie_ for the march motive with which Wotan is ushered in. Some +beautiful modulatory developments of the march theme, with which the +original horn calls are united, lead to the impassioned theme in E +major, sung by an English horn, which is the message of Orpheus to the +sons of men, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The theme is expanded by means of striking modulations until, in +measure 102, it is presented by the full orchestra. Some rather +meaningless repetitions, in detached phrases, of the Orpheus theme +bring us, in measure 130, to a return of the original march which is +finally proclaimed _ff_ with great power and sonority. It seems to +typify the triumphant justification of Orpheus's appearance. The +dissonant modulations in the following passage, beginning measure 155, +(in which the double basses take a dramatic part) have been thought by +some to represent realistically the uncouth roars of forest monsters. +These outcries finally subside and in the Coda, beginning at measure +180, we have first a beautiful reminiscence of Orpheus's message and +then a last announcement of the march theme, which is now presented in +the form of a long diminuendo, as if the God-like apparition were +slowly withdrawing from our sight. A series of shifting modulations +(adagio and pianissimo) seems to bring a cloud before our enraptured +senses, and the work closes with a long sustained chord in C major, +_ppp_, giving an elemental idea of peace and satisfaction. From the +standpoint of musical structure the work is a crescendo followed by a +diminuendo and, poetically considered, is a convincing picture in +terms of music of the effect made upon Liszt's imagination by the +legend of Orpheus. Observe that, although the composition is free in +form, it is _not_ formless.[247] The main lines are the familiar ones +of statement, contrast and restatement, _i.e._, three-part form, and +the key-relationship is clear and carefully planned. + +[Footnote 247: An allegation often brought against Liszt's work by +those whose conception of "form" is that of a cast-iron mould.] + + +THE FAUST SYMPHONY + +This work, although embodying Liszt's favorite ideas of dramatic +characterization and transformation of theme as found in the Symphonic +Poems, more nearly resembles the ordinary symphony in that it is in +three distinct movements--with pauses between--which stand, +respectively, for the three chief characters in Goethe's drama: Faust, +Gretchen and Mephistopheles. In the _Faust_ Symphony the principle of +transformation or metamorphosis of themes is of such importance that +it may be defined as their rhythmic, melodic and harmonic modification +for the purpose of changing the meaning to correspond with a +modification in the characters for which they stand. The first +movement sets before us five themes illustrative of the most prominent +traits in the complex nature of Faust; the three most important being +(_a_) typical of brooding, speculative inquiry, (_b_) the longing of +love, (_c_) the enthusiasm and chivalry of Faust, _e.g._ + +[Music: (_a_)] + +[Music: (_b_)] + +[Music: (_c_)] + +The development of these themes is entirely free, the musical texture +being held together by a general application of the principle of +contrast and by a logical key-scheme. The second movement has two main +themes, _e.g._ + +[Music: (_a_)] + +[Music: (_b_)] + +which portray eloquently the sweetness and dreamy ecstacy of +Gretchen's nature. In the course of this portrayal there appear +several themes from the first movement showing, by their +transformation, the effect upon the introspective Faust of the +awakening influence of love. Thus the love theme appears as-- + +[Music] + +and also later in this form-- + +[Music] + +Towards the close of the movement there is a subtle reference to the +chivalrous theme, as follows-- + +[Music] + +Much of the appeal of the music depends upon the orchestration which +throughout is of remarkable beauty. + +In the final movement, entitled Mephistopheles, there are a few +independent themes which portray the malign influence of the spirit of +Evil--the movement is marked Allegro vivace ironico!--but most of the +material is a transformation of the Faust themes which are here +burlesqued, parodied; as if all the noble aspirations of Faust were +being mocked and set at naught. This treatment is a perfectly logical +result of the correspondence, for which Liszt was striving, between +the music and the spirit of the underlying drama. As for the final +impressiveness of his artistic message, the composer may well have +felt that the effect would be indefinite without the specific meaning +which words alone can give. For the style is very subjective +throughout; that is, if the hearer is in a responsive condition, an +effect is produced on his imagination--otherwise, not. To close the +work, therefore, in the most moving and dignified manner, Liszt, with +unerring instinct and following the precedent of Beethoven in the +Ninth Symphony, introduces a chorus of men's voices--marked Andante +Mistico--which intones the famous stanza "Alles Vergaengliche"[248] at +the close of the second part of Faust; while, above this chorus, a +solo tenor proclaims the motto of the redeeming love of woman, "Das +ewig Weibliche"--a sentiment so dear to the German[249] mind and one +that plays such an important part in the music dramas of Wagner. A +dramatic and musical connection between the movements is established +by using, for this solo part, the melody (intensified by augmentation) +which in the second movement typified the love and charm of Gretchen, +_e.g._ + +[Music: Das ewig Weibliche] + +[Footnote 248: Translated as follows by Bayard Taylor:-- + + Chorus Misticus + + All things transitory + But as symbols are sent; + Earth's insufficiency + Here grows to Event; + The Indescribable, + Here it is done: + The Woman-Soul leadeth us + Upward and on!] + +[Footnote 249: The way in which the Germans in the recent war have +applied this doctrine raises, we must say, many searching questions.] + +Notwithstanding the ultra sensationalism in some of Liszt's works +there is no doubt that, in the closing pages of Faust, he has produced +an effect of genuine power and of inspired musical beauty.[250] +_Faust_, in fact, may be called a great work because of the character +of its leading melodies, its freedom of structure and expression and +its wealth of appropriate orchestral color. For these merits we may +overlook certain dreary passages where it would surely seem as if the +imagination of the composer were not able to translate into tones all +the phases of Goethe's stupendous drama.[251] + +[Footnote 250: That this is the verdict of the public is shown by the +fact that, whenever of late years _Faust_ has been given by the Boston +Symphony Orchestra, it has had to be repeated by popular request.] + +[Footnote 251: For further comments on the work see Huneker's _Franz +Liszt_, pp. 141-146 and the third part (on Program Music) of Finck's +_R. Strauss, The Man and His Works_. Also Chap. VII passim in Vol. VI +of the Oxford History.] + +In a book such as this, chiefly concerned with broad principles of +structure and style, it would be out of place to attempt a detailed +account of Liszt's numerous and varied pianoforte compositions. But +they can by no means be left out of consideration by anyone who wishes +to gain a comprehensive estimate of his influence. For although the +fundamental principles of pianoforte style, both in writing for the +instrument and in playing upon it, are derived from Chopin and +Schumann,[252] Liszt so amplified the work of these men and added so +many novel features of his own in pianistic effect and especially in +execution that he is rightly considered a genius of the instrument. He +certainly brought out of the pianoforte a sonority and wealth of color +which heretofore had been associated only with the orchestra. The +chief groups of the pianoforte works are (1) the transcriptions of +songs, notably of Schubert and Schumann, and of operas, particularly +of Wagner. In this group should also be included the remarkable +arrangement for solo-pianoforte of all the Beethoven Symphonies. (2) +The Etudes, especially the set entitled "_Etudes d'execution +transcendante_"--a description which clearly shows the idea Liszt set +before himself and indubitably attained; of this set the one in F +minor is particularly fine. (3) The world-famed _Hungarian +Rhapsodies_, fifteen in number, based on national melodies and +rhythms. In these Liszt aspired to be the poet of his nation, and they +are still among the most important manifestations of the national +spirit so prominent in our modern music. Perhaps the most eloquent and +celebrated are the 2d, the 12th and the 14th. Even if at times they +are overencrusted with effects meant primarily for display, the +rhythmic vitality and color of the melodies cannot be withstood. + +[Footnote 252: Weber and Schubert had, of course, done valuable +pioneer work.] + + +CONCERT ETUDE, _Waldesrauschen_ + +(SEE SUPPLEMENT NO. 59) + +This composition begins with a swaying, cantabile theme for the left +hand very characteristic of Liszt, which stands out in relief against +some beautifully placed arabesque figures in the upper register of the +instrument--the whole to be played una corda, dolce con grazia. It +really is a poetic picture, in terms of music, of the delicious murmur +of the woods. In the 15th measure the theme is transferred to the +right hand, in octaves, over sonorous, widely extended groups below. +The theme is expanded through a series of striking modulations and +then returns, in measure 30, to the left hand in a single melodic +line. This middle portion, measures 30-50, is very beautiful in its +genuine atmospheric treatment. Towards its close, however, Liszt's +fondness for sensational effect rather runs away with him and there is +a good deal, in measures 50-60 (marked martellato, strepitoso and +_fff_), which is rather difficult to reconcile with the poetic +subject. Perhaps a mighty wind is roaring through the trees! In +measure 61 the theme is once more presented in amplified form by the +right hand, piu mosso and molto appassionata, and worked up to a +brilliant climax--ending with an interlocking trill and a long, +descending passage of delightful sensuous effect. The closing +measures, una corda and dolcissimo, afford a reminiscence of the +haunting appeal of the chief melody. All in all, in spite of a certain +admixture of alloy, here is a poetic composition, a real tone-picture +of the woods and of the effects implied by the title. Certainly a +piece which, in its picturesque suggestiveness and pianistic +treatment, may fairly be called the ancestor of much that is beautiful +in such modern composers as Debussy and Ravel. + +As a final estimate of Liszt and as a suggestion for the student's +attitude we cite from Niecks the following quotation, since, in our +opinion, it is true and forcibly expressed: + +"Liszt's works are too full of originality and striking expressiveness +to deserve permanently the neglect that has been their lot. Be, +however, the ultimate fate of these works what it may, there will +always remain to Liszt the fame of a daring striver, a fruitful +originator and a wide-ranging quickener." + + + + +CHAPTER XVI + +BRAHMS + + +After the novel and brilliant work of the Romanticists had reached its +height in the compositions just studied, it seemed as if there were +nothing more for music to do. Wagner, with his special dramatic aims +and gorgeous coloring, loomed so large on the horizon that for a time +all other music was dwarfed. It is, therefore of real significance +that just in this interregnum two men, born in the early years of the +19th century, were quietly laying the foundations for eloquent works +in absolute or symphonic music. These men were Johannes Brahms +(1833-1897) and Cesar Franck (1822-1890). Following a few preliminary +remarks about the significance of symphonic style in general, the next +chapters will be devoted to an account of their works and influence. + +A striking feature in the development of music since 1850 is the +number of symphonies produced by the representative composers of the +various nations; and the manner in which these works embody certain +phases of style and manifest national tendencies is a subject of great +interest. Ever since Beethoven, there has been a universal feeling +that the symphony is the form in which a composer should express his +highest thoughts. If Wagner and Richard Strauss seem to be exceptions, +we must remember that their work for orchestra is thoroughly symphonic +both in material and in scope. The difference is chiefly one of terms. +Wagner claimed that he merely applied to dramatic purposes Beethoven's +thematic development; and the tone-poems of Strauss are symphonies in +essence though on a free poetic basis. Every composer has taken up the +writing of a symphony with a serious purpose and often comparatively +late in life. To be sure, Beethoven's first Symphony, op. 21, was +composed in his thirtieth year; but for the works which manifest most +strongly his personality, such as the Third, Fifth and Ninth, we have +to wait until a later period. Schumann essayed symphonic composition +only after his technique had been developed in every other field. +Brahms's first Symphony, on which he is said to have worked ten years, +is op. 68. Cesar Franck looked forward to a Symphony as the climax of +his career. The day has passed when a composer could dash off +symphonies by the dozen; quality and genuine personality in each work +are the modern requirements. Thus from Brahms we have four symphonies, +from Tchaikowsky six, from Bruckner nine--a dangerously large +number!--from Sibelius five, from Elgar two, from d'Indy three; and, +even if a composer write but a single really inspired and noble +symphony--as for example, Cesar Franck--he is in so far immortal. For +the symphonic form is the product of too much intense striving (think +of Beethoven's agonies of conception!) to be treated lightly. +Beginning with the operatic overture of Lully and Scarlatti, called +"Sinfonia avanti l'opera," down through the labors of Stamitz, Gossec, +Emmanuel Bach, Haydn and Mozart, this form, as we know it to-day, is +the result of at least a century and a half of sustained, constructive +work. A musician who wishes to compose a symphony is brought face to +face with the formidable question, "Have I a real message to utter and +the technical skill to present it in communicable form?" There are no +accessory appeals to the other senses in the way of a dramatic story, +scenic effect, dancing and costumes--as in opera--to cloak poverty of +invention and to mollify the judgment of the listener. I grant that +the composition of an original opera is a high achievement, but we +know how many composers have won success in the operatic field from +whom we should never expect a symphony. From comparatively few have we +great works in both forms. Consider, furthermore, how complicated a +tool is the present orchestra, _as_ a tool, to say nothing of the +invention of ideas. Many years of study are required to attain a +certainty of calculation in sonority and _nuance_, and the mere +writing out the score of a symphony requires unremitting toil. We all +pay homage to life: human life in men, women and children, and the +life of nature in animals, birds, trees and flowers. Let us ever +remember that the imagination also has its products and the themes of +a symphony may certainly be considered _its_ children. The public +often seems to have slight idea of the sanctity and mystery of a +musical idea. Composers are considered people with a kind of "knack" +in writing down notes. In reality, a musical idea is as wonderful a +thing as we can conceive--a miracle of life and yet intangible, +ethereal. The composer apparently creates something out of nothing, +pure fancy being wrought into terms of communication. Since the close +of the Romantic period proper, the Symphonic composers of universal +recognition have been Brahms, Franck, Tchaikowsky, d'Indy, Sibelius, +Bruckner, Mahler, Dvo[vr]ak, Elgar, and a few lesser men of the +Russian and French schools. Their works carry still further the +principles which can be traced from Beethoven down through the +Romantic School, _i.e._, the chief themes are of a highly subjective +nature, often in fact being treated like actual characters in a drama; +and great freedom is shown in regard to mood and order of the usual +symphonic movements--this being particularly true of Mahler and +Bruckner. A distinct feature of interest in the work of Tchaikowsky, +Dvo[vr]ak and Sibelius is the introduction of exotic types of melody +and rhythm, drawn from national sources. Thus Tchaikowsky, who said +that he wished all his instrumental music to sound like a glorified +Russian folk-song, uses rhythms of 5 and (in his chamber music) 7 +beats a measure, with frequent touches of old modal harmony. Dvo[vr]ak +founds his harmony and modulations on the exceedingly chromatic scale +of the Bohemians; and his piquant and dashing rhythms could come only +from a nation which has no less than forty national dances. In +listening to Sibelius, we are conscious of the wild sweep of the wind, +of unchained forces of nature; and there are the same traits of virile +strength and grim dignity which have made the Kalevala, Finland's +national poem, one of the great epics of the world. Although Brahms +never lets us forget that he is a Teuton, there are frequent traces in +his compositions of the Hungarian element--so dear to all the Viennese +composers--as well as of German folk-songs; and the most artistic +treatment we have of Hungarian rhythms is found in his two sets of +Hungarian dances. + +It is manifestly beyond the scope of a single book to treat +comprehensively each of the symphonists in the list just cited, so I +shall dwell chiefly upon the characteristics of Brahms, Franck, +Tchaikowsky and d'Indy as probably the greatest, and touch only +incidentally upon the others, as of somewhat lesser import; though if +anyone take issue with this preference in regard to Mahler and +Bruckner I shall not combat him. For I believe Mahler to be a real +genius; feeling, however, that his wonderful conceptions are sometimes +not expressed in the most convincing manner. There is no doubt that +Mahler has not yet received his bigger part in due valuation, but his +time will surely come. As for Bruckner, we have from him some of the +most elemental and powerful ideas in modern music--witness the dirge +in the _Seventh Symphony_ with its impressive scoring for trombones +and Bayreuth tubas, a movement Beethoven might have signed; although +with the virgin gold there is mixed, it must be confessed, a large +amount of crude alloy, and there are dreary stretches of waste sand. + +Johannes Brahms, like Beethoven, with whom his style has many +affinities, was a North-German, born in 1833 in the historic seaport +town of Hamburg.[253] Brahms came of lowly though respectable and +intelligent parents, his father being a double-bass player in one of +the theatre orchestras. That the positiveness of character, so +conspicuous in his famous son, was an inherited trait may be seen from +the following anecdote. The director of the theatre orchestra once +asked father Brahms not to play so loud; whereupon he replied with +dignity, "Herr Kapellmeister, this is my double-bass, I want you to +understand, and I shall play it as loud as I please." The music of +Brahms in its bracing vigor has been appropriately compared to a +mixture of sea air and the timbre of this instrument. + +[Footnote 253: Noted as being the original centre of national German +opera and for its associations with the early career of Handel.] + +Brahms's mother was a deeply religious woman who imbued her son with a +seriousness of purpose which runs through all his work. From his +earliest years he was trained for music, as a matter of course, and +showed marked precocity as a pianist, though it soon became evident +that he also was endowed with rare creative gifts. The young student +made such progress under Marxsen, a famous teacher of the period, that +at the age of fifteen he gave a public concert, on the program of +which stood some original pieces of his own. The next few years were +spent in diligent study and in the composition of some of his early +works, of which the Scherzo op. 4 is the most significant. Brahms was +extraordinarily precocious and during these formative years manifested +a trait which is noticeable throughout his career--that of knowing +exactly what end he had in view and of setting to work quickly and +steadily to attain it. Finally in 1853, when he was twenty, he was +invited to participate in the memorable concert-tour with the +Hungarian Violinist Remenyi, which was the cause of his being brought +before the public under the auspices of three such sponsors as +Schumann, Liszt and Joachim. It seems that, at one of the concerts in +a small town, the pianoforte was a semitone too low, whereupon young +Brahms transposed at sight a difficult Beethoven Sonata into the +requisite higher key. This remarkable feat of musicianship so +impressed Joachim, who was in the audience, that he gave Brahms two +letters of introduction--one to Liszt at Weimar and one to Schumann at +Duesseldorf on the Rhine. Following up these letters, Brahms now spent +six weeks at Weimar with Liszt, assimilating important points of +method and style. Although the two natures were somewhat +unsympathetic, Liszt was so impressed with the creative power and +character of Brahms's first compositions, that he tried to adopt him +as an adherent of the advanced school of modern music; while Brahms +was led, as some would claim, through Liszt's influence to an +appreciation of the artistic effects to be found in Hungarian music. +Brahms's visit to Schumann in the autumn of 1853 was in its +consequences a significant incident. After hearing Brahms's music, +Schumann wrote for the "Neue Zeitschrift" an article entitled "Neue +Bahnen" ("New Paths") in which the young composer was heralded as the +master for whom the world had been waiting, the successor of Beethoven +in the symphonic style. Through Schumann's influence, the publishers +Breitkopf and Haertel at once brought out Brahms's first works, which +were by no means received by the public with general favor; in fact +they provoked as bitter discussion as those of Wagner, and made +headway slowly. For four years--from 1854 to 1858--Brahms was in the +service of the Prince of Lippe-Detmold, a small principality near +Hanover, where the court was a quiet one, thus affording ample time +for composition and private study. Brahms's strength of purpose and +unusual power of self-criticism are shown by the way in which this +period was spent. Although he had made a brilliant debut, Brahms now +imposed upon himself a course of rigorous technical training, appeared +seldom before the public and published no compositions; his object +being to free himself from a narrow subjectivity and to give scope to +his wide human sympathies and to his passion for perfection of +utterance. It seemed to him that a plausible originality might +degenerate into mere idiosyncrasy, and that universality of appeal +should be a musician's highest goal. When he resigned his post and +came before the public with his first large work, a concerto for +pianoforte and orchestra, the gain made in increased power and +resources was evident. The greatest tribute which can be paid Brahms +is that he has summed up and united the classic principles of +clearness and solidity of workmanship with the warmth and spontaneity +of the Romantic School. In 1862 Brahms settled in Vienna where, for +thirty-five years, his career was entirely free from external +incidents of note; his time spent in quiet steady work and in the +attainment of artistic ideals. His slow logical development is like +that of Beethoven, due to the fact that his works were far from +numerous, but finished with the greatest care. The standard of +creative quality is also very high; comparatively few of Brahms's +works are not altogether alive. Matthew Arnold's beautiful lines on +labor are applicable to Brahms. "Work which in lasting fruit outgrows +far noisier schemes; accomplished in repose; too great for haste; too +high for rivalry." Brahms thus described to Mr. Henschel, a former +conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, his ideals concerning +composing: "There is no real creating without hard work; that which +you call invention is simply an inspiration from above, for which I am +not responsible, which is no merit of mine." And again, "Whether a +composition is beautiful is one consideration, but perfect it must +be." The few of his compositions which show connection with outward +events are the _Deutsches Requiem_, his best-known choral work (in +commemoration of his mother's death) and the _Academic Overture_, +composed in place of the conventional thesis, when--in 1880--the +University of Breslau conferred on him a doctor's degree. This +Overture, based on several convivial student songs, is on the whole +his most genial composition for orchestra and has won a deserved +popularity the world over.[254] For sustained fancy his most beautiful +work for chorus and orchestra is the _Schicksalslied_ (_Song of +Destiny_). Symphonic composition, as has been said, came in the latter +part of Brahms's career, his first work in that form being op. 68. +After that, within a few years, three other symphonies were composed. +His last works include the significant pianoforte pieces called +_Intermezzi_--not all equally inspired, but many representing the +finest flower of Brahms's genius; four serious songs for bass voice, +and one posthumous work, _Eleven Choral Preludes for Organ_. Brahms +died in 1897 and lies buried in Vienna not far from Beethoven and +Schubert. + +[Footnote 254: Another very fine work in this class is the _Tragic +Overture_, worthy of the deepest study.] + +From Brahms we have beautiful works in every branch of composition +save the opera and symphonic poem. (He once said he would risk neither +an opera nor getting married!) Very few of his works have titles, and +in this respect he stood somewhat aloof from that strong tendency in +modern times--the connection between music and poetic and literary +sources of inspiration. But he had a right to choose his own line of +effort; it is for us to become familiar with his works as they are. +They comprise about two hundred songs, three pianoforte sonatas and +many lesser pieces, two concertos for pianoforte and orchestra, a +wonderfully fine violin concerto, four symphonies--each with a +character of its own--and a large group of chamber compositions: +string quartets, sonatas for violin and pianoforte, trios, and a +number of works for unusual ensemble combinations--the Trio for +Violin, Horn and Pianoforte being the best known. + +As to the nature of Brahms's music the following comments are +submitted for consideration. He was not a colorist or a stylist in the +broad sense of those terms, _i.e._, color and style were not the prime +ingredients in his music. There is light and shade in Brahms but +seldom that rich and varied glow found, for example, in +Rimsky-Korsakoff--that supreme master of orchestral coloring. As for +style, it may be said that his work fulfils Matthew Arnold's +definition of that desirable quality, "To have something to say and to +say it in the most simple and direct manner possible." We sometimes +feel, however, that he is thinking more of what he has to say than of +outward eloquence of expression. But when there are so many +composers[255] in whom there is far more style than substance, we +should not carp at Brahms for the "stuff" in his work. The matter +might be put in a nut-shell by saying that Brahms is Brahms; you +accept him or leave him, as you see fit. The bulk of his music not +only has stood the test of time but becomes more potent each year; +surely this is the highest possible endorsement. He is rightly +considered a great master of pure melodic line and a consummate +architect, especially in the conciseness and concentration of certain +compositions, _e.g._, the Third Symphony, and in his superb mastery of +the Variation form which is the basis of some of his most famous works +for orchestra and for pianoforte. His texture is of marked richness +and variety; seldom do we find verbiage or lifeless padding. He has +been called the Browning of music--a deep thinker in tones. Genuine +appreciation of Brahms presupposes work on the part of the +music-lover; and the recognition should be more general that the +imaginative stimulation gained only through work is one of the +blessings music has to bestow. + +[Footnote 255: We cite Saint-Saens, as one instance.] + +It is often alleged, indeed, that to enjoy Brahms one _has_ to work. +Of course, but what repaying work! This may be said equally of +Shakespeare, of Dante, of Browning, of Bach and of every poet with a +serious message. The vitality of Brahms's creative power, like that of +Beethoven, is seen in his rhythm. He had a highly developed rhythmic +sense, and in his fondness for syncopations, for contrasted accents +and for complicated metric groups he is the logical successor of +Schumann. One of his favorite devices is the altered grouping of the +notes in a measure, so that there is a contrast between duple and +triple rhythm, _e.g._, the following passage in the Second Symphony, +where an effect of great vigor is produced. + +[Music] + +There are never in Brahms weak or conventional rhythms. He is also one +of the great modern song-composers, representing with Strauss, Wolf +and Mahler the culmination of the German Lied. In his songs there is a +warmth and depth of sentiment as yet unsurpassed, and the +accompaniment is always a highly wrought factor in the work. In +estimating the value of Brahms's compositions as a whole, it is +difficult to hold the balance true. Those to whom he is sympathetic +through an affinity of temperament revere him as one of the great +geniuses for all time, while to others his message is not of such +convincing power. The effect of inborn temperament in the personal +appeal made by any composer is vividly shown by the estimate which +Tchaikowsky and Brahms had for one another. Each felt respect for the +sincerity and artistic skill of his contemporary, at the same time +regretfully acknowledging that the essence of the music meant little +to him. To Tchaikowsky Brahms seemed cold and lacking in melodic +spontaneity; to Brahms, on the other hand, Tchaikowsky seemed +superficial, sensational. The gist of the matter is that Brahms was a +Teuton and wrote with characteristic Teutonic reserve and dignity. +Tchaikowsky, being a Slav, wrote with the impassioned lack of +restraint and volatility of mood associated with that people. How +could it be otherwise? Each was a genuine artist, expressing his +natural feelings with clearness and conviction; and each should be +respected for what he did: _not_ one at the expense of the other. In +Brahms, however, the question does arise of facility of expression +versus worthiness of expression. He had an unparalleled technique in +the manipulation of notes but whether there was always an emotional +impulse behind what he wrote is debatable. For there are these two +contrasting types in every art: works which come from the heart +(remember Beethoven's significant inscription at the end of his +Mass),[256] and those which come from the head. This brings us face to +face with the perplexing question as to the essence of music. To some +it is a record of intellectual activity tinged with emotion; to +others, an emotional outpouring controlled by intellect. These two +types of music will always exist, being the natural expression of the +corresponding classes in human nature. + +[Footnote 256: "From the heart it has come, to the heart it shall +go."] + +Brahms's music is sometimes called dry, but this is a misuse of terms. +To draw an analogy from another sense, we might rejoin that the best +champagne is "sec," all the superfluous, cloying sugar being removed. +There is plenty of saccharine music in the world for those who like +it. In Brahms, however, we find a potential energy and a manly +tenderness which cannot be ignored even by those who are not +profoundly thrilled by his message. He was a sincere idealist and +composed to please his own high standards, never thinking of outward +effect nor testing the pulse of the fickle public. As a man there is +no doubt that he was warm-hearted and vigorous, but his was not the +nature to come forward with captivating geniality. On the contrary he +expects the hearer to come to him, and is too reserved to meet you +more than half-way. That this austerity has proved a bar in the way of +a wide-spread fame, while to be regretted, is unavoidable; remove +these characteristics from Brahms and he ceases to be Brahms. Those, +however, who may think that Brahms is always austere and grim, holding +himself aloof from broad human emotion, should remember that he has +done more than any other modern composer to idealize the Waltz; and, +if the atmosphere of his symphonic style be too rarified, they may +well begin their effort in appreciation with those charming Waltzes +op. 39 (both for solo pianoforte and for a four-hand arrangement); the +_Hungarian Dances_, and--most beautiful of all--the _Liebeslieder +Walzer_ for chorus and pianoforte (four-hands). Anyone who knows these +works cannot fail to become a genuine lover of Brahms. To be of the +earth and yet to strike the note of sublimity is a paradox. For, in +Brahms at his best, we surely find more of the sublime, of true +exalted aspiration, than in any other modern composer save Cesar +Franck. To strike this note of sublimity is the highest achievement of +music--its proper function; a return, as it were, to the abode whence +it came. Such music is far beyond that which is merely sensuous, +brilliantly descriptive, or even dramatically characteristic. Much of +present day music excites and thrills but does not exalt. Brahms, in +his great moments, lifts us high above the earth. His universal +acceptance is alike hindered by a deficiency which, though as natural +as his reserve, may yet justly be cited against him--the occasional +monotony of his color scheme. In the symphonies, notwithstanding the +dignity and sincerity of thought, we find pages in the style of an +engraving which would be more effective as a glowing canvas, _e.g._, +in the slow movement of the Second Symphony and in the last two +movements of the Fourth. Many consider, however, that Brahms's +orchestral treatment is exactly suited to the seriousness of his +ideas; so it comes down to a question of individual taste. That he had +his own delicate feeling for color and sensuous effect is shown in +many pages of the chamber music, especially in those works for unusual +combinations, _e.g._, the Clarinet Quintet, and the Trio for Violin, +Horn and Pianoforte. No one in modern times has used more eloquently +that romantic instrument, the horn. See, for example, the Coda to the +first movement of the D major Symphony and the slow movement of the +Third Symphony. We must gratefully acknowledge the lasting quality of +his music--without question it wears well. In fact, difficult though +it be to comprehend at a first hearing, the more it is heard, the more +it is enjoyed. Brahms's[257] music is steadily growing in popularity. +His orchestral works and chamber music are applauded to-day, although +twenty-five years ago they were received with apathy and scornful +indifference. + +[Footnote 257: For literature on Brahms the following works are +recommended: the comprehensive _Life_ by Fuller-Maitland; the essay in +Hadow's _Studies in Modern Music_; that in Mason's _From Grieg to +Brahms_; that by Spitta in _Studies in Music_ by Robin Grey; the first +essay in _Mezzotints in Modern Music_ by Huneker; the biographical and +critical article in Grove's Dictionary; Chapter IX in Volume 8 of the +_Art of Music_, and Chapter XIII in Volume 2. There are also some +stimulating remarks on Brahms's style in general, and on the attitude +of a past generation towards his work, in those delightful essays, in +2 volumes, _By the Way, About Music_ by the late well-known critic, +W.F. Apthorp.] + +As a representative work in each of the four fields in which Brahms +created such masterpieces we have selected, for detailed analysis, the +_First Symphony_, the _Sonata for Violin and Pianoforte in A major_, +the _Ballade in G minor_ and the _Song_, _Meine Liebe ist gruen wie der +Fliederbusch_. All four of Brahms's symphonies may justly be +considered great, each in its own way. For Brahms is not a man with a +single message and has not written one large symphony in different +sections, as, in a broad sense, may be said of Tchaikowsky. The +Second, on account of the spontaneity and direct appeal of its themes, +is undoubtedly the most popular. It contains a first movement of a +quasi-Mendelssohnian suavity and lyric charm; a slow movement which is +a meditation of the profundity of Bach himself; a third movement, +allegretto, based on a delightful waltz of the Viennese Laendler type +and a Finale of a Mozartian freshness and vigor--the second theme +being specially notable for its broad sweep. The whole work is a +convincing example of Brahms's vitality and "joie de vivre." The Third +symphony is a marvel of conciseness and virile life. The Fourth, +though not in all respects so inspired as the others, is famous for +its beautiful slow movement--with an impressive introduction in the +Phrygian mode (Brahms often showing a marked fondness for old modal +harmony)--and for the Finale, which is an illustration of his +polyphonic skill in modernizing the variation form, the Passacaglia or +ground bass. But the First,[258] it seems to us, is the greatest, in +scope, in wealth of material, in its remarkable combination of +dramatic, epic and lyric elements and in an intensity of feeling and +sublimity of thought peculiar to Brahms. It is extremely subjective, +of deep ethical value, and sets forth a message of optimism and +undying hope. The structural basis is a motto, often recurring in the +work, which (whatever it may mean) is evidently--like the theme of the +C minor symphony--some fierce protest against fate. The symphony, as a +whole, represents a triumphant progress from darkness to light; and +this meaning is made evident by the ever-brightening mood of the +successive movements, the tone of which is strengthened by the scheme +of key-relationship--based on an ascending series of major thirds, +_e.g._ + +[Music: C Minor, E major, A-flat major, C major.] + +[Footnote 258: The eloquence of the work is so integrally involved +with its orchestral dress that it should always be studied, if +possible, in the full score. For class-room work excellent editions +are available for two and four hands.] + +The work is somewhat uneven--never weak--but at times a bit labored; +as if the composer were consciously wrestling with great thoughts. +This, however, is nothing against it, because equally true of large +works in other fields of art, _e.g._, the Agamemnon of Aeschylus or +Wagner's Tetralogy. It cannot be understood, much less appreciated, +without close attention and earnest thought, for it presents the +struggles and aspirations of mankind and is not meant solely to +delight or entertain. When the hearer has made it his own it is a +priceless possession for all time. The Prelude to the first movement, +un poco sostenuto, is of impressive solemnity, developed from the +motto, and based on the almost persistent iteration of the pedal notes +C and G--the tonic and dominant. It proclaims that a serious meaning +is to be revealed, and this meaning is accentuated by the +orchestration which with its stratified grouping of melodic lines has +a grim strength characteristic of Brahms. + +[Music] + +The first movement proper, Allegro, in complete sonata-form, begins +with a _ff_ announcement of the impassioned, chromatic motto, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Note the cutting effect of the dissonant tones F-sharp and A-flat! +From this motto grows the melodic part of the first theme in two +balancing phrases, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Then follow some stormy measures of dissonant chords and warring +rhythms until the theme rages itself out, in measure 52. The +transition begins with some sharp staccato chords, as if summoning to +further attention. It gradually cools down through a series of +beautiful modulations and, in measure 84, the second theme--introduced +by calls on the horn and sung by the oboe--enters in the relative +major key of E-flat. This also is based on the ascending, chromatic +line of the _motto_; still further organic unity being gained by the +bass, which has the same melodic figure as the second phrase of the +first theme, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Much of the previous fierceness, however, has abated and the remainder +of the second theme is of a rare loveliness, with mysterious answering +calls between oboes, clarinets and horns. The _pp_ dominant ninth +chords at the beginning of the closing portion (measures 120-122) give +a positively shuddering effect and then the combat of clashing rhythms +is renewed. The development begins with a series of shifting +harmonies, at first _ff_ and then _pp_--a lull before the storm--as if +preparing the way for a still more terrific assault upon our emotions. +It is tempestuous throughout; based at first on material taken from +the preceding codetta and ending with an extended presentation of the +motto over an iterated pedal note on the dominant, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The fusion of the development with the recapitulation is skillfully +handled, and the motto is proclaimed, beginning at measure 298, in a +series of ascending strata, with overwhelming force. The third part, +with slight abridgment and necessary adjustment of key-relationship, +conforms exactly to the exposition. There is the same agitato closing +portion as before, and then the Coda proper, beginning at measure 421, +emphasizes with fiery accents the mood of storm and stress +characteristic of the movement as a whole. After the fury has +subsided, the dramatic motto asserts itself in the closing measures, +poco sostenuto; the problem is still unsolved and the last C major +chord is but a ray of light cast on troubled waters. + +The second movement, andante sostenuto--in three-part form--begins +with a tender melody expressing a mood of deep resignation and +religious hope. No sooner has it started, however, than there creeps +in the sinister motto, as if to remind us that life is undeniably +stern and grim, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +In measure 17 there enters a closing theme, sung by the oboe, of +ineffable beauty which is used in the third part as the climax of the +movement. It surely seems to come from another world and is one of the +most sublime melodies by Brahms or any one else. Its climax is +impressively united with the main theme in the bass, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The middle portion, beginning in measure 38, is a meditation--in +dialogue form--for solo oboe and clarinet, worked up to an eloquent +climax in the key of the relative minor, C-sharp. The third part, +beginning measure 66, with the addition of some lovely modulatory +changes, corresponds to part one; save that the melody is varied by +Brahms's favorite device of three notes to a beat in one voice against +two in another. Beginning in measure 90, the wondrous closing theme of +the first part is sung by a solo violin, reinforced by oboe and horn. +It is finally entrusted, in the home key, to the horn alone, above +which the solo violin soars in ecstacy, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Some diminuendo, descending passages lead to a reminiscent portion of +the first theme and then, in measure 116, the grim motto enters, but +this time without prevailing; for, in measures 122-124, it is finally +exorcised and the movement closes with the seraphic calm of a soft, +rich chord in E major, above which is heard a star-like note on the +solo violin. + +The third movement is an Allegretto; it being Brahms's custom in +each[259] of his symphonies to substitute a movement of this type in +place of the conventional Scherzo or Minuet. This movement clearly in +three-part form, is thrown in to furnish relief after the emotional +tension of the movement preceding. It has no obvious organic +connection with the other movements, but is just the right thing in +its surroundings, with a note of vitality which does much to brighten +the scene and to prepare the way for the Finale. The opening theme in +A-flat major is in two phrases of _five_ measures each--a favorite +rhythm with Brahms--given out by the clarinet over a pizzicato bass in +the 'cellos. The melodic formation is unusual in that the latter +phrase is an inversion of the first, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 259: The only slight exception is the third movement of the +Fourth Symphony which, being marked Allegro giocoso, partakes somewhat +of the nature of a Scherzo.] + +After some descending passages in thirds and sixths--one of the +characteristic[260] effects in Brahms's style--the theme is repeated +in the violins with richer scoring. The descending passage returns and +this time leads to the entrance of a subsidiary theme in F minor. In +measures 50-51 occurs one of those cases of melodic germination which +entitles Brahms to be called a genuine _creative_ artist. The melody +with its dashing, Hungarian zest sounds like something brand-new and +yet is logically derived from the main theme by diminution, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 260: "Those eternal sixths and thirds." Weingartner later +publicly recanted and became a whole-souled convert to Brahms. (See +_The Symphony since Beethoven_, latest edition.)] + +This is real poetic creation, it being the prime object of a poet to +create in music something out of apparent nothing. After these +vivacious developments the first part ends with a slight repetition +of the main theme. The middle part, beginning measure 71, in 6/8 time +and in the enharmonic key of B major (E-flat = D-sharp) is noteworthy +for its rhythmic swing, bold syncopations and contrasted accents; see +especially measures 97-107. At the beginning of the third part there +is an effective blending of the rhythm which has just prevailed with +the graceful lines of the first theme. The fabric is made up of +effective changes, modulatory and rhythmic, in the material from the +first part. At the Coda, piu tranquillo, there is a delightful +reminiscence of the rhythm of the middle portion carried out to the +very end by the double basses.[261] + +[Footnote 261: A similar effect may be found in the closing measures +of the first movement of Beethoven's Eighth Symphony.] + +The Finale is one of the most thrilling perorations in music; not a +perfunctory close, but a veritable Apotheosis of victorious +aspiration, giving an irresistible contrast to the first movement. +Whereas, before, there was nothing but conflict, now all is triumphant +joy. This movement is laid out on a vast scale, with a wealth of +material, including a long Prelude with a distinct theme of its own +and an extended Coda. The body of the movement is in abridged sonata +form, _i.e._, there is a complete Exposition with first, second and +closing themes, and the usual Recapitulation, but _no_ Development +proper. This lack is made good by considerable variation and expansion +in the first part of the Resume. The Prelude begins Adagio with some +strains which, like smouldering embers, remind us of the sinister +motto of the first movement--note the same dissonant tones A-flat and +F-sharp. The following measures are of indefinite nature, beginning +piano and pizzicato as if a great body were gathering headway slowly. +The pace gradually quickens and we are led through a series of +impetuous stringendo runs to a _ff_ chord which, accompanied by a _ff_ +roll on the kettle-drums, sounds like a clap of thunder and which, as +the reverberations die away, ushers in a most moving theme[262]--given +out forte and sempre passionato on the horn over a _pp_ muted tremolo +on the strings with a background of _pp_ trombones, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 262: There is a striking analogy between the intervals of +this theme and those of a well-known peal in a cathedral chime, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +In both the same elemental effect is produced by using the natural +tones of the harmonic series (see page 193).] + +This inspired passage[263] has been eloquently described by W.F. +Apthorp as follows: + +"Amid hushed, tremulous harmonies in the strings, the horn and +afterward the flute pour forth an utterly original melody, the +character of which ranges from passionate pleading to a sort of wild +exultation according to the instrument that plays it. The coloring is +enriched by the solemn tones of the trombones, which appear for the +first time in this movement. It is ticklish work trying to dive down +into a composer's brain, and surmise what special outside source his +inspiration may have had; but one cannot help feeling that this whole +wonderful episode may have been suggested to Brahms by the tones of +the Alpine horn, as it awakens the echoes from mountain after mountain +on some of the high passes in the Bernese Oberland. This is certainly +what the episode recalls to any one who has ever heard those poetic +tones and their echoes. A short, solemn, even ecclesiastical +interruption by the trombones and bassoons is of more thematic +importance. As the horn-tones gradually die away, and the cloud-like +harmonies in the strings sink lower and lower--like mist veiling the +landscape--an impressive pause ushers in the Allegro." + +[Footnote 263: See also a similar eulogy by Weingartner in his _The +Symphony since Beethoven_.] + +After the flute has repeated this theme there is an interpolation of +an important choral-like phrase (referred to above), _e.g._ + +[Music] + +for it is later used as the climax of the Finale--in fact, of the +whole work--and its tone of religious fervor, accentuated by the +scoring for trombones and bassoons, is a clear indication of the ideal +message which Brahms meant to convey. The body of the movement, +Allegro non troppo ma con brio, begins with a majestic, sweeping +theme[264] of great rhythmic vitality and elasticity announced by the +strings, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 264: There is a statement in many books that this is a +reminiscence of the theme in the Finale of the Ninth Symphony. How +such a legend started it is difficult to say; it must be due to what +the late W.F. Apthorp called "purblind criticism." For my part I see a +resemblance in only one measure--save that both melodies are in +quadruple rhythm--between the theme of Brahms and the following:-- + +[Music]] + +It is at once repeated with richer scoring and then some exciting +transitional passages lead, after a slight phrase taken from the chief +theme of the prelude, to the second theme, animato, in G major, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +This has some rhythmical expansion and then a quieter part, dolce e +piano, beginning measure 71. Some rushing _ff_ passages bring us, in +measure 107, to the brilliant closing theme with its staccato, triplet +rhythm. The Exposition ends in E minor, in measure 122, after a series +of forte, staccato chords. The Recapitulation begins at once after two +modulatory chords, and though sufficient stress is laid on the _first +theme_, there is so much development of previous material that it +serves for both the customary second and third parts. A good deal of +adverse criticism has been expended on this portion of the movement +and it is possible that Brahms's remarkable technique in handling his +material ran away with him. But the music is always striving toward +some goal, and even if it has to plough through desperate seas, there +is no weakness or faltering. This part of the work is not beautiful in +the popular sense of the term, but no one can fail to be impressed +with its character. A climax is finally reached, in measure 224, with +a fortissimo statement of the chief theme of the prelude, and then, +after this has cooled down, diminuendo e calando, the second theme +enters in the home key. The rest of the recapitulation corresponds +closely with the exposition. The Coda begins, in measure 306, with a +shadowy outline of modulatory chords, as if slumbering forces were +slowly awakening; and, becoming more crescendo and stringendo, reveals +its full glory at the Piu Allegro. This portion, based on quickened +phrases of the first theme, seems charged with superhuman energy, and +mounting higher and higher culminates in a majestic proclamation of +the choral-like motto of the prelude, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +On hearing this it always seems as if the heavens above us really +opened. The rest of the Coda is a scene of jubilation with ever more +life and light. The dissonant tones of F-sharp and A-flat try to lift +their heads but this time are crushed forever by the triumphant +fundamental chords of C major, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The movement, in keeping with its serious message, ends with a +prolonged and brilliant Plagal Cadence in which the double basses and +the trombone surge upward with elemental power. + + +SONATA FOR VIOLIN AND PIANOFORTE + +Of Brahms's three Sonatas for violin and pianoforte, respectively, in +D minor, A major and G major, that in A major has been selected to +give some idea of his chamber music, on account of the spontaneous +appeal of its melodies and because its performance is possible for +fairly well equipped executants. In many respects the D minor Sonata +is the greatest of the three, but it is a work exceedingly difficult +of execution and interpretation. The A major Sonata needs few +comments, as the music speaks for itself. The work is in three +movements, the first in complete sonata-form with the two customary +themes, each of distinct lyric charm and hence eminently suited to the +singing qualities of the violin; the second movement a fusion of the +two normal middle ones, and the Finale a Rondo, freely treated. The +first movement, Allegro amabile, begins with a suave theme, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +the first interval of which, a descending leap from the third to the +leading tone, always seems to make a distinct appeal.[265] After the +customary transition appears the second theme, announced by the +pianoforte in measure 50, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +showing Brahms's fondness for contrasted rhythms--three notes to a +beat in one hand against two in the other. After a repetition by the +violin there is a spirited closing theme in measure 75, of great +importance later. The Development, one of Brahms's best, manifests +real organic growth; there is nothing labored or perfunctory. It is +based on the first theme and the closing theme of the Exposition, +_e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 265: It is used at the beginning of three other well-known +melodies, _e.g._, the slow movement of Beethoven's _Ninth Symphony_, +in the middle part of Schumann's _Aufschwung_ and in the first phrase +of Wagner's _Preislied_.] + +The Reprise beginning in measure 158, shows the usual treatment. The +Coda, from measure 219, is long and, like codas of Beethoven, has +features of a second development. The movement ends with brilliant +arpeggios in the pianoforte against octaves and double stops in the +violin. In the second movement, Andante tranquillo, in F major, Brahms +fuses[266] together the moods usually associated with the slow +movement and the scherzo, playing one off against the other; the slow +theme appearing three times--at its final appearance with eloquent +modulations--and the rapid one twice, with contrast gained the second +time through pizzicato effects on the violin. The two themes are as +follows:-- + +[Music] + +[Music] + +[Footnote 266: This practice he has adopted in several other works and +it is also the structural feature in the slow movement of Cesar +Franck's D minor Symphony.] + +The short, dashing Coda is based on the vivace theme, with sonorous +chords on the violin, both pizzicato and arco. + +The Finale, Allegretto grazioso, is a convincing example of how such +a rigid form as the Older Rondo can be freshened up and revitalized by +the hand of a master, for the main theme, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +has such genuine melodic life that we always recur to it with pleasure +and yet at each appearance it is so deftly varied that no monotony is +felt. The two episodes afford stimulating contrasts and need no +comment. The main theme at its third appearance is in the subdominant +key, with effective rhythmic modifications. The movement is a +remarkable illustration of idiomatic style for each of the +instruments: the violin part, sustained and cantabile; the pianoforte +part, broken up and of remarkable color and sonority. The last page of +the Coda, almost exclusively in double stops for the violin, brings a +rousing close to a masterpiece. + + +BALLADE IN G MINOR FOR PIANOFORTE + +(SEE SUPPLEMENT NO. 60) + +Although the most important factor in Brahms's pianoforte pieces is +Brahms himself, a careful examination of his works in this field shows +that his style is fashioned from an intelligent, and by no means +slavish assimilation of important features in the works of his great +predecessors. Thus we find the same melodic warmth as in Schubert, the +rhythmic vitality and massive harmony so prominent in Schumann and the +extended arpeggios and chords, the color and richness, peculiar to +Chopin. From among the numerous and beautiful compositions of Brahms +for solo pianoforte we have selected the Ballade in G minor because it +represents a somewhat unusual and hence seldom recognized side of his +genius--the specifically dramatic. When a composer calls his piece a +Ballade, as in the case of compositions so entitled by Chopin and +Liszt, we may assume that there is some dramatic or subjective meaning +behind the notes; and the hearer is at liberty to give play to his own +imagination and to receive the message as something more than music in +the ordinary abstract or absolute sense. From the inner evidence of +this Ballade of Brahms it seems to the writer[267] not too fanciful to +consider it a picture of a knight-errant in medieval times setting out +on his adventures. Observe the vigorous swing of the opening theme in +that five-measure rhythm so dear to Brahms. But in the middle portion, +in the romantic key of B major,[268] the woman appears--perhaps some +maiden imprisoned in a tower--and she sings to the knight a song of +such sweetness that he would fain forsake duty, battle, everything! +The contrast of opposing wills[269] is dramatically indicated by an +interpolation, after the maiden's first appeal, of the martial theme +of the knight, as if he felt he should be off instead of lingering, +enchanted by her song. Notwithstanding a still more impassioned +repetition of the song, the Knight is firm, tears himself away and +continues on his course; how great the wrench, being clearly indicated +by the unusual modulations in measures 72-76. The enchanting song, +however, still lingers with him and he dwells with fond regret upon +bygone scenes and dreams which were unattainable. In this piece is +seen Brahms's aristocratic distinction in the treatment of program +music. The subject is portrayed broadly--there are no petty +details--and the music itself, to anyone with a sensitive imagination, +tells the story clearly. Hence a detailed poetic interpretation is out +of place, since only to the suggester would it have meaning. + +[Footnote 267: It is to be understood that this is a purely personal +interpretation and if any one wishes to consider the piece merely as +absolute music with a strong masculine theme in the minor, a lyric +melody in the major for the natural contrast, and a coda referring in +a general way to the first theme, there is no way to disprove the +contention. That Brahms, however, was not entirely averse to out and +out programmistic treatment is seen from his two pieces on specific +poetic texts, _i.e._, the first number in op. 10 on the _Scottish +Ballads of Edward_ and the _Lullaby_ in op. 117 on the Scottish +Folk-song _Sleep Soft, My Child_.] + +[Footnote 268: The same key that Wagner uses for the end of _Tristan +and Isolde_ and Cesar Franck for the gorgeous Finale of the _Prelude, +Chorale and Fugue_.] + +[Footnote 269: The subject is the same as the story of the Sirens in +the _Odyssey_ or of the _Lorelei_ in German Legend.] + +So many of Brahms's pianoforte compositions are of great beauty and +significance that, although space is lacking for further comment on +definite examples, we urge the music-lover to study the following: the +second Intermezzo[270] in B-flat minor of op. 117, perhaps the most +beautiful single piece Brahms has written--remarkable for its rhythmic +texture and for the equalization of both hands, which was one of his +chief contributions to pianoforte style; the second Intermezzo of op. +119, the middle part of which is significant for the extended arpeggio +grouping for the left hand (Brahms following Chopin's lead in this +respect); the sixth Intermezzo of op. 118, a superb piece for sonority +and color; the third Intermezzo in op. 119, (grazioso e giocoso) and +the B minor Capriccio op. 76--both in Brahms's happiest vein of +exuberant vitality; the sixth Intermezzo in op. 116, a beautiful +example, in its polyphonic texture, of modernized Schumann; and, above +all, the mighty Rhapsodies in E-flat major, op. 112 No. 4 and the one +in G minor op. 79--this latter, one of Brahms's most dramatic +conceptions, and an example, as well, of complete sonata-form used for +an independent composition. + +[Footnote 270: For further comments on the phraseology see _The Rhythm +of Modern Music_ by Abdy Williams, pp. 75-77. We may add that the +pieces called _Intermezzi_, are generally of a meditative, somber +nature; whereas the _Capriccios_ are more sprightly, even whimsical in +spirit.] + + +SONG--_Meine Liebe ist gruen wie der Fliederbusch_ + +(SEE SUPPLEMENT NO. 61) + +Whatever Brahms is or is not, he is universally recognized as an +inspired song-composer and those who do not know his songs are cut off +from one of the greatest joys music has to offer. As Huneker so well +says, "Although his topmost peaks are tremendously remote, and glitter +and gleam in an atmosphere almost too thin for dwellers of the plains, +in his songs he was as simple, as manly, as tender as Robert Burns." +In Brahms's songs we cannot say which is the most significant factor: +the words, the vocal part or the accompaniment; all go together to +make up a perfect whole. Brahms had discernment in the selection of +texts suited to inspire poetic creation. His melodies are always +appropriate to the spirit of the words, yet truly lyric and singable, +and the accompaniment catches and intensifies every subtle shade of +meaning. If any one factor is of special beauty, however, it is the +instrumental part; for here Brahms's great genius in pianoforte style +came to the fore and in utilizing every resource of the instrument to +glorify the spirit of the text, he is a worthy successor of Schubert, +Schumann and Franz. Note how in this song the passionate glow of the +poem is reflected in the gorgeous modulations and sonority of the +pianoforte part. Especially remarkable is the interlude between the +stanzas, with its wealth of dissonances and waves of flashing color. +After this surely no one can say that Brahms had no feeling for +sensuous effect, at any rate on the pianoforte. Other famous songs of +Brahms which should be familiar to the student are the following: +_Wie Melodien zieht es mir_, _Feldeinsamkeit_, _Minnelied_, _Von +ewiger Liebe_, _Immer leiser wird mein Schlummer_, _Sapphische Ode_, +_Vergebliches Staendchen_. An excellent essay on Brahms as a song +composer will be found in the preface to the _Forty Songs of Brahms_ +in the Musician's Library (The Oliver Ditson Company). + +The foregoing illustrations have made clear, we trust, the inspiration +and power of Brahms's varied message. His music, therefore, must be +approached reverently, sympathetically and with an earnest desire for +a better understanding, for Brahms is veritably a giant. + + + + +CHAPTER XVII + +CESAR FRANCK + + +Before an appreciation of the significant works and influence of Cesar +Franck can be gained, it is necessary to have a broad historical +perspective of what had been the trend and the limitations of French +music prior to his career. Since the time of Couperin and Rameau, +musical composition in France had been devoted almost exclusively to +opera--with its two types of grand opera and opera-comique--and in +this field there had been some French musicians of real, though +possibly rather slight, genius: Philidor, Mehul, Gretry, Boieldieu, +Herold and Auber. One searches in vain through French literature for +great symphonies, string-quartets, violin sonatas or pianoforte +compositions of significance. Berlioz, as we have seen, had composed a +number of orchestral works; but, from the standpoint of absolute +music, even these rather beg the question as they are so extremely +programmistic, dramatic or even theatric. This one-sided development +of French music was chiefly caused by the people's innate fondness for +the drama, and by the national genius for acting, mimicry and dancing. + +Prior to the advent of Franck there were two important pioneers in the +broadening tendency which finally became noticeable, Saint-Saens and +Lalo. For great assimilative power, for versatility, for clarity of +expression and a finish and finesse peculiarly French, Camille +Saint-Saens (1835-still living) is certainly one of the most +remarkable musicians of the nineteenth century. His works are +numerous, always "well-made" and, though lacking in emotional depth, +by no means without charm and grace. They comprise ensemble works: +trios, etc., several concertos and symphonies and four symphonic +poems. Of these, the third concerto for pianoforte, with its Bach-like +introduction, the third violin concerto, the two symphonic poems, _Le +Rouet d'Omphale_ and _Phaeton_ and, in particular, the third symphony +in C minor, still hold their own. Whatever Saint-Saens has to say is +well said; and if the French have modified their previous opinion that +the only vehicle for musical expression was the opera, it is largely +through the influence of his compositions. This C minor symphony, +first performed in London in 1886, shares with Lalo's symphony in G +minor (1887) the claim to be, in all French literature, the first +instrumental work of large scope free from programmistic tendencies. +Saint-Saens[271] and Lalo fairly popularized the Sonata form and their +works are worthy of great respect; since, through them, the public +became accustomed to symphonic style and was prepared for the +subsequent greater works of Franck, d'Indy and Chausson. Although not +so versatile as Saint-Saens nor so varied in output, Eduard Lalo +(1823-1892) should decidedly not be overlooked. He was of Spanish +origin and this racial strain is noticeable in the vivacity of his +rhythm, in the piquant individuality of his melodies and in his +brilliant and picturesque orchestration. His characteristic work is +represented by a series of Concertos and Rhapsodies in which he +employs Spanish, Russian and Norwegian themes. He did not escape the +French predilection for operatic fame and his best work is probably +the well-known opera _Le Roi d'Ys_, from which the dramatic overture +is often played separately. His G minor symphony, however, will always +be considered an important landmark in the development of French +instrumental music.[272] + +[Footnote 271: For further comments on the style and influence of +Saint-Saens see the essay Mason's _From Grieg to Brahms_; the article +by Professor E.B. Hill in the third volume of the _Art of Music_; and, +for some pungent and witty remarks, the Program Book of the Boston +Symphony Orchestra (edited by Philip Hale) for Nov. 22, 1918.] + +[Footnote 272: For a comprehensive and discriminating account of his +style see the Boston Symphony Orchestra Program Book, for January 17, +1919.] + +Cesar Franck (1822-1890) was a composer of such innate spirituality +that to analyze and classify him in a formal manner seems well-nigh +irreverent. His music once heard is never forgotten, and when +thoroughly known is loved for all time. Nor is an elaborate +biographical account necessary; for Franck, more than any other modern +composer, has been fortunate in that his life and works have been +sympathetically presented to the world by a distinguished +contemporary, his most famous pupil d'Indy--himself a gifted composer +and a man of rare literary powers. His biography of Cesar Franck (in +French and in English) should certainly be read by all who would keep +abreast of modern tendencies. Franck's message, however, is so +remarkable and his style so individual, that a few definite comments +may be made concerning the structural features of his work and the +essential attributes, thereby expressed, of his inspiring personality. +Franck was a Belgian born at Liege--one of that long line of musicians +who, though born elsewhere, have become thoroughly identified with +French thought and standards; and there is much in his music which +finds a parallel in the literary qualities of another Belgian artist, +Maeterlinck, for in both is that same haunting indefiniteness, that +same symbolic aspiration. Nothing in Franck is rigid, square-toed; his +music is suggestive of a mystic idealism, the full expression of +which, from its very nature is unattainable. Franck's outward life was +simple, without excitement or diversion of any kind. When he was not +giving lessons or composing, he was active in the service of the Roman +Catholic Church, in which he was a devout believer. For a number of +years he was organist at Sainte Clotilde, and his style thereby was +influenced strongly. A distinct note of religious exaltation runs +through much of his music; for Franck was a fine character, of +spotless purity of life and of such generosity and elevation of soul +that his pupils looked upon him as a real father and always called him +"Pater Seraphicus." He was universally acknowledged to be the greatest +improviser on the organ since Bach himself. Even Liszt, who heard him +in 1866, left the church, lost in amazement; evoking the name of the +great Sebastian as the only possible comparison. + +Franck's services to the development of music are twofold: 1st, as an +inspired composer of varied works, which are more and more becoming +understood and loved; 2d, as a truly great teacher, among his notable +pupils being d'Indy, Chausson, Duparc, Ropartz, and the gifted but +short-lived Lekeu. In Franck's music, fully as remarkable as the +content--the worthy expression of his poetic nature--is its organic +structure. He was the first composer of the French School to use +adequately the great forms of symphonic and chamber music which had +been worked out hitherto by the Germans: Bach, Haydn, Mozart, +Beethoven, etc. If during the last thirty years, composers of the +modern French School have put forth a number of instrumental works of +large dimensions (chamber music, symphonies, symphonic poems and +pianoforte sonatas), it is to Franck more than to any other man, by +reason of his own achievements in these fields and his stimulating +influence on others, that this significant fact is due. A striking +feature of Franck's music is the individual harmonic scheme, +fascinating because so elusive. He was a daring innovator in +modulations and in chromatic effect; and has, perhaps, added more +genuinely new words to our vocabulary than any one since Wagner. The +basis of Franck's harmony is the novel use of the so-called augmented +harmonies which, in their derivation, are chromatically altered +chords. These are resolved by Franck in a manner remarkably free, and +are often submitted to still further chromatic change. In revealing +new possibilities he has, in fact, done for these chords what Wagner +did for the chord of the ninth. Any page of Franck's music will +exemplify this statement, and as an illustration we have cited, in the +Supplement, the first part of the Prelude in E major. A life-long +student of Bach and Beethoven, Franck believed--as a cardinal +principle--that great ideas were not enough; they must be welded +together with inexorable logic. And so his chief glory as a musical +architect is the free use he makes of such organic forms as the Canon, +the Fugue and the Varied Air. Franck was likewise a pioneer in +establishing in a sonata or symphony a new conception as to the +relationship of the movements. This he effected by the use of what may +be called "generative motives" which, announced in the first movement +of a work, are found with organic growth, modulatory and rhythmic, in +all the succeeding portions. Such a method of gaining unity had been +hinted at by Beethoven in his Fifth Symphony, was further developed by +Schumann and Liszt and, since the example of Franck, has become a +recognized principle in all large cyclic works. The following estimate +of his music by F. Baldensperger is worthy of citation. "The +contemplative character of Franck's music which explains his entire +technique is rare at the epoch in which his life was cast, an epoch of +realism, generally inspired by a taste for the picturesque and the +dramatic. Posterity will place Cesar Franck in a niche similar to that +of Puvis de Chavannes, whose inspiration, indifferent to all worldly +solicitations, flowed willingly, like that of Franck, into the paths +of reverie, and pursued its way like a beautiful river of quiet +waters, undisturbed by waves or rapids, and reflecting the eternal +calm of the sky." + +As representative works[273] we have chosen, for analytical comments +the _D minor Symphony_ (Franck's only work in this field), the +_Sonata_ for violin and pianoforte and the _Symphonic Variations_ for +pianoforte and orchestra. Franck has also composed a very beautiful +Quintet for strings and pianoforte--considered by some the most +sublime chamber work of recent times; a String Quartet, notable for +its interrelationship of themes and movements; two elaborate +compositions for pianoforte solo, the _Prelude, Chorale and Fugue_ +(the fugue showing a masterly combination of strict fugal style and +free form) and the _Prelude, Aria and Finale_; a wealth of organ +works--the three _Chorales_ being of special beauty--and several +Symphonic Poems of lesser importance. His purely vocal works, +oratorios and church music lie outside the province of this book. + +[Footnote 273: On account of the length of these works it is +impossible to include any of them in the Supplement.] + +The Symphony[274] in D minor is in three movements; the first in +complete and elaborate sonata-form, the second a fusion of the two +customary middle movements, and the Finale (though fundamentally on a +sonata-form basis) an organic summing-up of the chief themes of the +entire work. The first movement begins, Lento, with the main theme +proper (thesis) the motive[275] of which is the foundation of the +whole work, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 274: Study, if possible, the orchestral score. For +class-room work there is an excellent four-hand arrangement by the +composer, and one for two hands by Ernest Alder.] + +[Footnote 275: This terse phrase is identical with motives from +several other works, _e.g._, the beginning of Liszt's _Les Preludes_, +the motive "Muss es sein?" in Beethoven's quartet, opus 135, and the +Fate motive in Wagner's _Valkyrie_.] + +The phraseology of the theme is noticeable for its flexibility; since +the first phrase is expanded to five measures and the second phrase +(antithesis), with a descending motive, to seven, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The harmony of this second phrase illustrates a striking feature in +Franck's style, namely the fact that his resolutions seldom come out +as expected but, instead, drift imperceptibly into other channels. In +measure 13 there begins a long series of modulatory developments of +the main theme--of a preludial nature--but _not_ a mere prelude in the +ordinary sense. That this entire opening portion is the _main body_ +of the work is seen by a comparison with what takes place at the +beginning of the recapitulation. In measure 29, allegro non troppo, we +begin with a presentation of the motive in the usual first-movement +mood. The answering phrase, antithesis, is now quite different; and, +in measure 48, is developed--with some new contrapuntal voices--to a +half cadence in F minor. This whole portion, both the Lento and the +Allegro, is now repeated almost literally (the one slight change being +in measures 56-57) in this new key, a minor third higher than the +original. To begin a first movement in this way, _i.e._, with such a +strong contrast of moods is very novel and striking, but as Franck was +a devoted student of Beethoven, it would seem that, by presenting his +theme in different strata, he was simply expanding the practise[276] +of that master in order to impress his message upon the listener's +memory. The repetition of the Allegro part now leads through some rich +modulations to the entrance of the second theme, in measure 99. This +lovely melody, characteristic of Franck's tenderness, + +[Music] + +is noteworthy for the imitations between the violins and the 'cellos +and basses. It shows, furthermore, that peculiar quality in Franck's +style which comes from his elusive modulations. In measures 109-110 we +are at a loss to tell just what direction the music will take when +almost miraculously, in measure 111, we find ourselves in D-flat +major--in which key the whole theme is now repeated. Some stimulating +modulations bring us, in measure 129, to a most energetic and aspiring +melody, considered by some another part of the second theme, but which +certainly has the note of a closing theme and also the structural +position of a closing theme, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 276: See for example the opening measures of the _Waldstein_ +and of the _Appassionata_ Sonata.] + +It is developed with great brilliancy through a series of mediant +modulations, in which the originality of Franck's harmonic scheme is +very apparent. The exposition ends with some dreamy, pianissimo +reminiscences of the closing theme in the mediant keys of F, D and B +major, delicately scored for the wood-wind instruments and horns. The +development begins, in measure 191, with the motive of the closing +theme which, combined with other phrases from the exposition, is used +persistently in the bass for a number of measures. The material is +developed climactically until, in measure 229, we find an impressive +treatment of the second descending phrase of the first theme--originally +in augmentation and later in diminution, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +and + +[Music] + +The rest of the development is clearly derivable from material already +presented. After a final _ff_ climax there begins, in measure 287, a +series of beautiful entries _pp_ of the closing theme for the +clarinet, oboe and flute. This is the spot in a sonata-form movement +where appears the hand of the master; for the excitement of the free +fantasy must cool down without entirely dying out, and there must also +be a fresh crescendo of energy for the restatement of themes in the +part following. Franck handles the situation with convincing skill; +and some climactic measures, in which the main theme hints at the +return, lead us, in measure 333, to the recapitulation. This is one of +the most powerful and eloquent parts of the movement, for the whole +first theme is presented canonically--the announcement in the +trombones, tuba and basses being answered, a half measure later, by +trumpets and cornets. The rest of the recapitulation, with necessary +modulations and slight expansion, corresponds closely to the first +portion. The coda, beginning after the same echo-effects heard at the +close of the exposition, is founded on one of the counterpoints of the +first subject, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Gathering headway it leads to an imposing assertion _fff_, in canon +form, of the main motto which concludes, with a widely spaced chord, +in the brilliant[277] orchestral key of D major. + +[Footnote 277: Brilliant by reason of the fact that the four principal +tones in D major, D, A, G, E are _open_ strings on the violin.] + +The second movement begins with a series of subdued, pizzicato chords +(for strings and harp) which establish the mood and later furnish the +harmonic background for the main theme. This haunting melody, +announced--in measure 16--by the English horn and afterwards +strengthened by the clarinet and flute, is clearly derived from the +motto of the first movement, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +and is a notable example of the free phraseology and long sweep +peculiar to Franck. Although extending 32 measures it never loses its +continuity, for every measure grows inevitably from what has preceded. +It begins with two identical eight-measure phrases; the second of +which, with a different harmonic ending, is varied by a cantabile +counter theme in the violas--causing thereby, with the upper voice, +some delightful dissonant effects. The last eight-measure phrase, also +varied by a counterpoint in the 'cellos, ends with a characteristic, +Franckian modulation; keeping us in suspense until the last moment, +and then debouching unexpectedly into B-flat major. In this key there +follows a long-breathed, cantabile melody--at first for strings alone, +but scored with increasing richness. It abounds in modulatory changes +and expresses, throughout, the note of mystical exaltation so +prominent in Franck's nature. It ends in measures 81-86 with an +eloquent cadence, largamente and pianissimo, in B-flat major and is +followed by a partial restatement of the first theme; thus giving, to +this portion of the movement, a feeling of three-part form. Then, +after some preliminary phrases, begins the piquant theme in G minor, +in triplet rhythm, which takes the place of the conventional Scherzo, +_e.g._, + +[Music] + +for, as we have stated, the structural feature of this movement is the +fusion of the two customary middle movements. This theme, mostly _pp_ +(con sordini and vibrato)--daintily scored for strings and light +wood-wind chords--closes, in measures 131-134, with a cadence in G +minor. The following portion, beginning in E-flat major, but often +modulating--its graceful theme sung by the clarinets, dolce +espressivo, answered by flutes and oboes--_e.g._, + +[Music] + +evidently takes the place of a trio and is one of the most poetic +parts of the movement. After some effective development there is a +return, in measure 175, to the G minor scherzo-theme in the strings; +soon joined, in measure 183, by the slow theme on the English +horn--the structural union of the two moods being thus established, +_e.g._ + +[Music] + +The rest of the movement is a free but perfectly organic improvisation +on the chief melodies already presented. It is richly scored, with +dialogue effects between the several orchestral choirs; especially +beautiful are the two passages in B major, poco piu lento, scored _pp_ +for the complete wood-wind group and horns. The closing measures have +lovely echoes between wood-wind and strings, and the final cadence is +one of the most magical in all Franck; holding us off to the very last +from our goal and finally reaching it in a chord of unforgettable +peace and satisfaction, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The Finale in D major, allegro non troppo, is a remarkable example in +modern literature of that tendency, growing since Beethoven, not to +treat the last movement as an unrelated independent portion but, +instead, as an organic summing up of all the leading themes. This +cyclic use of themes--transferring them from one movement to +another--is one of Franck's important contributions to musical +architecture. The movement has two themes of its own, _e.g._ + +[Music: 1st theme] + +[Music: 2d theme] + +and at first proceeds along regular sonata-form lines, _i.e._, with an +exposition, development and recapitulation. After vigorous summons to +attention the first theme is given out by the 'cellos and bassoons. It +is expanded at some length, repeated _ff_ by the full orchestra, and +then after bold modulations leads, in measure 72, to the second theme +in B major, happily called by Ropartz the "theme of triumph."[278] +After a quieter portion of sombre tone in B minor we reach, in measure +124, an interpolation of the slow movement theme, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +sung by the English horn against a triplet accompaniment in the +strings; the fundamental beat--the time now changed from 2/2 to +3/4--preserving the same value. Now we begin to foresee that this +theme is to be the climax of the whole work. In measure 140 the +development proper is resumed; based, at first, on some modulatory and +imitative treatment of the first theme and followed by two _ff_ +sostenuto announcements of the jubilant second theme. After these have +subsided there are a number of measures (piu lento) of a shadowy +outline, developed from preceding melodic phrases. The pace gradually +quickens, the volume of sound increases and we are brought, through a +series of pungent dissonances and stimulating syncopations, to a +brilliant assertion of the first theme in D major. This again waxes +more and more eloquent until it bursts into a truly apocalyptic +proclamation of the slow movement theme for full orchestra which, +closing in D major, is the real climax of the movement and indeed of +the work. Franck, however, still wishes to impress upon us some of his +other thoughts--they are really too lovely not to be heard once +more--and so, after an intermediary passage consisting entirely of +successive ninth chords,[279] there is a reminiscence of the whole +closing theme of the first movement now for low strings alone--the +violins playing on the G string--later for the wood-wind and finally +echoed by the high strings _ppp_. As this fades away we reach one of +the most inspired passages of the whole work--in its mood of +mysterious suggestion truly indescribable. Over a slow elemental kind +of _basso ostinato_ there appear first the dramatic motto and then +other portions of preceding themes, as if struggling to come to the +light. A long exciting crescendo leads to a complete statement of the +main theme of the Finale, with a canonic treatment of which the work +ends, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 278: The scoring of this theme for trumpets, cornets and +trombones has been severely criticized and it is true that the cornet +is an instrument to be employed and played with discretion. The +writer, however, has heard performances of this work in which the +cornets seemed to give just that ringing note evidently desired by +Franck.] + +[Footnote 279: The harmony of this passage is most characteristic of +Franck and should be carefully studied.] + +That both the first and last movements end with canons is indeed +noteworthy; Franck thus clearly showing his belief that in no other +way than by polyphonic imitation could such intensity of utterance be +gained. + + +SONATA FOR VIOLIN AND PIANOFORTE IN A MAJOR + +This Sonata ranks with those of Brahms as being among the great works +in its class. Some of its lovers, in fact, would risk an unqualified +superlative and call it the greatest. It certainly is remarkable for +its inspired themes, its bold harmonies, its free and yet organic +structure and for that sublime fervor which was the basis of Franck's +genius. It is, in two respects, at least, a highly original work: in +the unusual moods of the several movements, and in the relationship +between the two instruments. For although it is a violin sonata, the +emphasis in many respects is laid on the pianoforte part which +requires great virtuoso power of performance,--the violin, at times, +having the nature more of an obligato. There are four movements, the +first in abridged sonata form, _i.e._, there is no development; the +second in complete and elaborate sonata form; the third, a kind of +free rhapsody, supplying an intermezzo between the third and fourth +movements and organically connected with the Finale. This, in free +rondo-form, with a main theme of its own treated canonically, sums up +the chief themes which have preceded. The work exemplifies Franck's +practise of generative themes; for d'Indy claims[280] that the whole +structure is based on three motives, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +the rising and falling inflexion of which he typifies by what is +called a "torculus" ([torculus symbol])! Whether such minute analysis +is necessary for the listener may be open to question; but it is true +that in hearing the work one is struck by the homogeneity of the +material. The first movement is an impassioned kind of revery--in a +mood more often associated with the slow movement, in character +somewhat like the beginning of Beethoven's C-sharp minor Sonata. After +some preludial ninth chords the dreamy first theme is given out, molto +dolce, by the violin, supported by rich harmonies on the pianoforte, +the use of the augmented chords being prominent, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 280: See his _Course in Composition_, book II, pp. 423-426.] + +Some natural expansion and development lead, in measure 31, to the +broad and vigorous second theme, sempre forte e largamente, announced +by the pianoforte, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +This ends in F-sharp minor and is at once followed by a closing +portion, _i.e._, a repetition of the second theme with an elaborate +arpeggio accompaniment and some fragmentary phrases of the first theme +on the violin. Its last measures[281] are striking for the bold use of +augmented chords and for the wide spacing which gives an organ-like +sonority. The recapitulation, beginning in measure 63 with still +richer harmonization, is almost identical with the exposition; the +second theme appearing logically in the home key. The closing measures +of the coda, which starts in measure 97, illustrate Franck's genius in +the chromatic alteration of chords. + +[Footnote 281: Note the correspondence between these measures in the +first part and the measures just before the end in the second part.] + +The second movement, in a structural sense the most normal of the +four, speaks for itself. It is stormy and dramatic, with a number of +passages marked passionato and molto fuoco, and presents a rather +unusual side of Franck's quiet nature. The two themes are strong and +well contrasted: the first for the pianoforte, the second for the +violin, _e.g._ + +[Music: 1st theme] + +[Music: 2d theme] + +The development begins at the quasi lento, measure 80, with the second +(_b_) of the generative motives which is to play an important role in +the Fantasia and the Finale. It is rather broken up into sections, but +holds the interest through its unflagging rhythmic vigor and daring +dissonances. Franck's contrapuntal skill is shown here in the closing +measures (130-134) where a phrase from the second theme on the violin, +dolcissimo espressivo, is united with a phrase of the first theme on +the pianoforte, hinting at the return. The recapitulation, beginning +in measure 138, is perfectly normal and leads to a coda which, +becoming more and more animated, ends with brilliant bravura effects +for each instrument. + +The third movement, entitled _Recitative-Fantasia_, is notable for its +long declamations for the violin alone, and for its introduction of a +theme from the preceding movement and of one to be repeated in the +Finale. Thus the organic relationship between the various movements is +shown and is still further emphasized in the Finale. The mood is often +very impassioned (once _fff_) and dramatic, with several passages +specifically marked. This music alone, which sounds like nothing +before or since, would stamp Franck as an absolutely original genius. +In measure 53 appears a long pianissimo meditation by the violin on a +phrase--the second generative motive (_b_)--from the preceding +movement, supported by beautifully spaced arpeggio chords on the +pianoforte, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +In measure 71 occurs the first appearance of the bold theme which is +to be twice used for episodes in the Finale, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The closing cadence[282] of the movement, one of the most original and +truly beautiful in all literature as it seems to the writer, furnishes +a marvellous contrast to the stormy measures immediately preceding. + +[Footnote 282: Already cited on page 57, Chapter IV.] + +The Finale is perhaps the most spontaneous canon in existence, an +imitative dialogue between the two instruments; this form (which is +often rigid and mechanical) being used so easily that it seems as if +each instrument were naturally commenting upon the message of the +other. Observe also the sonorous background provided for the violin +melody by the widely spaced chords on the pianoforte, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The first episode, beginning in F-sharp minor at measure 38, is based +on the third generative phrase (_c_) brought over from the Fantasia +and embroidered by running passages (delicato) on the violin. This +leads to a return of the canonic first theme which, with an +interchange of statement and answer and with free modulations, is +developed to a brilliant climax--the canon still persisting--in the +dominant key of E major. Some transitional modulations, in which the +excitement cools down, bring us to the second episode, in B-flat +minor. This at first develops the phrase (_b_) from the middle part of +the second movement, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +and later, also in the bass, a phrase from the main theme, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +It is soon followed by a bold entrance of the dramatic theme from the +Fantasia which, twice presented--the second time grandioso--leads to a +thrilling cadence in C major. The third and last refrain is a complete +restatement of the original canon and closes in A major with a still +more brilliant imitative treatment of the passage formerly in the +dominant. The last measures--with the high trill on the violin and +cutting dissonances on the pianoforte--are far too exciting for mere +verbal description. + + +SYMPHONIC VARIATIONS FOR PIANOFORTE AND ORCHESTRA + +This is one of Franck's most significant works, containing all his +individual characteristics: melodic intensity, novel chromatic harmony +and freedom of form combined with coherence. Franck always claimed +that the variation form, rightly treated, was a perfect medium for +free, imaginative expression; surely this work is a manifestation of +his belief. A careful study will justify the statement that his style +is founded on that of Bach and Beethoven; for the naturalness of these +melodic variations can be compared only with the _Passacaglia in C +minor_, and the general structure of the work finds its prototype in +the Finale of the _Heroic Symphony_. It is a set of free variations, +or rather organic transformations of two themes; the first sombre, +entirely in the minor, the second brighter, with some passing emphasis +on the major. The variations are not numbered and there are no rigid +stops; though, of course, when objective points are reached, there is +natural punctuation. The two themes, as follows--a striking example of +Franck's peculiar harmonic scheme--should be carefully studied, _e.g._ + +[Music: 1st theme] + +[Music: 2d theme] + +The work opens with a series of restless dotted notes for the strings +_ff_ which diminish and retard to an entrance of the first theme, piu +lento, for the pianoforte; the two phrases of which are interrupted by +a passage, somewhat modified, from the introduction. Some preludial +measures, expanding the material presented, bring us at B[283] to a +premonitory statement of the second theme _pp_ (in wood-wind and +pizzicato strings) over a muffled roll of the kettle-drums on C-sharp, +_e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 283: The indication by letters is the same in the full score +as in the version for two pianofortes.] + +Then follows a long rhapsodic presentation of the first theme for +pianoforte solo--the melody in octaves and the accompaniment in the +widest arpeggios possible. This passage is one of great sonority and +reveals clearly the influence of the organ upon Franck's style. Some +further measures of general development, containing at E a +reminiscence of the first theme, bring us (after an elaborate +half-cadence on the dominant of F-sharp minor) to the entrance of the +second theme. Now that all the melodic material has been presented, +Franck allows it to grow and blossom. In the first variation at F we +have phrases of the second theme broken up into a dialogue between +strings, wood-wind and pianoforte; and in the second at G the violas +and 'cellos sing the whole second theme accompanied by some ingenious +figuration on the pianoforte. This is followed at H by a brilliant +amplification for the solo instrument, lightly accompanied on the +orchestra, of phrases already heard and leads at I to a fortissimo +orchestral tutti in D major--the next variation--which proclaims a +portion of the second theme. This is developed with great power on +both instruments and is combined, nine measures after J, with a +variant of the first theme. At K there is a bold treatment of the +second theme (sostenuto) for oboes and clarinets against rushing +octaves on the pianoforte. + +At L we have some further development of the second theme, the melody +being in the strings with a background of broken triplet chords on the +pianoforte. We now reach at M--molto piu lento--the most poetic +variation of the work. All the 'cellos, dolce e sostenuto, sing the +second theme in the rich key of F-sharp major, the closing phrases +answered by the wood-wind; while the pianoforte supports them with +coloristic, arabesque-like broken chords containing a melodic pattern +of their own. At N the 'cellos continue with phrases from the first +theme, the accompaniment being in extended arpeggios against a +background of sustained strings (_ppp_ con sordino). A climax is +gradually reached which ends, smorzando, with a descending chromatic +run on the pianoforte, followed by a long trill on C-sharp which +ushers in the closing portion of the work. The structure, as a whole, +is divided into three main portions: the first preludial, the second +sombre and often meditative--largely in the minor--the third entirely +in the major and of extraordinary brilliance and vivacity. At the +Allegro non troppo after the trill, we find a variant of the first +theme for the 'cellos and basses in F-sharp major, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +accompanied by broken chords on the pianoforte and wood-wind. This is +followed at P by a free treatment for pianoforte, con fuoco, of the +first theme which develops at Q into a most pianistic presentation (in +the upper register of the instrument) of the phrase just announced by +the 'cellos. In the fifth measure after R the basses begin, pizzicato +but forte, a modified statement of the second theme, accompanied by a +new counter melody on the pianoforte, dolce ma marcato, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +This leads into a brilliant climax for orchestra alone based on the +first theme which, at the very end, modulates to E-flat major. Then +follows an episodical portion of unusual beauty--a long, dreamy +passage, dolce rubato, for solo pianoforte, in which the first theme +is merely hinted at in shadowy outlines, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +Abounding in fascinating modulations and coloristic effects it shows +Franck's genius equally for real melodic germination with an avoidance +of all perfunctory manipulation of his material. This leads, four +measures after T, to an entrance _pp_ in the wood-wind, of a variant +of the first theme. Due to the effect of contrasted accents the +passage is most exciting--two rhythms being treated at once. A climax +for full orchestra brings us at V to a repetition of the former +pianoforte presentation of the first theme, followed as before, at W +by the counter-melody against the second theme, forte, in the basses. +The first theme, now in complete control, is here proclaimed most +eloquently in antiphonal form between the full orchestra and +pianoforte, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The work ends with a rapid iteration, molto crescendo, of the first +motive--in diminution. Now that we have reviewed the entire +composition, there is one feature worthy of special emphasis. The +structure as a whole (as we have stated) is clearly divided into three +main parts; but when we examine the third part by itself, we find that +it follows the lines of the sonata-form. For there is a first portion, +with a main theme in F-sharp major, and a second theme--the new +melody--in D major; the passage for pianoforte in E-flats major stands +for the development, and the movement concludes with a distinct third +portion, both first and second theme being in the home key. Thus the +structure represents a carefully planned union of the variation form +and the sonata-form which were special favorites of Franck. The work, +which, after earnest study, will surely be enjoyed and loved, ranks +with the _Istar Symphonic Variations_ by d'Indy and the two sets on +themes from Paganini by Brahms as the acme of what the variation form +may indeed be when treated by a master. + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII + +THE MODERN FRENCH SCHOOL--D'INDY AND DEBUSSY + + +Not only as the most distinguished of Cesar Franck's pupils, but by +reason of his undoubted musicianship and marked versatility--his works +being in well nigh every form--Vincent d'Indy (1851-still living) is +rightly considered to be the most representative composer of his +branch of the modern French school.[284] Whether history will accord +to him the rank of an inspired genius it is as yet too early to +decide; but for the sincerity and nobility of his ideas, for his +finished workmanship and the influence he has exerted, through his +many-sided personality, in elevating public taste and in the education +of young musicians, he is worthy of our gratitude. D'Indy is a +patriotic Frenchman believing profoundly that French music has an +important _role_ to bear; who has incarnated this belief in a series +of works of such distinction that, if not unqualifiedly loved, they +at least compel recognition. If he swings a bit too far in his +insistence upon the exclusive glories of French genius, let us +remember that the modern Germans[285] have been just as one-sided from +their point of view--and with even less tangible proof of attainment. +For it seems incontestable that, since the era of Wagner and Brahms, +the modern French and Russian Schools have contributed to the +development of music more than all the other nations combined. It is +for us in America who, free from national prejudice, can stand off and +take an impartial view, to appreciate the good points in _all_ +schools. A detailed account of d'Indy's life and works will not be +necessary, for the subject has been admirably and comprehensively +treated by D.G. Mason in his set of _Essays on Contemporary Composers_ +and in the article by E.B. Hill in the _Art of Music_, Vol. 3. + +[Footnote 284: This school may be said to contain two groups: one, the +pupils of Cesar Franck--d'Indy, Chausson, Duparc, Rousseau, Augusta +Holmes and Ropartz, the chief feature in whose style is a +modernization of classic practice; a second consisting of Debussy, +Ravel, Dukas and Florent Schmitt, whose works manifest more extreme +individualistic tendencies.] + +[Footnote 285: The well-known German scholar and editor Max +Friedlaender, who visited this country in 1910, acknowledged--in a +conversation with the writer--that he had never even heard of +Chabrier!] + +D'Indy's compositions, as in the case of Franck, are not numerous, but +finely wrought and of distinct and varied individuality. His chief +instrumental[286] works comprise a _Wallenstein Trilogy_ (three +symphonic poems based on Schiller's drama) notable for descriptive +power and orchestral effect; a Symphony for orchestra and pianoforte +on a mountain air[287]--one of his best works, because the folk-song +basis furnishes a melodic warmth which elsewhere is sometimes lacking; +a set of Symphonic Variations on the Assyrian legend of Istar; a +remarkable Sonata for violin and pianoforte; a String-Quartet, all the +movements of which are based on a motto of four notes, and lastly the +Symphony in B-flat major--considered his masterpiece--in which the +same process of development from generative motives is followed as in +Cesar Franck. All these works contain certain salient characteristics +proceeding directly from d'Indy's imagination and intellect. There is +always an ideal and noble purpose, a stoutly knit musical fabric and +melodies--d'Indy's own melodies, sincerely felt and beautifully +presented. Whether they have abounding power to move the heart of the +listener is, indeed, the point at issue. Since d'Indy is on record as +saying, "There is in art, truly, nothing but the heart that can +produce beauty," it is evident that he believes in the emotional +element in music. That there is a difference of opinion however, as to +what makes emotional power is shown by his estimate of Brahms (set +forth in his _Cours de Composition Musicale_, pp. 415-416) in the +statement that, though Brahms is a fine workman, his music lacks the +power to touch the heart (faire vibrer le coeur). There is no doubt +that, in any question of Brahms versus d'Indy, such has not been the +verdict of outside opinion. D'Indy is admired and respected, whereas +Brahms has won the love of those who know him; and the truth in the +saying, "Securus judicat orbis terrarum" is surely difficult to +contravene. D'Indy's melodies can always be minutely analysed[288] and +they justify the test; but we submit that the great melodies of the +world speak to us in more direct fashion. For there is, in his music, +a seriousness which at times becomes somewhat austere. He seems so +afraid of writing pretty tunes or ear-tickling music, that we often +miss a sensuous, emotional warmth. He hates the commonplace, +cultivating the ideal and religion of beauty. Bruneau, himself a noted +French critic and composer, says, "No one will deny his surprising +technique or his unsurpassed gifts as an orchestral writer, but we +might easily wish him more spontaneity and less dryness." We cannot, +however, miss the dignity and elevation of style found in d'Indy's +works or fail to be impressed by their wonderfully planned musical +architecture. His music demands study and familiarity and well repays +such effort. D'Indy's work, as a teacher, centres about the "Schola +Cantorum" so-called, in which several talented American students from +Harvard and other Universities have already worked. Here all schools +of composition are thoroughly studied, and the rigid and formal +methods of the Conservatoire abandoned. D'Indy believes that the +materials for the structure of modern music are to be found in the +Fugue of Bach, and in the cyclical Sonata Form and the free Air with +Variations of Beethoven--these forms, by reason of their inherent +logic and simplicity, allowing scope for infinite freedom of +treatment. D'Indy is also a thoroughly modern composer in that he is +an artist in words as well as in notes. His life of Cesar Franck is a +model of biographical style, and he has recently published a life of +Beethoven refreshingly different from the stock narratives. In fine, +d'Indy is a genius, in whom the intellectual aspects of the art, +rather than purely emotional appeal, are clearly in the ascendant. + +[Footnote 286: D'Indy's significant contributions to operatic and +choral literature, such as _Fervaal_, _L'etranger_, _Le Chant de la +Cloche_ and _La Legende de St. Christophe_, lie without our province.] + +[Footnote 287: From the Cevennes region whence d'Indy's family +originally came.] + +[Footnote 288: See the elaborate analysis by Mr. Mason in the essay +above referred to.] + +We shall now comment briefly on one, only, of d'Indy's compositions, +the Symphonic Poem, _Istar_, which is a set of variations[289] treated +in a manner as novel as it is convincing; the work beginning with +variations which gradually become less elaborate until finally only +the theme itself is heard in its simple beauty. This reversal of +customary treatment is sanctioned by the nature of the subject, and +the correspondence between dramatic logic and musical procedure is +admirably planned. The story of the work is that portion of the +Assyrian epic Izdubar which describes, to quote Apthorp's translation +of the French version, "how Istar, daughter of Sin, bent her steps +toward the immutable land, towards the abode of the dead, towards the +seven-gated abode where He entered, toward the abode whence there is +no return." Then follows a description of the raiment and the jewels +of which she is stripped at the entrance to each of the gates. "Istar +went into the immutable land, she took and received the waters of +life. She presented the sublime Waters, and thus, in the presence of +all, set free the Son of Life, her young lover." The structural +novelty of the work is that, beginning with complexity--typifying the +gorgeously robed Istar--the theme discloses itself little by little, +as she is stripped of her jewels, until at last, when she stands forth +in the full splendor of nudity, the theme is heard unaccompanied, like +Isis unveiled or, to change the figure, like a scientific law which +has been disclosed. The work is based on three generative themes; the +second, derived from the first and of subsidiary importance, called by +d'Indy the motif d'appel. It plays its part, however, since it +introduces the work and serves as a connection between the variations, +seven in all. These themes are as follows: + +1. Principal theme: + +[Music] + +2. Motif d'appel. + +[Music] + +3. Subsidiary theme, in form of a march. + +[Music] + +[Footnote 289: For a detailed analysis the student is referred to the +account by the composer himself in his _Cours de Composition +Musicale_, part II, pp. 484-486; to Gilman's _Studies in Symphonic +Music_ and to Vol. 3 of Mason's _Short Studies of Great +Masterpieces_.] + +By following the poem the imaginative listener can readily appreciate +the picturesque suggestiveness of the composer. The work opens with a +mysterious intoning, by a muted horn, of the motif d'appel, and then +follows a triple presentation of the march theme in F minor, scored +for wood-wind and low strings--the melody sung at first by the violas +and clarinets and later by the bass clarinet and 'cellos. This +original scoring establishes just the appropriate atmosphere for an +entrance to the abode of captivity. + +[Music] + +The first variation, in F major, employing all the tone-color of the +full orchestra, is a gorgeous picture of the Oriental splendor of +Istar. It is noteworthy that each variation contains a modulation to a +key a semitone higher, thus affording a factor of unity amid the +elaborate flowerings of the musical thought. The second variation, in +E major scored for strings and wood-wind, is significant for the way +in which the original theme is expanded into a flowing melody. The +logical derivation of the fabric from the first intervals of the main +theme is obvious, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +The fourth variation, in F-sharp major, scored for pizzicato strings +and staccato wood-wind, with light touches on horns, trumpets, +cymbals, triangle and harps, introduces the scherzo mood into the work +and with its persistent 5/4 rhythm is of fascinating effect. + +[Music] + +The loveliest variation for warmth and emotional appeal is the sixth, +in A-flat major (at O in the orchestral score) for strings with the +gradual addition of the wood-wind and harps. Its climax certainly does +much to atone for any dryness found in d'Indy's other works. + +[Music] + +In the next variation, at P, the trend of the work becomes +increasingly manifest for it is written in only two voices, scored for +flute and violins and is a dramatic preparation for the announcement +of the complete main theme which is now proclaimed in unison by the +full orchestra. The work closes with a transformation of the opening +march into F major, its majestic rhythm symbolizing the successful +result of Istar's quest (See Supplement No. 62.) + +Debussy, Claude Achille, (1862-1918) is certainly the embodiment, as a +composer, of Pater's saying that "Romanticism[290] is the addition of +strangeness to beauty"; for when we listen to his music we are +conscious of material and of forms of treatment which we have never +heard before. Debussy has listened to the promptings of his own subtle +imagination and has evolved a style as novel as it is beautiful. As +with all real originators, Debussy at the outset was fiercely +challenged, and his music even to-day calls forth intolerant remarks +on the part of those who are suspicious of all artistic progress and +evolution. In this connection it is worthy of note that the French, +notwithstanding their national doctrine of liberty, have been chary of +applying this to composers who were departing from the beaten path. +Berlioz, whom now they acclaim as one of their greatest artists, was +welcomed as he deserved only after his fame had been established among +the Germans. Bizet was but slightly appreciated during his life. +Franck met with fierce opposition from the routine members of the +profession; and Debussy, although the work by which he won the "Prix +de Rome" in 1884 was acknowledged to be one of the most interesting +which had been heard at the Institute for years, was afterwards +severely criticized for the setting made in Rome to Rossetti's +_Blessed Damozel_ because, forsooth, he had strayed too far from +established and revered tradition. We Americans may have a distinct +feeling of pride in the knowledge that the music of Debussy, the +strongest note of which is personal freedom--the inherent right of the +artist to express in his own way the promptings of his imagination--was +widely studied and appreciated in this land of the free before it had +begun to have anything like a universal acceptance among the French +themselves. + +[Footnote 290: From this comparison we should not wish it to be +understood that Debussy is merely an addition to the standard Romantic +group of Schumann, Chopin, Liszt, etc.; his style, however, is surely +Romantic in the broad sense of the term, _i.e._, highly imaginative +and individual.] + +But can any connection with the past be traced in the style of this +remarkable[291] composer, and can we discover any sources, in the +world of nature, from which he has derived the materials for his novel +and fascinating harmonies? When we definitely analyze Debussy's +harmonic scheme, we see that he looks both forward and back. Much of +his original tone coloring is derived from the old church modes such +as the Lydian, the Dorian and the Phrygian; for example, the +mysterious opening chords of his opera, and the following passage from +_La Cathedrale engloutie_. + +[Footnote 291: The _tres exceptionnel, tres curieux, tres solitaire +Claude Debussy_ as he has been aptly characterized.] + +[Music] + +He is also extremely fond of a scale of whole tones, which had been +somewhat anticipated by Liszt and members of the Russian[292] school. +In this the normal perfect 4th and 5th and the major 6th become +augmented, thus producing a very peculiar but alluring harmonic basis. + +[Music] + +[Footnote 292: The first authentic use being probably by Dargomijsky +in his opera the _Stone Guest_.] + +[Music] + +[Music: _Reflets dans l'eau_] + +Modern composers have been feeling for some time that harmonic scope +was needlessly limited by clinging too closely to the major and minor +diatonic scales; and Brahms, Tchaikowsky and Franck have all +introduced the old modes for special contrasts of color. But no one +has used them so subtly as Debussy. In his music they often take the +place of our customary scales with their deep-rooted harmonic +tendencies and perpetual suggestion of traditional cadences. This +return to the greater flexibility and variety of the old modes is a +significant feature in modern music and Debussy's example in this +respect has been highly beneficial. As to his alleged use of new +material, an astute French critic has observed that "a revolution is +merely an evolution rendered apparent." By no means all of music can +be found in nature, but the basis is there, and it remains for the +artistic imagination to select and to amplify. Already many years ago +the scientist Helmholtz said, "Our system of scales and of harmonic +tissues does not rest upon unalterable natural laws, but is partly at +least the result of aesthetic principles of selection, which have +already changed, and will change still further with the progressive +development of humanity."[293] In other words the limits of +receptivity of the human ear cannot be foreseen nor can the workings +of the artistic imagination be prescribed. The so-called Chord of +Nature,[294] consisting of the overtones struck off by any sounding +body, and re-enforced on the pianoforte with its large sounding board, +contains in epitome this basic material of music; and the several +octaves represent in a striking manner the harmonic combinations used +at different periods of development. Thus during the early centuries +nothing but triads were in use; only gradually were 7th chords--those +of four factors--introduced. Wagner was the first to realize the +possibilities of chords of the 9th, 11th, and 13th. In Debussy these +combinations are used as freely as triads, _e.g._ + +[Music: _Pelleas et Melisande_] + +[Music: _La fille aux cheveux de lin_] + +[Music: _Reflets dans l'eau_] + +and he has gone far beyond anything known before in a subtle use of +the extreme dissonant elements, his sensitive imagination evidently +hearing sounds hitherto unrealized. This surmise is corroborated by +Debussy's own statement that, while serving as a young man on garrison +duty, he took great delight in listening to the overtones of bugles +and of the bells from a nearby convent. This chromatic style had been +anticipated by Chopin whose use of the harmonic series in those +prismatic, spray-like groups of superadded tones is such a striking +feature in his pianoforte works. There is, therefore, nothing outre or +bizarre in Debussy's idiom; it is but a logical continuation of former +tendencies. His works show great variety and comprise pianoforte +pieces, many songs, a remarkable string quartet, some daringly +original tone-poems for full orchestra, several cantatas, and--most +unique of all--his opera of _Pelleas et Melisande_, based on the +well-known play by Maeterlinck. A few comments may profitably be made +on each of these types. With few exceptions all his pianoforte pieces +have suggestive titles, _e.g._, _Reflets dans l'eau_, _Jardins sous la +pluie_, _La soiree dans Grenade_, _Poissons d'or_, _Voiles_, _Le vent +dans la plaine_, _Bruyeres_. They are mood-pictures in which the +composer has tried to imprison certain elusive states of mind--or the +impressions made on his susceptible imagination by the phenomena of +Nature: the subtly blended hues of a sunset, the changing rhythm of +drifting clouds, the indefinite murmur of the sea, the dripping of +rain. For Debussy, like Beethoven before him, is a passionate lover of +Nature. To quote his own words, he finds his great object lessons of +artistic liberty in "the unfolding of the leaves in Spring, in the +wavering winds and changing clouds." Again, "It benefits me more to +watch a sunrise than to listen to a symphony. Go not to others for +advice, but take counsel from the passing breezes, which relate the +history of the world to those who listen." Thus we see that Debussy +submits himself to the spells of Nature and tries to transmute them +into sound. The only analogies to use in a verbal description of his +music must be drawn from nature, for in each are the same shadowy +pictures, the same melting outlines.[295] Debussy has a close affinity +with that school of painters known as impressionists or +symbolists--Manet, Monet, Degas, Whistler--and is doing with novel +combinations of sound, with delicate effects of light and shade, what +they have done for modern freedom in color. His music has been called +a "sonorous impressionism." It might equally well be phrased "rhythmic +sound." To those conservatives who find it difficult to think in terms +of musical color, and wish _their_ imagination rather than that of +genius to be the standard, the retort of the artist Whistler is +applicable: To a lady who viewing one of his sunsets remarked, "But, +Mr. Whistler, I have never seen a sunset like that" came the reply +"Yes, Madam, but don't you wish you had?" In his songs Debussy has +been most fastidious as to choice of texts, his favorite poets being +Verlaine, Baudelaire and Mallarme, called "symbolists," since the aim +of their art is to resemble music and to leave for the reader a wide +margin for symbolic interpretation. His songs throughout are +imaginative and fanciful in the highest degree, and the instrumental +part a beautiful background of color. Of Debussy's compositions for +orchestra the one to win--and possibly to deserve--the most lasting +popularity is _L'apres-midi d'un Faune_, which is an extraordinary +translation into music of the veiled visions and the shadowy beings of +an eclogue of Mallarme in which, as Edmund Gosse says, "Words are +used in harmonious combinations merely to suggest moods or conditions, +never to state them definitely."[296] By perfect rhythmic freedom, and +by delicately-colored waves of sound Debussy has expressed in a manner +most felicitous just the atmosphere of remoteness, and of primeval +simplicity. By many this work is considered the most hypnotic +composition in existence, and the writer trusts that his readers have +heard a poetic interpretation of it by a fine orchestra. The salient +features of Debussy's style are found in _Pelleas et Melisande_--by +far the most important operatic work since Wagner. Maeterlinck's play +deals with legendary, mysterious, symbolic beings, and the entire +subject-matter was admirably suited to Debussy's genius. As +Maeterlinck says, "The theatre should be the reflex of life, not this +external life of outward show, but the true inner life which is +entirely one of contemplation." This opera is quite different from any +previously written, in that the characters sing throughout in +_recitative_ now calm, now impassioned, but never in set, periodic +arias. In fact, here we have at last a true musical _speech_, which is +indeed another thing from music set to words. Debussy has defended +this peculiar style in the following words: "Melody is, if I may say +so, almost anti-lyric, and powerless to express the constant change of +emotion or life. Melody is suitable only for the song (_chanson_), +which confirms a fixed sentiment. I have never been willing that my +music should hinder, through technical exigencies, the changes of +sentiment and passion felt by my characters. It is effaced as soon as +it is necessary that these should have perfect liberty in their +gestures as in their cries, in their joy as in their sorrow." + +[Footnote 293: For an enlightening amplification of this point see the +first chapter of Wallace's _The Threshold of Music_.] + +[Footnote 294: See page 193.] + +[Footnote 295: For further suggestive comments on Debussy's style +consult the _Essay on Pelleas et Melisande_ by Lawrence Gilman (G. +Schirmer, New York) and in particular an article by the same author in +the Century Magazine for August, 1918.] + +[Footnote 296: Gosse also calls it a _famous miracle of +intelligibility_.] + +Now that we may look forward to no more compositions from +Debussy[297]--he died in March, 1918--it is certainly fitting to +attempt a forecast as to the permanent worth of his achievements and +his influence upon future development. Like all music his compositions +may be judged from several points of view: the worth of the content, +the perfection or inadequacy of style and the manner in which the media +of presentation are used. To begin with the last characteristic--there +is no doubt that Debussy has enlarged the resources of our two chief +modern instruments, the pianoforte and the orchestra. By him the +pianoforte is always treated according to its true nature, _i.e._, as +an intimate, coloristic instrument and, in amplifying all its +resources of tone-color, flexible rhythm and descriptive power he is +the worthy successor of Chopin. In his orchestral compositions such as +the _Nocturnes_ (_Clouds_, _Festivals_ and _Sirens_), the _Sea Pieces_ +and _Images_, of which the _Rondes de Printemps_ and _Iberia_ are the +most significant, there is a union of warmth and delicacy as +individual as it is rare. _Iberia_, in fact, for vitality of +imagination and flawless workmanship may be considered the acme of +Debussy's orchestral style. The great resources of the modern +orchestra are often abused. Compositions are rich and gorgeous but at +the same time inflated, turgid and bombastic. Certain works of Richard +Strauss and Mahler are examples in point. Debussy's treatment, +however, of the varied modern orchestra is remarkable for its economy. +The melodic lines stand out clearly, there is always a rich supporting +background and we are convinced that everything sounds just as the +composer meant. As to the structure and style of his music, these are +more subtle matters to estimate. We may acknowledge at once that +Debussy's style is free and individual, for he has written his music +his own way, with slight regard for academic models. But a thorough +examination of his works shows no evidence of carelessness or +uncertainty of aim. There is, to be sure, nothing of that routine +development of musical material which we associate with classic +practice--instead a free, imaginative growth. But there is always a +definite structural foundation to support the freedom of expression. +This coherence is sometimes gained by a single dominating note about +which everything is grouped, as, in the _Soiree dans Grenade_, the +C-sharp and in the _Reflets dans l'eau_, an F. Most of Debussy's +compositions imply the principles, albeit freely used, of Two- and +Three-part form and the fundamental laws of key-relationship and of +artistic contrast. + +[Footnote 297: The best books yet written on Debussy and his style are +those by Mrs. Liebich and Louis Laloy. Consult also the comprehensive +essay by E.B. Hill in Vol. III of the _Art of Music_.] + +In considering the value of Debussy's message, _i.e._, the content of +his music, the animus and predilection of the hearer have to be taken +into account. For his music is so intensely subjective and intimate +that you like it or not, as the case may be. Many persons, however, +become very fond of it, when they have accustomed themselves to its +peculiar idiom. The charge that there is in Debussy no melody of a +purely musical nature, as some critics have asserted,[298] seems to +the writer too sweeping and not supported by the inner evidence. It +may be granted that Debussy's melodic line is very fluid and elastic, +like Wagner's "continuous melody," not definitely sectionalized by +balanced phrases or set cadences. But it surely has its own right to +existence--music being pre-eminently the art of freedom--and let us +remember that Nature herself has melting outlines, shadowy vistas and +subtle rhythms. Debussy, in fact, is the poet of the "indefinite" and +the "suggestive" and his music has had a great influence in freeing +expression from scholastic bonds. Even from the standpoint of the +popular conception of "tune" it is difficult to see what objection can +be made to the following melodies: + +[Music: _L'isle joyeuse_] + +[Music: _Poissons d'or_] + +[Music: _Cortege_] + +[Footnote 298: See the 2d volume of _Great Composers_ by D.G. Mason +and also the essay on Debussy in _Contemporary Composers_ by the same +author.] + +It cannot be denied that such an individual style as Debussy's is +liable to manneristic treatment, though whether he should be called +"the prince of mannerists"[299] is decidedly open to debate. Some +critics feel that he has over-used the whole-tone scale and it must be +confessed, he has a rather affected fondness for a formula of +block-like chords, _e.g._ + +[Music: _Danse sacree_] + +[Footnote 299: According to Ernest Newman in a well-known article in +the Musical Times (London).] + +But these, after all, are but "spots on the sun." To sum up our +conclusions: the following merits in Debussy's music, it seems to me, +cannot be gainsaid. He has widened incalculably the vocabulary of +music and has expressed in poetic and convincing fashion moods which +never before had been attempted. In his work are new revelations of +the power of the imagination. As Lawrence Gilman keenly remarks, "He +has known how to find music (in _Pelleas et Melisande_) for the +sublime reflection of Arkel, 'If I were God, I should pity the hearts +of men.'" Debussy was also gifted with rare critical ability and many +of his observations are worthy of deep consideration. For +example--"Music should be cleared of all scientific apparatus. Music +should seek humbly to give pleasure; great beauty is possible between +these limits. Extreme complexity is the opposite of art. Beauty should +be perceptible; it should impose itself on us, or insinuate itself, +without any effort on our part to grasp it. Look at Leonardo da Vinci, +Mozart! These are great artists." + +No account of modern French music would be satisfactory which omitted +to mention several composers who, though of somewhat lesser importance +than d'Indy and Debussy, have nevertheless achieved works of +distinction and charm. These are Chabrier, Faure, Duparc, Chausson and +Ravel. Chabrier (1841-1894) is noted for a bold exuberance and +vividness of expression, for a sense of humor and for a power of +orchestral color and brilliance which have not been duplicated. His +style is entirely his own and he is a veritable incarnation of "vis +Gallica." Born in the South of France, the hot blood of that magic +land seems to throb in his music. We have from him several pianoforte +compositions of marked originality, in particular the _Bourree +Fantasque_, some inimitable songs, _e.g._, _Les Cigales_ and _La +Villanelle des petits Canards_ and, most famous of all, his Rhapsody +for orchestra entitled _Espana_, based on Spanish themes. This work +has proved to be a landmark in descriptive power and shares with +Rimsky-Korsakoff's _Scheherazade_ the claim of being the most +brilliant piece of orchestral writing in modern times. Some of +Chabrier's best work is in his opera of _Gwendoline_, especially the +Prelude to the second act which is often played by itself. + +Although Faure (1845-still living) is more versatile and prolific than +Chabrier, his fame rests upon his achievements in two fields--the song +and pianoforte composition. Some of his pianoforte pieces are, to be +sure, of a light, _salon_ type; yet in many we find a true, poetic +sentiment and they are all written in a thoroughly pianistic idiom. In +fact, prior to Debussy Faure was the only Frenchman worthy to compare +in mastery of pianoforte style with Chopin, Schumann and Liszt. As a +song composer Faure ranks with the highest in modern times. The exotic +charm and finesse of workmanship in such songs as _Clair de Lune_, +_Les Roses d'Ispahan_ cannot be denied and the instrumental part is +always worthy of the composer's genius for pianoforte style, _e.g._, +the accompaniment to _Nell_ being a model in its free polyphony and +richness of effect. Faure has been fastidious in his selection of +texts and he is fortunate to have been able to avail himself of the +genius of such lyric poets as Leconte de Lisle, Baudelaire, Verlaine, +Sully-Prudhomme and others. Indeed as a song-composer Faure may fairly +be grouped with the great German masters. His songs are not German +songs, but they are just as subtle in expressing all that is fine in +French spirit as those of Schumann and Brahms in their Teutonic +sentiment. For this reason alone Faure is a commanding figure in +modern French music. He is also the author of a violin sonata which +has enjoyed a popularity second only to that of Franck and a Quintet +for pianoforte and strings of distinct originality. + +Duparc (1848-still living) one of the earliest of Cesar Franck's +pupils--though working in practically but a single field and though by +reason of ill health he has written nothing since 1885--will always +hold high rank for the beauty and breadth of his songs, especially +_L'invitation au Voyage_, _Extase_ and _Phydile_. This last is +considered by the writer the most exquisite song in modern literature; +its melody, its modulations, its accompaniment alike are +flawless.[300] + +[Footnote 300: An excellent collection of modern French songs may be +found in the two volumes published by the Oliver Ditson Co. in the +Musicians Library.] + +Chausson (1855-1899) the most gifted of Franck's pupils, though +without d'Indy's strength of character, was killed by an unfortunate +accident[301] just as he was ready for an adequate self-expression. He +had a sensitive imagination, an individual harmonic style; and in +those works which he has left--notably several songs, a Quartet for +pianoforte and strings and the Symphony in B-flat major, op. 20--there +is found a spirit of genuine romantic inspiration. + +[Footnote 301: While he was riding a bicycle.] + +Although Ravel (1875-still living) cannot claim to be a pioneer like +Debussy--since in his music there are frequent traces of the +exuberance of Chabrier, the suavity of Faure, the atmosphere and +impressionistic tendencies of Debussy and the exoticism of the +Neo-Russians--yet he is indeed no empty reflection of these men, for +he has his own bold, fantastic style and has been a daring +experimenter in freedom of harmony and structure. One finds a power of +ironic brilliance and of unexpected harmonic transformations certainly +new in modern literature. Ravel[302] is one of the most versatile and +prolific of all the younger Frenchmen having composed significant +works in at least four fields: songs, particularly the set entitled +_Histoires Naturelles_, which reveal an unusual instinct for delicate +description; and pianoforte pieces of which _Miroirs_, the dazzling +tour de force _Jeux d'eau_, the _Valses nobles et sentimentales_, the +_Sonatine_, the _Pavane_ and, above all, the Poems, _Gaspard de la +Nuit_ (_Ondine_, _Le Gibbet_[303] and _Scarbo_) are conspicuous +examples of his style. Furthermore in the field of chamber music are +found a String Quartet, remarkable for inspiration and for certainty +of workmanship, and a Trio (for pianoforte, violin and 'cello) which +is one of the most brilliant modern works, of convincing originality +in its freedom of rhythm, _e.g._, the opening measures of the first +movement. + +[Music] + +[Footnote 302: The best account of his works and style is to be found +in the volume _Maurice Ravel et son oeuvre_ by Roland Manuel.] + +[Footnote 303: _Le Gibbet_ is without doubt the most realistic piece +of musical description in our time.] + +Finally, for orchestra his _Spanish Rhapsody_ ranks with Chabrier's +_Espana_ and Debussy's _Iberia_ as the acme of descriptive power and +of orchestral color. His _Mother Goose Suite_ (originally a set of +four-hand pieces but since orchestrated with incomparable finesse) +illustrates his humor and play of fancy. It has become a truly popular +concert number. Ravel's chef d'oeuvre the "choreographic symphony" +_Daphnis et Chloe_ displays an extraordinary synthetic grasp, for all +the factors--plot, action, the musical fabric, a large orchestra and a +chorus of mixed voices behind the scenes--are held together with a +master hand. This work ranks with Debussy's _Pelleas et Melisande_ as +the most significant dramatic work of recent years. + +It is evident, we trust, from the foregoing somewhat condensed +estimates that the modern French school is very much alive, that it +has to its credit numerous distinct achievements and that it contains +the promise of still further growth. The French nature, which is +highly emotional and yet, at its best, always controlled[304] by a +regard for fitness and clarity of thought, is particularly suited to +express itself worthily in music, for in no other form of artistic +endeavor is this balance more requisite. Music without emotion is, to +be sure, like "sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal" and dies in short +order. On the other hand, music which is a mere display of crude +emotion soon palls. The works of modern French composers deserve +enthusiastic study for their charm, their finish and their refined +emotional power. + +[Footnote 304: Witness the wonderful manifestation of these qualities +by the French in the recent war.] + + + + +CHAPTER XIX + +NATIONAL SCHOOLS--RUSSIAN, BOHEMIAN AND SCANDINAVIAN + + +Before beginning an account of Tchaikowsky, the most noted though not +necessarily the greatest of the Russian composers, a few words may be +said concerning nationalism in music, the chief representatives of +which are the Russians, the Bohemians, the Scandinavians and the +Hungarians. Of these, however, the present-day Russian School is the +most active and contributes constantly new factors to musical +evolution. This grafting of forms of expression derived from the +outlying nations on to the parent-stock of music--which for some +three hundred years had been in the exclusive control of Italy, +Germany and France--has been a stimulating factor in the development +of the last half-century. For the idiom of music was becoming somewhat +stereotyped, and it has been noticeably revitalized by the +incorporation of certain "exotic" traits, of which there run through +all national music these three: (1) the use, in their folk-songs, of +other forms of scale and mode than are habitual with ourselves; (2) +the preference given to the minor mode and the free commingling of +major and minor; (3) the great rhythmic variety and especially the use +of groups foreign to our musical sense, such as measures of 5 and 7 +beats, and the intentional placing of the accent on parts of the +measure which with us are ordinarily unaccented. Every country has its +folk-songs--the product of national rather than individual genius--but +Russia, in the number and variety of these original melodies is most +exceptional. The Russian expresses himself spontaneously in song, and +so we find appropriate music for every activity or incident in daily +life: planting songs, reaping songs, boating songs, wedding songs, +funeral songs; Russian soldiers sing on the march and even enter upon +a desperate charge with songs on their lips. In certain battles of the +Crimean War this fact caused much comment from the English officers. +For many centuries the bulk of the Russian people has been +downtrodden; and the country, with its endless steppes and gloomy +climate, is hardly such as to call forth the sparkling vivacity found +in the Scandinavian and Hungarian songs. The prevalent mood in Russian +folk-songs is one of melancholy or of brooding, wistful +tenderness--very often in the old Greek modes, the Aeolian, Dorian and +Phrygian. From this we see the close connection existing between the +Russian and Greek Churches. The Russian liturgy is exceedingly old, +and Russian church music, always unaccompanied, has long been +celebrated for its dignified character, especially those portions +rendered by men's voices, which are capable of unusually low +notes,[305] as majestic as those of an organ. + +[Footnote 305: In Grove's Dictionary, under Bass, occurs this +statement: This voice, found, or at least cultivated, only in Russia +is by special training made to descend to FF [Music].] + +During the entire 18th century the development of music in Russia was +in the hands of imported Italians; the beginnings of a national type +being first made in the works of Glinka, born 1804. By the middle of +the 19th century two schools had arisen, the Neo-Russian group of +Balakireff, Borodin, Cui, Rimsky-Korsakoff and Moussorgsky, who +believed in the extreme development of national traits in melody, +rhythm and color; and a second group which was more cosmopolitan in +its tastes and believed that Russian music, without abandoning its +national flavor, could be written in a style of universal appeal. The +chief members of this group were Rubinstein and Tchaikowsky, and +distinguished pupils of the latter, in particular Rachmaninoff and +Glazounoff. To the world at large Tchaikowsky, of them all, has made +the strongest appeal; though he himself said that Rimsky-Korsakoff as +an orchestral colorist was more able, and certainly Moussorgsky has a +more strongly marked individuality. Tchaikowsky (1840-1893) like so +many of the Russian composers, began as a cultivated amateur who +showed no special musical gifts, save a sensitive nature and a general +fondness for the art. He studied in the school of jurisprudence and +won a post in the Ministry of Justice. In 1861, however, his musical +nature awaking with a bound, he gave up all official work and for the +sake of art faced a life of poverty. Under the teaching of Nicholas +Rubinstein at the Petrograd Conservatory he made such amazing progress +that in five years he himself was Professor of Harmony at Moscow and +had begun his long series of compositions--at first operas of merely +local fame. There now followed years of great activity spent in +teaching and composing--well-known works being the first String +Quartet and the Pianoforte Concerto in B-flat minor, first performed +by von Buelow at Boston in '88. At this period his health completely +broke down, the immediate cause being an unhappy marriage. He finally +rallied but had to travel abroad for a year, and for the rest of his +life his temper, never bright, was overcast with gloom. There now +entered Tchaikowsky's life Frau von Meck, the woman who played the +part of fairy godmother. She greatly admired his music, was wealthy +and generous and, that he might have entire leisure for composition, +settled upon him a liberal annuity. Their relationship is one of the +most remarkable in the annals of art; for, fearing that the ideal +would be shattered, they met but once, quite by accident, and +Tchaikowsky was "acutely embarrassed." We have a lengthy and +impassioned correspondence, and Tchaikowsky's 4th Symphony, dedicated +"a mon meilleur ami," is the result of this friendship. In 1891, +invited to New York for the dedication of Carnegie Hall, he made his +memorable American tour. His success was genuine, and was the +beginning of the popularity his music has always enjoyed in this +country. For several years Tchaikowsky had been working at his Sixth +Symphony, to which he himself gave the distinctive title "Pathetic." +This work ends with one of the saddest dirges in all literature, +although Tchaikowsky, during its composition, as we know from his +letters, had never been in a happier state of mind or worked more +passionately and freely. He himself says, "I consider it the best, +especially the most open-hearted of all my works." When, however, he +suddenly died in 1893, there were rumors of suicide, but it is now +definitely settled that his death was caused by cholera.[306] + +[Footnote 306: The writer had this statement from the lips of +Tchaikowsky's own brother, Modeste.] + +To turn now to his achievements, it may be asserted that Tchaikowsky +was marvellously versatile, composing in every form save for the +organ; for productiveness, only Mozart, Schubert and Liszt can be +compared with him. His works comprise eight operas, six symphonies, +six symphonic poems, three overtures, four orchestral suites, two +pianoforte concertos, a violin concerto, three string quartets, a +wonderful trio, about one hundred songs and a large number of +pianoforte pieces. In addition he made several settings of the Russian +liturgy and edited many volumes of church music. Whatever may be the +final estimate of his music, it assuredly has great vogue at present, +for it is an intense expression of that mental and spiritual unrest so +characteristic of our times. As Byron was said to have but one +subject, himself, so all Tchaikowsky's music is the message of his +highly emotional and feverish sensibility. He is invariably eloquent +in the presentation of his material, although the thoughts are often +slight and the impression made not lasting. He pours out his emotions +with the impulsiveness and abandon so characteristic of his race, and +this lack of serenity, of restraint, is surely his gravest weakness. +We are reminded by his music of a fire which either glows fitfully or +bursts forth into a fierce uncontrolled blaze, but where a steady +white heat is too often missing. His style has been concisely +described as fiery exultation on a basis of languid melancholy. To all +this we may retort that what he lacks in profundity and firm control, +he makes up in spontaneity, wealth of imagination and, above all, +warmth of color. It is illogical to expect his music to be different +from what it is. He expressed himself sincerely and his style is the +direct outcome of his own temperament plus his nationality. +Tchaikowsky was widely read in modern literature--Dickens and +Thackeray being favorite authors--and had travelled much. The breadth +of his cultivation is shown in the subjects of his symphonic poems and +the texts of his songs, which are from Shakespeare, Dante, Goethe and +Bryon. However much estimates may differ as to the import of +Tchaikowsky's message, he is universally recognized as a superb +"colorist," one of the masters of modern orchestral treatment; who, by +his subtle feeling for richness and variety of tone, has enlarged the +means of musical expression. This is especially shown in the +characteristic use he makes of the orchestra in its lower ranges. As +Brahms, for depth of thought, was compared with Browning, so +Tchaikowsky may well be likened to such poets as Shelley and +Swinburne, so exquisite is his instinct for tonal beauty and for +delicacy of shading. At times, to be sure, he fairly riots in gorgeous +colors--this being the result of his Slavic blood--but few composers +have been able to achieve such brilliancy without becoming vulgar. + +As to the charge of pessimism often made against Tchaikowsky, he was a +thinker, an explorer into the mysteries of human aspiration and +disappointment,[307] and his music seems weighted down with the riddle +of the universe. This introspective dejection, however, is a natural +result of his temperament and his nationality. If to us of a more +hopeful outlook upon life it seems morbid, we should simply remember +that our conditions have been different. A distinction must likewise +be made between the expression of such feelings in art and their +influence in actual life. As a man Tchaikowsky was practical, +conscientious, and did not in the least allow his feelings to +emasculate him. He was a prodigious worker and throughout his career, +in the face of ill health and many adverse circumstances, showed +immense courage. His creed was no ignoble one--"To regret the past, to +hope in the future, and never to be satisfied with the present; this +is my life." And to a gushing patroness of art who asked him what were +his ideals, his simple reply was "My ideal is to become a good +composer." Certain English critics in their fault-finding have been +particularly boresome, because, forsooth, Tchaikowsky's music does not +show the serenity of Brahms or the solidity or stolidity of their own +composers. To the well-fed and prosperous Briton "God's in his Heaven, +all's right with the world" is hardly an expression of faith, but a +certainty of existence. Not so with the Russian, upon whom the +oppression of centuries has left its stamp. This same note of gloomy +or even morbid introspection is found in some of the great literature +of the world--in the Bible, the Greek Tragedies and in Shakespeare. +Granted that optimism is the only working creed for every-day life, +until the millenium arrives a sincere and artistic expression of the +sorrows of humanity will always strike a note in oppressed souls. + +[Footnote 307: See the passage from his diary (quoted on page 504 of +the _Biography_ by his brother) in which he writes--"What touching +love and compassion for mankind lie in these words: 'Come unto me, all +ye that labor and are heavy laden!' In comparison with these simple +words all the Psalms of David are as nothing."] + +Each of Tchaikowsky's last three symphonies is a remarkable work. The +Fourth is most characteristically Russian and certainly the most +striking in its uncompromising directness of expression. The first +movement announces a recurrent, intensely subjective motto typical of +that impending Fate which would not allow Tchaikowsky happiness.[308] +The slow movement is based upon a Russian folk song of a melancholy +beauty, sung by the oboe, and another, already cited (see Chapter II, +p. 33), is incorporated in the Finale. The Scherzo is unique as an +orchestral _tour de force_; for, with the exception of a short middle +portion for wood-wind and brass, it is for the string orchestra +playing pizzicato throughout. The effect is extremely fantastic and +resembles that of ghosts flitting about in their stocking-feet or of +sleep-chasings, to use Whitman's expression.[309] The Finale is a riot +of natural, primitive joy, a picture--as the composer says--of a +popular festivity. "When you find no joy within you, go among the +people, see how fully they give themselves up to joyous feelings." +Fate sounds its warning, but in vain; nothing can repress the +exultation of the composer. "Enjoy the joy of others and--you still +can live." The work is sensational, even trivial in places; but it +reveals sincerity and elemental life. The composer lays himself bare +and we see a real man--not a masked hypocrite--with all his joys and +sorrows, caught, as Henley would say, "in the fell clutch of +circumstance," bludgeoned by Fate. + +[Footnote 308: See the detailed program by the composer himself, cited +in Nieck's _Program Music_.] + +[Footnote 309: For this simile I am indebted to Mr. Philip Hale.] + +The Sixth Symphony, the Pathetic, is the most popular and, on the +whole, Tchaikowsky's most sustained work. It owes its hold upon public +esteem to the eloquent way in which it presents that "maladie du +siecle" which, in all modern art,[310] is such a prominent note. The +mood may be a morbid one but we cannot mistake the conviction with +which it is treated. The work is likewise significant because of the +novel grouping of movements. The first is in complete sonata form and +for finished architecture will stand comparison with any use of that +form. The themes are eloquent, well contrasted and organically +developed. The orchestration is a masterpiece.[311] The second +movement is the one famous for its use of five beats a measure +throughout; and its trio, on a persistent pedal note D, is a striking +example of the Russian tendency to become fairly obsessed with one +rhythm. It is an intentional, artistic use of monotony and may be +compared to the limitless Russian Steppes. If it seem strange to +Western Europeans, it should be remembered that the music is Russian +and portrays a mood perfectly natural to that people. The third +movement is a combination of a scherzo and a march--of a most +unbridled fury. The Finale is a threnody, one of overpowering grief, +the motto of which might be "vanity of vanities, all is vanity." It +abounds in soul-stirring orchestral eloquence and invariably makes a +deep impression. + +[Footnote 310: For further comment see the Life of Tchaikowsky by Rosa +Newmarch.] + +[Footnote 311: As may be seen by the number of illustrations from it +in text books!] + +For special comment we have selected Tchaikowsky's[312] Fifth Symphony +in E minor since, being a union of Russian and Italian characteristics, +it reveals that eclecticism so prominent in his style. It is also an +admirable example of organic relationship between the movements. This +symphony, like the Fourth, contains a recurrent motto of sombre nature +in the minor mode which, appearing in the first three movements with +some dramatic implication, is changed in the Finale to the major and +used as the basis for a march of rejoicing. The first and last +movements are in elaborate sonata-form; the second and third in +three-part form. The Finale is one of the most striking examples in +modern literature of a _resume_ of preceding themes and hence a +convincing proof of the composer's constructive power. The symphony +begins with a long prelude announcing the motto. Scored for clarinets, +bassoons and low strings it shows vividly that peculiar impression +which Tchaikowsky secured by using the lower ranges of the orchestra. + +[Footnote 312: The authoritative work on Tchaikowsky is _The Life and +Letters_ by his brother Modeste; the abridged biography by Rosa +Newmarch should also be read. There are excellent essays in +_Mezzotints in Modern Music_ by Huneker; in Streatfield's volume +_Modern Composers_ and in Mason's _From Grieg to Brahms_.] + +[Music] + +The melody itself seldom moves above middle C, and its effect is +enhanced by the quality of the clarinets in their chalumeau register. +The first theme of the movement proper (beginning at the Allegro con +anima), on the same harmonic basis as the motto and derived from it +rhythmically, is given out _pp_ by a solo clarinet and solo bassoon, +accompanied by very light detached chords in the strings, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +This is elaborately and brilliantly developed until, in measure 79 +(counting from the Allegro), we reach a transitional, subsidiary theme +in B minor. This is followed by some striking sequences, exquisitely +scored, and then (at un pochettino piu animato) there is a quickened +presentation of the transitional theme, interspersed by syncopated +calls--on the horns and wood-wind--a presentation which introduces the +second theme in D major, marked molto piu tranquillo. This melody, +sung by the violins against an obbligato in the wood-wind, is clearly +Italian in its grace and suavity and establishes that wonderful +contrast so prominent in Tchaikowsky--the warmth and exuberance of the +South set against the grim austerity of the North. + +[Music] + +This theme, expanded (stringendo and crescendo) into a series of +exciting climaxes _fff_ leads, after some modulatory phrases derived +from the transitional theme, to the Development which begins in B-flat +major. Throughout this is a fine piece of work--with real thematic +growth, bold modulations and no "padding." It should refute completely +any erroneous opinion that Tchaikowsky was lacking in power of organic +treatment. The connection between the Development and the +Recapitulation is skilfully managed and the third part does not bore +us but is welcomed as something we would gladly hear again. There is a +long and stormy Coda--a second development in true Beethoven +style--which finally ends _ppp_ in the lowest depths of the orchestra, +in the same mood as the opening measures. + +The second movement, Andante cantabile, con alcuna licenza, with its +melting theme on the solo horn, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +--accompanied later by answering phrases on the clarinet--might seem a +bit too "luscious" were it not for the beauty and finish of the +orchestration. The movement is in rather loose three-part form--as the +title would imply--the joints being somewhat obvious in certain +places, _e.g._, measures 39-45. The themes, however, have that +intensity peculiar to Tchaikowsky, and the original orchestral +treatment, especially in the use of the horns, enhances their effect. +The middle contrasting portion, starting in F-sharp minor, shows some +very effective polyphonic imitations based on the following theme: + +[Music] + +At the climax of its development the motto is proclaimed _fff_ in a +most arresting manner--its effect being due to the unusual pedal point +which makes a chord of the second with the upper voices, _e.g._, + +[Music] + +The third part with slight expansions corresponds to the first. At its +close, just before the Coda, we have a second appearance of the +motto--this time, on account of the fierce dissonances, with even more +sinister effect.[313] The closing measures are of great beauty by +reason of the imitations on the strings and the dreamy, reminiscent +phrase on the clarinets, _e.g._ + +[Music] + +[Footnote 313: The passage has already been cited in Chapter IV as an +example of a deceptive cadence.] + +The third movement, a Waltz, with a graceful theme, in clear-cut +three-part form, needs little comment. If any one considers it too +light or even trivial for a place in a symphony he might study the +individual orchestration and then try to compose one like it! The +second and third parts are ingeniously fused together--Tchaikowsky +following the practise of Mozart, his favorite master, in the first +movement of the G minor Symphony. In the Russian philosophy of life, +however, there is no such thing as perpetual joy; so, even amid scenes +of festivity, the motto obtrudes itself as if to ask "What right have +you to be dancing when life is so stern and grim?" See measures 23-28 +from end of movement. + +[Music] + +The Finale, in complete sonata-form and laid out on a large scale, for +several reasons is of distinct significance. It is a carefully planned +_resume_ of preceding themes; it contains several examples of those +periods of depression or exultation (especially on a pedal-point) so +characteristic of the Slav, and lastly, there are pages of extreme +brilliancy. In fact, the orchestration throughout is of such +convincing power that it refutes any charge of sensationalism or mere +bombast. If to us the music seem unrestrained, unbridled, we are to +remember that the Russian temperament is prone to a reckless display +of emotion just as in their churches they like to "lay the colors on +thick." The movement begins with an extended prelude in which the +original sombre motto is transformed into a stately, march-like theme. +This is presented twice with continually richer scoring and more +rhythmic animation. The closing measures of the prelude are a specific +instance of that protracted mood of depression spoken of above. The +movement proper begins at the Allegro vivace with a fierce, +impassioned theme, + +[Music] + +which leads, in measure 25, to a subsidiary theme treated at first in +free double counterpoint[314] and later canonically. + +[Music] + +[Footnote 314: By double counterpoint is meant such a grouping of the +voices that they may be inverted (the upper voice becoming the lower +and vice versa) and sound equally well. For further comments, together +with illustrative examples, consult Chapter IX of Spalding's _Tonal +Counterpoint_.] + +[Music] + +This is developed with more and more animation until the announcement, +in measure 71, of the second theme in D major. Here we see the first +instance of that organic relationship for which the movement is noted; +for this theme + +[Music] + +is evidently derived by rhythmic modification from that of the +preceding slow movement. It is brilliantly expanded and leads +directly--there being no double bar and repeat--to the development in +measure 115. This part of the movement evades description; it is +throughout most eloquent and exciting. In measures 153-160 all the +bells of Russia seem to be pealing! With measure 177 begins (marcato +largamente) an impressive treatment in the bass of the second theme, +answered shortly after in the upper voice. This is developed to a +climax which, in turn, is followed by one of those long periods of +"cooling down" which prepare us for the Recapitulation in measure +239. This corresponds exactly with the Exposition, ending with two +passages (poco meno mosso and molto vivace),--based upon the rhythm of +the motto--which usher in the long, elaborate Coda. This begins, +maestoso, with an impressive statement of the march theme, scored in +brilliant fashion, with rushing figures in the wood-wind instruments. +It seems to portray some ceremonial in a vast cathedral with trumpets +blaring and banners flying. A still more gorgeous treatment (marziale, +energico, con tutta forza) leads to the Presto based on the subsidiary +theme (cited on page 312), which fairly carries us off our feet. The +last portion of the Coda (molto meno mosso) is an animated yet +dignified proclamation of the main theme of the first movement--the +work thus concluding with an unmistakable effect of unity. + +[Music] + +The subject of Russian music[315] is too vast for any adequate +treatment within the limits of a single book, but there are several +other composers in addition to Tchaikowsky of such individuality and +remarkable achievement as to warrant some notice. These men, +Balakireff, Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakoff and Moussorgsky, have done for +the free expression of the Russian temperament in music what Pushkin, +Gogol and Dostoyevsky represent in literature. "To understand fully +the tendencies of Neo-Russian music, and above all to sympathize with +the spirit in which this music is written, the incredible history of +Holy Russia, the history of its rulers and people--the mad caprices +and horrid deeds of the Romanoffs, who, in centuries gone by, +surpassed in restless melancholy and atrocity the insane Caesars, and +were more to be pitied, as well as detested, than Tiberius or +Nero--the nature of the landscape, the waste of steppes, the +dreariness of winter, and the loneliness of summer--the barbaric +extravagance of aristocratic life--the red tape, extortion, and +cruelty of officers--the sublime patience of the common people--the +devotion of the enduring, starving multitude to the Tsar--all this +should be as familiar as a twice-told tale. There should also be a +knowledge of Russian literature, from the passion of Pushkin and the +irony of Gogol, to Turgenieff's tales of life among the serfs, and the +novels of Tolstoi, in which mysticism and realism are strangely +blended. Inasmuch as Neo-Russian music is founded upon the folk-songs +of that country, one should know first of all the conditions that made +such songs possible, and one should breathe the atmosphere in which +musicians who have used such songs have worked."[316] + +[Footnote 315: The most authoritative work in English is the _History +of Russian Music_ by Montagu-Nathan; in French there are the Essays +_Musiques de Russie_ by Bruneau.] + +[Footnote 316: Quoted from the chapter on Russian music in _Famous +Composers and Their Works_ (2d series).] + +The first real leader after the wholesome beginnings made by Glinka +(with his operas, _A Life for the Czar_ and _Ludmilla_) was Balakireff +(1837-1910) who finding his country almost entirely under the dominion +of Italian and German music, proclaimed the doctrine that Russia, with +its wealth of folk-songs and its undoubted emotional power should +create its own music. Like many of the Russians Balakireff was an +amateur, but in the true sense of that term, _i.e._, he loved music +for its own sake. He therefore set to work vigorously to combat +foreign influences and to manifest in original works a spirit true to +his own genius and to the tendencies of his native land. Though +educated as a lawyer he had acquired through a study of Mozart, +Berlioz and Liszt a thorough technique and so was equipped to put into +practise his watchword which was individual liberty. "I believe in the +subjective, not in the objective power of music," he said to his +pupils. "Objective music may strike us with its brilliancy, but its +achievement remains the handiwork of a mediocre talent. Mediocre or +merely talented musicians are eager to produce effects, but the ideal +of a genius is to reproduce his very self, in unison with the object +of his art. There is no doubt that art requires technique, but it +must be absolutely unconscious and individual.... Often the greatest +pieces of art are rather rude technically, but they grip the soul and +command attention for intrinsic values. This is apparent in the works +of Michelangelo, of Shakespeare, of Turgenieff, and of Mozart. The +beauty that fascinates us most is that which is most individual. I +regard technique as a necessary but subservient element. It may, +however, become dangerous and kill individuality as it has done with +those favorites of our public, whose virtuosity I despise more than +mere crudities." Balakireff's actual works are few in number since he +spent most of his time in organizing schools of music and in teaching +others; but in those works which we have[317] there is a strong note +of freedom not to be missed. His Symphonic Poem _Tamara_ and his +fantasy for pianoforte _Islamey_ are remarkable for that semi-oriental +exotic spirit so prevalent in Russian music. Many of his songs also +are of genuine beauty. + +[Footnote 317: Towards the end of his life he destroyed many of his +compositions.] + +Borodin (1834-1887) is the ne plus ultra example of that versatility +in which the modern Russian School is unique. As a surgeon and doctor +he enjoyed a high position; as a chemist he made original researches +and wrote treatises which were recognized as distinct contributions to +science; he was one of the earliest scholars in the world to advocate +that women should have the same education as men and was one of the +founders (about 1870) of a medical school for women in Petrograd. So +tireless was he in these varied activities, it seems a miracle that he +could also become one of the best pianists of his time (he played well +also the violin and the flute) and according to Liszt,[318] one of the +most able orchestral masters of the nineteenth century. But as +evidence of this amazing fact are his works, comprising two symphonies +(the second in B minor often heard in this country) two string +quartets, the first strikingly original, thematically, harmonically +and in idiomatic use of the instruments; a small Suite for pianoforte, +of which the Serenade is cited in the Supplement; an opera, _Le Prince +Igor_--remarkable for its picturesque description and Oriental +coloring, of which the composer himself said "Prince Igor is +essentially a national opera, which can be of interest only to us +Russians who love to refresh our patriotism at the sources of our +history and to see the origins of our nationality live again upon the +stage;" a symphonic poem _Dans les Steppes de l'Asie centrale_ +and--showing some of his most characteristic work--the _Paraphrases_ +written in collaboration with Korsakoff, Liadoff and Cui as a kind of +musical joke. This composition,[319] a set of twenty-four variations +founded on the tune popularly known as "chop-sticks" is dedicated "to +little pianists capable of executing the theme with a finger of each +hand." For the paraphrases themselves a player of considerable +technique is required. In Borodin's style we always find a glowing +color-scheme of Slavic and Oriental elements. As a modern Russian +composer says, "It is individually descriptive and extremely +modern--so modern that the audience of to-day will not be able to +grasp all its intrinsic beauties." + +[Footnote 318: For a delightful account of the friendship of these two +composers consult the volume _Borodin and Liszt_ by Alfred Habets +(translated by Rosa Newmarch).] + +[Footnote 319: According to Liszt "a compendium of musical science in +the form of a jest."] + +The most widely known and in many respects the most gifted of the +Neo-Russian group is Rimsky-Korsakoff (1844-1908). He has been aptly +characterized as the Degas or Whistler of music, and for his +marvellous powers of description, especially of the sea, and for his +command of orchestral tone-painting he is considered the storyteller +par excellence in modern music. As in the case of Borodin we are +filled with amazement at the power of work and the versatility in +Korsakoff's nature. For many years he was an officer in the Russian +navy and throughout his life was involved with official duties. Yet he +found time for a number of compositions of originality and finished +workmanship. These comprise the symphonic poems _Antar_, _Sadko_ and +_Scheherazade_;[320] a _Spanish Caprice_ for full orchestra; twelve +operas of which the best known in this country is the fascinating _Le +Coq d'Or_; a concerto for pianoforte and orchestra; a large number of +songs and many choruses for men's and women's voices. His treatises on +harmony and orchestration are standard works, the latter being the +authority in modern treatment of the orchestra. His _Scheherazade_ is +undoubtedly the most brilliant descriptive work in modern literature, +for an account of which we quote the eloquent words of Philip Hale. + +[Footnote 320: This work in structure is a Suite, _i.e._, there are +four distinct, separated movements.] + +"_Scheherazade_ (Op. 35) is a suite inspired by the Arabian Nights. +The Sultan, persuaded of the falseness and faithlessness of woman, had +sworn to put every one of his wives to death in turn after the first +night. But Scheherazade saved her life by interesting him in the +stories she told him for a thousand and one nights. Many marvels were +told by her in Rimsky-Korsakoff's fantastic poem,--marvels and tales +of adventure: 'The Sea and Sinbad's Ship'; 'The Story of the Three +Kalandars'; 'The Young Prince and the Young Princess'; 'The Festival +at Bagdad'; 'The Ship that went to pieces against a rock surmounted by +a bronze warrior.' As in Berlioz's _Fantastic Symphony_, so in this +suite, there is a theme which keeps appearing in all four movements. +For the most part it is given to a solo violin. It is a free melodic +phrase in Oriental bravura, gently ending in a free cadenza. There is +no development of themes in this strange work. There is constant +repetition in different tonalities; there is an exceedingly skillful +blending of timbres; there is a keen sense of possible orchestral +effects. A glance at the score shows how sadly the pedagogue might go +astray in judgment of the work, without a hearing of it, and +furthermore, the imagination of the hearer must be in sympathy with +the imagination of the composer, if he would know full enjoyment: for +this symphonic poem provokes swooning thoughts, such as come to the +partakers of leaves and flowers of hemp; there are the stupefying +perfumes of charred frankincense and grated sandal-root. The music +comes to the listener of western birth and mind, as the Malay who +knocked among English mountains at De Quincey's door. You learn of +Sinbad, the explorer, who is nearer to us than Nansen; of the Kalandar +Prince who spent a mad evening with the porter and the three ladies of +Bagdad, and told of his incredible adventures; and Scheherazade, the +narrator, she too is merely a shape in a dream; she fades away, and +her soul dies on the high note exhaled by the wondering violin. + +"The melody of this Russian is wild, melancholy, exotic; a droning +such as falls from the lips of white-bearded, turbaned, venerable men, +garrulous in the sun; and then again, there is the reckless chatter of +the babbler in the market-place, heated with unmixed wine." + +The most boldly individual of all Russian composers is +Moussorgsky[321] (1831-1881). Although of intense inspiration and of +uncompromising ideals his musical education was so incomplete that his +technique was inadequate for the expression of his message. As the +French critic, Arthur Pougin well says, "His works bizarre though they +be, formless as they often are, have in them a force of expression and +a dramatic accent of which no one can deny the intensity. It would be +unjust to pretend that he spoke for the purpose of saying nothing; +unfortunately he is too often satisfied with merely stammering." As +Moussorgsky himself says: "Art is a means of talking with men; it is +not an end. Starting with the principle that human speech is subject +to musical laws, I see in music, not only the expression of sentiment +by means of sound, but especially the notation of a human language." +In fact the dominant idea of his music was to bring it into closer +relation with actual life. + +[Footnote 321: For biographical information consult the volume by +Montagu-Nathan.] + +"In order to understand Moussorgsky's work and his attitude towards +art, it is necessary to realise the social conditions under which he +lived. He was a true child of the sixties, of that period of moral and +intellectual ferment which followed the accession of Alexander II and +the emancipation of the serfs. Of the little group of composers then +striving to give musical expression to their newly awakened +nationality, none was so entirely carried away by the literary and +political movements of the time as Moussorgsky. Every man was asking +himself and his comrades the question posed by the most popular novel +of the day: 'What shall we do?' The answer was: 'Throw aside social +and artistic conventions. Make art the hand-maiden of humanity. Seek +not for beauty but for truth. Go to the people. Hold out the hand of +fellowship to the liberated masses and learn from them the true +purpose of life.' To this democratic and utilitarian spirit, to this +deep compassion for the people, to this contempt for the dandyism and +dilettantism of an earlier generation Moussorgsky strove to give +expression in his music, as Perov expressed it in painting, as +Tchernichevsky, Dostoyevsky, and Tolstoi expressed it in fiction. We +may disagree with his aesthetic principles, but we must confess that +he carried out with logical sequence and conviction a considerable +portion of his programme. In his sincere efforts to attain great ends +he undoubtedly overlooked the means. He could never submit to the +discipline of a thorough musical training as Tchaikowsky and +Rimsky-Korsakoff. He preserved his originality intact, but at a heavy +cost. The weakness of his technique has been exaggerated by those who +put down all his peculiarities to ignorance; but in some +respects--particularly as regards orchestration--his craftsmanship was +certainly unequal to the demands of his inspiration, for his aims were +very lofty. Had this been otherwise, Moussorgsky's name would have +been more closely linked with those of Berlioz and Richard +Strauss."[322] + +[Footnote 322: Quoted from the article in Grove's Dictionary.] + +His acknowledged masterpieces are first, the songs, especially the +series the _Nursery_ and the _Songs and Dances of Death_, in which we +see mirrored with extraordinary fidelity the complex nature of the +Russian people. Rosa Newmarch has called him the Juvenal of musicians. +Second, his national music drama, _Boris Godounoff_--dealing with one +of the most sensational episodes in Russian history--which, for the +gripping vividness of its descriptions, is quite unparalleled. + +"_Boris Godounoff_, finished in 1870, was performed four years later +in the Imperial Opera House. The libretto of this opera he took from +the poetic drama of Pushkin, but he changed it, eliminating much and +adding new scenes here and there, so that as a whole it is his own +creation. In this work Moussorgsky went against the foreign classic +opera in conception as well as in construction. It is a typically +Russian music-drama, with all the richness of Slavic colors, true +Byzantine atmosphere and characters of the medieval ages. Based on +Russian history of about the middle of the seventeenth century, when +an adventurous regent ascends the throne and when the court is full of +intrigues, its theme stands apart from all other operas. The music is +more or less, like many of Moussorgsky's songs, written in imitation +of the old folk-songs, folk dances, ceremonial chants, and festival +tunes. Foreign critics have considered the opera as a piece +constructed of folk melodies. But this is not the case. There is not a +single folk melody in Boris Godounoff, every phrase is the original +creation of Moussorgsky."[323] + +[Footnote 323: Quoted from the _Art of Music_, Vol. III.] + +In concluding this account of Russian music let the statement be +repeated that only by a thorough knowledge of the life and character +of this strange yet gifted people can their music be understood. It is +necessary therefore to become acquainted with Russian literature and +pictorial art--with the works of Gogol, Tolstoi and Dostoyevsky and +the paintings of Perov and Veretschagin. In this way only will be made +clear what is otherwise inexplicable--the depth and sincerity of the +Russian soul. + +The other two prominent national schools in modern times are the +Bohemian and Scandinavian. Although from neither of these have we +products at all comparable in breadth; or depth of meaning with those +of the Russian school, yet each has its note of exotic individuality +and hence deserves recognition. The Bohemian School centres about the +achievements of Fibich, Smetana[324] and Dvo[vr]ak, and its prevalent +characteristics are the variety of dance rhythms (Bohemia having no +less than forty national dances) together with the peculiarly novel +harmonic and modulatory scheme. The dances best known outside of +Bohemia are the _Polka_[325] and the _Furiant_; the former being used +so frequently by Smetana and Dvo[vr]ak that it has attained an +international status. The first of the above group, Fibich +(1850-1900), was a composer of marked versatility--there being extant +over seven hundred works in every form--and no little originality. +Many of his pianoforte pieces have distinct charm and atmosphere and +should be better known. Fibich was strongly influenced by Schumann, +and there is found in his music the same note of fantastic freedom +prominent in the German master. But the first impression of Bohemian +music upon the world in general was made by Smetana (1824-1884). An +ardent follower of Liszt, he definitely succeeded in the incorporation +of Bohemian traits with the current musical idiom just as Liszt had +done with Hungarian folk-music. Smetana's style is thoroughly +original, his form is free yet coherent and he has a color sense and +power of orchestral description peculiar to his race. Bohemia is one +of the most picturesque countries in the world and the spirit of its +woodlands, streams and mountains is always plainly felt in Bohemian +music. The Bohemians are an out-of-door people with an inborn instinct +for music (with its basic factors of rhythm and sound) by which they +express the vigorous exuberance of their temperament.[326] Smetana's +significant work lies in his numerous operas, his symphonic poems and +in the remarkable String Quartet in E minor entitled "Aus meinem +Leben." The operas deal with subjects so strongly national that they +can have but little vogue outside their own country. However, _Prodana +Nevesta_--_The Bartered Bride_--has been universally recognized as one +of the genuine comic operas in modern times and its spirited Overture +(the first theme on a fugal basis) is played the world over. His six +Symphonic Poems, comprised under the title _Mein Vaterland_, are works +of considerable power and brilliant orchestral treatment. Perhaps the +finest sections are _Vltava_ (Moldau), celebrating the beauties of +Bohemia's sacred river, and _Vy[vs]ehrad_, a realistic description of +the national fortress at Prague.[327] The Quartet in E minor, noted +for its freedom and intimacy of style, has become a classic. Whenever +it was performed Smetana wished the sub-title "Aus Meinem Leben" to be +printed on the program; for, as he says in a letter to a friend, "My +quartet is no mere juggling with tones; instead I have wished to +present the hearer with pictures of my life. I have studied theory; I +know what style means and I am master of it. But I prefer to have +circumstances determine form and so have written this quartet in the +form which it itself demanded." In the first and last of the four +movements there is a long sustained high E, symbolic of the buzzing +sound which the composer constantly heard as his congenital deafness +increased. This malady finally affected his mind and was the cause of +his tragic death in an asylum at Prague. + +[Footnote 324: His surname is to be accented on the first syllable--a +fact which may be remembered from the story attributed to Liszt who, +once asking Smetana how his name was to be pronounced received this +reply: My name is always + +[Music: _Overture to Fidelio_ + +Smetana, Smetana, Smetana] + +but never + +[Music: _Overture to Leonora, No. 3_ + +Friedrich Smetana Friedrich Smetana.]] + +[Footnote 325: For example in the second movement of Smetana's Quartet +and in Dvo[vr]ak's Suite for small orchestra, op. 39.] + +[Footnote 326: For a graphic description of the country and the +customs of its people consult the essay on Dvo[vr]ak in Hadow's +_Studies in Modern Music_.] + +[Footnote 327: A detailed account of these works may be found in the +article on Smetana in _Famous Composers and their Works_ (2d series).] + +Although in some respects not so characteristic as Smetana, +Dvo[vr]ak[328] (1841-1904), by reason of his greater breadth and more +cosmopolitan style, is considered the representative Bohemian +composer. Dvo[vr]ak's music in its simplicity and in its spontaneity +of treatment is a reincarnation of Schubert's spirit; we feel the same +overflowing musical life and we must make the same allowances for +looseness of structure. Dvo[vr]ak, however, has made one contribution +thoroughly his own--his skill in handling the orchestra. He was a born +colorist and his scores in their clarity, in the subtle distinctions +between richness and delicacy, are recognized masterpieces. As a +sensuous delight to the ear they may be compared to the fine glow of +certain Dutch canvases--those for example of Vermeer. Dvo[vr]ak's +compositions are varied and fairly numerous (some 111 opus numbers) +comprising operas, cantatas, chamber music, symphonies, overtures, +pianoforte pieces and songs. From 1892 to 1895 he was in this country +as director of the National Conservatory in New York. Three works +composed during this period, a _Quartet_, a _Quintet_ and _The New +World Symphony_, are of special interest to us since they were meant +as a compliment to the possibilities of American music and also +reflect Dvo[vr]ak's attitude toward the sources of musical +inspiration. A true child of the people, and the embodiment of +folk-music, he naturally searched for native material when he wished +to compose something characteristically American. But folk-music in +our country, as has been stated in Chapter II, is (or was at +Dvo[vr]ak's time) practically limited to that of the Indians and the +Negroes. It is often stated, in fact, that the New World Symphony is +founded upon Negro tunes. This, however, is a sweeping assertion. +There is no doubt that Dvo[vr]ak found a strong affinity between +certain of the Southern plantation melodies and the songs of his +native land, _e.g._, the following melody (the second theme of the +first movement) which is similar to "Swing low, sweet chariot." + +[Music] + +[Footnote 328: For his biography, consult the Hadow essay (referred to +above) and the chapter on Dvo[vr]ak in Mason's _From Grieg to +Brahms_.] + +But the individual tone of the melodies could come only from a +Bohemian and if they seem both Negro and Bohemian it simply proves the +common bond existing in all folk-music.[329] This _New World Symphony_ +has had a great vogue and by reason of the warmth of its melodies and +the rich, colorful scoring is indisputably a work full of charm.[330] +Two prevalent traits of Dvo[vr]ak's music are noticeable in this +symphony--the unexpectedness of the modulations and the unusual +harmonic scheme.[331] The structure is at times rather loose, +particularly in the Finale where the joints often crack wide open. +But, as an offset, there is great rhythmic vitality--observe in +particular the swing of the Trio from the Scherzo--and that sensuous +tone-color peculiar to the composer. In fact, the scoring of the slow +movement with its magical theme for English horn would alone +compensate for many structural blemishes. This movement closes with a +mysterious chord for divided double basses (four solo instruments) +which is one of many touches in individual treatment. The Finale, in +accordance with modern practise, although containing themes of its +own, finally becomes a _resume_ of preceding material. The two main +themes are striking and well contrasted; but Dvo[vr]ak was a mediocre +architect and the movement, in comparison with the Finales of Franck +and Tchaikowsky, is more of a potpourri than a firmly knit organic +whole. The final page is stimulating in its bold use of dissonances. +But we must take Dvo[vr]ak as he is. There is no question of his +genius, for his music is spontaneous, never labored, and he has +expressed with convincing artistic skill the emotions and ideals of +his gifted race. + +[Footnote 329: The author has heard this symphony played in Prague and +other continental cities under Bohemian conductors. It is always +welcomed as being thoroughly characteristic of Bohemia.] + +[Footnote 330: For detailed analytical comment consult Vol. III of +_Short Studies in Great Masterpieces_ by D.G. Mason.] + +[Footnote 331: Note for example the chords at the opening of the slow +movement.] + +Scandinavian music, ethnologically considered, would comprise that of +the three related nations, the Swedes, the Danes and the Norwegians; +some would include even the Finns, with their eloquent spokesman +Sibelius. Although the Danes have considerable folk-music, and as a +people love music, they have produced no composer of distinction save +Niels Gade (1817-1890), who was so encrusted with German habits of +thought that his music is neither one thing or the other--certainly it +is not characteristically Danish. The best known of the Swedish +composers is Sjoegren from whom we have some poetic songs. He also +attempted the larger instrumental forms but without notable success. + +Scandinavian music, as far as the outside world is concerned, +practically centres about the Norwegian composer Grieg[332] +(1843-1907) just as its dramatic art centres about Ibsen. The names, +however, of four other Norwegian composers deserve mention: the +pioneers Kjerulf (1815-1868) noted for his melodious songs; Svendsen +(1840-1911) endowed with a fine sense for orchestral color; and +Nordraak (1842-1866) the first self-conscious representative of the +Norwegian spirit: a talented musician who exerted a marked influence +upon Grieg--his promise cut short by an early death. In modern times +the mantle of Grieg has fallen upon Sinding (1856-still living) whose +songs and poetic pieces for the pianoforte have become household +favorites. In Norwegian music we find the exuberant rhythmic vitality +typical of a people living in the bold and highly colored scenery of +that sun-lit land.[333] Grieg, a born lyric poet saturated with +folk-music, has embodied this spirit in his works. His fame rests upon +his songs and descriptive pianoforte pieces; though in his Pianoforte +Concerto, in his Peer Gynt Suite, in the Violin Sonatas and String +Quartet he proved that he was not lacking in power to handle larger +forms. But most of his work is in miniature--the expression, like the +music of Schubert and Chopin,[334] of moods short and intense. While +Grieg's music is patterned upon Norwegian folk-dances and +folk-melodies it is something far more. He has evoked from the +characteristics of his native land a bold, original harmony and a +power of color and description thoroughly his own. He might say with +de Musset "Mon verre n'est pas grand, mais je bois dans mon verre." In +his music we feel the sparkling sunshine and the breezes of the North. +In fact, Grieg was the first popular impressionist and for his +influence in humanizing music and freeing it from academic routine his +fame will endure. We have cited in the Supplement (Nos. 68, 69) one of +his most original songs--the melody of which was used also for the +work _Im Fruehling_ for string orchestra--and a pianoforte piece which +illustrates his rhythmic life and also in certain measures that +melodic line typical of all Norwegian music: the descent from the +leading tone, _i.e._, G, F-sharp, D. + +[Footnote 332: The best biography in English is that by H.T. Finck; +the work, however, is somewhat marred by fulsome praise.] + +[Footnote 333: During the summer solstice it is dark for only a few +hours; and further north, in the land, so-called, of the Midnight Sun, +for a few weeks there is perpetual daylight.] + +[Footnote 334: He was called by Buelow the Chopin of the North.] + +For a complete appreciation therefore of national music, we must +always take into consideration the traits and environment of the +people from which it sprung. Music, to be sure, is a universal +language, but each nation has used this language in its own way. The +most striking fact in present-day music is the variety gained from a +free expression of nationalism[335] without infringing upon +universality of appeal. + +[Footnote 335: An admirable treatment of the whole subject may be +found in Vol. III of _The Art of Music_.] + + + + +CHAPTER XX + +THE VARIED TENDENCIES OF MODERN MUSIC + + +Modern music--broadly speaking, music since the beginning of the +twentieth century--is certainly manifesting the characteristics which +the preceding survey has shown to be inherent in its nature: that is, +it has grown by a course of free experimentation, it is the youngest +of the arts, and it is a human language as well as a fine art. Hence +we find that modern composers are making daring experiments in +dissonance, in rhythmic variety, in subtle blends of color and, above +all, in the treatment of the orchestra. In comparison with +achievements in the other arts music often seems in its infancy; being +limited by no practical or utilitarian considerations, and employing +the boundless possibilities of sound and rhythm, there is so much +still before it. The truth contained in the saying, that music is the +youngest as well as the oldest of the arts, becomes more apparent year +by year; for although a work which originally had imaginative life can +never die, yet many former works have passed out of recognition simply +because they have been superseded by more inspired ones, composed +since their day. We can no longer listen with whole-hearted enthusiasm +to many of the older symphonies, songs and pianoforte pieces, because +Brahms, Franck, Debussy and d'Indy have given us better ones. + +These experiments, just referred to, have been particularly notable on +the part of two composers of the neo-Russian group, Stravinsky and +Scryabin. Stravinsky,[336] in his brilliant pantomime ballets, +_L'Oiseau du Feu_, _Petroushka_, and _Le Sacre du Printemps_, has +proved incontestably that he is a genius--it being of the essence of +genius to create something absolutely new. These works, in their +expressive melody, harmonic originality and picturesque orchestration, +have widened the bounds of musical characterization. Scryabin[337] +(1871-1915) is noted for his esoteric harmonic scheme, shown in a +series of pianoforte preludes, sonatas and, above all, in his +orchestral works, the _Divine Poem_, the _Poem of Ecstacy_ and +_Prometheus_ or _Poem of Fire_. The effect of Scryabin's harmonies is +one of great power, and, as previously said of Debussy in his earlier +days, his imagination has undoubtedly heard sounds hitherto +unrealized. The sensational style of _Prometheus_ is augmented by the +use of a color machine which flashes upon a screen hues supposed to +supplement the various moods of the music. How many of these +experiments will be incorporated into the accepted idiom of music, +time alone will tell; but they prove conclusively that modern music is +thoroughly awake and is proving true to that spirit of freedom which +is the breath of its being. + +[Footnote 336: For a detailed account of his life and works consult +the essay in _Contemporary Russian Composers_ by Montagu-Nathan and +Vol. III of _The Art of Music_.] + +[Footnote 337: For a comprehensive estimate of his style and +achievements the following works will prove useful: the _Biography_, +by Eaglefield Hull; the Essay, by Montagu-Nathan in the volume +referred to, and an article by W.H. Hadow in the Musical Quarterly for +Jan. 1915.] + +Music is, furthermore, not only a fine art in which have worked and +are working some of the best intellects of our race, but is inevitably +becoming a universal language. We see this clearly in the rapid growth +of music among peoples and nations which, comparatively a short time +ago, were thought to be quite outside the pale of modern artistic +development. No longer is music confined exclusively to the Italians, +French and Germans. A national spokesman for the Finns is the gifted +Sibelius, the composer of five symphonies, several Symphonic poems, +numerous songs and pianoforte pieces; his second Symphony in E minor +being a work of haunting beauty, and the Fourth noted for its bold use +of the dissonant element. The Roumanians have come to the fore in +Enesco, who has written several characteristic works for orchestra. +The Spaniards are endeavoring to restore their former glories--for we +must not forget that, in past centuries, the Spanish composers Morales +and Vittoria ranked with the great painters which that nation has +produced. Three Spanish composers, indeed, are worthy of distinct +recognition: Albeniz for his pianoforte pieces, _tangos_, +_malaguenas_, etc., in which there is such a fascinating treatment of +national dance rhythms; Granados,[338] with several operas to his +credit, and Laparra, the composer of a fantastic suite recently played +by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Spanish rhythms, melodies and local +color have been frequently incorporated in the works of other +composers, _e.g._, by Bizet in _Carmen_, by Debussy in _Iberia_, and +in the pianoforte piece _Soiree dans Granade_, by Chabrier in +_Espana_, by Lalo in several works, and by the Russians, Glinka and +Rimsky-Korsakoff, in brilliant orchestral works. The Spanish +influence,[339] in fact, may be called one of the most potent in +modern music. + +[Footnote 338: Who lost his life on the Sussex when it was torpedoed +by the Germans.] + +[Footnote 339: For a comprehensive account, historical and critical, +of this influence consult the volume by Carl Van Vechten _The Music of +Spain_.] + +Although there is no doubt of the strong musical instinct inherent in +the Hungarians--witness the prevalence of Hungarian rhythms in +Schubert, Liszt, Brahms and others--their country has always been so +torn with political dissensions that the lack of a national artistic +culture is not to be wondered at. Recently however three Hungarian +composers, Dohnanyi, Moor and Bela Bartok, have produced works +embodying racial tendencies and yet of such significant content and +sound workmanship as to attract the attention of the world outside. + +Italy, also, is awakening from a long sleep, and there is now a group +of young men representing New Italy (of whom Malipiero and Casella are +the best known) which should accomplish results worthy of the glorious +musical traditions of that country. + +England is shaking off her subserviency[340] to the influence of +Handel and Mendelssohn, and at last has made a promising start toward +the achievement of works which shall rank with her glories in poetry, +in fiction and in painting. Among the older group we have such names +as Sullivan, with his inimitable series of operas, the _Mikado_, +_Gondoliers_, _Iolanthe_, etc.; Parry, with some notable choral works, +and Stanford--a most versatile man--Irish by birth, and with the humor +and spontaneity natural to his race; his _Irish Symphony_ and his +opera _Shamus O'Brien_ would give lustre to any period. The only +genius of the first rank however which England has produced since the +days of Purcell is Edward Elgar (1857-still living). Practically +self-educated and spending his early life in his native country he +escaped the influences of German training which so deadened the +efforts of former composers, such as Pierson and Bennett. Elgar's +music is thoroughly English in its sturdy vigor[341] and wholesome +emotion. With something first-hand to say he has acquired such a +technique in musical expression that his compositions rank in +workmanship with those of the great continental masters. In his use of +the modern orchestra Elgar need be considered second to none. His +overtures _In the South_ and _Cockaigne_, his two Symphonies and his +_Enigma Variations_ are universally acknowledged to be models of +richly-colored and varied scoring. Although his music is English it is +never parochial but has that note of universal import always found in +the work of a real genius. Among the younger men there are Wallace, +both composer and writer on musical subjects (his Threshold of music +being particularly stimulating), Holbrook, Vaughan Williams, Roger +Quilter, Arthur Hinton, Balfour Gardiner and John Ireland, a composer +of genuine individuality, as is evident from his Violin Sonata in D +Minor. + +[Footnote 340: Some pithy remarks on the habitual English attitude +toward music may be found in the history of Stanford and Forsyth, page +313, _seq._] + +[Footnote 341: See for example the broad theme in the middle portion +of the March, _Pomp and Circumstance_.] + +Even such outlying parts of the world as Australia and South America +have contributed executive artists of great ability though, to our +knowledge, as yet no composer. + +What, now, in this connection can be said of America? This much at +least: when we consider that, beyond the most rudimentary attempts, +music in our land is not yet a century old, a start has been made +which promises great things. Such pioneers as Paine, Chadwick, +MacDowell, Foote, Parker, Osgood, Whiting and Mrs. H.H.A. Beach have +written works, often in the larger forms, showing genuine inspiration +and fine workmanship, many of which have won permanent recognition +outside of their own country. Of late years a younger group has +arisen, the chief members[342] of which are Converse, Carpenter, +Gilbert, Hadley, Hill, Mason, Atherton, Stanley Smith, Brockway, Blair +Fairchild, Heilman, Shepherd, Clapp, John Powell, Margaret Ruthven +Lang, Gena Branscombe and Mabel Daniels. These composers all have +strong natural gifts, have been broadly educated, and, above all, in +their music is reflected a freedom, a humor and an individuality which +may fairly be called American; that is, it is not music which +slavishly follows the "made-in-Germany" model.[343] The composer of +greatest genius and scope in America is undoubtedly Charles Martin +Loeffler; but, although he has become a loyal American, and although +his best works have been composed in this country, we can hardly claim +him as an American composer, for his music vividly reflects French +taste and ideals. His inspired works--in particular _La Mort de +Tintagiles_, _The Pagan Poem_ and a Symphony (in one movement)--are of +peculiar importance for their connection with works of literature and +for consummate power in orchestration. Not even Debussy has expressed +more subtly the tragic spirit of Maeterlinck than has Loeffler in _La +Mort de Tintagiles_; and _The Pagan Poem_, founded on an Eclogue of +Virgil portrays most eloquently the romance of those pastoral days. +Loeffler's latest work, a String Quartet[344] dedicated to the memory +of Victor Chapman, the Harvard aviator, is remarkable for the +heart-felt beauty of its themes and for advanced technique in treating +the four solo instruments. + +[Footnote 342: This valuation of American composers is made solely on +the basis of published compositions.] + +[Footnote 343: For additional comments on this point see an article by +the author in the Musical Quarterly for January, 1918.] + +[Footnote 344: Performed recently several times by the Flonzaley +Quartet.] + +Let us now indulge in a few closing remarks of advice to the young +student faced with all this perplexing novelty. Our studies should +have made plain two definite facts: first, that the real message of +music is contained in its melody--that part of the fabric which we can +carry with us and sing to ourselves. Harmony and color are factors +closely involved with melodic inspiration, but their impression is +more fleeting; and in general, no work lacking in melody, however +colorful or filled with daring harmonic effects, can long endure. But +we must be judicious and fair in estimating exactly what constitutes a +real melody. The genius is always ahead of his time; if he thought +just as other men, he would be no genius. New types of melody are +continually being worked out; all we can say is that the creative +composer hears sounds in his imagination, the result of his emotional +and spiritual experiences and of his sympathy with the world. He +recreates these sounds in terms of notation, hoping that, as they mean +so much to him, they may be a delight and inspiration to his +fellowmen. If enough people like these works for a long enough time, +they _are_; that is, they live--no matter how much they differ from _a +priori_ standards as to what music should be. + +The second fact concerns the structure of music; that is, the way in +which the thought is presented. We have seen that music always has a +carefully planned architecture--that being necessary by reason of the +indefiniteness of the material. But let us always remember that +without abandoning the fundamental principles of all organic life, +form may be--and should be--free and elastic. Every work which lives +reveals a perfect balance between the emotional and imaginative +factors and their logical presentation. If we are puzzled by the +structure of a new work the assumption should be, not that it is +formless but that, when we know the work, it will be seen to employ +simply a new use of old and accepted principles; for the works +analyzed must have convinced us that the principles of unity, +contrast, balance and symmetry are eternal; and, however modified, can +never be abandoned. The normal imagination must express itself +logically, and can no more put forth incoherent works than the human +body would give birth to misshapen offspring. Musical compositions, +which after study prove to be incoherent, diffuse and flabby, are to +be considered exceptional and not worth condemning; they are only to +be pitied. The chief aim of the music-lover should be to become an +intelligent and enthusiastic appreciator of the great works already +composed, and to train himself liberally for the welcome of new works. +Towards such an end we hope that this book may offer a helpful +contribution. + + + + +Index + + +A + +_Academic Overture_ of Brahms, 233. + +Aeolian mode, 24. + +Aeschylus, compared with Brahms, 239. + +Albeniz, pianoforte pieces, 327. + +answer (to a fugue), 42. + +Apthorp, W.F., comments on Brahms, 238; + eulogy on Brahms's _First Symphony_, 246; + comments on _Istar_, 283. + +arabesque, 83. + +Aristophanes, his humor compared with Beethoven's, 150. + +Arnold, Matthew, lines on Byron apropos of Berlioz, 203; + stanza applicable to Brahms, 233; + definition of style, 234. + +Atherton, Percy Lee, 329. + +Auber, 255. + +augmentation, definition of, 44. + + +B + +Babbitt, Irving, book on Romanticism, 161; + _The New Laocoon_, 207. + +Bach, Emmanuel, use of two themes, 93; + contributions to the Sonata-form, 100. + +Bach, J.S., _Well-tempered Clavichord_, 23; + choral (Phrygian mode), 25; + polyphonic style, 34; + _Goldberg Variations_, 37; + celebrated organ fugues, 41; + analysis of _Fugue in E-flat major_, 42-43. + +_Bagatelles_, of Beethoven, 166. + +Balakireff, works and features of style, 315-316. + +Baldensperger, F., eulogy of Franck, 258. + +Ballet music to _Prometheus_, 140. + +Balzac, comment on Chopin, 189. + +_Barcarolle_, of Chopin, color effect therein, 193; + analysis of, 200-201. + +_Bartered Bride Overture_, 121, 322. + +basso ostinato, 86. + +Baudelaire, 293. + +Beach, Mrs., _Menuet Italien_, 78, 329. + +Beethoven, 2, 5, 8: + motive of _Fifth Symphony_, 12; + _Waldstein Sonata_, 15; + String Quartet (Lydian mode), 26; + fugal passages in symphonies, 41; + sentences from sonatas, 58-61; + _Egmont Overture_, 77; + _Rondo Capriccio_, 82; + sets of Variations, 88; + biography, 122-126; + love of Nature, 125; + features of style, 126-129; + development of the Sonata-form, 126-127; + treatment of the Coda, 127; + variety of rhythm, 127-128; + use of dissonances, 128; + humor, 128-129; + development of Program music, 129; + development of varied air, 129; + characterization of the Symphonies, 130-132; + estimate of the Pianoforte Sonatas, 140; + pianistic effect in Sonatas, 145; + as a programmistic composer, 153-154; + quality of themes, 156; + dramatic use of single notes, 156-157; + theme of _Ninth Symphony_ compared with theme from Brahms's _First + Symphony_, 247. + +Bela Bartok, 328. + +Berlioz, quotation from _Grotesques de la Musique_, 21; + canon in _Carnaval Romain_ Overture, 37; + comment on Trio of _Fifth Symphony_, 150; + biography, 202-205; + names of his Parisian friends, 204; + features of style, 205-206; + _Fantastic Symphony_, analysis of, 207-211; + _Carnaval Romain_ Overture, analysis of, 211-212; + _Damnation of Faust_, instrumental numbers from, 213-214; + _Harold in Italy_ Symphony, analysis of, 214-215; + _Romeo and Juliet_ Symphony, comments on, 215-216. + +Bie, Oscar, 74; + on the style of Couperin and Rameau, 152. + +Bizet, _L'Arlesienne Suites_, 80. + +Bohemian School, 320-321. + +Boieldieu, comment on Beethoven, 134, 255. + +_bolero_, 75. + +Boris Godounoff, description of, 320. + +Borodin, works and features of style, 316-317. + +Boschot, work, in three parts, on Berlioz, 207. + +_bourree_, 75. + +Brahms, _First Symphony_, 8, 14, 21, 44; + modal expression in works, 23; + _Fourth Symphony_ (Phrygian mode), 25; + canonic style, 36; + _C minor Trio_, 67; + sets of variations, 88; + biography, 231-233; + features of style, 233-238; + analysis of _First Symphony_, 239-249; + of _Violin Sonata_, 250-252; + of _G minor Ballade for Pianoforte_, 252-253; + attitude toward program music, 253; + the nature of his _Intermezzi_, 253; + of the _Capriccios_, 253; + his _Rhapsodies_, 254; + analysis of song _Meine Liebe ist gruen_, 254; + other songs, 255. + +branle (brawl), 75. + +Branscombe, Gena, 329. + +Brenet, M., _Life of Haydn_, 104. + +Brockway, H., on American folk-songs, 33, 329. + +Browning, 1; + quotation apropos of the fugue, 49; + quotations apropos of the _Fifth Symphony_, 146, 150. + +Bruckner, movement from _Seventh Symphony_, 231. + +Bruneau, _History of Russian Music_, 314. + +Bull, John, 79, 85. + +Buelow, _Sonatas_ of E. Bach, 100; + comment on Grieg, 325. + +Burney, on the 18th Century, 103. + +Buxtehude, 34. + +Byrd, William, 12, 79, 85. + +Byron, influence on Schumann's style, 177. + + +C + +_C minor Symphony_ (Beethoven), analysis of, 145-151. + +_C minor Symphony_ (Brahms), analysis of, 239-249. + +cadences, 55-57. + +Calvacoressi, on dominant relationship, 52. + +canon, 11; + account of, 36-37. + +canzona, 69. + +_Carnaval Romain_ Overture, analysis of, 211-212. + +Carpenter, John Alden, _Adventures in a Perambulator_, 80, 329. + +Casella, 328. + +_Casse-Noisette Suite_, 80. + +Cellini, Benvenuto, compared with Berlioz, 202; + opera by Berlioz, 211. + +Chabrier, _Bourree Fantasque_, 80, 297; + _Espana_, 80, 297; + Overture to _Gwendoline_, 99, 297; + account of style, 297. + +_chaconne_, 86; + Bach's for violin solo, 87. + +Chadwick, _Canonic Studies_, 36; + fugal passage in _Vagrom Ballad_, 41, 329. + +Chamisso, texts for Schumann's songs, 170. + +Chantavoine, Life of Beethoven, 159. + +Charpentier, _Impressions of Italy_, 80. + +Chausson, Ernest, account of style, 298. + +Chavannes, Puvis de, compared with Franck, 258. + +Chopin, type of melody, 10, 21; + _Sonata in C minor_, 67; + biography and features of style, 188-189; + analysis of _Prelude in C major_, 198; + _Etude in A-flat major_, 199; + _Mazurka in F-sharp minor_, 199; + analysis of _Polonaise in E-flat minor_, 200; + of _Barcarolle_, 200-201; + of _Scherzo in C-sharp minor_, 201. + +chromatic changes, 51. + +Clapp, P.G., 48, 329. + +coda, definition and examples of, 99. + +color, in different keys, 51. + +Combarieu, Jules, 2. + +Converse, F.S., Dramatic Poem, _Job_ (Phrygian mode), 26; + _String Quartet_, 99, 329. + +Corelli, 70, 74. + +_Coriolanus_ Overture, analysis of, 152-156. + +counterpoint, definition of, 11. + +counter-subject (of a fugue), 42. + +Couperin, 70, 74, 81, 85; + descriptive pieces, 152, 255. + +_courante_ (_corrente_), 75. + +Croatian Folk-songs (in Haydn), 101-102. + +_csardas_, 76. + + +D + +_D major Sonata_ of Beethoven, analysis of, 140-145. + +_D Minor Symphony_ of Schumann, 179-184. + +d'Albert, _Suite for Pianoforte_, 78. + +_Damnation of Faust_, instrumental numbers from, 213-214. + +Daniels, Mabel, 329. + +Dannreuther, eulogy on Beethoven, 159; + comment on Berlioz's counterpoint, 209. + +Dargomijsky, use of whole-tone scale, 289. + +Debussy, modal expression in works, 23, 288-289; + _Pelleas et Melisande_ (Dorian mode), 24; + comments upon, 294; + _Minstrels_ (cadence in), 55-56; + _Sarabande_ for pianoforte, 77; + comment on development, 97; + compared with Mendelssohn, 185; + apropos of new music, 204; + features of style, 287-297; + whole-tone scale, 289-290; + titles of pianoforte pieces, 292-293; + on his pianoforte style, 295-296. + +de Musset, quotation apropos of Grieg, 325. + +deceptive cadence, 56. + +Dent, E.J., _Mozart's Operas_, 112. + +De Pachman, playing of Mendelssohn's pieces, 185. + +De Quincey, quotation from the _Dream Fugue_, 49. + +_Deutsches Requiem_, 233. + +development section of Sonata-form, 93-94, 97-98. + +Dickinson, Edward, estimate of Haydn, 101. + +diminution, definition of, 44. + +d'Indy, modal expression in works, 23; + canonic style, 36; + Symphonic Variations, _Istar_, 67; + comments on the Sonata-form, 95, 100; + comment on Beethoven's _Seventh Symphony_, 131; + comment on _Sonata Pathetique_, 142; + comments on D major Sonata, 145; + comments on _Fifth Symphony_, 145; + Life of Beethoven, 159; + comments on Franck's themes, 268; + biography and features of style, 280-282; + _Istar_, analysis of, 283-287. + +dissonance, discord, distinction between terms, 143. + +Dohnanyi, 328. + +Dominant, acoustical and harmonic importance of, 22-23, 52. + +_Don Giovanni_, 111, 119. + +_Don Juan_, 85. + +_Don Quixote_, 89. + +Dorian mode, 24. + +Dostoyevsky, 314, 319, 320. + +Doumic, Rene, essay on George Sand, 189. + +Dowland, John, his _Pavans_, 80. + +Duparc, Henri, account of his style, 298. + +Dvo[vr]ak, _New World Symphony_, 9, 21; + modal expression in works, 23; + _New World Symphony_ (Aeolian mode), 26; + _Suite for Orchestra_, 79; + works and features of style, 322-324. + + +E + +Eichendorff, texts for Schumann's songs, 176. + +_Eighth Symphony_ of Beethoven, Finale, 157. + +Elgar, Edward, works and features of style, 328-329. + +Ellis, W.A., translation of Wagner's Essays, 154. + +Enesco, 327. + +enharmonic, modulation, 52-53. + +episode, definition of, 39-40. + +exposition of Sonata-form, 96. + +extended cadences, 62-63. + + +F + +_F major Sonata_ of Mozart, analysis of, 113-115. + +Fairchild, Blair, 329. + +_Fantastic Symphony_, analysis of, 207-211; + quotation from, 207-209. + +Farwell, Arthur, on folk-music, 33. + +Faure, Gabriel, account of style, 297-298. + +_Faust_ Symphony, analysis of, 223-226. + +Fay, Amy, account of Liszt, 217. + +feminine ending, 57. + +Fibich, 321. + +Finck, H.T., _Songs and Song Writers_, 265; + _Chopin and Other Essays_, 198; + comments on Program Music, 226; + biography of Grieg, 324. + +Fitzwilliam Virginal Book, 79, 152. + +five-bar rhythm, 63-64. + +Flonzaley Quartet, 105. + +folk-songs, principle of restatement in, 16; + origin and importance of, 19-33. + +Foote, Arthur, fugal Finale to _Suite_, 41, 329. + +Forsyth, Cecil, eulogy of Mendelssohn, 185. + +_Francesca da Rimini_, 154. + +Franck, _Symphony_, 8, 15; + polyphonic structure, 13; + canonic style, 36; + canon in _Symphony_, 37; + in _Violin Sonata_, 37; + _Fugue in B minor for Pianoforte_, 41; + comparison of his scoring with that of Schumann, 181; + limitations of his pianoforte style, 190; + his fusion of movements compared with that of Brahms, 251; + biography, 256-257; + features of style, 257-258; + analysis of _D minor Symphony_, 259-268; + of _Sonata for Violin_, 268-274; + use of generative themes, 268; + _Symphonic Variations_, 274-280; + comparison of his style with that of Bach and Beethoven, 274; + his group of pupils, 280. + +French folk-song, 29. + +French Overture, 119. + +Frescobaldi, 34. + +Friedlaender, Max, apropos of Chabrier, 281. + +fugue, 11; + definition of, 39. + +Fuller-Maitland, life of Brahms, 238. + +_furiant_, 75, 321. + + +G + +_G major Pianoforte Concerto_ of Beethoven, 152-158. + +_G minor Symphony_, analysis of, 115-119. + +Gade, Neils, 324. + +_galliard_, 75, 80. + +Galuppi, as a pioneer in Sonata-form, 93. + +Gardiner, Balfour, 329. + +Gautier, Theophile, eulogy of Berlioz, 207. + +_gavotte_, 75; + account of, and examples, 78-79. + +Gilbert, H.F., on folk-songs, 20, 33, 329. + +Gilman, Lawrence, essay on Berlioz, 214; + comments on _Istar_, 283; + essay on Debussy, 293; + comments on _Pelleas el Melisande_, 297. + +Glinka, 301, 315. + +Gluck, Ballet music, 87; + Operatic Overtures, 119. + +Goethe, eulogy on Mozart, 112. + +Gogol, 314, 320. + +Gosse, Edmund, comment on Mallarme's eclogue, 293. + +Gossec, as a pioneer in Sonata-form, 93. + +Granados, Spanish folk-dance, 167; + works, 327. + +Gregorian Chant, 10. + +Gregorian modes in folk-songs, 20. + +Gretry, comments on Sonata-form, 98, 255. + +Grieg, 21; + Canon for Pianoforte, 37; + _Peer Gynt Suite_, 80; + _Holberg Suite_, 80; + works and features of style, 324-325. + +ground bass, 86; + from Bach's Mass, 86. + +Grove, _Beethoven and his Nine Symphonies_, 130. + +Grove's _Dictionary_, 70, 73, 79, 81, 86, 104, 119, 154, 161, 172, 200, + 217, 238. + +Guilmant, March in Dorian Mode, 24; + Canon for Organ, 36. + +Gurney, _The Power of Sound_, 2. + + +H + +_habanera_, 76. + +Habets, Alfred, account of Borodin and Liszt, 316. + +Hadley, Henry, 329. + +Hadow, W.H., 72, 81, 92, 96; + _Studies in Modern Music_, 184, 198, 207, 238; + essay on Dvo[vr]ak, 321; + article on Scryabin, 326. + +Hale, Philip, comments on Saint-Saens, 256; + comments on Lalo, 256; + essay on Mozart, 112; + comments on _Scheherazade_, 317-318. + +_halling_, 76. + +Handel, fugue from the Messiah, 41; + _Harpsichord Lessons_, 74; + Air in Sarabande rhythm, 77; + _Harmonious Blacksmith_, 86; + Overture to _Messiah_, 119. + +Harmonic Series, 51. + +_Harold in Italy_ Symphony, analysis of, 214-215. + +Haydn, 21, 81, 87; + ancestry, 101; + features of style, 101-105; + his freedom of rhythm, 102; + development of the String-Quartet and the Orchestra, 102-103; + _Sonata in E-Flat major_, 105-106; + _Surprise Symphony_, 106-108; + comment on Minuet, 144; + Prelude to the _Creation_, 152. + +Hazlitt, comment on Mozart, 111. + +_Hebrides_ Overture of Mendelssohn, 185. + +Heilman, William C., 329. + +Heine, texts for songs of Schubert and Schumann, 176; + comment on Berlioz's music, 205. + +Helmholtz, 193, 291. + +Henderson, W.J., _Preludes and Studies_, 184. + +Henschel, vocal canon, 37; + conversation with Brahms, 233. + +_Heroic Symphony_, analysis of, 132-140. + +Herold, 255. + +Hill, Edward Burlingame, _Stevensoniana_, 80; + comments on Saint-Saens, 256; + essay on d'Indy, 281, 329. + +Hinton, Arthur, 329. + +Hoffman, E.T.A., Essay on _Fifth Symphony_, 151. + +_Holberg Suite_, 80. + +Holbrook, 329. + +Holmes, Augusta, 280. + +homophonic, 10. + +hornpipe, 75. + +Hull, Eaglefield, Biography of Scryabin, 326. + +Huneker, Life of Chopin, 198; + on the playing of Chopin, 199; + comment on Chopin's Scherzo, 201; + Life of Liszt, 217; + comment on Liszt's Songs, 220; + essay on Brahms, 238; + essay on Tchaikowsky, 306. + +Hungarian folk-song, 30, 328. + +_Hungarian Rhapsodies_, 227. + +Hungarian rhythms in Schubert, Liszt and Brahms, 30; + in Schubert's Symphonies, 166; + in Brahms's First Symphony, 244. + + +I + +_Impromptus_ of Schubert, 165-166. + +_Indian Suite_, 80. + +invention, 11. + +_Invention in C major_, analysis of, 38-89. + +inversion, definition of, 43-44. + +Ionian mode, 24. + +Ireland, John, 329. + +Irish Folk-song, 29, 35. + +_Istar_, Symphonic Poem of d'Indy, as example of a varied air, 89; + analysis of, 283-287. + +Italian Overture, 119. + + +J + +Jadassohn, Canonic Pieces, 37. + +James, Henry, essay on George Sand, 189. + +Jannequin, descriptive pieces for voices, 152. + +_jota_ (_aragonesa_), 76. + + +K + +_Kaiser Quartet_, 87. + +Keats, quotation apropos of _Fifth Symphony_, 148; + quotation from, 163. + +Kelly, E.S., _Chopin the Composer_, 198. + +Kelly, Michael, _Reminiscences of Mozart_, 112. + +_King Lear_, quotation from by Berlioz, 207. + +Kjerulf, 324. + +Korbay, F., _Hungarian Melodies_, 30. + +Krehbiel, essay on Haydn, 103; + _The Pianoforte and its Music_, 152. + +_Kreisleriana_, 83. + +Kuhnau, _Bible Sonatas_, 152. + + +L + +Lalo, Eduard, works and features of style, 256. + +Laloy, Louis, Life of Chopin, 198; + essay on Debussy, 294. + +Laparra, 327. + +_L'apprenti Sorcier_, 154. + +_L'apres-midi d'un Faune_, 154, 293-294. + +Lavoix, estimate of the _Fifth Symphony_, 127. + +Legouve, _Recollections_ of Berlioz, 205. + +Lekeu, 257. + +_L'idee fixe_, 207-210. + +Liebich, Mrs., essay on Debussy, 294. + +Liszt, 4, 21; + characterization of Schubert, 164; + _Faust_ Symphony (theme in augmentation), 45; + Life of Chopin, 198; + biography, 217-218; + features of style, 218-219; + analysis of Symphonic Poem, _Orpheus_, 221-222; + of _Faust_ Symphony, 223-226; + pianoforte compositions, 226-227; + alleged influence on Brahms, 232; + use of whole-tone scale, 289. + +Locke, A.W., article in _Musical Quarterly_, 151. + +Loeffler, Charles Martin, works and features of style, 329-330. + +_Lonesome Tunes_, 33. + +_loure_, 75; + example of, from Bach, 79. + +Lowell, J.R., definition of a classic, 161. + +Lully, 70, 119. + +Lydian mode, 24. + + +M + +MacCunn, Hamish, _Scottish Melodies_, 28. + +MacDowell, _Rigaudon_, 79; + _Indian Suite_, 80, 329. + +madrigal, 69. + +Maeterlinck, compared with Franck, 257; + comment on the theatre, 294; + influence on Loeffler, 330. + +_Magic Flute_ Overture, analysis of, 119-121. + +Mahler, comments on his style, 231. + +_malaguena_, 76. + +Mallarme, 293. + +Malipiero, 328. + +_Manfred_ Overture, 177-179. + +Mannheim Orchestra, 102. + +Manuel, Roland, life of Ravel, 299. + +march, 75. + +_Marriage of Figaro_, 111. + +masculine ending, 57. + +Mason, D.G., 7, 9; + essay on Haydn, 102; + on Mozart, 112; + comment on Chopin's style, 196; + essay on Berlioz, 211; + on Saint-Saens, 256; + on d'Indy, 281; + comments on _Istar_, 283; + essay on Debussy, 295; + on Tchaikowsky, 306; + on Dvo[vr]ak, 322; + as composer, 329. + +_mazurka_, 75. + +mediant relationship, 52, 96. + +Mehul, 255. + +_Melpomene_ Overture, 154. + +_Melusine_ Overture of Mendelssohn, 185. + +Mendelssohn, 89; + biography and features of style, 184-186; + Violin Concerto, comments on, 185-186. + +Merkel, canon for organ, 36. + +_Midsummer Night's Dream_ Overture, analysis of, 186-187. + +Milton, quotation from _Paradise Lost_, 49. + +minuet, 75; + account of, and examples, 78. + +Mixolydian mode, 24. + +modal, chart of modes, 23-24. + +modulation, 51-52. + +_Moments Musicaux_ of Schubert, 165-166. + +Montagu-Nathan, _History of Russian Music_, 314, 326. + +Monteverde, 119. + +Morales, 327. + +Moor, 328. + +_Mother Goose Suite_, 81. + +Moussorgsky, works and features of style, 318-320. + +Mozart, _Magic Flute_ Overture, 40; + Finale of _Jupiter_ Symphony, 40, 81; + biography, 108-110; + features of style, 110-112; + Mozart and Haydn, reactive influence, 110-111; + polyphonic skill, 110, 112; + dramatic power, 111; + examples from works, 113-121. + +Mundy, John, descriptive pianoforte piece, 152. + +_musette_, 78. + +_Mystic Trumpeter_, 154. + + +N + +National Music, distinctive features of, 300-301. + +Neefe, Beethoven's teacher, 124. + +_Neue Zeitschrift fuer Musik_, founded by Schumann, 174. + +_New World Symphony_, critical comments on, 323-324. + +Newman, _Musical Studies_, 154, 178, 207; + comment on Debussy, 296. + +Newmarch, Rosa, _Life of Tchaikovsky_, 305. + +Niecks, _Programme Music_, 152, 214, 221, 305; + _Life of Chopin_, 198; + eulogy of Liszt, 228. + +Nordraak, 324. + + +O + +Organ, the, its tone compared with that of pianoforte, 191. + +organum, 10. + +_Orpheus_, Symphonic Poem, analysis of, 221-222. + +Osgood, George L., 329. + +overtones, chart of, 193. + +_Oxford History of Music_, 10, 12, 102, 103, 110, 119, 161, 165, 185, + 216, 221, 226. + + +P + +Paderewski, 77; + Minuet of, 78; + playing of Mendelssohn's pieces, 185. + +Paganini, connection with Berlioz, 214. + +Paine, J.K., _Fuga Giocosa_, 46, 49; + tribute to Beethoven, 129, 329. + +Palestrina, 34. + +Parker, H.W., fugue from _Hora Novissima_, 41, 329. + +Parry, _Evolution of the Art of Music_, 9, 16, 21, 69, 70; + choral works, 328. + +_Passacaglia_, 86; + of Brahms, 86; + of Bach for organ, 87. + +_passepied_, 75. + +Pater, Walter, remark on Romanticism, 161. + +_pavane_, 75; + example from Ravel, 79. + +pedals of the pianoforte, the damper and the una corda, 192-195. + +_Peer Gynt_ Suite, 80. + +period, definition of, 50. + +Perotin, 34. + +Perry, Baxter, 90. + +_Phaeton_, 256. + +Philidor, 255. + +Phrygian cadence, 24-25. + +Phrygian mode, 23; + Brahms's use of, 239. + +pianoforte, the, account of its characteristics, 189-195. + +plagal cadence, 55. + +_polka_, 75, 321. + +_polonaise_, 75. + +polyphonic, 10. + +polyphonic music, complete account of, 33-49. + +Poiree, Elie, Life of Chopin, 198. + +Pope, apropos of the jig, 80. + +Pougin, Arthur, comments on Moussorgsky, 318-319. + +Powell, John, 329. + +Pratt, _History of Music_, 10, 93, 159, 161. + +prelude (to Sonata-form), 99. + +_Prix de Rome_, won by Berlioz, 205; + by Debussy, 288. + +Prout, 85. + +Puccini, fugal prelude to _Madama Butterfly_, 41. + +Purcell, 70; + his Jig, 71. + +Pushkin, 314. + + +Q + +Quilter, Roger, 329. + + +R + +Rabelais, his humor compared with Beethoven's, 150, 157. + +Rameau, acoustical reforms of, 23, 70, 74, 81, 85; + descriptive pieces, 152, 255. + +Ravel, _Daphnis and Chloe_, 68; + his Pavane, 79; + _Mother Goose Suite_, 81; + works and account of style, 299-300. + +recapitulation (or _resume_), 98-99. + +Reinecke, Canonic Vocal Trios, 37. + +Remenyi, Brahms's tour with, 232. + +repetition, importance of, 12, 13; + types of, 14-18. + +Rheinberger, _Canonic Pieces_, 87; + _Tarantelle_ for Pianoforte, 79. + +rhythmic variety (five and seven beats a measure), 66-68. + +Richter, Jean Paul, influence on Schumann, 172. + +Riemann, 93. + +_rigaudon_, 75; + examples of, from Grieg, Rameau and MacDowell, 79, 81. + +Rimsky-Korsakoff, works and features of style, 317. + +_Roi d'Ys, Le_, 256. + +Rolland, Romain, account of Beethoven in _Jean Christophe_, 125; + _Life of Beethoven_, 159; + essay on Berlioz, 207. + +Romanticism and Romantic School, account of, 160-165. + +_Romeo and Juliet_ Symphony, comments on, 215-216. + +rondo, account of, 81-85. + +rondo-sonata form, 144. + +Ropartz, 257; + characterization of a theme in Franck's Symphony, 266. + +Rossetti, _Blessed Damozel_, set by Debussy, 288. + +Rossini, "crescendo" in Overtures, 62; + eulogy of Mozart, 121. + +_Rouet d'Omphale, Le_, 256. + +round, 11; + _Old English Rounds_, 12. + +rubato (tempo), definition of, 199. + +Rubinstein, movements in _Ocean Symphony_, 95; + estimate of Mozart, 111; + characterization of the damper pedal, 191. + +Runciman, quotation apropos of Weber from _Old Scores and New Readings_, + 169-170. + +Russian folk-songs, 30-33. + +Russian music, general tendencies of, 314-315. + + +S + +Saint-Saens, 1, 2; + comment on Berlioz's _Romeo and Juliet Symphony_, 216; + account of works and style, 255-256. + +_Sakuntala_, 154. + +_saltarello_, 75; + Berlioz's use of the rhythm, 211. + +Sammartini, as a pioneer in Sonata-form, 93. + +Santayana, 5. + +_sarabande_, 75, 76, 77. + +Scandinavian Music, 324. + +Scarlatti, Alessandro, Aria da capo, 14; + operatic overture, 119. + +Scarlatti, D., the _Cat-Fugue_, 48; + as virtuoso, 74; + anticipation of Sonata-form, 93; + _Courante_ for pianoforte, 79; + crossing of hands in Beethoven, 141, 144. + +Schumann, 7; + motive from the _Carnaval_, 13; + from the _Kinderscenen_, 13; + _Arabesque_, 14: + saying about folk-songs, 20; + Canon for organ, 36; + Canonic Variations, 37; + _Carnaval_, 68; + _Phantasiestuecke_, 68; + his use of the Rondo, 82-83; + Variations, 88; + comment on Schubert, 166; + biography and features of style, 172-174; + analysis of _Des Abends_, 174-175; + of _Warum_, 175-176; + of _Novellette in E major_, 176; + of Song, _Mondnacht_, 176-177; + of _Manfred_ Overture, 177-179; + characterization of the four Symphonies, 179; + _Symphony in D minor_, analysis of, 179-184; + eulogy of Brahms in the _Neue Zeitschrift_, 232. + +Schola Cantorum, account of, 282. + +Scottish folk-tune, 28. + +Scryabin, as harmonic innovator, 143; + works and features of style, 327. + +_seguidilla_, 76, 79. + +sentence, complete analysis of, 53, 54. + +sequence, definition of, 38. + +_Scheherazade Suite_, 81. + +scherzo, of Beethoven, 128-129. + +Schmitt, Florent, 280. + +Schubert, 21; + Variations, 88; + account of style and works, 162-169; + character of songs, 165; + symphonic style, 166; + chamber music, 166; + pianoforte style, 167; + as great colorist, 167-168; + analysis of _Unfinished Symphony_, 167-169. + +seven-bar rhythm, 66. + +Shakespeare, 1; + apropos of the galliard, 80. + +Sharp, Cecil, _English Folk-Song_, 27; + on American folk-songs, 33. + +Shepherd, Arthur, 329. + +Shedlock, J.S., 93, 100. + +shifted rhythm, 46. + +Sibelius, features of his style, 230, 324, 327. + +_siciliano_, 76. + +Sinding, 325. + +Sinigaglia, Overture, 99. + +Sjoegren, 324. + +Smetana, _Bartered Bride Overture_, 40, 121; + works and features of style, 321-322. + +Smith, Stanley, 329. + +Smithson, Henrietta, her life with Berlioz, 204-205. + +sonata and sonata-form, distinction between, 94-95. + +sonata-form, account of 91-100; + tabular view, 100. + +_Song of Destiny_, Brahms, 233. + +_Songs without Words_, Mendelssohn, 185. + +Spanish music, its influence in modern times, 327-328. + +Spitta, essay on Brahms, 238. + +Stamitz, J., influence on Sonata-form, 93. + +Stanford, Villiers, Irish folk-songs, 29; + features of style, 328. + +Stanford-Forsyth history, 121, 328. + +Stendhal, remark on Romanticism, 161. + +_Stevensoniana_, 80. + +Strauss, R., motive from _Till's Merry Pranks_, 18; + _Don Juan_, 85; + _Till Eulenspiegel_, 85; + estimate of Mozart, 111. + +Stravinsky, as harmonic innovator, 143; + works and features of style, 326-327. + +Streatfield, essay on Tchaikowsky, 306. + +stretto, 46. + +string-quartet, definition of, 94. + +subdominant, acoustical and harmonic importance, 22-23, 52. + +subject (of a fugue), 42-43. + +suite, the classical, 73-80; + the modern, 80-81. + +_Suites, French and English_, 74. + +Sullivan, Arthur, operas, 328. + +_Sumer is icumen in_ (Ionian mode) 27. + +Surette, T.W., comments on Bach's style, 48, 72; + _Development of Symphonic Music_, 159. + +_Surprise Symphony_, analysis of, 106-108. + +Svendsen, 324. + +Sweelinck, 34. + +Symonds, Arthur, _Studies in the Seven Arts_, 159. + +_Symphonic Etudes_, 88. + +symphonic poem, definition of, 149, 220. + +symphonic style, development of, 228-231. + + +T + +Tallys, Thomas, vocal canon, 37. + +_tambourin_, 71. + +_tango_, 76. + +_tarantella_, 75. + +Taylor, Bayard, translation of stanza from _Faust_, 225. + +Tchaikowsky, Modeste, biography of his brother, 306. + +Tchaikowsky, P., _Fifth Symphony_, 8, 21; + analysis of, 306-314; + modal expression in works, 23; + _Legend_ (Aeolian mode), 26; + _Fourth Symphony_, finale of, 33; + analysis of, 305; + _Sixth Symphony_, 67; + analysis of, 305-306; + _Quartet in F major_, 67-68; + variations from Trio, 89; + estimate of Mozart, 111, 121; + biography, 302-303; + features of style, 303-305. + +Thackeray, W.M., characterization of Berlioz, 204. + +Thayer, Alexander, _Life of Beethoven_, 159. + +thematic development, 34. + +three-bar rhythm, 65-66. + +three-part form, complete account of, 72-73; + examples of, 73. + +Tiersot, J., on folk-melodies, 21; + _Chansons Populaires_, 30; + work on Berlioz, 207. + +_Till Eulenspiegel_, 85. + +Tolstoi, 315, 319, 320. + +tonality, principles of, 50-51. + +tonic, acoustical and harmonic importance of, 22-23. + +_Tragic Overture_, Brahms, 233. + +transformation of theme, its use in Schumann, 182. + +Turgenieff, 315. + +two-part form, definition of, 38; + complete account of, 69-72. + + +V + +Van Vechten, book on Spanish music, 328. + +variation form, account of, 85-91. + +_Variations, in F minor_ of Haydn, 87; + on _Death and the Maiden_, 88; + _Serieuses_, 88; + _on a Theme from Handel_, 88; + on the _St. Anthony Choral_, 88; + (_Enigma_) by Elgar, 89; + _Symphoniques_, 89. + +Verdi, Minuet from _Falstaff_, 78. + +Veretschagin, 320. + +Verlaine, 293. + +_Violin Concerto_ of Beethoven, 156-157. + +Vittoria, 327. + +Vivaldi, 70. + +von Breuning family, 125. + + +W + +Wagner, comment on operas, 4; + quality of themes, 8; + motive from the _Valkyrie_, 12; + polyphonic structure of operas, 13; + motive from _Tristan and Isolde_, 17; + fugal Prelude to third act of the _Mastersingers_, 41; + comments on _Leonore_ Overture, 98; + eulogy of Mendelssohn, 185. + +_Waldesrauschen_, Etude of Lizst, 227. + +Waldstein, friendship with Beethoven, 125. + +_Waldstein_ Sonata, 83. + +Walker, E., on English folk-music, 22. + +Wallace, estimate of Haydn, 102; + _Threshold of Music_, 291, 329. + +Wallaschek, R., on primitive music, 21. + +_Wallenstein Trilogy_ (d'Indy), 281. + +_waltz_, 75. + +Weber, _Moto Perpetuo_, 83; + orchestral treatment in his Overtures, 164-165; + account of style, 169-172; + _Invitation to the Dance_, arrangement by Weingartner, 169; + compared with that by Berlioz, 171; + _Oberon_ Overture, analysis of, 170-171; + compositions for pianoforte, 171. + +Weckerlin, example from _Echos du Temps Passe_, 71. + +Weingartner, eulogy of Berlioz, 206; + comments on the Symphonic Poem, 220; + comments on Brahms's _First Symphony_, 244, 246. + +Whistler, compared with Debussy, 293. + +Whiting, Arthur, _Scottish Melodies_, 28; + _Irish Melodies_, 29; + _Suite Moderne_, 80; + _Pedal Studies_, 193, 194, 329. + +Whitman, 1; + quotation from _Mystic Trumpeter_, 146. + +Widor, canon for organ, 36. + +Willaert, harmonic basis of choruses, 23. + +Williams, Abdy, on Brahms's rhythm, 253. + +Williams, Vaughan, 329. + +Wordsworth, quotation from, 163. + +Wyman, Loraine, 33. + + + + +LIST OF COMPOSITIONS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK + + +I. _Sumer is icumen in._ Old English Round. + +II. _To the Green Wood._ Round by Byrd. + +III. Finale of Wagner's _Valkyrie_. + +IV. _Reconnaissance_ from Schumann's _Carnaval_. + +V. Irish Folk Song. + +VI. Epilogue of Strauss's _Till's Merry Pranks_. + +VII. _March in Dorian Mode._ Guilmant. + +VIII. _Movement in Lydian Mode._ Beethoven. + +IX. _Canon._ Thomas Tallys. + +X. _Canon_ from _Etudes Symphoniques_. Schumann. + +XI. No. VI of the _Goldberg Variations_. J.S. Bach. + +XII. _Canon for Pianoforte._ Grieg. + +XIII. _Canon for Pianoforte._ Jadassohn. + +XIV. _Two-voiced Invention in C major._ J.S. Bach. + +XV. _Three-voiced Fugue in E-flat major._ J.S. Bach. + +XVI. Final portion of _Organ Fugue in G major_. J.S. Bach. + +XVII. _Cat Fugue for Pianoforte._ D. Scarlatti. + +XVIII. _Fuga Giocosa for Pianoforte._ J.K. Paine. + +XIX. Song, _The Evening Star_. Schumann. + +XX. _Gavotte in F major._ Corelli. + +XXI. _Waltz in A-flat major._ Schubert. + +XXII. _Traeumerei._ Schumann. + +XXIII. _Prelude in A major._ Chopin. + +XXIV. _Lyric Piece in E-flat major._ Grieg. + +XXV. _Nocturne in F major._ Chopin. + +XXVI. _Berceuse in G major._ Grieg. + +XXVII. _Intermezzo in E-flat minor._ Heilman. + +XXVIII. _Sarabande in D major._ J.S. Bach. + +XXIX. Gavotte from _Third English Suite_. J.S. Bach. + +XXX. Minuet from _Don Giovanni_. Mozart. + +XXXI. Two Minuets from _Castor and Pollux_. Rameau. + +XXXII. _Gigue in G major._ J.S. Bach. + +XXXIII. _Gigue in G major._ Mozart. + +XXXIV. _Courante in F minor._ D. Scarlatti. + +XXXV. _French Suite in E major._ J.S. Bach. + +XXXVI. _Soeur Monique._ Rondo by Couperin. + +XXXVII. _Romance in E major._ Rondo by Schumann. + +XXXVIII. _Rondo a Capriccio in G major._ Beethoven. + +XXXIX. Aria from _Dido and Aeneas_ (Ground bass). Purcell. + +XL. _Sonata in C major._ D. Scarlatti. + +XLI. Finale from _Sonata in E-flat major_. Haydn. + +XLII. First Movement from the _Surprise Symphony_. Haydn. + +XLIII. _Adagio in B minor._ Mozart. + +XLIV. First Movement from the _Heroic Symphony_. Beethoven. + +XLV. _Sonata in D Major._ Beethoven. + +XLVI. Finale from _Sonata in A-flat major_. Beethoven. + +XLVII. Portion of Slow Movement of _Seventh Symphony_. Beethoven. + +XLVIII. Slow Movement of _Trio in B-flat major_. Beethoven. + +XLIX. Theme of Slow Movement from _Sonata in E major_, Op. 109. +Beethoven. + +L. _The Young Nun_. Song by Schubert. + +LI. Intermezzo from the _Euryanthe Overture_. Weber. + +LII. Portion of Fantasy Piece, _Grillen_. Schumann. + +LIII. _Novellette in E major._ Schumann. + +LIV. _Moonlight._ Song by Schumann. + +LV. _Venetian Boat Song._ Mendelssohn. + +LVI. _Barcarolle._ Chopin. + +LVII. _The Carnaval Romain Overture._ Berlioz. + +LVIII. _March of the Pilgrims_ from the _Harold in Italy Symphony_. +Berlioz. + +LIX. _Forest Murmurs._ Etude by Liszt. + +LX. _Ballade in G minor._ Brahms. + +LXI. _My Love is Green as the Alder Bush._ Song by Brahms. + +LXII. Finale of Symphonic Poem, _Istar_. D'Indy. + +LXIII. _Chanson triste_ for Pianoforte. Tchaikowsky. + +LXIV. _Invocation to Sleep._ Song by Tchaikowsky. + +LXV. _Serenade._ Borodin. + +LXVI. _Cradle Song of the Poor._ Moussorgsky. + +LXVII. _Silhouette._ Dvo[vr]ak. + +LXVIII. _Spring Song._ Grieg. + +LXIX. _Dance of Spring._ Grieg. + + + + +CRITICAL and HISTORICAL ESSAYS + +_By Edward MacDowell_ + +(_Lectures Delivered at Columbia University_) + +Especially valuable to that circle of readers who desire to secure the +essential elements of a liberal culture in music. With this aim, Mr. +MacDowell outlines somewhat the technical side of music, and with it, +gives a general idea of the history and aesthetics of the art. + +_Price $1.50_ + + * * * * * + +TONAL COUNTERPOINT + +Studies in Part-Writing + +_By WALTER R. SPALDING_ + +Professor of Music in Harvard University + +_Price $2.00_ + + * * * * * + +MODERN HARMONY; + +ITS THEORY AND PRACTICE + +Arthur Foote, A.M. and Walter R. Spalding, A.M. + +_Price $1.50_ + + * * * * * + +JUST ISSUED + +MODULATION and RELATED HARMONIC QUESTIONS + +_By ARTHUR FOOTE_ + +_Price $1.25_ + +Scales and Key Relationship +Modulation in General +Change of Keys or Chords without Modulation +Change of Keys by moving to a New Tonic +Modulation by means of Various Chords +Diatonic, Chromatic, and Enharmonic Modulation +Harmonic Changes resulting from the Symmetrical Movement of Individual + Voices +Harmonic Changes resulting from the Elision of Chords +A Table of Modulations + + * * * * * + +THE ARTHUR P. 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