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If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The Lighter Classics in Music - A Comprehensive Guide to Musical Masterworks in a Lighter Vein - -Author: David Ewen - -Release Date: September 19, 2021 [eBook #66346] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LIGHTER CLASSICS IN MUSIC *** - - - - - _The Lighter Classics in Music_ - - - [Illustration: glyph] - - _A Comprehensive Guide to - Musical Masterworks in a Lighter Vein - by 187 Composers_ - - - _by David Ewen_ - - [Illustration: glyph] - - _Arco Publishing Company, Inc._ - NEW YORK - - - _Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 61-17781 - Copyright 1961 by Arco Publishing Company, Inc., New York - All rights reserved. - Manufactured in the United States of America, - by H. Wolff, New York_ - - - - - Contents - - - Joseph Achron 1 - Adolphe-Charles Adam 2 - Richard Addinsell 4 - Isaac Albéniz 5 - Hugo Alfvén 7 - Louis Alter 8 - Leroy Anderson 10 - Daniel François Esprit Auber 12 - Johann Sebastian Bach 15 - Michael Balfe 18 - Hubert Bath 19 - Ludwig van Beethoven 20 - Vincenzo Bellini 23 - Ralph Benatzky 24 - Arthur Benjamin 26 - Robert Russell Bennett 27 - Hector Berlioz 29 - Leonard Bernstein 31 - Georges Bizet 33 - Luigi Boccherini 37 - François Boieldieu 39 - Giovanni Bolzoni 40 - Carrie Jacobs Bond 41 - Alexander Borodin 42 - Felix Borowski 44 - Johannes Brahms 45 - Charles Wakefield Cadman 48 - Lucien Caillet 49 - Alfredo Catalani 50 - Otto Cesana 51 - Emmanuel Chabrier 52 - George Whitefield Chadwick 54 - Cécile Chaminade 55 - Gustave Charpentier 56 - Frédéric Chopin 57 - Eric Coates 61 - Peter Cornelius 63 - Noel Coward 64 - César Cui 65 - Claude Debussy 66 - Léo Delibes 68 - Gregore Dinicu 71 - Gaetano Donizetti 72 - Franz Drdla 75 - Riccardo Drigo 76 - Arcady Dubensky 76 - Paul Dukas 77 - Antonin Dvořák 79 - Sir Edward Elgar 83 - Duke Ellington 86 - Georges Enesco 87 - Leo Fall 89 - Manuel de Falla 90 - Gabriel Fauré 91 - Friedrich Flotow 92 - Stephen Foster 94 - Rudolf Friml 95 - Julius Fučík 98 - Sir Edward German 98 - George Gershwin 100 - Henry F. Gilbert 109 - Don Gillis 111 - Alberto Ginastera 112 - Alexander Glazunov 113 - Reinhold Glière 116 - Michael Glinka 117 - Christoph Willibald Gluck 119 - Benjamin Godard 120 - Leopold Godowsky 121 - Edwin Franko Goldman 122 - Karl Goldmark 123 - Rubin Goldmark 125 - François Gossec 126 - Louis Gottschalk 127 - Morton Gould 128 - Charles Gounod 131 - Percy Grainger 134 - Enrique Granados 136 - Edvard Grieg 137 - Ferde Grofé 141 - David Guion 143 - Johan Halvorsen 144 - George Frederick Handel 145 - Joseph Haydn 147 - Victor Herbert 149 - Ferdinand Hérold 154 - Jenö Hubay 155 - Engelbert Humperdinck 157 - Jacques Ibert 158 - Michael Ippolitov-Ivanov 159 - Ivanovici 160 - Armas Järnefelt 160 - Dmitri Kabalevsky 161 - Emmerich Kálmán 162 - Kéler-Béla 165 - Jerome Kern 166 - Albert Ketelby 169 - Aram Khatchaturian 170 - George Kleinsinger 171 - Fritz Kreisler 172 - Édouard Lalo 175 - Josef Lanner 176 - Charles Lecocq 177 - Ernesto Lecuona 179 - Franz Léhar 180 - Ruggiero Leoncavallo 183 - Anatol Liadov 185 - Paul Lincke 186 - Franz Liszt 187 - Frederick Loewe 189 - Albert Lortzing 191 - Alexandre Luigini 192 - Hans Christian Lumbye 193 - Edward MacDowell 194 - Albert Hay Malotte 196 - Gabriel Marie 196 - Martini il Tedesco 197 - Pietro Mascagni 198 - Jules Massenet 199 - Robert McBride 203 - Harl McDonald 204 - Felix Mendelssohn 205 - Giacomo Meyerbeer 208 - Karl Milloecker 211 - Moritz Moszkowski 212 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart 213 - Modest Mussorgsky 215 - Ethelbert Nevin 218 - Otto Nicolai 220 - Siegfried Ochs 221 - Jacques Offenbach 222 - Ignace Jan Paderewski 225 - Gabriel Pierné 226 - Jean-Robert Planquette 227 - Eduard Poldini 228 - Manuel Ponce 229 - Amilcare Ponchielli 230 - Cole Porter 231 - Serge Prokofiev 233 - Giacomo Puccini 235 - Sergei Rachmaninoff 238 - Joachim Raff 240 - Maurice Ravel 241 - Emil von Rezniček 243 - Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov 244 - Richard Rodgers 247 - Sigmund Romberg 253 - David Rose 256 - Gioacchino Rossini 257 - Anton Rubinstein 261 - Camille Saint-Saëns 262 - Pablo de Sarasate 267 - Franz Schubert 268 - Robert Schumann 272 - Cyril Scott 274 - Jean Sibelius 274 - Christian Sinding 277 - Leone Sinigaglia 278 - Bedřich Smetana 280 - John Philip Sousa 283 - Oley Speaks 285 - Robert Stolz 286 - Oscar Straus 287 - Eduard Strauss 288 - Johann Strauss I 289 - Johann Strauss II 291 - Josef Strauss 298 - Sir Arthur Sullivan 299 - Franz von Suppé 311 - Johan Svendsen 313 - Deems Taylor 314 - Peter Ilitch Tchaikovsky 316 - Ambroise Thomas 322 - Enrico Toselli 324 - Sir Paolo Tosti 325 - Giuseppe Verdi 326 - Richard Wagner 332 - Emil Waldteufel 338 - Karl Maria von Weber 339 - Kurt Weill 341 - Jaromir Weinberger 343 - Henri Wieniawski 345 - Ralph Vaughan Williams 346 - Jacques Wolfe 347 - Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari 348 - Sebastian Yradier 350 - Carl Zeller 350 - Karl Michael Ziehrer 352 - - - - - _The Lighter Classics in Music_ - - - - - Joseph Achron - - -Joseph Achron was born in Lozdzieje, Lithuania, on May 13, 1886. He -attended the St. Petersburg Conservatory, where he studied the violin -with Leopold Auer and theory with Anatol Liadov, graduating in 1904. -After teaching at the Kharkov Conservatory for three years, he toured -Russia, Europe and the Near East as a concert violinist for about six -years, and settled permanently in the United States in 1925. Some of his -most ambitious and significant compositions were written in this -country. Among these were three violin concertos, two violin sonatas, -the _Golem Suite_ for orchestra and the _Stempenyu Suite_ for violin and -piano. Achron died in Hollywood, California, on April 29, 1943. - -When Achron was twenty-five years old, and still living in Russia, he -became a member of the music committee of the Hebrew Folk Music Society -of St. Petersburg. Its aim was twofold: to encourage research in Hebrew -music, and to direct the enthusiasm of gifted Russian composers toward -the writing of Hebrew music. It was as a direct result of this -association, and the stimulus derived from the achievements of this -society, that in 1911 Achron wrote a popular composition in a Hebraic -vein which to this day is his most famous piece of music. It is the -_Hebrew Melody_, Op. 33, for violin and orchestra. The melodic germ of -this composition is an actual synagogical chant, amplified by Achron -into a spacious melody following several introductory measures of -descending, brooding phrases. This melody is first given in a lower -register, but when repeated several octaves higher it receives -embellishments similar to those provided a synagogical chant by a -cantor. The composition ends with the same descending minor-key phrases -with which it opened. This _Hebrew Melody_, in a transcription for -violin and piano by Leopold Auer, has been performed by many of the -world’s leading violin virtuosos. - - - - - Adolphe-Charles Adam - - -Adolphe-Charles Adam, eminent composer of comic operas, was born in -Paris on July 24, 1803. He attended the Paris Conservatory, where he -came under the decisive influence of François Boieldieu, under whose -guidance he completed his first comic opera, _Pierre et Catherine_, -first produced at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on February 9, 1829. His -first major success, _Le Chalet_, was given on September 25, 1834, -enjoying almost fifteen hundred performances in Paris before the end of -the century. Adam subsequently wrote almost fifty other stage works in a -light style. With Boieldieu and Auber he became founder and leading -exponent of the opéra-comique. His most celebrated work in this genre -was _Le Postillon de Longjumeau_, first given at the Opéra-Comique on -October 13, 1836. This work was frequently heard in the United States in -the 1860’s and 1870’s, but has since lapsed into obscurity. Adam was -also a highly significant composer of ballets, of which _Giselle_ is now -a classic; of many serious operas; and of a celebrated Christmas song, -“Noël,” or “Oh, Holy Night” (“_Cantique de Noël: Minuit, Chrétiens_”), -which has been transcribed for orchestra. In 1847, Adam founded his own -theater—the Théâtre National—which a year later (with the outbreak of -the 1848 revolution in France) went into bankruptcy. From 1849 on he was -professor of composition at the Paris Conservatory. Adam died in Paris -on May 3, 1856. - -_Giselle_ is one of the proudest achievements of French Romantic ballet. -Through the years it has never lost its immense popularity. With -choreography by Jules Perrot and Jean Coralli, it was introduced in -Paris on June 28, 1841. Carlotta Grisi appeared in the title role. -_Giselle_ was an immediate triumph. Since then, the world’s foremost -ballerinas have appeared as Giselle, including Fanny Elssler, Taglioni, -Pavlova, Karsavina, Markova, Danilova, Margot Fonteyn, and Moira -Shearer. - -“What is the secret charm of this ballet?” inquires the famous scenic -designer, Alexander Benois. He goes on to answer: “It is mainly due to -its simplicity and clearness of plot, to the amazingly impetuous -spontaneity with which the drama is developed. There is barely time to -collect one’s thoughts before the heroine, who but a moment ago charmed -everybody with her vitality, is lying stiff and cold and dead at the -feet of the lover who deceived her.... It is deeply moving, and the -magic of a true poet ... consists in making us accept without question -any absurdities he may choose to offer us.... No one is inclined to -criticize while under the spell of this strange idyl.” - -The ballet text was the collaborative creation of Théophile Gautier, -Vernoy de Saint-Georges, and Jean Coralli. Gautier had read a legend by -Heinrich Heine in _De L’Allemagne_ which described elves in white -dresses (designated as “wilis”) who died before their wedding day and -emerged from their graves in bridal dress to dance till dawn. Any man an -elf met was doomed to dance himself to death. Gautier, recognizing the -ballet potentialities of this legend, decided to adapt it for Carlotta -Grisi. He interested Vernoy de Saint-Georges in assisting him in making -this ballet adaptation and Jean Coralli in creating some of the dance -sequences. “Three days later,” Gautier revealed in a letter to Heine, -“the ballet _Giselle_ was accepted. By the end of the week, Adam had -improvised the music, the scenery was nearly ready, and the rehearsals -were in full swing.” - -The ballet text finds Giselle as a sweet, carefree peasant girl. -Betrayed by Albrecht, the Duke of Silesia, she goes mad and commits -suicide. Her grave is touched by the magic branch of Myrtha, Queen of -the Wilis. Giselle arises from the grave as a wili, and performs her -nocturnal dance. Albrecht, who comes to visit her grave, is caught up by -her spell and must dance to his doom. - -A master of expressive and dramatized melodies, Adam here created a -score filled with the most ingratiating tunes and spirited rhythms, all -beautifully adjusted to the sensitive moods of this delicate fantasy. -From this score the 20th-century English composer Constant Lambert -extracted four melodic episodes which he made into a popular orchestral -suite: “Giselle’s Dance”; “Mad Scene”; “Pas de deux, Act 2”; and -“Closing Scene.” - -From the repertory of Adam’s operas comes a delightful overture, a -favorite in the semi-classical repertory, even though the opera itself -is rarely heard. It is the Overture to _If I Were King_ (_Si j’étais -roi_). This comic opera was first performed in Paris on November 4, -1852; the libretto was by D’Ennery and Brésil. In Arabia, the fisherman, -Zephoris, has managed to save the life of Nemea, beautiful daughter of -King Oman. But Nemea is being pursued by Prince Kador, who does not -hesitate to employ treachery to win her. Nemea is determined to marry -none but the unidentified man who had saved her life. Eventually, the -fisherman is brought to the palace, placed in command of the troops, and -becomes a hero in a war against the Spaniards. Kador is sent to his -disgrace, and Zephoris wins the hand of Nemea. - -The oriental background of the opera permeates the atmosphere of the -overture. A forceful introduction for full orchestra and arpeggio -figures in harp lead to a skipping and delicate tune for first violins -against plucked cello strings. The flutes and clarinets respond with a -subsidiary thought. A crescendo brings on a strong subject for the -violins against a loud accompaniment. After a change of tempo, another -light, graceful melody is given by solo flute and oboes. The principal -melodic material is then amplified with dramatic effect. - - - - - Richard Addinsell - - -Richard Addinsell was born in Oxford, England, on January 13, 1904. -After studying law at Oxford, he attended the Royal College of Music in -London and completed his music study in Berlin and Vienna between 1929 -and 1932. In 1933 he visited the United States, where he wrote music for -several Hollywood films and for a New York stage production of _Alice in -Wonderland_. He has since made a specialty of writing music for the -screen, his best efforts being the scores for _Goodbye, Mr. Chips_, -_Blithe Spirit_, _Dangerous Moonlight_, _Dark Journey_, and _Fire Over -England_. During World War II he wrote music for several documentary -films, including _Siege of Tobruk_ and _We Sail at Midnight_. - -Addinsell’s most frequently played composition is the _Warsaw Concerto_, -for piano and orchestra. He wrote it for the English movie _Dangerous -Moonlight_ (renamed in the United States _Suicide Squadron_). Anton -Walbrook here plays the part of a renowned concert pianist who becomes -an officer in the Polish air force during World War II and loses his -memory after a crash. The _Warsaw Concerto_, basic to the plot -structure, recurs several times in the film. It first became popular, -however, on records, and after that with “pop” and salon orchestras. -Though the composer’s indebtedness to Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano -Concerto is pronounced, the _Warsaw Concerto_ has enough of its own -individuality and charm to survive. Structurally, it is not a concerto -but a rhapsody. It opens with several massive chords, arpeggios, and -scale passages in the piano. This dramatic opening leads to the -sensitive and romantic principal melody, heard in the strings. Later on -there appears a second lyric thought, but the rhapsodic character -remains predominant. The composition ends with a final statement of the -opening phrase of the first main melody. - -Addinsell is also sometimes represented on semi-classical programs with -a light-textured and tuneful composition called _Prelude and Waltz_, for -orchestra. This also stems from a motion picture, in this case the -British screen adaptation of Noel Coward’s _Blithe Spirit_. - - - - - Isaac Albéniz - - -Isaac Albéniz, one of Spain’s most distinguished composers, was born in -Camprodón, Spain, on May 29, 1860. He was a child prodigy who gave piano -concerts in Spain after some spasmodic study in Paris with Marmontel. In -1868 he entered the Madrid Conservatory, but in his thirteenth year he -ran away from home and spent several years traveling about in Puerto -Rico, Cuba, and the United States, supporting himself all the while by -playing the piano. He was back in Spain in 1875, and soon thereafter -undertook music study seriously, first at the Brussels Conservatory and -then at the Leipzig Conservatory. He settled in Paris in 1893, where he -wrote his first important works, one of these being his first -composition in a national Spanish idiom: the _Catalonia_, for piano and -orchestra, in 1899. After 1900 he lived in his native land. From 1906 to -1909 he devoted himself to the writing of his masterwork, the suite -_Iberia_, consisting of twelve pieces for the piano gathered in four -volumes. _Iberia_ is a vast tonal panorama of Spain, its sights and -sounds, dances and songs, backgrounds. Albéniz died in Cambo-Bains, in -the Pyrenees, on May 18, 1909. - -Albéniz may well be regarded as the founder of the modern Spanish -nationalist school in music. This school sought to exploit the rhythms -and melodies and styles of Spanish folk music within serious concert -works, thus providing a musical interpretation to every possible aspect -of Spanish life. - -Albéniz’ first work in the national style is also one of his rare -compositions utilizing an orchestra. It is the _Catalonia_, written in -1899, and introduced that year at a concert of the Société nationale de -musique in Paris. This work is sometimes erroneously designated as a -suite, but it is actually a one-movement rhapsody. A single theme, -unmistakably Spanish, dominates the entire work. A brief rhythmic middle -section for wind, percussion, and a single double bass provides -contrast. This middle part is intended as a burlesque on a troupe of -wandering musicians playing their favorite tune: the clarinet plays off -key and the bass drum is off beat. The original dance melody returns to -conclude the work. - -_Córdoba_, a haunting nocturne, is the fourth and most famous number -from the _Cantos de España_, a suite for the piano, op. 232. _Córdoba_ -is a vivid tone picture of that famous Andalusian city. Sharp chords, as -if plucked from the strings of a guitar, preface an oriental-type melody -which suggests the Moorish background of the city. - -_Fête Dieu à Seville_, or _El Corpus en Sevilla_ (_Festival in Seville_) -is the third and concluding number from the first volume of _Iberia_. -Besides its original version for the piano, this composition is -celebrated in several transcriptions for orchestra, notably those by E. -Fernández Arbós and Leopold Stokowski. This music depicts a religious -procession in the streets of Seville on the Thursday after Trinity -Sunday. At the head of the procession is the priest bearing the Host, or -Blessed Sacrament, under a lavishly decorated canopy. As the procession -moves, worshipers who crowd the streets improvise a religious chant. - -_Fête Dieu à Seville_ opens with a brusquely accented march melody, -against which emerges an improvisational-type melody similar to those -sung by worshipers in the street. The march melody and the improvised -chant alternate, but it is the chant that is carried to a thunderous -climax. Then this chant subsides and fades away into the distance, as -the composition ends. - -_Navarra_ is a poignant tonal evocation for piano of the Spanish -province below the Pyrenees. Albéniz never completed this work; it was -finished after his death by Déodat de Séverac. This composition is -perhaps best known in Fernández Arbós’ transcription for orchestra. -Against the provocative background of a jota rhythm moves a languorous -and sensual gypsy melody. - -_Sevillañas_ (_Seville_) is the third number from _Suite española_ for -piano; it has become famous independent of the larger work and is often -heard in transcription. The heart of the piece is a passionate song, -typical of those heard in the haunts of Seville. As a background there -is an incisive rhythm suggesting the clicking of castanets. - -The Tango in D major, op. 165, no. 2, for piano, is not only the most -famous one by Albéniz but one of the most popular ever written. With its -intriguing flamenco-like melody and compelling rhythm it is Spanish to -the core—the prototype of all tango music. The original piano version as -written by the composer is not often heard. When it is performed on the -piano, this tango is given in a brilliant but complex arrangement by -Leopold Godowsky. But it is much more famous in various transcriptions, -notably one for violin and piano by Fritz Kreisler, and numerous ones -for small or large orchestras. - -_Triana_ is the third and concluding number from the second book of -Albéniz’ monumental suite for piano, _Iberia_. Triana, of which this -music is a tonal picture, is a gypsy suburb of Seville. In the -introduction, random phrases bring up the image of various attitudes and -movements of Spanish dances. A triple-rhythmed figure leads to a light -and graceful dance melody against a bolero rhythm. As the melody is -developed and repeated it gains in intensity and is enriched in color -until it evolves climactically with full force. A transcription for -orchestra by Fernández Arbós is as famous as the original piano version. - - - - - Hugo Alfvén - - -Hugo Alfvén was born in Stockholm, Sweden, on May 1, 1872. His music -study took place at the Stockholm Conservatory and, on government -stipends, with César Thomson in Brussels, and in Germany and France. -From 1910 to 1939 he was musical director and conductor of the student -chorus at the Uppsala University. Alfvén was a nationalist composer of -Romantic tendencies who wrote five symphonies together with a -considerable amount of orchestral and choral music. He died in Faluns, -Sweden, on May 8, 1960. - -_Midsummer Vigil_ (_Midsommarvaka_), op. 19 (1904), a Swedish rhapsody -for orchestra, is his best known composition. It was produced as a -ballet, _La Nuit de Saint-Jean_, in Paris on October 25, 1925, where it -proved so successful that it was given more than 250 performances within -four years. As a work for symphony orchestra it has received universal -acclaim for its attractive deployment of national Swedish folk song -idioms and dance rhythms. The music describes a revel held in small -Swedish towns during the St. John’s Eve festival. The work opens with a -gay tune for clarinet over plucked strings. This is followed by a -burlesque subject for bassoon. Muted strings and English horns then -offer a broad, stately, and emotional folk song. Repeated by the French -horns, this song is soon amplified by the strings. The tempo now -quickens, and a rustic dance theme is given softly by the violins. The -mood gradually becomes frenetic. The violins offer a passionate subject -over a pedal point. A climax is finally reached as the revelry becomes -unconfined. - - - - - Louis Alter - - -Louis Alter was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, on June 18, 1902, -where he received his academic education in the public schools, and his -initial instruction in music. Music study was completed with Stuart -Mason at the New England Conservatory. In 1924 Alter came to New York, -where for five years he worked as accompanist for Nora Bayes, Irene -Bordoni and other stars of the stage; he also did arrangements for a -publishing firm in Tin Pan Alley. Between 1925 and 1927 he wrote his -first popular songs and contributed a few of them to Broadway -productions. Since then he has written many song hits, as well as scores -for Broadway musicals and Hollywood films. His best known songs include -“A Melody from the Sky” and “Dolores,” both of which were nominated for -Academy Awards; also “Twilight on the Trail,” such a favorite of -President Franklin D. Roosevelt that the manuscript, together with a -recording by Bing Crosby, repose in the Roosevelt Museum in Hyde Park, -New York. - -Alter has been successful in writing skilful compositions for piano and -orchestra in which the popular element is pronounced, encased within a -symphonic structure. Some of them are now staples in the symphonic-jazz -repertory. His best compositions were inspired by the sights, sounds and -moods of New York City. - -_Jewels from Cartier_ (1953), as the title indicates, was inspired not -by New York but by one of the city’s most famous jewelers when Alter was -one day allowed to inspect its collection. In his suite, Alter attempts -in eight sections to translate various jewels into tones. The first -movement is “Emerald Eyes.” Since many beautiful emeralds come from -South America, this section emphasizes the rumba beat and other -Latin-American rhythms. “The Ruby and the Rose” is a romantic ballad in -which voices supplement the instruments of the orchestra. “Pearl of the -Orient” consists of an oriental dance. “Black Pearl of Tahiti” exploits -exotic Polynesian rhythms and its languorous-type melodies. “Diamond -Earrings” is a swirling waltz while “Star Sapphire” is a beguine. In -“Cat’s Eye in the Night,” the music suggests a playful kitten darting -about in a room. The finale, “Lady of Jade,” is in the style of Chinese -processional music. - -_Manhattan Masquerade_ (1932) is the most dramatic of Alter’s New York -murals. It consists of a Viennese-type waltz played in fox-trot time, a -suggestion on the part of the composer that Vienna and New York are not -too far apart spiritually. - -_Manhattan Moonlight_ (1932) is, on the other hand, atmospheric. It -opens with four chords in a nebulous Debussy vein. The core of the work -is an extended melody for strings against piano embellishments. A light -and frivolous mood is then invoked before the main melody returns in an -opulent scoring. - -_Manhattan Serenade_ (1928) is the most famous of all Alter’s -instrumental works and the one that first made him known. He published -it first as a piano solo, but soon rewrote it for piano and orchestra. -Paul Whiteman and his orchestra made it popular in 1929 on records and -in public concerts. This work is extremely effective in laying bare the -nerves of the metropolis through syncopations, and jazz tone -colorations. Its main melody is a plangent song to which, in 1940, -Howard Johnson adapted a song lyric. _Manhattan Serenade_ is often heard -as background music on radio and television programs about New York. - -_Side Street in Gotham_ (1938) attempts to portray the city from river -to river. The composition begins with a few notes suggesting “London -Bridge Is Falling Down,” which is later elaborated in a vigorous and -amusing tempo; the reason this theme is here used is because it is -referred to in the lyric of “The Sidewalks of New York.” Some of the -mystery of New York’s side streets can also be found in this music. - - - - - Leroy Anderson - - -Leroy Anderson is one of America’s most successful and best known -composers of light orchestral classics. He was born in Cambridge, -Massachusetts, on June 29, 1908. His early musical training took place -at the New England Conservatory, after which he studied the bass and -organ with private teachers. In 1929 he was graduated from Harvard -_magna cum laude_, and one year after that he received there his -Master’s degree in music on a Naumberg Fellowship. For the next few -years he served as organist and choirmaster in Milton, Massachusetts; as -a member of the music faculty at Radcliffe College; and as director of -the Harvard University Band. In 1935 he became a free-lance conductor, -composer and arranger in Boston and New York. As orchestrator for the -Boston Pops Orchestra, for which he made many orchestral arrangements -over a period of several years, Anderson completed his first original -semi-classical composition, _Jazz Pizzicato_, successfully introduced by -the Boston Pops Orchestra in 1939. Since then the Boston Pops Orchestra -has introduced most of Anderson’s compositions, many of which proved -exceptionally popular in concerts throughout the country and on records. -Anderson has also appeared frequently as guest conductor of important -American symphony orchestras and has conducted his own compositions with -his orchestra for records. In 1958, his first musical comedy, -_Goldilocks_, was produced on Broadway. - -Beyond possessing a most ingratiating lyric invention and a consummate -command of orchestration, Anderson boasts an irresistible sense of humor -and a fine flair for burlesque. He is probably at his best in -programmatic pieces in which extra-musical sounds are neatly adapted to -and often serve as a background for his sprightly tunes—ranging from the -clicking of a typewriter to the meowing of a cat. - -_Blue Tango_ is the first strictly instrumental composition ever to -achieve first place on the Hit Parade. For almost a year it was the -leading favorite on juke boxes, and its sale of over two million records -represents Anderson’s healthiest commercial success. Scored for violins, -this music neatly combines an insistent tango rhythm with a sensual -melody in a purple mood. _Bugler’s Holiday_ is a musical frolic for -three trumpets. _A Christmas Festival_ provides a colorful orchestral -setting to some of the best loved Christmas hymns, including “Joy to the -World,” “Deck the Halls,” “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” “Silent Night,” -“Jingle Bells,” and “Come All Ye Faithful.” - -_Fiddle-Faddle_ is a merry burlesque-escapade for the violins, inspired -from a hearing of Paganini’s _Perpetual Motion_; this, then, is a modern -style “Perpetual Motion.” In _Horse and Buggy_, the music nostalgically -evokes a bygone day with a sprightly, wholesome tune presented against -the rhythms of a jogging horse. The _Irish Suite_ was commissioned by -the Eire Society of Boston, and is a six-movement adaptation of six of -Thomas Moore’s _Irish Melodies_. They are: “The Irish Washerwoman,” “The -Minstrel Boy,” “The Rakes of Mallow,” “The Wearing of the Green,” “The -Last Rose of Summer,” and “The Girl I Left Behind Me.” _Jazz Legato_ and -_Jazz Pizzicato_ are studies in contrasting moods and dynamics. The -_Jazz Pizzicato_ consists of a jazz melody presented entirely by plucked -strings; its companion piece is a broader jazz melody for bowed strings. -_Plink, Plank, Plunk_ also makes effective use of pizzicato strings, -this time attempting to simulate the sounds suggested by the descriptive -title. _Saraband_ brings about the marriage between the very old and -very new in musical styles. The old classical dance in slow triple time -and accented second beat is exploited with a quickening of tempo and -with modern rhythmic and melodic embellishments. - -In _Sleigh Bells_, jangling sleighbells and the sound of a cracking -whip, provide a delightful background to a jaunty tune that has the bite -and sting of outdoor winterland. This piece has become something of a -perennial favorite of the Christmas season. In _The Syncopated Clock_, -the rhythm of a clicking grandfather’s clock, presented by percussion -instruments in a modern rhythm, is placed against a bouncy, syncopated -melody. This number has become popular as theme music for the CBS-TV -“Early Show.” _The Trumpeter’s Lullaby_ is a sensitive melody with the -soothing accompaniment of a lullaby. - -_The Typewriter_ permits members of the percussion section to imitate -the incisive, rigid rhythm of a functioning typewriter, punctuated by -the regular tinkle of the bell to provide the warning signal that the -carriage has come to the end of a line. Against this rhythm moves a -vivacious message in strings. _The Typewriter_ was played in the motion -picture _But Not for Me_, starring Clark Gable, released in 1959. In -_The Waltzing Cat_, an imaginary cat dances gracefully to a waltz melody -made up mainly of meows. - - - - - Daniel François Auber - - -Daniel François Esprit Auber, genius of opéra-comique, was born in Caen, -Normandy, France, on January 29, 1782. In his youth he lived in London, -where he studied both the business of art, in which he hoped to engage, -and music. There he wrote several songs which were heard at public -entertainments. After returning to France and settling in Paris in 1804, -he gave himself up completely to music. Two minor stage works with music -were privately performed between 1806 and 1811 before his first opera -received its première performance: _Le Séjour militaire_ in 1813. His -first success came seven years after that with _La Bergère châtelaine_. -From then on he was a prolific writer of both light and grand operas, -many to texts by Eugène Scribe. _La Muette de Portici_ in 1828 was a -triumph, and was followed by such other major successes _Fra Diavolo_ -(1830), _Le Cheval_ _de bronze_ (1835), _Le Domino noir_ (1837) and _Les -Diamants de la couronne_ (1841). His last opera, _Rêves d’amour_, was -completed when he was eighty-seven. Auber was one of France’s most -highly honored musicians. From 1842 until his death he was director of -the Paris Conservatory, and in 1857 he was made by Napoleon III Imperial -Maître de Chapelle. Auber died in Paris on May 12, 1871. - -With Adam and Boieldieu, Auber was one of the founding fathers of the -opéra-comique. He was superior to his two colleagues in the lightness of -his touch, surpassing wit, and grace of lyricism. But Auber’s charm and -gaiety were not bought at the expense of deeper emotional and dramatic -values; for all their lightness of heart, his best comic operas are -filled with pages that have the scope and dimension of grand opera. As -Rossini once said of him, Auber may have produced light music, but he -produced it like a true master. - -Overtures to several of his most famous operas are standards in the -light-classical repertory. - -_The Black Domino_ (_Le Domino noir_), text by Eugène Scribe, was -introduced in Paris on December 2, 1837. The central character is Lady -Angela, an abbess, who attends a masked ball where she meets and falls -in love with Horatio, a young nobleman. Numerous escapades and -adventures follow before Angela meets up again with her young man. Now -released from her religious vows by the Queen, Angela is free to marry -him. - -In the overture, a loud outburst for full orchestra emphasizes a -strongly rhythmic theme. A staccato phrase in the woodwind and a return -of the initial strong subject follow. This leads into a light dancing -motive for the woodwind. Another _forte_ passage is now the bridge to a -melodious episode in the woodwind. A change of key brings on a gay -bolero melody for clarinets and bassoons in octaves. After this idea is -amplified, a jota-like melody is given by the full orchestra. The -closing section is a brilliant presentation of a completely new jota -melody. - -_The Crown Diamonds_ (_Les Diamants de la couronne_) was first produced -in Paris on March 6, 1841, when it scored a major success. But it -enjoyed an even greater triumph when it was first performed in England -three years after that; from then on it has remained a great favorite -with English audiences. The text, by Eugène Scribe and Saint-Georges, is -set in 18th-century Portugal where the Queen assumes the identity of the -leader of a gang of counterfeiters and uses the crown diamonds to get -the money she needs to save her throne. When Don Henrique falls into the -unscrupulous hands of these counterfeiters, the Queen saves his life and -falls in love with him. The throne is eventually saved, and the crown -jewels retrieved. The Queen now can choose Don Henrique as her husband. - -The overture opens with a sustained melody for the strings that is -dramatized by key changes. A rhythmic passage leads to a martial subject -for the brass. Several other vigorous ideas ensue in the brass and -woodwind. After their development there comes a lyrical string episode -which, in turn, leads into a second climax. Contrast comes with a -lyrical idea in the strings. A loud return of the first martial subject -in full orchestra marks the beginning of a spirited conclusion. - -_Fra Diavolo_ was an immediate success when first given in Paris on -January 28, 1830; it has remained Auber’s best known comic opera. It has -even received burlesque treatment on the Hollywood screen in a comedy -starring Laurel and Hardy. The text by Eugène Scribe has for its central -character a bandit chief by the name of Fra Diavolo who disguises -himself as an Italian Marquis. He flirts with a lady of noble birth, -hides in the bedroom of Zerlina, the inn-keeper’s daughter, and is -finally apprehended by Zerlina’s sweetheart, the captain of police. - -This popular overture opens with a _pianissimo_ drum roll, the preface -to a march tune for strings. The march music is extended to other -instruments, and as the volume increases it gives the impression of an -advancing army. It attains a _fortissimo_ for full orchestra, then -subsides. The overture ends with several sprightly melodies from the -first act of the opera. - -_The Mute of Portici_ (_La Muette de Portici_)—or, as it is sometimes -called, _Masaniello_—is a grand opera that contributed a footnote to the -political history of its times. First performed in Paris on February 29, -1828, it had profound repercussions on the political situation of that -period, and it is regarded by many as a significant influence in -bringing on the July Revolution in Paris in 1830. When first performed -in Brussels the same year, it instigated such riots that the occupying -Dutch were ejected from that country and Belgium now achieved -independence. - -The text by Eugène Scribe and Germain Delavigne is based on an episode -from history: a successful Neapolitan revolt against the Duke of Arcos, -headed by Tommaso Anello in 1647. In the opera, Masaniello assumes -Anello’s part, and toward the end of the opera after the insurrection is -smothered, he is assassinated. - -The overture begins with stormy music in full orchestra. After the tempo -slackens, a sensitive melody is presented by clarinets and bassoons in -octaves. The main section of the overture now unfolds, its main theme -divided between the strings and the woodwind. After a _fortissimo_ -section for full orchestra, a second important melody is heard in the -woodwind and violins. The two main subjects are recalled and developed. -The overture closes with a coda in which percussion instruments are -emphasized. - - - - - Johann Sebastian Bach - - -Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach, Germany, on March 21, 1685. -He was the most significant member of a family that for generations had -produced professional musicians. His career can be divided into three -convenient periods. The first was between 1708 and 1717 when, as -organist to the Ducal Chapel in Weimar, he wrote most of his masterworks -for organ. During the second period, from 1717 to 1723, he served as -Kapellmeister to Prince Leopold in Coethen. During this period he wrote -most of his major works for orchestra, solo instruments, and -chamber-music ensembles. The last period took place in Leipzig from 1723 -until his death where he was cantor of the St. Thomas Church. In Leipzig -he produced some of his greatest choral compositions. Towards the end of -his life he went blind and became paralyzed. He died in Leipzig on July -28, 1750. - -As the culmination of the age of polyphony, Johann Sebastian Bach’s -masterworks are, for the most part, too complex and subtle for popular -appeal. But from his vast and incomparable output of concertos, sonatas, -suites, masses, passions, cantatas, and various compositions for the -organ and for the piano, it is possible to lift a few random items of -such melodic charm and simple emotional appeal that they can be -profitably exploited for wide consumption. In these less complicated -works, Bach’s consummate skill at counterpoint, and his equally -formidable gift at homophonic writing, are always in evidence. - -The _Air_ is one of Bach’s most famous melodies, a soulful religious -song for strings. It can be found as the second movement of his Suite -No. 3 in D major for orchestra, but is often performed apart from the -rest of the work. August Wilhelmj transcribed this music for violin and -piano, calling it the _Air on the G String_. This transcription has been -severely criticized as a mutilation of the original; Sir Donald Francis -Tovey described it as a “devastating derangement.” Nevertheless, it has -retained its popularity in violin literature, just as the original has -remained a favorite in orchestral music. - -_Come Sweet Death_ (_Komm, suesser Tod_) is a moving chorale for voice -and accompaniment: a simple and eloquent resignation to death. It does -not come from any of Bach’s larger works but can be found in Schemelli’s -collection (1736). It has become extremely popular in orchestral -transcriptions by Leopold Stokowski and Reginald Stewart, but is also -sometimes heard in arrangements for various solo instruments and piano, -as well as for the organ. - -_Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring_ (_Jesu bleibt meine Freude_) is probably -Bach’s best known and most frequently performed chorale: a stately -melody introduced by, then set against, a gracefully flowing -accompaniment. This composition comes from the church cantata No. 147, -_Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben_. Various transcriptions have -popularized this composition, notably that for piano by Myra Hess, for -organ by E. Power Biggs, and for orchestra by Lucien Caillet. - -The _Prelude in E major_ is a vigorous and spirited piece of music whose -rhythmic momentum does not relax from the first bar to the last. It -appears as the first movement of the Partita No. 3 in E major for solo -violin. It is perhaps even better known in transcription than in the -original version, notably in those for violin and piano by Robert -Schumann and Fritz Kreisler, for solo piano by Rachmaninoff, and for -orchestra by Stokowski, Riccardo Pick-Mangiagalli, Sir Henry J. Wood, -and Lucien Caillet. - -The _Siciliano_ is a beautiful, stately song—the first movement of the -Sonata No. 4 in C minor for violin and accompaniment. Stokowski has made -a fine transcription for orchestra. - -_The Wise Virgins_ is a ballet-suite comprising six compositions by Bach -drawn from his literature for the church and transcribed for orchestra -by the eminent British composer, Sir William Walton. It was used for a -ballet produced at Sadler’s Wells in 1940. Frederick Ashton’s -choreography drew its material from the parable of the Wise and Foolish -Virgins in the 25th chapter of the Gospel According to St. Matthew; but -this parable is seen through the eyes of the Italian Renaissance -painters. “Ashton,” wrote Arnold Haskell, “has provided the perfect -meeting place for music and painting. The inspiration was pictorial ... -it is equally musical. The movement and unfolding of the narrative -follow directly from the Bach music so brilliantly arranged and -orchestrated by William Walton.” - -All six movements of the suite are so lyrical and emotional that their -impact on listeners is immediate. The first movement, “What God Hath -Done Is Rightly Done” comes from the opening chorus of a cantata of the -same name, No. 99 (_Was Gott tut das ist wohlgetan_). A lively melody is -first shared by strings and woodwind and then given fanciful -embellishments. A strong chorale melody for the brass is then given -prominent treatment. The second movement, “Lord, Hear My Longing” is a -chorale from the _Passion According to St. Matthew_ which is here given -the treatment of an organ chorale-prelude with a tenderly expressive -chorale melody in woodwind amplified by strings. The third movement, -“See What His Love Can Do” is an expansive melody for strings and -woodwind against a flowing accompaniment; this music is derived from -Cantata No. 85, _Ich bin ein guter Hirt_. This is followed by “Ah, How -Ephemeral,” a dramatic page for full orchestra highlighting a chorale -for brass taken from Cantata No. 26, _Ach, wie fluechtig_. The fifth -section is the most famous. It is “Sheep May Safely Graze” (“_Schafe -koennen sicher weiden_”) from the secular Cantata No. 208, _Was mir -behagt_. An introductory recitative for solo violin leads to a swaying -melody for the woodwind. The lower strings then present a pastoral song -which soon receives beautiful filigree work from other parts of the -orchestra. The swaying subject for woodwind closes the piece. Sir John -Barbirolli also made an effective orchestral transcription of this -composition, while Percy Grainger arranged it for solo piano, and Mary -Howe for two solo pianos. The finale of the suite is “Praise Be to God,” -which is also the finale of Cantata No. 129, _Gelobet sei der Herr, mein -Gott_. This is vigorous music that is an outpouring of pure joy. - - - - - Michael Balfe - - -Michael William Balfe was born in Dublin, Ireland on May 15, 1808. The -son of a dancing master, Michael was only six when he played the violin -for his father’s classes. In 1823, Balfe came to London where he studied -the violin and composition with private teachers and earned his living -as violinist and singer. Additional study took place in Italy in 1825, -including singing with Bordogni. Between 1828 and 1833 he appeared as -principal baritone of the Italian Opera and several other French -theaters in Paris. In 1835, he initiated an even more successful career -as composer of English operas, with _The Siege of Rochelle_, produced -that year in London. He continued writing numerous operas, producing his -masterwork, _The Bohemian Girl_, in 1843. Between 1846 and 1856 Balfe -traveled to different parts of Europe to attend performances of his -operas. In 1864 he left London to retire to his estate in Rowney Abbey -where he died on October 20, 1870. - -_The Bohemian Girl_ is a classic of English opera. It was first produced -at Drury Lane in London on November 27, 1843, when it enjoyed a -sensational success. It was soon translated into French, German and -Italian and was extensively performed throughout Europe. The libretto, -by Alfred Bunn, was based on a ballet-pantomime by Vernoy de -Saint-Georges. The setting is Hungary in the 18th century, and its -heroine is Arline, daughter of Count Arnheim who, as a girl, had been -kidnapped by gypsies and raised as one of them. She is falsely accused -by the Count’s men of stealing a valuable medallion from the Count’s -palace and is imprisoned. Appearing before the Count to ask for -clemency, she is immediately recognized by him as his daughter. - -Melodious selections from this opera are frequently heard. The most -famous single melody is “I Dream’d That I Dwelt in Marble Halls” which -Arline sings in the first scene of the second act as she recalls a -dream. “The Heart Bowed Down,” the Count’s song in the fourth scene of -the second act as he gazes longingly on a picture of his long lost -daughter, and “Then You’ll Remember Me,” a tenor aria from the third act -are also familiar. - - - - - Hubert Bath - - -Hubert Bath was born in Barnstaple, England, on November 6, 1883. He -attended the Royal Academy of Music in London, after which he wrote his -first opera. For a year he was conductor of an opera company that toured -the world. After 1915 he devoted himself mainly to composition. Besides -his operas, tone poems, cantatas and various instrumental works he wrote -a considerable amount of incidental music for stage plays and scores for -the motion pictures. He died in Harefield, England, on April 24, 1945. - -The _Cornish Rhapsody_, for piano and orchestra, is one of his last -compositions and the most famous. He wrote it for the British motion -picture _Love Story_, released in 1946, starring Margaret Lockwood and -Stewart Granger. Lockwood plays the part of a concert pianist, and the -_Cornish Rhapsody_ is basic to the story which involves the pianist with -a man in love with another woman. The rhapsody begins with arpeggio -figures which lead to a strong rhapsodic passage in full chords. A bold -section is then contrasted by a gentle melody of expressive beauty, the -heart of the composition. A cadenza brings on a return of the earlier -strong subject, and a recall of the expressive melody in the orchestra -to piano embellishments. The composition ends with massive passages and -strongly accented harmonies. - - - - - Ludwig van Beethoven - - -Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany, on December 16, 1770. He -received his earliest musical training in his native city where he early -gave strong evidence of genius. He published his first works when he was -eleven, and soon thereafter was performing publicly on the organ, -cembalo, and the viola. He also disclosed a phenomenal gift at -improvisation. He established permanent residence in Vienna in 1792. -Three years later he made there his first public appearance, and from -then on began to occupy a high position in Viennese musical life as a -piano virtuoso. His fame as a composer soon superseded that of virtuoso -as he won the support of Vienna’s aristocracy. He entered upon a new -creative phase, as well as full maturity, beginning with 1800, when his -first symphony was introduced in Vienna. His creative powers continually -deepened and became enriched from that time on. As he restlessly sought -to give poetic and dramatic expression to his writing he broke down the -classical barriers so long confining music and opened up new horizons -for style and structure. Meanwhile, in or about 1801 or 1802, he -realized he was growing deaf, a discovery that swept him into -despondency and despair, both of which find expression in a unique and -remarkable document known as the Heiligenstadt Testament. Deafness led -to personal idiosyncrasies and volatile moods which often tried the -patience of even his closest friends, but it did not decrease the -quantity of his musical production nor prevent him from achieving -heights of creative expression achieved by few, if any. He died in -Vienna on March 26, 1827 after having ushered in a new age for music -with his symphonies, concertos, sonatas, string quartets, and -masterworks in other categories including opera and choral music. - -The grandeur of expression, the profundity of thought, and the -independence of idiom we associate with Beethoven is not to be found in -his lighter music which, generally speaking, is in a traditional mold, -pleasing style, and in an inviting lyric vein. This is not the Beethoven -who was the proud democrat, whose life was a struggle with destiny, and -who sought to make music the expression of his profoundest concepts. -This is rather, another Beethoven: the one who liked to dance, though he -did it badly; who flirted with the girls; and who indulged in what he -himself described as “unbuttoned humor.” - -Beethoven wrote twelve _Contredanses_ (_Contretaenze_) in 1801-1802. -These are not “country dances” as the term “_contretaenze_” is sometimes -erroneously translated. The Contredanse is the predecessor of the waltz. -Like the waltz it is in three-part form, the third part repeating the -first, while the middle section is usually a trio in contrasting mood. -In 1801-1802, when Beethoven wrote his _Contredanses_, he was already -beginning to probe deeply into poetic thought and emotion in his -symphonies, sonatas, and concertos. But in the _Contredanses_ the poet -becomes peasant. This is earthy music, overflowing with melodies of -folksong vigor, and vitalized by infectious peasant rhythms. The -_Contredanse_ No. 7 in E-flat major is particularly famous; this same -melody was used by the composer for his music to the ballet -_Prometheus_, for the finale of his _Eroica Symphony_, and for his Piano -Variations, op. 35. The key signatures of the twelve _Contredanses_ are: -C major, A major, D major, B-flat major, E-flat major, C major, E-flat -major, C major, A major, C major, G major and E-flat major. - -A half dozen years before he wrote his _Contredanses_ Beethoven had -completed a set of twelve _German Dances_ (_Deutsche Taenze_). The form, -style, and spirit of the _German Dance_ is so similar to the -_Contredanse_ that many Austrian composers used the terms -interchangeably. Beethoven’s early _German Dances_, like the later -_Contredanses_, are a reservoir of lively and tuneful semi-classical -music with an engaging earthy quality to the melodies and a lusty -vitality to the rhythms. - -Few Beethoven compositions have enjoyed such universal approval with -budding pianists, salon orchestras, and various popular ensembles as the -_Minuet in G_. It is not too far afield to maintain that this is one of -the most famous minuets in all musical literature. Beethoven wrote it -originally for the piano; it is the second of a set of six minuets, -written in 1795, but published as op. 167. It is even more celebrated in -its many different transcriptions than it is in the original. The -composition is in three-part form. The first and third parts consist of -a stately classical melody; midway comes a fast-moving trio of -contrasting spirit. - -The first movement of the _Moonlight Sonata_ is also often heard in -varied transcriptions for salon or “pop” orchestras. The _Moonlight -Sonata_ is the popular name of the piano sonata in C-sharp minor, op. -27, no. 2 which Beethoven wrote in 1801 and which he designated as -_Sonata quasi una fantasia_ mainly because of the fantasia character of -this first movement. The poetic and sensitive mood maintained throughout -the first movement—with a romantic melody of ineffable sadness -accompanied by slow triplets—is the reason why the critic Rellstab (and -_not_ the composer) provided the entire sonata with the name of -“Moonlight.” To Rellstab this first movement evoked for him a picture of -Lake Lucerne in Switzerland at night time, gently touched by the -moonlight. The fact that Beethoven dedicated the sonata to Countess -Giulietta Guicciardi, with whom he was then in love, leads to a legend -that he wrote this music to express frustrated love, but this was not -the case. Another myth about this first movement is that Beethoven -improvised this music while playing for a blind boy, as moonlight -streamed into the window of his room; after he had finished playing he -identified himself to the awe-stricken youngster. It was the opinion of -the eminent critic, Henry E. Krehbiel, that the sonata was inspired by a -poem, _Die Beterin_ by Seume, describing a young girl kneeling at an -altar begging for her father’s recovery from a serious illness; angels -descend to comfort her and she becomes transfigured by a divine light. - -Beethoven wrote two _Romances_ for violin and orchestra: in F major, op. -50 (1802) and G major, op. 40 (1803). Rarely do we encounter in -Beethoven’s works such a fresh, spontaneous and entirely unsophisticated -outpouring of song—a song that wears its beauty on the surface—as in -these two compositions. The two _Romances_ are companion pieces and -pursue a similar pattern. Each opens with the solo violin presenting the -main melody (in the F major accompanied by the orchestra, in the G -major, solo). Each then progresses to a pure outpouring of lyricism -followed by virtuoso passages for the solo instrument. In each, violin -and orchestra appear to be engaging in a gentle dialogue. - -The _Turkish March_ (_Marcia alla turca_) is one of several numbers (the -fourth) comprising the incidental music to a play by Kotzebue, _The -Ruins of Athens_ (_Die Ruinen von Athen_), op. 113 (1811). The -production of this play with Beethoven’s music was intended for the -opening of a theater in Pesth on February 9, 1812. The _Turkish March_ -is in the pseudo-Turkish melodic style popular in Vienna in the early -19th century, and it employs percussion instruments such as the triangle -which the Viennese then associated with Turkish music. The march, with -its quixotic little melody, begins softly, almost like march music heard -from a distance. It grows in sonority until a stirring climax is -achieved. Then it dies out gradually and ebbs away in the distance. -Leopold Auer made a famous transcription for violin and piano, while -Beethoven himself transcribed it for piano, with six variations, op. 76 -(1809). - - - - - Vincenzo Bellini - - -Vincenzo Bellini was born in Catania, Sicily, on November 3, 1801. Born -to a musical family, he received music instruction in childhood, and -while still very young started composing. He then attended the San -Sebastiano Conservatory in Naples; during his stay there he completed a -symphony, two masses, and a cantata among other works. He made his bow -as opera composer with _Adelson e Salvini_, introduced at the -Conservatory in 1825. He continued writing operas after that, and having -them produced in major Italian opera houses with varying degrees of -success. _I Capuleti e i Montecchi_, given in Venice in 1830, was a -triumph. Then came the two operas by which Bellini is today most often -represented in the repertory: _La Sonnambula_ and _Norma_, both produced -in 1831. In 1833 he came to Paris where he completed his last opera, _I -Puritani_, given in Paris in 1835. He was at the height of his fame and -creative powers when he died in Puteaux, near Paris, on September 23, -1835, at the age of thirty-four, a victim of intestinal fever. - -Bellini was the genius of opera song. His fresh, pure lyricism—perfect -in design and elegant in style—elevates his greatest operas to a place -of significance. His masterwork is _Norma_, introduced at La Scala in -Milan on December 26, 1831, where it was at first a failure. The -libretto by Felice Romani was based on a tragedy by L. A. Soumet. In -Gaul, during the Roman occupation, in or about 50 B.C., Norma, high -priestess of the Druids, violates her vows by secretly marrying the -Roman proconsul, Pollione, and bearing him two sons. Pollione then falls -in love with Adalgisa, virgin of the Temple of Esus. Unaware that -Pollione is married, Adalgisa confides to Norma she is in love with him. -With Pollione’s infidelity now apparent, he is brought before Norma for -judgment. She offers him the choice of death or the renunciation of -Adalgisa. When Pollione accepts death, Norma confesses to her people -that, having desecrated her vows, she, too, must die. Moved by this -confession, Pollione volunteers to die at her side in the funeral pyre. - -The overture is famous. Loud dramatic chords in full orchestra are -succeeded by a soft _lento_ passage. A strong melody is then presented -by flutes and violins against an incisive rhythm. There follows a -graceful, sprightly and strongly accented tune in the strings. Both -melodies are then amplified, dramatized, and repeated; particular -emphasis is placed on the delicate, accented tune. The overture then -proceeds to an energetic conclusion. - -One vocal episode from _Norma_ is also extremely popular and is often -heard in orchestral transcriptions. It is Norma’s aria, “_Casta diva_,” -surely one of the noblest soprano arias in all Italian operatic -literature. It comes in the first act and represents Norma’s prayer for -peace, and her grief that the hatred of her people for the Roman -invaders must also result in their hatred for her husband, Pollione, the -Roman proconsul. - - - - - Ralph Benatzky - - -Ralph Benatzky was born in Moravské-Budejovice, Bohemia, on June 5, -1884. He acquired his musical training in Prague and with Felix Mottl in -Munich, after which he devoted himself to light music by composing -operettas. While residing at different periods in Vienna, Berlin, and -Switzerland, he wrote the scores for over ninety operettas and 250 -motion pictures, besides producing about five thousand songs. His most -successful operettas were _The Laughing Triple Alliance_, _My Sister and -I_, _Love in the Snow_, _Axel at the Gates of Heaven_, and _The White -Horse Inn_. He came to live in the United States in 1940, but after -World War II returned to Europe. He died in Zurich on October 17, 1957. - -_The White Horse Inn_ (_Im weissen Roess’l_) is not only Benatzky’s most -celebrated operetta, but also one of the most successful produced in -Europe between the two world wars, and possibly the last of the great -European operettas. It was first performed in Berlin in 1930, after -which it enjoyed over a thousand performances in Europe. Its première in -America in 1936 (the book was adapted by David Freedman, lyrics were by -Irving Caesar, William Gaxton and Kitty Carlisle starred) was only a -moderate success. The operetta book of the original—freely adapted by -Erik Charell and Hans Mueller, from a play by Blumenthal and -Kadelburg—is set in the delightful resort of St. Wolfgang on Wolfgangsee -in Austria, in the era just before World War I. Leopold, headwaiter of -_The White Horse Inn_, is in love with its owner, Frau Josepha, who -favors the lawyer, Siedler. In a fit of temper she fires Leopold, but -upon learning that Emperor Franz Josef is about to pay the inn a visit, -she prevails upon him to stay on. Leopold makes a welcoming speech to -the Emperor, during which his bitter resentment against Frau Josepha -gets the upper hand. Later on, when Frau Josepha confides to the Emperor -that she is in love with Siedler, he urges her to consider Leopold for a -husband. Leopold then comes to Josepha with a letter of resignation, -which she accepts, but only because she is now ready to give him a new -position, as her husband. - -Selections from this tuneful operetta include the main love song, “_Es -muss ein wunderbares sein_,” the ditty “_Zuschau’n kann ich nicht_,” and -the lively waltz, “_Im weissen Roess’l am Wolfgangsee_.” - -It is mainly the worldwide popularity of this operetta (even more than -the natural beauty of Wolfgangsee) that brings tourists each year to the -White Horse Inn at St. Wolfgang, for a sight of the operetta’s setting, -and to partake of refreshments on the attractive veranda overlooking -Wolfgangsee. The inn is now generously decorated with pictures in which -the two main songs of the operetta are quoted, supplemented by a -portrait of Benatzky. Souvenir ashtrays also carry musical quotations -from the operetta. - - - - - Arthur Benjamin - - -Arthur Benjamin was born in Sydney, Australia, on September 18, 1893. -His music study took place at the Royal College of Music in London. -After serving in World War I, he became professor at the Sydney -Conservatory, and in 1926 he assumed a similar post with the Royal -College of Music in London. Meanwhile in 1924 he received the Carnegie -Award for his _Pastoral Fantasia_, and in 1932 his first opera, _The -Devil Take Her_, was produced in London. For five years, beginning with -1941, he was the conductor of the Vancouver Symphony. He has written -notable concertos, a symphony, and other orchestral music, together with -chamber works and several operas including _A Tale of Two Cities_ which -won the Festival of Britain Prize following its première in 1953. He -also wrote a harmonica concerto for Larry Adler. Though many of his -compositions are in an advanced style and technique, Benjamin was -perhaps best known for his lighter pieces, particularly those in a -popular South American idiom. He died in London on April 10, 1960. - -The _Cotillon_ (1939) is a suite of English dances derived from a medley -entitled _The Dancing School_, published in London in 1719. Presented by -Benjamin in contemporary harmonic and instrumental dress, these -tunes—popular in England in the early 18th century—still retain their -appeal. A short introduction, built from a basic motive from the first -dance, leads to the following episodes with descriptive titles: “Lord -Hereford’s Delight” for full orchestra; “Daphne’s Delight” for woodwind -and strings; “Marlborough’s Victory,” for full orchestra; “Love’s -Triumph” for strings; “Jig It A Foot” for full orchestra; “The Charmer” -for small orchestra; “Nymph Divine” for small orchestra and harp solo; -“The Tattler” for full orchestra; and “Argyll” for full orchestra. A -figure from the final tune is given extended treatment in the coda. - -Benjamin’s best known piece of music is the _Jamaican Rumba_ (1942). -This is the second number of _Two Jamaican Pieces_ for orchestra. A -light staccato accompaniment in rumba rhythm courses nimbly through the -piece as the woodwinds present a saucy melody, and the strings a -countersubject. Consecutive fifths in the harmony, a xylophone in the -orchestration, and the changing meters created by novel arrangement of -notes in each measure, provide particular interest. The _Jamaican Rumba_ -has been transcribed for various solo instruments and piano as well as -for piano trio. - -The _North American Square Dances_, for two pianos and orchestra (1955), -is a delightful treatment of American folk idioms. The work comprises -eight fiddle tunes played at old-time square dances. The native flavor -is enhanced in the music by suggestions and simulations of -feet-stamping, voice calling, and the plunking of a banjo. In the -Introduction there appear fragments of the first dance; these same -fragments return in the coda. There are eight sections: Introduction and -“Heller’s Reel”; “The Old Plunk”; “The Bundle Straw”; “He Piped So -Sweet”; “Fill the Bowl”; “Pigeon on the Pier”; “Calder Fair”; and -“Salamanca” and “Coda.” The fourth and seventh dances are in slow tempo, -while all others are fast. - - - - - Robert Russell Bennett - - -Robert Russell Bennett was born in Kansas City, Missouri, on June 15, -1894. He began his music study in Kansas City: piano with his mother; -violin and several other instruments with his father; and harmony with -Carl Busch. While still a boy he wrote and had published several -compositions. He came to New York in 1916, worked for a while as copyist -at G. Schirmer, then during World War I served for a year in the United -States Army. After the war he spent several years in Paris studying -composition with Nadia Boulanger; during this period he was twice the -recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship. In 1926-1927 he received honorable -mention for his first symphony, in a contest sponsored by _Musical -America_; in 1930 he received two awards from RCA Victor, one for -_Sights and Sounds_, an orchestral tone poem, the other for his first -successful and widely performed work, the symphony _Abraham Lincoln_. -Since then Bennett has worked fruitfully in three distinct areas. As a -composer of serious works he has produced several operas (including -_Maria Malibran_), symphonies and other significant orchestral -compositions. As an orchestrator for the Broadway theater, he has been -involved with some of the foremost stage productions of our times -including musicals by Rodgers and Hammerstein, Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, -and Lerner and Loewe, and many others. He has also written compositions -of a more popular nature, compositions which, while fully exploiting the -resources of serious music, are nevertheless filled with popular or jazz -materials. Among the last are his effective symphonic adaptations of -music from George Gershwin’s _Porgy and Bess_; _Oklahoma!_ and _South -Pacific_ of Rodgers and Hammerstein; and _Kiss Me Kate_ of Cole Porter. -In each instance, the main melodies are brilliantly orchestrated and -skilfully combined into an integrated synthesis so that each becomes a -coherent musical composition. - -The _March_, for two pianos and orchestra, (1930) makes delightful use -of jazz melodies and rhythms. There are here four connected movements, -each in march time. The first movement, in a vigorous style, leaps from -one brief motive to another without any attempt at development. In the -second, a sustained melody, first for solo oboe and later for the piano -with full orchestra, is placed against a shifting rhythm. The third is a -serious recitative culminating in an episode in which the classic -funeral march is given sophisticated treatment. The fourth movement -begins with a _marche mignonne_ and concludes with a forceful, at times -overpowering, statement of the funeral-march theme of the third -movement. - -While the _Symphony in D_ (1941) is scored for symphony orchestra and -has been played by many leading American orchestras, it is music with -its tongue in the cheek, and is consistently light and humorous. This -symphony was written to honor the Brooklyn Dodger baseball team (that -is, when they were still in Brooklyn)—ironically enough an ode to a -colorful team by a composer who has been a lifelong rooter of its most -bitter rival, the New York Giants (once again, when they were still at -the Polo Grounds). There are four brief movements. The first, subtitled -“Brooklyn Wins,” “means to picture the ecstatic joy of the town after -the home team wins a game,” as the composer has explained. This is -followed by a slow (_Andante lamentoso_) movement, appropriately -designated as “Brooklyn Loses”—music filled with “gloom and tears, and -even fury.” The third movement, a scherzo, is a portrait of the club’s -then (1941) president, Larry MacPhail, and his pursuit of a star -pitcher. “We hear the horns’ bay call—then we hear him in Cleveland, -Ohio, trying to trade for the great pitcher, Bob Feller. He offers -Prospect Park and the Brooklyn Bridge as an even trade, but the -Cleveland management says ‘No’ in the form of a big E-flat minor chord. -After repeated attempts we hear the hunting horns again, as he resumes -the hunt in other fields.” The finale is a choral movement, and like -that of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, an ode to joy. “It is purely -fictitious, this text, but it speaks for itself. The subtitle of this -finale is ‘The Giants Come to Town.’” - -Bennett has written two delightful orchestral compositions derived from -the songs of Jerome Kern. One is _Symphonic Study_, a synthesis of some -of Kern’s best-loved melodies, and _Variations on a Theme by Jerome -Kern_. Both of these compositions are discussed in the section on Kern. -Bennett’s symphonic treatment of George Gershwin’s _Porgy and Bess_, -entitled _Symphonic Picture_, is commented upon in the Gershwin section, -specifically with _Porgy and Bess_; Bennett’s symphonic treatment of the -music of Cole Porter’s _Kiss Me Kate_, and of _Oklahoma!_ and _South -Pacific_ is spoken of in the sections devoted to Cole Porter and Richard -Rodgers, respectively. Bennett has also orchestrated, and adapted into a -symphonic suite, the music from Richard Rodgers’ _Victory at Sea_, -described in the Richard Rodgers section. - - - - - Hector Berlioz - - -Hector Berlioz was born in Côte-Saint-André, France on December 11, -1803. As a young man he was sent to Paris to study medicine, but music -occupied his interests and he soon abandoned his medical studies to -enter the Paris Conservatory. Impatient with the academic restrictions -imposed upon him there, he left the Conservatory to begin his career as -a composer. From the very beginning he set out to open new horizons for -musical expression and to extend the periphery of musical structure. His -first masterwork was the _Symphonie fantastique_, inspired by his love -for the Shakespearean actress, Harriet Smithson. It was introduced in -Paris in 1830, a year in which Berlioz also won the Prix de Rome. In his -later works, Berlioz became one of music’s earliest Romantics. He was a -bold innovator in breaking down classical restraint; he helped extend -the dramatic expressiveness of music; he was a pioneer in the writing of -program music and in enriching the language of harmony, rhythm, and -orchestration. Among his major works are the _Requiem_, _Harold in -Italy_ for viola solo and orchestra, the _Roman Carnival Overture_, the -dramatic symphony _Romeo and Juliet_, and _The Damnation of Faust_. -Berlioz married Harriet Smithson in 1833. It proved to be a tempestuous -affair from the outset, finally ending by mutual consent in permanent -separation. From 1852 until his death Berlioz was a librarian of the -Paris Conservatory. He was active throughout Europe as a conductor and -was a trenchant writer on musical subjects; among his books is a volume -of _Memoirs_. He died in Paris on March 8, 1869. - -The compositions by which Berlioz is most often heard on semi-classical -programs are three excerpts from _The Damnation of Faust_: “The Dance of -the Sylphs” (“_Danse des sylphes_”); “The Minuet of the -Will-o’-the-Wisps” (“_Menuet des feux-follets_”), and “Rakóczy March” -(“_Marche hongroise_”). - -_The Damnation of Faust_, op. 24, described by the composer as a -“dramatic legend,” took many years for realization. It was based on a -French translation of Goethe’s _Faust_, published in 1827. A year later, -Berlioz completed a musical setting of eight scenes as part of an -ambitious project to prepare a huge cantata based on the Faust legend. -He did not complete this project until eighteen years after that. Upon -returning to it, he revised his earlier material, and wrote a -considerable amount of new music. This work was first performed in -oratorio style in Paris on December 6, 1846 and was a fiasco. It was -given a stage presentation in Monte Carlo in 1903. Since then it has -been performed both in concert version and as an opera. - -“The Dance of the Sylphs” is graceful waltz music, its main melody -assigned to the violins. It appears in the second part of the “legend.” -Faust is lulled to sleep by sylphs who appear in his dream in a delicate -dance which brings up for him the image of his beloved Marguerite. -“Minuet of the Will-o’-the-Wisps” comes in the third part of the legend. -Mephisto summons the spirits and the will-of-the-wisps to encircle -Marguerite’s house. The dance tune is heard in woodwind and brass. After -the trio section, the minuet melody is repeated twice, the second time -interrupted by chords after each phrase. The “Rakóczy March” is based on -an 18th-century Hungarian melody. It is logically interpolated into the -Faust legend by the expedience of having Faust wander about in Hungary. -A fanfare for the brass leads to the first and main melody, a brisk -march subject begun quietly in the woodwind. It gains in force until it -is exultantly proclaimed by full orchestra. A countersubject is then -heard in strings. After the march melody returns, it again gains in -volume until it is built up into an overpowering climax. - - - - - Leonard Bernstein - - -Leonard Bernstein was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, on August 25, -1918. Early music study took place with private piano teachers, and -subsequently with Helen Coates and Heinrich Gebhard. He was graduated -from Harvard in 1939 after which he attended the Curtis Institute of -Music (a pupil of Fritz Reiner in conducting) and three summer sessions -of the Berkshire Music Center as a student and protégé of Serge -Koussevitzky. He made a sensational debut as conductor with the New York -Philharmonic in 1943, appearing as a last-minute substitute for Bruno -Walter who had fallen ill. Since that time he has risen to the front -rank of contemporary symphony conductors, having led most of the world’s -leading organizations, and being appointed music director of the New -York Philharmonic in 1958. As a serious composer he first attracted -attention with the _Jeremiah Symphony_ in 1944, which was performed by -most of America’s leading orchestras, was recorded, and received the New -York City Music Critics Award. He subsequently wrote other major works -for orchestra as well as the scores to successful ballets, an opera, and -several Broadway musical comedies that were box-office triumphs; the -last of these included _On the Town_ (1944), _Wonderful Town_ (1953) and -_West Side Story_ (1957). Bernstein has also distinguished himself as a -musical commentator and analyst over television, concert pianist, and -author. - -Whether writing in a serious or popular vein Bernstein consistently -reveals himself to be a master of his technical resources, endowed with -a fine creative imagination, a strong lyric and rhythmic gift, and a -restless intelligence that is ever on the search for new and fresh -approaches in his writing. High on the list of favorites in the -semi-classical repertory are the orchestral suites he adapted from his -two popular and successful ballets. - -_Facsimile_, choreography by Jerome Robbins, was introduced in New York -in 1946. The ballet scenario revolves around three lonely people—a woman -and two men—who find only frustration and disenchantment after trying to -find satisfactory personal relationships. The orchestral suite from this -vivacious score, vitalized with the use of popular melodies and dance -rhythms, is made up of four parts. I. “Solo.” The principal musical -material here is found in a solo flute. This is a description of a woman -standing alone in an open place. II. “Pas de Deux.” Woman meets man, and -a flirtation ensues to the tune of a waltz. The scene achieves a -passionate climax, and is followed by a sentimental episode, -romanticized in the music by a subject for muted strings and two solo -violins and solo viola. The love interest dies; the pair become bored, -then hostile. III. “Pas de trois.” The second man enters. This episode -is a scherzo with extended piano solo passages. A triangle ensues -between the two men and one woman, there is some sophisticated interplay -among them, and finally there ensue bitter words and misunderstandings. -IV. “Coda.” The two men take their departure, not without considerable -embarrassment. - -_Fancy Free_ was Bernstein’s first ballet, and it is still his most -popular one; he completed his score in 1944 and it was introduced by the -Ballet Theater (which had commissioned it) on April 18 of that year. It -was a success of major proportions, received numerous performances, then -became a staple in the American dance repertory. It is, wrote George -Amberg, “the first substantial ballet entirely created in the -contemporary American idiom, a striking and beautifully convincing -example of genuine American style.” The scenario, by Jerome Robbins, -concerned the quest of girl companionship on the part of three sailors -on temporary shore leave. Bernstein’s music, though sophisticated in its -harmonic and instrumental vocabulary, is filled with racy jazz rhythms -and idioms and with melodies cast in a popular mold. The orchestral -suite is made up of five parts: “Dance of the Three Sailors”; “Scene at -the Bar”; “Pas de deux”; “Pantomime”; “Three Variations” (Galop, Waltz, -Danzon) and Finale. - -When this Suite was first performed, in Pittsburgh in 1945, with -Bernstein conducting, the composer provided the following description of -what takes place in the music. “From the moment the action begins, with -the sound of a juke box wailing behind the curtain, the ballet is -strictly Young America of 1944. The curtain rises on a street corner -with a lamppost, side street bar, and New York skyscrapers tricked out -with a crazy pattern of lights, making a dizzying background. Three -sailors explode onto the stage; they are on shore leave in the city and -on the prowl for girls. The tale of how they meet first one girl, then a -second, and how they fight over them, lose them, and in the end take off -after still a third, is the story of the ballet.” - -_Fancy Free_ was expanded into a musical-comedy by Betty Comden and -Adolph Green, for which Bernstein wrote his Broadway score. Called _On -the Town_ it started a one-year Broadway run on December 28, 1944, and -subsequently was twice revived in off-Broadway productions, and was made -into an outstanding screen musical. - - - - - Georges Bizet - - -Georges Bizet was born in Paris on October 25, 1838. Revealing a -pronounced gift for music in early childhood he was entered into the -Paris Conservatory when he was only nine. There—as a pupil of Marmontel, -Halévy, and Benoist—he won numerous prizes, including the Prix de Rome -in 1857. In that year he also had his first stage work produced, a -one-act opera, _Le Docteur miracle_. After his return from Rome to Paris -he started to write operas. _Les Pêcheurs de perles_ (_Pearl Fishers_) -and _La jolie fille de Perth_ were produced in Paris in 1863 and 1867 -respectively. Success came in 1872 with his first Suite from the -incidental music to Daudet’s _L’Arlésienne_. After that came his -masterwork, the opera by which he has earned immortality: _Carmen_, -introduced in Paris two months before his death. Bizet died in Bougival, -France, on June 3, 1875. - -His gift for rich, well-sounding melodies, and his feeling for inviting -harmonies and tasteful orchestration make many of his compositions ideal -for programs of light music, even salient portions of _Carmen_. - -_Agnus Dei_ is a vocal adaptation (to a liturgical Latin text) of the -intermezzo from Bizet’s incidental music to _L’Arlésienne_. It is also -found as the second movement of the _L’Arlésienne Suite No. 2_. A -dramatic dialogue between forceful strings and serene woodwinds leads -into a spiritual religious song. - -The _Arlésienne Suite No. 1_ is made up of parts from the incidental -music, which Bizet wrote for the Provençal drama of Alphonse Daudet, -_The Woman of Arles_ (_L’Arlésienne_). The play, with Bizet’s music -consisting of twenty-seven pieces, was given at the Théâtre du -Vaudeville in Paris in 1872. Out of this score the composer selected -four excerpts and assembled them into an orchestral suite, which has -become his most celebrated instrumental composition, and his first -success as a composer. A knowledge of the plot and characters of the -Daudet play is by no means essential to a full appreciation of Bizet’s -tuneful suite. - -The first movement, “Prelude,” begins with a march melody based on an -old French Christmas song. This is subjected to a series of variations. -After the march tune has been repeated vigorously by the full orchestra -there appears a pastoral interlude, scored originally for saxophones, -but now usually heard in clarinets. This, in turn, is succeeded by a -passionate song for strings, with brass and woodwind accompaniment. The -second movement is a “Minuet,” whose principal theme is a brisk and -strongly accented subject. In the trio section, the clarinet appears -with a flowing lyrical episode. As the violins take this material over -they become rapturous; the harp and woodwind provide intriguing -accompanying figures. A brief “_Adagietto_” comes as the third movement. -This is a sensitive romance for muted strings. In the finale, -“Carillon,” we get a picture of a peasant celebration of the Feast of -St. Eloi. The horns simulate a three-note chime of bells which -accompanies a lively dance tune, first in strings, then in other -sections of the orchestra. A soft interlude is interposed by the -woodwind. Then the lively dance reappears, once again to be accompanied -by vigorous tolling bells simulated by the horns. - -There exists a second suite made up of four more numbers from the -incidental music to _L’Arlésienne_. This was prepared after Bizet’s -death by his friend, Ernest Guiraud. This second suite is rarely played, -but its second movement, “Intermezzo,” is celebrated in its liturgical -version as “_Agnus Dei_” (which see above). The other movements are -Pastorale, Minuet and Farandole. - -If the name of Bizet has survived in musical history and will continue -to do so for a long time to come, it is surely because of a single -masterwork—his opera _Carmen_. This stirring music drama—based on the -famous novel of Prosper Mérimée, adapted for Bizet by Meilhac and -Halévy—never fails in its emotional and dramatic impact. Carmen is the -seductive gypsy girl who enmeshes two lovers: the bull fighter -Escamillo, and the sergeant, Don José. Both she and Don José meet a -tragic end on the day of Escamillo’s triumph in the bull ring. The -background to this fatal story of love and death is provided by the -Spanish city of Seville—its streets, bull ring, taverns, and nearby -mountain retreat of smugglers. - -_Carmen_ was introduced at the Opéra-Comique on March 3, 1875. Legend -would have us believe it was a fiasco, and further that heartbreak over -this failure brought about Bizet’s premature death two months after the -opera was first heard. As a matter of historic truth, while there were -some critics at that first performance who considered the text too stark -and realistic for their tastes, _Carmen_ did very well, indeed. By June -18th it enjoyed thirty-seven performances. At the start of the new -season of the Opéra-Comique it returned to the repertory to receive its -fiftieth presentation by February 15, 1876. It was hailed in Vienna in -1875, Brussels in 1876, and London and New York in 1878. Many critics -everywhere were as enthusiastic as the general public, and with good -reason. For all the vivid color of Spanish life and backgrounds, and all -the flaming passions aroused by the sensual Carmen, were caught in -Bizet’s luminous, dramatic score. - -The Prelude to _Carmen_ represents a kind of resumé of what takes place -in the opera, and with some of its musical material. It opens with -lively music for full orchestra describing the festive preparations in -Seville just before a bull fight. After a sudden change of key, and -several chords, the popular second-act song of Escamillo, the -bullfighter, is first given quietly in strings, then repeated more -loudly. Then there is heard an ominous passage against quivering strings -which, in the opera, suggests the fatal fascination exerted by Carmen on -men. This is repeated in a higher register and somewhat amplified until -a dramatic chord for full orchestra brings this episode, and the -overture itself, to a conclusion. - -The Prelude to Act II is constructed from a motive of an off-stage -unaccompanied little song by Don José in the same act praising the -dragoons of Alcala. The Prelude to Act III is actually an entr’acte, a -gentle little intermezzo which Bizet originally wrote for -_L’Arlésienne_. The Prelude to Act IV is also an entr’acte, this time of -dramatic personality. The brilliant and forceful music is based upon an -actual Andalusian folk song and dance; it sets the mood for the gay -festivities in a public square on the day of a gala bull-fight with -which the fourth act opens. - -It is sometimes a practice at concerts of semi-classical or pop music to -present not merely one of the four orchestral Preludes but also at other -times salient musical episodes from the opera, arranged and assembled -into fantasias or suites. These potpourris or suites are generally made -up of varied combinations of the following excerpts. From Act I: the -“Changing of the Guard”; Carmen’s seductive and extremely popular aria, -the Habanera (“_L’amour est un oiseau rebelle_”), which was not by Bizet -but borrowed by him from a song by Sebastian Yradier (see Yradier); the -duet of Micaëla and Don José, “_Qui sait de quel démon_”; and Carmen’s -Séguidille, “_Près des ramparts de Séville_.” From Act II: “The March of -the Smugglers,”; Carmen’s “_Chanson bohème_”; the rousing Toreador Song -of Escamillo; and Don José’s poignant “Flower Song” to Carmen, “_La -fleur que tu m’avais jetée_.” From Act III: Carmen’s Card Song, “_En -vain pour éviter_”; and Micaëla’s celebrated Air, “_Je dis que rien ne -m’épouvante_”. From Act IV: the Chorus, March, and Finale. - -Utilizing many of these selections, Ferruccio Busoni and Vladimir -Horowitz each prepared striking concert fantasias for solo piano; Pablo -de Sarasate, for violin and piano; and Franz Waxman for violin and -orchestra for the motion picture, _Humoresque_, starring John Garfield. - -_Children’s Games_ (_Jeux d’enfants_) is a delightful suite of twelve -pieces for piano (four hands) for and about children. Bizet wrote it in -1871, but shortly afterwards orchestrated five of these numbers and -assembled them into a suite, op. 22. The first movement is a march -entitled “Trumpeter and Drummer” (“_Trompette et tambour_”) music -punctuated by trumpet calls and drum rolls, accompanying a troop of -soldiers as it approaches and then disappears into the distance. This is -followed by a tender berceuse for muted strings, “The Doll” (“_La -Poupée_”). The third movement is “The Top” (“_La Toupie_”), an impromptu -in which the violins simulate the whirr of a spinning top while the -woodwinds introduce a jolly dance tune. The fourth movement, “Little -Husband, Little Wife” (_“Petit mari, petite femme”_) is a quiet little -dialogue between husband and wife, the former represented by first -violins, and the latter by the cellos. The suite ends with “The Ball” -(“Le Bal”), a galop for full orchestra. - -The _Danse bohèmienne_ is a popular orchestral episode that comes from a -comparatively unknown (and early) Bizet opera, _La jolie fille de -Perth_, introduced in Paris in 1867. This vital dance music appears in -the second act, but it is also often borrowed by many opera companies -for the fourth act ballet of _Carmen_. The harp leads into, and then -accompanies, a soft, sinuous dance melody for the flute. The tempo -rapidly quickens, and the mood grows febrile; the strings take over the -dance melody in quick time, and other sections of the orchestra -participate vigorously. - -_La Patrie_ Overture, op. 19 (1873) is music in a martial manner. A -robust, strongly rhythmed march tune is immediately presented by the -full orchestra. After some amplification it is repeated softly by the -orchestra. The second main theme is a stately folk melody first given by -the violins, clarinets and bassoons, accompanied by the double basses. -This new subject receives resounding treatment in full orchestra and is -carried to a powerful climax. After a momentary pause, a third tune is -heard, this time in violas and cellos accompanied by brasses and double -basses, and a fourth, in violas, clarinets and English horn with the -muted violins providing an arpeggio accompaniment. Then the stirring -opening march music is recalled and dramatized. The overture ends in a -blaze of color after some of the other themes are brought back with -enriched harmonies and orchestration. - -This music was written for a play of the same name by Sardou. - - - - - Luigi Boccherini - - -Luigi Boccherini was born in Lucca, Italy, on February 19, 1743. After -studying music with various private teachers in Rome, he gained -recognition as a cellist both as a member of theater orchestras in Lucca -and later on tour throughout Europe in joint concerts with Filippo -Manfredi, violinist. He served as court composer in Madrid from 1785 to -1787, and from 1787 until 1797 for Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia. His -last years were spent in Madrid in poverty and poor health, and he died -in that city on May 28, 1805. - -Boccherini, a contemporary of Haydn, was a prolific composer of -symphonies, concertos, and a considerable amount of chamber music which -were all-important in helping to develop and crystallize a classical -style of instrumental writing and in establishing the classic forms of -instrumental music. - -Despite the abundance of his creation in virtually every branch of -instrumental music, and despite the significance of his finest works, -Boccherini is remembered today by many music lovers mainly for a -comparatively minor piece of music: the sedate _Minuet_ which originated -as the third movement of the String Quintet in E major, op. 13, no. 5. -Transcribed for orchestra, and for various solo instruments and piano, -(even for solo harpsichord) this light and airy Minuet has become one of -the most celebrated musical examples of this classic dance form. - -Several of Boccherini’s little known melodies from various quintets and -from his Sinfonia No. 2 in B-flat were used by the contemporary French -composer, Jean Françaix, for a ballet score, from which comes an -enchanting little orchestral suite. The ballet was _The School of -Dancing_ (_Scuola di Ballo_), with book and choreography by Leonide -Massine; it was introduced by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in Monte -Carlo in 1933. The book was set in the dancing school of Professor -Rigadon. The professor tries to palm off one of his backward pupils on -an impresario, while withholding his star; in the end all pupils leave -him in disgust. The suite is in four parts. The first consists of -“_Leçon_” and “_Menuet_”; the second, “_Larghetto_,” “_Rondo_,” and -“_Dispute_”; the third, “_Presto_,” “_Pastorale_,” and “_Danse -allemande_”; the last, “_Scène du notaire_” and “_Finale_.” An -unidentified program annotator goes on to explain: “An occasional stern -note in the ‘_Leçon_’ and strong chords in the ‘_Menuet_’ suggest the -teacher. The violin and bassoon play a duet which very clearly pictures -the inept pupil. Further atmosphere is furnished by a guitar-like -accompaniment heard on the harp from time to time. One is soon -acquainted with the characters who reappear in the various sections. The -‘_Larghetto_’ closely resembles a movement in one of Haydn’s symphonies, -which suggests a tempting line of speculation. The orchestration of the -‘_Rondo_’ and the syncopation of the ‘_Danse allemande_’ are -noteworthy.” - - - - - François Boieldieu - - -François-Adrien Boieldieu, genius of opéra-comique, was born in Rouen, -France, on December 16, 1775. After studying music with Charles Broche, -Boieldieu became a church organist in Rouen in his fifteenth year. Two -years later his first opera, _La fille coupable_, was successfully given -in the same city. In 1796 he came to Paris where from 1797 on his operas -began appearing in various theaters, climaxed by his first major -success, _Le Calife de Bagdad_ in 1801. In 1798 he was appointed -professor of the piano at the Paris Conservatory. From 1803 until 1811 -he lived in Russia writing operas for the Imperial theaters and -supervising musical performances at court. After returning to Paris in -1811, he reassumed his significant position in French music. From 1817 -to 1826 he was professor of composition at the Paris Conservatory, and -in 1821 he was made Chevalier of the Legion of Honor. All the while he -kept on writing operas and enjoying considerable popularity. His most -significant work was the opéra-comique, _La Dame blanche_, a sensation -when introduced in Paris in 1825. Ill health compelled him to abandon -his various professional activities in 1832. Supported by an annual -government grant, he withdrew to Jarcy where he spent the last years of -his life devoting himself mainly to painting. He died there on October -8, 1834. Boieldieu, with Adam and Auber, was one of the founders of -French comic opera, and his best works are still among the finest -achieved in this _genre_. - -The Overture to _The Caliph of Bagdad_ (_Le Calife de Bagdad_) is -Boieldieu’s most famous piece of music. The opera was a triumph when -introduced at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on September 16, 1801. The -libretto, by Saint-Just, is set in Bagdad where Isaaum is a benevolent -Caliph, but given to mischievous pranks and tricks, including parading -around the city in various disguises. Once, as an army officer, he meets -and makes love to Zeltube. Her mother, suspicious of him, orders his -arrest. When the Caliph reveals himself, he also discloses his -intentions were honorable and that he intends making Zeltube his bride. - -The overture opens with a mellow song for strings. When the tempo -changes, a sprightlier tune is heard in strings and brought to a -forceful climactic point. The music now assumes a dramatic character -after which a new subject, again in a sensitive lyrical vein, is offered -by the strings. - -The Overture to _La Dame blanche_ (_The White Lady_) is also popular. -_La Dame blanche_ is the composer’s greatest work in the opéra-comique -form. It was received with such sensational acclaim when introduced in -Paris on December 10, 1825 that, temporarily at any rate, the sparkling -comic operas of Rossini (then very much in vogue) were thrown into a -shade. In time, _La Dame blanche_ received universal acceptance as a -classic in the world of opéra-comique. Between 1825 and 1862 it enjoyed -over a thousand performances in Paris; by World War I, the total passed -beyond the fifteen hundred mark. The libretto, by Eugène Scribe, is -based on two novels by Sir Walter Scott, _The Monastery_ and _Guy -Mannering_. The setting is Scotland, and the “white lady” is a statue -believed to be the protector of a castle belonging to the Laird of -Avenel. The castle is being administered by Gaveston who tries to use -the legend of the white lady for his own selfish purposes, to gain -possession of the family treasures. Anna, Gaveston’s ward, impersonates -the white lady to help save the castle and its jewels for the rightful -owner. - -The vivacious overture is made up of several of the opera’s principal -melodies. The introduction begins with a motive from the first-act -finale, and is followed by the melodious and expressive “Ballad of the -White Lady.” The Allegro section that follows includes the drinking song -and several other popular arias, among these being the ballad of “Robin -Adair” which appears during the hero’s first-act revery and as a concert -piece in the third act. - - - - - Giovanni Bolzoni - - -Giovanni Bolzoni was born in Parma, Italy, on May 14, 1841. He attended -the Parma Conservatory, then achieved recognition as a conductor of -operas in Perugia and Turin. In 1887 he became director of the Liceo -Musicale in Turin. Bolzoni wrote five operas, a symphony, overtures, and -chamber music, but all are now in discard. He died in Turin on February -21, 1919. - -About the only piece of music by Bolzoni to survive is a beguiling -little Minuet which comes from an unidentified string quartet and which -has achieved outstanding popularity in various transcriptions, including -many for salon orchestras with which it is a perennial favorite. - - - - - Carrie Jacobs Bond - - -Carrie Jacobs Bond, whose art songs are among the most popular by an -American, was born in Janesville, Wisconsin, on August 11, 1862. Coming -from a musical family, she was given music instruction early, and made -appearances as a child-prodigy pianist. After marrying Dr. Frank L. -Bond, a physician, she went to live in Chicago where her husband died -suddenly, leaving her destitute. For a while she earned a living by -renting rooms, taking in sewing, and doing other menial jobs. Then she -began thinking of supplementing this meager income with the writing of -songs. To issue these compositions, she formed a modest publishing firm -in New York with funds acquired from her New York song recital; for a -long time her office was in a hall bedroom. Her first publication, just -before the end of the century, was _Seven Songs_, which included “I Love -You Truly” and “Just a Wearyin’ For You,” each of which she subsequently -published as separate pieces. In 1909 she achieved a formidable success -with the famous ballad, “The End of a Perfect Day,” of which more than -five million copies of sheet music were sold within a few years. Her -later songs added further both to her financial security and her -reputation. She was invited to give concerts at the White House, -received awards for achievement in music from various organizations, and -was singled out in 1941 by the Federation of Music Clubs as one of the -two outstanding women in the field of music. She died in Hollywood, -California, on December 28, 1946. - -Carrie Jacobs Bond knew how to write a song that was filled with -sentiment without becoming cloying, that was simple without becoming -ingenuous, and which struck a sympathetic universal chord by virtue of -its mobile and expressive lyricism. Besides “I Love You Truly,” “Just a -Wearyin’ for You” and “The End of a Perfect Day,” her most famous songs -included “His Lullaby,” “Life’s Garden,” “I’ve Done My Work,” and “Roses -Are in Bloom.” Her songs are so popular that they have been often heard -in various transcriptions for salon orchestras and band. - - - - - Alexander Borodin - - -Alexander Borodin was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, on November 11, -1833. He was trained in the sciences, having attended the Academy of -Medicine in St. Petersburg and in 1858 receiving his doctorate in -chemistry. He continued after that to devote himself to scientific -activities, both in and out of Russia. He produced several significant -papers and, from 1859 to 1862, served on an important scientific -mission. - -He had also received some musical training in his boyhood. In 1862 he -began to direct his energies with equal vigor to music as well as to -science. He soon joined four colleagues (Mussorgsky, Balakirev, Cui, and -Rimsky-Korsakov) in forming a national school of composition henceforth -identified as “The Mighty Five” or “The Russian Five.” Like the other -members of this group, Borodin concerned himself with the creation of a -national Russian musical art, well grounded in Russian folk song and -dance, Russian culture and history. In this style he produced three -symphonies, the folk opera _Prince Igor_, two string quartets, and -various operas and instrumental compositions. He differed from the other -members of the “Russian Five” by his partiality to Oriental melodies, -harmonies, rhythms, and instrumental colors, and by his preference for -exotic subjects. Borodin died in St. Petersburg on February 27, 1887. - -_In the Steppes of Central Asia_ (1880) is a popular tone poem for -orchestra, one of several _tableaux vivants_ (“living pictures”) -commissioned from various composers to honor the 25th anniversary of the -reign of Czar Alexander II. Each _tableau vivant_ was intended to -portray an incident from the Russian past, or a picture of a Russian -scene. Borodin prepared his own programmatic note to explain his music; -it appears in the published score. “Over the uniformly sandy steppes of -Central Asia come sounds of a peaceful Russian song. Along with them are -heard the melancholy strains of Oriental melodies, then the stamping of -approaching horses and camels. A caravan, accompanied by Russian -soldiers, traverses the measureless waste. With full trust in its -protective escort, it continues its long journey in a carefree mood. -Onward the caravan moves. The songs of the Russians and those of the -Asiatic natives mingle in common harmony. The refrains curl over the -desert and then die away in the distance.” - -The peaceful Russian song is given by the clarinet, while the -“melancholy strains of Oriental melodies” is an expressive song for -English horn. These two melodies are the core of a composition that is -free in form. - -The _Nocturne_ (_Notturno_) is a haunting, poetic song for strings, the -third movement of the composer’s String Quartet No. 2 in D major (1885). -It is often heard apart from the rest of the work, particularly in -various transcriptions for orchestra, or for violin and piano. In 1953, -furnished with lyrics and adapted into a popular song by Robert Wright -and George “Chet” Forrest, it was heard in the Broadway musical _Kismet_ -as “This Is My Beloved” and became an outstanding hit. - -The _Polovtsian Dances_ come from _Prince Igor_, a folk opera with -libretto by Vladimir Stassov based on an old Russian chronicle. It was -introduced at the Imperial Opera in St. Petersburg in 1890. The setting -is 12th-century Central Asia where a Tartar race, known as the Polovtzi, -capture Prince Igor and his son, Vladimir. Though captives, Prince Igor -and his son are regaled by the leader of the Tartars with a lavish feast -and Oriental dances. It is at this point in the opera (Act 2) that the -popular _Polovtsian Dances_ appear. They are exciting aural experiences -because of their primitive rhythms, exotic Oriental melodies, and -flaming instrumental colors. One of the dances is a poignant melody for -flute and oboe; another is a dance of savage men in which the main -melody in clarinet is set against a sharply accented phrase of four -descending notes; a third is barbaric, a syncopated melody for strings -accompanied by crash of cymbals; a fourth is a haunting Oriental song -divided by violins and cellos. This last melody was used by Robert -Wright and George “Chet” Forrest for their popular song hit of 1953, -“Stranger in Paradise,” in their Broadway musical, _Kismet_. The -concluding dance is again in a savage manner. A passionate melody is -begun by the woodwind and carried on by the strings, while receiving a -vigorous horn accompaniment. - - - - - Felix Borowski - - -Felix Borowski was born in Burton, England, on March 10, 1872. He -received his musical training at the Cologne Conservatory and with -private teachers in England. In 1897 he settled in the United States -where he later became a citizen. From 1897 to 1916 he was professor of -harmony and counterpoint at Chicago Musical College, and from 1916 to -1925 its president. His career in music criticism began in 1905. From -1907 to 1917 he was music critic of the Chicago _Record-Herald_ and from -1942 until his death, of the Chicago _Sun_. He was also program -annotator for the concerts of the Chicago Symphony from 1908 on, some of -these annotations being published in the books, _Standard Concert Guide_ -and _Encyclopedia of the Symphony_. Borowski died in Chicago, Illinois, -on September 6, 1956. - -As a composer, Borowski produced three symphonies, three string -quartets, several ballet-pantomimes, various tone poems and other -instrumental compositions. His major works are now rarely given, but his -smaller salon pieces have retained their popularity through the years. -The best of these are the _Adoration_, for violin and piano, the _La -Coquette_ and _Valsette_ for piano, all transcribed for orchestra. All -three pieces are in simple song structure and unashamedly Romantic in -their lyricism and emotional content. The uninhibited sentimentality of -_Adoration_ has made that piece a particular favorite. - - - - - Johannes Brahms - - -Johannes Brahms was born in Hamburg, Germany, on May 7, 1833. He -received instruction in music from his father, Otto Cossel, and Eduard -Marxsen. At fourteen he gave his first public concert as pianist, in -which he introduced one of his own compositions. In 1853 he toured with -the Hungarian violinist, Eduard Reményi, as his accompanist. During this -period he met and aroused the interest of such notable musicians as -Joachim, Liszt, and Schumann. The last of these was one of the first to -give Brahms public recognition, through a glowing article in the _Neue -Zeitschrift fuer Musik_. After a considerable amount of travel in -Germany and Austria, and after holding various musical positions, Brahms -established himself permanently in Vienna in 1863. The promise he had -shown in his early piano and chamber music became fully realized with -his first piano concerto in 1857, the _German Requiem_ written between -1857 and 1868, and the first symphony completed in 1876. In his later -orchestral, piano, and chamber music he assumed a position of first -importance in the German Romantic movement, the spokesman for absolute -music, the genius who succeeded in combining respect for classical -discipline and tradition with the Romanticist’s bent for emotion, -poetry, and flexible thought. Brahms died in Vienna on April 3, 1897. - -The supreme craftsmanship, mature thought, and profound feelings of -Brahms’ music do not lend themselves to popular consumption. -Occasionally, though not frequently, he chose to give voice to a lighter -mood, as he did in his ever-popular _Hungarian Dances_. In such music, -as in his more ambitious works, he is always the master of form and -style, and a powerful and inventive creator. - -The _Cradle Song_ (_Wiegenlied_) is Brahms’ universally loved art song, -one of the most famous lullabies ever written. It is the fourth in a -collection of five songs, op. 49 (1868). Its lyric is a folk poem -(“_Guten Abend, Gute Nacht_”). In its many and varied transcriptions, -this lullaby has become an instrumental favorite. - -The _Hungarian Dances_ was originally published in 1869 in two volumes -for four-hand piano. The first book contained dances Nos. 1 through 5, -while the second book had Nos. 6 through 10. Brahms took special pains -to point out that these melodies were not his own, but were adaptations. -On the title page there appeared the phrase “arranged for the piano.” -Brahms further refused to place an opus number to his publication as -another indication that this was not original music; and in a letter to -his publisher, Simrock, he explained he was offering this music “as -genuine gypsy children which I did not beget but merely brought up with -bread and milk.” - -Despite Brahms’ open candor about the origin of these melodies, a storm -of protest was sounded by many newspapers and musicians accusing Brahms -of plagiarism. Fortunately, the general public refused to be influenced -by this unjust accusation. The two volumes of _Hungarian Dances_ were a -formidable success, the greatest enjoyed by Brahms up to that time. - -In 1880, Brahms issued two more volumes of _Hungarian Dances_, still for -four-hand piano. Book 3 had dances Nos. 11 through 16, and Book 4, Nos. -17 through 21. This time many of the melodies were original with Brahms, -even if modeled after the style and idiosyncrasies of actual Hungarian -folk dances and gypsy melodies. - -The _Hungarian Dances_ are most popular in transcriptions for orchestra. -Brahms himself transcribed Dances Nos. 1, 3, and 10; Andreas Hellen, -Nos. 2, 4, and 7; Dvořák, Nos. 7 through 21; and Albert Parlow, the -rest. Walter Goehr and Leopold Stokowski also made transcriptions of -several of these dances for orchestra. In addition, Brahms adapted Book -1 for piano solo, and Joachim all the dances for violin and piano. - -The dances range from sentimental to passionate moods. They abound with -abrupt contrasts of feeling and dynamics; they are often vital with -vertiginous rhythms and changing meters. These gypsy melodies, both the -gay and the sad, warm the heart like Tokay wine; the pulse of the rhythm -is similarly intoxicating. As Walter Niemann wrote of these dances: -“They are pure nature music, full of unfettered, vagrant, roving spirit, -and a chaotic ferment, drawn straight from the deepest well springs of -music by children of Nature. It seems impossible to imprison them in the -bonds of measure, time, and rhythm, to convert their enchantingly -refreshing uncivilized character, their wild freedom, their audacious -contempt for all order into a civilized moderation and order.” - -Yet Brahms was able to discipline this music with modern techniques -without robbing it either of its personality or popular appeal. “He has -maintained,” continues Niemann, “and preserved the essential, individual -genuine features of gypsy music in his musical idiom: the dances sound -like original Hungarian folk music ... and for this reason they delight -and enchant everybody: the amateur by their natural quality, the -specialist by their art.” - -The most famous of these dances is the fifth in F-sharp minor, its -passionate, uninhibited dance melody released at once by the strings -against a strong rhythm. - -The following are some other popular dances. - -No. 1, in G minor. A slow and languorous dance unfolds in strings, and -then is contrasted by a slight, tripping theme in woodwind; a second -languorous dance melody follows in the strings. - -No. 6 in D-flat major. A slow syncopated melody begins sensually but -soon gains in tempo and volume; a second arresting dance tune is then -offered by strings against strong chords in the rest of the orchestra. - -No. 7 in A major. This dance opens with a vivacious melody in strings, -but through most of the piece a comparatively restrained mood is -maintained. - -No. 12 in D minor. The first dance melody is presented in a halting -rhythm by the woodwind against decorative figures in the strings. This -is followed by two other dance tunes, the first in strings with -trimmings in the woodwind, and the second in full orchestra. - -No. 19 in B minor and No. 21 in E minor. Both are fleet and graceful -both in melody and rhythm. - -The _Waltz in A-flat major_, a graceful dance which is given without any -introduction or coda, originated as a piece for piano duet: the -fifteenth of a set of sixteen such waltzes op. 39 (1865). All of Brahms’ -waltzes reveal their Viennese identity in their charm and lightness of -heart. Some are derivative from the waltzes of Johann Strauss II, but -the one in A-major is more in the character of a Schubert Laendler than -a Strauss waltz, though it does boast more delicacy and refinement than -we usually find in peasant dances. David Hochstein’s transcription for -violin and piano is in the concert violin repertory. - - - - - Charles Wakefield Cadman - - -Charles Wakefield Cadman was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, on -December 24, 1881. As a boy he played the organ in a church near -Pittsburgh, and wrote a march that was published. His main music study -took place with private teachers: Leo Oehmler, Luigi von Kunits, and -Emil Paur. From 1908 to 1910 he was the music critic of the Pittsburgh -_Dispatch_. Meanwhile, a meeting in 1902 with the lyric writer Nellie -Richmond Eberhart, turned him to the writing of songs in which he -achieved his initial outstanding successes as composer. Some of these -were inspired by the American Indian. Later researches in the field of -American-Indian ceremonials and music led him to write his opera -_Shanewis_, produced by the Metropolitan Opera in 1918, as well as -several significant instrumental works including the _Thunderbird Suite_ -and _To a Vanishing Race_. From 1917 until his death he lived in -California where he wrote several major orchestral and chamber-music -works, but none in the American-Indian idiom with which he became -famous. He died in Los Angeles on December 30, 1946. - -The _American Suite_, for strings (1938), is an engaging piece of music -in which Cadman makes use of several different American folk idioms. In -the first movement he borrows his melodies from the tribal music of -Omaha Indians. In the second movement we hear Negro folk tunes -indigenous to South Carolina. And in the third movement, two old fiddle -tunes are effectively employed, “Sugar in the Gourd,” and -“Hoop-de-den-do.” - -“At Dawning” is one of Cadman’s two most famous songs. It sold millions -of copies of sheet music and records, and has been translated into many -languages. Though originally published in 1906, it reposed forgotten and -unknown on the shelves of the publisher (Oliver Ditson) until John -McCormack sang it at one of his recitals in 1909 and was given an -ovation. “At Dawning” was transcribed for violin and piano by Fritz -Kreisler. - -_Dark Dancers of Mardi Gras_, for orchestra with piano, (1933), is one -of Cadman’s most popular symphonic compositions. The composer explains: -“The work takes its name from the Negro side of the Mardi Gras, though -no Negro themes are used. The Negroes of New Orleans have a Mardi Gras -of their own. The fantasy is supposed to reflect the fantastic, the -grotesque, the bizarre spirit of the carnival. The original theme goes -into a major key in the central section, and might represent the -romantic feeling of the King and Queen, and the Court in carnival -fashion.” - -“From the Land of the Sky-Blue Water” is the second of Cadman’s two -outstandingly successful songs. It is one of four songs with lyrics by -Nellie Richmond Eberhart appearing in _American-Indian Songs_, op. 45, a -cycle which was published in Boston in 1909 and in the same year -received a prize in a contest sponsored by the Carnegie Institute. This -song was first swept to national fame by the prima donna, Lillian -Nordica, in her song recitals. It soon entered the repertory of -virtually every leading concert singer in America. Fritz Kreisler -transcribed it for violin and piano. - - - - - Lucien Caillet - - -Lucien Caillet was born in Dijon, France on May 22, 1891. After -attending the Dijon Conservatory he came to the United States in 1918 -and settled first in Pennsylvania, and later in California. He has -distinguished himself by his skilful symphonic transcriptions of -compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach, Mussorgsky, and others. In his -own works he frequently makes skilful use, and astute adaptations, of -some famous pieces of popular music. - -The _Fantasia and Fugue on Oh, Susanna!_ (1942) for orchestra has for -its point of departure the famous song of Stephen Foster, “Oh, Susanna!” -Caillet’s composition begins with a preface: a tutti for orchestra which -quotes the melody only partly. This leads into a fantasia section -featuring the solo string quartet and presenting a quiet version of the -melody. A fugue follows, the germ of the “Susanna” melody found in first -and second violins in unison. - -In _Pop Goes the Weasel_ for orchestra (1938) Caillet brings the full -resources of his harmonic and instrumental skill to a famous American -folk tune. “Pop Goes the Weasel” is a Western two-part melody, long a -favorite of country fiddlers since before the Civil War. After -presenting this melody, Caillet subjects it to intriguing variations, -sometimes with comic effect. - - - - - Alfredo Catalani - - -Alfredo Catalani was born in Lucca, Italy, on June 19, 1854. After -receiving preliminary instruction in music from his father he was -allowed to enter the Paris Conservatory without examinations. He -concluded his music study at the Milan Conservatory, where in 1886 he -succeeded Ponchielli as professor of composition. In 1880 he had his -first opera, _Elda_, produced in Turin. He continued to confine himself -to the stage, his most successful operas being _Loreley_ in 1890, and -_La Wally_ in 1892. In his own time, and shortly thereafter, his operas -were outstandingly successful in Italy. Today they are remembered almost -exclusively because of some orchestral excerpts. Catalani died in Milan -on August 7, 1893. - -The most popular episodes from Catalini’s two most famous operas are -dances often performed by salon orchestras. “The Dance of the Waves” -(_Danza delle ondine_) and “The Waltz of the Flowers” (_Valzer_ _dei -fiori_) appear in _Loreley_, an opera introduced in Turin in 1890. In -this opera the action takes place on the banks of the Rhine. Walter, -about to marry Anna, is loved by the orphan girl, Loreley. When Loreley -learns she is about to lose her beloved, she calls upon the nymphs and -the sprites of the Rhine to help her; throwing herself into the river, -she becomes one of them. During the wedding ceremonies, Loreley appears -and entices Walter away from his bride. Anna dies of grief; and Walter -meets his doom in the Rhine, to which he is helplessly drawn through -enticements by the sprites and by Loreley. - -“The Dance of the Waves” takes place in the last act. After Anna’s -funeral procession passes by, Walter comes to the edge of the Rhine, -grief-stricken. Out of the waters come the sprites to dance seductively -before Walter and to beckon him on into the river. “The Waltz of the -Flowers” is a graceful, even gentle, dance performed in the second act, -during the wedding ceremonies of Walter and Anna. - -“The Waltz of the Kiss” (_Valzer del bacio_) is a segment from _La -Wally_, Catalani’s most famous opera, which was such a particular -favorite of Arturo Toscanini that not only did he conduct it frequently -in Italy but he also named his son after its heroine. _La Wally_ was -introduced at La Scala in Milan in 1892. The text, by Luigi Illica, was -based on a novel by Wilhelmine von Hillern. The setting is 19th century -Switzerland where Wally and Hagenbach are in love, and meet their death -in an avalanche; all the while Wally is being sought after by Gellner, -whom she detests. The “Waltz of the Kiss” is a caressing piece of music -from the second act which accompanies a dance by Wally and Hagenbach, in -which they first discover they are in love and yield to passionate -kissing while the hateful Gellner watches. - - - - - Otto Cesana - - -Otto Cesana was born in Brescia, Italy, on July 7, 1899. He came to the -United States in boyhood and studied music with private teachers. After -working in Hollywood, where he wrote a considerable amount of music for -motion pictures, he came to New York to become arranger for Radio City -Music Hall, and for several important radio programs. In his own music -he has been particularly successful in using within large forms popular -American elements, at times folk idioms. In a more serious attitude he -has produced half a dozen symphonies and various concertos for solo -instruments and orchestra. - -_Negro Heaven_ for orchestra is one of his more popular attempts to use -an American folk idiom within a symphonic mold. He explains: “Here -follows a musical interpretation of the fluctuating moods that seize the -colored man—now gay, now sad, always, however migrating towards -carefreeness and abandon, as exemplified in the return of the first -subject, which is soon followed by one of those superlative moods, a -Negro in the throes of nostalgia.” - -_Swing Septet_ (1942), for string orchestra, guitar and percussion is in -three short movements, the first in sonata form, and the last two in -three-part song form. “The chief purpose,” says the composer, “is to -give the string players an opportunity to compete with the ad lib boys -who, while they improvise the wildest phrases imaginable, are ‘floored’ -whenever an approximation of that material is set down on paper.” - - - - - Emmanuel Chabrier - - -Emmanuel Chabrier was born in Ambert, France, on January 18, 1841. He -was trained as a lawyer; from 1862 to 1880 he was employed at the -Ministry of the Interior in Paris. But he had also received a sound -musical training with private teachers. Composition began for him in -earnest in the 1870’s, with two of his operettas receiving performances -in Paris between 1877 and 1879. In 1879 he made a pilgrimage to Germany -to hear Wagner’s music dramas whose impact upon him proved so -overwhelming that he finally decided to give up his government work and -concentrate on music. Returning to Paris in 1880 he published the -_Pièces pittoresques_ for piano. Following a visit to Spain he produced -in 1883 his first major work for orchestra and realized with it his -first major success as a composer—the rhapsody _España_. He also wrote -two operas, _Gwendoline_ produced in 1886, and _Le Roi malgré lui_ -introduced one year later. Some of his best writing was for the piano -and included such distinguished works as the _Habanera_, _Bourrée -fantasque_, and _Trois valses romantiques_. Chabrier became a victim of -paralysis in the last two years of his life, and just before his death -he began losing his sanity. He died in Paris on September 13, 1894. - -While in his operas he revealed his profound indebtedness to the -Wagnerian idiom, Chabrier was at his best either in music that -interpreted Spain or to which he brought a natural bent for laughter, -gaiety, and the grotesque. - -_España_, an orchestral rhapsody, is his most famous composition, as -popular in the semi-classical literature as it is in the symphonic -repertory. Chabrier wrote it in 1883 after a Spanish holiday, and its -première in Paris on November 4 of that year was a sensation. This -rhapsody is built from three principal subjects, two borrowed from -Spanish folk melodies, and one Chabrier’s own. A nervous rhythm in -plucked strings leads to a strongly accented malagueña, first heard in -the wind instrument. Different sections take it over before soaring -strings arrive with a lyrical jota melody. Chabrier’s own theme, a -stately subject for trombones, is then heard, set against the background -of the malagueña melody. The French waltz-king, Waldteufel, used -Chabrier’s themes from _España_ for one of his most famous waltzes, also -entitled _España_. - -The _Joyeuse marche_ (1888) reveals the composer in one of his satirical -moods. Chabrier wrote it at first as a piano composition to be used for -a sight-reading class at the Bordeaux Conservatory. It proved too -difficult to fulfil this function, and Chabrier decided to orchestrate -it, calling it _Joyeuse marche_ and presenting it as one of his more -serious endeavors. The music is in a burlesque style, believed to be a -musical description of drunken musicians staggering home after a festive -evening. The work opens with an orchestral flourish, following which the -oboe offers a capricious subject. This gaiety is maintained in the -lively second theme for the violins. - -The _Suite pastorale_ (1880) is an orchestral adaptation of four of the -ten piano pieces in _Pièces pittoresques_. In the first, “_Idylle_,” a -beautiful melody is accompanied by plucked strings. The second, “_Danse -villageoise_” is a country dance in which the lively dance tune is first -heard in clarinets. The third piece, “_Sous bois_” has a pastoral -character, while the concluding number, “_Scherzo-Valse_” is a -protracted piece of pulsating music. - - - - - George Chadwick - - -George Whitefield Chadwick was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, on -November 13, 1854. Most of his music study took place in Germany. When -he was being graduated from the Leipzig Conservatory in 1879, his -overture _Rip Van Winkle_ received its première performance. He then -studied organ and composition with Rheinberger in Munich. After -returning to the United States in 1880, he became a teacher of harmony -and composition at the New England Conservatory, rising to the post of -director in 1897. He was also active for several years as director of -the Worcester Music Festival. He died in Boston on April 4, 1931. - -Chadwick was a prolific composer of symphonies, concertos, and various -other orchestral and choral works. He never freed himself from the -influence of German Romanticism, with which he had been infected during -his student days. He wrote with a sure craftsmanship, usually filling -his classical structures with winning melodies and often lush harmonies -and orchestration. - -Two compositions for orchestra are of particular popular appeal: -_Jubilee_ and _Noël_. Both are movements from the _Symphonic Sketches_ -(1895) which received its world première in Boston in 1908. (The other -two movements, the third and fourth, are “Hobgoblin” and “A Vagrom -Ballad.”) _Jubilee_ is a vigorous tonal picture of a carnival. A -spirited melody is loudly presented by the full orchestra and is -elaborated upon. A second virile subject is then presented by bass -clarinet, bassoons, violas and cellos. Following a lively return of the -opening carnival theme, the woodwind and horns appear with a lyrical -subject. The music then gains in vitality until it comes to a rousing -conclusion with a coda built from the carnival motive. - -_Noël_ has been described as “a little Christmas song.” It is a haunting -orchestral nocturne in which a serene Yuletide melody is offered by the -English horn. - - - - - Cécile Chaminade - - -Cécile Chaminade was born in Paris on August 8, 1857. Music study took -place in Paris with Marsick and Godard among others. In 1875 she -launched her career as concert pianist by touring Europe in programs -that often included her own compositions. At her American debut, on -November 7, 1908, she appeared as soloist with the Philadelphia -Orchestra in a performance of her own _Concerstueck_. She wrote many -other ambitious works including a symphony, two orchestral suites, and -ballets. She died in Monte Carlo on April 18, 1944. - -Though Chaminade staked her future as composer on her larger, serious -works for orchestra and the ballet stage, she is today remembered almost -exclusively for her slight morsels of the salon variety. Most of these -originated as compositions for the piano; her piano music numbers about -two hundred works including arabesques, etudes, impromptus, -valse-caprices, and so forth. _Automne_, a sentimental melody, and -_Sérénade espagnole_, in a pseudo-Spanish style, come from her piano -music: _Automne_ from the _Concert Etudes_, op. 35. It has been -transcribed for popular orchestra by Melachrino. _Sérénade espagnole_ -has been adapted for violin and piano by Fritz Kreisler. Chaminade’s -most popular piece, _Scarf Dance_, comes from a ballet, _Callirhoë_, -produced in Marseilles in 1888. It is often heard in its original -orchestral version and in various transcriptions for solo piano, and -solo instrument and piano. - - - - - Gustave Charpentier - - -Gustave Charpentier was born in Dieuze, France, on June 25, 1860. He -received his musical training in the Conservatories in Lille and Paris, -winning the Prix de Rome in 1881. During his stay in Rome he wrote -_Impressions of Italy_ for orchestra, with which he realized his first -success upon its première performance in Paris in 1892. Charpentier’s -fame, however, rests securely on a single opera, _Louise_, a triumph -when introduced in Paris on February 2, 1900, and since become -recognized as one of the major achievements of the French lyric theater. -A sequel, _Julien_ (1913), was a failure. From 1913 on, Charpentier -wrote almost nothing more, living a Bohemian existence in the Montmartre -section of Paris where he died on February 18, 1956. - -_Impressions of Italy_, a suite for orchestra (1890) is a nostalgic -picture of five Italian scenes. The first movement is “Serenade,” in -which is described a picture of young men emerging from a bistro at -midnight, singing love songs under the windows of their girl friends. -“At the Fountain” depicts girls parading with dignified steps near a -waterfall by a ravine; from the distance come the sounds of a shepherd’s -tune. “On Muleback” tells of evening as it descends on the Sabine -Mountains. The mules trot along, and there rises the song of the -muleteer followed by the sweet love song of girls riding in their carts -to the village. “On the Heights” presents noontime on the heights -overlooking Sorrento. All is peace, though the toll of bells can be -heard from a distance. The finale is a musical tribute to a great city, -“Naples.” In this music we see the crowds of the city, the parading -bands. A tarantella is being danced in the streets. The strains of a -sentimental folk song drift in from the quay. Evening falls, and -fireworks electrify the sky. - - - - - Frédéric Chopin - - -François Frédéric Chopin, genius of music for the piano, was born in -Zelazowa Wola, Poland, on February 22, 1810. He began to study the piano -at six. One year later he made his first public appearance and wrote his -first piece of music. His later music study took place privately with -Joseph Elsner and at the Warsaw Conservatory from which he was graduated -with honors in 1829. In that year he visited Vienna where he gave two -successful concerts of his works. He left Poland for good in 1830, -settling permanently in Paris a year after that. He soon became one of -the most highly regarded musicians in France, even though he gave only a -few public concerts. In 1837 he first met the writer, George Sand, with -whom he was involved emotionally for about a decade, and under whose -influence he composed some of his greatest music. Always sensitive in -physique and of poor health, Chopin suffered physically most of his -adult life. He died in Paris on October 17, 1849 and was buried in Père -Lachaise. - -Chopin produced 169 compositions in all. Practically all of them are for -the piano, and most within the smaller forms. In writing for the piano -he was an innovator who helped change the destiny of piano style and -technique. He is often described as the poet of the keyboard, by virtue -of his sensitive and deeply affecting lyricism (usually beautifully -ornamented), his always exquisite workmanship, and his profound emotion. -Many of his works are nationally Polish in expression. - -The Etude in E major, op. 10, no. 3 (1833) is one of two of Chopin’s -most famous works in the etude form. While an etude is essentially a -technical exercise, Chopin produced twenty-seven pieces for piano which, -though they still probe various technical problems, are nevertheless so -filled with poetic thought and musical imagination that they belong in -the realm of great art and must be numbered with his most significant -compositions. That in E major is one of his most beautiful melodies, a -soulful song rather than a technical exercise; Chopin himself regarded -this as one of his most inspired pages. One of the many transcriptions -of this composition existing is for the voice. - -The so-called _Revolutionary Etude_—C minor, op. 10, no. 12 (1833)—was -inspired by the tidings received by Chopin while he was traveling from -Vienna to Paris that Warsaw had fallen to the Russians. His first -impulse was to rush back home and join in the battle. He was dissuaded -from doing this by his family, and instead he sublimated his intense -patriotic feelings by writing a fiery piece of national music, full of -the spirit of defiance. Since then this etude has become as inextricably -associated with Poland and its national aspirations and ideals as, for -example, is Sibelius’ _Finlandia_ with Finland. This etude was -repeatedly played over the Polish radio when Nazi Germany first attacked -Poland in 1939, a continual inspiration to the defenders of Warsaw; it -was the last piece of music played over the Polish radio before the -Germans took over. - -In the Fantaisie-Impromptu in C-sharp minor, op. 66 (1834), Chopin makes -a structural compromise between the forms of the fantasy and the -impromptu. In doing so, he produced one of his best known melodies, a -melody that appears after a fast bravura opening. This is a flowing -sentimental song that was used for the popular American tune, “I’m -Always Chasing Rainbows.” - -The _Funeral March_ is surely the most celebrated funeral music ever -written. It is found as the third movement of the Sonata No. 2 in B-flat -minor, for piano, op. 35 (1839). In various arrangements, especially for -orchestra, for band and for organ, this music has accompanied the dead -to their final resting place in every part of the civilized world. In -three-part form, the first section consists of a slow, mournful march. -In the middle trio a more reflective mood is projected, almost like a -kind of gentle recollection of the dead and the good he had performed. -The opening mournful tread returns after this trio to bring the -composition to its conclusion. - -The fifty-five Mazurkas are among the most national of Chopin’s -compositions, those in which he most fervently expressed his strong -feelings about his native land. The Mazurka is a Polish dance in ¾ time, -somewhat slower in tempo than the waltz, and highly varied in rhythm and -emotion. In Chopin’s Mazurkas we find, on the one hand, brief mood -pictures, and on the other, a fiery romantic temperament which expresses -itself in rapid and at times abrupt alternations of feeling from the gay -to the melancholy, from the energetic to the pensive. One of the most -beautiful of the Mazurkas is that in A minor, op. 17, no. 4 (1833), of -which Stokowski made an excellent orchestral arrangement. One of the -most dramatic is that in B-flat minor, op. 24, no. 4 (1835) orchestrated -by Stokowski, Auber, among others. Two other Chopin Mazurkas that have -been orchestrated are found in _Les Sylphides_ (see below): that in D -major, op. 33, no. 2 (1838) and C major, op. 67, no. 3 (1835). - -Chopin wrote nineteen Nocturnes, each one a slow, poetic and atmospheric -piece of “night music.” “Chopin loved the night,” wrote James Gibbons -Huneker, “and its soft mysteries, and his nocturnes are true night -pieces, some with agitated, remorseful countenance, others seen in -profile only, while many others are whisperings at the dusk.” The most -celebrated of Chopin’s Nocturnes is that in E-flat major, op. 9, no. 2 -(1833), truly a “whispering at the dusk.” This is a beautiful, romantic -song that begins without preliminaries. As this spacious melody unfolds, -it acquires even new facets of beauty through the most exquisite -embellishments. Among the many transcriptions that have become popular, -besides those for orchestra, is one for violin and piano by Pablo de -Sarasate, and another for cello and piano by David Popper. - -There are two Chopin Polonaises that are particularly favored by -audiences everywhere. One is the _Heroic_, the other the _Military_. -Chopin was especially successful in endowing artistic dimensions and -significance to this old courtly folk dance which is technically -characterized by its syncopations and accents on the half beat. He wrote -twelve for piano. The _Heroic_, in A-flat major, op. 53, no. 6 (1842) is -fiery music, its first robust theme being the reason why the entire work -has been designated as “heroic.” This main melody was borrowed for the -American popular song, “Till the End of Time,” a big hit in 1945. -(Sigmund Spaeth has pointed up the interesting fact that while “Till the -End of Time” was at the head of the “Hit Parade” in 1945, the polonaise -itself from which this song was derived was in fifteenth place, -“competing with all the light and serious music of the world.” And one -of the reasons why the Polonaise suddenly became so popular was because -it was featured prominently in the screen biography of Chopin released -that year, _A Song to Remember_.) The _Military Polonaise_, in A major, -op. 40, no. 1 (1839) is one of Chopin’s most commanding pieces of music. -Both principal themes have a pronounced military character, though the -second is somewhat more subdued and lyrical than the first. Glazunov’s -transcription for orchestra, for the ballet _Chopiniana_, is one of -several adaptations. - -Of Chopin’s twenty-six Preludes, two should be singled out for their -enormous popular appeal. Chopin’s Preludes are brief compositions -suggesting a mood or picture, but at the end leaving the impression with -the listener that much more could be spoken on that subject. These -Preludes, as Robert Schumann wrote, “are sketches, the beginnings of -studies, or, if you will, ruins; eagles’ pinions, wild and motley and -pell-mell. But in every piece we find, in his own pearly handwriting, -‘this is by Frederic Chopin’; even in his pauses we recognize him by his -agitated breathing.” There are twenty-four pieces in op. 28 (1839), each -one in one of the keys of the major or minor scale, beginning with C -major and A minor, and concluding with F major and D minor. The most -popular is that in A major, one of the shortest in the group, a -sixteen-bar melody in two short sentences; this is not only one of -Chopin’s simplest lyrical thoughts, but also one of his most eloquent. -Among the orchestral transcriptions is the one found in the ballet _Les -Sylphides_ (see below). - -The second of Chopin’s most popular Preludes is the so-called -_Raindrop_, in D-flat major, op. 28, no. 15. Some of the depression -experienced by Chopin during a miserable stay in Majorca with George -Sand—where he was plagued by illness, bad weather, and the antagonism -and suspicions of his neighbors—can here be found. The melody is a -somber reflection, through which is interspersed a repetitious figure -that seems to suggest the rhythm of falling raindrops, the reason why -this piece acquired its familiar nickname. The belief that Chopin was -inspired to write this music by listening to the gentle sound of falling -rain on the roof of his Majorca house is apocryphal. - -_Les Sylphides_, one of the most popular works in the classic ballet -repertory, makes extensive use of some of Chopin’s best-known -compositions for the piano, orchestrated by Stravinsky, Alexander -Tcherepnine, Glazunov, and Liadov. With choreography by Michel Fokine it -was first presented by Diaghilev’s Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in Paris -on June 2, 1909 with Pavlova, Karsavina, and Nijinsky as principal -dancers. There is no story line to this ballet. In place of characters -there are only dancers dressed in long white dresses, and a danseur in -black and white velvet. In place of an actual plot there is only -atmosphere and mood. A subdued, introspective overture (Prelude in A -major, op. 28, no. 7) leads to the rise of the curtain on an ancient -ruin within a secluded wood. Girls in white are transfixed in a tableau; -then they begin dancing to the strains of the Nocturne in A-flat, op. -32, no. 2. After that come various dances to the following Chopin -compositions: Waltz in G-flat, op. 70, no. 1; Mazurka in C major, op. -67, no. 3; Mazurka in D major, op. 33, no. 2; a repetition of the -opening A major Prelude; Waltz in A-flat, op. 69, no. 1, the _L’adieu_; -a repetition of the opening A major Prelude; Waltz in C-sharp minor, op. -64, no. 2; Waltz in E-flat, op. 18, the _Grande valse brillante_. - -Chopin’s fourteen waltzes are the last word in aristocratic elegance and -refinement of style; they are abundant with the most beguiling lyrical -ideas. Perhaps the best loved of all these waltzes is that in C-sharp -minor, op. 64, no. 2 (1847). The waltz opens without preliminaries with -music of courtly grace; two other equally appealing subjects follow. The -so-called _Minute Waltz_—in D-flat major, op. 64, no. 1—is one of the -shortest of Chopin’s compositions for the piano. The term “minute” does -not refer to the sixty seconds supposedly required for its performance -(actually that performance takes less than a minute) but to the French -term, “_minute_” meaning “small.” - - - - - Eric Coates - - -Eric Coates, one of England’s most highly esteemed and widely performed -composers of light music, was born in Hucknall, England, on August 27, -1886. While attending the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he -specialized in the viola under Lionel Tertis, he supported himself by -playing in several of London’s theater orchestras. Upon graduating from -the Academy, Coates became violist with several string quartets, -including the Hambourg String Quartet with which he toured South Africa -in 1908. From 1912 to 1918 he was first violist of the Queen’s Hall -Orchestra. Meanwhile, in 1911 he realized his first success as composer -of light music when his _Miniature Suite_ was introduced at a Promenade -Concert; after 1920 he devoted himself almost completely to composition, -producing ballets, rhapsodies, suites, marches, and so forth, that were -heard around the world. In 1930, his valse-serenade _Sleepy Lagoon_ -achieved a phenomenal success in London; with lyrics by Jack Lawrence -and in a popular-song arrangement by Dr. Albert Sirmay, it made in 1942 -seventeen appearances on the American “Hit Parade,” twice in first -place. Coates appeared as guest conductor throughout the music world, -visiting the United States in 1946 and 1955, on both occasions -conducting concerts of his music over the radio networks. In 1957 he -became president of the British Light Music Association. He died in -Chichester, England, on December 21, 1957. - -In _Four Centuries_, a suite for orchestra (1941), Coates created a -four-movement work, each of which was in a musical style of a different -century. The first movement is a fugue, the second pavane, the third -Valse, and the last is called “Jazz.” - -_London Suite_ (1932), for orchestra, is one of his best known works -inspired by the city dearest to his heart. As he himself wrote: “My best -inspiration is to walk down a London street and a tune soon comes to me. -When I can think of nothing I walk down Harley Street and there is a -lamp post. Every time I catch sight of it a tune comes to my mind. That -lamp post has been my inspiration for years.” The most celebrated -movement of his suite is the stirring “Knightsbridge March,” one of the -most popular marches by an Englishman, perhaps second only in universal -appeal to Elgar’s _Pomp and Circumstance_. It has been used as the theme -music for a program on the BBC, and when first used the radio station -was swamped with over twenty thousand letters asking for its -identification. Two other highly familiar movements from this suite are -“Westminster” and “Covent Garden.” The former is a “meditation,” -introduced by the chiming of bells of the Westminster clock and followed -by tunes both gay and pensive suggesting different moods of people -strolling in London streets below. The second is a tarantella, a lively -dance recalling the fact that the famous opera house, Covent Garden, has -also distinguished itself for the performances of comic and light -operas. - -_The Three Bears_ is a realistic tonal picture of the famous fairy tale -of Goldilocks and the three bears. An expressive _Andante_ section is -intended to depict the query of the three bears, “Who’s been sitting in -my chair?” In the gentle waltz section that follows, Goldilocks goes to -sleep in the small bear’s bed. A vigorous fast section demonstrates how -the three bears discover Goldilocks and chase her wildly. They finally -give up the pursuit, go home in good humor, while Goldilocks returns to -her grandmother to tell her of her adventure that day. - -In _The Three Elizabeths_ (1944), Coates provides sensitive lyrical -portraits of three English queens, Queen Elizabeth I, the Virgin Queen; -Elizabeth, the Queen mother, widow of King George VI; and Elizabeth II. - - - - - Peter Cornelius - - -Peter Cornelius was born in Mayence, Germany, on December 24, 1824. -After studying theory with Dehn in Berlin from 1845 to 1852 he became a -passionate advocate of the “music of the future” as promulgated by Liszt -and Wagner. It was Liszt who introduced Cornelius’ comic opera, _The -Barber of Bagdad_, in Weimar in 1858; Liszt was finally forced to resign -his conducting post in Weimar because of the hostility of the audiences -to this masterwork. From 1865 on Cornelius lived in Munich where he was -reader to King Ludwig II and professor of harmony at the Royal -Conservatory. He died in Mayence on October 26, 1874. He was a composer -of operas and songs, but is today remembered almost exclusively for _The -Barber of Bagdad_, one of the most delightful comic operas in the German -repertory. - -_The Barber of Bagdad_ (_Der Barbier von Bagdad_)—whose world première -took place in Weimar on December 15, 1858, Liszt conducting—has an -amusing text written by the composer himself. The plot concerns a -rendezvous between Nureddin and Margiana, daughter of the Caliph; -Nureddin’s friend, the barber of Bagdad, stands guard. This amatory -adventure is brightened by a series of episodes and accidents in which -Nureddin (mistaking his friend for the Caliph) seeks refuge in a chest -in which he almost suffocates. All turns out well in the end. The Caliph -offers his parental blessings to Nureddin and Margiana. - -The overture is famous. Its main melody is a chromatic Oriental subject -which represents the barber. Another significant episode is the theme -with which the overture opens: a tender melody for woodwind and muted -strings. These two ideas, and several subsidiary ones derived from the -opera score, are developed with considerable good humor and merriment -until a dramatic conclusion is realized in the coda. - - - - - Noel Coward - - -Noel Coward, one of England’s most brilliant and versatile men of the -theater in the 20th century, was born in Teddington, on December 16, -1899. He made his stage debut in 1911 in a fairy play, and for the next -few years appeared regularly in various other productions. His career as -performer was interrupted by military service during World War I. After -the war he decided upon a career as writer. His first major success came -with the play _The Vortex_, in 1924. From then on he wrote dramas and -comedies which placed him in the front rank of contemporary playwrights. -But his achievements in the theater do not end here. He has also -distinguished himself as an actor, night-club entertainer, producer, -lyricist, composer, and on occasion even as a conductor. He wrote the -texts, lyrics, and the music to several musical productions, the most -famous of which is the operetta, _Bitter Sweet_, in 1929. Other musicals -by Coward include _Year of Grace_ (1928), _Words and Music_ (1932), -_Conversation Piece_ (1934) and _After the Ball_ (1954). Out of some of -these have come such celebrated Coward songs as “Mad About the Boy,” -“Mad Dogs and Englishmen,” “Some Day I’ll Find You” and “I’ll Follow My -Secret Heart.” An anthology of fifty-one Noel Coward songs from his -various musical productions called _The Noel Coward Song Book_ was -published in New York in 1953. Never having received any musical -training, Coward can play the piano only in a single key, and must call -upon the services of an amanuensis to get his melodies down on paper. - -_Bitter Sweet_ is his most famous musical, first produced in London on -July 18, 1929, and in New York on November 5, 1929. It was twice adapted -for motion-pictures, the first time in 1933 in England, and the second -time in 1940 in the United States in a production starring Jeanette -MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. In _Bitter Sweet_, Noel Coward made a -conscious effort at writing a romantic, sentimental, nostalgic operetta -in the style so long favored in Vienna; indeed it was a hearing of a -recording of Johann Strauss’ _Die Fledermaus_ that proved to be the -immediate stimulus in the writing of his text. The setting is for the -most part Vienna, and the time the 1880’s. Sari, an English girl, is -about to marry an English man of means when she suddenly decides to -elope with Carl, a music teacher. They go to live in Vienna. Carl comes -to his sudden death in a duel, after which Sari continues to live in -Vienna where she becomes a famous singer. In her old age, after an -absence of half a century, she returns to London. - -Three melodies from _Bitter Sweet_ have become extremely popular. The -first is a nostalgic waltz, “I’ll See You Again,” from the first act, -the love song of Sari and Carl; the song recurs again in the third act, -and its closing measures serve to bring the play to a dramatic -conclusion. “Zigeuner,” also sung by Sari is, as its name suggests, in -the gypsy style so favored by the Viennese public. The third famous -melody from _Bitter Sweet_ is “If Love Were All.” - -“I’ll Follow My Secret Heart” comes from _Conversation Piece_, first -produced in London on February 16, 1934, and in New York the same fall. -The setting of this sentimental and nostalgic operetta is the English -resort town of Brighton in 1811 where Paul, a duke turned adventurer, -and Melanie, a Parisian chanteuse, are involved in a stormy romance that -ends happily. As sung by Yvonne Printemps in London, “I’ll Follow My -Secret Heart” was the pivot on which the story rotated, and the main -reason for this operetta’s enormous success. - - - - - César Cui - - -César Cui was born in Vilna, Russia, on January 18, 1835. He was -graduated as an engineer from the St. Petersburg Engineering Academy in -1857; following that he served for many years as a topographer, as an -authority on fortifications, and as an engineering professor. All the -while his principal avocation was music, which he had studied from -childhood on. Between 1864 and 1900 he was active as music critic for -various Russian newspapers and journals. As a composer, he belonged to -the nationalist group known as the “Russian Five” or “Mighty Five,” but -unlike his distinguished colleagues (Balakirev, Rimsky-Korsakov, -Mussorgsky and Borodin) his influence proved far greater than his music. -He wrote many operas and large orchestral works, but none have remained -alive in the repertory. He was probably at his best in miniature for the -piano, and in his songs. He died in St. Petersburg on March 24, 1918. - -It is with one of his miniatures that his name is still remembered. This -piece is the _Orientale_, a composition originally for violin and piano, -the ninth number in a suite of twenty-four pieces collectively entitled -_Kaleidoscope_, op. 50. The principal melody is in oriental style, -introduced and then accompanied by a persistent rhythm (which in the -original version is produced by plucked strings, while the melody itself -is first given by the piano. This melody is soon taken over by the -violin.) Transcriptions for orchestra have made this a salon favorite. - - - - - Claude Debussy - - -Achille-Claude Debussy, father of musical Impressionism, was born in St. -Germain-en-Laye, France, on August 22, 1862. From 1873 to 1884 he -attended the Paris Conservatory where he was both a rebellious and a -brilliant student. He won many prizes, including the Prix de Rome in -1884. In the compositions written in Rome under the provisions of the -Prix he already revealed his independence of thought and unorthodoxy of -style. After returning from Rome to Paris he became influenced not only -by the Impressionist movement in French art and the Symbolist movement -in French literature but also by the iconoclastic musical approaches and -idioms of Erik Satie. Debussy now began to develop his own techniques -and mannerisms and to crystallize his highly personal style. His first -masterworks appeared between 1892 and 1893: the orchestral prelude, _The -Afternoon of a Faun_ (_L’Après-midi d’un faune_), and his string -quartet. With later works for orchestra and for solo piano—and with his -remarkable opera, _Pelleas and Melisande_, introduced at the -Opéra-Comique on April 30, 1902—he brought musical Impressionism to its -highest technical development and to its most advanced stage of artistic -fulfillment. He became the musical poet of the most subtle suggestions, -elusive moods, and delicate impressions. A victim of cancer, Debussy -suffered severely in the closing years of his life. He died in Paris on -March 25, 1918, on a day when the city was being bombarded by the -Germans during World War I. Because of the war, his death passed -unnoticed except by a handful of friends. - -Debussy’s greatest works are, to be sure, too complex in technique and -too subtle in style to enjoy ready consumption by the general public. -But a few of his compositions have a wide appeal because their charm and -sensitivity are easily comprehended, even at first hearing. One of these -is the delightful piano suite, _Children’s Corner_ (1908) written by the -composer for the delight of his little daughter, Chou-Chou. In it -Debussy evokes the imaginative world of the child; but he also produces -unsophisticated descriptive music that is readily appreciated by the -very young. Debussy used English rather than French titles for this work -because he wished to suggest the kind of stories and games that involve -an English governess and a French child. André Caplet’s orchestration of -this suite is famous. - -There are six brief movements. The first, “Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum,” -is a satire on young pianists and their struggles with five-finger -exercises. This is followed by “Jimbo’s Lullaby,” a tender lullaby -crooned by a child to his toy elephant named Jimbo. In the third -movement, “Serenade for a Doll,” the child turns from his pet elephant -to his pet doll to croon to it a sensitive serenade. “The Snow Is -Falling” is a tone picture of a snowfall, seen by a child from his -window. “The Little Shepherd” is a pastoral piece of music. The most -famous movement of the suite is the last one, “Golliwogg’s Cakewalk” in -which the composer exploits the style and rhythm of a Negro dance -popular in America in the 19th century, the cakewalk. In this movement, -the composer maliciously interpolates a fragment from the Prelude of -Wagner’s _Tristan and Isolde_. - -The beloved _Clair de Lune_ (_Moonlight_) is probably the composer’s -most celebrated melody. This is a poetic, sensitive evocation of the -peace and beauty of a moonlight light. It comes from his _Suite -bergamasque_ for piano (1890), where it can be found as the third of -four movements. Orchestral transcriptions have made this piece of music -world-famous. - -_The Girl With the Flaxen Hair_ (_La Fille aux cheveux de lin_) is an -exquisite portrait, in the composer’s most felicitous impressionist -style. It is the eighth number of his Preludes for the piano, Book I -(1910), and like _Clair de lune_ is often heard in various orchestral -transcriptions; Arthur Hartmann’s adaptation for violin and piano is -also familiar. - -The _Petite Suite_ (_Little Suite_) for piano duet (1889) is early -Debussy, more in the Romantic vein of Delibes than in the provocative -idiom Debussy later made famous. As orchestrated by Henri Busser it is -in the repertory of many salon and pop orchestras. There are four short -movements. The first, “_En Bateau_” (“_In a Boat_”) is particularly -popular. In the orchestration a gentle barcarolle melody for flute -suggests the gentle course of the boat in a placid lake. This is -followed by turns by a vigorous episode and a passionate section, both -of them for the strings. The flute then restores placidity, and the -opening sensitive melody returns in the violins. “_Cortège_” (“March”) -is a pert little march tune shared by the woodwind and strings. -“_Menuet_” is of classic grace while the finale, “_Ballet_,” has a -compelling rhythmic vigor. - -_Rêverie_ (1890) is a brief, atmospheric piece for the piano which has -became a favorite with Americans because in 1938 it was adapted into the -popular song, “My Reverie.” - - - - - Léo Delibes - - -Léo Delibes was born in St. Germain-du-Val, France, on February 21, -1836. After attending the Paris Conservatory from 1848 on, he became an -accompanist for the Théâtre Lyrique and organist of the Church of -St.-Jean et St.-François in Paris in 1853. Between 1855 and 1865 he -wrote a dozen operas, none of them successful. In 1865 he was appointed -chorusmaster of the Grand Opéra where he was encouraged to write music -for ballet; the first of these was _La Source_ in 1866 (renamed _Naila_ -when later given in Vienna). His most successful ballets were _Coppélia_ -in 1870 and _Sylvia_ in 1876, both still vital in the repertory. In 1873 -his most important opéra-comique, _Le Roi l’a Dit_, was introduced by -the Opéra-Comique; Delibes’ most important opera, _Lakmé_, was first -performed on April 14, 1883 by the Paris Opéra. Meanwhile, in 1881, -Delibes was appointed professor of composition at the Conservatory. -Three years after that he became a member of the French Academy. He died -in Paris on January 16, 1891. - -Delibes is often described as the creator of modern ballet music. He was -the first composer to write symphonically for the dance, to bring to -ballet music the fullest creative and technical resources of the skilled -serious composer. Thus he opened a new field of compositions which later -composers (Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, and Ravel among many others) -cultivated with fertility. The elegance of Delibes’ style, the caressing -warmth of his lyricism, the richness of his harmonic and rhythmic -language, the delicacy of his orchestration endow his ballet music with -interest even when it is divorced from its choreography. - -_Coppélia_ is a staple in the classic ballet repertory. It was -introduced at the Paris Opéra on May 25, 1870, choreography by A. -Saint-Léon, and scenario by C. Nuitter and A. Saint-Léon based upon _The -Sandman_, a story by E. T. A. Hoffmann. _Coppélia_ is the first -successful ballet to utilize the subject of a doll become human. -Coppélia is a doll created by Dr. Coppélius. She comes to life and gets -out of control. Franz, thinking she is human, falls in love with her. -But when he realizes she is but a doll he becomes reconciled with his -former sweetheart, Swanilda. - -Delibes’ score is one of the earliest in ballet to make successful use -of such folk dances as the Mazurka and the Czardas; because of his -success in this direction, many later composers of ballet music were -encouraged to follow suit. - -An orchestral suite adapted from the score never ceases to delight -audiences at both symphonic and semi-classical concerts. It opens with -the “_Valse lente_,” a suave waltz to which Swanilda dances as she -strives to attract the attention of Coppélia, of whom she is jealous. -This is followed by the “Mazurka,” a gay episode danced by a group of -villagers after Franz has mistaken Coppélia for a human and salutes her. -The “Ballade” then comes as a pensive interlude; to this music Swanilda -puts a stalk of wheat to her ear, following a long existing -superstition, to discover if Franz has been faithful to her. When the -answer is in the negative, she breaks the stalk savagely before his very -eyes. “_Theme Slave Varié_” is danced by Swanilda; this section -comprises a tuneful Polish melody and five variations. The stately and -at times fiery “Czardas” which concludes the first act is a corybantic -in which all villagers join. “_Valse de la poupée_” (or “Dance of the -Doll”) is probably the most familiar musical number in the entire -ballet, an elegant waltz danced by Swanilda as she assumes the dress, -and imitates the actions, of Coppélia. - -The _Naila Waltz_ (or _Pas des Fleurs_) was written by Delibes in 1867 -as an intermezzo for the revival in Paris of Adolph Adam’s opera _Le -Corsaire_, in Paris. When Delibes’ early ballet, _La Source_, was -introduced in Vienna as _Naila_, this waltz was interpolated into the -production. A short, vigorous introduction for full orchestra and -several notes in the basses lead to the lilting waltz melody in strings, -with the woodwinds soon joining in. Ernst von Dohnányi made an effective -transcription of this waltz for the piano. - -_Le Roi l’a dit_ (_The King Said So_) is an opéra-comique with libretto -by Edmond Gondinet, introduced at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on May 24, -1873. The plot revolves around a peasant boy whom a Marquis is trying to -pass off before the king as his own son. The peasant makes the most of -this situation to the continual embarrassment and chagrin of the Marquis -who finally manages to get rid of him by marrying him off to a maid with -whom the boy is in love. - -The popular overture to this light opera opens with a brisk march in -full chords. A gracious little melody then unfolds in the strings. After -a return of the march music in a more subdued vein, a romantic song is -offered by the clarinets against plucked strings. The music now grows -livelier as a principal thought is given by chattering strings and -woodwind. Extended use is now made of the first graceful melody. The -opening march is at last recalled to bring the overture to a boisterous -end. - -The second of Delibes’ famous ballets, _Sylvia_, was introduced at the -Paris Opéra on June 14, 1876. The choreography was by Louis Mérante, and -the text by Jules Barbier and Baron de Reinach. The classical subject is -derived from mythology. Aminta, a shepherd, comes to a sacred grove -seeking a huntress he had once seen there. She is Sylvia, who soon -appears with her nymphs. She is later captured by Orion, the black -huntsman. But her escape is effected by Eros, and she and Aminta are -reunited in love. - -Like _Coppélia_, _Sylvia_ has a popular orchestral suite adapted from -the ballet score. After a brief Prelude comes “_Les Chasseresses_” (“The -Huntresses”), sprightly music with which Sylvia and her nymphs make -their first appearance; to its rhythmic strains they dance before a -statue of Eros. A gentle “Intermezzo” follows, describing the nymphs as -they rest near a stream. In the “_Valse lente_” Sylvia dances to a -graceful musical episode. The “Barcarolle” highlights a saxophone solo; -to this background music appears a ship bearing Eros, disguised as a -pirate. The most celebrated single number in the entire suite comes -next, the “Pizzicato,” a delicate dance performed by Sylvia disguised as -a slave. The “_Cortège de Bacchus_” (“March of Bacchus”) is the dynamic -music with which a bacchanalian rite is being celebrated. - - - - - Gregore Dinicu - - -Gregore Dinicu, who was born in Bucharest, Rumania, on April 5, 1889, is -a gypsy violinist who became popular in leading Rumanian cabarets and -restaurants. In 1939 he visited the United States, scoring a major -success with his gypsy orchestra at the New York World’s Fair. His _Hora -Staccato_, for violin and piano (or violin and orchestra)—a virtuoso -piece of folk character—is his only composition to become famous outside -Rumania. Jascha Heifetz, the famous virtuoso, heard Dinicu play it in -Rumania and was so delighted with it that he transcribed it, and -popularized it both at his concerts and on records. The Hora is an -exciting Rumanian folk dance with lively rhythms and a vertiginous -melody that shifts flexibly from major to minor or modal scales. These -traits are all found in Dinicu’s electrifying _Hora Staccato_. - - - - - Gaetano Donizetti - - -Gaetano Donizetti was born in Bergamo, Italy, on November 29, 1797. His -early music study took place in Bergamo and Naples and was completed at -the Liceo Filarmonico in Bologna. Despite his strong bent not only for -music but also for art, literature, and architecture, he aspired for a -military career. While serving in the Austrian army he completed his -first opera, _Enrico di Borgogna_, introduced in Venice in 1818. Success -came four years after that in Rome with _Zoraide di Granata_. Now -exempted from further military duty, Donizetti was able to devote -himself entirely to composition. Between 1822 and 1829 he wrote -twenty-three operas. In 1830 he achieved renown throughout Europe with -_Anna Bolena_, introduced in Milan. In the five succeeding years he -produced two masterworks by which he is still represented in the -operatic repertory: _L’Elisir d’amore_ in 1832 and _Lucia di Lammermoor_ -in 1835. From 1837 to 1839 he was the director of the Naples -Conservatory. In 1839 he went to live in Paris where he wrote and had -produced several highly successful operas including _The Daughter of the -Regiment_ and _La Favorita_ in 1840 and _Don Pasquale_ in 1843. Soon -after this he returned to his native city where he was stricken by a -mental disorder and for a time confined to an asylum. He died in Bergamo -on April 8, 1848. - -The facility with which Donizetti wrote his sixty-seven operas is -apparent in the easy flow of his lovable melodies and in the spontaneity -of his aurally agreeable harmonies. He also possesses a fine theatrical -gift, and much of his best music combines delightful lyricism and -affecting emotion with dramatic force. - -_The Daughter of the Regiment_ (_La Fille du régiment_, or _La figlia -del reggimento_) was first performed at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on -February 11, 1840. The French libretto by Jean François Bayard and -Vernoy de Saint-Georges was translated into Italian by the composer. The -setting is Tyrol in 1815, then being invaded by Napoleon’s troops. Marie -is the _vivandière_ (canteen manager) of the 21st Regiment of the French -army. In love with Tonio, who is suspected by the French of being a spy, -she is able to prevail on the troops to save his life. But Marie is soon -compelled to be separated from both Tonio and the French soldiers when -it is discovered that she is the long lost niece of the Countess of -Berkenfeld and must return with her aunt to her castle. The Countess -wants Marie to marry the Duke of Crackenthorp. When the French troops, -with Tonio among them, storm the Berkenfeld castle and want to reclaim -Marie, the Countess now reveals that Marie is not her niece but her -daughter and thus must obey her wishes. However, the French soldiers -finally prevail on the Countess to permit Marie to marry Tonio. - -The most popular selections from this tuneful, and occasionally -martially stirring opera are: Marie’s moving tribute to her regiment -(“_Ah, chacun le sait, chacun le dit_”) and her tender farewell as she -is about to leave for Berkenfeld (“_Il faut partir, mes bons -compagnons_”) and a spirited French war song to victory (“_Rataplan_”) -all from the first act; and from the second act, Marie’s moving aria -(“_Par le rang, et l’opulence_”), the orchestral entr’acte -“_Tyrolienne_,” and the dramatic paean to France (“_Salut à la France_”) -with which the opera ends. - -_Don Pasquale_ is a classic in the literature of opera buffa. It -received its première in Paris on January 3, 1843; its libretto (by the -composer and Giacomo Ruffini) is based on a libretto created by Angelo -Anelli for another opera. The central character is an old bachelor who -objected to the marriage of his young nephew with a beautiful widow, -Norina. To teach him a lesson, Norina puts on a disguise, involves the -old man in a mock marriage, and then tortures him with her shrewish -ways. Pasquale finally becomes so relieved to discover that he has -merely been the victim of an intrigue, rather than a catastrophic -marriage, that he does not hesitate any longer to give Norina and his -nephew his consent to their marriage. - -In the case of _Don Pasquale_ its overture is heard far more often than -potpourris of principal sections. It opens with heavy descending chords -which lead into an opulent song for cellos, soon assumed by horns and -the woodwind. The heart of the overture is a saucy melody for strings. -The music now becomes dramatized with transitional material, but a new -gay melody is offered by the woodwind and strings. The main string -melody and the succeeding sprightly tune are recalled to finish the -overture in a gay mood. - -_L’Elisir d’amore_ (_The Elixir of Love_) like _Don Pasquale_, is a -delightful comic opera, one of the most effervescent ever written. It -received its first performance in Milan on May 12, 1832. The libretto, -by Felice Romani, was based on Eugène Scribe’s _Le Philtre_. Nemorino, -in love with Adina who rejects him, purchases a love elixir from the -quack, Dr. Dulcamara. But a sudden inheritance from his uncle, which -forthwith makes Nemorino extremely popular with the girls, proves even -more potent in winning Adina’s love than the potion itself. - -Orchestral selections from his gay opera include one of the best loved -tenor arias in the operatic repertory. It is “_Una furtiva lagrima_,” a -soulful song by Nemorino in the second act with which he hopes to -console Adina when he sees her jealousy suddenly aroused by the fact -that he had become the favorite of the village girls. Other familiar -episodes include a merry comic number “_Udite, Udite_” in which Dr. -Dulcamara boasts of the power of his potions, and a beautiful aria, -“_Quanto è bella_,” in which Nemorino discloses his love and longing for -Adina, both in the first act. - -_Lucia di Lammermoor_ is Donizetti’s most famous grand opera, and the -title role has been favored by the world’s foremost coloratura sopranos. -The libretto, by Salvatore Cammarano, was based on the Sir Walter Scott -romance, _The Bride of Lammermoor_. The opera was first performed in -Naples on September 26, 1835. Lucia, sister of Lord Ashton, is in love -with Edgar; but in planning to have her marry the wealthy Lord Arthur -Bucklaw, Lord Ashton uses lies and wiles to convince his sister that -Edgar does not love her. On the day of the signing of the marriage -contract between Lucia and Bucklaw, Edgar invades the Lammermoor castle -and curses its family. Maddened by her grief, Lucia kills her husband -soon after the wedding, and then dies. When Edgar learns that Lucia has -loved him all the time, he commits suicide. - -The favorite selections from this opera include one of the most famous -ensemble numbers in all opera, the sextet “_Chi mi frena_.” It is sung -in Act 2, Scene 2, by Lucia, Edgar, Bucklaw, Raimond, Ashton and Alisa -after Edgar had invaded the Lammermoor castle and witnessed the signing -of the marriage contract between Lucia and Bucklaw. Each of the -characters here gives voice to his or her personal reaction to this -dramatic situation: Lucia speaks of her despair at the treachery of her -brother; Edgar wonders why he does not commit an act of vengeance; Lord -Ashton is led to sympathy at his sister’s despair; Lucia’s companion, -Alisa, and Bucklaw hope that bloodshed might be averted; and Raimond, a -chaplain, invokes divine help. - -Another highly popular excerpt from the opera offered in orchestral -potpourris includes Lucia’s “Mad Scene” from Act 3, Scene 2 (“_Ardon -gl’incensi_”). Dressed in a white gown, Lucia appears and mistakes her -brother for her beloved Edgar, who she believes has come to marry her. -Then she entreats those around her to place a flower on her grave and -not to weep at her death (“_Spargi d’amaro pianto_”). - -Several other selections often played include Lucia’s lyrical cavatina -from Act 1, Scene 2 (“_Quando rapita in estasi_”) as she thinks of her -beloved Edgar; the love duet of Lucia and Edgar from the same scene -(“_Verrano a te sull’aure_”); and the wedding music from Act 3, Scene 1 -that precedes the “Mad Scene” (“_D’immenso giubilo_”). - - - - - Franz Drdla - - -Franz Drdla was born in Saar, Moravia on November 28, 1868. He attended -the Conservatories in Prague and Vienna, winning at the latter place -first prize in violin playing and the medal of the Gesellschaft der -Musikfreunde. After serving for several years as a violinist in the -orchestra of the Vienna Court Opera, he toured Europe as a concert -violinist. From 1923 to 1925 he lived in the United States, making many -concert appearances. He died in Bad Gastein, Austria, on September 3, -1944. - -Drdla’s most famous compositions are slight but lyrical pieces for the -violin, of which he wrote over two hundred fifty. His most famous -composition is the _Souvenir_, with its familiar upward skip in the main -melody and its broad sentimental middle section in double stops. In a -similarly sentimental and gentle melodic vein (they might aptly be -described as instrumental songs) are the _Romance_, _Serenade in A_ (No. -1), and _Vision_. All are familiar to violin students, and to lovers of -light classics in transcriptions for orchestra. - - - - - Riccardo Drigo - - -Riccardo Drigo was born in Padua, Italy, on June 30, 1846. He first -became famous as conductor of orchestral concerts at the Imperial -Theater in St. Petersburg. After World War I, he continued his -activities as conductor in his native city. He died there on October 1, -1930. - -Drigo was the composer of ballets and operas, none of which have -survived. He is today remembered almost exclusively for two slight but -well loved items. One is the melodically suave _Serenade_, popular in -every conceivable transcription. It comes out of a ballet entitled _I -milioni d’Arlecchino_ (_Harlequin’s Millions_) and consequently is -sometimes known as the _Harlequin’s Serenade_. The other is _Valse -bluette_, an elegant waltz melody, which the composer originally wrote -for salon orchestra, but which is in the violinist’s repertory by virtue -of a famous transcription. - - - - - Arcady Dubensky - - -Arcady Dubensky was born in Viatka, Russia, on October 15, 1890. After -being graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in 1909 he played the -violin in the orchestra of the Moscow Opera. In 1921 he came to the -United States, where he later became a citizen. He served as violinist -of the New York Symphony Society, and after that of the New York -Philharmonic Orchestra, until his retirement in 1953. - -Dubensky had written many works for orchestra, whose sound technique and -fresh approaches command respect. One or two of these are of popular -appeal without sacrificing sound musical values. Of particular interest -is the _Stephen Foster Suite_ for orchestra (1940), in which Dubensky -quotes five Stephen Foster songs: “My Old Kentucky Home,” “Jeanie With -the Light Brown Hair,” “Some Folks,” “I See Her Still in My Dreams,” and -“Camptown Races.” The composer goes on to explain: “The first part -represents to me a beautiful summer evening in the country. From far -away I hear a choir, coming gradually closer and then fading into the -distance. It sings to me the wonder song, ‘My Old Kentucky Home.’ The -second part is built around ‘Jeanie With the Light Brown Hair.’ Here the -melody is given to a tenor solo, with a soft, gentle orchestral -accompaniment beginning with a short introduction. The last two parts -are for orchestra. The fourth part centers around the song ‘I See Her -Still In My Dreams.’ It is a dreamy song, and I have given it the -character of an intermezzo played by string orchestra, muted. If this -movement is played in slow tempo, and pianissimo, it sounds not at all -realistic but like the dream it portrays. The fifth part, ‘Camptown -Races’ is the focal point of the suite. The theme is treated in a number -of different keys and always in a different character. Sometimes it is -delicate and graceful, and sometimes rude and robust, but always it is -gay.” - - - - - Paul Dukas - - -Paul Dukas was born in Paris, France, on October 1, 1865. After -attending the Paris Conservatory, where he won prizes in counterpoint -and fugue as well as the second Prix de Rome, he served as music critic -for several Parisian journals. From 1910 to 1912 he was professor of -orchestration at the Paris Conservatory, and from 1927 until his death -its professor of composition. His first successful work was a concert -overture, _Polyecute_, introduced in Paris in 1892. His Symphony in C -major, first heard in 1897, enhanced his reputation while his orchestral -scherzo, _The Sorcerer’s Apprentice_, also introduced in 1897, made him -famous. Being exceptionally fastidious and self-critical, Dukas did not -produce many compositions, but the best of these are works so -aristocratic in technique and subtle in musical content that they make a -direct appeal only to sophisticated music lovers. These works include -the opera _Ariane et Barbe-bleue_, first performed in Paris on May 10, -1907; the ballet, _La Péri_, introduced in Paris on April 22, 1912; and -some piano music. Towards the end of his life, Dukas destroyed several -of his earlier works deeming them unsuitable for survival. He was one of -France’s most revered musicians. He was made Chevalier of the Legion of -Honor in 1906, and in 1918 elected a member of the _Conseil de -l’enseignement supérieur_ at the Paris Conservatory. He died in Paris on -May 17, 1935. - -_The Sorcerer’s Apprentice_ (_L’Apprenti sorcier_), scherzo for -orchestra (1897), is Dukas’ most famous composition, the one that made -him known throughout the world of music. It is so witty, so vivid in its -pictorial writing that it has become a favorite of both the very young -and the mature. The program, which the music follows with amazing -literalness, comes from Goethe’s ballad _Der Zauberlehrling_ which, in -turn, was adapted from a famous folk tale. The story goes something like -this: An apprentice to a magician has come upon his master’s secret -formula for turning a broom into a human being and making it perform -human tasks. The apprentice decides to try out this incantation for -himself while the master is away, and watches with amazement as the -broom acquires human powers. He orders the broom to fetch water, a -command meekly obeyed. Pail after pail of water is carried into the -magician’s shop by the broom until the place is rapidly being inundated. -The apprentice now tries to arrest the water-fetching activity of the -broom, but he does not know the proper incantation to achieve this, or -to strip the broom of its human powers. In terror, the apprentice -attacks the broom with a hatchet. The broom, split into two brooms, now -becomes two humans performing the ritual of bringing water into the den. -In despair, the apprentice cries out for his master who arrives in time -to bring the broom back to its former inanimate state, and to restore -order. - -The atmosphere of mystery and peace prevailing in the magician’s den is -created in the opening measures with a descending theme for muted -violins, while different woodwinds give a hint of the principal subject, -a roguish tune describing the sorcerer’s apprentice; this subject -finally appears in the double bassoon, and is then repeated by the full -orchestra. The call of trumpets suggests the incantation pronounced by -the apprentice; a brisk theme for bassoons against plucked strings -describes the parade of the broom back and forth as it brings the water; -and arpeggio figures in the orchestra depict the water itself. The music -then portrays the mounting terror of the apprentice as he is unable to -arrest the march of the broom. After an overwhelming climax, at which -point the apprentice splits the broom into two with a hatchet, the saucy -march tune is doubled to inform us that two brooms are now at work. A -shriek in the orchestra simulates the panic-stricken call of the -apprentice. After the master arrives and sets things in order, the music -of the opening measures is repeated to suggest that once again the -magician’s den is pervaded by peace and mystery. - -_The Sorcerer’s Apprentice_ was made into an animated motion picture by -Walt Disney, the Dukas music performed on the sound track by the -Philadelphia Orchestra under Stokowski; it was part of a program -collectively entitled _Fantasia_ which came to New York on November 13, -1940. - - - - - Antonin Dvořák - - -Antonin Dvořák was born in Muehlhausen, Bohemia, on September 8, 1841. -As a boy he studied the violin with the village schoolmaster. He -subsequently attended the Organ School in Prague. After completing his -studies, he played in various orchestras in Prague, including that of -the National Theater from 1861 to 1871 where he came under the influence -of Smetana, father of Bohemian national music. Dvořák first attracted -interest as a composer with _Hymnus_, a choral work introduced in 1873. -Two years later he won the Austrian State Prize for a symphony, and in -1878 he became famous throughout Europe with the _Slavonic Dances_. In -1883 he was appointed organist of the St. Adalbert Church in Prague. -From 1892 to 1895 he was the director of the National Conservatory in -New York. During this period he was influenced in his compositions by -the folk music of the American Negro and Indian. From 1901 until his -death he was director of the Prague Conservatory. He died in Prague on -May 1, 1904. - -A prolific composer of operas, symphonies, chamber and piano music, and -songs, Dvořák stood in the forefront of the Romantic composers of the -late 19th century and among the leading exponents of Bohemian national -music. He was gifted with an expressive melodic gift, a strong and -subtle rhythmic pulse, and an inventive harmonic language. Whatever he -wrote was charged with strong emotional impulses, whether he used the -style of Bohemian folk music or those of the American Negro and American -Indian. - -The _Carnival Overture_ (_Carneval_), written in 1891, is one of three -overtures planned by the composer as a cycle to portray “three great -creative forces of the Universe—Nature, Life, and Love.” A unifying -element among them was a melody intended to describe the “unchangeable -laws of Nature.” Eventually, Dvořák abandoned this plan and published -the three overtures separately, calling them _In Nature_ (_In der -Natur_), op. 91, _Carnival_, op. 92, and _Othello_, op. 93. - -Dvořák himself provided a description of the music of _Carnival -Overture_. He aimed to describe “a lonely, contemplative wanderer -reaching the city at nightfall where a carnival of pleasure reigns -supreme. On every side is heard the clangor of instruments, mingled with -shouts of joy and the unrestrained hilarity of the people giving vent to -their feelings in songs and dances.” The overture begins with a lively -section portraying the gayety of the carnival. A subdued melody in the -violins brings relaxation, but the hubbub soon returns. Another gentle -episode depicts a pair of lovers in a secluded corner; the principal -melodic material in this part is offered by the solo violin, and by the -English horns and flutes. The brilliant opening material returns. It is -with this spirit of revelry that the overture ends. - -The _Humoresque_ in G-flat major is the seventh in a set of eight -_Humoresques_ for piano (1894). This delightful, elegant piece of music -in three-part song form has been transcribed not only for orchestra but -for every possible instrument or combinations of instruments, and is -undoubtedly the most popular composition by the composer. It was Fritz -Kreisler, the famous violin virtuoso, who helped make the work so -famous. Kreisler visited Dvořák in 1903 and asked him for some music. -Dvořák showed him a pile of compositions, most of it completely unknown. -Among these was the G-flat major _Humoresque_. Kreisler transcribed it -for violin and piano, introduced it at his concerts, later recorded it, -and made it universally popular. As we know it today the _Humoresque_ is -not the way Dvořák intended it to sound. Dvořák wanted it to be a light, -whimsical piece of music, a “humoresque,” in fast tempo. Kreisler -transcribed it in a slower tempo and more sentimental mood; and it is in -this style that _Humoresque_ is now known and loved. - -The _Indian Lament_ is one of several compositions by Dvořák influenced -by the idioms of American-Indian music. While serving as director of the -National Conservatory in New York, he paid a visit to the town of -Spillville, Iowa. There three Iroquois Indians visited him and -entertained him with authentic Indian music. Dvořák was so taken with -this strange and haunting lyricism, and the primitive rhythms, that he -wrote several major works incorporating these idioms. One was a Sonatina -in G major for violin and piano, op. 100 (1893). Its slow movement is a -delicate song embodying the intervallic peculiarities of authentic -American-Indian music. Fritz Kreisler edited this movement and named it -_Indian Lament_, the version in which it has become famous. Gaspar -Cassadó transcribed this movement for cello and piano. - -Dvořák’s _Largo_ is the second movement of his Symphony No. 5 in E minor -better known as the _Symphony from the New World_ (1893). This is the -symphony written by Dvořák during his visit to the United States as -director of the National Conservatory. One of his students was Harry T. -Burleigh, who brought to his attention the music of the Negro Spiritual. -These melodies moved Dvořák so profoundly that he urged American -composers to use the style, technique and personality of these Negro -songs as the basis for national American music. As if to set an example, -Dvořák wrote several compositions in which his own melodic writing was -strongly influenced by the Negro Spiritual. The most significant of -these was his symphony, which received its world première in the United -States (at a concert of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra on December -15, 1893, Anton Seidl conducting). The main spacious, poignant melody of -the Largo movement—given by English horn over string harmonies after a -few preliminary chords—so strongly simulates the personality of a Negro -Spiritual that it was long thought that Dvořák was indulging in -quotation. This is not true; the melody is Dvořák’s own. Many -transcriptions of this melody exist. One is the familiar song, “Goin’ -Home,” lyrics by William Arms Fisher (also one of Dvořák’s pupils); -another is a composition for violin and piano by Fritz Kreisler called -_Negro Spiritual Melody_; a third is an adaptation for salon orchestra -by Sigmund Romberg. - -This Largo movement has two other melodies besides the basic one in the -Negro-Spiritual style. One is heard in flute and oboe, and the second in -the oboe. - -The _Scherzo Capriccioso_, in D-flat major, op. 66 (1883) is one of the -composer’s liveliest and most dynamic larger works for orchestra, but in -an idiom that is neither Bohemian nor American. It is in two sections. -The first is the Scherzo, opening with an energetic subject for horns -that is a kind of a motto theme for the entire work. The principal -melody that follows is stated by full orchestra; after that comes a -waltz-like tune for violins. The second part of the composition, a trio, -is introduced by an expressive melody for English horn. A secondary -theme then comes in the strings and wind. The principal idea of the -first section now receives extended treatment before the second theme of -the second part returns in a modified form. The work ends with a coda in -which effective use is made of the opening motto subject. - -Dvořák achieved international fame for the first time with the first set -of eight _Slavonic Dances_, op. 46, published in 1878. He had been -recommended to the publisher Simrock by Brahms; it was the publisher who -suggested to Dvořák that he write Slavonic dances similar to the -Hungarian dances which Brahms had made so popular. Dvořák wrote his -first set for piano four-hands; but these instantly proved so successful -that Simrock prevailed on Dvořák to orchestrate them. In 1886, Dvořák -wrote a second set of eight _Slavonic Dances_, op. 72, once again both -for four-hand piano and for orchestra. Though the melodies and harmonic -schemes in all these dances are Dvořák’s, they have caught the essence -of the Slavonic folk song and dance, and to such a degree that their -authentic national character has never been questioned. Karel -Hoffmeister wrote: “Something of the Slavic character speaks in every -phrase of them—the stormy high-spirited mood of the Furiants; the -whimsical merriment, the charm, the touch of coquettry, the ardent -tenderness of the lyrical passages.” - -The following are among the best known of these dances: - -C major, op. 46, no. 1. A chord sustained through one measure is -followed by a whirlwind presto passage. After a sudden pianissimo we -hear a second rhythmic melody. Music of a more serene character appears -in flute and strings after a change of key. A force climax is evolved to -set the stage for the return of the opening whirlwind subject. - -E minor, op. 46, no. 2. A poignant melody is here contrasted with a -dynamic rhythmic section. Fritz Kreisler transcribed this dance for -violin and piano. - -A-flat major, op. 46, no. 6. A dance melody with a strong rhythmic -impulse is the opening subject. Pianissimo chords lead to a new virile -subject, but there soon comes a decisive change of mood with two -expressive melodies. This dance, however, ends dynamically. - -G minor, op. 46, no. 8. This is one of the gayest of the Slavonic -dances, alive in its electrifying changes of dynamics and tonality. - -E minor, op. 72, no. 2. This is one of the best loved of all these -dances, a song of rare sensitivity and sadness, only temporarily -alleviated by the more optimistic music of the middle section. Fritz -Kreisler transcribed it for violin and piano. - -A-flat major, op. 72, no. 8. Here, as in the preceding E minor dance, -the emphasis is on tender, elegiac song in strings. A dramatic middle -section provides some relief, but the gentle moodiness of the opening -section soon returns. Fritz Kreisler transcribed it for violin and -piano. - -_Songs My Mother Taught Me_ is one of Dvořák’s most celebrated songs. It -is one of seven gypsy songs, based on Slavonic-gypsy folk idioms, -gathered in op. 55 (1880); the lyrics are by Adolf Heyduk. This -nostalgic, delicate melody has enjoyed numerous transcriptions, -including one for violin and piano by Fritz Kreisler, and another for -cello and piano by Alfred Gruenfeld. - - - - - Sir Edward Elgar - - -Sir Edward Elgar was born in Broadheath, near Worcester, England on June -2, 1857. He studied the organ with his father, and the violin with Adolf -Pollitzer in London. In 1885 he succeeded his father as organist of St. -George’s Church in Worcester. Two years after his marriage to Alice -Roberts, which had taken place in 1889, he withdrew to Malvern where he -lived the next thirteen years, devoted completely to serious -composition. Several choral works were performed at various English -festivals before Elgar achieved outstanding success, first with the -_Enigma Variations_ for symphony orchestra, introduced in London in -1899, and then with his oratorio, _The Dream of Gerontius_, whose -première took place in Birmingham in 1900. From then on Elgar assumed a -position of first importance in English music by virtue of his two -symphonies, vast amount of orchestral, choral and chamber music, and -songs. He was generally regarded one of the most significant English -composers since Purcell in the 17th century. Elgar was knighted in 1904, -appointed Master of the King’s Music in 1924, and made a baronet in -1931. He died in Worcester, England, on February 23, 1934. - -It is not difficult to understand Elgar’s enormous popularity. Together -with an elegant sense of structure and style, and a consummate -musicianship, he had a virtually inexhaustible fund of ingratiating -lyricism. His best works are conceived along traditional lines. They are -Romantic in concept, and poetic in content. These qualities—and with -them a most ingratiating sentiment—are also found in his semi-classical -pieces. - -The _Bavarian Dances_, for orchestra, come from _The Bavarian -Highlands_, a set of choral songs based on Bavarian folk songs adapted -by Elgar’s wife, Alice, and set for chorus with piano and orchestra, op. -27 (1895). Three folk tunes were subsequently adapted by the composer -for orchestra. Collectively called _Bavarian Dances_, the individual -dances were subtitled by the composer “The Dance,” “Lullaby,” and “The -Marksman.” These dances were first introduced in London in 1897 and have -since enjoyed universal acceptance in some cases for their peasant -rhythmic vigor, and in others for their atmospheric charm. - -The _Cockaigne Overture_ (_In London Town_), for orchestra, op. 40 -(1901) describes London “as represented by its parks and open spaces, -the bands marching from Knightsbridge to Buckingham Palace, Westminster -with its dignified associations of Church and State,” in the words of -Sir George Grove. The composer himself revealed he wanted to portray in -his music the sights witnessed by a pair of lovers as they stroll -through the city. The hubbub of the city is depicted in the opening -measures, following by an intensely romantic section highlighted by a -broad melody for strings, reflecting the feelings of the lovers as they -stop off momentarily to rest in a public park. They continue their walk, -hear the approaching music of a brass band, then enter a church where -organ music is being played. The lovers continue their walk. The -animated life of the city streets once again is reproduced, and the -earlier romantic melody telling of their emotional ardor for each other -is repeated. - -_In the South_ (_Alassio_), a concert overture for orchestra, op. 50 -(1904) was written one Spring while the composer was vacationing in -southern Europe. This work reflects Elgar’s intense love of Nature. The -following quotation appears in the published score: “A land which _was_ -the mightiest in its old command and _is_ the loveliest; wherein were -cast the men of Rome. Thou are the garden of the world.” The overture -opens with a gay tune for clarinets, horns, violins and cellos. It -receives vigorous treatment and enlargement before a pastoral section is -given by the woodwind and muted strings, a description of a shepherd and -his flock. The overture then alternates between stress and tranquillity, -with great prominence being given to the shepherd’s melody. A viola solo -then leads to the recapitulation section. - -_Pomp and Circumstance_ is a set of five marches for symphony orchestra, -op. 39. The composers wanted these marches to provide such music with -symphonic dimensions in the same way that dance music (polonaise or -waltz, etc.) acquired artistic stature at the hands of Chopin, among -others. The phrase “pomp and circumstance” comes from Shakespeare’s -_Othello_. The five marches are in the keys of D major, A minor, C -minor, G major, and C Major. The first two were written in 1901; the -third, in 1905; the fourth in 1907; and the fifth in 1930. The most -famous of these is the second in A minor, one of Elgar’s most frequently -performed compositions, and music as often identified with the British -Empire as “God Save the King.” It opens in a restless, vigorous vein and -erupts into a spacious melody for strings which Laurence Housman -subsequently set to lyrics (“Land of Hope and Glory”). Elgar once again -used this same melody in his _Coronation Ode_ for King Edward VII in -1902. The opening brisk, restless music is recalled after a full -statement of the melody. - -The first in D major has a vigorous introduction after which unison -strings come forth with a robust march tune. The opening introduction is -subsequently used as a transition to the trio in which a soaring melody -is set against a uniform rhythmic beat. - -The fourth in G major, known as “Song of Liberty,” is also familiar. -Once again the opening consists of spirited march music, and once again -the heart of the composition is a broad and stately melody for the -strings. This melody receives extended treatment which culminates with a -rousing statement by the full orchestra. - -_Salut d’amour_, for chamber orchestra, op. 12 (1889) is a nostalgic and -sentimental piece of music in three-part song form that has become a -salon favorite. It is also famous in a transcription for violin and -piano. - - - - - Duke Ellington - - -Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington was born in Washington, D.C. on April -29, 1899. His career as a popular musician began in his adolescence when -he performed jazz pieces on the piano in an ice-cream parlor in -Washington, and after that formed his own jazz group. In 1923 he came to -New York where he soon thereafter formed a jazz band which performed at -the Kentucky Club in Harlem. Discovered by Irving Mills, the publisher, -Ellington was booked for the Cotton Club where he remained several years -and established his fame as an outstanding exponent of real jazz—as -pianist, conductor of his orchestra, composer, and arranger. He has -since joined the all-time greats of jazz music, acclaimed in night -clubs, on the Broadway stage and Hollywood screen, over the radio, on -records, and in triumphant tours throughout the music world. - -As a composer Ellington is famous for his popular songs (“Mood Indigo,” -“Sophisticated Lady” and so forth) and short instrumental jazz pieces -(_Black and Tan Fantasy_, _Creole Rhapsody_, _East St. Louis Toodle-oo_, -etc.) All this falls within the province of either popular music or -jazz, and for this reason cannot be considered here. - -Ellington has also produced a rich repertory of larger works for -orchestra which have a place in the permanent library of semi-classical -music in the same way that Gershwin’s larger works do. Skilfully -utilizing the fullest resources of jazz techniques, styles, and idioms, -Ellington has created in these larger works an authentically American -music. He himself prefers to consider many of these works as “Negro -music” rather than jazz; nevertheless, in their blues harmonies, jazz -colorations, and melodic and rhythmic techniques these works represented -jazz music at its very best. - -Perhaps the most distinguished of these symphonic-jazz works is _Black, -Brown and Beige_, an extended work which Ellington introduced with his -orchestra in Carnegie Hall, New York, in 1943, and which he described as -a “tonal parallel of the Negro in America.” The first movement, “Black,” -is a musical picture of the Negro at work, singing at his labors on the -docks and levees in the slavery period before the Civil War. An alto -saxophone solo brings on a plangent Spiritual, “Come Sunday.” The second -movement, “Brown,” represents the wars in which Negroes have -participated. A tenor solo sings an eloquent blues of the unsettled -condition of the Negro after the Civil War. The contemporary Negro is -the inspiration for the finale, “Beige,” utilizing jazz idioms and -styles in portraying the period of the Twenties, Thirties and Forties. -Many facets of Negro life are drawn in brief musical episodes, including -the Negro church and school, and the Negro’s aspiration towards -sophistication. The work ends on a patriotic note, prophesying that the -Negro’s place in the American way of life is secure. - - - - - Georges Enesco - - -Georges Enesco was born in Liveni, Rumania, on August 19, 1881. He -studied the violin at the Conservatories of Vienna and Paris, winning -highest honors in both places. Following the completion of his studies -in 1899, he launched a successful career both as concert violinist and -as composer. For several years he was the court violinist to the Queen -of Rumania, besides making outstandingly successful appearances on the -concert stage throughout Europe. His debut as composer took place in -Paris before his sixteenth birthday, with a concert devoted entirely to -his own works. Success came in 1901 with his _Rumanian Rhapsody No. 1_. -Enesco also distinguished himself as a conductor. When he made his -American debut—on January 2, 1923 with the Philadelphia Orchestra in New -York City—it was in the triple role of violinist, conductor, and -composer. After World War I, Enesco divided his residence between Paris -and his native Rumania while touring the music world. He made his last -American appearance in 1950 on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of -his debut as violinist; once again he appeared in the triple role of -violinist, conductor and composer. He suffered a stroke in Paris in July -1954 and died there on May 4, 1955. After his death, his native village, -and a street in Bucharest, were named after him. - -Enesco was Rumania’s foremost twentieth-century composer. His major -compositions range freely over several different styles from -nationalism, to neo-classicism, to ultra-modernism. But the works with -which he first gained world fame, and which have since had the widest -circulation, are those in a national Rumanian style, with Oriental-like -melodies and propulsive rhythms all modeled after the exotic folk songs -and dances of the Rumanian gypsies. - -In such a style are his two Rumanian rhapsodies for orchestra: No. 1 in -A major, op. 11, no. 1 (1901); No. 2 in D major, op. 11, no. 2 (1902). -The first rhapsody is the one played more often. It opens with a -languorous subject for clarinet which is soon assumed by other woodwind, -then by the strings and after that (in a quickened tempo) by the full -orchestra. A passionate gypsy tune follows in the strings; and this is -succeeded by an abandoned dance melody in first violins and the -woodwind, and an Oriental-type improvisation in solo flute. Now the mood -becomes more frenetic, with a rapid succession of whirling folk-dance -tunes and rhythms that are carried to a breathtaking climax. Relaxation -finally comes with a gentle Oriental melody in clarinet, but this is -only a passing phase. The rhapsody ends in a renewed outburst of -vitality. - -In comparison to the first, the second rhapsody is an emotionally -reserved piece of music. After a solemn declaration by the strings, -there comes an equally sober and restrained folk song in the strings. -The dark mood thus projected becomes further intensified with a theme -for English horn against tremolo strings and continues throughout most -of the rhapsody, except for a brief interpolation of a vigorous dance -melody by the solo viola. - - - - - Leo Fall - - -Leo Fall was born in Olmuetz, Austria, on February 2, 1873. The son of a -military bandmaster, he early received music instruction from his -father. Then, after attending the Vienna Conservatory, he conducted -theater orchestras in Berlin, Hamburg, and Cologne. An opera, _Paroli_, -was unsuccessfully produced in Berlin before Fall settled permanently in -Vienna to devote himself to the writing of those charming operettas in -an abundantly lyric vein and graceful, sophisticated manner which the -Austrian capital favored. His greatest successes were _The Dollar -Princess_ in 1907, _The Rose of Stamboul_ (_Die Rose von Stambul_) in -1916, and _Madame Pompadour_ in 1923. He died in Vienna on September 15, -1925. - -Fall’s most famous operetta is _The Dollar Princess_ (_Die -Dollarprinzessin_), selections from which are often given on salon -programs. _The Dollar Princess_—book by A. M. Willner and F. Gruenbaum -based upon a comedy by Gatti-Trotha—was introduced in Vienna on November -2, 1907. Its first American performance took place on September 6, 1909 -at the Knickerbocker Theater in an adaptation by George Grossmith, Jr. -Some songs by Jerome Kern were interpolated into the New York -production. The “dollar princess” is the heroine of the operetta: Alice -Couder, pampered daughter of a New York coal magnate who goes in pursuit -of Freddy. When at a lavish party at the Couder mansion she brazenly -announces her intention of marrying Freddy without previously consulting -him, he leaves her in disgust, and goes off to Canada where he becomes a -successful business man. He cannot forget Alice, however. He brings the -Couders to Canada on a pretext of discussing with the father a business -deal, when he confesses his love to Alice, who no longer is brazen or -arrogant. - -A Viennese operetta must by necessity have a major waltz number, and -_The Dollar Princess_ is no exception; “_Will sie dann lieben treu und -heiss_” from Act 1, is the most important melody of the operetta. When -other selections from this operetta are given they invariably include -also the lilting title song from Act 2, and the seductive little duet -“_Wir tanzen Ringelreih’n hin einmal und her_.” - - - - - Manuel de Falla - - -Manuel de Falla, Spain’s most significant twentieth-century composer, -was born in Cádiz on November 23, 1876. After studying music with -private teachers in his native city, and with J. Tragó and Felipe -Pedrell in Madrid, he completed in 1905 _La Vida breve_, a one-act opera -that received first prize in a competition for native Spanish operas -sponsored by the Academia de Bellas Artes. From 1907 to 1914 he lived in -Paris where he absorbed French musical influences and became a friend of -Debussy and Ravel. In 1914 he was back in his native land; from 1921 to -1939 he lived a retiring existence in Granada, devoting himself to -serious composition. He left his native land in 1939 because of his -disenchantment with the Franco regime which he had originally favored. -Until his death on November 14, 1946, he lived in seclusion in Alta -Gracia, in the province of Córdoba, in Argentina. - -Falla’s art is deeply embedded in the soil of Spanish folk songs and -dance. His major works, which number a mere handful, are all evocations -of the spirit of Spain in music which, though never a direct quotation -from Spanish sources, is nevertheless Spanish to the core in details of -melody, harmony, and rhythm. His principal works include a harpsichord -concerto, _Nights in the Gardens of Spain_ (_Noches en los jardines de -España_) for piano and orchestra, the ballet _El Amor brujo_, and the -opera _The Three-Cornered Hat_ (_El sombrero de tres picos_). - -In Falla’s most effective national idiom are two popular Spanish dances. -The _Ritual Fire Dance_ (_Danza ritual del fuego_) is the seventh -section from the ballet, _El Amor brujo_ (1915). Trills with the searing -intensity of hot flame lead into a languorous Spanish melody for the -oboe, behind which moves an irresistible rhythm. This is followed by a -second subject more intense in mood, loudly proclaimed by unison horns -and after that repeated quietly by muted trumpets. Throughout, this -dance has an almost savage ferocity, the music continually punctuated by -piercing chords; the dance is finally brought to a frenetic conclusion. -The composer himself made a highly effective transcription of this dance -for solo piano, and Gregor Piatigorsky for cello and piano. - -The _Spanish Dance No. 1_ comes from the second act of the opera, _La -Vida breve_, with which Falla first achieved recognition. An impulsive -rhythmic opening serves as the background for a bold and sensual gypsy -melody for horns and strings. The piece ends with rich chords for full -orchestra. Fritz Kreisler made a fine transcription of this dance for -violin and piano. - - - - - Gabriel Fauré - - -Gabriel-Urbain Fauré was born in Pamiers, France, on May 12, 1845. His -music study took place in Paris with Niedermeyer and Saint-Saëns. After -that he served as organist in Rennes and Paris, and held the important -post of organist at the Madeleine Church in Paris from 1896 on. In 1896 -he also became professor of composition at the Paris Conservatory where, -from 1905 until 1920, he was director. In 1909 he was elected member of -the Académie des Beaux Arts, and in 1910 made Commander of the Legion of -Honor. In the last years of his life he suffered from deafness. He died -in Paris on November 4, 1924. - -Fauré was one of France’s major composers, creator of a considerable -library of piano and chamber music as well as works for symphony -orchestra which included _Pelleas and Melisande_, a suite (1898) and the -_Ballade_ for piano and orchestra (1881). His music is filled with -classic beauty, serenity, and a most delicate sensibility and thus makes -an appeal only to a highly cultivated music lover. But a few of his -works have such melodic charm and appealing moods that they cannot fail -to cast a spell even on the untrained listener. - -_Après un rêve_ is a song, the first in a set of three published as op. -7 (1885), lyrics by Romain Bussine. Exquisite in its sensitive lyricism, -this melody has become popular in many transcriptions, some for -orchestra, one for violin and piano by Mischa Elman, and another for -cello and piano by Pablo Casals. - -_Dolly_ (1893-1896) is a suite of six pieces for children which the -composer originally wrote as a piano duet for Dolly Bardac, daughter of -a woman who later became Debussy’s wife. Henri Rabaud orchestrated this -suite in 1906, and it was first performed in connection with a ballet -staged at the Théâtre des Arts in Paris. In this music the composer -looks back on childhood and the world of the child with poetic insight -and occasionally a gentle sense of humor; in this respect this suite is -not unlike _Children’s Corner_ of Debussy. It opens with “Berceuse,” a -gentle melody for the woodwind, which Jacques Thibaud arranged for -violin and piano. This is followed by “Mi-a-ou,” a little quartet for -muted trumpets. A flute solo dominates “_Le Jardin de Dolly_,” while -“_Kitty Valse_” is a light and vivacious waltz tune. In “_Tendresse_” -the melody is first heard in strings. A tranquil middle section presents -the solo oboe above a harp accompaniment. The closing movement, “_Le Pas -espagnol_” is gay and brilliant music that pays homage to Chabrier, -composer of _España_. - -The _Pavane_, for orchestra, op. 50 (1887) is music of stately, classic -beauty over which hovers the Hellenic spirit so often found in Fauré’s -most significant works. Against an insistent rhythm, the flute offers -the haunting refrain of the Pavane. This dance melody is soon shared by -the other woodwind, after which it unfolds completely in violins and the -woodwind, other strings providing a rhythmic pizzicato accompaniment. A -transition in the strings then leads us back to the graceful mood and -the gentle lyricism of the Pavane melody. - -The same subdued and classic repose we find in the _Pavane_ -distinguishes another of Fauré’s popular compositions, the _Sicilienne_, -for cello and piano, op. 78 (1898). Transcriptions for orchestra of this -composition are even more famous than the original version. - - - - - Friedrich Flotow - - -Friedrich Freiherr von Flotow was born in Teutendorf, Mecklenburg, on -April 26, 1812. He was descended from a family that traced its nobility -back several centuries. After studying music in Paris with Anton Reicha -and Johann Pixis between 1828 and 1830, he wrote his first opera, _Peter -und Katharina_. Success came first with _Alessandro Stradella_ -introduced in Hamburg in 1844, and was solidified in 1847 with the opera -by which he is still remembered, _Martha_. From 1856 to 1863 he was -Intendant of the Schwerin Court Theater. He went into retirement in 1880 -and died in Darmstadt, Germany, on January 24, 1883. - -The ebullient melodies with which Flotow flooded his operas made him -extremely popular in his day. This same joyous lyricism keeps the -overtures to _Alessandro Stradella_ and _Martha_ fresh in the orchestral -repertory. - -_Alessandro Stradella_—introduced in Hamburg on December 30, 1844—was -based on a romantic episode in the life of a 17th century opera -composer; the libretto was by Wilhelm Friedrich. Stradella elopes with -Leonora, whose guardian hires assassins to kill the composer. But -Stradella’s singing has such an effect on the assassins that they are -incapable of murdering him. They let him go, and in the end the guardian -himself is moved to forgive the composer and sanction his union with -Leonora. - -The overture opens with a solemn chant for the brass (Stradella’s song -in the last act). Vigorous transitional material leads to a robust song -for full orchestra which is soon repeated expressively by the strings. A -sprightly tune for strings (the bell chorus of the second act) is given -prominent treatment and developed climactically. The mood now alternates -between lightness and gaiety with an occasional intrusion of a strong -dramatic effect. - -_Martha_ received its première in Vienna on November 25, 1847. The -libretto, by Friedrich Wilhelm Riese was based on a ballet-pantomime by -Vernoy de Saint-Georges. “Martha” is Lady Harriet in disguise as a -servant girl for the sake of an amusing escapade; and the opera is -concerned with her amatory adventures with Lionel, and that of her maid -with Plunkett, at the Richmond fair. The complications that ensue when -the men discover this deception are eventually happily resolved. - -The overture begins with a slow introduction which leads into a -_Larghetto_ section where considerable attention is paid to the main -melody of the quintet at the close of the third act, “_Mag der Himmel -euch vergeben_.” The tempo quickens as the lively country dances of the -opera are presented. A crescendo reaches towards a fortissimo -restatement of the main theme of the third-act quintet, and the overture -ends with a brief and energetic coda. - -Salon orchestras often present potpourris of this opera’s main melodies. -Two are always dominant in such potpourris. “The Last Rose of Summer” -(“_Qui sola, vergin rosa_”)—an aria sung by the heroine in the second -act—is a melody familiar to all; it is not by Flotow, but from an old -Irish song, “The Groves of Blarney,” set to a poem by Thomas Moore. The -second famous melody from _Martha_ is the beautiful tenor aria from the -third act, “_M’Appari_,” in which Lionel expresses his grief when he -feels he has lost Martha for good. - - - - - Stephen Foster - - -Stephen Collins Foster, America’s foremost song composer, was born in -Lawrenceville, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on July 4, 1826. He -received no formal musical training. _Tioga Waltz_, in 1841, was his -first piece of music to get performed. About a year after that, Foster -published his first song, “Open Thy Lattice, Love.” His initial success -came with “Oh, Susanna!” for which he received only $100. But “Oh, -Susanna!” became so popular soon after its publication in 1848 that it -became the theme song (with improvised lyrics) of the Forty Niners on -their way to California. Beginning with 1848 he wrote songs for Ed -Christy’s Minstrels—at first allowing some of them to appear as -Christy’s own creations. It was within the context of the minstrel show -that such permanent Foster favorites as “Camptown Races” and “Old Folks -at Home” were first performed. Both songs were outstandingly successful -and, because of a favorable contractual arrangement with a New York -publisher, Foster was earning handsome royalties. Now feeling -financially secure, Foster married Jane Denny McDowell in 1850, a -relationship that was unhappy almost from the beginning. In 1860 Foster -came to New York with the hope of furthering his career as a composer. -But by now he was virtually forgotten by the public, and publishers paid -him only a pittance for his last songs, many of them mostly hack pieces. -Always disposed towards alcohol, Foster now became a habitual drunkard, -living in the most abject poverty in a miserable room on the Bowery. He -died at Bellevue Hospital on January 13, 1864. - -Foster was the composer of numerous songs which in various orchestral -arrangements are basic to the repertory of every salon or pop orchestra. -His greatest songs were inspired by the Negro; they are the eloquent -expressions of Northern sentiment about slavery in the South. Foster’s -most famous Negro songs are: “Old Folks at Home” (or “Swanee River”), -“Massa’s in de Cold, Cold Ground,” “My Old Kentucky Home,” and “Ol’ -Black Joe.” - -When Foster first wrote “Old Folks at Home” his inspiration was an -obscure Florida River by the name of “Pedee.” But while writing his song -he thought “Pedee” not sufficiently euphonious for his purpose. He went -to a map of Florida to find another river, came upon “Suwanee” which he -contracted to “Swanee.” - -Foster was also successful in the writing of sentimental ballads. Here -his most important songs were “Jeanie With the Light Brown Hair” -(written for and about his wife), and “Beautiful Dreamer.” - -Besides orchestral adaptations of individual songs, Foster’s music is -represented on orchestral programs by skilful suites, or ingenious -symphonic transcriptions of individual songs, by other composers. Arcady -Dubensky’s _Stephen Foster Suite_ is discussed in the section on -Dubensky, and Lucien Caillet’s _Fantasia and Fugue on “Oh, Susanna!”_ in -the Caillet section. Other composers to make symphonic use of Foster’s -melodies are: Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (_Humoresques on Foster -Themes_); Morton Guild (_Foster Gallery_); and Alan Shulman (_Oh, -Susanna!_). - - - - - Rudolf Friml - - -Rudolf Friml was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, on December 7, 1879. He -received his musical training at the Prague Conservatory, after which he -toured Europe and America as assisting artist and accompanist for Jan -Kubelik, the noted violin virtuoso. In 1906, Friml established permanent -residence in the United States, making several appearances as concert -pianist, twice in the performance of his own Concerto in B-flat. He now -published piano pieces, instrumental numbers, and songs which attracted -the interest of two publishers, Gus Schirmer and Max Dreyfus. When, in -1912, Victor Herbert stepped out of an assignment to write the music for -the operetta _The Firefly_, both Schirmer and Dreyfus recommended Friml -as his replacement. _The Firefly_ made Friml famous. Until 1934 he -continued writing music for the Broadway stage, achieving further -triumphs with _Rose Marie_ in 1924, _The Vagabond King_ in 1925, and -_The Three Musketeers_ in 1928. After 1934, Friml concentrated his -activity on motion pictures in Hollywood. - -Friml belongs with those Broadway composers of the early 20th century -whose domain was the operetta modelled after German and Austrian -patterns. As long as the operetta was popular on the Broadway stage, -Friml remained a favorite, for his ingratiating melodies, pleasing -sentimentality, winning charm, and strong romantic flair were in the -best traditions of the operetta theater. But when the vogue for -operettas died down and the call came for American musicals with native -settings and characterizations, realistic approaches, and a greater -cohesion between text and music, Friml’s day was over. He has produced -nothing of significance since the middle 1930’s, and very little of -anything else. But the music he wrote for his best operettas has never -lost its appeal. - -_The Firefly_, book and lyrics by Otto Harbach, was introduced in New -York on December 2, 1912. The plot concerned a little Italian street -singer by the name of Nina (enchantingly played by Emma Trentini). She -disguises herself as a boy to get a job aboard a yacht bound for -Bermuda, and is first accused and then cleared of the charge of being a -pickpocket. Many years later she reappears as a famous prima donna when -she is finally able to win the wealthy young man with whom she had -fallen in love while working on the yacht. - -Orchestral potpourris from _The Firefly_ always include three of the -songs Emma Trentini helped to make famous: “Giannina Mia,” “The Dawn of -Love” and “Love is Like a Firefly.” The melodious duet, “Sympathy,” is -also popular. - -_The Donkey Serenade_, now regarded as one of the favorites from _The -Firefly_ score, was not in the original operetta when it was produced on -Broadway. Friml wrote it in collaboration with Herbert Stothart for the -motion picture adaptation of the operetta released in 1937 and starring -Jeanette MacDonald and Allan Jones. This appealing Spanish-type melody -is set against an intriguing rhythm suggesting the jogging movement of a -donkey; this rhythm precedes and closes the number, which has become as -celebrated in an instrumental version as it is as a song with lyrics by -Chet Forrest and Bob White. - -_Rose Marie_, book and lyrics by Otto Harbach and Oscar Hammerstein II, -came to Broadway on September 2, 1924 where it remained for more than a -year. The rest of the country became acquainted with this lovable -operetta at that time by means of four road companies. The setting is -the Canadian Rockies, and the love interest involves Rose Marie and Jim, -the latter falsely accused of murder. The Canadian Mounted Police, -headed by Sergeant Malone, help to clear Jim and to bring the love -affair of Rose Marie and Jim to a happy resolution. Selections in -orchestral adaptations most often heard from this operetta include two -of Friml’s most famous songs, the title number and “Indian Love Call”; a -third delightful song was found in “Totem Tom Tom.” _Rose Marie_ was -adapted for motion pictures three times, once in a silent version. - -_The Vagabond King_ had for its central character the French vagabond -poet of the 15th century, François Villon, who is made king for a day. -This musical was based on the romance of J. H. McCarthy, _If I Were -King_, adapted by Brian Hooker. _The Vagabond King_, which opened on -September 21, 1925, was one of Friml’s greatest successes, mainly -because of such rousing numbers as “The Song of the Vagabonds,” the -caressing waltz melody “Waltz Huguette,” and the love song “Only a -Rose,” all often heard in orchestral adaptations. _The Vagabond King_ -was made into motion pictures twice, most recently in 1956 starring -Kathryn Grayson and Oreste. - - - - - Julius Fučík - - -Julius Fučík was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, on July 18, 1872. He -was a pupil of Antonin Dvořák in composition. After playing the bassoon -in the German Opera in Prague in 1893, he became bandmaster of the 86th -and 92nd Austrian Regiments in which he won renown throughout Europe. He -died in Leitmeritz, Czechoslovakia, on September 25, 1916. Fučík wrote -numerous dance pieces and marches for band. The most popular of these is -the stirring march, _Entrance of the Gladiators_, which became popular -throughout the world and is still frequently played by salon orchestras -as well as bands. - - - - - Sir Edward German - - -Sir Edward German was born Edward German Jones in Whitchurch, England, -on February 17, 1862. He attended the Royal Academy of Music in London -where, in 1895, he was elected Fellow. Meanwhile, in 1888-1889 he became -the musical director of the Globe Theater in London. The incidental -music he wrote there that year for Richard Mansfield’s production of -_Richard III_ proved so popular that Sir Henry Irving commissioned him -to write similar music for his own presentation of _Henry VIII_. German -subsequently wrote incidental music for many other plays including -_Romeo and Juliet_ (1895), _As You Like It_ (1896), _Much Ado About -Nothing_ (1898) and _Nell Gwynn_ (1900). He also produced a considerable -amount of concert music, including two symphonies and various suites, -tone poems, rhapsodies, and a march and hymn for the Coronation of -George V in 1911. German was knighted in 1928, and in 1934 he received -the Gold Medal of the Royal Philharmonic Society. He died in London on -November 11, 1936. - -German is most famous for his incidental music for the stage. He -combined a graceful lyricism with a consummate skill in orchestration. -He also possessed to a remarkable degree the capacity of simulating the -archaic idioms of old English music of the Tudor and Stuart periods. -Thus the greatest charm of his writing lies in its subtle atmospheric -recreation of a bygone era; but a lightness of touch and freshness of -material are never sacrificed. - -Of his incidental music perhaps the most famous is that for -Shakespeare’s _Henry VIII_, introduced at the Lyceum Theater in London -in 1892 in Sir Henry Irving’s production. German’s complete score -consists of an overture, five entr’actes, a setting of the song “Orpheus -and his Lute” and other pieces. But what remain popular are three -delightful old English dances from the first act; the style and spirit -of old English music are here reproduced with extraordinary effect. The -three are: “Morris Dance,” “Shepherd’s Dance,” and “Torch Dance.” - -The best sections of his incidental music to Anthony Hope’s _Nell -Gwynn_, produced at the Prince of Wales Theater in 1900, also are -revivals of old English dances: “Country Dance,” “Merrymaker’s Dance,” -and “Pastoral Dance.” Other delightful dances, often in an old English -folk style, are found in his incidental music to _As You Like It_ -(“Children’s Dance,” “Rustic Dance,” and “Woodland Dance”) and _Romeo -and Juliet_ (“Pavane” and “Torch Dance”). - -German also wrote several operettas, the most famous being _Merrie -England_, text by Basil Hood, first performed at the Savoy Theater in -London on April 2, 1902. The setting is Elizabethan England, and the -plot involves the love affair of Sir Walter Raleigh and the Queen’s Maid -of Honor which upsets Queen Elizabeth since she herself has designs on -Sir Walter. German’s score is filled with the most delightful old world -jigs, country dances, glees, and melodies imitating the style of -old-time madrigals. In addition, there is here an impressive patriotic -song (“The Yeomen of England”), Queen Elizabeth’s effective air (“O -Peaceful England”), a rousing drinking song by Sir Walter Raleigh, a -poignant ballad by the Maid of Honor, and an equally moving love duet by -the Maid of Honor and Sir Walter Raleigh. Because of its effective -music, rich with English flavors, _Merrie England_ has survived as one -of the most popular English operettas of the 20th century, and has often -been revived in London. - -Among German’s many concert works for orchestra one of the most famous -is the _Welsh Rhapsody_ (1902). This is a skilful symphonic adaptation -of Welsh tunes, the last of which (“Men of Larech”) is utilized by the -composer to bring his rhapsody to a powerful culmination. The other -Welsh folk songs used earlier by the composer in this rhapsody are -“Loudly Proclaim O’er Land and Sea,” “Hunting the Hare,” “Bells of -Aberdorry” and “David of the White Rock.” - - - - - George Gershwin - - -George Gershwin was born in Brooklyn, New York on September 26, 1898. -Though he received serious musical training in piano from Charles -Hambitzer, and in harmony and theory from Edward Kilenyi, he early set -his sights on popular rather than serious music. When he was fifteen he -found a job as song plugger and staff pianist in Tin Pan Alley where he -soon began writing songs. The first to get published was “When You Want -’Em You Can’t Get ’Em” in 1916; in the same year another of his songs, -“The Making of a Girl” appeared for the first time on the Broadway -stage, in _The Passing Show of 1916_. Gershwin’s first complete score -for Broadway was _La, La, Lucille_, and his first smash song hit was -“Swanee,” both in 1919. Between 1920 and 1924 Gershwin wrote the music -for five editions of the George White _Scandals_ where he first -demonstrated his exceptional creative gifts; his most famous songs for -the _Scandals_ were “I’ll Build a Stairway to Paradise” and “Somebody -Loves Me.” For one of the editions of the _Scandals_ he also wrote a -one-act Negro opera to a libretto by Buddy De Sylva—originally called -_Blue Monday_ but later retitled _135th Street_. - -Late in 1923, Paul Whiteman, the orchestra leader, commissioned Gershwin -to write a symphonic work in a jazz style for a concert Whiteman was -planning for Aeolian Hall, in New York. That jazz composition—introduced -on February 12, 1924—was the _Rhapsody in Blue_ with which Gershwin -achieved world renown, and which once and for all established the jazz -idiom and jazz techniques as significant material for serious musical -deployment. From then on, until the end of his life, Gershwin continued -to write concert music in a popular style—growing all the time in -technical assurance, in the command of jazz materials, and in the -inventiveness of his melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic writing. In the -eyes of the world he assumed a position of first significance among -American composers. For the symphony orchestra he wrote the Piano -Concerto in F, _An American in Paris_, _Cuban Overture_, _Variations on -I Got Rhythm_, and the _Second Rhapsody_; for solo piano, the three -piano preludes; for the stage his monumental folk opera, _Porgy and -Bess_. - -While devoting himself to the concert field, Gershwin did not neglect -the popular Broadway theater. He produced a library of remarkable songs -for such productions as _Lady Be Good_ (1924), _Oh Kay!_ (1926), _Funny -Face_ (1927), and _Girl Crazy_ (1930). The best of these included -“Fascinating Rhythm,” “Lady Be Good,” “Someone to Watch Over Me,” “Clap -Yo’ Hands,” “’S Wonderful,” “I Got Rhythm,” “Embraceable You,” and “But -Not for Me.” The lyrics for these and other Gershwin song classics were -written by his brother, Ira. - -In 1930 Gershwin revealed a fresh bent for mockery and satire, together -with a new skill for more spacious musical writing than that required -for a song, in _Strike Up the Band_, a satire on war. These qualities in -Gershwin’s music came to full ripeness in 1931 with the political satire -_Of Thee I Sing!_, the first musical ever to win the Pulitzer Prize for -drama. - -In 1931, Gershwin wrote his first original score for motion pictures, -_Delicious_. When he returned to Hollywood in 1936 he settled there -permanently and wrote the music for several delightful screen musicals, -among these being _Damsel in Distress_, _Shall We Dance_, and _The -Goldwyn Follies_. The songs he wrote for the last-named revue (they -included “Love Walked In” and “Love Is Here to Stay”) were the last -pieces of music he was destined to write. He died in Hollywood, -California on July 11, 1937, a victim of a cystic tumor on the right -temporal lobe of the brain. His screen biography, _Rhapsody in Blue_, -was produced in 1945. In 1951, the screen musical, _An American in -Paris_ (whose score included several of Gershwin’s songs as well as the -tone poem that gave this picture its title) received the Academy Award -as the best picture of the year. _Porgy and Bess_ was adapted for motion -pictures, in a Samuel Goldwyn production, in 1959. - -It would be difficult to overestimate Gershwin’s importance in American -music. To the popular song he brought the technical skill of a -consummate musician, endowing it with a rhythmic, melodic and harmonic -language it had rarely before known. By that process he often lifted it -to the status of true art. To serious music he contributed the vitality -and the spirit—as well as the techniques and idioms—of American popular -music; serious musicians throughout the world were inspired by his -example to create a serious musical art out of the materials of American -popular music. Since his untimely death, his artistic stature has grown -in all parts of the civilized world. There will be few today to deny him -a place of honor among America’s foremost composers. - -_An American in Paris_ is a tone poem for symphony orchestra inspired by -a European vacation in 1928. It received its world première in New York -on December 13, 1928, Walter Damrosch conducting the New York -Philharmonic Orchestra. In this music the composer describes the -nostalgia of an American tourist for home, and his experiences as he -strolls along the boulevards of Paris. It opens with a “walking theme,” -a sprightly little tune for strings and oboe; our American is beginning -his stroll. As he walks he hears the piercing warnings of taxi horns: -Gershwin’s score calls for the use of actual Parisian taxi horns. The -American passes a café, and stops for a moment to listen to the sounds -of a music-hall melody, presented by the trombones. Then he resumes his -stroll, as a second walking subject is heard in the clarinet. A solo -violin (which Deems Taylor interpreted as a young lady accosting our -tourist!) provides a transition to two main melodies in both of which -the American’s growing feeling of homesickness finds apt expression. The -first is a blues melody for muted trumpets; the second a Charleston -melody for two trumpets. The blues melody receives climactic treatment -in full orchestra. After a hasty recollection of the second walking -theme, the composition comes to a vigorous conclusion. As Mr. Taylor -goes on to explain, the tourist now decides “to make a night of it. It -will be great to get home, but meanwhile, this is Paris!” - -The Concerto in F, for piano and orchestra, was the immediate -consequence of Gershwin’s phenomenal success with the _Rhapsody in -Blue_. The Concerto was commissioned in 1925 by the New York Symphony -Society and its conductor, Walter Damrosch. They introduced it in -Carnegie Hall, on December 3, 1925, with the composer as soloist. This -work, like its eminent predecessor, is in a jazz style; but unlike the -first version of the _Rhapsody in Blue_ it boasts Gershwin’s own -orchestration. (From this time on Gershwin would always prepare his own -orchestrations for his serious concert music.) There are three -movements. The first (_Allegro_) begins with a Charleston theme shared -by the woodwind and timpani. The main body of this movement is given -over to a spicy jazz tune first heard in the bassoon and after that in -full orchestra; to a tender melody for solo piano; and to a lilting -waltz for strings with decorative treatment by the piano. The second -movement (_Andante con moto_) is lyrical throughout, and at times subtly -atmospheric and poetic. Muted trumpet, against harmonies provided by -three clarinets, set the romantic stage for the felicitous lyrical -thoughts that ensue: a brisk, jazzy, strikingly rhythmic idea for the -piano; and a broad, sensual melody for strings. This movement ends in -the same sensitive atmospheric mood with which it began. In the finale -(_Allegro con brio_) dynamic forces are released. Main themes from the -first two movements are recalled with a particularly effective -recapitulation of the second theme of the first movement in the strings. - -The _Cuban Overture_ was written in 1932 after a brief visit to Havana -and was introduced at the Lewisohn Stadium in New York, Albert Coates -conducting, on August 16, 1932. This is a concert overture for orchestra -utilizing native percussion Cuban instruments. The work has three -sections played without interruption. The first consists of two -melodies, a Cuban theme in strings followed by a second lyrical subject -which is placed against the contrapuntal background of fragments from -the first Cuban theme. A solo clarinet cadenza leads to the middle -section which is a two-voice canon. The ensuing finale makes -considerable use of earlier thematic material and ends with an -electrifying presentation of a fully projected rumba melody in which -prominent use is made of Cuban percussion instruments (cuban stick, -bongo, gourd, and maracas). - -The folk opera, _Porgy and Bess_, was Gershwin’s last work in the field -of serious music—and his greatest. It took Gershwin over two years to -write his opera, a period during which he spent some time in the opera’s -setting of Charleston, South Carolina, absorbing not only local color -but also native Negro music whose style he skilfully assimilated into -his own writing. He completed his opera in the summer of 1935; on -September 30 its world première took place in Boston; and on October 10, -it began its New York run. It cannot be said that either critics or -audiences were fully aware at the time that they were hearing a -masterwork. Some of the Boston and New York scribes found things to -admire in the opera, but most of them were highly critical. Olin Downes -said “it does not utilize all the resources of the operatic composer or -pierce very often to the depths of the pathetic drama.” Lawrence Gilman -found Gershwin’s emphasis on the popular element a disturbing blemish -while Virgil Thomson did not hesitate at the time to refer to it as “a -fake.” The run of 124 performances in New York (followed by a -three-month tour) represented a box-office failure. - -Gershwin himself remained convinced he had written a work of first -importance, but regrettably he did not live to see his faith in his -opera justified beyond his wildest hopes or aspirations. Revived in New -York in 1941 it had an eight-month run, the longest of any revival in -Broadway history. More important still, many critics revised earlier -estimates. Virgil Thomson now spoke of it as “a beautiful piece of music -and a deeply moving play for the lyric theater.” Olin Downes said that -Gershwin had here “taken a substantial step, and advanced the cause of -native opera.” The New York Music Critics Circle singled it out as the -most important musical revival of that season. - -But still greater triumphs awaited the opera. In 1952, a Negro cast -toured Europe under the auspices of the State Department. Before that -tour was over, several years later, the opera had been heard throughout -Europe, the Near East, in countries behind the Iron Curtain, the Soviet -Union and Latin America. Everywhere it enjoyed acclaim realized by few -contemporary operas anywhere. There were not many dissenting voices in -the universal judgment that _Porgy and Bess_ was one of the most -significant operas of the twentieth century, and certainly one of the -most popular. And its popularity was further enhanced by the stunning -production given it by Samuel Goldwyn in motion pictures in 1959. - -The text of the opera was based on the play _Porgy_, by Dorothy and Du -Bose Heyward, produced by the Theater Guild in New York in 1927, which -in turn had been adapted from Du Bose Heyward’s novel of the same name. -The opera text and lyrics were written by Du Bose and Dorothy Heyward -with several additional lyrics by Ira Gershwin. The tragic love affair -of the cripple, Porgy, and Bess, a lady of easy virtue, is set in the -Negro tenement, Catfish Row, in Charleston, South Carolina. Porgy has -found true happiness with Bess for the first time in his life. When -Crown, Bess’ old sweetheart returns to claim her, Porgy kills him but -manages to elude the law after having been detained a while. Upon -returning to Catfish Row he discovers that his Bess had succumbed to the -lure of dope, and the gay life in New York offered her by Sportin’ Life. -Heartbroken, Porgy jumps in his goat cart to follow Bess to New York and -try to bring her back. - -The main melodic sections of the opera have provided the material for -several delightful suites. The most famous is _A Symphonic Picture_ by -Robert Russell Bennett, commissioned by Fritz Reiner, the conductor of -the Pittsburgh Symphony in 1942. Bennett created out of the score an -integrated tone poem faithful to Gershwin’s own harmonic and orchestral -intentions. The tone poem (or suite) is made up of the following -sequences in the order of their appearance: Scene of Catfish Row with -the peddler’s calls; Opening Act II; “Summertime” and Opening of Act I; -“I Got Plenty of Nuttin’”; Storm Music; “Bess, You Is My Woman Now”; “It -Ain’t Necessarily So” and the finale, “Oh Lawd I’m On My Way.” - -George Gershwin himself prepared an orchestral suite from his opera -score in 1936, and conducted it in performances with several major -American orchestras in 1936-1937. This manuscript, long forgotten, was -found in the library of Ira Gershwin, and was revived in 1959 by Maurice -Abravanel and the Utah Symphony. Now named _Catfish Row_, to distinguish -it from other suites prepared by other musicians, it had five sections: -“Catfish Row,” “Porgy Sings,” “Fugue,” “Hurricane,” and “Good Morning, -Brother.” - -Beryl Rubinstein transcribed five of the principal melodies from the -opera for piano, and Jascha Heifetz for violin and piano. - -The three piano _Preludes_ are famous not only in their original version -but also in transcriptions for symphony orchestra. The first prelude, in -B-flat major, is rhythmically exciting, highlighting the basic elements -of the tango and the Charleston. The second, in C-sharp minor, is the -most famous of the set. This is an eloquent three-part blues melody. The -concluding prelude, in E-flat major, once again like the first one has -greater rhythmic than melodic interest, a lively expression of -uninhibited good feelings. Besides transcriptions for orchestra by Roy -Bargy, Gregory Stone and several others, these preludes have been -adapted for violin and piano by Heifetz, for trumpet and piano by -Gregory Stone, and for saxophone and piano by Sigurd Rascher. - -The _Rhapsody in Blue_ was Gershwin’s first work for symphony orchestra -and it is the composition with which he first won fame, fortune, and -artistic significance. It was commissioned by Paul Whiteman for an -all-American music concert planned by that bandleader for Aeolian Hall, -New York, on February 12, 1924. With the composer at the piano, the -_Rhapsody_ appeared as the tenth and penultimate number of a long -program, but it was the work that gave Whiteman’s concert its main -interest and significance. The critics the following day were divided in -their opinion. On the one hand, Henry T. Finck considered it superior to -the music of Schoenberg and Milhaud; equally high words of praise came -from Gilbert W. Gabriel, William J. Henderson, Olin Downes, Deems -Taylor, and Carl van Vechten. In the opposite camp stood Pitts Sanborn -and Lawrence Gilman who described the work as “meaningless repetition” -and “trite, feeble, and conventional.” - -But the opposing opinions notwithstanding, the _Rhapsody in Blue_ -immediately became one of the most famous pieces of serious music by an -American. It was transcribed for every possible instrument or groups of -instruments; it was adapted several times for ballet; it was used in a -motion picture. Royalties from the sale of sheet music and records -brought in a fortune. Through the years it has never lost its -popularity; it is still one of the most frequently performed American -symphonic works. - -Its prime significance rests in the fact that it decisively proved that -it was possible to produce good music within ambitious structures -utilizing idioms and techniques of American jazz. The _Rhapsody in Blue_ -was by no means the first composition to do so; it was preceded by works -by Erik Satie, Stravinsky, and Milhaud among others. But due to its -enormous popular appeal it was the most influential composition of all -in convincing the world’s foremost composers that jazz could be used -with serious intent. Undoubtedly it was largely as a result of the -triumph of the _Rhapsody in Blue_ that world-famous composers like -William Walton, Constant Lambert, Maurice Ravel, Kurt Weill and Paul -Hindemith among many others produced serious jazz music. - -Much has been said about its diffuseness of structure, and the inept way -its material is developed. But for all its faults, the _Rhapsody in -Blue_ remains a vital, dynamic and at times an inspired piece of music. -It is filled with wonderful lyricism; its rhythmic cogency is -irresistible; its identity is completely American. - -The work opened with an ascending seventeen-note slide by the clarinet -which culminates in the saucy, first theme. A transition in the wind -instrument leads to another brisk, jaunty idea for piano. After some -development, and several ascending chords in the piano we get to the -heart of the rhapsody and to one of the most famous melodies in all -contemporary symphonic music: a spacious, rhapsodic song for the -strings. The full orchestra repeats it. Two earlier themes are now -briefly recalled, the first theme by the full orchestra, the second by -the piano. A brief, dramatic coda brings the rhapsody to an exciting -conclusion. - -For the Paul Whiteman concert of 1924, Ferde Grofé provided the -orchestration from a two-piano version handed him by the composer. -Gershwin later prepared his own orchestration, and it is this version -that is now given by all the major symphonic organizations. - -The _Second Rhapsody_ for orchestra succeeded the more popular _Rhapsody -in Blue_ by eight years; it was first performed by the Boston Symphony -under Koussevitzky on January 29, 1932. Gershwin originally called this -work _Rhapsody in Rivets_ because the opening measures present a -strongly rhythmic subject in solo piano suggesting riveting. This “rivet -theme” is then taken over by the full orchestra, after which we hear a -rumba melody. These ideas are then developed. A piano cadenza brings on -a spacious melody, first in strings, and then in brass. All this -material is amplified before the rhapsody is swept to an exciting end. - -This rhapsody was the outgrowth of a six-minute sequence written by the -composer for the motion picture, _Delicious_. The sequence was intended -to describe the sights and sounds of a city. In the picture only one of -the six minutes of this music was retained, but Gershwin liked the rest -of it well enough to expand it into a major symphonic work. - -The _Variations on I Got Rhythm_, for piano and orchestra, was written -for a tour of one-night stands made by Gershwin throughout the United -States in all-Gershwin programs. Its first performance took place in -Boston on January 14, 1934. The main subject is a famous Gershwin song, -“I Got Rhythm” which Ethel Merman made famous in the musical comedy -_Girl Crazy_. The symphonic work begins with a four-note ascending -phrase from the first measure of the song’s chorus, presented by solo -clarinet. The theme is then taken over by solo piano and after that by -full orchestra, after which the entire chorus is presented by the piano. -In the ensuing variations the composer changes not only the basic -structure of the song, melodically and rhythmically, but also its mood -and feeling, traversing the gamut of emotion from melancholy to spirited -gaiety. - -Still another remarkably effective symphonic adaptation of “I Got -Rhythm” was made by Morton Gould, and introduced by him with his -orchestra over the CBS radio network in 1944. - -Gershwin wrote two marches, both with satirical overtones, which are -often given at “pop concerts.” Each was meant for a musical comedy. -“Strike Up the Band” comes from the musical comedy of the same name, -produced on January 14, 1930 starring Clark and McCullough. This was a -stinging satire on war and international diplomacy, with America -embroiled in a conflict with Switzerland over the issue of chocolates. -The march, “Strike Up the Band,” helps deflate some of the pomp and -ceremony of all martial music. - -“Wintergreen for President” comes from _Of Thee I Sing_, the -epoch-making satire on politics in Washington, D.C., first produced on -December 26, 1931. “Wintergreen for President” is the music accompanying -a political torchlight parade whose illuminated signs read “Even Your -Dog Loves Wintergreen” and “A Vote for Wintergreen Is a Vote for -Wintergreen” and so on. The march music carries over the satirical -implications of this procession by quoting such tunes as “Hail, Hail the -Gang’s All Here,” “Tammany,” “A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight” and -“Stars and Stripes Forever.” This music even carries a hasty -recollection of Irish and Jewish music to suggest that Wintergreen is a -friend of both these people. - -Gershwin’s greatest songs are often performed in orchestral -transcriptions at all-Gershwin concerts and other “pop performances,” -sometimes singly, and sometimes in various potpourris. Besides songs -already mentioned in the first part of this section, Gershwin’s greatest -ones include the following: “Bidin’ My Time” from _Girl Crazy_; “I’ve -Got a Crush On You” from _Strike Up the Band_; “Let’s Call the Whole -Thing Off” from _Shall We Dance_; “Liza” from _Show Girl_; “The Man I -Love,” originally meant for _Lady Be Good_ but never used there; “Mine” -from _Let ’Em Eat Cake_; the title song from _Of Thee I Sing_; “Soon” -from _Strike Up the Band_; “That Certain Feeling” from _Tip Toes_; and -“They Can’t Take That Away From Me” from _Shall We Dance_. Among those -who have written orchestral medleys of Gershwin’s songs are Nathan van -Cleve, Fred von Epps, Claude Thornhill, David Broekman, Irving Brodsky, -George B. Leeman, and Nathaniel Finston. - - - - - Henry F. Gilbert - - -Henry Franklin Belknap Gilbert was born in Somerville, Massachusetts, on -September 26, 1868. He attended the New England Conservatory, and -studied composition privately with Edward MacDowell, before playing the -violin in various theaters. For many years music was a secondary pursuit -as he earned his living in a printing establishment, a real-estate -agent, factory foreman, and finally an employee in a music-publishing -firm. A hearing in Paris of Gustave Charpentier’s opera, _Louise_, -proved such an overpowering experience that it inspired him to devote -himself henceforth to music alone. In 1902 he helped found in America -the Wa-Wan Press which promoted nationalism in American music and -published Gilbert’s first works. In these a strong emphasis was placed -by the composer upon American folk music and American folk idioms. In -1903 he wrote _Humoresque on Negro Minstrel Tunes_. After that came his -famous _Comedy Overture on Negro Themes_ (1905), the symphonic ballet -_The Dance in Place Congo_ (1906), the _Negro Rhapsody_ (1913), and -_Indian Sketches_ (1921). Here native elements were skilfully fused into -a style that was Romantic to produce music that remains appealing for -its freshness and vitality. Towards the end of his life, Gilbert was an -invalid. Nevertheless, in 1927, he traveled to Germany in a wheel-chair -to attend a performance of his _Dance in Place Congo_ at the Festival of -the International Society for Contemporary Music in Frankfurt. He died -in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on May 19, 1928. - -The _Comedy Overture on Negro Themes_ (1905) is one of Gilbert’s most -frequently performed compositions. It is made up of five sections played -without interruption. The composer goes on to explain: “The first -movement is light and humorous, the theme being made from two -four-measure phrases taken from Charles L. Edwards’ book _Bahama Songs -and Stories_.... This is followed by a broader, and somewhat slower, -phrase. I have here used the only complete Negro tune which occurs in -the piece ... formerly used as a working song by roustabouts and -stevedores on the Mississippi River steamboats in the old days.... Next -comes a fugue. The theme of this fugue consists of the first four -measures of the Negro Spiritual ‘Old Ship of Zion.’... It is given out -by the brass instruments and interspersed with phrases from the -roustabouts’ song.... After this a short phrase of sixteen measures -serves to reintroduce the comic element. There is a repetition of the -first theme and considerable recapitulation, which leads finally to the -development of a new ending or coda, and the piece ends in an orgy of -jollity and ragtime.” - -_Dance in Place Congo_ (1906) is both a ballet and a tone poem for -orchestra. Its first version was a pantomime ballet, but soon thereafter -the composer adapted his score into a composition for orchestra. The -tone poem—describing the barbaric revels on a late Sunday afternoon of -slaves in Place Congo, a section on the outskirts of New Orleans—opens -in a dark mood which achieves a climax with an outcry in the orchestra. -At this point a bamboula melody is heard in full orchestra. It is -permitted to gain in intensity until it acquires barbaric ferocity. When -the passions are spent, a beautiful romantic section unfolds, -occasionally interrupted by a recall of the bamboula theme. Various -Negro songs and dances are then presented over an insistent rhythm. The -somber mood of the opening is brought back to conclude the composition. - -_The Indian Sketches_ for orchestra (1921) presents several facets of -American-Indian life. “They are,” explains the composer, “for the most -part not musical pictures of definite incidents so much as they are -musical mood pictures.” There are six sections. The first, a prelude, is -music of savage power. This is followed by the subjective music of the -“Invocation,” a prayer or supplication of the Great Spirit. “Song of the -World” briefly develops a cry of the Kutenai Indians, and “Camp Dance” -is a scherzo portraying the lighter side of Indian life. “Nocturne” is a -romantic description of the dark forests alive with the distant sounds -of birds and animals. The suite concludes with the “Snake Dance,” -suggested by a prayer dance for rain of the Hopi Indians in Arizona. - - - - - Don Gillis - - -Don Gillis was born in Cameron, Missouri, on June 17, 1912. He was -graduated from Christian University at Fort Worth, Texas in 1936, after -having engaged in various musical activities including the direction of -a band and a symphony orchestra, and the writing of two musical comedies -produced at the University. Following the completion of his education he -became a member of the faculty of Christian University and Southwest -Baptist Seminary; served as a trombonist and arranger for a Fort Worth -radio station; and played the trombone in the Fort Worth Symphony. In -1944 he became a producer for the National Broadcasting Company in New -York, taking charge of many important programs including those of the -NBC Symphony. - -As a composer of symphonies and other orchestral compositions Gillis -reveals a refreshing sense of humor as well as a delightful bent for -whimsy, qualities which make some of his works ideal for programs of -light music. He has often drawn inspiration and materials from American -folk music and jazz, consistently producing music that combines sound -musical values with sound entertainment. “My feeling,” he has said, “is -that music is for the people and the composer’s final aim should be to -reach them. And since the people whistle and sing, I should like them to -whistle and sing my music.” Thus Gillis aims for simplicity, sincere -emotions, and sheer fun. “I have tried to write so that there will be a -feeling of enjoyment in the fun of the thing.” - -_Portrait of a Frontier Town_, a suite for orchestra (1940), is a -tuneful composition consisting of five short movements. The title of -each of these provides the clue to the programmatic content of the -music. The first, “Chamber of Commerce,” portrays the activities of such -an organization in a typical American town. “Where the West Begins” -tells of the opening of the West through two significant musical -subjects, the first for strings, and the second for oboe, flute, and -clarinet. “Ranch House Party” is described in the score as “brightly—in -a gay manner.” A jovial melody first given by the full orchestra gives -prominent attention to percussion instruments. This is followed by a -mood picture, “Prairie Sunset” in which the English horn, answered by -the clarinet, presents the main melody. The suite concludes with “Main -Street Saturday Night,” in which gaiety and abandon alternate with -suggestions of nostalgia. - -_Symphony No. 5½_ (1947), is one of the composer’s wittiest works which -he himself subtitled as “a symphony for fun.” It consists almost -entirely of jazz melodies, some treated in burlesque fashion; the work -also quotes some famous melodies in a facetious manner. The four -movements have whimsical titles: “Perpetual Emotion,” “Spiritual?”, -“Scherzophrenia” and “Conclusion.” - - - - - Alberto Ginastera - - -Alberto Ginastera was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on April 11, -1916. He was graduated with honors from the National Conservatory in his -native city where, in 1953, he became professor. In 1946 he visited the -United States remaining a year on a Guggenheim Fellowship. Ginastera’s -music combines musical elements native to Argentina with modern -techniques and idioms, and includes ballets, chamber music, a _Pastoral -Symphony_ and other works for orchestra, and pieces for the piano. - -The _Dances_ from the ballet, _Estancia_ (1941) is among his most -popular works. The ballet, choreography by George Balanchine, was first -introduced by the Ballet Caravan. It describes life on an “estancia,” an -Argentine ranch, tracing the activities of its principal character -through a single day from dawn of one day to dawn of the next. The -orchestral dances are rich in native melodies and rhythms, presenting -the various dance sequences in “stylized version.” Two dances are -especially popular: “Dance of the Wheat” and “Malambo.” - - - - - Alexander Glazunov - - -Alexander Glazunov was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, on August 10, -1865. As a boy he studied music privately while attending a technical -high school. At fifteen he became a pupil of Rimsky-Korsakov in harmony, -counterpoint and orchestration. Such was his progress that only one year -later he completed a gifted symphony which was performed in St. -Petersburg in 1882 and acclaimed by several eminent Russian musicians. -Between that year and 1900, Glazunov produced most of the works which -won him renown not only in Russia but throughout the rest of the music -world: symphonies, string quartets, numerous shorter orchestral works, -and compositions in a lighter style. Here he was the traditionalist who -placed reliance on palatable melodies, sound structures, and heartfelt -emotion. For these reasons much of what he has written falls gracefully -into the light-classic category. After 1914 he wrote little, nothing to -add to his stature. Meanwhile he achieved renown first as professor then -as director of the St. Petersburg Conservatory. He also made successful -appearances as conductor following his debut at the Paris Exposition in -1899; his first appearance in the United States took place in Detroit on -November 21, 1929. In 1928, Glazunov left his native land for good, and -from then until his death on March 21, 1936 his home was in Paris. - -The _Carnival Overture_, or _Carnaval_, op. 45 (1894) is a brilliant -picture of a festival. It opens with a lively dance melody in violins -and woodwind. This is followed by a more stately melody in woodwind and -violins against a counter-melody in cellos and bassoons. A brief -transition leads to the main body of the overture built out of two basic -ideas. The first is a gay dance tune in flutes and clarinets; the second -provides a measure of contrast through a more reflective subject for -oboes, clarinets, horns, and cellos. - -_From the Middle Ages_—a suite for orchestra, op. 79 (1902)—evokes the -settings and backgrounds of the middle ages in four sections. The first -is a “Prelude,” portraying a castle by the sea, the home of two lovers. -Death plays the violin in the second movement, a “Scherzo”; he urges the -people to dance to his abandoned fiddling. In the third part, -“Serenade,” a troubadour sings his tune. The suite ends with “The -Crusaders,” in which soldiers are marching off to war, while priests -chant a solemn blessing. - -The original title of _Ouverture solennelle_, op. 73 (1901) was -_Festival Overture_; the music throughout has a festive character. After -preliminary chords, woodwind and horns present a subject soon taken over -and amplified by the strings. The main part of the overture begins with -an expressive and soulful melody for the violins. The second theme is -first given by the clarinets against a vigorous accompaniment. After the -first theme receives elaboration, the overture concludes with a forceful -coda. - -The orchestral suite _Raymonda_, op. 57a, comes from the score to a -ballet with choreography by Marius Petipa; it was introduced in St. -Petersburg on January 17, 1898. The composer’s first work for the stage, -this ballet has for its central character the lovely Raymonda, betrothed -to a knight. After the knight has gone off to join the Crusade and fight -the Saracens, Raymonda is wooed by a Saracen. When she rejects him he -makes an attempt to abduct her. Just then the knight returns, and slays -the culprit. The lovers thus reunited, are now able to celebrate their -nuptials. - -The orchestral suite is a staple in the light-classical repertory. It -consists of the following sections: I. “Introduction.” Raymonda’s sorrow -at the absence of her lover. A scene in Raymonda’s castle where pages -indulge in athletics. II. “_La Traditrice._” The dance of pages and -maidens. III. “_Moderato._” Fanfares announce the arrival of a stranger. -Joy and general animation. As Raymonda enters, girls throw flowers in -her path. IV. “_Andante._” Raymonda is playing the lute outside the -castle in the moonlight. Raymonda dances. VI. “Entr’acte; _Valse -fantastique_.” Raymonda dreams she is in fairyland with her beloved. -VII. “_Grand Pas d’action._” At a feast given by Raymonda at her castle -the Saracen appears, woos her, and is spurned. VIII. “Variation.” -Raymonda defies the Saracen, who now tries to dazzle her with his -wealth. IX. “Dance of the Arab Boys.” “Dance of the Saracens.” X. -“Entr’acte.” The triumph of love and the festivities attending the -nuptials. - -_Scènes de ballet_, suite for orchestra, op. 52 (1894) is made up of -eight parts. The first, “_Préamble_,” has an extended introduction to a -main section in which the main subject is given by the violins. -“Marionettes,” offers a lively theme for piccolo and glockenspiel with -which this section opens and closes; midway comes a trio with main theme -in first violins. The third part is a “Mazurka” for full orchestra. The -fourth is a “Scherzo,” its principal idea in muted strings and woodwind. -An expressive melody for cellos and violins is the heart of the fifth -section, “_Pas d’action_,” while the sixth, “_Dame orientale_” is a -sensuous, exotic dance melody set against the insistent beats of a -tambourine. The ensuing “_Valse_” begins with an introduction following -which the main waltz melody is presented by the violins. The suite -concludes with a dashing “Polonaise” for full orchestra. - -The orchestral suite, _The Seasons_, op. 67—like that of -_Raymonda_—comes from a ballet score. The ballet—choreography by Marius -Petipa—was first performed in St. Petersburg in 1900. The scenario -interprets the four seasons of the year in four scenes and an -apotheosis. First comes Winter and her two gnomes; they burn a bundle of -faggots, whose heat causes Winter to disappear. Spring now arrives with -Zephyr, Birds and Flowers. All of them join in a joyous dance. When -Summer comes he is in the company of the Spirit of the Corn. Various -flowers perform a dance, then fall exhausted on the ground. Satyrs and -fauns, playing on pipes, try to recapture the Spirit of the Corn who is -protected by the flowers. In the Autumn scene, Bacchantes perform a -dance in the company of the Seasons. The Apotheosis presents an idyllic -scene with stars shining brightly in the sky. - -The orchestral suite adapted from the ballet score by the composer for -concert purposes is one of his best known compositions. It consists of -the following sections: I. “Winter: Introduction; The Frost; The Ice; -The Hail; The Snow.” II. “Spring.” III. “Summer: Waltz of the -Cornflowers and Poppies; Barcarolle; Variation; Coda.” IV. “Autumn: -Bacchanale—Petit Adagio. Finale—The Bacchantes and Apotheosis.” - -The _Valse de concert_ Nos. 1 and 2, D major and F major respectively, -opp. 47 and 51, are among the composer’s most delightful shorter pieces. -The first waltz, written in 1893, begins with a brief introduction after -which the principal waltz melody is heard first in violas and clarinets, -and subsequently in violins. A second theme is then offered by the -clarinets against plucked strings, after which the first waltz -reappears. The second waltz came one year after the first. This also has -a short introduction in which the main waltz melody is suggested. This -melody is finally given by the strings. While other thematic material -occasionally intrudes, the main waltz subject dominates the entire -composition. - - - - - Reinhold Glière - - -Reinhold Glière was born in Kiev, Russia, on January 11, 1875. He was -graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in 1900. After two years in -Berlin, he returned to his native land to become professor of -composition at the Kiev Conservatory; from 1914 to 1920 he was its -director. After 1920 he was a member of the faculty of the Moscow -Conservatory. Glière’s most famous works are his third symphony (named -_Ilia Mourometz_) introduced in Moscow in 1912, and the ballet, _The Red -Poppy_. But he wrote many other works—orchestral, chamber, and vocal, as -well as ballets. On two occasions he received the Stalin Prize: in 1948 -for his fourth string quartet, and two years later for his ballet, _The -Bronze Horseman_. He died in Moscow on June 23, 1956. - -Two excerpts from the Soviet ballet, _The Red Poppy_, are perhaps the -composer’s best known compositions. The ballet was first presented in -Moscow on June 14, 1927 with extraordinary success. Its setting is a -port in China where coolies are exploited. When a Soviet ship comes to -port, its captain falls in love with a Chinese girl, Tai-Hao. She is -ultimately killed by the port commander while she is trying to escape -from China on the Soviet ship. Her last words urge the Chinese to fight -for their liberty, and she points to a red poppy as a symbol of their -freedom. - -The most celebrated single excerpt from this ballet is the _Russian -Sailors Dance_, for orchestra, with which the third act comes to a -whirlwind conclusion. The main melody is a simple Russian tune that -appears first in lower strings. It is then subjected to a series of -variations, and is permitted to gain momentum through acceleration of -tempo and expanding sonorities until an orgiastic climax is reached. -Less popular, but still often performed, is the “Dance of the Chinese -Girls” from the same ballet. A repeated descending interval leads to an -Oriental dance in the pentatonic scale; in this dance percussion -instruments and the xylophone are used prominently and with telling -effect. - - - - - Michael Glinka - - -Michael Glinka was born to prosperous landowners in Novosspaskoye, in -Smolensk, Russia, on June 1, 1804. His academic education took place at -a private school in St. Petersburg, while he studied music with Carl -Meyer, Carl Boehm and John Field. From 1824 to 1827 he worked in the -office of the Ministry of Communications in St. Petersburg. Further -music study then took place in Italy and Germany. After returning to his -native land in 1834, he was fired with the ambition of writing a -national Russian opera. That opera was _A Life for the Tsar_, produced -in 1836, an epoch-making work since it is the foundation upon which all -later Russian national music rests. Glinka’s second national opera, -_Ruslan and Ludmila_, produced in 1842, successfully carried on the -composer’s national ideals further. In the last years of his life Glinka -traveled a great deal, spending considerable time in Paris, Warsaw, and -Spain. He died suddenly in Berlin, Germany, on February 15, 1857. - -It is impossible to overestimate Glinka’s significance in Russian music. -His national operas were the source from which the later nationalists, -the “Russian Five” derived their direction and inspiration. - -In _Jota aragonesa_, a “caprice brilliant” for orchestra (1845) Glinka -is stimulated by Spanish rather than Russian folk music. This is the -first Russian composition to make serious use of Spanish folk idioms. It -was written during the composer’s visit to Spain in 1845 where he was -fascinated by Spanish folk songs and dances. Within a fantasy form, -Glinka poured melodies and dance rhythms closely modeled after the -Spanish in which the background, culture, and geography of that colorful -country have been fixed. - -_Kamarinskaya_ (1848), also for orchestra, is a fantasy in the field in -which Glinka was both an acknowledged master and a significant -pioneer—Russian folk music. This composition is based on two Russian -folk songs heard by the composer in Warsaw: “Over the Hills, the High -Hills” (which appears in strings following a brief introduction), and a -dance tune, “Kamarinskaya” (first heard in violins). - -The most popular excerpts from Glinka’s national opera, _A Life for the -Tsar_, are the overture, and the Mazurka and Waltz, for orchestra. The -opera—libretto by Baron von Rosen—was first performed in St. Petersburg -on December 9, 1836. The action takes place in Poland and Russia in -1612. During the struggle between Russia and Poland, Romanov becomes the -new Czar of Russia, and Ivan Susanin, a peasant, is the hero who saves -Russia and the Czar. The love interest involves Ivan’s daughter, -Antonida, and Bogdan Sabinin. - -The overture opens with a stately introduction dominated by a melody for -the oboe. A spirited melody brings on the main section. After this -melody is developed, a second theme is offered by the clarinets. Both -ideas are discoursed upon briefly, and they are given further -amplification in the coda. - -The Mazurka and Waltz appear at the close of the second act, climaxing a -festive celebration held in the throne room of Sigismund III of Poland -in his ancient castle. The Waltz comes first. Two principal waltz -melodies are given by the woodwind and repeated by strings; a third -waltz tune is then heard in brass, and soon taken over by the strings. -The Waltz is immediately followed by the Mazurka. After a dignified -introduction, a vigorous Mazurka melody unfolds. This leads to a second -dance tune, first heard in the woodwind and cellos; but the first -Mazurka melody soon reappears in the full orchestra. A third lively -dance melody is then presented by the strings. - -_Ruslan and Ludmila_ also contributed a lively overture to the -orchestral repertory. This opera, with libretto by the composer and -several others based on a Pushkin poem, was first heard in St. -Petersburg on December 9, 1842. Ruslan is a knight who is a rival of -Ratmir for the love of Ludmila. Ludmila is abducted by the dwarf -Tchernomor, and after Ruslan has saved her, Ludmila’s father blesses his -future son-in-law. - -Vigorous chords lead to a dashing melody in violins, violas and -woodwinds. A more lyrical second theme, almost folk-song in character, -is then heard in violas, cellos and bassoons. Both themes are given a -vigorous development in which the sprightly character of the overture is -never allowed to lose its brisk pace or vitality. - - - - - Christoph Willibald Gluck - - -Christoph Willibald Gluck was born in Erasbach, Upper Palatinate, on -July 2, 1714, the son of a forester on the estate of Prince Lobkowitz. -Gluck received his early music instruction in his native country from -local teachers. He then earned his living playing the violin and cello -in rural orchestras. In 1736 he came to Vienna where soon thereafter he -began to serve as chamber musician for Prince Lobkowitz. After a period -of study and travel in Italy he returned to Vienna, now to become one of -its most influential musicians. In Vienna he had produced several of his -early operas, all of them in the traditional Italian style of that -period. But he soon drew away from the stilted conventions of the -Italian opera to achieve a fusion of music and drama new to opera, as -well as dramatic truth, simplicity, and directness of emotional appeal. -His works in this new style, with which a new epoch in opera was -launched, included _Orfeo ed Euridice_ in 1762, _Alceste_ in 1767, and -_Iphigénie en Aulide_ in 1774, the last written for the Paris stage. -After living in Paris from 1773 to 1779, Gluck returned to Vienna to -remain there the rest of his life. During his last years he was an -invalid. He died in Vienna on November 15, 1787. - -Gluck was a giant in the early history of opera. With Rameau, he was a -pioneer in establishing music drama as opposed to formal Italian opera. -_Orfeo ed Euridice_, produced in Vienna on October 5, 1762—with which -Gluck first set forth his new ideas and theories about opera—is the -earliest opera to have survived in the permanent repertory. - -A delightful _Ballet Suite_, adapted by Felix Mottl from various -orchestral dances from several of Gluck’s greatest operas, is an -orchestral work by which the composer is most often represented on -semi-classical as well as symphonic programs. This suite includes the -following: “Dance of the Blessed Spirits” from _Orfeo ed Euridice_; -“_Air gai_” and “_Lento_” from _Iphigénie en Aulide_; and two old -baroque dances, the “Musette” and “Sicilienne” from _Armide_. - -The “Dance of the Blessed Spirits” is one of the loveliest of all -Gluck’s melodies, and one of the most famous from 18th century opera. -This is a beatific song mainly for flute solo and strings, describing -Elysium, to which Orfeo has come in search of his wife, Eurydice. Fritz -Kreisler’s transcription for violin and piano is entitled _Mélodie_. -Sgambati arranged it for piano solo, and Gruenfeld for cello and piano. - - - - - Benjamin Godard - - -Benjamin Louis Godard was born in Paris on August 18, 1849. After -attending the Paris Conservatory, he received in 1878 a municipal prize -for an orchestral work, besides having his first opera produced. He -wrote several operas after that, winning fame with _Jocelyn_ in 1888. He -also wrote a considerable amount of chamber and orchestral music, in -which his fine, sensitive lyricism is evident. He died in Cannes, -France, on January 10, 1895. - -Among his more familiar works is the _Adagio pathétique_. This started -out as a piece for violin and piano, the third of a set of compositions -in op. 128. It was orchestrated by Ross Jungnickel in 1910, and is most -popular in this version. This is music notable for its expressive -emotion; its lyricism at times has a religious stateliness. - -The most famous single piece of music by Godard, however, is the -“Berceuse” from his opera, _Jocelyn_. With libretto by Paul Armand and -Silvestre and Victor Capoul—based on a poem by Lamartine—_Jocelyn_ was -introduced in Brussels on February 25, 1888. The setting is France -during the French Revolution, and concerns the love of Jocelyn, a young -priest, for the daughter of a nobleman. After many inner struggles, -Jocelyn decides to remain true to his calling and give up his beloved. -They meet for the last time at her deathbed to which Jocelyn has been -summoned to administer absolution. The “Berceuse” is a tender aria by -Jocelyn (“_Cachés dans cet asile_”) in which he calls upon angels to -protect his loved one. - - - - - Leopold Godowsky - - -Leopold Godowsky was born in Soshly, near Vilna, Poland, on February 13, -1870. A prodigy pianist, he attended the Berlin High School for Music, -after which he made his American debut in Boston in 1884. Additional -study took place in Paris with Saint-Saëns. Godowsky then launched his -career as a mature concert pianist with performances throughout the -world of music. He achieved international renown not only as a virtuoso -but also as a teacher of the piano, at the Chicago Conservatory and the -Vienna Academy. His concert career ended in 1930 when he was stricken by -a slight paralysis of the hand. As a composer, Godowsky was most famous -for his suites for the piano, the most famous being _Triakontameron_, -_Java_, and _Renaissance_. He also produced a library of remarkable -transcriptions for the piano. He died in New York City on November 21, -1938. - -Though Godowsky was a sophisticated composer of highly complex piano -works, he did succeed in producing at least one number that became an -international “hit.” It was the _Alt Wien_ (_Old Vienna_), a -sentimental, nostalgic piece of music on whose title page appears the -following quotation: “Whose yesterdays look backwards with a smile -through tears.” _Alt Wien_ is the eleventh number in _Triakontameron_ -(1920), a suite in six volumes described by the composer as “thirty -moods and scenes in triple measure.” The immense popularity of _Alt -Wien_ is proved by its many and varied transcriptions: for salon -orchestra; band; violin and piano (by Heifetz); three-part woman’s -chorus; dance orchestra; marimba and piano; and even a popular song -adapted by David Saperton to lyrics by Stella Ungar. - - - - - Edwin Franko Goldman - - -Edwin Franko Goldman was born in Louisville, Kentucky, on January 1, -1878. He came from a distinguished musical family. His uncles were Sam -Franko and Nahan Franko, both prominent in New York as conductors, -violinists, and pioneers in the presentation of free concerts. Goldman -attended the National Conservatory in New York, specializing in the -cornet. After completing his training with Jules Levey, he served for -ten years as solo cornetist of the Metropolitan Opera orchestra. In 1911 -he organized his first band. Seven years later he founded the famous -Goldman Band which from then on gave free concerts in New York and -Brooklyn public parks, and elsewhere on tour. Under his direction it -became one of the outstanding musical organizations of its kind in the -country, presenting a remarkable repertory of popular music, light -classics, and band transcriptions of symphonic and operatic -compositions. Goldman conducted his band until his death, which took -place in New York on February 21, 1956. He was succeeded by his son, -Richard Franko Goldman, who for many years had served as his father’s -assistant. - -For his concerts Goldman wrote over a hundred marches which have won him -recognition as John Philip Sousa’s successor. The best of the Goldman -marches won immediate success for their robust tunes and vigorous beat. -These include: “Central Park,” “Children’s March,” “On the Campus,” “On -the Farm,” and “On the Mall.” - -The “Children’s March,” is actually an adaptation for band of several -children’s tunes including “Three Blind Mice,” “Jingle Bells,” and “Here -We Go Round the Mulberry Bush,” presented in march time. - - - - - Karl Goldmark - - -Karl Goldmark was born in Keszthely, Hungary, on May 18, 1830, the son -of a cantor. Demonstrating unusual talent on the violin, he was sent to -Vienna in 1844. There he studied with Leopold Jansa, then attended the -Vienna Conservatory. His musical education was brought to an abrupt halt -by the revolution of 1848. For many years after that, Goldmark earned -his living by teaching music, playing in theater orchestras, and writing -criticisms. He first came to the fore as a composer with a concert of -his works in Vienna on March 20, 1857. Success followed eight years -later with the première of his concert overture, _Sakuntala_. From then -on, Goldmark occupied an esteemed position in Viennese music by virtue -of many distinguished works that included the opera _The Queen of -Sheba_, the _Rustic Wedding Symphony_, and various shorter works for -orchestra, as well as numerous compositions for chorus, the piano, and -chamber-music groups. He died in Vienna on January 2, 1915. - -Throughout his life he remained true to the Germanic-Romantic tradition -on which he was nurtured. His writing was always vital with emotion, at -times to the point of being sensual; it overflowed with luxurious melody -and harmony. Most of the works by which he is remembered, while of the -serious concert-hall variety, are light classics because of their charm -and grace and pleasing melodic content. - -The _Bacchanale_ for orchestra is in Goldmark’s identifiable sensual -style. This is an episode from his most famous opera, _The Queen of -Sheba_ (_Die Koenigin von Saba_), libretto by Solomon Herman Mosenthal -based on the Old Testament story of the love of the Queen of Sheba for -Assad. The opera was successfully introduced in Vienna on March 10, -1875. The _Bacchanale_ takes place at the beginning of Act 3 in which a -sumptuous reception honors the Queen of Sheba. This dynamic piece of -music is especially interesting for its Oriental melodies and lush -orchestral colors. - -_In Spring_ (_Im Fruehling_), op. 36 (1889), is a concert overture for -orchestra echoing the composer’s emotional reaction to the vernal -season. The first main theme, in first violins accompanied by other -strings, is given without any preliminaries. The second theme in violins -is more bucolic, the woodwind suggesting bird calls in the background. -Both themes are discussed and stormy episodes ensue. After the return of -the two main themes the overture ends with a brilliant coda. - -The _Rustic Wedding Symphony_ (_Laendliche Hochzeit_), op. 26 (1876) is -a programmatic composition for orchestra in five movements. The first is -a “Wedding March” in which the main melody (given in fragments in the -lower strings) is subjected to thirteen variations. The second movement -is a “Bridal Song,” a lovely tune mainly for oboe in which the -first-movement march subject occasionally intrudes in the background in -the basses. This is followed by the third-movement “Serenade,” its main -subject being a spacious melody mainly for the violins. The fourth -movement, “In the Garden,” depicts the walk of two lovers in a garden as -they exchange tender sentiments. The symphony ends with a vital “Dance,” -in which the main theme receives fugal treatment. - -The concert overture for orchestra, _Sakuntala_, op. 13 (1865)—with -which the composer achieved his first major success and which is still -one of his most popular works—was based on the celebrated story of -Kalidasa. Sakuntala is the daughter of a water nymph who is raised by a -priest as his own daughter. The King falls in love with her and marries -her, giving her a ring which will always identify her as his wife. A -powerful priest, seeking revenge against Sakuntala, effects a loss of -memory in the king, who now no longer recognizes her as his wife. To -complicate matters further, Sakuntala has lost her ring while washing -clothes in a sacred river. After being repudiated by the king as a -fraud, Sakuntala returns to her water-nymph mother. The king’s memory is -restored when the ring is found, and he is overwhelmed with grief at his -loss of Sakuntala. - -A somber introduction is highlighted by a rippling subject in lower -strings and bassoons suggesting the water which was Sakuntala’s original -abode and to which she finally returns. After a change of tempo, -clarinets and cellos in unison offer a beautiful love melody. This is -followed by a hunting theme in first violins and oboes while the second -violins and violas present a fragment of the love song as a -countersubject. After this material has been amplified into a loud and -dramatic climax there comes still a third idea, in oboes and English -horn against chords in harp and arpeggios in strings. In a free fantasia -section some of this material is reviewed after which the coda offers -the hunting theme, and after that the love melody. A climax is realized -with the hunting theme bringing the overture to a dramatic ending. - - - - - Rubin Goldmark - - -Rubin Goldmark, nephew of Karl, was born in New York City on August 15, -1872. After studying music with private teachers in New York, he -attended first the Vienna Conservatory in Austria, and after that the -National Conservatory in New York where one of his teachers was Antonin -Dvořák. His primary energy was directed to teaching. For six years he -was the director of the Colorado College Conservatory, and from 1924 -until his death head of the composition department at the Juilliard -School of Music in New York. As a composer, Goldmark is most often -remembered for the _Negro Rhapsody_ and the _Requiem_ for orchestra, the -latter inspired by Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Goldmark died in New -York City on March 6, 1936. - -It is with the _Negro Rhapsody_ (1923) that Goldmark is most often -represented on concert and semi-classical concerts. As its title -suggests the work is made up of Negro melodies. After a slow -introduction, the cellos and violas in unison offer the strains of -“Nobody Knows De Trouble I’d Seen.” Before long, the basses are heard in -“O Peter, Go Ring Dem Bells.” The main section of the rhapsody begins -with a variation of “Nobody Knows De Trouble I’d Seen” and a repeat of -“O Peter.” The violins then engage “Oh Religion, I See Fortune,” and the -English horn is heard in “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child.” -After the solo cello quotes two measures of “Oh, When I Come to Die,” -the last Negro melody of the rhapsody appears. This melody comes from an -untitled song found by Goldmark in a magazine, a tune sung by Tennessee -Negroes while working on the river. - - - - - François Gossec - - -François Joseph Gossec was born in Vergniès, Belgium, on January 17, -1734. After receiving some music instruction in his native town, he came -to Paris in 1751, and three years after that was attached to the musical -forces employed by La Pouplinière. For these concerts, Gossec wrote many -symphonies and chamber-music works. He later worked in a similar -capacity for the Prince de Conti. In 1770 he founded the Concerts des -Amateurs, in 1773 became director of the Concert Spirituel, and from -1780 to 1785 was conductor at the Paris Opéra. When the Paris -Conservatory was established in 1795 Gossec became Inspector and -professor of composition. In the same year he also became a member of -the newly founded Institut de France. During the French Revolution he -wrote many works celebrating events growing out of that political -upheaval, allying himself with the new regime. He lived to a ripe old -age, spending the last years of his life in retirement in Passy. He died -in Paris on February 16, 1829. - -Gossec was a significant pioneer of French orchestral and chamber music, -though little of his music is remembered. What remains alive, however, -is a graceful trifle: the Gavotte, one of the most popular pieces ever -written in that form. This music comes from one of his operas, _Rosina_ -(1786); a transcription for violin and piano by Willy Burmeister is -famous. - - - - - Louis Gottschalk - - -Louis Moreau Gottschalk was born in New Orleans on May 8, 1829. His -music study took place in Paris where he specialized in the piano. He -gave many successful concerts as pianist in France, Switzerland and -Spain before returning to the United States in 1853. He then began the -first of many tours of the country, to become the first significant -American-born piano virtuoso. At his concerts he featured many of his -own works; his reputation as a composer was second only to that as -virtuoso. He was on tour of South America when he was stricken by yellow -fever. He died in Rio de Janeiro on December 18, 1869. - -Gottschalk was the composer of numerous salon pieces for the piano, -enormously popular in his day—a favorite of young pianists everywhere. -One of these pieces is “The Banjo,” familiar on semi-classical programs -in orchestral arrangements. In his music Gottschalk often employed -either Spanish or native American idioms. - -The contemporary American composer, Ulysses Kay, used several of -Gottschalk’s piano pieces for a ballet score, _Cakewalk_. This ballet, -with choreography by Ruthanna Boris based on the minstrel show, was -introduced by the New York City Ballet in New York on June 12, 1951. The -dancers here translate the routines of the old minstrel show into dance -forms and idioms. An orchestral suite, derived from this ballet score, -has five sections: “Grand Walkaround,” in which the performers strut -around the stage led by the interlocutor; “Wallflower Waltz,” music to a -slow, sad dance performed solo by a lonely girl; “Sleight of Feet,” a -rhythmic specialty accompanying feats of magic performed by the -Interlocutor; “Perpendicular Points,” a toe dance performed by the two -end men, one very tall, the other very short; and “Freebee,” an exciting -dance performed by the girl, as other performers accompany her dance -with the rhythm of clapping hands. - - - - - Morton Gould - - -Morton Gould was born in New York City on December 10, 1913. He received -a comprehensive musical education at the Institute of Musical Art in New -York, at New York University, and privately (piano) with Abby Whiteside. -After completing these studies, he played the piano in motion-picture -theaters and vaudeville houses and served as the staff pianist for the -Radio City Music Hall. He was only eighteen when the Philadelphia -Orchestra under Stokowski introduced his _Chorale and Fugue in Jazz_, -his first successful effort to combine classical forms and techniques -with modern popular American idioms. In his twenty-first year he started -conducting an orchestra for radio, and making brilliant transcriptions -of popular and semi-classical favorites for these broadcasts. During the -next two decades he was one of radio’s outstanding musical -personalities, his programs enjoying important sponsorship. During this -period he wrote many works for orchestra which have been performed by -America’s foremost symphony orchestras. He also wrote the scores for -several successful ballets (including _Interplay_ and _Fall River -Legend_), as well as music for Broadway musical comedies and motion -pictures. - -Like Gershwin, Gould has been a major figure in helping make serious -music popular by writing ambitious concert works which make a skilful -blend of serious and popular musical elements. Gershwin came to the -writing of serious concert works after apprenticeship in Tin Pan Alley; -Gould, on the other hand, came to popular writing after an intensive -career in serious music. Thus he brings to his more popular efforts an -extraordinary technique in composition, advanced thinking in -orchestration, harmony, counterpoint, and rhythm. Yet there is nothing -pedantic about his writing. Many of his works are such consistent -favorites with audiences because they are the creations of a consummate -musician without losing popular appeal. Few have been more successful -than Gould in achieving such a synthesis between concert and popular -music. - -_American Salute_ (1942) is a brilliant orchestral adaptation of the -famous American popular song by Patrick Gilmore, “When Johnny Comes -Marching Home.” Though written during the Civil War, this robust -marching song became most popular during the Spanish American War with -which it is today most often associated. Gould prepared this composition -during World War II for an all-American music concert broadcast over the -Mutual radio network on February 12, 1942. “I have attempted,” Gould -explained, “a very simple and direct translation in orchestral idiom of -this vital tune. There is nothing much that can be said about the -structure or the treatment because I think it is what you might call -‘self-auditory.’” - -The _American Symphonette No. 2_ is one of several works for orchestra -in the sinfonietta form in which Gould made a conscious effort to fuse -classical structure with elements of popular music. The composer’s -purpose, as he explained, was “entertainment, in the better sense of the -term.” The most famous movement is the middle one, a “Pavane,” often -played independently of the other movements. It is particularly favored -by school orchestras, and has also been adapted for jazz band. The old -and stately classical dance of the Pavane is here married to a spicy -jazz tune jauntily presented by the trumpet; there are here overtones of -a gentle sadness. The first and last movements of this Symphonette -abound with jazz rhythms and melodies, respectively marked “Moderately -Fast, With Vigor” and “Racy.” - -The _Cowboy Rhapsody_ (1944) started out as a composition for brass -band, but was later adapted by the composer for orchestra. This is a -rhapsodic treatment of several familiar and less familiar cowboy tunes -including “Old Paint,” “Home on the Range,” “Trail to Mexico” and -“Little Old Sod Shanty.” The composer here attempted “a program work -that would effectively utilize the marvelous vigor and sentiment of -these unusual songs.” - -_Family Album_ (1951) is one of two suites in which Gould evokes -nostalgic pictures of the American scene and holidays through -atmospheric melodies. (The other suite is _Holiday Music_, written in -1947.) The composer explains that the music of both these suites is so -simple and direct in its pictorial appeal that it requires no program -other than the titles of the respective movements to be understood and -appreciated; nor is any analysis of the music itself called for. _Family -Album_, for brass band, is made up of five brief movements: “Outing in -the Park,” “Porch Swing on a Summer Evening,” “Nickelodeon,” “Old -Romance” and “Horseless Carriage Gallop.” _Holiday Music_, for -orchestra, also has five movements: “Home for Christmas,” “Fourth of -July,” “Easter Morning,” “The First Thanksgiving,” and “Halloween.” - -_Interplay_ is a ballet with choreography by Jerome Robbins introduced -in New York in 1945. The score is an adaptation of the composer’s -_American Concertette_, for piano and orchestra, written for the piano -virtuoso, José Iturbi. The text of the ballet contrasts classic and -present-day dances; Gould’s music is a delightful contrast between old -forms and styles, and modern or popular ones. _Interplay_, as the -concert work is now called, has four movements, each of popular appeal. -The first, “With Drive and Vigor,” was described by the composer as -“brash.” It has two sprightly main themes and a brief development. This -is followed by a “Gavotte” in which the composer directs “a sly glance -to the classical mode.” The third movement is a “Blues,” “a very simple -and, in spots, ‘dirty’ type of slow, nostalgic mood.” The finale, “Very -Fast” brings the composition to a breathless conclusion through -unrelenting motor energy. - -_Latin-American Symphonette_, for orchestra (1941) is the fourth of -Gould’s sinfoniettas using popular idioms. The three earlier ones -exploit jazz, while the fourth consists of ideas and idioms indigenous -to Latin America. Each of the four movements consists of a stylized -Latin-American dance form: “Rumba,” “Tango,” “Guaracha,” and “Conga.” - -In _Minstrel Show_ (1946) Gould tried to bring to orchestral music some -of the flavor of old time minstrel-show tunes and styles. There are no -borrowings from actual minstrel shows. All the melodies are the -composer’s own, but they incorporate some of the stylistic elements of -the original product. “The composition,” Gould goes on to say, -“alternates between gay and nostalgic passages. There are characteristic -sliding trombone and banjo effects, and in the middle of the piece the -sandpaper blocks and other percussion convey the sounds and tempo of a -soft-shoe dance. The score ends on a jubilant note.” - -_Yankee Doodle Went to Town_, like the _American Salute_, is the -presentation of a popular American tune in modern orchestration and -harmony. The tune in this case is, to be sure, “Yankee Doodle,” probably -of English origin which made its first appearance in this country in -1755. The general belief is that it was used by a certain Richard -Shuchburg, a British Army soldier, to poke fun at the decrepit colonial -troops. For two decades after that the tune was frequently heard in the -Colonies as the means by which British soldiers could taunt Colonials. -Once the Revolution broke out, however, the colonists used “Yankee -Doodle” as its favorite war song, and it was sung lustily by them when -Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown. Gould’s orchestration emphasizes -some of the humorous elements in the song, while giving it some -freshness and vitality through his fine sense for orchestral color and -striking harmonizations. - - - - - Charles Gounod - - -Charles François Gounod was born in Paris on June 17, 1818. He received -his academic education at the Lycée St. Louis, and his musical training -at the Paris Conservatory with Halévy and Lesueur among others. In 1839 -he won the Prix de Rome. During his stay in Italy he became interested -in church music and completed several choral works. He turned to opera -after returning to Paris, his first work for the lyric stage being -_Sapho_, successfully produced at the Paris Opéra in 1851. From then on, -for many years, he concentrated mainly on opera, winning world renown in -1859 with _Faust_. In 1870 he visited London where he conducted -orchestral and choral concerts. During the last years of his life he -devoted himself for the most part to the writing of religious music. -Gounod died in Paris on October 18, 1893. He is most famous for his -operas, and most specifically for _Faust_, though _Mireille_ (1864) and -_Roméo et Juliette_ (1867) have also been highly acclaimed and -frequently given. Gounod was a composer who conveyed to his music -sensitive human values. He was a melodist of the first order, his -lyricism enhanced in its expressiveness through his subtle feeling for -orchestral and harmonic colors. - -The _Ave Maria_, while originally a song, is famous in transcriptions -for solo instruments and also for orchestra. The interesting feature of -this work is the fact that Gounod wrote this spiritual, deeply moving -melody to the famous prayer in Latin, against an accompaniment -comprising the music (without any change whatsoever) of Bach’s Prelude -in C major from the _Well-Tempered Clavier_. The marriage of melody and -accompaniment is so ideal it is difficult to realize that each is the -work of a different composer from a different generation. - -Gounod’s masterwork, the opera _Faust_, is surely one of the most -celebrated works of the French lyric theater. Many of its selections are -deservedly popular. The opera—libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré -based on the poetic drama of Goethe—was first performed in Paris on -March 19, 1859. Strange to report, it was originally a failure with both -audience and critics. Not until it was revived in Paris in 1869 did the -opera finally win favor; from this point it went on to conquer the -world. One of the reasons for this permanent, if somewhat belated, -success, is the sound theatrical values of the libretto. The opera is -consistently excellent theater, rich with emotion, pathos, drama, pomp -and ceremony. The story, of course, is that of the celebrated Faust -legend. Faust makes a pact with the devil, Mephistopheles, to trade his -soul for the return of his youth. As a young man, Faust makes love to -Marguerite. When she becomes a mother she kills her child. Faust comes -to her prison cell to entreat her to escape, but she does not seem to -understand him. After her punishment by death, Faust is led to his own -doom by Mephistopheles. - -Perhaps the most famous single excerpt from the opera is the rousing -_Soldier’s Chorus_ (“_Gloire immortelle des nos aïeux_”) from Act 4, -Scene 3. The soldiers, returning from the war, sing out their joy on -coming home victorious. This episode is celebrated in transcriptions -either for orchestra or for brass band. Almost as popular is the -captivating Waltz in Act 2. In the opera it is sung and danced by -villagers during a celebration in the public square (“_Ainsi que la -brise légère_”); this excerpt is also familiar in transcription. - -The Walpurgis Night Ballet Music from _Faust_, though generally omitted -from the performances of the opera itself, has become a concert -favorite. This music is given in Paris during the first scene of the -last act. The classic queens—Helen, Phryne and Cleopatra—and their -attendants are called upon to dance to distorted versions of several of -the opera’s beloved melodies. There are here seven dances of which six -appear in the score only with tempo markings: _Waltz_, _Adagio_, -_Allegretto_, _Moderato maestoso_, _Moderato con moto_, _Allegretto_, -and _Allegro vivo_. - -When an orchestral potpourri from the opera is given by semi-classical -orchestra, it includes some other beloved excerpts: Marguerite’s “Jewel -Song” (“_Je ris de me voir_”), in which she speaks her joy in finding -the casket of jewels secretly placed for her in her garden by Faust; the -rousing _Kermesse_ or Fair Music that opens the second act, “_Vin ou -bière_”; Mephistopheles’ cynical comment on man’s greed for gold, “_Le -Veau d’or_”; Faust’s hymn of love for Marguerite, “_O belle enfant! je -t’aime_”; the “Chorus of Swords” (“_De l’enfer qui vient émousser_”), a -vibrant exhortation by the young men of the village who, sensing they -are in the presence of the devil, raise their swords in the form of a -cross to confound him. - -The _Funeral March of a Marionette_ (_Marche funèbre d’une marionnette_) -is a delightful piece originally written for the piano in 1873, and -after that transcribed by the composer for orchestra. Gounod had hopes -to make it the first movement of a piano suite. When he failed to -complete that suite, he issued the march as a separate piece of music in -the now-famous orchestral version. The opening march music tells of the -procession of pallbearers to a cemetery as they carry a dead marionette. -A brighter spirit is induced as the pallbearers stop off at an inn. Then -the procession continues. The funereal atmosphere of the closing -measures speaks of the ephemeral nature of all life, even the life of a -marionette. - -The opera _Mireille_—libretto by Barbier and Carré based on Mistral’s -poem, _Mirèio_—is not often performed. But this is not true of its -overture. The opera was first performed in Paris on March 19, 1864. The -story revolves around the tragic love affair of the Provençal girl, -Mireille, and the basket-weaver, Vincent. The overture opens with a slow -introduction in which a stately idea is offered by the woodwind. In the -main body, the principal melody is heard in the strings while the -subsidiary theme is first presented by the violins. After both ideas are -amplified, a crescendo section leads to the triumphant reappearance of -the first theme in the full orchestra. The overture ends with a short -but spirited coda. - -Out of the opera _Roméo et Juliet_ comes a most charming waltz. The -opera was introduced in Paris on April 27, 1867. The libretto, once -again by Barbier and Carré, was based on the Shakespeare tragedy. The -waltz opens the first act, a ballroom scene in the Capulet palace -honoring Juliet. Against the lilting strains of this music, the guests -perform an eye-filling dance. - - - - - Percy Grainger - - -Percy Aldridge Grainger was born in Melbourne, Australia on July 8, -1882. After receiving some piano instruction from his mother he was sent -to Germany in his twelfth year to continue his music study with James -Kwast and Ferruccio Busoni. In 1900 he made his debut as concert pianist -in London, following which he made an extended tour of Great Britain, -New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa. A meeting with Grieg, in 1906, -was a significant influence in Grainger’s artistic development. Grieg -infected the young man with some of his own enthusiasm for folk music. -The result was that Grainger now began to devote himself to research in -the English folk music of the past. His orchestral and piano -arrangements of many of these folk tunes and dances, between 1908 and -1912, were responsible for bringing them to the attention of the music -world. In 1915, Grainger made his debut as pianist in the United States. -He has lived in America since that time, devoting himself to concert -work, lecturing and teaching, besides composition. Grainger died in -White Plains, New York, on February 20, 1961. - -In his own music, Grainger reveals the impact that his studies in -English music made upon him: in his partiality to modal writing, to the -contrapuntal technique, to placid lyricism. But it is in his fresh -arrangements of old English songs and dances that Grainger is most -famous. “Even when he keeps the folk songs within their original -dimensions,” says Cyril Scott, “he has a way of dealing with them which -is entirely new, yet at the same time never lacking in taste.” - -_Brigg Fair_ is a plaintive melody of pastoral character from the -district of Lincolnshire. It was used by the contemporary British -composer, Frederick Delius, as the basis for his orchestral rhapsody of -the same name (dedicated to Grainger). - -The bucolic and ever popular _Country Gardens_ is a “Mock Morris,” the -“Mock Morris” being an old English dance popular during the reign of -Henry VII and since then associated with festivities attending May Day. -Grainger’s original transcription was for piano solo, and only later did -he adapt it for orchestra. - -_Handel in the Strand_ is a lively clog dance. _Irish Tune from County -Derry_ is better known as the _Londonderry Air_, a poignant melody now -known to us through numerous versions other than that originally made -famous by Grainger. The piece, designated as a Mock Morris, is one of a -series in a collection entitled _Room Music Tit Bits_. “No folk music -tune-stuffs at all are used herein,” says the composer. “The rhythmic -cast of the piece is Morris-like, but neither the build of the tunes nor -the general layout of the form keeps to the Morris dance shape.” - -The lively _Molly on the Shore_ was first written for piano before being -adapted by the composer for orchestra. _Shepherd’s Hey_ is a Mock Morris -and consists of four tunes, two fiddle tunes and two folk songs. - -Of Grainger’s own compositions three are of general interest. The -_Children’s March_ (1917) was written during World War I for the United -States Army Band. “This march,” says the composer, “is structurally of a -complicated build, on account of the large number of different themes -and tunes employed and of the varied and irregular interplay of many -contrasted sections. Tonally speaking, it is a study in the blend of -piano, wind, and percussion instruments.” - -_Passacaglia on Green Bushes_ has two versions. One is for small -orchestra, and the other for a large one. This composition is built -around the folk melody “Green Bushes” which remains unchanged in key, -line, and rhythm throughout the work (except for eight measures of free -passage work near the beginning, and forty measures at the end). Against -this melody move several folk-like melodies of Grainger’s own invention. - -_Youthful Suite_ for orchestra is made up of five sections. Part of this -work was completed in 1902, and part in 1945. The first movement, -“Northern March,” derives its character from the melodic and rhythmic -traits of the folk music of North England and Scotland. The main melody -here acquires its folk-song character through the use of the -flat-seventh minor scale. “Rustic Dance” achieves an exotic quality -through the employment of an unusual variant of the F major chord. -“Norse Digger” is a somber lament in which is mourned the passing of a -dead hero, possibly from an Icelandic saga. “Eastern Intermezzo” has an -Oriental cast. The repeated use of drum beats and the virile rhythms -were inspired by a reading of a description of the dance of the -elephants in _Toomal of the Elephants_ from Kipling’s Jungle Book. This -suite ends with a formal “English Waltz.” - - - - - Enrique Granados - - -Enrique Granados was born in Lérida, Spain, on July 27, 1867. After -completing his music study at Conservatories in Barcelona and Madrid, -and privately with Charles de Bériot in Paris, he earned his living -playing the piano in Spanish restaurants. In 1898, his first opera was -produced in Madrid, _Maria del Carmen_. The national identity of this -music was to characterize all of Granados’ subsequent works and place -him among the most significant of Spanish national composers. His most -famous composition is _Goyescas_, a remarkable series of piano pieces -inspired by the paintings of Goya; the composer later adapted this music -for an opera, also called _Goyescas_, which received its world première -in New York at the Metropolitan Opera on January 28, 1918. Granados came -to the United States to attend this performance, after which he visited -Washington, D.C. to play the piano for President Wilson at the White -House. He was aboard the ship _Folkstone_, sailing from Folkstone to -Dieppe, when it was torpedoed by a German U-Boat during World War I on -March 24, 1916, bringing him to his death. - -In their rhythmic and harmonic vocabulary, Granados’ best music is -unmistakably Spanish. Perhaps his most famous single piece of music is -an orchestral “Intermezzo” from the opera _Goyescas_. He wrote it after -he had fully completed his score to the opera because the directors of -the Metropolitan Opera filled the need of an instrumental interlude. -This sensual Spanish melody is as famous in various transcriptions -(including one for cello and piano by Gaspar Cassadó) as it is in its -original orchestral version. - -Twelve _Spanish Dances_, for piano, op. 37 (1893) are also popular. The -most frequently performed of these is the fifth in E minor named -_Andaluza_ (or _Playera_). Fritz Kreisler transcribed it for violin and -piano, one of numerous adaptations. The sixth in D major is also -familiar—_Rondalla Aragonesa_, a jota, transcribed for violin and piano -by Jacques Thibaud. - - - - - Edvard Grieg - - -Edvard Hagerup Grieg, Norway’s greatest composer, was born in Bergen on -June 15, 1843. Revealing unusual talent for music as a boy, he was sent -to the Leipzig Conservatory in 1858. He remained there several years, a -pupil of Plaidy, Moscheles, and Reinecke among others. In 1863 he -returned to his native land where several of his early compositions were -performed. He then lived for several years in Copenhagen. There he met -and became a friend of two musicians who interested him in Scandinavian -music and musical nationalism: Niels Gade and Rikard Nordraak. Under -their guidance and stimulation Grieg began writing music in a national -style, beginning with the _Humoresques_ for piano, op. 6, which he -dedicated to Nordraak. Grieg also became a sponsor of Scandinavian music -and composers by helping Nordraak organize a society for their benefit. -In 1866, Grieg helped arrange in Oslo the first concert ever given over -entirely to Norwegian music; a year later he helped found the Norwegian -Academy of Music. He also served as a conductor of the Harmonic Society, -an important influence in presenting Scandinavian music. - -After marrying Nina Hagerup in 1867, Grieg settled in Oslo to assume an -imperial position in its musical life. He also achieved worldwide -recognition as a composer through his violin Sonata in F major, the A -major piano concerto, and the incidental music to Ibsen’s _Peer Gynt_. -He was the recipient of many honors both from his native land and from -foreign countries. His sixtieth birthday was honored as a national -Norwegian holiday. From 1885 on Grieg lived in a beautiful villa, -Troldhaugen, a few miles from Bergen. Music lovers made pilgrimages to -meet him and pay him tribute. His remains were buried there following -his sudden death in Bergen on September 4, 1907. - -Its national identity is the quality that sets Grieg’s music apart from -that of most of the other Romanticists of his day. Though he rarely -quoted folk melodies or dance tunes directly, he produced music that is -Norwegian to its core. In his best music he speaks of Norway’s -geography, culture, people, backgrounds, holidays, and legends in -melodies and rhythms whose kinship with actual folk music is -unmistakable. - -The _Holberg Suite_ for string orchestra, op. 40 (1885)—or to use its -official title of _From Holberg’s Time_—was written to honor the -bicentenary of Ludvig Holberg, often called the founder of Danish -literature. The composer also adapted this music for solo piano. Bearing -in mind that the man he was honoring belonged to a bygone era, Grieg -wrote a suite in classical style and with strictly classical forms; but -his own romantic and at times national identity is not sacrificed. The -first movement is a “Prelude,” a vigorous movement almost in march time. -This is followed by three classical dances—“Sarabande,” “Gavotte,” and -“Musette.” The fourth movement temporarily deserts the 17th and 18th -centuries to offer a graceful “Air” in the manner of a Norwegian folk -song, but the classical era returns in all its stateliness and grace in -the concluding “Rigaudon.” - -_In Autumn_, a concert overture for orchestra, op. 11 (1865, revised -1888) was Grieg’s first effort to write symphonic music. This -composition is a fresh and spontaneous expression of joy in Nature’s -beauties. The principal melody is a song written by Grieg in 1865, -“Autumn Storm.” This material is preceded by an introduction and -followed by a coda in which a happy dance by harvesters is introduced. - -The _Lyric Suite_ for orchestra, op. 54 (1903) is an adaptation by the -composer of four numbers from his _Lyric Pieces_, for piano—a set of -sixty-six short compositions gathered in ten volumes, each a delightful -miniature of Norwegian life. The first of the four episodes in the -_Lyric Suite_ is “Shepherd Lad,” scored entirely for strings, music in a -dreamy mood whose main romantic melody has the character of a nocturne. -“Rustic March” (or “Peasant March”), for full orchestra, has for its -principal thought a ponderous, rhythmic theme first given by the -clarinets. The third movement is a poetic “Nocturne” whose main melody -is presented by the first violins. The suite ends with the popular -“March of the Dwarfs” in the grotesque style of the composer’s “In the -Hall of the Mountain King” from _Peer Gynt_. This movement alternates a -sprightly fantastic march tune (first heard in the violins) with an -expressive melody for solo violin. - -The _Norwegian Dance No. 2_ is the second of a set of four folk dances -originally for piano four hands and later transcribed by the composer -for orchestra, op. 35 (1881). This second dance, in the key of A minor, -is probably the composer’s most famous composition in a national idiom. -It is in three parts, the flanking section consisting of a sprightly -rustic dance tune, while the middle part is faster and more vigorous -contrasting music. The other somewhat less familiar, but no less -beguiling, _Norwegian Dances_ are the first in D minor, the third in G -major, and the fourth in D major. - -The _Peer Gynt Suite No. 1_, for orchestra, op. 46 (1876) consists of -four numbers from the incidental music for the Ibsen drama, _Peer Gynt_, -produced in Oslo in 1876. Ibsen’s epic is a picaresque drama about a -capricious and at times spirited Norwegian peasant named Peer, and his -fabulous adventures, some of them amatory. He abducts the bride, -Solveig, then deserts her; as an outlaw he roams the world; when he -returns home he finds Solveig still believing in him and through that -belief he comes upon salvation. - -The first movement of Suite No. 1 is a bucolic picture, “Morning,” in -which a barcarolle-type melody is prominent. This is followed by a -tender elegy for muted strings, “Ase’s Death,” Ase being Peer Gynt’s -mother. A capricious, sensual dance follows, “Anitra’s Dance,” a -mazurka-like melody with an Oriental identity. The final movement, “In -the Hall of the Mountain King” is a grotesque march built from a -four-measure phrase which grows in volume and intensity until it evolves -into a thunderous fortissimo. - -Grieg prepared a second suite from his incidental music for _Peer Gynt_, -op. 55. Only one movement from this set is popular, “Solveig’s Song,” a -haunting Norwegian song for muted strings portraying Solveig, the -abducted bride who thereafter remains forever faithful to Peer Gynt. -This is the final movement of a suite whose preceding movements are -“Ingrid’s Lament,” “Arabian Dance,” and “Peer Gynt’s Homecoming.” - -_Sigurd Jorsalfar_, a suite for orchestra, op. 56 (1872, revised 1892) -also comes from the incidental music to a play, in this case a -historical drama of the same name by Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, produced in -Oslo in 1872. The central character is the twelfth-century Norwegian -king, Sigurd, who joins the Crusades to fight heroically against the -Saracens. There are three movements to this suite. The first “Prelude” -is subtitled “In the King’s Hall,” and has three distinct sections. In -the first of these the main thought is a theme for clarinets and -bassoons against plucked strings; in the second, a trio, the most -prominent melody is that for flute imitated by the oboe; the third part -repeats the first. The second movement is “Intermezzo” or “Borghild’s -Dream.” This is serene music alternated by an agitated mood. The finale -is “March of Homage” in which trumpet fanfares and a loud chord for full -orchestra set the stage for the main theme, in four cellos. This same -theme is later proclaimed triumphantly by the full orchestra. Midway -there appears a trio in which the first violins offer the main melody. - -_Two Elegiac Melodies_, for string orchestra, op. 34 (1880) are -adaptations of two of the composer’s most famous songs found in op. 33, -“Heartwounds” and “The Last Spring,” lyrics by A. O. Vinje. Both -melodies are for the most part in a somber mood. The first is in a -comparatively fast time while the second is in slow tempo. - -_Two Northern Melodies_, for string orchestra, op. 63 (1895) is, as the -title indicates, in two sections. The first, “In the Style of a -Folksong,” offers its main melody in the cellos after a short -introduction. The second, “The Cowherd’s Tune,” begins with a slow, -simple tune and ends with a delightful peasant dance. - -The Broadway operetta, _Song of Norway_, was not only based upon -episodes in the life of Grieg but also makes extensive use of Grieg’s -music. The book is by Milton Lazarus based on a play by Homer Curran, -and the lyrics and music are by Robert Wright and George Forrest. The -operetta opened on Broadway on August 21, 1944 (Lawrence Brooks played -Grieg, and Helena Bliss his wife, Nina) to accumulate the impressive run -of 860 performances. Since the operetta has become something of a -classic of our popular theater through frequent revivals—and since its -music is sometimes heard on concerts of semi-classical music—it deserves -consideration. The story centers mainly around the love affair of Grieg -and Nina Hagerup, and their ultimate marriage; it also carries the -composer from obscurity to world fame. Wright and Forrest reached into -the storehouse of Grieg’s music for their songs. “Strange Music,” which -became a popular-song hit in 1944 and 1945, is based on one of Grieg’s -_Lyric Pieces_ for piano, _Wedding Day in Troldhaugen_. “I Love You” is -based on Grieg’s famous song of the same name (“_Ich liebe Dich_”) which -he actually wrote to express his love for Nina; the lyric was by Hans -Andersen, and the song appeared in a set of four collected in op. 5 -(1864). Musical episodes from Grieg’s G major Violin Sonata, the _Peer -Gynt Suite_, _Norwegian Dance No. 2_, the A minor Piano Concerto, and -some of the piano pieces provided further material for popular songs and -ballet music. - - - - - Ferde Grofé - - -Ferde Grofé was born Ferdinand Rudolph Von Grofé in New York City on -March 27, 1892. He began to study the violin and piano early. During his -adolescence he became a member of the viola section of the Los Angeles -Philharmonic. While engaged in serious music he started playing with -jazz ensembles. Before long he formed one of his own, for which he made -all the arrangements, and whose performances attracted considerable -interest among jazz devotees. Paul Whiteman was one of those who was -impressed by Grofé’s brand of jazz. In 1919 he hired Grofé to play the -piano in, and make all the arrangements for, the Paul Whiteman -Orchestra. Grofé worked for Whiteman for a dozen years, a period during -which he prepared most of the arrangements used by Whiteman, including -that of George Gershwin’s historic _Rhapsody in Blue_ at its world -première in 1924. In 1924, Grofé wrote his first symphonic composition -in a jazz style, _Broadway at Night_. One year later, came the -_Mississippi Suite_, his first success. In 1931 he scored a triumph with -the _Grand Canyon Suite_, still his most celebrated composition. After -1931, Grofé toured the country as conductor of his own orchestra, making -numerous appearances in public and over the radio. From 1939 to 1942 he -taught orchestration at the Juilliard School of Music in New York and in -1941 he began an eight-year contract with the Standard Oil Company of -California to conduct the San Francisco Symphony over the radio. Grofé -has also written music for motion pictures and special works for -industry. - -With Gershwin, Grofé has been an outstanding composer of symphonic music -utilizing jazz and other popular styles and idioms. He is distinguished -for his remarkable skill at orchestration, which frequently employs -non-musical devices for special effects—for example, a typewriter in -_Tabloid_, pneumatic drills in _Symphony in Steel_, a bicycle pump in -_Free Air_, shouts and door-banging in _Hollywood Suite_, and the sound -of bouncing bowling balls in _Hudson River Suite_. - -The _Grand Canyon Suite_ (1931), Grofé’s most significant composition as -well as the most famous, is an orchestral description in five movements -of one of America’s natural wonders. The first movement, “Sunrise,” -opens with a timpani roll to suggest the break of dawn over the canyon. -The main melody depicting the sunrise itself is heard in muted trumpet -against a chordal background. As the movement progresses, the music -becomes increasingly luminous, until the sun finally erupts into full -resplendence. “The Painted Desert” is an atmospheric tone picture. -Nebulous chords suggest an air of mystery before a sensual melodic -section unfolds. “On the Trail” is the most popular movement of the -suite, having for many years been expropriated as the identifying -theme-signature for the Philip Morris radio program. An impulsive, -restless rhythm brings us a picture of a jogging burro. A cowboy tune is -then set contrapuntally against this rhythm. In “Sunset” animal calls -precede a poignant melody that speaks about the peace and serenity that -descend on the canyon at sunset. “Cloudburst” is the concluding movement -in which a violent storm erupts, lashes the canyon with its fury, and -then subsides. Tranquillity now returns, and the canyon is once more -surrounded by breathless and quiet beauty. - -The _Hudson River Suite_ (1955) was written for André Kostelanetz, the -conductor, who introduced the work in Washington, D.C. This music -provides five different aspects of the mighty river in New York, and its -associations with American history. The river itself is described in the -opening movement, “The River.” This is followed by a portrait of Henry -Hudson. The colonial times and the land of Rip Van Winkle are discussed -in the third movement, “Rip Van Winkle,” while in “Albany Night Boat,” a -delightful account is given of New York in years gone by, when a holiday -trip on the boat was a favorite pastime of New York couples. The suite -ends with “New York” a graphic etching of the metropolis along the -Hudson. - -The _Mississippi Suite_ (1925)—like its eminent successor, the _Grand -Canyon Suite_—was written for Paul Whiteman, who introduced it in -Carnegie Hall. The first movement, “Father of the Waters” has a melody -of an American-Indian identity representing the river. In “Huckleberry -Finn,” the character of the boy is suggested by a jazz motive in the -tuba, later amplified into a spacious jazz melody for strings. “Old -Creole Days” highlights a Negro melody in muted trumpet soon taken over -by different sections of the orchestra. The closing movement is the -suite’s best known section and the composer’s own favorite among his -compositions. Called “Mardi Gras” it is a lively and colorful picture of -carnival time in New Orleans. A rhythmic passage with which the movement -opens serves as the preface to an eloquent melody for strings. - - - - - David Guion - - -David Wendell Fentress Guion was born in Ballinger, Texas, on December -15, 1895. He received his musical training at the piano with local -teachers and with Leopold Godowsky in Vienna. After returning to the -United States he filled several posts as teacher of music in Texas, and -from 1925 to 1928 taught piano at the Chicago Music College. Early in -the 1930’s he appeared in a cowboy production featuring his own music at -the Roxy Theater in New York and soon thereafter made weekly broadcasts -over the National Broadcasting Company network. A David Guion Week was -celebrated throughout Texas in 1950. - -He is best known for his skilful arrangements and transcriptions of -Western folk songs and Negro Spirituals, some of which first became -famous in his versions. His orchestral adaptation of “The Arkansas -Traveler” has long been a favorite on “pop” concerts. A familiar legend -helped to dramatize this American folk song to many. A traveler caught -in the rain stops outside an Arkansas hut where an old man is playing -part of a folk tune on his fiddle. Upon questioning him the traveler -learns that the old fiddler does not know the rest of the song, -whereupon the stranger takes the fiddle from him and completes it. The -two then become devoted friends. - -Even more famous is David Guion’s arrangement of “Home on the Range,” in -1930. It is not quite clear who actually wrote this song. It was -discovered by John A. Lomax who heard it sung by a Texan saloon keeper, -recorded it, and published it in his 1910 edition of _Cowboy Songs_. -Only after Guion had arranged it did it become a national favorite over -the radio, its popularity no doubt immensely enhanced by the widely -circulated story that this was President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s -favorite song. - -Guion’s concert arrangement for full orchestra of “Turkey in the Straw” -is also of interest. This folk tune—sometimes known as “Zip Coon”—first -achieved popularity on the American musical stage in the era before the -minstrel show. It was published in Baltimore in 1834 and first made -popular that year by Bob Farrell at the Bowery Theater. After that it -was a familiar routine of the black-faced entertainer, George Washington -Dixon. Several have laid claim to the song, but it is most likely -derived from an English or Irish melody. - -Other arrangements and transcriptions by Guion include “Nobody Knows De -Trouble I’ve Seen,” “Oh, Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie,” “Ride Cowboy -Ride,” “Short’nin’ Bread,” and “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” - -Guion has also written several compositions of his own in which the folk -element is pronounced. One of these is named _Alley Tunes_, three -musical scenes from the South. Its most famous movement is the last, -“The Harmonica Player,” but the earlier two are equally appealing for -their homespun melodies and vigorous national identity: “Brudder -Sinkiller and His Flock of Sheep” and “The Lonesome Whistler.” Another -pleasing orchestral composition by Guion is a waltz suite entitled -_Southern Nights_. - - - - - Johan Halvorsen - - -Johan Halvorsen was born in Drammen, Norway, on March 15, 1864. After -attending the Stockholm Conservatory he studied the violin with Adolf -Brodsky in Leipzig and César Thomson in Belgium. In 1892 he returned to -his native land. For many years he was the distinguished conductor of -the Oslo National Theater. His admiration of Grieg (whose niece he -married) directed him toward musical nationalism, a style in which many -of his most ambitious works were written. He was the composer of three -symphonies, two rhapsodies, a festival overture, several suites, and a -number of peasant dances all for orchestra. He died in Oslo on December -4, 1935. - -The _Andante religioso_, in G minor, for violin and orchestra, is a -richly melodious and spiritual work which has gained recognition with -semi-classical orchestras. But Halvorsen’s most popular composition is -the _Triumphant Entry of the Boyars_, for orchestra. The boyar or boyard -was a military aristocrat of ancient Russia, a tyrant as notorious for -his cruelty as for his extravagant way of life. Halvorsen’s vigorous, -colorful march has an Oriental personality. It opens with a stirring -march subject for clarinet against a drone bass in cellos and double -basses, and it highlights a fanfare for trumpets and trombones. - - - - - George Frederick Handel - - -George Frederick Handel was born in Halle, Saxony, on February 23, 1685. -After studying the organ in his native city he settled in Hamburg where -he wrote, and in 1705 had produced, his first operas, _Almira_ and -_Nero_. A period of travel and study in Italy followed, during which he -was influenced by the Italian instrumental music of that period. In 1710 -he was appointed Kapellmeister in Hanover. In 1712 he settled -permanently in England where in 1727 he became a British subject and -Anglicized his name. He became one of England’s giant figures in music, -first as a composer of operas in the Italian style, and after that (when -the vogue for such operas died out) as a creator of oratorios. For -several years he was the court composer for Queen Anne and royal music -master for George I. In 1720 he was appointed artistic director of the -then newly organized Royal Academy of Music. In the last years of his -life he suffered total blindness, notwithstanding which fact he -continued giving public performances at the organ, conducting his -oratorios, and writing music. He died in London on April 14, 1759 and -was buried in Westminster Abbey. - -Handel was a prolific composer of operas, oratorios, orchestral music, -concertos for solo instruments and orchestra, sonatas, compositions for -harpsichord, and chamber works. He was greatest in his religious music, -in the deservedly world-famous oratorio _Messiah_, and in such somewhat -less familiar but no less distinguished works as _Judas Maccabaeus_, -_Samson_, _Solomon_, and _Israel in Egypt_. His greatest music is on -such a consistently high spiritual plane, is filled with such grandeur -of expression, and reveals such extraordinary contrapuntal skill that it -does not easily lend itself to popular consumption. But one passage from -the _Messiah_ is particularly famous, and especially popular with people -the world over; it is probably the most celebrated single piece of music -he ever wrote, and while originally for chorus and orchestra, is -familiar in innumerable transcriptions for orchestra or for band. It is -the sublime “Hallelujah Chorus,” about which the composer himself said -when he finished writing it: “I did think I did see all Heaven before -me, and the great God himself.” This grandiose choral passage, a miracle -of contrapuntal technique, is undoubtedly the climactic point of the -entire oratorio. When the _Messiah_ was first heard in London on March -23, 1743 (a little less than a year after its world première which took -place in Dublin, Ireland, on April 13, 1742) the awesome immensity of -this music made such an impression on King George II, in the audience, -that he rose spontaneously in his seat and remained standing throughout -the piece. The audience followed their king in listening to the music in -a standing position. Since then it has been a custom in performances of -_Messiah_ for the audience to rise during the singing of the “Hallelujah -Chorus.” - -The _Harmonious Blacksmith_ is Handel’s best known composition for the -harpsichord. This is the fourth movement of a harpsichord suite, No. 5 -in E major, which the composer wrote in 1720; but most frequently it is -played apart from the rest of the movements as a self-sufficient -composition. The title _Harmonious Blacksmith_ was created not by the -composer but by a publisher in Bath, England, when in 1822 he issued the -fourth movement of the suite as a separate piece of music. There -happened to be in Bath a blacksmith who often sang this Handel tune and -who came to be known in that town as the “harmonious blacksmith.” The -Bath publisher recognized the popular appeal of a title like “Harmonious -Blacksmith” and decided to use it for this music. The story that Handel -conceived this tune while waiting in a blacksmith’s shop during a storm -is, however, apocryphal. The _Harmonious Blacksmith_ begins with a -simple two-part melody which then undergoes five equally elementary -variations. - -The _Largo_, so familiar as an instrumental composition in various -transcriptions, is really an aria from one of Handel’s operas. It was a -tenor aria (“_Ombrai mai fu_”) from _Serse_ (1738) in which is described -the beauty of the cool shade of a palm tree. In slower tempo it has -become, in its instrumental dress, a broad, stately melody of religious -character with the simple tempo marking of _Largo_ as its title. - -The _Water Music_ (1717) is a suite for orchestra made up of charming -little dances, airs and fanfares written for a royal water pageant held -on the Thames River in London on July 19, 1717. A special barge held the -orchestra that performed this composition while the musicians sailed -slowly up and down the river. The king was so impressed by Handel’s -music that he asked it be repeated three times. In its original form, -this suite is made up of twenty pieces, but the version most often heard -today is an adaptation by Sir Hamilton Harty in which only six movements -appear: Overture, Air, Bourrée, Hornpipe, Air, and Fanfare. - - - - - Joseph Haydn - - -Franz Joseph Haydn was born in Rohrau, Austria, on March 31, 1732. From -1740 to 1749 he was a member of the choir of St. Stephen’s in Vienna, -attending its school for a comprehensive musical training. For several -years after that he lived in Vienna, teaching music, and completing -various hack assignments, while pursuing serious composition. In 1755 he -was appointed by Baron Karl Josef Fuernberg to write music for and -direct the concerts at his palace; it was in this office that Haydn -wrote his first symphonies and string quartets as well as many other -orchestral and chamber-music works. From 1758 to 1760 he was -Kapellmeister to Count Ferdinand Maximilian Morzin. In 1761 Haydn became -second Kapellmeister to Prince Paul Anton Esterházy at Eisenstadt, -rising to the post of first Kapellmeister five years after that. Haydn -remained with the Esterházys until 1790, a period in which he arrived at -full maturity as a composer. His abundant symphonies, quartets, sonatas -and other compositions spread his fame throughout the length and breadth -of Europe. After leaving the employ of the Esterházys, Haydn paid two -visits to London, in 1791 and again in 1794, where he directed -orchestral concerts for which he wrote his renowned _London_ symphonies. -At the dusk of his career, Haydn produced two crowning masterworks in -the field of choral music: the oratorios _The Creation_ (1798) and _The -Seasons_ (1801). Haydn died in Vienna on May 31, 1809. - -Haydn was an epochal figure during music’s classical era. He helped to -establish permanently the structures of the symphony, quartet, sonata; -to arrive at a fully realized homophonic style as opposed to the -contrapuntal idiom of the masters who preceded him; and to arrive at new -concepts of harmony, orchestration, and thematic development. He helped -pave the way for the giants who followed him, most notably Mozart and -Beethoven, who helped carry the classical era in music to its full -flowering. To his musical writing Haydn brought that charm, grace, -stateliness, beauty of lyricism that we associate with classicism, and -with it a most engaging sense of humor and at times even a remarkable -expressiveness. Most of Haydn’s music belongs to the serious concert -repertory. He did write some music intended for the masses—mainly the -Contredanses, German Dances and Minuets which, after all, was the dance -music of the Austrian people in Haydn’s time. Haydn’s _German Dances_ -and Minuets are especially appealing. The former was the forerunner of -the waltz, but its melodies and rhythms have a lusty peasant quality and -an earthy vitality; the latter was the graceful, sedate dance of the -European court. Twelve of Haydn’s _German Dances_ and twelve of his -Minuets (the latter called _Katherine Menuetten_) were written in the -closing years of his life and published in 1794; they were intended for -the court ball held at the Redoutensaal in Vienna where they were -introduced on November 25, 1792. The _German Dances_ here have sobriety -and dignity, and are often filled with Haydn’s remarkable innovations in -melodic and harmonic writing; the Minuets are consistently light and -carefree in spirit. - -The _Gypsy Rondo_—often heard in various transcriptions, including one -for violin and piano by Fritz Kreisler—comes from the Piano Trio No. 1 -in G major, op. 73, no. 2 (1795) where it is the concluding movement -(Rondo all’ ongarese). It is in Hungarian style, vivacious in rhythmic -and melodic content; it is for this reason that Haydn himself designated -this music “in a gypsy style” and Kreisler’s transcription bears the -title of _Hungarian Rondo_. - -Of Haydn’s more than one hundred symphonies the one occasionally given -by pop orchestras is a curiosity known as the _Toy Symphony_. Actually -we now know that Haydn never really wrote it, but it was the work of -either Mozart’s father, Leopold, or Haydn’s brother, Michael. But it was -long attributed to Joseph Haydn, and still is often credited to him. -This little symphony in C major, which is in three short movements, was -long believed to have been written by Haydn during his visit to -Berchtegaden, Bavaria, in 1788 where he became interested in toy -instruments. The symphony uses numerous toy instruments (penny trumpet, -quail call, rattle, cuckoo, whistle, little drum, toy triangle, and so -forth) together with three orthodox musical instruments, two violins and -a bass. - -Joseph Haydn was also the composer of Austria’s national anthem, “_Gott -erhalte Franz den Kaiser_.” He was commissioned to do so in 1797 by the -Minister of the Interior to help stir the patriotic ardor of Austrians; -it was first performed in all Austrian theaters on the Emperor’s -birthday on February 12, 1797. The Emperor was deeply impressed by the -anthem. “You have expressed,” he said, “what is in every loyal Austrian -heart, and through your melody Austria will always be honored.” Haydn -himself used the same melody in one of his string quartets: as the slow -second movement in which it receives a series of variations. It is for -this reason that this quartet, in C major, op. 76, no. 3, is popularly -known as the _Emperor Quartet_. - - - - - Victor Herbert - - -Victor Herbert was born in Dublin, Ireland, on February 1, 1859. He -received a sound musical training at the Stuttgart Conservatory, -following which he studied the cello privately with Bernhard Cossmann in -Baden-Baden. For several years after that he played the cello in many -German and Austrian orchestras. His bow as a composer took place with -two ambitious works, a suite and a concerto, both for cello and -orchestra. They were introduced by the Stuttgart Symphony (the composer -as soloist) in 1883 and 1885 respectively. After marrying the prima -donna, Therese Foerster, in 1886, Herbert came to the United States and -played the cello in the Metropolitan Opera orchestra, his wife having -been engaged by that company. He soon played the cello in other major -American orchestras, besides conducting symphonic concerts, concerts of -light music, and performances at important festivals. In 1893 he -succeeded Patrick S. Gilmore as bandleader of the famous 22nd Regiment -Band, and from 1898 to 1904 he was principal conductor of the Pittsburgh -Symphony. After 1904 he was the conductor of his own orchestra. - -Herbert won world renown as a composer of operettas for which he -produced a wealth of melodies that have never lost their charm or -fascination for music lovers. His first produced operetta, _Prince -Ananias_, in 1894 was a failure. But one year later came _The Wizard of -the Nile_, the first of a long string of stage successes Herbert was -henceforth to enjoy. From then on, until the end of his life, Herbert -remained one of Broadway’s most productive and most significant -composers. Many of his operettas are now classics of the American -musical stage. Among these are: _The Fortune Teller_ (1898), _Babes in -Toyland_ (1903), _Mlle. Modiste_ (1905), _The Red Mill_ (1906) and -_Naughty Marietta_ (1910). A facile composer with an extraordinary -technique at orchestration and harmonization, and a born melodist who -had a seemingly inexhaustible reservoir of beautiful tunes, Herbert was -a giant figure in American popular music and in the music for the -American popular theater. He died of a heart attack in New York City on -May 26, 1924. - -Victor Herbert produced a considerable amount of concert -music—concertos, symphonies, suites, overtures—most of which has passed -out of the more serious repertory. A few of these concert works have -enough emotional impact and melodic fascination to enjoy a permanent -status in the semi-classical repertory. Potpourris from the scores of -his most famous operettas—and orchestral transcriptions of individual -songs from these productions—are, of course, basic to any pop or -semi-classical orchestra repertory. For Herbert’s greatest songs from -his operettas are classics, “as pure in outline as the melodies of -Schubert and Mozart” according to Deems Taylor. - -_Al Fresco_ is mood music which opens the second act of the operetta, -_It Happened in Nordland_ (1904). Herbert had previously written and -published it as a piano piece, using the pen-name of Frank Roland, in -order to test the appeal of this little composition. It did so well in -this version that Herbert finally decided to include it in his operetta -where it serves to depict a lively carnival scene. - -_The American Fantasia_ (1898) is a brilliantly orchestrated and -skilfully contrived fantasy made up of favorite American national -ballads and songs. It is the composer’s stirring tribute to the country -of his adoption. The ballads and songs are heard in the following -sequence: “Hail Columbia,” “Swanee River,” “The Girl I Left Behind Me,” -“Dixie,” “Columbia the Gem of the Ocean.” This composition comes to an -exciting finish with “The Star-Spangled Banner” in a Wagnerian-type -orchestration. - -The operetta _Babes in Toyland_, which opened in New York on October 13, -1903, was an extravaganza inspired by the then-recent success on -Broadway of _The Wizard of Oz_. Herbert’s operetta drew its characters -from fairy tales, _Mother Goose_, and other children’s stories, placing -these characters in a rapid succession of breath-taking scenes of -spectacular beauty. The complicated plot concerned the escape of little -Jane and Alan from their miserly uncle to the garden of Contrary Mary. -They then come to Toyland where they meet the characters from fairy -tales and Mother Goose, and where toys are dominated by the wicked -Toymaker whom they finally bring to his destruction. Principal musical -numbers from this score include the delightful orchestral march, “March -of the Toys,” and the songs “Toyland” and “I Can’t Do the Sum.” - -_Dagger Dance_ is one of the most familiar pieces in the semi-classical -repertory in the melodic and rhythmic style of American-Indian music. It -comes from Herbert’s opera _Natoma_, whose première took place in -Philadelphia on February 25, 1911. This spirited Indian dance music -appears in the second act, at a climactic moment in which Natoma, -challenged to perform a dagger dance, does so; but during the -performance she stabs and kills the villain, Alvarado. - -_The Fortune Teller_ whose New York première took place on September 26, -1898, is an operetta that starred Alice Neilsen in the dual role of -Musette, a gypsy fortune teller, and Irma, a ballet student. Against a -Hungarian setting, the play involves these two girls in love affairs -with a Hungarian Hussar and a gypsy musician. Hungarian characters and a -Hungarian background allowed Herbert to write music generously spiced -with Hungarian and gypsy flavors, music exciting for its sensual appeal. -The most famous song from this score is “Gypsy Love Song,” sometimes -also known as “Slumber On, My Little Gypsy Sweetheart,” sung by Sandor, -the gypsy musician, in tribute to Musette. - -_Indian Summer: An American Idyll_ (1919) is a tone picture of Nature -which Herbert wrote in two versions, for solo piano, and for orchestra. -Twelve years after the composer’s death, Gus Kahn wrote lyrics for its -main melody, and for fourteen weeks it was heard on the radio Hit -Parade, twice in the Number 1 position. - -_The Irish Rhapsody_ for orchestra (1892) is one of several concert -works in which Herbert honored the country of his birth. This work is -built from several familiar Irish ballads found by the composer in -Thomas Moore’s _Irish Melodies_, published in 1807. “Believe Me if All -These Endearing Young Charms” comes immediately after a harp cadenza. -This is followed by a variation of “The Rocky Road to Dublin,” “To -Ladies’ Eyes,” “Thamma Hulla,” “Erin, Oh Erin,” and “Rich and Rare Were -the Gems She Wore.” An oboe cadenza then serves as the transition to -“St. Patrick’s Day.” The rhapsody ends with “Garry Owen” set against -“Erin, Oh Erin” in the bass. - -_Mlle. Modiste_, introduced in New York on December 25, 1905, is the -operetta in which Fritzi Scheff, once a member of the Metropolitan -Opera, became a star of the popular musical theater. This is also the -operetta in which she sang the waltz with which, for the rest of her -life, she became identified, “Kiss Me Again.” Fritzi Scheff was cast as -Fifi, an employee in a Parisian hat shop. Her lowly station precludes -her marriage to the man she loves, Capt. Etienne de Bouvray. An American -millionaire becomes interested in her, and provides her with the funds -to pursue her vocal studies. Fifi then becomes a famous opera star, -thereby achieving both the fame and the fortune she needs to gain Capt. -Etienne as a husband. - -Early in this operetta, Fifi tries to demonstrate her talent as a singer -by performing a number called “If I Were On the Stage,” in which she -offers various types of songs, including a polonaise, a gavotte, and a -waltz. The waltz part was originally intended by Herbert as a caricature -of that kind of dreamy, sentimental music and consisted of the melody of -“Kiss Me Again” which he had written some time earlier, in 1903. On -opening night the audience liked this part of the number so well, and -was so noisy in its demonstration, that Herbert decided to feature it -separately and prominently in his operetta, had new sentimental lyrics -written for it, and called it “Kiss Me Again.” This, of course, is the -most celebrated single number from this operetta, but several others are -equally appealing, notably one of Herbert’s finest marches, “The Mascot -of the Troop,” another waltz called “The Nightingale and the Star,” and -a humorous ditty, “I Want What I Want When I Want It.” - -The operetta, _Naughty Marietta_—first New York performance on November -7, 1910—was set in New Orleans in 1780 when that city was under Spanish -rule. The noble lady, Marietta (starring the prima donna, Emma Trentini) -had come to New Orleans from Naples to avoid an undesirable marriage. -There she meets, falls in love with, and after many stirring adventures -wins, Captain Dick Warrington. A basic element of this story is a -melody—a fragment of which has come to the heroine in a dream. Marietta -promises her hand to anybody who could give her the complete song of -which this fragment is a part, and it is Dick Warrington, of course, who -is successful. This melody is one of Herbert’s best loved, “Ah, Sweet -Mystery of Life.” Other favorites from _Naughty Marietta_ are “I’m -Falling in Love With Someone,” “Italian Street Song,” the serenade -“’Neath the Southern Moon,” and the march, “Tramp, Tramp, Tramp.” - -_Pan Americana_ (1901) is a composition for orchestra described by -Herbert as a “_morceau caractéristique_.” He wrote it for the Pan -American Exposition in Buffalo in 1901 (where President McKinley was -assassinated). The three sections are in three different popular styles, -the first in American-Indian, the second in ragtime, and the third in -Cuban or Spanish. - -_Punchinello_ and _Yesterthoughts_ (1900) are two evocative tone -pictures originally for piano from a suite of pieces describing the -natural beauties of scenes near or at Lake Placid, New York. Herbert -orchestrated both these numbers. - -_The Red Mill_, which came to New York on September 24, 1906, was an -operetta starring the comedy team of Fred Stone and David Montgomery in -a play set in Holland. They are two Americans stranded and penniless at -an inn called “The Sign of the Red Mill.” When they discover that little -Gretchen is in love with Capt. Doris van Damm and refuses to marry the -Governor to whom she is designated by her parents, they come to her -assistance. After numerous escapades and antics they help her to win her -true lover who, as it turns out, is the heir to an immense fortune. The -following are its principal musical episodes: the main love duet, “The -Isle of Our Dreams,”; “Moonbeams”; and the comedy song, “Every Day Is -Ladies’ Day for Me.” - -The _Suite of Serenades_, for orchestra (1924) was written for the same -Paul Whiteman concert of American music at Aeolian Hall on February 12, -1924 in which Gershwin’s _Rhapsody in Blue_ was introduced. This is a -four movement suite which represented Herbert’s only attempt to write -directly for a jazz orchestra, and parts of it are characterized by jazz -scoring and syncopations. Herbert wrote a second version of this suite -for symphony orchestra. In the four movements the composer skilfully -simulates four national styles. The first is Spanish, the second -Chinese, the third Cuban, and the fourth Oriental. - -Another familiar orchestral suite by Herbert is the _Suite Romantique_ -(1901). Herbert’s vein for sentimental melody is here generously tapped. -The four movements are mood pictures named as follows: “_Visions_,” -“_Aubade_” (a beautiful solo for the cellos), “_Triomphe d’amour_” (a -glowing love duet), and “_Fête nuptiale_.” - -_The Woodland Fancies_, for orchestra (1901) also consist of four -evocative and pictorial mood pictures, this time inspired by the -Adirondack mountains where Herbert maintained a summer home and which he -dearly loved. Here the four movements are entitled: “Morning in the -Mountains,” “Forest Nymphs,” “Twilight,” and “Autumn Frolics.” - -There are individual songs from several other Herbert operettas that are -part of the semi-classical repertory in orchestral transcriptions. Among -these are: “The Angelus” and the title song from _Sweethearts_ (1913); -“I Love Thee, I Adore Thee” which recurs throughout _The Serenade_ -(1897); “A Kiss in the Dark” from _Orange Blossoms_ (1922); “Star Light, -Star Bright,” a delightful waltz from _The Wizard of the Nile_ (1895); -and “Thine Alone” from the Irish operetta, _Eileen_ (1917). - - - - - Ferdinand Hérold - - -Louis Joseph Ferdinand Hérold was born in Paris on January 28, 1791. He -began to study music when he was eleven. From 1805 to 1812 he attended -the Paris Conservatory where his teachers included Adam and Méhul. In -1812 he received the Prix de Rome. Following his three-year stay in Rome -he settled in Naples where he was pianist to Queen Caroline and had his -first opera, _La Gioventù di Enrico_, produced in 1815. After returning -to his native city he completed a new opera, _Charles de France_, which -was successfully produced in 1816 at the Opéra-Comique in Paris where, -from this time on, all his operas were given. Hérold wrote many serious -operas before turning to the field in which he earned his importance and -popularity, the opéra-comique. His first work in this genre was _Marie_ -in 1826; his most successful, _Zampa_, in 1831. He also enjoyed a -triumph with his last opéra-comique, _Le Pré aux clercs_, produced in -1832. Hérold died of consumption in Paris on January 19, 1833 before -reaching his forty-second birthday. - -About all that has survived from Hérold’s most famous opera, _Zampa_, is -its overture, a semi-classical favorite everywhere. _Zampa_—libretto by -Mélesville—was introduced at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on May 3, 1831. -The hero, Zampa, is the leader of a band of pirates who invade an -island. He meets Camille and compels her to desert her lover and marry -him. During the marriage festivities the pirate leader mockingly tries -to place a ring on the finger of a statue. The statue suddenly comes to -life and brings Zampa to his doom by drowning. - -The overture opens with a robust subject for full orchestra (derived -from the pirates’ chorus of the first act). A brief pause separates this -section from a slower one in which timpani rolls and loud chords in the -wind precede a stately melody for wind instruments. After some -development, in which the mood becomes dramatic, two new subjects are -heard: the first is a sensitive melody for clarinet against plucked -strings, and the second is a soaring song for the violins. - - - - - Jenö Hubay - - -Jenö Hubay was born in Budapest, Hungary, on September 15, 1858. His -father, a professor of the violin at the Budapest Conservatory, gave him -his first violin lessons. Jenö made his public debut as violinist when -he was eleven, then completed his violin studies with Joachim in Berlin -and with Vieuxtemps in Belgium. In 1886 he was appointed professor of -the violin at the Budapest Conservatory, and from 1919 to 1934 he was -its director. Hubay was one of Europe’s most eminent violinists, violin -teachers, and performers of chamber music, the last with the Hubay -Quartet which he founded. He died in Vienna on March 12, 1937. - -Hubay was the composer of several operas, four symphonies, four violin -concertos, and many pieces for the violin. He was at his best when he -drew both his inspiration and materials from Hungarian folk music. -Perhaps his best known work is a set of fourteen pieces for violin and -orchestra collectively known as _Scènes de la Csárda_, or _Hungarian -Czardas Scenes_. The czardas is a popular Hungarian folk dance in duple -time characterized by quick syncopations, and exploiting alternating -slow and rapid passages. These _Scènes_ are often presented as -orchestral compositions. The fourth, _Hejre Kati_, is the most popular -of the group, a piece of music electrifying for its rhythmic momentum. -The second, known as _Hungarian Rhapsody_, and the fifth, _Waves of -Balaton_, are also familiar. Besides their rhythmic vitality these -compositions are of interest for their sensual melodies, and dramatic -contrasts of tempo and mood. - -From Hubay’s most famous opera, _The Violin Maker of Cremona_, comes a -sensitively lyrical “Intermezzo,” for orchestra. Hubay wrote this -one-act opera in 1894, and it was introduced in Budapest the same year. -The text by Francois Coppé and Henri Beauclair concerns a violin-making -contest in Ferrari, Italy, in which the prize is the beautiful girl, -Giannina. A hunchback, Filippo, makes the best violin, but he generously -permits Giannina to marry Sandro, the man she really loves. A -transcription of the “Intermezzo” for violin and piano is popular in the -repertory and bears the title of the opera. The Intermezzo had also been -adapted by Stoll as a composition for voice and orchestra under the name -“Lonely Night.” - - - - - Engelbert Humperdinck - - -Engelbert Humperdinck was born in Sieburg, Germany, on September 1, -1854. He attended the Cologne Conservatory where his teachers included -Hiller (who was the first to recognize his talent), Jensen and -Gernsheim. After winning the Mozart Scholarship of Frankfort in 1876, -Humperdinck continued his music study in Munich with Franz Lachner and -Rheinberger. In Munich he published his first important composition, a -_Humoreske_ for orchestra (1880). In 1881, he received the Meyerbeer -Prize and in 1897, the Mendelssohn Prize, both for composition. Between -1885 and 1887 he was professor of the Barcelona Conservatory in Spain -and in 1890 he became professor at Hoch’s Conservatory in Frankfort, and -music critic of the _Frankfurter Zeitung_. He achieved his greatest -success as a composer with the fairy opera, _Hansel and Gretel_, -produced in Weimar in 1893. After 1896, Humperdinck devoted himself -exclusively to composition, and though he wrote several fine operas none -was able to equal the popularity of his fairy-opera. He died in -Neustrelitz, Germany, on September 27, 1921. - -_Hansel and Gretel_ scored a sensational success in its own day; and, in -ours, it is the only opera by which Humperdinck is remembered. Following -its première in Weimar, Germany, on December 23, 1893, it was performed -within a year in virtually every major German opera house. In 1894 it -came to London, and in 1895 to New York. The text by Adelheid Wette -(Humperdinck’s sister) is based on the Ludwig Grimm fairy tale familiar -to young and old throughout the world. - -The overture, and two orchestral episodes, are often performed outside -the opera house. The Overture is made up of several melodies from the -opera beginning with the so-called “prayer melody,” a gentle song for -horns and bassoons. A rhythmic passage then describes the spell effected -by the witch on the children. After this comes the lovable third-act -melody in which the children are awakened by the dewman. The happy dance -of the children from the close of the opera leads back to the opening -prayer with which the overture comes to a gentle conclusion. - -The _Dream Pantomime_ comes in the second act and is an orchestral -episode in which is described the descent of the fairies who provide a -protective ring around the children, alone and asleep in the deep -forest. The _Gingerbread Waltz_ (_Knusperwalzer_) from Act 3 is the -joyous music expressing the children’s delight after they have succeeded -in pushing the witch inside the oven and burning her to a crisp. - -Among Humperdinck’s many works for symphony orchestra one is -occasionally performed by semi-classical or pop orchestras. It is the -_Moorish Rhapsody_ (1898) written for the Leeds Festival in England. The -first movement, “Tarifa—Elegy at Sunrise” reflects the sorrow of a -shepherd over the decay of the Moorish people. “Tangiers—A Night in a -Moorish Café” is a coffee-house scene highlighted by the sensual chant -of a café singer. The suite concludes with “Tetuan—A Rider in the -Desert,” depicting a desert ride with a view of Paradise in the -distance. To carry into his music an Oriental atmosphere, Humperdinck -modeled some of his principal themes after actual Moorish melodies, such -as the second theme of the first movement for English horn, and the main -melody for woodwind in the second movement. - - - - - Jacques Ibert - - -Jacques Ibert was born in Paris on August 15, 1890. He attended the -Paris Conservatory between 1911 and 1919, with a hiatus of several years -during World War I when he served in the French Navy. In 1919 he won the -Prix de Rome. While residing in the Italian capital he wrote a symphonic -work with which he scored his first major success, the suite _Escales_, -introduced in Paris in 1924. From 1937 to 1955 he was director of the -Academy of Rome. During this period he also served for a while as -director of the combined management of the Paris Opéra and -Opéra-Comique. - -Ibert has written many works in virtually every form, which have placed -him in the front rank of contemporary French composers. Many of these -compositions are in a neo-classical idiom. Occasionally, however, he has -made a delightful excursion into satire. It is with one of the latter -works, the _Divertissement_ for orchestra (1930) that he has entered the -semi-classical repertory, though to be sure this composition is also -frequently given at symphony concerts. The _Divertissement_ begins with -a short Introduction in which the prevailing mood of levity is first -introduced. Then comes the “_Cortège_.” A few introductory bars suggest -two march themes, the first in strings, and the second in trumpet. After -that appears a loud quotation from Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March” from -his _A Midsummer Night’s Dream Suite_. The “Nocturne” is a dreamy little -melody which precedes a delightful “Waltz” and a breezy “Parade.” The -finale is in the style of an Offenbach can-can, with the piano -interpolating some impudent dissonant harmonies. - - - - - Michael Ippolitov-Ivanov - - -Michael Ippolitov-Ivanov was born in Gatchina, Russia, on November 19, -1859. He was graduated from the St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1882 -where he was a pupil in composition of Rimsky-Korsakov. From 1882 to -1893 he was associated with the Tiflis Music School, first as teacher, -then as director. In 1893 he was appointed professor of composition at -the Moscow Conservatory on Tchaikovsky’s recommendation, and from 1906 -to 1922 he served as its director. He also distinguished himself as a -conductor of opera in Moscow. He died in that city on January 28, 1935. - -Ippolitov-Ivanov’s best music profited from his intensive researches -into Caucasian folk music. His principal works have assimilated many of -the Oriental melodic and rhythmic idioms of songs and dances from that -region. His most popular work of all is the _Caucasian Sketches_ for -orchestra, op. 10 (1895). The first movement, “In the Mountain Pass,” -brings up the picture of a mountain scene. Horn calls are here used -prominently. “In the Village” opens with a cadenza for English horn and -proceeds to a beautiful melody for viola set against a persistent ⅜ -rhythm. “In the Mosque” dispenses with the strings while describing an -impressive religious ceremony. The suite ends with the stirring “March -of the Sirdar,” a “sirdar” being an Oriental potentate. - - - - - Ivanovici - - -Neither Ivanovici’s first name nor details of his life are known. He was -born in Banat, Rumania, in 1848, distinguished himself as a bandleader -in his native country, and died in Bucharest on April 1, 1905. For his -band concerts he wrote many popular concert numbers. One of these is the -concert waltz, _The Waves of the Danube_ (_Donauwellen_), written in -1880, and achieving from the first phenomenal popularity throughout -Europe. The main waltz melody of this set of waltzes was expropriated by -Al Dubin and Dave Franklin for the American popular song “The -Anniversary Song,” (lyrics by Saul Chaplin), which was effectively used -in the motion picture _The Jolson Story_ in 1946, sung on the sound -track by Jolson himself. - - - - - Armas Järnefelt - - -Armas Järnefelt was born in Viborg, Finland, on August 14, 1869. He -studied music in Helsingfors with Ferruccio Busoni and Martin Wegelius; -in Berlin with A. Becker; and in Paris with Massenet. Beginning with -1898, and for several years thereafter, he conducted opera performances -in Viborg and Helsingfors. In 1907 he settled in Sweden where three -years later he became a citizen. There he became court composer and the -conductor of the Royal Opera. After returning to Helsingfors in 1932, he -directed the Opera for four years and the Helsingfors Municipal Theater -for one. He also appeared as guest conductor of many important Finnish -orchestras, distinguishing himself particularly in performances of music -by Jean Sibelius (his brother-in-law). In 1940, Järnefelt received the -official title of Professor. He died in Stockholm in June 1958. - -Järnefelt wrote many works for orchestra, including suites, overtures, -and shorter works. One of the last is _Berceuse_ for two clarinets, one -bassoon, two horns, violin solo and strings (1905), a moody and -sensitive piece of music. The romantic main melody appears in solo -violin after four introductory bars for muted strings. - -His most popular composition is the _Praeludium_ for chamber orchestra. -It opens with a three-measure introduction for plucked strings. This is -followed by a brisk march subject for oboe which is soon discussed by -other winds, and after that by the violins over a drone bass. A passage -for solo violin leads to the return of the march melody. - - - - - Dmitri Kabalevsky - - -Dmitri Kabalevsky was born in St. Petersburg on December 30, 1904, and -received his musical training in Moscow, at the Scriabin Music School -and the Moscow Conservatory. He was graduated from the latter school in -1929, and in 1932 he was appointed instructor there. His first success -as composer came in 1931 with his first symphony, commemorating the -fifteenth anniversary of the Russian revolution; this was followed in -1934 by his second symphony, which enjoyed an even greater triumph both -in and out of the Soviet Union. In 1939 Kabalevsky was elected a member -of the Presidium of the Organizing Committee of the Union of Soviet -Composers; in 1940 he was given the Order of Merit; and in 1946 he -received the Stalin Prize for the second string quartet. He has also -written operas, concertos, additional symphonies, and piano music. - -A composer who has always been partial to the more conventional means -and techniques, and has relied heavily on broad and stately melodies and -subjective feelings, Kabalevsky has managed to produce several -compositions that have wide appeal. One is the sprightly _Colas Breugnon -Overture_. _Colas Breugnon_ was an opera adapted by V. Bragin from a -novel by Romain Rolland; it was first performed in Leningrad on February -22, 1938. The central character is a 16th-century craftsman—a jovial man -who enjoys life and has a spicy sense of humor and a happy outlook on -all things. The overture is essentially a study of that man, -consistently gay and sprightly. There are two main melodies, both of -them lively, and both derived from Burgundian folk songs. - -Another popular work by Kabalevsky is _The Comedians_, op. 26 (1938), an -orchestral suite made up of selections from the incidental music to a -children’s play, _The Inventor and the Comedians_. The play is about the -varied and picaresque adventures of a group of wandering performers in -various towns and at public fairs. There are ten episodes in the suite, -each in a light, infectious style that makes for such easy listening -that this work is often given at children’s concerts. The ten sections -are: Prologue, Galop, March, Waltz, Pantomime, Intermezzo, Little -Lyrical Scene, Gavotte, Scherzo, and Epilogue. - - - - - Emmerich Kálmán - - -Emmerich Kálmán was born in Siófok, Hungary, on October 24, 1882. He -studied composition in Budapest. In 1904 one of his symphonic -compositions was performed by the Budapest Philharmonic, and in 1907 he -received the Imperial Composition Prize. After settling in Vienna he -abandoned serious composition for light music. From this time on he -devoted himself to and distinguished himself in writing tuneful -operettas. His first success came in 1909 with _Ein Herbstmanoever_, -presented in New York as _The Gay Hussars_. Subsequent operettas made -him one of Europe’s leading composers for the popular theaters. The most -famous are: _Sari_ (1912), _The Gypsy Princess_ (1915), _Countess -Maritza_ (1924) and _The Circus Princess_ (1926). In 1938 he left -Vienna, and after a period in Paris, he came to the United States where -he remained until 1949. He completed his last operetta, _The Arizona -Lady_, a few days before his death in Paris, on October 30, 1953; it was -presented posthumously in Berne, Switzerland, in 1954. - -Kálmán’s forte in writing music for operettas was in combining the -charm, _Gemuetlichkeit_ and sentiment of Viennese music in general, and -the Viennese waltz in particular, with the hot blood and sensual moods -of Hungarian gypsy songs and dances. - -_The Circus Princess_ (_Die Zirkusprinzessin_)—first performed in Vienna -in 1926, and in New York in 1927—was set in St. Petersburg and Vienna -during the period immediately preceding World War I. When Fedora rejects -the love of Prince Sergius by insisting she would sooner marry a circus -performer, he seeks revenge by engaging a famous circus performer to -pose as a member of nobility and woo and win Fedora. After their -marriage, Fedora discovers the true identity of her husband, and leaves -him. But she soon comes to the realization she is really in love with -him and promises to come back if he in turn offers to give up his -profession—a profession she now despises not from snobbery but because -of fears for his safety. Two delightful waltz melodies—“_Leise schwebt -das Glueck vorueber_” “_Im Boudoir der schoensten Frau_”—and an -intriguing little melody that recurs throughout the operetta, “_Zwei -maerchenaugen_” are the principal selections from this operetta. - -_Countess Maritza_ (_Die Graefin Mariza_) is Kálmán’s most popular and -successful operetta. It was first produced in Vienna in 1924, and in New -York in 1926. The setting is Hungary in 1922. An impoverished count, -Tassilo, finds employment on the estate of Countess Maritza under the -assumed name of Torok. He falls in love with her, but when she learns of -his real background she feels he is a fortune hunter interested only in -her wealth. About to leave the employ of the countess and to bid her -permanent farewell, Tassilo’s fortune suddenly takes a turn for the -better when his aunt, a Princess, comes to inform him that Tassilo is a -wealthy man after all, due to her manipulations of his tangled business -affairs. Now convinced that he loves her for herself alone, the Countess -Maritza is only too happy to accept him as her husband. - -This score contains some of Kálmán’s finest and most beguiling music in -a Hungarian-gypsy style. The most famous song is in this sensual, -heart-warming idiom: “Play Gypsies, Dance Gypsies” (“_Komm Zigan, Komm -Zigan, spiel mir was vor_”). This number begins with a languorous, -romantic melody that soon lapses into a dynamic Hungarian-gypsy dance. -Austrian waltz-music in a more sentimental manner is found in three -winning songs: “Give My Regards to the Lovely Ladies of Fair Vienna” -(“_Gruess mir die reizenden Frauen im schoenen Wien_”), “I Would Like to -Dance Once More” (“_Einmal moecht’ ich wieder tanzen_”) and “Say, Yes!” -(“_Sag ja, mein Lieb_”). - -_The Gypsy Princess_ (_Die Csárdásfuerstin_) was first performed in -Vienna in 1915, and produced in New York in 1917 under the title of _The -Riviera Girl_. The heroine is Sylvia Varescu, a performer in a Budapest -cabaret, who is loved and pursued by Prince Edwin. But the Prince’s -father insists that he marry the Countess Stasi. Eventually the father’s -heart is softened and he becomes more tolerant towards having Sylvia as -a daughter-in-law when he is discreetly reminded that once he, too, had -been in love with a cabaret singer. The principal selections from his -score include two soaring waltz melodies: “_Machen wir’s den Schwalben -nach_” and “_Tausend kleine Engel singen hab mich lieb_.” The score also -includes a dynamic Czardas, and a pleasing little tune in “_Ganz ohne -Weiber geht die Chose nicht_.” - -_Sari_ was introduced in New York in 1914. Pali is a gypsy violinist who -has grown old and is eclipsed at one of his own concerts by his son, -Laczi. Pali throws his beloved Stradivarius into the flames. Since both -father and son have fallen in love with the same girl, the older man -also renounces her. He wants Laczi to have her as well as his musical -success. A bountiful score includes such delights as “Love Has Wings,” -“Love’s Own Sweet Song,” “My Faithful Stradivari,” and “Softly Through -the Summer Night.” - - - - - Kéler-Béla - - -Kélér-Béla was born Albert von Keler in Bartfeld, Hungary, on February -13, 1820. He studied law and worked as a farmer before turning to music -in his twenty-fifth year. After studying in Vienna with Sechter and -Schlesinger he played the violin in the orchestra of the -Theater-an-der-Wien. In 1854 he went to Berlin where he became conductor -of Gungl’s Orchestra. He was soon back in Vienna to take over the -direction of the famous Joseph Lanner Orchestra. From 1856 to 1863 he -conducted an army band, and from 1863 to 1873 an orchestra in Wiesbaden. -He died in that city on November 20, 1882. - -Kéler-Béla wrote about one hundred and thirty compositions in the light -Viennese style of Lanner and the two Johann Strausses. His works include -waltzes, galops, and marches, a representative example of each being the -waltz _Hoffnungssterne_, the _Hurrah-Sturm_ galop, and the -_Friedrich-Karl_ march. - -His most popular work is the _Hungarian Comedy Overture_ (_Lustspiel -Ouverture_). It opens in a stately manner with forceful chords and a -sustained melody in the woodwind. But the comedy aspect of this overture -is soon made evident with two lilting tunes for the woodwind, separated -by a dramatic episode for full orchestra. These two tunes receive -extended enlargement. The overture ends with a succession of emphatic -chords. - - - - - Jerome Kern - - -Jerome David Kern was born in New York City on January 27, 1885. He -first studied the piano with his mother. After being graduated from -Barringer High School in Newark, New Jersey, he attended the New York -College of Music where he was a pupil of Alexander Lambert, Albert von -Doenhoff, Paolo Gallico and Austen Pearce. He received his -apprenticeship as composer for the popular theater in 1903 in London, -where with P. G. Wodehouse as his lyricist he wrote a topical song, “Mr. -Chamberlain” that became a hit. After returning to the United States he -worked in Tin Pan Alley and immediately became a prolific contributor of -songs to the musical stage. In 1905 his song “How’d You Like to Spoon -With Me?” was interpolated into _The Earl and the Girl_ and became an -outstanding success. From that time on, and up to the end of his life, -he wrote over a thousand songs for more than a hundred stage and screen -productions, thereby occupying an imperial position among American -popular composers of his generation. His most famous Broadway musicals -were: _The Girl from Utah_ (1914), _Very Good, Eddie_ (1915), _Oh, Boy!_ -(1917), _Leave it to Jane_ (1917), _Sally_ (1920), _Sunny_ (1925), _Show -Boat_ (1927), _The Cat and the Fiddle_ (1931), _Music in the Air_ -(1932), and _Roberta_ (1933). His most significant motion pictures were -_Swingtime_ with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, _You Were Never -Lovelier_ and _Cover Girl_ both with Rita Hayworth, and _Centennial -Summer_. Over a dozen of his songs sold more than two million copies of -sheet music including “All the Things You Are,” “They Didn’t Believe -Me,” “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes,” and “Look for the Silver Lining.” Two of -his songs received the Academy Award: “The Way You Look Tonight” from -_Swingtime_ and “The Last Time I Saw Paris” interpolated into _Lady Be -Good_. Kern died in New York City on November 11, 1945. - -Kern wrote two compositions for symphony orchestra which have entered -the semi-classical repertory even though they are also performed by -major symphony orchestras. These were his only ventures into the world -of music outside the popular theater. One was _Mark Twain: A_ _Portrait -for Orchestra_ which he wrote on a commission from André Kostelanetz, -who introduced it with the Cincinnati Symphony in 1942. This is a four -movement suite inspired by the personality and life of Kern’s favorite -author, Mark Twain. The first movement, “Hannibal Days,” describes a -sleepy small town on a summer morning a century ago. The cry “Steamboat -comin’!” pierces the silence. The town suddenly awakens. In the second -movement, “Gorgeous Pilot House” Mark Twain leaves home to become a -pilot’s assistant on the Mississippi steamboat; this period in Mark -Twain’s life, which spans about nine years, ends with the outbreak of -the Civil War. In “Wandering Westward,” Twain meets failure as a Nevada -prospector, after which he finally turns to journalism. The suite ends -with “Mark in Eruption,” tracing Twain’s triumphant career as a writer. - -Kern’s second and only other symphonic work is _Scenario_ in which he -drew his basic melodic materials from his greatest and best loved -musical production, _Show Boat_. Kern prepared _Scenario_ at the behest -of Artur Rodzinski, conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra, who felt that -the music of _Show Boat_ had sufficient artistic validity to justify its -use in a major symphonic work. Rodzinski introduced _Scenario_ in -Cleveland with the Cleveland Orchestra in 1941, and since that time it -has been performed by most of the major American orchestras. - -A discussion of _Show Boat_ is essential before _Scenario_ can be -commented upon. The libretto and lyrics are by Oscar Hammerstein II, -based on the famous novel by Edna Ferber. _Show Boat_, in a lavish -Florenz Ziegfeld production, was introduced in New York in 1927 and was -an instantaneous box-office and artistic triumph. It has, to be sure, -become a classic of the American stage, continually revived in all parts -of the country, three times adapted for motion pictures, and has been -given by an American opera company in its regular repertory. It proved a -revolution in the American musical theater by avoiding the usual stilted -routines and patterns of musical comedy—chorus girls, production -numbers, synthetic humor, set dances and so forth—and arriving at an -integrated musical play filled with authentic characterizations, -backgrounds, atmosphere and dramatic truth. The story opens and closes -on _Cotton Blossom_, a show boat traveling along the Mississippi to give -performances at stops along the river. The principal love action -involves Magnolia, daughter of Cap’n Andy (owner of the boat) and the -gambler, Gaylord Ravenal. They run off and get married, but their -happiness is short-lived. Magnolia, though pregnant, leaves her -irresponsible husband. After the birth of Magnolia’s daughter, Kim, the -mother earns her living singing show boat songs in Chicago where she is -found by her father and brought back to _Cotton Blossom_. Eventually, -Magnolia and Ravenal are reconciled, and their daughter Kim becomes the -new star of the show boat. - -The most famous songs from this incomparable Kern score are: “Only Make -Believe” and “Why Do I Love You?”, both of them love duets of Magnolia -and Ravenal; two poignant laments sung by the half-caste Julie, a role -in which Helen Morgan first attained stardom as a torch-song performer, -“Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man” and “Bill” (the latter with lyrics by P. G. -Wodehouse); and a hymn to the Mississippi which has acquired virtually -the status of an American folk song, “Ol’ Man River.” - -_Scenario_ makes extended use of these songs in an integrated piece of -music. It opens with a sensitive passage for muted strings and continues -with a theme for horn; both subjects are intended to portray the -Mississippi River and are the motto subjects of the entire work. The -main melody of this tone poem is “Ol’ Man River,” first given softly by -violas and bass clarinet. Other major songs of the musical play follow, -among them being “Only Make Believe” and “Why Do I Love You?”, after -which “Ol’ Man River” is heard for the last time. - -Many of Kern’s more than a thousand popular songs are now classics in -the popular repertory. They are so fresh and spontaneous in their -lyricism, so inventive in the harmonic background, so filled with charm -and grace that their survival seems assured. Two symphonic compositions -by Robert Russell Bennett are constructed from one or more of Kern’s -best known songs. One is _Symphonic Study_, a tone poem introduced in -1946 by the NBC Symphony under Frank Black. This work presents several -Kern songs in correct chronological sequence beginning with “They Didn’t -Believe Me.” After that come “Babes in the Wood,” “The Siren’s Song,” -“Left All Alone Again Blues,” “Who?”, “Ol’ Man River,” “Smoke Gets In -Your Eyes,” and “All the Things You Are.” The second of Bennett’s -symphonic compositions is the _Variations on a Theme by Jerome Kern_, -written in 1934 and soon after that introduced in New York by a chamber -orchestra conducted by Bernard Herrmann. The theme here used for an -effective series of variations is “Once in a Blue Moon” from the -Broadway musical _Stepping Stones_. - - - - - Albert Ketelby - - -Albert William Ketelby was born in Birmingham, England, in or about -1885. Precocious in music he completed a piano sonata when he was only -eleven. For six years he attended the Trinity College of Music in London -where he captured every possible prize. When he was sixteen he became a -church organist in Wimbledon, and at twenty-one he conducted a theater -orchestra in London. He later distinguished himself as a conductor of -some of London’s most important theater orchestras, besides appearing as -a guest conductor of many of Europe’s major symphonic organizations, -usually in performances of his own works. For many years he was also the -music director of the Columbia Gramophone Company in England. He died at -his home on the Isle of Wight on November 26, 1959. - -A facile composer with a fine sense for atmospheric colors and for -varied moods, Ketelby produced a few serious compositions among which -were a _Caprice_ and a _Concerstueck_ (each for piano and orchestra), an -overture and _Suite de Ballet_ (both for orchestra) and a quintet for -piano and woodwind. He is, however, most famous for his lighter -compositions, two of which are known and heard the world over. _In a -Monastery Garden_ opens with a gentle subject describing a lovely garden -populated by chirping birds. After that comes a religious melody—a chant -of monks in a modal style. _In a Persian Garden_ is effective for its -skilful recreation of an exotic background through Oriental-type -melodies, harmonies, and brilliant orchestral colors. Ketelby wrote -several other compositions in an Oriental style, the best of which is -_In a Chinese Temple Garden_. - - - - - Aram Khatchaturian - - -Aram Khatchaturian was born in Tiflis, Russia, on June 6, 1903. He was -of Armenian extraction. He came to Moscow in 1920, and enrolled in the -Gniessen School of Music. From 1929 to 1934 he attended the Moscow -Conservatory. He first achieved recognition as a composer in 1935 with -his first Symphony, and in 1937 he scored a major success throughout the -music world with his first piano concerto, still a favorite in the -modern concert repertory. As one of the leading composers in the Soviet -Union he has been the recipient of numerous honors, including the Order -of Lenin in 1939, and the Stalin Prize in 1940 and 1942. In 1954 he -visited London where he led a concert of his own music, and early in -1960 he toured Latin America. - -Khatchaturian’s music owes a strong debt to the folk songs and dances of -Armenia and Transcaucasia. It is endowed with a sensitive and at times -exotic lyricism, a compulsive rhythmic strength, and a strong feeling -for the dramatic. - -The most popular single piece of music by Khatchaturian comes from his -ballet, _Gayne_ (or _Gayaneh_), first performed in Moscow on December 9, -1942, and the recipient of the Stalin Prize. The heroine of this ballet -is a member of a collective farm where her husband, Giko, proves a -traitor. He tries to set the farm afire. The farm is saved by a Red -Commander who falls in love with Gayne after Giko has been arrested. - -Khatchaturian assembled thirteen numbers from his ballet score into two -suites for orchestra. It is one of these pieces that has achieved -widespread circulation: the “Saber Dance,” a composition whose impact -comes from its abrupt barbaric rhythms and vivid sonorities; midway, -relief from these rhythmic tensions comes from a broad folk song in -violas and cellos. “Saber Dance” has become popular in numerous -transcriptions, including an electrifying one for solo piano. In 1948 -Vic Schoen made a fox-trot arrangement that was frequently played in the -United States. - -Two other excerpts from these _Gayne_ suites are also familiar. “Dance -of the Rose Girls” presents a delightful Oriental melody in oboe and -clarinet against a pronounced rhythm. “Lullaby” has a gentle swaying -motion in solo oboe against a decisive rhythm in harp and bassoon; -flutes take up this subject, after which the melody grows and expands in -full orchestra, and then subsides. - -_Masquerade_ is another of Khatchaturian’s orchestral suites, this one -derived from his incidental music to a play by Mikhail Lermontov -produced in 1939. Each of the five numbers of this suite is appealing -either for sensitive and easily assimilable melodies or for rhythmic -vitality. Gentle lyricism, of an almost folk-song identity, -characterizes the second and third movements, a “Nocturne” and -“Romance.” The first and the last two movements are essentially -rhythmic: “Waltz,” “Mazurka,” and “Polka.” - - - - - George Kleinsinger - - -George Kleinsinger was born in San Bernardino, California, on February -13, 1914, and came to New York City in his sixth year. He was trained -for dentistry, and only after he had left dental school did he -concentrate on music. His first intensive period of music study took -place with Philip James and Marion Bauer at New York University where he -wrote an excellent cantata, _I Hear America Singing_, performed publicly -and on records by John Charles Thomas. Kleinsinger then attended the -Juilliard Graduate School on a composition fellowship. In 1946 he scored -a major success with _Tubby the Tuba_. He later wrote several other -works with humorous or satiric content, often filled with unusual -instrumental effects. Among these are his _Brooklyn Baseball Cantata_; a -concerto for harmonica and orchestra; and the musical, _Archy and -Mehitabel_ (_Shinbone Alley_), which was produced for records, on -Broadway and over television. In a more serious vein are a symphony and -several concertos. - -_Tubby the Tuba_, for narrator and orchestra (1942) belongs in the class -of Prokofiev’s _Peter and the Wolf_. It serves to familiarize children -with the instruments of the orchestra, but because of its wit and simple -melodies it also makes for wonderful entertainment. It tells the story -of a frustrated tuba who complains that he must always play -uninteresting “oompahs oompahs” while the violins are always assigned -the most beautiful tunes. In the end Tubby happily gets a wonderful -melody of his own to enjoy and play. All the characters in this tale are -instruments of the orchestra. In 1946 a recording of _Tubby the Tuba_ -sold over a quarter of a million albums. Paramount made a movie of it, -and major orchestras throughout the country presented it both at -children’s concerts and in its regularly symphonic repertory. - - - - - Fritz Kreisler - - -Fritz Kreisler, one of the greatest violin virtuosos of his generation, -was born in Vienna, Austria, on February 2, 1875. He was a child prodigy -at the violin. From 1882 to 1885 he attended the Vienna Conservatory, a -pupil of Leopold Auer, winning the gold medal for violin playing. In -1887, as a pupil of Massart at the Paris Conservatory, he was recipient -of the Grand Prix. In 1888, he toured the United States in joint -concerts with the pianist, Moriz Rosenthal, making his American debut in -Boston on November 9. Upon returning to Vienna, he suddenly decided to -abandon music. For a while he studied medicine at the Vienna Academy. -After that he entered military service as an officer in a Uhlan -Regiment. The decision to return to the violin led to a new period of -intensive training from which he emerged in March 1899 with a recital in -Berlin. From 1901 on until his retirement during World War II he -occupied a magistral place among the concert artists of his time. - -As a composer, Kreisler produced a violin concerto and a string quartet. -But his fame rests securely on an entire library of pieces for the -violin now basic to that repertory and which are equally well loved in -transcriptions for orchestra. The curious thing about many of these -compositions is that for many years Kreisler presented them as the -genuine works of the old masters, works which he said he had discovered -in European libraries and monasteries, and which he had merely adapted -for the violin. He had recourse to this deception early in 1900 as the -expedient by which a still young and unknown violinist could get his own -music played more frequently, besides extending for his own concerts the -more or less limited territory of the existing violin repertory. His -deception proved much more successful than he had dared to hope. -Violinists everywhere asked him for copies of these pieces for their own -concerts. Publishers in Germany and New York sold these “transcriptions” -by the thousands. As the years passed it became increasingly difficult -for Kreisler to confess to the world that he had all the while been -palming off a colossal fraud. Then, in 1935, Olin Downes, the music -critic of the _New York Times_, tried to trace the source of one of -these compositions—Pugnani’s _Praeludium and Allegro_—now a worldwide -favorite with violinists. Downes first communicated with Kreisler’s New -York publishers who were suspiciously evasive. After that Downes cabled -Kreisler, then in Europe. It was only then that the violinist revealed -that this piece was entirely his, and so were many others which he had -been presenting so long as the music of Vivaldi, Martini, Couperin, and -Francoeur among others. - -It was to be expected that musicians and critics should meet such a -confession with anger and denunciation. “We wish to apply the term -discreditable to the whole transaction from start to finish,” one -American music journal said editorially. In England, Ernest Newman was -also devastating in his attack. “It is as though Mr. Yeats published -poems under the name of Herrick or Spenser,” he said. - -Yet, in retrospect, it is possible to suggest that musicians and critics -should not have been taken altogether by surprise. For one thing, as -Kreisler pointed out, numerous progressions and passages in all of these -compositions were in a style of a period much later than that of the -accredited composers, a fact that should have inspired at least a -certain amount of suspicion. Also, when Kreisler presented his own -_Liebesfreud_, _Liebesleid_, and _Schoen Rosmarin_ as transcriptions of -posthumous pieces by Joseph Lanner in a Berlin recital, and was -vigorously assailed by a Berlin critic for daring to include such gems -with “tripe” like Kreisler’s own _Caprice Viennois_, Kreisler replied -with a widely published statement that those pieces of Lanner were of -his own composition. The reasonable question should then have arisen -that if the three supposedly Lanner items were by Kreisler, how -authentic were the other pieces of old masters played by the virtuoso? - -Besides all this, Kreisler himself provided a strong clue to the correct -authorship in the frontispiece of his published transcriptions. It read: -“The original manuscripts used for these transcriptions are the private -property of Mr. Fritz Kreisler and are now published for the first time; -they are, moreover, so freely treated that they constitute, in fact, -original works.” - -The furor and commotion caused by the uncovering of this fraud has long -since died down. It has had no visible effect on Kreisler’s immense -popularity either as a violinist or composer. Since then, all this music -has been published and performed as Kreisler’s without losing any of its -worldwide appeal. - -Among the compositions by Kreisler which he originally ascribed to other -masters in imitation of their styles were: _Andantino_ (Martini); -_Aubade provençale_ (Couperin); _Chanson Louis XIII et Pavane_ -(Couperin); _Minuet_ (Porpora); _Praeludium and Allegro_ (Pugnani); _La -Précieuse_ (Couperin); _Scherzo_ (Dittersdorf), _Sicilienne et Rigaudon_ -(Francoeur); _Tempo di minuetto_ (Pugnani). - -Perhaps the best loved pieces by Kreisler are those in the style of -Viennese folk songs and dances in which are caught all the grace and -Gemuetlichkeit of Viennese life and backgrounds. Some he originally -tried to pass off as the works of other composers, as was the case with -the already-mentioned _Liebesfreud_, _Liebesleid_, and _Schoen -Rosmarin_, attributed to Lanner. Some were outright transcriptions. _The -Old Refrain_ is an adaptation of a song “_Du alter Stefanturm_” by -Joseph Brandl taken from his operetta, _Der liebe Augustin_, produced in -Vienna in 1887. Still others were always offered as Kreisler’s own -compositions and are completely original with him: _Caprice Viennois_, -for example, and the _Marche miniature viennoise_. - -Among other original Kreisler compositions which he always presented as -his own are the following: _La Gitana_, which simulates an -Arabian-Spanish song; _Polichinelle_, a serenade; _Rondino_, based on a -theme of Beethoven; _Shepherd’s Madrigal_; _Slavonic Fantasia_, based on -melodies of Dvořák; _Tambourin Chinois_; and _Toy Soldiers’ March_. - - - - - Édouard Lalo - - -Édouard Lalo was born in Lille, France, on January 27, 1823. After -receiving his musical training at Conservatories in Lille and Paris, he -became a member of the Armingaud-Jacquard Quartet, a renowned French -chamber-music ensemble. In 1848-1849 he published some songs; in 1867 he -received third prize in a national contest for his opera, _Fiesque_; and -in 1872 he was acclaimed for his _Divertimento_, for orchestra, -introduced in Paris. Two major works written for the noted Spanish -violinist, Pablo de Sarasate, added considerably to his reputation: a -violin concerto in 1872, and the celebrated _Symphonic espagnole_, for -violin and orchestra, two years after that. One of his last major works -was the opera, _Le Roi d’Ys_, introduced at the Opéra-Comique in Paris -on May 7, 1888. In that same year he was made Officer of the Legion of -Honor and sometime later he received the Prix Monbinne from the Académie -des Beaux-Arts. In the last years of his life he was a victim of -paralysis. He died in Paris on April 22, 1892. - -A composer of the highest principles and aristocratic style, Lalo is -essentially a composer for cultivated tastes. One of his works, however, -makes for easy listening. It is the _Norwegian Rhapsody_ (_Rapsodie -norvégienne_), for orchestra (1875). There are two sections. The first -begins slowly and sedately, its main melody appearing in the strings. -Here the tempo soon quickens and a sprightly passage ensues. The second -part of the rhapsody, ushered in by a stout theme for trumpets, is -vigorous music throughout. - - - - - Josef Lanner - - -Josef Lanner, the first of the great waltz kings of Vienna, was born in -the Austrian capital on April 12, 1801. When he was twelve he played the -violin in the band of Michael Pamer, a popular Viennese composer of that -day. In 1818 Lanner formed a trio which played in smaller cafés and at -the Prater. In 1819 the trio grew into a quartet with the addition of -the older Johann Strauss (father of the composer of _The Blue Danube_), -then only fifteen years old. Soon afterwards, the quartet was expanded -into a quintet. By 1824, Lanner’s ensemble was a full-sized orchestra -popular throughout Vienna, heard in such famous café houses as the -_Goldenen Rebbuhn_, and the _Gruenen Jager_, as well as at leading balls -and other gala social events in Vienna. The call for Lanner’s music was -so insistent that to meet the demand it soon became necessary to create -two orchestras; one led by Lanner, and the other by the elder Strauss. -Lanner remained an idol of Vienna until his death, which took place in -Oberdoebling, near Vienna, on April 14, 1843. - -For his various ensembles and orchestras Lanner produced a wealth of -popular Viennese music: quadrilles, polkas, galops, marches, and more -than a hundred waltzes. It is in the last department that Lanner was -most important, for he was one of the first composers to carry the waltz -to its artistic fulfillment. With composers from Mozart to Schubert, the -waltz was only a three-part song form with a trio. Johann Hummel and -Karl Maria von Weber suggested a more spacious design by assembling -several different waltz tunes into a single integrated composition. -Lanner extended this form further. He prefaced each series of waltzes -with an introduction in which the theme of the main melody was often -suggested; after the waltz melodies had been presented, Lanner brought -his composition to completion with a coda which served as a kind of -summation of some of the ideas previously stated. Between the -introduction and the coda came the succession of lilting, lovable, -heart-warming waltz-melodies so remarkable for their grace, elegance, -freshness and poignancy that Lanner has sometimes been described as “the -Mozart of the dance.” Nevertheless, Lanner always emphasized soaring -lyricism where the elder Strauss was more partial to rhythm. The -Viennese used to say: “With Lanner, it’s ‘Pray dance, I beg you.’ With -Strauss it’s ‘You must dance, I command you!’” - -The form which Lanner finally crystallized, and the style with which his -waltz music unfolded, were adopted by the two Johann Strausses, father -and son, who were destined to bring this type of Viennese music to its -ultimate development. Thus Lanner was the opening chapter of a musical -epoch. He was the dawn of Vienna’s golden age of waltz music. - -Lanner’s most famous waltz is _Die Schoenbrunner_, op. 200, his swan -song. Other outstanding Lanner waltzes are: _Die Pesther_, op. 93, _Die -Werber_, op. 103, _Hofballtaenze_, op. 161, _Die Romantiker_, op. 167, -and _Abendsterne_, op. 180. “With Lanner,” wrote H. E. Jacob, “the -romantic epoch began for the waltz, and the flower-gardens and green -leaves of Spring penetrated into the ballroom. Lanner’s compositions are -unsophisticated and unpretentious, but his waltzes could no more be -commonplace than could a flower.” - - - - - Charles Lecocq - - -Charles Lecocq was born in Paris on June 3, 1832. For four years he -attended the Paris Conservatory where, as a pupil of Bazin and Halévy, -he received prizes in harmony and fugue. For a while he earned his -living teaching the piano and writing church music. In 1857 he shared -with Bizet the first prize in a competition for one-act operettas -sponsored by Offenbach. This winning work, _Le Docteur miracle_, was -successfully introduced in Paris that year. After that Lecocq wrote -several light operas which were failures, before he enjoyed a major -success with _Fleur de thé_ in 1868, first in Paris and subsequently in -England and Germany. His greatest successes came with two crowning works -in the French light-opera repertory: _La Fille de_ _Mme. Angot_ in 1872, -and _Giroflé-Girofla_, in 1874. Between 1874 and 1900 he wrote over -thirty more operettas. He died in Paris on October 24, 1918 after -enjoying for almost half a century a place of signal honor among -France’s composers for the popular theater. - -Lecocq is remembered today mainly for _La Fille de Mme. Angot_ and -_Giroflé-Girofla_. The first of these was introduced in Brussels on -December 4, 1872. In Paris, where it was given on February 23, 1873, it -enjoyed the formidable run of more than five hundred consecutive -performances. The book—by Siraudin, Clairville and Koning—was set in -Paris during the French Revolution. Clairette, daughter of Mme. Angot, -must marry the barber Pomponnet even though she loves the poet, Pitou. -To avoid an undesirable marriage, even at the risk of arrest, Clairette -sings a daring song by Pitou about an illicit affair between Mlle. Lange -(reputed a favorite of Barras, head of the Directory) and a young lover. -When Pitou proves fickle, and is discovered in the boudoir of Mlle. -Lange, Clairette stands ready to forget him completely and to take -Pomponnet as her husband. - -The sprightly overture, filled with vivacious tunes and dramatized by -energetic rhythms, is a favorite of semi-classical orchestras. So are -several dances from the operetta, including an electrifying Can-Can, and -a sweeping _Grand Valse_ with which the second act comes to an exciting -close. The main vocal excerpts are Pomponnet’s passionate avowal of -Clairette’s innocence, “_Elle est tellement innocente_” and the duet of -Mlle. Lange and Clairette, “_Jours fortunés de notre enfance_” both from -Act 2. - -_Giroflé-Girofla_—book by Vanloo and Leterrier—was introduced in -Brussels on March 21, 1874. Giroflé and Girofla are twin sisters. -Giroflé is pressured by her parents to marry the banker, Marasquin; -Girofla is in love with an impoverished fire-eating Moor, Mourzouk. When -Girofla is secretly abducted by pirates, the Moor comes to her home -demanding to see her, only to mistake Giroflé for Girofla. The -complicated situation ensuing becomes resolved only after Girofla is -rescued and brought back home. - -The most frequently heard excerpts from this gay score are the Pirates’ -Chorus, “_Parmi les choses_”; the rousing drinking song, “_Le Punche -scintille_”; the ballad, “_Lorsque la journée est finie_”; and the love -duet, “_O Ciel!_” - - - - - Ernesto Lecuona - - -Ernesto Lecuona was born in Havana, Cuba, on August 7, 1896. As a boy of -eleven he published his first piece of music—an American two step still -popular with some Cuban bands. While attending the National Conservatory -in Cuba, from which he was graduated in 1911 with a gold medal in piano -playing, he earned his living as a pianist in cafés and movie theaters. -In 1917 he paid the first of several visits to the United States, at -that time making some records and giving a piano recital. He then made -concert tours throughout America and Europe playing the piano and -conducting semi-classical and popular orchestras. His performances were -largely responsible for popularizing in America both the conga and the -rumba in the 1920’s. He also made some successful appearances at the -Capitol Theater, in New York, where he introduced his own music, -including such outstanding successes as _Malagueña_, _Andalucía_, and -_Siboney_ (the last originally entitled _Canto Siboney_, which became an -American popular-song hit in 1929). These and similar pieces made -Lecuona one of the most successful exponents of Latin-American melodies -and dance rhythms in the United States. Lecuona has written over five -hundred songs, forty operettas, and numerous compositions both for -orchestra and for piano solo. - -From a piano suite entitled _Andalucía_ come two of Lecuona’s best known -instrumental compositions. The first is also called _Andalucía_, a -haunting South American melody set against a compulsive rhythm. It was -made into an American popular song in 1955. - -Another movement from _Andalucía_ is even more familiar: the -_Malagueña_. Since its publication as a piano solo in 1929, _Malagueña_ -has sold annually over a hundred thousand copies of sheet music each -year; it has become a favorite of concert pianists; it is also often -performed by salon and pop orchestras everywhere in orchestral -transcriptions; and it has been adapted into a popular song, “At the -Crossroads.” It is in three sections, the first being in the malagueña -rhythm dynamically projected in slowing expanding sonorities; a contrast -comes in the middle part with a poignant Latin-American melody. - -_Andalucía_, the single movement and not the suite as a whole, has been -given a brilliant orchestral dress by Morton Gould who has also -orchestrated two outstandingly popular Lecuona songs. One is “La -Comparasa,” a picture of a traditional parade during the Carnival season -in which Negroes and muleteers play their native instruments and sing -their sensual songs. The other is “Gitanerias,” haunting gypsy music. - - - - - Franz Lehár - - -Franz Lehár was born in Komorn, Hungary, on April 30, 1870. His father, -a bandmaster, was his first music teacher. When Franz was twelve, he -entered the Prague Conservatory where he remained six years specializing -in the violin with Bennewitz and theory with Foerster. His studies were -completed in 1888, after which he played the violin in the orchestra of -the Eberfeld Opera. He subsequently became an assistant bandleader of -his father’s ensemble and a director of Austria’s foremost Marine bands. -In 1896 he realized his first success as a composer of operettas with -_Kukuschka_, produced in Leipzig. In 1902 he became conductor of the -Theater-an-der-Wien, in Vienna, home of operettas. There, in the same -year, he had produced _Viennese Women_ (_Wiener Frauen_). The operetta -after that was _The Gypsy_ (_Der Rastelbinder_), seen in 1902 in one of -Vienna’s other theaters. With _The Merry Widow_ (_Die lustige Witwe_), -seen in 1905, Lehár achieved a triumph of such magnitude that from then -on he was one of Austria’s most celebrated operetta composers (and one -of the wealthiest) since Johann Strauss II. He wrote about thirty more -operettas (three of them in the single year of 1909-1910). The most -famous were _The Count of Luxembourg_ (_Der Graf von Luxemburg_) in -1909; _Gypsy Love_ (_Zigeunerliebe_) in 1910; _Frasquita_ in 1922; -_Paganini_ in 1925; _The Tsarevitch_ (_Der Zarewitsch_) in 1927; and -_The Land of Smiles_ (_Das Land des Laechelns_) in 1929. During World -War II Lehár lived in seclusion at his villa in Bad Ischl, Austria. -After the war he became embittered by the widely publicized accusation -that he had been pro Nazi, arising no doubt from the well-known fact -that _The Merry Widow_ was Hitler’s favorite operetta. What was -forgotten in this attack against Lehár was the fact that his wife had -been classified by Nazis as non-Aryan and that on one occasion both and -he and his wife were subjected by the Gestapo to house arrest. Lehár -died in Bad Ischl, Austria, on October 24, 1948. He is one of the few -composers to outlive the copyrights of some of his most famous works. - -Lehár’s popularity in the early part of this century gave the Viennese -operetta a new lease on life at a time when its heyday was believed -over. It was through the influence of Lehár’s immense popularity and -success that composers like Oscar Straus, Emmerich Kálmán, and Leo Fall -began writing their own operettas. Lehár’s best stage works have been -described as “dance operettas” because of the emphasis placed on dance -music, the waltz specifically. The dance usually becomes the climax, the -focal point, of the production. Stan Czech further points out that -Lehár’s waltzes are “slower and sweeter than those of Johann Strauss, -were definite prototypes of the modern slow waltz, and their Slav -atmosphere gave them an exciting and individual character.” - -_The Count of Luxembourg_ (_Der Graf von Luxemburg_)—text by Willner and -Robert Bodanzky—was first given in Vienna on November 12, 1909. This -operetta opens in an artist’s studio in Paris where René, the -impoverished Count of Luxembourg, is offered five hundred thousand -francs by Prince Basil if René is willing to marry the singer Angele and -let her share his title. The reason for this peculiar arrangement is -that the Prince is himself in love with Angele, wants to marry her, but -prefers that his wife have a title. After they get married, René and -Angele discover they are in love with each other, a fact which -eventually the Prince is willing to accept since he is ordered by the -Czar to marry a legitimate Countess. As in most Lehár’s operettas, the -high musical moment comes with a waltz—the infectious duet of René and -Angele, “_Bist du’s, lachendes Glueck_,” which is also extremely popular -in orchestral adaptations. Other appealing numbers are the second act -duet, “_Lieber Freund, man greift nicht_” and the tenor aria, “_Maedel -klein, Maedel fein_.” - -_Frasquita_, produced in Vienna on May 12, 1922, is remembered most -often for one of Lehár’s most beautiful vocal numbers, the nostalgic and -romantic _Frasquita Serenade_, “_Hab ein blaues Himmelbett_.” Fritz -Kreisler made a fine transcription for violin and piano, and Sigmund -Spaeth provided the melody with American lyrics. - -_Gypsy Love_ (_Zigeunerliebe_), had its world première in Vienna on -January 8, 1910. The librettists (Willner and Bodanzky) provided a -romantic storybook setting of Rumania, and a romantic central character -in the form of the gypsy violinist, Jozsi. Zorika is ineluctably drawn -to Jozsi though she is actually betrothed to his half-brother, Jonel. In -a dream, she gets a foretaste of what her life would be with one so -irresponsible and fickle as a gypsy violinist, with the result that she -is more than happy to marry Jonel. The main waltz melody (one of Lehár’s -greatest) is “_Nur der Liebe macht uns jung_” and the most infectious -Hungarian tune is Jozsi’s soaring entrance gypsy melody to the -accompaniment of his violin, “_Ich bin ein Zigeunerkind_.” - -From _The Land of Smiles_ (_Das Land des Laechelns_) comes what is -probably the best loved and most widely sung of all of Lehár’s vocal -numbers, “Dein ist mein ganzes Herz” (“Thine Is My Heart Alone”) which -opened not in Vienna but in Berlin, on October 10, 1929. This was -actually a new version of an old Lehár operetta, originally called _The -Yellow Jacket_ (_Die gelbe Jacke_) which had been introduced in Vienna -in 1923. The romantic plot of both operettas involved a Chinese -diplomat, Prince Sou-Chong, and Lisa, daughter of an Austrian Count. -They marry and settle in Peking in whose strange setting, Lisa’s love -for the Prince soon turns to hate. With great magnanimity—even though -this is in violation of ancient Chinese traditions and customs—he allows -Lisa to leave him and return home. - -In _The Yellow Jacket_, “Thine Is My Heart Alone” is sung by Lisa, and -at that time this number made little impression. The famous tenor, -Richard Tauber, fell in love with it, and performed it so extensively in -his recitals everywhere that he and the song became inextricably -identified. When Lehár revised his operetta and renamed it _The Land of -Smiles_, he cast the song “Thine Is My Heart Alone” as a major -second-act aria for Prince Sou-Chong, Richard Tauber playing the part of -the Prince. _The Land of Smiles_ was a personal triumph for Tauber who -appeared in it over 2,500 times all over the world. “Thine Is My Heart -Alone” became with him something of a theme song. He rarely gave a -concert anywhere without singing it either on the program itself or as -an encore. When _The Land of Smiles_ was given in New York City in 1946, -with Tauber as the star, the operetta was renamed _Yours Is My Heart_; -in this production Tauber sang the song four times in four different -languages, French, Italian, German, and English. - -There can be little question but that _The Merry Widow_ (_Die lustige -Witwe_) is one of the most famous operettas ever written. It was a -sensation when first performed, in Vienna on December 28, 1905. It came -both to London and New York in 1907, a major success in both places. In -Buenos Aires it was performed simultaneously in five theaters in five -different languages. Since 1907 there was hardly a time when _The Merry -Widow_ was not being performed in some part of the world. It has enjoyed -in excess of six thousand performances, a thousand of these in Vienna -alone. On several occasions it has been adapted for the screen. - -Victor Léon and Leo Stein wrote the text. This is the usual operetta -material involving a beautiful heiress from a mythical kingdom. She is -Sonia from Marsovia, who is leading a gay life in Paris. Beautiful and -wealthy, she is inevitably sought out by the most handsome men of Paris. -The government of Marsovia is eager to get her to marry one of its -native sons, the dashing Prince Danilo, thereby keeping her fortune at -home. As she conducts her vivacious night life she is zealously watched -over by the Marsovian Ambassador, Baron Popoff, who never loses an -opportunity to further the interests of Danilo. Eventually, Sonia has -had her fling and is ready to settle down with the Prince. - -The _Merry Widow Waltz_, “_S’fluestern Geigen, Lippen schweigen_,” an -eye-filling climax to the third act, is not only the most popular -excerpt from this operetta but also one of the most celebrated waltzes -ever written. A secondary waltz, “Vilia” is also highly beguiling, while -a third musical favorite from this score is “_Da geh’ ich zu Maxim_” -(“_The Girl at Maxim’s_”). - -What is one of Lehár’s best waltzes, second in popularity only to that -of _The Merry Widow_, does not come from any operetta. It is the _Gold -and Silver Waltzes_ (_Gold und Silber Waelzer_), op. 79 which he wrote -as a concert number. - - - - - Ruggiero Leoncavallo - - -Ruggiero Leoncavallo was born in Naples, Italy, on March 8, 1858. He was -graduated from the Bologna Conservatory, then spent several years -traveling. He finally came to Paris where he earned his living playing -the piano, singing, and writing music-hall songs. The powerful Italian -publisher, Ricordi, commissioned him to write a trilogy of operas set in -the Renaissance. Leoncavallo completed the first of these operas, _I -Medici_, but it proved too expensive to mount and was shelved. This -experience convinced him that he ought to write an opera of slighter -dimensions, one which would not cost too much to produce, and which -would be in the realistic style (“_Verismo_”) just made so popular by -Mascagni’s _Cavalleria Rusticana_. In four months’ time, Leoncavallo -completed _Pagliacci_, the opera through which his name survives. It -received a triumphant première in Milan in 1892, with Toscanini -conducting. Though Leoncavallo wrote many operas after that he never -wrote one as good or as popular as the one that made him world famous. -Only one of these later operas has retained interest, _Zaza_, introduced -in 1900. A third opera, _La Bohème_, was well received when introduced -in Venice in 1897, but was soon thrown into complete obscurity by a -rival opera on the same subject, that of Puccini. In 1906 Leoncavallo -toured the United States in performances of _Pagliacci_. The failures of -his last operas made him a bitter, broken man in the last years of his -life. He died in Montecatini, Italy, on August 9, 1919. - -The composer prepared his own libretto for _Pagliacci_, a play within a -play. A troupe of strolling players headed by Canio arrives for -performances in a Calabrian village. Canio’s wife, Nedda, falls in love -with Silvio, one of the villagers, and she in turn is being pursued by -the pathetic clown of the troupe, Tonio. Through Tonio, Canio discovers -his wife has been unfaithful to him, but fails to learn the identity of -his rival. At the troupe’s evening performance—and in a play that -closely resembles the actual happenings within the company—Canio kills -Nedda when she fails to tell him who her lover is. But Silvio, in the -audience, reveals himself by rushing on the stage to help Nedda. There -Canio kills him. - -Many of the selections from this opera are famous, but the most famous -of all is the tenor aria, in which Canio speaks his immense grief on -discovering that his wife has a lover, “_Vesti la giubba_.” - -The other familiar excerpts include the baritone prologue, “_Si può_,” -in which Tonio explains to his audience that the incidents in the play -about to be presented are true to life and that the players are not -performers but human beings; Nedda’s delightful ballatella, “The Bird -Song” (“_Stridono lassù_”) where she tries to forget about Tonio’s -initial response of jealousy by watching and describing the casual and -carefree flight of birds overhead; the “Harlequin’s Serenade” in the -play within the play sequence in the second act, “_O Columbina!_”; and a -melodious orchestral Intermezzo which separates the first and second -acts, music which hints darkly at impending tragedy through a poignant -recall of Tonio’s prologue. - - - - - Anatol Liadov - - -Anatol Liadov was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, on May 10, 1855, the -son and grandson of eminent Russian conductors. He was a pupil of -Rimsky-Korsakov at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, but was so derelict -about attending classes that in 1876 he was expelled. Reinstated two -years later he now became fired with both ambition and industry, proved -a brilliant student, and was graduated with highest honors. He was then -appointed teacher of theory there, eventually becoming a renowned -professor, a post he retained until the end of his life. He died in -Novgorod, Russia, on August 28, 1914. - -Liadov was at his best in his fairy tales for orchestra (_The Enchanted -Lake_, _Baba Yaga_ and _Kikimora_); in songs; and in smaller pieces for -the piano. He was a student of Russian folk music of which he made -numerous adaptations, and whose styles and idioms percolated into many -of his compositions. - -The _Eight Russian Folksongs_, a suite for orchestra, op. 58 (1906) is -one of Liadov’s adaptations. There are eight movements. In the first, -“Religious Chant,” the main song is that chanted by children in -religious processions; it is heard in English horn and bassoons. This is -followed by “Christmas Carol,” its main theme presented by oboes and -clarinets. “Plaintive Melody” is a village song, and “I Danced With a -Mosquito,” a humorous scherzo in which muted strings simulated buzzing -mosquitoes. The fifth movement is “Legend of the Birds” where the bird -song is presented by the woodwind. “Cradle Song” is a tender melody for -strings. This is followed by a lively rhythmic section, “Round Dance.” -The suite ends with the “Village Dance Song,” music that usually -accompanies the crowning of the May Queen. - -Liadov is also the composer of a delightful trifle called _The Music -Box_ in which the delicate little tune is the kind that lends itself -gratefully to the tinkle of a music box. Liadov wrote this piece for the -piano, op. 32, but it is better known in orchestral transcriptions. - - - - - Paul Lincke - - -Paul Lincke was born in Berlin, Germany, on November 7, 1866. After -completing his music study he played the violin and bassoon in numerous -theater orchestras. He later distinguished himself as a theater -conductor. In 1897 he had his first operetta produced in Berlin. -Thereafter he wrote many operettas, all originally given in Berlin; he -became one of the foremost exponents of the light musical theater in -Germany of his time. The most famous were _Frau Luna_ (1899), _Fraeulein -Loreley_ (1900), _Lysistrata_ (1902), _Prinzessin Rosine_ (1905), and -_Casanova_ (1914). His last operetta was _Ein Liebestraum_, produced in -Hamburg in 1940. From 1918 to 1920 he was conductor at the -Folies-Bergère in Paris. He died in Klausthal-Zellernfeld, Germany, on -September 3, 1946. - -His most famous composition is a song from _Lysistrata_ (1902): “The -Glow Worm” (“_Gluehwuermchen_”), which achieved phenomenal popularity -throughout the world independent of the operetta. It is still famous -both as a vocal composition and in orchestral transcriptions. A new -vocal version, with amusing lyrics by Johnny Mercer, was published and -popularized in the United States in 1952. - - - - - Franz Liszt - - -Franz Liszt was born in Raiding, Hungary, on October 22, 1811. A prodigy -pianist who made an impressive debut in Hungary when he was nine, Liszt -was financed by several Hungarian noblemen to study the piano with -Czerny in Vienna. In 1822, Liszt made a sensational debut in that city, -and in 1824, after a period of additional study in Paris, an equally -momentous appearance in the French capital. For the next three years -Liszt concertized throughout Europe, becoming an idol of music audiences -everywhere. Then, in 1827, he decided to abandon music for what he -regarded as nobler pursuits. He devoted himself in turn to religion, -politics, literature, and philosophy without finding the satisfaction he -sought. Then, in 1830, he went back to music. For about two years he -worked industriously on his piano technique, reassuming an imperial -position among the virtuosos of his generation beginning with 1833. He -combined profound musicianship and a phenomenal technique with such a -flair for showmanship and self-aggrandizement, that it can be said that -the modern piano virtuoso (both in the best and worst sense of that -term) was born with him. - -In 1848, Liszt came to Weimar to fulfill duties as Kapellmeister to the -Grand Duke. The eleven-year period of this office represented -music-making of the highest order, as Liszt devoted himself to -presenting the foremost operatic and symphonic music in the best -possible performances. He was indefatigable in propagandizing the music -of the avant-garde composers of his day, reviving Wagner’s _Tannhaeuser_ -and presenting the world première of that master’s _Lohengrin_ at a time -when Wagner was in disrepute in Germany because of his revolutionary -activities. - -Finding himself incapable of maintaining the high standards he had set, -and disturbed by the prevailing antagonism to his espousal of new music, -Liszt left Weimar in 1859. Once again he sought refuge in a career -outside music. In 1865 he submitted to the tonsure and entered the Third -Order of St. Francis of Assisi as abbé. But music was not abandoned. He -taught the piano to gifted pupils who came to him from all parts of the -world; and he wrote an abundant amount of music, mainly for the piano. -He died in Bayreuth, Bavaria, on July 31, 1886, still at the height of -his powers and fame as composer, pianist and teacher. - -Liszt left a vast repertory of music, including tone poems, symphonies, -piano concertos, songs, and a library of works for the piano. At his -best he was a great innovator, and a creator of vast dramatic and poetic -concepts. At worst, he was a showman shamelessly wooing his public with -superficial effects and trivial material. Most of his works belong to -the concert hall, but some of it has enormous popular appeal as salon -music. - -The most famous of the latter is the _Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2_ in -C-sharp minor (1847), originally for piano solo but subsequently -orchestrated by the composer himself. This was one of nineteen -compositions in which Liszt developed the form of the rhapsody and -helped to make it popular; which he filled with strong national feelings -and the individual traits of Hungarian folk music. One of the features -of all these rhapsodies is their dynamic alternation of slow and sensual -music (called _lassan_) with fast, dramatic, exciting passages (called -_friskan_). The second _Hungarian Rhapsody_ opens with a _lassan_, a -slow, stately declamation. Then, after a clarinet cadenza, the _friskan_ -appears, a spirited melody for violins and woodwind. After that fast and -slow passages, soft and loud dynamics, and rapidly changing meters and -rhythm help to generate excitement and create drama. The drama and the -excitement of this music never seem to lose their impact however many -times this rhapsody is listened to. - -Of Liszt’s twelve tone poems for orchestra the most famous is _Les -Préludes_ (1850). The tone poem, or symphonic poem, is Liszt’s creation -in an attempt to bring to orchestral music the pictorial, dramatic and -programmatic qualities of Wagner’s music dramas. Thus Liszt conceived a -one-movement composition, flexible in form, in which a story is told, -picture described, or poem interpreted. The inspiration for _Les -Préludes_ is the _Méditations poétiques_ of Lamartine, from which -several lines are quoted in the published score to provide the music -with its program: - -“What is life but a series of Preludes to that unknown song of which -death strikes the first solemn note? Love is the magic dawn of every -existence; but where is the life in which the first enjoyment of bliss -is not dispelled by some tempest; its illusions scattered by some fatal -breath; its altar consumed as by a thunderbolt? What soul, this cruelly -hurt, but seeks to repose with its memories in the sweet calm of -pastoral life? Yet no man is content to resign himself for long to the -mild, beneficent charms of Nature, and when the trumpet gives the alarm -he hastens to the post of danger, on whatever field he may be called to -fight, so that once more he may find in action full consciousness of -himself and the possession of all his powers.” - -_Les Préludes_ opens with a dignified subject in the basses which is -subjected to considerable change and amplification before the main -melody is introduced. This melody is an elegiac song expressing the -happiness of love; its first entrance comes in four horns, strings, and -harp. The music is carried to a climactic point, after which a frenetic -mood is projected. Plaintively the oboe recalls the main melody; a -country dance tune is offered by the horn; and the main melody reappears -with opulent treatment. Another section of storm and stress follows -before the final majestic statement of the main melody. - -Of Liszt’s voluminous writings for the piano, one composition above all -others has won favor throughout the music world as a tender, and -sentimental expression of love. It is the _Liebestraum_, “Love’s Dream.” -Liszt actually wrote three _Liebesträume_, but it is the third of this -set—in A-flat major (1850)—which is considered when we speak or hear of -the _Liebestraum_. All of these three piano compositions are adaptations -of songs by the same composer; the third _Liebestraum_ originated as “_O -Lieb’, so lang du lieben kannst_,” words by Freiligrath. - - - - - Frederick Loewe - - -Frederick Loewe was born in Vienna, Austria, on June 10, 1904. A musical -prodigy, he began to study the piano when he was five; started -composition at seven; at thirteen made a successful appearance as -pianist with the Berlin Symphony; and at fifteen was the composer of a -hit song, “Katrina,” that sold over a million copies of sheet music in -Europe. He received a thorough musical training from Busoni, Eugène -d’Albert, and Emil Nikolaus Rezniček, winning the Hollander Medal for -piano playing in 1923. One year after that he came to the United States. -Unable to make any progress in his musical career, he spent the next -decade traveling around the country and filling all sorts of odd jobs. -He punched cattle, mined gold, served as a riding instructor, and even -boxed professionally. Eventually he came back to New York where he found -a job in a Greenwich Village café playing the piano. In 1938 four of his -songs were heard in a Broadway musical, _Great Lady_, a failure. A -meeting with Alan Jay Lerner, a young lyricist and librettist, brought -him a gifted collaborator. They wrote a musical comedy that was produced -by a stock company in Detroit, and another called _What’s Up_ that was -seen on Broadway. Their first major success came with the Broadway -musical, _Brigadoon_, in 1947. _My Fair Lady_, in 1956, was one of the -greatest successes of the Broadway theater. They also helped make -entertainment history further by writing songs for the motion picture -musical, _Gigi_, the first to win nine Academy Awards, including one for -Lerner and Loewe for the title song. In 1960, Lerner and Loewe wrote the -Broadway musical _Camelot_ based on King Arthur and the Knights of the -Round Table. - -_Brigadoon_ was a whimsical Scottish fantasy which came to Broadway on -March 13, 1947, book and lyrics by Lerner. Brigadoon is a mythical town -in Scotland which comes to life for a single day once every hundred -years. Two American tourists happen to come to Brigadoon during its one -day of existence. They become a part of its quaint life, and one of them -falls in love with a Scottish lass. The musical highlights include a -song that became a hit in 1947, “Almost Like Being In Love,” and several -that have a charming Scottish flavor, including “Come to Me, Bend to -Me,” “The Heather on the Hill,” and “I’ll Come Home With Bonnie Jean.” - -_My Fair Lady_, produced on March 15, 1956, was Lerner’s adaptation for -the popular musical theater of Bernard Shaw’s _Pygmalion_. Eliza -Doolittle, an ignorant flower girl and daughter of a cockney, is -transformed by the phonetician, Professor Henry Higgins, into a -cultivated lady who is successfully palmed off upon high English society -as a duchess. Higgins falls in love with her and, though a long -confirmed bachelor, finds he can no longer live without her. _My Fair -Lady_ became one of the most highly acclaimed musical productions of -recent memory; Brooks Atkinson called it “one of the best musicals of -the century.” It achieved a fabulous Broadway run and was brought by -many touring countries to all parts of the civilized world, including -the Soviet Union. It captured one third of the honors annually conferred -on the theater by the Antoinette Perry Awards. The original-cast -recording sold over three million discs. The principal numbers from -Loewe’s captivating score include three romantic songs, two of the Hit -Parade variety (“I Could Have Danced All Night” and “On the Street Where -You Live”) and the third, “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face”; two -atmospheric numbers that evoke musically the place and setting of the -play, “The Ascot Gavotte” and “The Embassy Waltz”; and the two cockney -ditties of Eliza’s father, “Get Me to the Church On Time” and “With a -Little Bit of Luck.” - - - - - Albert Lortzing - - -Gustav Albert Lortzing was born in Berlin on October 23, 1801. His -parents were actors compelled to lead an itinerant life which made it -impossible for Albert to obtain any systematic education. His mother -taught him music, the study of which he later continued briefly in -Berlin with Rungenhagen. His first effort at composition consisted of -some songs, but in 1824 he completed his first opera, _Ali Pascha von -Janina_. From 1833 to 1844 he was employed as a tenor at the Municipal -Theater in Leipzig, for which he wrote the comic opera _Die beiden -Schuetzen_, successfully produced in 1837. He achieved his greatest -success the same year with the comic opera, _Zar und Zimmermann_, which -within a few years’ time became a favorite among theater audiences -throughout Europe. His later operettas included _Der Wildschuetz_ (_The -Poacher_) in 1842 and _Der Waffenschmied_ (_The Armourer_) in 1846, -while one of his finest romantic operas was _Undine_ in 1845. Lortzing -also filled several engagements as conductor of operas and operettas in -Leipzig, Vienna and Berlin, and as an opera impresario. He died in -Berlin on January 21, 1851, one day after his last opera, _Die -Opernprobe_ (_The Opera Rehearsal_) was introduced in Frankfort. - -Lortzing was one of the earliest and most successful exponents of German -national comic opera; and _Czar and the Carpenter_ (_Zar und -Zimmermann_) was his masterwork. It was first produced in Leipzig on -December 22, 1837. The music is consistently light and tuneful, -frequently in the style of German folk songs. The libretto, by the -composer, is a delightful comedy based on an actual historic episode: -the escapade of Peter the Great of Russia in Holland where he worked as -a carpenter. In the Lortzing comic opera, Peter the Great is a carpenter -on a ship at Saardam where he meets a compatriot, also named Peter, who -is a deserter. Temporarily they become rivals for the affection of Mary. -After the arrival of the Ambassadors from France and England to seek out -the Emperor, the latter quietly departs for his homeland, leaving behind -him both money and an official pardon for the other Peter. The gay -spirit of the comic opera as a whole is magically caught not only in its -vivacious overture, but in several familiar excerpts. The most notable -are: the Burgomaster’s comic entrance song, “_O sancta justa_”; in the -second act, the Wedding Chorus, and the French Ambassador’s beautiful -air, “_Lebe wohl, mein flandrisch’ Maedchen_”; in the third act the -vigorous _Clog Dance_ (_Holzschutanz_), and the very famous air of Czar -Peter, “_Sonst spielt’ ich mit Zepter_.” - - - - - Alexandre Luigini - - -Alexandre Luigini was born in Lyons, France, on March 9, 1850. He was -the son of the distinguished conductor of the Théâtre-Italien in Paris. -After attending the Paris Conservatory—where he was a pupil of Massenet -and Massart among others—the younger Luigini played the violin in his -father’s orchestra. In 1870 he began a successful career as ballet -composer with _Le Rêve de Nicette_, given in Lyons. His greatest success -came with the _Ballet Égyptien_, first seen in Lyons in 1875. For twenty -years Luigini was the conductor of the Grand Theater in Lyons and -professor of harmony at the Lyons Conservatory. Until the end of his -life he was the conductor of the Opéra-Comique in Paris. He died in -Paris on July 29, 1906. - -An orchestral suite derived from some of the most attractive pages of -the _Ballet Égyptien_ score is a favorite of bands and salon orchestras -everywhere. This is music striking for its Oriental-type melodies and -harmonies, and for its colorful orchestral hues. The first two movements -are particularly popular. The first begins with a strong and stately -theme, but midway comes a gayer section in an exotic Oriental style. The -second movement highlights a capricious subject for the woodwind, once -again in a recognizable Oriental style. - - - - - Hans Christian Lumbye - - -Hans Christian Lumbye was born in Copenhagen, Denmark on May 2, 1810. As -a young man he played in military bands. He then formed an orchestra of -his own which achieved extraordinary fame throughout Copenhagen -(specifically at the Tivoli) with light musical programs. For these -concerts Lumbye produced a library of light music: waltzes, galops, -polkas, marches, and so forth. This music is so filled with infectious -tunes and pulsating rhythms—and they are so light in heart and -spirit—that they have won for their composer the sobriquet of “The -Johann Strauss of the North” and the status of Denmark’s foremost -creator of semi-classical music. He died in Copenhagen on March 20, -1874. - -Lumbye’s dance pieces are played wherever there is a salon, pop or -café-house orchestra. Among his best waltzes are _Amelie_, _Hesperus_, -and _Sophie_. Other successful Lumbye compositions are the _Columbine -Mazurka_, the _Champagne Galop_, _Concert Polka_, _Dream Pictures_, _An_ -_Evening at the Tivoli_, _King Frederick VII Homage March_, and the -_Railway Galop_. - - - - - Edward MacDowell - - -Edward Alexander Macdowell, one of America’s most significant -19th-century composers, was born in New York City on December 18, 1861. -After preliminary music study with private teachers, he attended the -Paris Conservatory from 1876 to 1878, and the Frankfort Conservatory in -Germany from 1879 to 1881. Maintaining his home in Germany, MacDowell -joined the faculty of the Darmstadt Conservatory in 1881, and in 1882 he -made an official bow as a composer by introducing his first piano -concerto in Zurich, and his _Modern Suite_ for piano in Germany. He -returned to the United States in 1888, settling in Boston where a year -later the Boston Symphony under Gericke introduced his now-famous Second -Piano Concerto, the composer appearing as soloist. From then on, most of -his important symphonic works were introduced by the Boston Symphony, -placing him in the vanguard of American composers of that period. In -1896 he filled the first chair of music created at Columbia University -in New York; at that time he was described as “the greatest musical -genius America has produced.” MacDowell resigned in 1904 after sharp -differences with the trustees of the University over the way a music -department should be run. The bitterness and frustrations suffered by -MacDowell during this altercation with the University undermined and -finally broke his always delicate health. His brain tissues became -affected. From 1905 on he was a victim of insanity, spending his time in -an innocent, childlike state, until his death in New York City on -January 23, 1908. Shortly after his death the MacDowell Memorial -Association was founded to establish a retreat for American creative -artists on MacDowell’s summer residence in Peterborough, New Hampshire, -which MacDowell’s widow had deeded to the Association. - -A composer whose artistic roots lay deep in the soil of German -Romanticism, MacDowell was a composer who filled his writing with noble -poetic sentiments and the most sensitive emotions. His sense of style -and his feeling for structure were the last words in elegance, and his -lyricism and harmonic language were ever ingratiatingly inviting to the -ear. - -The _Indian Suite_, op. 48 (1892) is the second of MacDowell’s suites -for orchestra. It is one of several works in which MacDowell uses -melodic and rhythmic material of the American Indian, blending this -idiom with his usual sensitive and poetic style. This is one of -MacDowell’s most popular works for orchestra. The first movement, -“Legend,” has a slow introduction in which the main melody is given by -three unaccompanied horns in unison. The melody is taken over by other -instruments and developed. Here the material comes from a sacred -ceremony of Iroquois Indians. The second movement is “Love Song,” whose -principal subject is immediately given by the woodwind; this melody is -derived from the music of Iowa Indians. “War Time” follows, a movement -dominated by a melody to which Indians of the Atlantic Coast ascribed -supernatural origin. This melody is heard in the first sixteen measures -in two unison unaccompanied flutes. A subsidiary section follows. -“Dirge,” the fourth movement, is a woman’s song of mourning for an -absent son, come from the Kiowa Indians. The mournful melody is heard in -muted violins. The suite ends with “Village Festival,” in which two -light and vivacious melodies from the Iroquois Indians are presented; -the first is a woman’s dance, and the second a war song. - -The most familiar pieces of music written by MacDowell—_To a Water Lily_ -and _To a Wild Rose_—come from the _Woodland Sketches_, op. 51 (1896), a -suite for solo piano made up of ten sections, each a descriptive poem in -tones. In this suite MacDowell became one of the first American -composers to interpret the beauty of American scenes and countrysides in -delicate melodies. Both _To a Water Lily_ and _To a Wild Rose_ are -exquisite tone pictures of Nature, and both have enjoyed numerous -transcriptions. The other eight movements of the _Woodland Sketches_ -are: _Will o’ the Wisp_, _At an Old Trysting Place_, _In Autumn_, _From -an Old Indian Lodge_, _From Uncle Remus_, _A Deserted Farm_, _By a -Meadow Brook_, and _Told at Sunset_. - - - - - Albert Hay Malotte - - -Albert Hay Malotte was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on May 19, -1895. The son of a choirmaster, he himself was a boy chorister, at the -St. James Episcopal Church in his native city. After his music studies -were completed in Paris and London, he served as organist in Chicago and -London. In 1927 he opened a school for organists in Los Angeles, but -when sound came to the screen he gave up the school to write music for -the films. He subsequently joined the music staff at the Walt Disney -studio, creating music for several of Disney’s animated cartoons, -including _Ferdinand the Bull_. He has written ballets, choral music, -and songs, besides scores for motion pictures, having received early in -his career as composer important advice, guidance and encouragement from -Victor Herbert. - -Malotte is most famous for his song, “The Lord’s Prayer,” published in -1935, and since become a favorite of concert singers everywhere. Its -deep religious sentiment, and the exciting dramatic thrust of its -concluding measures, have an inescapable impact on audiences. - - - - - Gabriel Marie - - -Gabriel Marie was born in Paris, France, on January 8, 1852. After -completing his music study at the Paris Conservatory he served for six -years as chorusmaster of the Lamoureux Orchestra. Between 1887 and 1894 -he conducted the concerts of the Société nationale de musique. He later -led the orchestral performances in Bordeaux and Marseilles, and during -the summers at the Vichy Casino. He was traveling in Spain when he died -there suddenly on August 29, 1928. - -Marie was a successful composer of light music for orchestra. The one -composition which has survived is _La Cinquantaine_, a sentimental piece -for orchestra which is also famous in adaptations for violin and piano, -or cello and piano. Marie described this work as an “air in the old -style.” It is in three-part song form. The first and third parts consist -of a light, delicate little air; the middle section is in a slower and -statelier style. - - - - - Martini il Tedesco - - -Jean Paul Égide Martini—sometimes called “Il Tedesco” or “The German” to -distinguish him from Padre Martini the famous 18th century Italian -composer and theorist—was born in Freistadt, in the Palatinate, on -September 1, 1741. His real name is Schwarzendorf. After completing the -study of the organ and serving for a while as church organist, he won a -prize for a military march for the Swiss Guard. For many years he was an -officer of a Hussar regiment. During this military service he completed -an opera, _L’Amoureux de quinze ans_ (successfully introduced in Paris -in 1771) and a considerable amount of band music. After leaving the -army, he served as music director for the Prince of Condé and the Comte -d’Artois; as conductor at the Théâtre Feydeau in Paris; and as Inspector -and teacher of composition at the Paris Conservatory. He died in Paris -on February 10, 1816. - -The composer of twelve operas, some church music and many songs, Martini -is today remembered for a single song—the eloquent and tender love -melody, “_Plaisir d’amour_,” written originally for voice and harp, and -arranged by Berlioz for voice and orchestra. Since Berlioz’ time it has -enjoyed numerous instrumental adaptations. Effective use of the song, as -recurring theme music, was made in the American motion picture starring -Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer, _Love Affair_ (1939). - - - - - Pietro Mascagni - - -Pietro Mascagni was born in Leghorn, Italy, on December 7, 1863. He -studied music with private teachers in Leghorn, then for several years -attended the Milan Conservatory. In 1884 he was appointed conductor of -the municipal band in Cerignola. Meanwhile in 1880 he had completed his -first opera, _Pinotta_. Success as composer came later in 1890 with the -world première of the opera, _Cavalleria Rusticana_ in Rome. A sensation -when first introduced, _Cavalleria Rusticana_ made the rounds of the -world capitals to enjoy a triumph experienced by few operas before or -since. Mascagni wrote many operas after that. Though he enjoyed varying -degrees of success with _L’Amico Fritz_ in 1891 and _Iris_ in 1898, he -never again duplicated the acclaim given _Cavalleria Rusticana_; and it -is still the only one of his operas performed in the world’s foremost -opera houses. As he himself once said sadly: “It is a pity I wrote -_Cavalleria_ first. I was crowned before I became king.” Mascagni made -many tours as a conductor. He visited the United States in 1902 in -performances of several of his operas, and South America in 1911. In -1929 he succeeded Toscanini as musical director of La Scala in Milan. -Identifying himself closely with the Fascist regime—even to the point of -writing an opera, _Nerone_, glorifying Mussolini—Mascagni was subjected -to considerable abuse and attack after World War II. He was deprived of -his property and other assets. The last year of his life was lived in -poverty and disrepute in a small hotel room in Rome, where he died on -August 2, 1945. - -_Cavalleria Rusticana_ is a one-act opera, libretto by Giovanni -Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci based on a short story by Giovanni -Verga. The setting is Sicily in the latter part of the 19th century. -Turiddu, a soldier, is in love with Lola, wife of Alfio, a teamster. But -he has also conducted an illicit affair with Santuzza. When Turiddu -rudely rejects Santuzza, she finds revenge by revealing to Alfio the -love intrigue existing between Lola and Turiddu. In the duel that -follows Alfio kills Turiddu. - -The most celebrated single excerpt from the opera is the melodious -Intermezzo for orchestra which accompanies the departing townspeople as -they leave church after the Easter services. This music is radiant with -the holiness and serenity of the Easter holiday. - -Other popular excerpts include the lovely Siciliana, “_O Lola bianca_,” -a tenor aria which is sung offstage and breaks into the middle of the -opening orchestral prelude; this is a serenade by Turiddu to Lola, sung -to harp accompaniment. Santuzza’s passionate aria, “_Voi lo sapete_” is -the one in which she first discloses to Alfio that his wife and Turiddu -are lovers. Turiddu’s deeply emotional aria, “_Addio alla madre_” is his -poignant farewell to his mother just before he engages in the duel in -which he meets his doom. - - - - - Jules Massenet - - -Jules Massenet was born in Montaud in the Loire region of France on May -12, 1842. He entered the Paris Conservatory when he was nine, -subsequently winning prizes in fugue and piano playing and, in 1863, the -Prix de Rome. Four years later his first opera, _La Grand’ Tante_, was -produced in Paris. During the Franco-Prussian War he was a member of the -National Guard. After the war, he achieved recognition as a composer -with his incidental music to _Les Érynnies_, an oratorio _Marie -Magdaleine_, and an opera _Le Roi de Lahore_. In 1878 he was elected to -the Académie des Beaux-Arts, the youngest man ever to receive this -honor, and was appointed professor of composition at the Paris -Conservatory. He held the latter post until his death with outstanding -distinction. His most significant operas appeared between 1880 and 1900, -and included _Hérodiade_ (1881), _Manon_ (1884), _Le Cid_ (1885), -_Werther_ (1892), _Thaïs_ (1894) and _Sapho_ (1897). He died in Paris on -August 13, 1912. - -A style that had lyrical charm, tender feelings, and poetic content -placed Massenet with the foremost French composers for the lyric -theater. The same qualities are found to a large degree in his -instrumental compositions, and endow them with their immense audience -appeal. He had a vein of tenderness that was his uniquely, often -contrasting this with striking passion and intensity. A master of many -different moods and emotions, he was able to convey them in music that -is suave and polished in the best French tradition. - -_Alsatian Scenes_ (_Scènes alsaciennes_) is one of Massenet’s most -popular orchestral compositions. It is the seventh of his suites for -orchestra and was written in 1881. For each of its four movements the -composer provided an explicit program. About the first movement, “Sunday -Morning” (“_Dimanche matin_”) the composer writes: “I recall with -particular delight the Alsatian village Sunday morning at the hour of -divine service; the streets deserted, the houses empty except for the -elderly ones who sun themselves before their doors. The church is full, -and the sacred hymns are heard at intervals in passing.” “The Tavern” -(“_Au cabaret_”) is described as the happy meeting place of his friends -“with its little windows framed with lead, garlanded with hops and -roses.... ‘Ho, Schmidt, some wine!’ And the songs of the forest rangers -going to shooting matches. Oh, the joyous life and the gay companions!” -“Under the Linden Trees” (“_Sous les tilleuls_”) depicts pictorially -“the edge of the fields on a Sunday afternoon, the long avenue of linden -trees, in the shadow of which, hand in hand, quietly talks a pair of -lovers.” The suite ends with “Sunday Evening” (“_Dimanche soir: Air -alsacien, Retraite française_”). “In the market place, what noise, what -movement! Everyone at the doorsteps, groups of young gallants in the -streets, and dances which embody in rhythm the songs of the country. -Eight o’clock! The noise of the drums, the blare of the trumpets—’tis -the retreat! The French retreat! And when in the distance the sound of -the drum died down, the women called their children in the street, the -old men relighted their big old pipes, and to the sounds of violins the -dance is joyously recommenced in smaller circles, with couples closer.” - -The ballet music for _Le Cid_ is strikingly appealing for its exotic -melodies and lambent orchestral colors. This opera, text by Louis Gallet -and Edouard Blau, is based on Corneille’s tragedy; its première -performance took place in Paris on November 30, 1885. The setting is -12th century Burgos, in Spain, where Rodrigo called Le Cid, or The -Conqueror, kills Chimène’s father in a duel. She seeks vengeance but is -unable to carry it out because she has fallen in love with him. The -ballet music appears in the second scene of the second act. A public -square is alive and colorful with dancing crowds, and six dances are -performed in rapid succession, some with melodic and rhythmic material -derived by Massenet from Spanish folk sources. These are the dances: -“_Castillane_,” a highly rhythmic dance found in the Castille region of -Spain; “_Andalouse_,” a sinuous, gypsy-like dance from Andalusia; -“_Aragonaise_,” a dance popular in the Aragon district; “_Aubade_,” a -gentle lyrical section; “_Catalane_,” a dance popular in Catalonia; -“_Madrilène_,” a two-part dance from Madrid, the first quiet and -introspective, the second dynamic; and “_Navarraise_,” a dance from -Navarre. - -The popular “_Élégie_,” a plangent melody muted in its grief, comes from -the incidental music to _Les Érynnies_ with which Massenet first won -acclaim in 1873. The play, by Charles Marie Leconte based on Aeschylus, -was produced with Massenet’s music at the Odéon in Paris. Here the -“_Élégie_” appeared as “_Invocation_,” scored for string orchestra. -Later on Massenet arranged this section for cello and piano, and it was -upon this occasion that he renamed the piece _Élégie_. It was later on -also transcribed for violin and piano, and adapted into a song with -lyrics by E. Gallet. - -Three other sections from _Les Érynnies_ have almost as much emotional -appeal as the _Élégie_, but in varied moods. The “Entr’acte” is a -passionate song for unison violins over a disturbed accompaniment. -“Grecian Dance” begins with a vivacious dance tune for two flutes in -thirds. A slow dialogue ensues between oboes and clarinets, in which the -main subject has an Oriental identity. A fast section brings this -movement to a close. “_Scène religieuse_” is a graceful, at times -solemn, minuet in which a solo cello provides the main melody. - -The famous opera _Manon_ (1884) has two delightful dance episodes that -are particularly well known, a gavotte and a minuet. _Manon_ was based -on the famous tale of Abbé Prévost, _L’Histoire du chevalier des Grieux -et de Manon Lescaut_, adapted by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille. Its -setting is France in the 18th century, and in the spirit of that place -and time Massenet recreated two old-world dances, both of them appearing -in the first scene of the third act, during a festival-day celebration -in Paris. Before the curtain goes up, the graceful music of the minuet -is heard in the orchestra as an entr’acte. After the rise of the -curtain, and the appearance of Manon, she expresses her hedonistic -philosophy of life in a gavotte (“_Obéissons quand leur voix appelle_”). -This gavotte is often heard in an exclusively instrumental arrangement. - -The _Phèdre Overture_ (1876) is another of Massenet’s frequently -performed orchestral compositions. The music closely follows the action -of the Racine tragedy, in which Phedre—daughter of King Minos and wife -of Theseus—falls in love with Theseus’ son, Hippolytus, who fails to -respond to her passion. The overture begins in a gloomy mood, -forecasting ominously the imminent tragedy awaiting Phedre and -Hippolytus. Phedre’s grief over her unreciprocated love is suggested by -a passionate subject for clarinet; a second equally passionate melody -brings us the picture of Hippolytus sent to his doom by an irate father. -Violins in unison now bring us a rapturous melody speaking of Phedre’s -love, while a fiery dramatic section that follows tells of the doom -awaiting Hippolytus at the hands of Neptune. - -_Picturesque Scenes_ (_Scènes pittoresques_) is the fourth of Massenet’s -suites for orchestra, completed in 1873. There are four short, tuneful -sections: “March” (“_Marche_”), “Air de Ballet,” “Angelus” and “Bohemian -Festival” (“_Fête bohème_”). The religious music of the third movement, -“Angelus,” with its solemn tolling of bells, is the most popular section -of this suite, frequently performed separately from the other movements. - -Second only to the “_Élégie_” in popularity among Massenet’s best-loved -melodies is the “Meditation” which comes from the opera _Thaïs_. This -excerpt is an orchestral entr’acte with violin obbligato heard just -before the first scene of the second act. The opera, libretto by Louis -Gallet based on the novel of Anatole France, describes the degradation -of Athanaël, a Cenobite monk, because of his unholy passion for Thaïs, a -courtesan. The radiant music of the “Meditation” describes Thaïs’ -renunciation of a life of pleasure for one of the spirit. - - - - - Robert McBride - - -Robert Guyn McBride was born in Tucson, Arizona, on February 20, 1911. -As a boy he learned to play the clarinet and saxophone. He later played -both instruments in various dance orchestras. In 1933 he was graduated -from the University of Arizona, and a year after that received there his -Master’s degree. Having studied the oboe in college, he played that -instrument with the Tucson Symphony for several years. Then, after -additional study of the piano, composition and voice, he joined the -music faculty of Bennington College in Vermont in 1935, holding this -post eleven years. During this period he received a Guggenheim -Fellowship. In 1942, the American Academy of Arts and Letters awarded -him a prize for creating a “new idiom in American music.” McBride has -made successful use of jazz, popular and folk elements in serious -chamber-music and orchestral compositions. - -The _Mexican Rhapsody_ (1936) is one of McBride’s best known works for -orchestra. He wrote it in Arizona while studying at the University. It -was first presented in Tucson in a two-piano arrangement, then in its -definitive orchestral version, and finally as a choreographic -presentation. McBride here makes a colorful and freshly conceived -presentation of four Mexican folk songs familiar to many: “_El Rancho -Grande_,” “_Jarabe_” (or “Hat Dance”), “_Cuatro Milpas_,” and “_La -Cucaracha_.” - -McBride has written several interesting compositions in a jazz style. -One of the best is the _Strawberry Jam_ (1942). This is a caricature of -a jazzband jam session, but with the utilization of modern harmonies and -symphonic orchestration. _Stuff in G_, for orchestra (1942), is in the -racy, tuneful style of Tin Pan Alley, while _Swing Stuff_ (1941) brings -to the symphonic orchestra the improvisational devices and techniques -and the beat of Swing music. - - - - - Harl McDonald - - -Harl Mcdonald was born in Boulder, Colorado, on July 27, 1899. His music -study took place in Redlands, California and at the University of -Southern California. The winning of prizes from the American Federation -of Music Clubs for two orchestral works enabled him to go to Europe and -attend the Leipzig Conservatory. In Germany, his symphonic fantasy, -_Mojave_, was successfully introduced by the Berlin State Opera -Orchestra. After returning to the United States he was appointed in 1926 -to the music faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, where he later -became professor of music, and finally head of the music department. At -the University he conducted various choral groups which appeared with -the Philadelphia Orchestra. From 1939 until his death he was manager of -the Philadelphia Orchestra, which introduced many of his orchestral -compositions. McDonald wrote four symphonies, a two-piano concerto, a -violin concerto, and various suites and tone poems for orchestra. He -died in Princeton, New Jersey, on March 30, 1955. - -The _Children’s Symphony_ was a work intended to teach children -something about symphonic form through melodies they knew and loved. The -form of the symphony is adhered to—in the presentation of two themes, -their development, and recapitulation. Simple and unsophisticated, this -symphony makes ideal listening for children, but there is enough charm -here to provide considerable enjoyment to older people as well. In the -first movement, McDonald uses for his two main themes, “London Bridge” -and “Baa Baa Black Sheep.” In the second movement we hear “Little Bo -Peep” and “Oh, Dear, What Can the Matter Be?”; in the third, “Farmer in -the Dell” and “Jingle Bells”; and in the finale, “Honey Bee” and “Snow -Is Falling On My Garden.” - -_Rhumba_, for symphony orchestra, is the third movement of McDonald’s -Symphony No. 2 (1935). But this movement (which in the symphony -displaces the conventional scherzo) is so popular that it is often -played apart from the rest of the work. The symphony itself was inspired -by the turbulent 1930’s, with its labor conflicts, breadlines, -unemployment, and depression. _Rhumba_ injected a gay note into these -somber proceedings, attempting to interpret “the passionate search after -good times and diversions, and the restless pursuit of intoxicated -pleasures,” as the composer explained. McDonald goes on to say that he -here used the rumba rhythm because he liked it and because it seemed to -him to be the pulse of those times. - - - - - Felix Mendelssohn - - -Felix Mendelssohn-bartholdy was born in Hamburg, Germany, on February 3, -1809. His grandfather was the famous philosopher, Moses Mendelssohn; his -father, a successful banker. Both were of Jewish origin. When Felix was -still a boy, however, his immediate family was converted to -Protestantism, the occasion upon which they added the name of -“Bartholdy” to their own to distinguish them from the other members of -their family. A pupil of Ludwig Berger and Karl Friedrich Zelter, Felix -was extraordinarily precocious in music. When he was seven and a half he -made a successful appearance as pianist in Berlin; by the time he was -twelve he had already written operas and symphonies; and in his -seventeenth year he produced an unqualified masterwork in the _Overture -to A Midsummer Night’s Dream_. In 1827, one of his operas was produced -in Berlin, but by that time he had already completed thirteen symphonies -and a library of chamber music as well. - -In 1829, Mendelssohn conducted in Berlin the first performance of Bach’s -_Passion According to St. Matthew_ to be given since Bach’s own day. -This concert became a powerful influence in reviving interest in Bach’s -music, which at that time had been languishing in both neglect and -obscurity. A few weeks after Mendelssohn had directed a repeat -performance, he made his first trip to England where he led the première -of a new symphony and was made honorary member of the Royal -Philharmonic. A tour of Scotland that followed immediately was the -inspiration for his overture, _Fingal’s Cave_. - -In 1833, Mendelssohn served as musical director of the city of -Duesseldorf. He held this post only six months. Much more significant -was his engagement as the principal conductor of the Gewandhaus -Orchestra in Leipzig in 1835 which, during the five years of his -leadership, was elevated to a position of first importance among the -world’s symphony orchestras. - -In 1841, Mendelssohn became head of the music department of a projected -Academy of Arts in Berlin. This appointment did not prevent him from -visiting England where he was received with an adulation accorded to no -foreign musician since Handel. Returning to Berlin he found that the -Academy of Arts project had been abandoned. He was now made -Kapellmeister to the King, an honorary post allowing him complete -freedom of activity and movement. During the next few years he conducted -concerts of the Gewandhaus Orchestra, and paid two more highly -successful visits to England. He was also instrumental in helping to -found the Leipzig Conservatory in 1843. Always of delicate health and -sensibilities, Mendelssohn collapsed at the news that his beloved -sister, Fanny, died in 1847. He died in Leipzig soon after that, on -November 4, 1847. - -The finest qualities of German Romantic music can be found in -Mendelssohn. He had the Romantic’s partiality for fantasy and the -supernatural, together with the lightness of touch with which to create -such worlds through music. He had the Romantic’s gift for translating -natural scenes, landscapes and lyric poetry into sensitive tone -pictures. He had a most winning lyricism and graceful harmonic and -orchestral gift, and he never lacked the ability to charm and enchant -his listeners with the most tender and lovable musical expression. Other -composers may have written profounder or more emotionally stirring music -than Mendelssohn; but no one could be more ingratiating, sensitive, or -refined. Some of Mendelssohn’s serious symphonic works are so full of -the most wonderful melodies and beguiling moods that they have the -universal appeal of semi-classics. - -The concert overture, _Fingal’s Cave_, or as it is also sometimes known, -_Hebrides Overture_, op. 26 (1832) was inspired by the composer’s visit -to the Scottish Highlands in 1830. The opening theme in lower strings -and bassoons suggests the roll of the waves at the mouth of a cave, a -melody that came to the composer while visiting the caves of Staffa. -This idea is developed, then a second beautiful melody unfolds in cellos -and bassoons. - -The orchestral suite, _A Midsummer Night’s Dream_, op. 61 is derived -from the incidental music comprising thirteen numbers which Mendelssohn -wrote for a Potsdam production of the Shakespeare comedy in 1843; the -Overture, however, was a fruit of the composer’s youth, having been -written in 1826. The magic world of fairies and elves which Mendelssohn -projected so delicately in his youthful overture is preserved in many of -the numbers he wrote seventeen years later. The Overture, op. 21, is -initiated with four sensitive chords, and proceeds with fleeting, -diaphanous music for strings with which we are suddenly plunged in -fairyland. The main thematic material to follow comprises a haunting -song for horn, a romantic episode for woodwind and strings, and a -sprightly fairy dance for strings. - -Three other musical sections from this incidental music, and basic to -the orchestral suite, are famous. The “Nocturne” is a broad, moody song -for horns. The “Scherzo”—like the Overture—is a picture of the world of -fairies, gnomes and elves, though in a more energetic and spirited vein. -The “Wedding March” is now one of the most frequently played pieces of -wedding music, second in popularity only to Wagner’s wedding music from -_Lohengrin_; it first became popular as wedding music at the nuptials of -the English Princess in London in 1858. A trumpet fanfare leads to the -dignified march melody which is twice alternated with melodious trio -sections. - -“On Wings of Song” (“_Auf Fluegeln des Gesanges_”), op. 34, no. 2 (1834) -is Mendelssohn’s best-known song, a melody of incomparable loveliness -and serenity. The poem is by Heine. Franz Liszt transcribed it for -piano; Joseph Achron for violin and piano; Lionel Tertis for viola and -piano. It has also enjoyed various orchestral transcriptions. - -_Ruy Blas_, op. 95 (1839)—like _Fingal’s Cave_—is a concert overture for -orchestra; here the inspiration is the drama of Victor Hugo. Four solemn -bars for wind instruments lead to the principal subject, first violins -and flutes; clarinets, bassoons, and cellos later offer the second -contrasting staccato theme. - -The _Spinning Song_ and the _Spring Song_ are both instrumental -favorites, and both come from the _Songs Without Words_ (_Lieder ohne -Worte_), for solo piano. The form of “song without words” is a creation -of Mendelssohn: a brief composition of such essentially lyric character -that it is virtually a “song” for the piano. Mendelssohn wrote -forty-eight such pieces gathered in eight books. The _Spinning Song_ in -C major appears in op. 67 as the fourth number (1844). This is a tender -melody placed against a rhythmic background suggesting the whirring of a -spinning wheel. The _Spring Song_ in A major is surely one of the most -familiar tonal pictures of the vernal season to be found in the -semi-classical literature; it appears in op. 62 (1842) as the concluding -number. Both the _Spinning Song_ and _Spring Song_ appear in all kinds -and varieties of transcriptions. - -The stirring _War March of the Priests_ is a number from the incidental -music for Racine’s drama, _Athalie_, op. 74 (1843); this incidental -music was first performed with the Racine play in Berlin in 1845. - - - - - Giacomo Meyerbeer - - -Giacomo Meyerbeer was born in Berlin, Germany, on September 5, 1791. His -name, at birth, was Jakob Liebmann Beer. When Meyer, a rich relative, -left him a legacy, he decided to change his name to Meyerbeer; some -years later upon initiating a career as composer of Italian operas he -Italianized his name. His music study took place with Clementi, Zelter, -Anselm Weber and Vogler, the last of whom encouraged him to write his -first opera, _Jephtha’s Vow_ (_Jephtha’s Geluebde_), a failure when -first performed in Munich in 1812. A second opera, performed in -Stuttgart, was also a failure; Meyerbeer now seriously entertained the -thought of abandoning composition altogether. The noted Viennese -composer and teacher, Antonio Salieri, however, convinced him what he -needed was more study. This took place in Italy where for several years -Meyerbeer assimilated Italian traditions of opera. His first endeavor in -this style was _Romilda e Costanza_, a success when introduced in Padua -in 1817. During the next few years Meyerbeer wrote several more operas, -some of them on commission, and became one of Italy’s most highly -regarded composers for the stage. In 1826, Meyerbeer settled in Paris -where association with composers like Cherubini and Halévy, made him -impatient with the kind of operas he had thus far created. In 1831, with -_Robert le Diable_, he entered upon a new artistic phase in which -Italian methods, procedures and traditions were discarded in favor of -the French. _Robert le Diable_, produced at the Opera on November 21, -1831 was a sensation. Meyerbeer continued writing operas in the French -style for the remainder of his life. These are the operas by which he is -most often represented in the world’s opera theaters: _Les Huguenots_ -(1836), _Le Prophète_ (1849), and _L’Africaine_ (1865). Meyerbeer died -in Paris on May 2, 1864. - -Meyerbeer was an exponent of drama in the grand style, his finest operas -being filled with big climactic scenes, elaborate stage effects, and -eye-filling visual displays. But he also had a pronounced dramatic gift, -one which evoked from Wagner the highest admiration; and a pronounced -expressiveness of lyricism. - -_L’Africaine_ (_The African_) is Meyerbeer’s last opera, and many -regarded it as his best. He completed it in 1864 just before his death, -and its world première at the Paris Opera took place posthumously on -April 28, 1865. The text, by Eugène Scribe, is set in Lisbon and -Madagascar in the 15th century. The main action concerns the love of -Selika, an African queen, for the Portuguese explorer, Vasco da Gama; Da -Gama in turn is loved by Inez, daughter of Don Diego. Selika offers the -explorer a secret route to the land of which she is queen, Madagascar, -and with which Da Gama becomes enraptured. But when Inez appears, he -abandons Selika for her, and leaves the magic island. Heartbroken, -Selika kills herself by breathing the deadly fragrance of a manchineel -tree. - -The opera’s most popular excerpt is Vasco da Gama’s rapturous tenor aria -from the fourth act in which he describes the beauty of Madagascar, “_O -Paradis_.” Another vocal favorite is the baritone ballad of Nelusko, -slave of Selika, “_Adamastor, roi des vagues profondes_”; as he steers -the ship bearing Selika and Vasco da Gama to Madagascar he sings of -Adamastor, monarch of the sea, who sends ships to their doom on -treacherous reefs. - -The _Coronation March_ (_Marche du couronnement_)—music of pomp and -circumstance—comes from the opera _Le Prophète_, first performed at the -Paris Opéra on April 16, 1849. Eugène Scribe’s libretto is based on an -actual historical episode in 16th century Holland centered around the -Anabaptist uprising, with John of Leyden, leader of the Anabaptists, as -the principal character. In Act four, scene two, John is being crowned -king outside the Muenster Cathedral. As a magnificent royal procession -enters the Cathedral, the music of the _Coronation March_ matches in -splendor and grandeur the visual majesty of this scene. Another popular -musical excerpt for orchestra from this opera is Prelude to Act 3, a -colorful and rhythmic Quadrille that leads into the opening scene of -that act, providing the lively musical background for a ballet and -ice-carnival skating scene. Liszt made a technically brilliant -transcription for the piano of this Quadrille music. - -_Les Huguenots_ (_The Huguenots_) was first performed at the Paris Opéra -on February 29, 1836, the year it was completed; the libretto was by -Eugène Scribe and Émile Deschamps. In 16th century Touraine and Paris, -Raoul, a Huguenot nobleman, has saved the life of Valentine, daughter of -the Catholic leader, St. Bris. She falls in love with Raoul, but the -latter repudiates her, believing her to be the mistress of Count de -Nevers. When he discovers he has been mistaken, Raoul risks his life to -see her. During this visit he overhears a Catholic plot to massacre the -Huguenots. After Raoul and Valentine get married, they are both murdered -in the massacre—Valentine by her own father. - -The Overture to _Les Huguenots_ is built almost entirely from the melody -of the famous Lutheran chorale, _Ein’ feste Burg_, which in the opera -itself served as the musical symbol for militant Protestantism. The -outstanding individual excerpts from the opera include Raoul’s beautiful -romance from Act 1 describing the woman he has saved, “_Plus blanche que -la blanche hermine_”; the rhapsodic description in the second act of the -Touraine countryside by Marguerite de Valois, betrothed to Henry IV of -Navarre, “_O beau pays de la Touraine_”; and in the fourth act the -stirring “Benediction of the Swords,” (“_Gloire au grand Dieu vengeur_”) -with which the Catholics are blessed by three monks on the eve of their -holy war against the Huguenots. - -The exciting _Torch Dance_, No. 1, in B-flat is not from one of -Meyerbeer’s operas. It was written in 1846 for the wedding of the King -of Bavaria, and originally was scored for brass band. It is now most -frequently heard in orchestral adaptations. Meyerbeer subsequently wrote -two other _Torch Dances_: the second in 1850 for the wedding of Princess -Charlotte of Prussia, and the third in 1853 for the wedding of Princess -Anne of Prussia. - - - - - Karl Milloecker - - -Karl Milloecker was born in Vienna, Austria, on May 29, 1842. His -father, a jeweler, wanted him to enter the family business, but from his -childhood on, Karl was drawn to music. After studying music with private -teachers, he attended the Conservatory of the Gesellschaft der -Musikfreunde. Meanwhile, in his sixteenth year, he supported himself by -playing the flute in a theater orchestra. When his music study ended, he -became conductor of a theater in Graz in 1864; there his first operetta -was produced one year later. In 1866 he was back in Vienna, and from -1869 to 1883 he was principal conductor at the Theater-an-der-Wien where -most of his famous operettas were produced including _Countess Du Barry_ -(_Graefin DuBarry_) in 1879, _The Beggar Student_ (_Der Bettelstudent_) -in 1882, _Gasparone_ in 1884, and _Poor Jonathan_ (_Der arme Jonathan_) -in 1890. Milloecker died in Baden, near Vienna, on December 31, 1899. - -Milloecker’s most famous operetta is _The Beggar Student_ (_Der -Bettelstudent_), which was first produced at the Theater-an-der-Wien in -Vienna on December 6, 1882, and after that enjoyed highly successful -performances at the Casino Theater in New York in 1883, and the Alhambra -in London in 1884. The scene is Cracow, Poland; the time, 1704. General -Ollendorf, spurned by Laura, evolves an elaborate plot to avenge -himself. He finances the impoverished student, Symon, dresses him up as -a lord, and sends him off to woo and win Laura. Only after the wedding -does the General reveal the fact that Symon is a beggar. Just as -disgrace faces the young man, he becomes involved in a successful -maneuver to restore the rejected Polish king to his throne. Thus he -acquires wealth and a title, and is welcomed with pride and love by -Laura and her mother. Potpourris and selections from this tuneful -operetta always include the principal waltz melody which comes as a -first act finale, “_Ach ich hab’ sie ja nur auf die Schulter gekuesst_.” -Other delightful excerpts include Symon’s mazurka, “_Ich knuepfte manche -zarte Bande_,” his lament “_Ich hab’ kein Geld_,” and the second act -duet of Symon and Laura, “_Ich setz den Fall_.” - - - - - Moritz Moszkowski - - -Moritz Moszkowski was born in Breslau, Germany, on August 23, 1854. He -received his musical training at three leading German Conservatories: -the Dresden Conservatory, the Stern Conservatory and Kullak Academy in -Berlin. He began a career as pianist in 1873, touring Europe with -outstanding success. He also achieved recognition as a teacher of the -piano at the Kullak Academy. In 1897, he went into retirement in Paris -where he lived for the remainder of his life. In 1899 he was elected a -member of the Berlin Academy. Towards the end of his life his financial -resources were completely depleted, and his fame as composer, pianist, -and teacher had long been eclipsed. He died in poverty and obscurity in -Paris on March 4, 1925. - -Though he wrote operas, ballets, suites, concertos and a symphony, -Moszkowski was at his best—and is most famous today—for his lighter -music in a Spanish idiom. Typical of his music in this style were the -rhythmic _Bolero_, op. 12, no. 5, for piano solo; the languorous and -haunting _Guitarre_, op. 45, no. 2, for piano solo (transcribed by Pablo -de Sarasate for violin and piano); and the dashing _Malagueña_, from the -opera _Boabdil_. - -But his most celebrated compositions are the delightful _Spanish -Dances_, opp. 12, and 65, two books of pieces for piano solo or piano -duo, which have been arranged for orchestra. The most popular are the -first in C major, the second in G minor, and the fifth (a bolero) in D -major. While none of these dances can be accepted as authentic Spanish -music—actually they are only a German Romantic’s conception of what -Spanish music is—they make most effective use of Spanish dance rhythms. - - - - - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - - -Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria, on January 27, -1756. The son of Leopold, Kapellmeister at the court of the Salzburg -Archbishop, Wolfgang Amadeus disclosed his remarkable musical powers at -a tender age. He began composition at the age of five, completed a piano -sonata at seven, and a symphony at eight. Taught the harpsichord, also -very early in his childhood, he revealed such phenomenal abilities at -improvisation and sight reading that he was the wonder and awe of all -who came into contact with him. His ambitious father exhibited this -formidable prodigy for several years before the crowned heads of Europe; -and wherever he appeared the child was acclaimed. Goethe said: “A -phenomenon like that of Mozart remains an inexplicable thing.” In Milan -in 1770 he was commissioned to write an opera _Mitridate, rè di Ponto_, -successfully performed that year. In Bologna he became the only musician -under the age of twenty to be elected a member of the renowned Accademia -Filarmonica. And in Rome he provided dramatic evidence of his -extraordinary natural gifts by putting down on paper the entire complex -score of Allegri’s _Miserere_ after a single hearing. - -As he outgrew childhood he ripened as a composer, gaining all the time -in both technical and creative powers. But he was a prodigy no more, and -though he was rapidly becoming one of the most profound and original -musicians in Europe he was unable to attract the adulation and -excitement that had once been his. Between 1772 and 1777, as an employee -in the musical establishment of the Salzburg Archbishop, he was treated -like a menial servant. The remarkable music he was writing all the time -passed unnoticed. Finally, in 1782, he made a permanent break with the -Archbishop and established his home in Vienna where he lived for the -remainder of his life. Though he received some important commissions, -and enjoyed several triumphs for his operas, he did not fare any too -well in Vienna either. He had to wait several years for a court -appointment, and when it finally came in 1787 he was deplorably -underpaid. Thus he lived in poverty, often dependent for food and other -necessities of life on the generosity of his friends. And yet the -masterworks kept coming in every conceivable medium—operas, symphonies, -sonatas, quartets, concertos, choral music and so forth. A few people in -Vienna were aware of his prodigious achievements, and one of these was -Joseph Haydn who called him “the greatest composer I know either -personally or by name.” During the last years of his life Mozart was -harassed not only by poverty but also by severe illness. Yet his last -year was one of his most productive, yielding his last three symphonies, -the _Requiem_, the opera _The Magic Flute_ (_Die Zauberfloete_), the -_Ave Verum_, and a remarkable piano concerto and string quintet. He died -in Vienna on December 5, 1791 and was buried in a pauper’s grave with no -tombstone or cross for identification. - -Through his genius every form of music was endowed with new grandeur, -nobility of expression and richness of thought. He was a technician -second to none; a bold innovator; a creator capable of plumbing the -profoundest depths of emotion and the most exalted heights of -spirituality. Yet he could also be simple and charming and graceful, in -music remarkably overflowing with the most engaging melodies conceived -by man, and characterized by the most exquisite taste and the most -consummate craftsmanship. Thus Mozart’s lighter moods in music are often -also endowed with extraordinary creative resources and original -invention; yet they never lose their capacity to delight audiences at -first contact. - -The music Mozart wrote directly for popular consumption were the hundred -or so _Dances_ for orchestra: _Country Dances_, _German Dances_, -_Minuets_. The greatest number of these consist of the _German Dances_. -These are lively melodies in eight-measure phrases and with forceful -peasant rhythms. Some of the best _German Dances_ are those in which -Mozart utilized unusual orchestral resources or instruments to suggest -extra-musical sounds. _The Sleighride_ (_Die Schlittenfahrt_), K. 605, -in C major, simulates the sound of sleigh bells in the middle trio -section, sounded in the tones A-F-E-C. _The Organgrinder_ (_Der -Leiermann_), K. 602, imitates the sound of a hurdy-gurdy. In _The -Canary_ (_Der Kanarienvogel_), K. 571, flutes reproduce the chirping of -birds. - -The _Country Dance_, or _Contretanze_, is sometimes regarded as the -first modern dance, forerunner of the quadrille. Structurally and -stylistically these are very much like _German Dances_ with a -peasant-like vitality and earthiness. Here, too, Mozart sometimes -realistically imitates non-musical sounds as in _The Thunder Storm_ -(_Das Donnerwetter_), K. 534, in which the role of the timpani suggests -peals of thunder. - -Mozart’s most popular Minuet—indeed, it is probably one of the most -popular minuets ever written—comes from his opera _Don Giovanni_, -libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte, and first performed in Prague in 1787. The -hero of this opera is, to be sure, the Spanish nobleman of the 17th -century whose escapades and licentious life finally bring him to doom at -the hands of the statue of the Commandant come to life to consign him to -the fires of hell. The Minuet appears in the fifth scene of the first -act. Don Giovanni is the gracious host of a party held in his palace, -and there the guests dance a courtly minuet while Don himself is making -amatory overtures to Zerlina. - -In a lighter mood, also, is the _Eine kleine Nachtmusik_ (_A Little -Night Music_), K. 525, a serenade for string orchestra (1787). This work -is consistently tuneful, gracious, charming. The first movement has two -lilting little melodies, which are presented and recapitulated with no -formal development to speak of. The second movement is a Romance, or -Romanza, a poetic song contrasted by two vigorous sections; the main -thought of this movement is then repeated between each of these two -vigorous parts. After that comes a formal minuet, and the work ends with -a brisk and sprightly rondo. - -Mozart’s popular _Turkish March_—in the pseudo Turkish style so popular -in Vienna in his day—comes out of his piano Sonata in A major, K. 331 -(1778), where it appears as the last movement. This march is extremely -popular in orchestral transcription. - - - - - Modest Mussorgsky - - -Modest Mussorgsky was born in Karevo, Russia, on March 21, 1839. When he -was thirteen he entered the cadet school of the Imperial Guard in St. -Petersburg, from which he was graduated to join the Guard regiment. In -1857 he met and befriended several important Russian musicians -(including Balakirev and Stassov) under whose stimulus he decided to -leave the army and become a composer. Until now his musical education -had been sporadic, having consisted of little more than some piano -lessons with his mother and a private teacher. He now began an intensive -period of study with Balakirev, under whose guidance he completed a -_Scherzo_ for orchestra which was performed in St. Petersburg in 1860, -as well as some piano music and the fragments of a symphony. Associating -himself with Balakirev, Rimsky-Korsakov, Borodin, and Cui he now became -a passionate advocate of musical nationalism, becoming the fifth member -of a new school of Russian music henceforth identified as “The Mighty -Five” or “The Russian Five.” In 1863, with serfdom abolished in Russia, -he lost the outside financial resources he had thus far enjoyed as the -son of a landowner. To support himself he worked for four years as a -clerk in the Ministry of Communications; in 1869 he found employment in -the forestry department. During this period music had to be relegated to -the position of an avocation, but composition was not abandoned. He -completed the first of his masterworks, the orchestral tone poem, _A -Night on the Bald Mountain_, in 1866. A lifelong victim of nervous -disorders, melancholia and subsequently of alcoholism, his health soon -began to deteriorate alarmingly; but despite this fact he was able to -complete several works of crowning significance in 1874 including his -folk opera, _Boris Godunov_, and his _Pictures at an Exhibition_, for -piano. After 1874 his moral and physical disintegration became complete; -towards the last months of his life he gave indications of losing his -mind. He died in St. Petersburg on March 28, 1881. - -As one of the most forceful and original members of the “Russian Five” -Mussorgsky’s greatest works certainly do not lend themselves to popular -distribution. His writing is too individual in its melodic and harmonic -construction; and his works show too great a tendency towards musical -realism to make for palatable digest. However, several of the folk -dances in his operas are strikingly effective for their rhythmic pulse -and national colors and are by no means as elusive in their appeal as -the rest of his production. - -Mussorgsky’s masterwork is his mighty folk opera, _Boris Godunov_, where -we encounter one such delightful dance episode, the Polonaise. _Boris -Godunov_, libretto by the composer based on a Pushkin drama, traces the -career of the Czar from the years 1598 to 1605, from his coronation to -his insanity and death. The Polonaise occurs in the first scene of the -third act. At the palace of a Polish landowner, handsomely costumed -guests perform this festive courtly dance in the adjoining garden. The -première of _Boris Godunov_ took place in St. Petersburg on February 8, -1874. - -Two orchestral dances can also be found in another of Mussorgky’s folk -operas, _The Fair at Sorochinsk_, which was not introduced until October -26, 1917, in St. Petersburg. The libretto was by the composer based on -Gogol’s story, _Evenings on a Farm Near Dikanka_. Tcherevik, a peasant, -wants his daughter to marry Pritzko, whereas the peasant’s wife is -partial to the pastor’s son. However, when the pastor’s son compromises -the peasant’s wife she realizes that Pritzko is, after all, the right -man for her daughter. In the third act of this opera comes the lively -_Hopak_, or _Gopak_, a folk dance with two beats to a measure. - -Folk dances of a completely different nature—more oriental and exotic -than the previously discussed Russian variety—will be found in -_Khovanschina_, a musical drama with libretto by the composer and -Stassov; this opera was first given, in an amateur performance, in St. -Petersburg on February 21, 1886. Here the setting is Moscow during the -reign of Peter the Great, and the plot revolves around the efforts of a -band of radicals known as the Streltsy who try to overthrow the Czar. -Prince Ivan Khovantsky, who is in league with the Streltsy, is murdered -by assassins, and the insurrection is suppressed. But before the leaders -of the Streltsy can destroy themselves they are given an official pardon -by the Czar. A high moment in this opera comes with the _Dances of the -Persian Slaves_, which takes place in the first scene of the fourth act. -At the country house of Khovantsky, the Prince is being entertained by -an elaborate spectacle, the main attraction of which is the sinuous, -Corybantic dancing of the Persian slaves. - -Almost as popular as these Persian dances are the Prelude to the first -act and an entr’acte between the first and second scenes from this -opera; these two episodes for orchestra are highly atmospheric, graphic -in the pictures of Russian landscapes. The first act Prelude has been -named by the composer, _Dawn on the Moskava River_. This is a subtle -tone picture made up of a folk melody and five variations. The entr’acte -offers another kind of landscape, this time a bleak one describing the -vast, lonely plains of Siberia. - - - - - Ethelbert Nevin - - -Ethelbert Woodbridge Nevin was born in Edgeworth, Pennsylvania, on -November 25, 1862. A precocious child in music, he wrote his first piano -piece when he was eleven. A year later he wrote and had published a song -that became exceedingly popular, “Good Night, Good Night Beloved.” After -studying music with private teachers, he went to Berlin in 1884, -studying for two years with Hans von Buelow and Karl Klindworth. He -returned to the United States in 1886. Soon after that he made his -formal American concert debut as pianist with a program on which he -included some of his own compositions. By 1890 he decided to give up his -career as a virtuoso and to concentrate on being a composer. In 1891 he -completed _Water Scenes_, a suite for the piano in which will be found -one of the most popular piano pieces by an American, “Narcissus.” In -1892 and again 1895 Nevin traveled extensively through Europe and -Morocco. In 1897 he settled in New York City where he wrote one of the -best-selling art songs by an American, “The Rosary.” In 1900 Nevin went -to live in New Haven. During the last year of his life he was a victim -of depressions which he tried to alleviate through excessive drinking. -He died of an apoplectic stroke in New Haven, Connecticut, on February -17, 1901. - -“Mighty Lak a Rose” and “The Rosary” are Nevin’s two most famous art -songs; they are also among the most popular art songs written in -America. “Mighty Lak a Rose” was one of Nevin’s last compositions, -written during the closing months of his life. He never lived to see the -song published and become popular. The song is a setting of a poem by -Frank L. Stanton, and is described by John Trasker Howard (Nevin’s -biographer) as “probably the simplest of all his songs ... [with] a -freshness and whimsical tenderness that make its appeal direct and -forceful.” - -“The Rosary,” words by R. C. Rogers, was an even greater success. From -1898 to 1928 it sold over two and a half million copies of sheet music. -When Nevin had finished writing this song in 1898, he invited the singer -Francis Rogers to dinner, after which he handed him a scribbled piece of -music paper. “Here is a song I just composed,” he told Rogers. “I want -you to sing it at your concert next week.” Rogers deciphered the notes -as best he could while Nevin played the accompaniment from memory. The -little audience listening to this first informal presentation of “The -Rosary” was enthusiastic, but one of its members insisted it would be -impossible for Rogers to memorize the song in time for the concert the -following week. The guest bet Nevin a champagne supper for all present -that the song would not be on Rogers’ program. He lost the bet. The -following week, on February 15, 1898, Rogers introduced the song at the -Madison Square Concert Hall. - -The _Water Scenes_, suite for piano, op. 13 is remembered principally -because one of its movements is “Narcissus,” often considered one of the -most popular compositions ever written in this country. Nevin himself -provided information about the origin of “Narcissus.” “I remembered -vaguely that there was once a Grecian lad who had something to do with -the water and who was called Narcissus. I rummaged about my old -mythology and read the story over again. The theme, or rather both -themes, came as I read. I went directly to my desk and wrote out the -whole composition. Afterwards, I rewrote it and revised it a little. The -next morning I sent it to my publishers. Until the proofs came back to -me I never tried it on the piano. I left almost immediately for Europe -and was surprised when a publisher wrote to me of the astonishing sale -of the piece.” During Nevin’s lifetime, the piece sold over 125,000 -copies of sheet music, and was heard throughout America both in its -original piano version (a favorite repertory number of piano students -and budding piano virtuosos) and in transcriptions. It went on to circle -the globe. As Vance Thompson wrote: “It was thrummed and whistled half -around the world. It was played in Cairo as in New York and Paris; it -was played by orchestras, on church organs, and on the mouth harps of -Klondike miners; it became a mode, almost a mania.” - -The other movements of _Water Scenes_ are: “Barcarolle,” “Dragon Fly,” -“Water Nymph,” “At Twilight,” and “Ophelia.” Each is a sensitive piece -of tone painting, as lyrical and as unashamedly sentimental as the -beloved “Narcissus.” - - - - - Otto Nicolai - - -Otto Nicolai was born in Koenigsberg, Germany, on June 9, 1810. After -completing his music study with Zelter and Bernhard Klein, he came to -Paris in 1830 where he remained three years. In Berlin he completed -several works for orchestra, and some for chorus. In 1834 he went to -Italy where he was organist in the Prussian Embassy at Rome and became -interested in opera. From 1837 to 1838 he was principal conductor at the -Kaerthnerthor Theater in Vienna. Then he returned to Italy to devote -himself to the writing of operas, the first of which, _Rosmonda -d’Inghilterra_ was a failure when produced in Turin in 1838. His second -opera, however, was a major success when first given in Turin in 1840: -_Il Templario_ based on Sir Walter Scott’s _Ivanhoe_; it was produced in -Naples and Vienna. In 1841 Nicolai came to Vienna to serve for six years -as Kapellmeister to the court. During this period, in 1842, he helped to -found the renowned Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1847 he came to -Berlin to become conductor of the Domchor. It was here that he completed -the work upon which his reputation rests, the comic opera, _The Merry -Wives of Windsor_ (_Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor_). He died in Berlin -of an apoplectic stroke on May 11, 1849, only two months after the -première performance of his famous comic opera. - -_The Merry Wives of Windsor_ (_Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor_) is -Nicolai’s only opera to survive; and its overture is his only work for -orchestra which retains its popularity. The opera received a highly -successful première in Berlin on March 8, 1849. Its libretto, by Hermann -Salomon Mosenthal, is based on Shakespeare’s comedy and follows that -play with only minor modifications. Falstaff’s cronies (Bardolph, Pistol -and Nym) are omitted; only slight reference is made to the love of Anne -and Fenton; and considerable attention is paid to Falstaff’s comical -amatory overtures to Mistresses Ford and Page. - -The overture opens with a slow introduction in which a flowing melody is -given against a high G in the violins. This melody is repeated by -several different sections of the orchestra, then treated in imitation. -The main part of the overture is made up of two vivacious melodies, the -second of which, in the violins, is intended to depict Mistress Page. -The development of both themes is in a gay mood, with a robust passage -in F minor representing Falstaff. The overture concludes with an -animated coda. - -From the opera itself come three melodious vocal selections, prominent -in all orchestral potpourris: Falstaff’s drinking song, a long time -favorite of German bassos, “_Als Bueblein klein_”; Fenton’s serenade to -Anne Page, “_Horch, die Lerche singt in Haim_”; and Mistress Page’s -third-act ballad of Herne the Hunter. - - - - - Siegfried Ochs - - -Siegfried Ochs was born in Frankfort on the Main, Germany, on April 19, -1858. While studying medicine, he attended the Berlin High School for -Music. Then deciding upon music as a life’s career, he continued his -music study with private teachers and became a protégé of Hans von -Buelow. In 1882 he founded the Philharmonic Choir of Berlin, one of -Germany’s most celebrated choral groups. He remained its conductor even -after it merged with the chorus of the Berlin High School for Music in -1920. Ochs died in Berlin on February 6, 1929. - -Ochs wrote several comic operas, song cycles, and some choral music. A -semi-classical favorite is the set of orchestral variations on the -well-known German folk song, “_Kommt ein Vogel_.” These variations are -each in the style of a famous composer—Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, -Johann Strauss II, and so on; and each variation shows a remarkable -skill, and a winning wit, in mimicking the individual creative -mannerisms and idiosyncrasies of each composer. - - - - - Jacques Offenbach - - -Jacques Offenbach was born Jacques Oberst in Cologne, Germany, on June -20, 1819; his father was a cantor in one of the city synagogues. After -attending the Paris Conservatory, Offenbach played the cello in the -orchestra of the Opéra-Comique. Then, in 1849 he became conductor at the -Théâtre Français. In 1850 he achieved his initial success as a composer -with the song, “_Chanson de Fortunio_” interpolated into a production of -the Alfred de Musset drama, _Chandelier_. Three years later his first -operetta, _Pepito_, was produced at the Théâtre des Variétés. Between -1855 and 1866 he directed his own theater where operettas were given, -Les Bouffes Parisiens, which opened on July 5, 1855 with a performance -of one of his own works, _Les Deux aveugles_. For his theater Offenbach -wrote many operettas including his masterwork in that genre, _Orpheus in -the Underworld_, in 1858. After closing down the Bouffes Parisiens, -Offenbach went to Germany and Austria where he had produced several more -of his operettas. But in 1864 he was back in Paris. The première of _La -Belle Hélène_ at the Variétés that year enjoyed a spectacular success. -Among his later operettas were _La Vie parisienne_ (1866), _La Grande -Duchesse de Gérolstein_ (1867), and _La Périchole_ (1868). In 1877 he -toured the United States, an account of which was issued in America in -1957 under the title of _Orpheus in America_. Towards the end of his -life Offenbach devoted himself to the writing of his one and only grand -opera, _The Tales of Hoffmann_ (_Les Contes d’Hoffmann_). He did not -live to see it performed. He died in Paris on October 5, 1880, about -half a year before the première of his opera at the Opéra-Comique on -February 10, 1881. - -Offenbach was the genius of the opéra-bouffe, or French operetta. His -music never lacked spontaneity or gaiety, sparkle or engaging lyricism. -His writing had the warmth of laughter, the sting of satire, and the -caress of sincere and heartfelt emotion. His lovable melodies woo and -win the listener. The lightness of his touch and the freshness of his -humor give voice to the joy of good living. Like his celebrated Viennese -contemporary, Johann Strauss II, Offenbach is a giant figure in -semi-classical music. To the lighter musical repertory he brings the -invention and imagination of a master. - -The _Apache Dance_ is the dashing music that invariably accompanies a -performance of French Apache dances, though there are few that know -Offenbach wrote it. Actually, the _Apache Dance_ is an adaptation of the -main melody of a waltz (“_Valse des Papillons_”) from Offenbach’s comic -opera, _Le Roi Carotte_ (1872). - -_La Belle Hélène_ (_Fair Helen_), first performed in Paris on December -17, 1864, draws material for laughter and satire from mythology. Henri -Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy prepared the text which is based on the love -of Paris and Helen that led to the Trojan war. But this story is told -with tongue-in-cheek frivolity, and the life of the Greeks is gaily -parodied. One of the most familiar musical excerpts from _La Belle -Hélène_ is whirling Can-Can music—the Can-Can being the voluptuous -French dance which first became popular in Paris in 1830 and which -contributed to the quadrille high kicks, skirt-lifting and other -suggestive and at times vulgar movements. (Offenbach also wrote -brilliant Can-Can music for _Orpheus in the Underworld_, _Barbe-Bleue_, -and _La Vie parisienne_.) Other delightful episodes from this operetta -are Helen’s invocation with chorus, “_Amours divins_,” and her highly -lyrical airs, “_On me nomme Hélène_,” “_Un mari Sage_,” and “_La vrai! -je ne suis pas coupable_.” - -The Galop is almost as much a specialty with Offenbach as the Can-Can. -This is a spirited, highly rhythmic dance of German origin introduced in -Paris in 1829. Two of Offenbach’s best known Galops appear respectively -in _La Grande Duchess de Gérolstein_ (1867) and _Geneviève de Brabant_ -(1859). - -It is perhaps not generally known that the famous “Marine’s Hymn” -familiar to all Americans as “From the Halls of Montezuma” also comes -out of _Geneviève de Brabant_. The Hymn was copyrighted by the Marine -Corps in 1919. It is known that the lyric was written in 1847 by an -unidentified Marine. The melody was taken from one of the airs in -Offenbach’s operetta, _Geneviève de Brabant_. - -_Orpheus in the Underworld_ (_Orphée aux enfers_) is Offenbach’s -masterwork, first produced in Paris on October 21, 1858. This delightful -comic opera, with book by Hector Crémieux and Ludovic Halévy, is a -satire on the Olympian gods in general, and specifically on the legend -of Orpheus and Eurydice. _Orpheus in the Underworld_ was not at first -successful since audiences did not seem to find much mirth in a satire -on Olympian gods. But when a powerful French critic, Jules Janin, -violently attacked it as a “profanation of holy and glorious antiquity,” -the curiosity of Parisians was aroused, and the crowds began swarming -into the theater. Suddenly _Orpheus in the Underworld_ became a vogue; -it was the thing to see and discuss; its music (particularly the -waltzes, galops, and quadrilles) were everywhere played. The operetta -had a run of 227 performances. - -The Overture is a perennial favorite of salon and pop orchestras -throughout the world. It opens briskly, then progresses to the first -subject, a light and gay tune for strings. The heart of the overture is -the second main melody, a sentimental song first heard in solo violin, -and later repeated by full orchestra. - -The Can-Can music in _Orpheus in the Underworld_ is also famous. Much of -its effect is due to the fact that Offenbach presented the can-can -immediately after a stately minuet in order to emphasize the contrast -between two periods in French history. A contemporary described this -Can-Can music as follows: “This famous dance ... has carried away our -entire generation as would a tempestuous whirlwind. Already the first -sounds of the furiously playing instruments seem to indicate the call to -a whole world to awake and plunge into the wild dance. These rhythms -appear to have the intention of shocking all the resigned, all the -defeated, out of their lethargy and, by the physical and moral upheaval -which they arouse, to throw the whole fabric of society into confusion.” - -_The Tales of Hoffmann_ (_Les Contes d’Hoffmann_) is Offenbach’s only -serious opera; but even here we encounter some semi-classical favorites. -This opera, one of the glories of the French lyric theater, was based on -stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, adapted into a libretto by Jules Barbier -and Michel Carré. It concerns the three tragic loves of the poet -Hoffmann: Olympia, a mechanical doll; Giulietta, who is captive to a -magician; and Antonia, a victim of consumption. - -The “Barcarolle” from this opera is surely one of the most popular -selections from the world of opera. It opens the second act. Outside -Giulietta’s palace in Venice, Hoffmann hears the strains of this music -sung by his friend Nicklausse and Giulietta as they praise the beauty of -the Venetian night. Harp arpeggios suggest the lapping of the Venetian -waters in the canal, providing a soothing background to one of the most -radiant melodies in French music. It is interesting to remark that -Offenbach did not write this melody directly for this opera. He had -previously used it in 1864 as a ghost song for an opera-ballet, _Die -Rheinnixen_. - -Two dance episodes from _The Tales of Hoffmann_ are also frequently -performed outside the opera house. One is the infectious waltz which -rises to a dramatic climax in the first act. To this music Hoffmann -dances with the mechanical doll, Olympia, with whom he is in love. The -second is an enchanting little Minuet, used as entr’acte music between -the first and second acts. - -A collation of some of Offenbach’s most famous melodies from various -operettas can be found in _La Gaieté parisienne_, an orchestral suite -adapted from a score by Manuel Rosenthal to a famous contemporary -ballet. This one-act ballet, with choreography by Leonide Massine and -scenario by Comte Étienne de Beaumont, was introduced in Monte Carlo by -the Ballet Russe in 1938. The setting is a fashionable Parisian -restaurant of the 19th century; and the dance offers a colorful picture -of Parisian life and mores of that period, climaxed by a stunning -Can-Can. Musical episodes are used from _Orpheus in the Underworld_, _La -Périchole_, _La Vie parisienne_, and several other Offenbach -opéra-bouffes. Beloved Offenbach melodies from various opéra-bouffes -were adapted for the score of a Broadway musical produced in 1961, _The -Happiest Girl in the World_. - - - - - Ignace Jan Paderewski - - -Ignace Jan Paderewski, one of the world’s foremost piano virtuosos and -one of Poland’s most renowned statesmen, was born in Kurylówka, Podolia, -on November 18, 1860. A child prodigy, he was given piano lessons from -his third year on. Several patrons arranged to send him to the Warsaw -Conservatory, from which he was graduated in 1878. Between 1881 and 1883 -he studied composition and orchestration in Berlin, and from 1884 to -1887 piano with Leschetizky in Vienna. Paderewski’s first major success -as a pianist came in Vienna in 1889, a concert that was the beginning of -a virtuoso career extending for about half a century and carrying him -triumphantly to all parts of the world. In 1919 he temporarily withdrew -from music to become the first Premier of the Polish Republic, but about -a year later he resumed concert work. He made his American debut in New -York in 1891, and his last American tour took place in 1939. During the -early part of World War II he returned to political activity as -President of the Parliament of the Polish Government in Exile. He died -in New York on June 29, 1941. By order of President Roosevelt he was -given a state burial in Arlington National Cemetery. - -Paderewski produced many ambitious compositions, some in the style of -Polish folk music; these included the opera _Manru_, a symphony, piano -concerto, the _Polish Fantasy_ for piano and orchestra and numerous -shorter compositions for the piano. Ironically it is not for one of his -ambitious works that he is most often recalled as a composer, but -through a slight piece: the _Minuet_ in G, or _Menuet à l’antique_, a -graceful, well-mannered composition in an 18th-century style. This is -one of the three most popular minuets ever written, the other two being -by Mozart and Beethoven. Paderewski originally wrote it for the piano; -it is the first of six pieces collectively entitled _Humoresques de -concert_, op. 14. Fritz Kreisler transcribed it for violin and piano; -Gaspar Cassadó for cello and piano. It has, of course, been frequently -adapted for orchestra. - - - - - Gabriel Pierné - - -Gabriel Pierné was born in Metz, France, on August 16, 1863. He attended -the Paris Conservatory for eleven years, a pupil of Massenet and César -Franck. He won numerous awards there including the Prix de Rome in 1882. -After returning from Rome, he succeeded Franck as organist of the Ste. -Clothilde Church in Paris, retaining this post until 1898. From 1903 -until 1932 he was, first the assistant, and from 1910 on the principal, -conductor of the Colonne Orchestra. He combined his long and fruitful -career as conductor with that of composer, producing a vast library of -music in virtually every form, including operas, oratorios, ballets, -symphonic and chamber music. He achieved renown with the oratorio _The -Children’s Crusade_ (_La Croisade des enfants_), introduced in 1905 and -soon after that winner of the City of Paris Award. Another major success -came with the ballet, _Cydalise and the Satyr_ in 1923. A conservative -composer, Pierné utilized traditional forms with distinction, and filled -them with beautiful lyricism, well-sounding harmonies, and a poetic -speech. In 1925 Pierné was elected member of the Académie des -Beaux-Arts. He died in Ploujean, France, on July 17, 1937. - -The _Entrance of the Little Fauns_ (_Marche des petites faunes_) is a -whimsical little march for orchestra from the ballet, _Cydalise and the -Satyr_ (_Cydalise et le chèvre-pied_), introduced at the Paris Opéra on -January 15, 1923. A saucy tune for muted trumpet is juxtaposed against -the wail of piccolos; all the while an incisive rhythm is projected not -only by the snare drum and tambourine but also by the violinists tapping -the wood of their bows on the strings. Within the ballet this march -accompanies the appearance of a group of small fauns, led by their -teacher, an old satyr, as they enter school to learn pan pipes. - -The _March of the Little Lead Soldiers_ (_Marche des petits soldats de -plomb_) originated as a piano piece in the _Album pour mes petits amis_, -op. 14 (1887), but was subsequently orchestrated by the composer. It -opens with a muted trumpet call. A snare drum then establishes the -rhythm and sets the stage for the appearance of the main march melody in -solo flute. - - - - - Jean-Robert Planquette - - -Jean-Robert Planquette was born in Paris on July 31, 1848. He attended -the Paris Conservatory after which he supported himself by writing -popular songs and chansonettes for Parisian _café-concerts_. He started -writing operettas in 1874, and achieved world fame with _The Chimes of -Normandy_ in 1877. He wrote many more operettas after that, the most -successful being _Rip Van Winkle_ (1882), _Nell Gwynne_ (1884) and -_Mam’zelle Quat’Sous_ (1897). He died in Paris on January 28, 1903. - -_The Chimes of Normandy_ (_Les Cloches de Corneville_) is one of the -most famous French operettas of all time, and it is still occasionally -revived. Introduced in Paris at the Folies Dramatiques on April 19, -1877, its success was so immediate and permanent that within a decade it -had been given over a thousand times in Paris alone. It was first seen -in New York in 1877, and in London in 1888, major successes in both -places. The book by Clairville and Gabet presents the life of fishing -and peasant folk in Normandy during the regime of Louis XV. Germaine is -in love with the fisherman, Jean, but finds opposition in her miserly -old uncle, Gaspard, who has other plans for her. To escape her uncle, -Germaine finds employment with Henri, a Marquis, who has suddenly -returned to his native village to take up residence in the family castle -rumored to be haunted. The mystery of the haunted castle is cleared up -when the discovery is made that Gaspard has used it to hide his gold; -and the bells of the castle begin to ring out loud and clear again. -Gaspard, after a brief siege with insanity, is made to sanction the -marriage of Germaine and Jean at a magnificent festival honoring the -Marquis; at the same time it is suddenly uncovered that Germaine is in -reality a Marchioness. - -This is an operetta overflowing with ear-caressing melodies. The most -famous are Germaine’s bell song, “_Nous avons, hélas, perdu d’excellence -maîtres_”; the Marquis’ lilting waltz-rondo, “_Même sans consulter mon -coeur_”; and Serpolette’s cider song, “_La Pomme est un fruit plein de -sève_.” - - - - - Eduard Poldini - - -Eduard Poldini was born in Budapest, Hungary, on June 13, 1869. His -music study took place at the Vienna Conservatory. Poldini subsequently -established his home in Vevey, Switzerland, where he devoted himself to -composition. His most significant works are for the stage—both comic and -serious operas that include _The Vagabond and the Princess_ (1903) and -_The Carnival Marriage_ (1924). He was also a prolific composer of salon -pieces for the piano, familiar to piano studies throughout the world. In -1935 Poldini received the Order of the Hungarian Cross and in 1948 the -Hungarian Pro Arte Prize. He died in Vevey, Switzerland on June 29, -1957. - -_Poupée valsante_ (_Dancing Doll_) is Poldini’s best known composition, -a fleet, graceful melody contrasted by a sentimental counter-subject. -The composer wrote it for solo piano. Fritz Kreisler adapted it for -violin and piano, and Frank La Forge for voice and orchestra. It has -also often been transcribed for orchestra. - - - - - Manuel Ponce - - -Manuel Maria Ponce was born in Fresnillo, Mexico, on December 8, 1882. -His main music study took place in Europe where he arrived in 1905: -composition with Enrico Bossi in Bologna; piano with Martin Krause in -Berlin. After returning to Mexico he gave a concert of his own -compositions in 1912. For several years he taught the piano at the -National Conservatory in Mexico City, and from 1917 to 1919 he was the -conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra there. During World War I -he lived in Havana and New York. After the war he went to Paris for an -additional period of study with Paul Dukas. From 1933 to 1938 he was -professor of folklore at the University of Mexico. In 1941 he toured -South America, and in 1947 he was the recipient of the first annual -Mexican Arts and Sciences Award established by the President of Mexico. -He died in Mexico City on April 24, 1948. - -Ponce was a modernist who filled his orchestral compositions with the -most advanced resources of modern harmony, counterpoint and rhythm. But -in his songs he possessed a spontaneous and ingratiating lyricism, often -of a national Mexican identity. It is one of these that has made him -famous in semi-classical literature: “_Estrellita_” (“Little Star”), a -song with such a strong Spanish personality of melody and rhythm that it -was long believed to be a folk song. Ponce first published it in 1914 -but it did not become universally popular until 1923 when it was issued -in a new arrangement (by Frank La Forge) and translated into English. - - - - - Amilcare Ponchielli - - -Amilcare Ponchielli was born in Paderno Fasolaro, Italy, on August 31, -1834. For nine years he attended the Milan Conservatory where he wrote -an operetta in collaboration with three other students. Following the -termination of his studies, he became organist in Cremona, and after -that a bandmaster in Piacenza. His first opera, _I Promessi sposi_, was -introduced in Cremona in 1856, but it did not become successful until -sixteen years later when a revised version helped to open the Teatro dal -Verme in Milan. World renown came to Ponchielli with _La Gioconda_, -first given at La Scala in Milan in 1876. Though Ponchielli wrote many -other operas after that he never again managed to reach the high -artistic level of this masterwork, nor to repeat its world success. From -1883 until his death he was professor of composition at the Milan -Conservatory. He died in Milan, Italy, on January 16, 1886. - -What is undoubtedly Ponchielli’s most famous orchestral composition, -“The Dance of the Hours” (“_Danza della ore_”) comes from his -masterwork, the opera _La Gioconda_. This opera—first performed in Milan -on April 8, 1876—was based on Victor Hugo’s drama, _Angelo, tyran de -Padoue_, adapted by Arrigo Boïto. The setting is 17th century Venice, -and the principal action involves the tragic love triangle of Alvise, -his wife Laura, and her beloved, Enzo. - -“The Dance of the Hours” comes in the second scene of the third act. -Alvise is entertaining his guests at a sumptuous ball in his palace, the -highlight of which is a magnificent ballet, intended to symbolize the -victory of right over wrong. The dancers in groups of six come out -impersonating the hours of dawn, day, evening, and night. The music -begins with a slight murmur, shimmering sounds passing through the -violins and woodwind. Dawn appears. The music is carried to a dramatic -climax with a strong rhythmic pulse as the day unfolds. When the music -achieves mellowness and tenderness, the softness of evening touches the -stage; and with the coming of night the music acquires a somber -character. At midnight, the music is reduced to a sigh. The harp -presents some arpeggios, and a broad melody unfolds. The mood then -becomes excitable as all the twenty-four hours plunge into a spirited -dance, as light conquers darkness. - -The most familiar vocal excerpts from this opera are La Cieca’s romanza -from the first act, “_A te questo rosario_”; Barnaba’s fisherman’s -barcarolle (“_Pescator, affonda l’esca_”) and Enzo’s idyll to the beauty -of the night (“_Cielo e mar_”) from the second act; and La Gioconda’s -dramatic narrative in which she plans to destroy herself (“_Suicidio_”). - - - - - Cole Porter - - -Cole Porter was born in Peru, Indiana, on June 9, 1893 to an immensely -wealthy family. Precocious in music, he began studying the violin when -he was six, and at eleven had one of his compositions published. He -pursued his academic studies at the Worcester Academy in Massachusetts -and at Yale; music study took place at the School of Music at Harvard -and subsequently in Paris with Vincent d’Indy at the Schola Cantorum. At -Yale he participated in all its musical activities and wrote two -football songs still favorites there, “Yale Bull Dog” and “Bingo Eli -Yale.” In 1916 he wrote the music for his first Broadway musical comedy, -_See America First_, a failure. During the next few years he was a -member of the French desert troops in North Africa, while during World -War I he taught French gunnery to American troops at Fontainebleau. Just -after the close of the war he contributed some songs to _Hitchy Koo_ of -1918, and in 1924 five more songs to the _Greenwich Village Follies_, -both of them Broadway productions. Success first came in 1928 with his -music for _Paris_ which included “Let’s Do It” and “Let’s Misbehave.” -For the next quarter of a century and more he was one of Broadway’s most -successful composers. His greatest stage hits came with _Fifty Million -Frenchmen_ (1929), _The Gay Divorce_ (1932), _Anything Goes_ (1934), -_Leave It to Me_ (1938), _Panama Hattie_ (1940), _Let’s Face It_ (1941), -_Kiss Me Kate_ (1948), _Can-Can_ (1953) and _Silk Stockings_ (1955). -From these and other stage productions came some of America’s best loved -popular songs, for which Porter wrote not merely the music but also the -brilliant lyrics: “Night and Day,” “Begin the Beguine,” “Love for Sale,” -“You Do Something to Me,” “My Heart Belongs to Daddy,” and so forth. He -was also a significant composer for motion pictures, his most successful -songs for the screen including “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “In the -Still of the Night,” “You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To,” “Don’t Fence Me -In,” and “True Love.” - -The most successful of all the Cole Porter musical comedies was _Kiss Me -Kate_ which began a Broadway run of over one thousand performances on -December 30, 1948, then went on to be a triumph in Vienna, Austria, -where it became the greatest box-office success in the history of the -Volksoper where it was given. In Poland it was the first American music -performed in that country. The text by Bella and Sam Spewack was based -partly on Shakespeare’s _Taming of the Shrew_, but it was really a play -within a play. A touring company is performing the Shakespeare comedy in -Baltimore, Maryland. The musical comedy moves freely from scenes of that -production to the backstage complications in the private lives of its -principal performers. In the end, the amatory problems of the two stars -are resolved within a performance of the Shakespeare comedy. This was -not only Cole Porter’s most successful musical comedy but also the -finest of his scores. Never before (or since) was he so prolix with song -hits in a single production; never before was his style so varied. The -repertory of semi-classical music has been enriched by a symphonic -treatment given the best of these melodies by Robert Russell Bennett. -Bennett’s symphonic presentation of _Kiss Me Kate_ opens with -“Wunderbar,” a tongue-in-cheek parody of a sentimental Viennese waltz. -It continues with the sprightly measures of “Another Openin’, Another -Show,” and after that come the plangent, purple moods of “Were Thine -That Special Face,” “I Sing of Love,” and the show’s principal love -song, “So In Love.” - - - - - Serge Prokofiev - - -Serge Prokofiev was born in Sontzovka, Russia, on April 23, 1891. He was -extraordinarily precocious in music. After receiving some training at -the piano from his mother, he completed the writing of an opera by the -time he was ten. Preliminary music study took place with Glière. In his -thirteenth year he entered the Moscow Conservatory where he was a pupil -of Rimsky-Korsakov and Liadov among others and from which he was -graduated with the Rubinstein Prize for his first piano concerto. His -advanced musical thinking was already evident in his first major work -for orchestra, _The Scythian Suite_, introduced in St. Petersburg in -1916. He continued to develop his own personality, formulating his -highly individual style and creative idiosyncrasies in works like the -ballet _Chout_, the first violin concerto, and the _Classical Symphony_, -all written during the era of World War I. In 1918 he toured the United -States, making his American debut with a New York piano recital on -November 20. While in the United States he was commissioned to write the -opera _The Love for Three Oranges_ for the Chicago Opera. From 1919 to -1933 Prokofiev made his home in Paris, but in 1933 he returned to his -native land to stay there for the rest of his life. Though he was -honored in the Soviet Union as one of its great creative figures—and was -the recipient of the Stalin Prize for his monumental Seventh Piano -Sonata inspired by World War II—he did not escape censure in 1948 when -the Central Committee of the Communist Party denounced Soviet composers -for their partiality towards experimentation, modernism and cerebralism, -in their musical works. Nevertheless, Prokofiev soon recovered his high -estate in Soviet music; in 1951 he received the Stalin Prize again, this -time for his oratorio _On Guard for Peace_ and the symphonic suite, -_Winter Bonfire_. His sixtieth birthday, that year, was celebrated -throughout the country with concerts and broadcasts. Prokofiev died of a -cerebral hemorrhage in Moscow on March 5, 1953. - -Prokofiev was one of the giants of 20th-century music. His seven -symphonies, five piano concertos, nine piano sonatas, the opera _War and -Peace_, ballets, chamber music, piano compositions and various shorter -orchestral works are among the most significant contributions made in -our time to music. The highly personal way of writing melodies, his -unusual progressions, his harmonic vocabulary are all present in the few -lighter and simpler works with which he made a significant contribution -to the contemporary repertory of semi-classics. - -The _March_ so familiar to radio listeners throughout the United States -as the theme music for the program “The F.B.I. in Peace and War” comes -from the opera _The Love for Three Oranges_ (1921). The libretto by the -composer based on a tale of Carlo Gozzi is a charming fantasy in which a -prince saves himself from death through gloom by means of laughter, and -who then goes at once to rescue a princess from her prison in an orange. -The march occurs in the second act where an effort is being made to get -the Prince to laugh, for which purpose a festival is being arranged. The -march music is played as the court jester drags the reluctant Prince to -these festivities. The quixotic skips in the melody, the grotesquerie of -the musical style, and the pert discords are all typical of Prokofiev’s -creative manner. - -_Peter and the Wolf_, a “symphonic fairy tale” for narrator and -orchestra op. 67 (1936) was intended by the composer to teach children -the instruments of the orchestra. But the music is so consistently -delightful for its sprightly lyricism and wit that it has proved a -favorite at symphony and semi-classical concerts. The story here being -told is about a lad named Peter who turns a deaf ear to his -grandfather’s warning and goes out into the meadow. There a wolf has -frightened, in turn, a cat, bird, and duck. But Peter is not afraid of -him. He captures the wolf, ties him up with a rope and takes him to the -zoo. - -The composition opens with the following explanation by the narrator: -“Each character in the tale is represented by a different instrument in -the orchestra: the bird by a flute; the duck by an oboe; the cat by a -clarinet in the low register; grandpapa by the bassoon; the wolf by -three French horns; Peter by the string quartet; and the hunter’s rifle -shots by the kettledrums and bass drums.” Then, as the story of Peter -and the wolf unfolds, little melodies appear and reappear, each -identifying some character in the story. Peter’s theme is a lyrical folk -song with a puckish personality for strings. Vivid and realistic little -tunes represent the cat, bird, and duck, each tune providing an amusing -insight into the personality of each of these animals. - -_Summer Day_, opp. 65a and 65b (1935) is another of the composer’s -compositions for children which makes for delightful listening. It -started out as a suite of twelve easy piano pieces for children called -_Music for Children_. Later on the composer orchestrated seven of these -sections and called the new work _Summer Day_. In the first movement, -“Morning,” a whimsical little tune is heard in first flute against a -contrapuntal background by other woodwinds, strings, and bass drum. -Midway a secondary melody is given by bassoons, horns and cellos. “Tag,” -the familiar child’s game, is represented in a tripping melody for -violins and flutes; the music grows increasingly rhythmic in the -intermediary section. In the “Waltz,” a saucy waltz tune with an unusual -syncopated construction is presented by the violins, interrupted by -exclamations from the woodwind with typical Prokofiev octave leaps. -“Regrets” opens with a tender melody for cellos, but is soon taken over -by oboes, and then the violins. This melody is then varied by violins -and clarinets. “March” offers the main march melody in clarinets and -oboes. “Evening” highlights a gentle song by solo flute, soon joined by -the clarinet. As the violins take over the melody the pensive mood is -maintained. The concluding movement, “Moonlit Meadows” is dominated by a -melody for solo flute. - - - - - Giacomo Puccini - - -Giacomo Puccini was born in Lucca, Italy, on December 22, 1858, to a -family which for several generations had produced professional -musicians. As a boy, Giacomo attended the Istituto Musicale in his -native city, played the organ in the local church, and wrote two choral -compositions. A subsidy from Queen Margherita enabled him to continue -his music study at the Milan Conservatory with Bazzini and Ponchielli. -The latter encouraged Puccini to write for the stage. Puccini’s first -dramatic work was a one-act opera, _Le Villi_, given successfully in -Milan in 1884, and soon thereafter performed at La Scala. On a -commission from the publisher, Ricordi, Puccini wrote a second opera -that was a failure. But the third, _Manon Lescaut_—introduced in Turin -in 1893—was a triumph and permanently established Puccini’s fame. He now -moved rapidly to a position of first importance in Italian opera with -three successive master-works: _La Bohème_ (1896), _Tosca_ (1900) and -_Madama Butterfly_ (1904). Puccini paid his first visit to the United -States in 1907 to supervise the American première of the last-named -opera; he returned in 1910 to attend the world première of _The Girl -from the Golden West_ which had been commissioned by the Metropolitan -Opera. Puccini’s subsequent operas were: _La Rondine_ (1917), _Il -Trittico_, a trilogy of three one-act operas (1918), and _Turandot_ -(1924), the last of which was left unfinished but was completed by -Franco Alfano. Operated on for cancer of the throat, in Brussels, -Puccini died of a heart attack in that city on November 29, 1924. - -Though Puccini was an exponent of “Verismo,” a movement in Italian opera -which emphasized everyday subjects treated realistically, he poured into -his operas such a wealth of sentiment, tenderness, sweetness of -lyricism, and elegance of style that their emotional appeal is -universal, and he has become the best loved opera composer of the 20th -century. Selections from his three most popular operas are basic to the -repertory of any semi-classical or “pop” orchestra. - -_La Bohème_ was based on Murger’s famous novel, _Scènes de la vie de -Bohème_ adapted into an opera libretto by Giacosa and Illica. When first -introduced (Turin, February 1, 1896) the opera encountered an apathetic -audience and hostile critics. It had no big scenes, no telling climaxes, -and most of its effects were too subtle emotionally to have an -instantaneous appeal. But the third performance—in Palermo in -1896—received an ovation. From that time on it never failed to move -opera audiences with its deeply moving pathos and its vivid depiction of -the daily problems and conflicts of a group of Bohemians in mid -19th-century Paris. The central theme is the love affair of the poet, -Rodolfo, and a seamstress, Mimi. This love was filled with storm and -stress, and ended tragically with Mimi’s death of consumption in -Rodolfo’s attic. The following are some of the episodes heard most often -in potpourris or fantasies of this opera: Rodolfo’s celebrated narrative -in the first act, “_Che gelida manina_,” in which he tells Mimi about -his life as a poet; Mimi’s aria that follows this narrative immediately, -“_Mi chiamano Mimi_,” where she tells Rodolfo of her poignant need for -flowers and the warmth of springtime; the first act love duet of Mimi -and Rodolfo, “_O soave fanciulla_”; Musetta’s coquettish second-act -waltz, “_Quando m’en vo’ soletta_,” sung outside Café Momus in the Latin -Quarter on Christmas Eve, informing her admirers (specifically Marcello -the painter), how men are always attracted to her; Rodolfo’s poignant -recollection of his one time happiness with Mimi, “_O, Mimi, tu più_” in -the fourth act; and Mimi’s death music that ends the opera. - -_Madama Butterfly_—libretto by Illica and Giacosa based on David -Belasco’s play of the same name, which in turn came from John Luther’s -short story—was first performed in Milan on February 17, 1904 when it -was a fiasco. There was such pandemonium during that performance that -Puccini had to rush on the stage and entreat the audience to be quiet so -that the opera might continue. Undoubtedly, some of Puccini’s enemies -had a hand in instigating this scandal, but the opera itself was not one -able to win immediate favor. The exotic setting of Japan, the unorthodox -love affair involving an American sailor and a geisha girl ending in -tragedy for the girl, and the provocatively different kind of music -(sometimes Oriental, sometimes modern) written to conform to the setting -and the characters—all this was not calculated to appeal to Italian -opera lovers. But three months after the première the opera was repeated -(with some vital revisions by the composer). This time neither the play -nor the music proved shocking, and the audience fell under the spell of -enchantment which that sensitive opera cast all about it. From then on, -the opera has been a favorite around the world. - -The most celebrated single excerpt from the opera is unquestionably -Madame Butterfly’s poignant aria, her expression of belief that her -American lover, so long absent from Japan with his fleet, would some day -return to her: “_Un bel di_.” Other popular episodes include the -passionate love music of Madame Butterfly and the American lieutenant -with which the first act ends, “_Viene la sera_”; the flower duet of the -second act between Madame Butterfly and her servant in which the heroine -excitedly decorates her home with cherry blossoms upon learning that her -lover is back with his fleet (“_Scuoti quella fronda di ciliegio_”); the -American lieutenant’s tender farewell to Madame Butterfly and the scene -of their love idyl from the third act (“_Addio fiorito_ _asil_”); and -Madame Butterfly’s tender farewell to her daughter before committing -suicide (“_Tu, tu piccolo iddio_”). - -_Tosca_—based on the famous French drama of the same name by Sardou, the -libretto by Giacosa and Illica—was introduced in Rome on January 14, -1900. It was a blood and thunder drama set in Rome at the turn of the -19th century; the dramatic episodes involved murder, horror, suicide, -sadism. The heroine, Floria Tosca, is an opera singer in love with a -painter, Mario Cavaradossi; she, in turn, is being pursued by Scarpia, -the chief of police. To save her lover’s life, she stands ready to give -herself to Scarpia. The latter, nonetheless, is responsible for -Cavaradossi’s execution. Scarpia is murdered by Tosca, who then commits -suicide. - -Two tenor arias by Cavaradossi are lyrical highlights of this opera. The -first is “_Recondita armonia_,” in the first act, in which the painter -rhapsodizes over the beauty of his beloved Tosca; the second, “_E -lucevan le stelle_,” comes in the last act as Cavaradossi prepares -himself for his death by bidding farewell to his memory of Tosca. The -third important aria from this opera is that of Tosca, “_Vissi d’arte_,” -a monologue in which she reflects on how cruel life had been to one who -has devoted herself always to art, prayer, and love. In addition to -these three arias, the opera score also boasts some wonderful love -music, that of Cavaradossi and Tosca (“_Non la sospiri la nostra -casetta_”) and the first act stately church music (“_Te Deum_”). - - - - - Sergei Rachmaninoff - - -Sergei Rachmaninoff was born in Oneg, Novgorod, Russia, on April 1, -1873. He attended the St. Petersburg Conservatory for three years, and -his musical training ended at the Moscow Conservatory in 1892 when he -received a gold medal for a one-act opera, _Aleko_. In that same year he -also wrote the Prelude in C-sharp minor with which he became world -famous. His first piano concerto and his first symphony, however, were -dismal failures. In 1901 he scored a triumph with his Second Piano -Concerto which, since then, has been not only the composer’s most -celebrated composition in a large form but also one of the best loved -and most frequently performed piano concertos of the 20th century. -Rachmaninoff combined his success as composer with that as piano -virtuoso. Beginning with 1900 he toured the world of music achieving -recognition everywhere as one of the most renowned concert artists of -his generation. The first of his many tours of America took place in -1909. He also distinguished himself as a conductor, first at the Bolshoi -Theater between 1904 and 1906, and later with the Moscow Philharmonic. -As a composer he enhanced his reputation with a remarkable second -symphony, two more piano concertos, and sundry works for orchestra. He -was a traditionalist who preferred working within the structures and -with the techniques handed down to him by Tchaikovsky. Like Tchaikovsky -whom he admired and emulated, he wore his heart on his sleeve, ever -preferring to make his music the vehicle for profoundly felt emotions. -His broad rhapsodic style makes his greatest music an ever stirring -emotional experience. In 1917 Rachmaninoff left Russia for good, -establishing his permanent home first in Lucerne, Switzerland, and in -1935 in the United States. All the while he continued to tour the world -as concert pianist. His last years were spent in Beverly Hills, -California, where he died on March 28, 1943. - -The Prelude in C-sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2 (1892) is Rachmaninoff’s most -popular composition; the transcriptions and adaptations it has received -are of infinite variety. He wrote it when he was nineteen and -instantaneously the piece traveled around the globe. Unfortunately, the -composer never profited commercially from this formidable success, -having sold the composition outright for a pittance. The Prelude opens -in a solemn mood with a theme sounding like the tolling of bells, or the -grim pronouncement by some implacable fate. The second theme is agitated -and restless, but before the composition ends the solemn first theme -recurs. Numerous efforts have been made to provide this dramatic music -with a program, including one which interpreted it in terms of the -burning of Moscow in 1812. - -The Prelude in G minor, op. 23, no. 5, for piano (1904), is almost as -famous. The opening subject has the character of a brisk military march, -while the contrasting second theme is nostalgic and reflective. - -The _Vocalise_, op. 34, no. 14 (1912) is one of the composer’s best -known vocal compositions. This is a wordless song—a melody sung only on -vowels, a “vocalise” being actually a vocal exercise. Rachmaninoff -himself transcribed this work for orchestra, a version perhaps better -known than the original vocal one. Many other musicians have made sundry -other transcriptions, including one for piano, and others for solo -instruments and piano. - - - - - Joachim Raff - - -Joseph Joachim Raff was born in Lachen, on the Lake of Zurich, -Switzerland, on May 27, 1822. He was mostly self-taught in music, while -pursuing the career of schoolmaster. Some of his early compositions were -published through Mendelssohn’s influence, a development that finally -encouraged Raff to give up schoolteaching and devote himself completely -to music. An intimate association with Liszt led to the première of an -opera, _King Alfred_, in Weimar in 1851. In 1863, his symphony, _An das -Vaterland_, received first prize from the Vienna Gesellschaft der -Musikfreunde. From 1877 until his death he was director of Hoch’s -Conservatory in Frankfort, Germany. He died in that city on June 25, -1882. - -A prolific composer of symphonies, concertos, overtures, quartets, -sonatas and sundry other works, Raff was a major figure in the German -Romantic movement, highly regarded by his contemporaries, but forgotten -since his death. Only some of his minor pieces are remembered. The most -popular is the _Cavatina_ in A-flat major, op. 85, no. 3, for violin and -piano, a perennial favorite with violin students and young violinists, -and no less familiar in various orchestral adaptations. A “cavatina” is -a composition for an instrument with the lyric character of a song. -Raff’s broad and expressive melody has an almost religious stateliness. - -Another popular Raff composition in a smaller dimension is the -picturesque piano piece, _La Fileuse_ (_The Spinner_), op. 157, no. 2, -in which the movement of the spinning wheel is graphically reproduced. - - - - - Maurice Ravel - - -Maurice Ravel was born in Ciboure, France, on March 7, 1875. After -studying music with private teachers in Paris he entered the Paris -Conservatory in 1889, remaining there fifteen years, and proving himself -a brilliant (if at times an iconoclastic) student. While still at the -Conservatory his _Menuet antique_ for piano was published, and _Les -Sites auriculaires_ for two pianos was performed. By the time he left -the Conservatory he was already a composer of considerable stature, -having completed two remarkable compositions for the piano—_Pavane pour -une Infante défunte_ and _Jeux d’eau_, both introduced in 1902—and an -unqualified masterwork, the String Quartet, first performed in 1904. The -fact that a composer of such attainments had four times failed to win -the Prix de Rome created such a scandal in Paris that the director of -the Paris Conservatory, Théodore Dubois, was compelled to resign. But -Ravel’s frustrations from failing to win the Prix de Rome did not affect -the quality of his music. In the succeeding years he produced a -succession of masterworks: the ballet _Daphnis and Chloe_, its première -by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in Paris on June 8, 1912; the -_Spanish Rhapsody_ (_Rapsodie espagnole_) for orchestra; the suite -_Miroirs_, for piano. During World War I, Ravel served at the front in -an ambulance corps. After the war, he withdrew to his villa in Montfort -l’Amaury where he lived in comparative seclusion, devoted mainly to -creative work. Nevertheless, in 1928, he toured the United States, -making his American debut in Boston with the Boston Symphony on January -12, 1929; Ravel died in Paris on December 28, 1937, following an -unsuccessful operation on the brain. - -One of the most significant of Impressionists after Debussy, Ravel was -the creator of music that is highly sensitive in its moods, elegant in -style, exquisite in detail, and usually endowed with the most stunning -effects of instrumentation, rhythm, and harmony. Some of his best-known -works derive their inspiration and material from Spanish sources. It is -one of these that is probably his most popular orchestral composition, -and one of the most popular of the 20th century, the _Bolero_. A -“bolero” is a Spanish dance in ¾ time accompanied by clicking castanets. -Ravel wrote his _Bolero_ in 1928 as ballet music for Ida Rubinstein who -introduced it in Paris on November 22, 1928. But _Bolero_ has since then -separated itself from the dance to become a concert hall favorite. When -Toscanini directed the American première in 1929 it created a sensation, -and set into motion a wave of popularity for this exciting music -achieved by few contemporary works. It was performed by every major -American orchestra, was heard in theaters and over radio, was reproduced -simultaneously on six different recordings. It was transcribed for every -possible combination of instruments (including a jazz band); the word -“Bolero” was used as the title of a motion picture. Such immense appeal -is not difficult to explain. The rhythmic and instrumental virtuosity of -this music has an immediate kinaesthetic effect. The composition derives -its immense impact from sonority and changing orchestral colors. The -bolero melody has two sections, the first heard initially is the flute, -then clarinet; the second is given by the bassoon, and then the -clarinet. This two-part melody is repeated throughout the composition -against a compelling rhythm of a side drum, all the while gradually -growing in dynamics and continually changing its colors chameleon-like -through varied instrumentation. A monumental climax is finally realized, -as the bolero melody is proclaimed by the full orchestra. - -Another highly popular Ravel composition has a far different -personality—the _Pavane pour une Infante défunte_ (_Pavane for a Dead -Infante_). Where the appeal of the _Bolero_ is strong, direct, immediate -and on the surface, that of the Pavane is subtle, elusive, sensitive. A -Pavane is a stately court dance (usually in three sections and in ⁴/₄ -time) popular in France. Ravel’s _Pavane_ is an elegy for the death of a -Spanish princess. Ravel wrote this composition for piano (1899) but he -later transcribed it for orchestra. An American popular song was adapted -from this haunting melody in 1939, entitled “The Lamp Is Low.” - - - - - Emil von Rezniček - - -Emil Von Rezniček was born in Vienna, Austria, on May 4, 1860, the son -of a princess and an Austrian field marshal. For a time he studied law, -but then devoted himself completely to music study, mainly at the -Leipzig Conservatory. From 1896 to 1899 he was the conductor of several -theater orchestras in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. In 1902 he -settled in Berlin where he founded and for several years conducted an -annual series of orchestral concerts. Subsequently he was the conductor -of the Warsaw Opera and from 1909 to 1911 of the Komische Oper in -Berlin. He also pursued a highly successful career as teacher, -principally at the Scharwenka Conservatory in Berlin and from 1920 to -1926 at the Berlin High School of Music. He went into retirement in -1929, and died in Berlin on August 2, 1945. - -Rezniček was the composer of several operas, five symphonies, three tone -poems and various other compositions. His greatest success came with the -comic opera, _Donna Diana_, introduced in Prague on December 16, 1894, -and soon thereafter heard in forty-three European opera houses. The -opera—libretto by the composer based on a Spanish comedy by Moreto y -Cabana—is consistently light and frothy. Carlos is in pursuit of -Princess Diana, and to effect her surrender he feigns he is madly in -love with her. Princess Diana plays a game of her own. Coyly she eludes -him after seeming to fall victim to his wiles. In the end they both -discover they are very much in love with each other. - -The opera is almost never heard any longer, but the witty overture is a -favorite throughout the world; it is the only piece of music by the -composer that is still often performed today. A sustained introduction -leads into the jolly first theme—a fast, light little melody that sets -the prevailing mood of frivolity. The heart of the overture is an -expressive melody shared by basses and oboe. It grows in passion and -intensity as other sections of the orchestra develop it. When this -melody comes to a climax, the passionate mood is suddenly dissipated, -and the frivolous first theme of the overture returns to restore a mood -of reckless gaiety. - - - - - Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov - - -Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov was born in Tikhvin, Russia, on March 18, 1844. -Trained for a naval career, he was graduated from the Naval School in -St. Petersburg in 1862, after which he embarked on a two-and-a-half-year -cruise as naval officer. From earliest boyhood he had been passionately -interested in music, especially the folk operas of Glinka and Russian -ecclesiastical music. When he was seventeen, he was encouraged by -Balakirev to essay composition. After returning to Russia in 1864, -Rimsky-Korsakov associated himself with the national Russian school then -being realized by Balakirev and Mussorgsky among others, and completed -his first symphony, introduced in St. Petersburg in 1865. He plunged -more deeply into musical activity after that by completing several -ambitious works of national character, including the _Antar Symphony_ -and an opera, _The Maid of Pskov_. In 1873 he was relieved by the -government of all his naval duties and allowed to devote himself -completely to music. At that time the special post of Inspector of -Military Orchestras was created for him. He soon distinguished himself -as a conductor of the Free Music Society in St. Petersburg and as -professor of composition and orchestration at the St. Petersburg -Conservatory. He did not neglect composition, producing many significant -operas and orchestral works. In his music he remained faithful to -national ideals by filling his music with melodies patterned after -Russian folk songs, harmonies derived from the modes of Russian church -music, and rhythms simulating those of Russian folk dances. To all his -writing he brought an extraordinary technical skill in structure, -orchestration and harmony. He died of a heart attack in Liubensk, -Russia, on June 21, 1908. - -The exotic personality and harmonic and instrumental brilliance of -Eastern music are often encountered in Rimsky-Korsakov. They are found -in two extremely popular excerpts from his opera _Le Coq d’or_ (_The -Golden Cockerel_): “Bridal Procession” and “Hymn to the Sun.” - -_Le Coq d’or_ is a fantasy-opera, introduced in Moscow on October 7, -1909; the libretto, by Vladimir Bielsky, is based on a tale by Pushkin. -A golden cockerel with the talent of prophecy is presented to King Dodon -by his astrologer. In time the cockerel accurately prophesies the doom -of both the astrologer and the King. - -The oriental, languorous “Hymn to the Sun” (“_Salut à toi soleil_”) -appears in the second act, a salute by the beautiful Queen of Shemaka. -After the Queen has captured the love of King Dodon with this song, they -marry. There are many transcriptions of this beautiful melody, including -one for violin and piano by Kreisler and for cello and piano by Julius -Klengel. - -The third act of this opera opens with the brilliant music of the -“Bridal Procession.” The royal entourage passes with pomp and ceremony -through the city accompanied by the cheers of the surrounding crowds. - -In the vital “Dance of the Tumblers” or “Dance of the Buffoons” for -orchestra, Rimsky-Korsakov skilfully employs folk rhythms. This dance -comes from the composer’s folk opera, _The Snow Maiden_ -(_Snegourochka_). The third act opens with a gay Arcadian festival -celebrated by the Berendey peasants during which this gay and exciting -folk dance is performed. - -The pictorial, realistic “Flight of the Bumble Bee” is an excerpt from -still another of Rimsky-Korsakov’s operas, _The Legend of Tsar Saltan_. -This is an orchestral interlude in the third act describing tonally, and -with remarkable realism, the buzzing course of a bee. This piece retains -its vivid pictorialism even in transcriptions, notably that for solo -piano by Rachmaninoff, and for violin and piano by Arthur Hartmann. - -The “Hindu Chant” or “The Song of India” is also an operatic excerpt, -this time from _Sadko_. It appears at the close of the second tableau of -the second act. Sadko is the host to three merchants from foreign lands. -He invites each to tell him about his homeland, one of whom is a Hindu -who proceeds in an Oriental melody to speak of the magic and mystery of -India. - -The _Russian Easter Overture_ (_La Grand pâque russe_), for orchestra, -op. 36 (1888) was one of the fruits of the composer’s lifelong -fascination for Russian church music. The principal thematic material of -the overture comes from a collection of canticles known as the _Obikhod_ -from the Russian Orthodox Church. Two of these canticles are heard in -the solemn introduction, a section which the composer said represented -the “Holy Sepulcher that had shone with ineffable light at the moment of -the Resurrection.” The first is given loudly by strings and clarinets, -the second quietly by violins and violas accompanied by woodwind, harps, -and pizzicato basses. A brief cadenza for solo violin is the transition -to the main body of the overture where the two canticles from the -introduction are amplified and developed. A brilliant coda leads to the -conclusion of the work where the second of the two melodies is given for -the last time by trombones and strings. - -Rimsky-Korsakov’s most famous work for orchestra is the symphonic suite, -_Scheherazade_, op. 35 (1888). Nowhere is his remarkable gift at -pictorial writing, at translating a literary program into tones, more in -evidence than here. This music describes episodes from the _Arabian -Nights_ in four movements which are unified by the recurrence of two -musical motives. The first is that of the Sultan, a forceful, majestic -statement for unison brass, woodwinds and strings; the second is a -tender melody in triplets for strings depicting the lovely Scheherazade. -The Sultan theme opens the first movement, entitled “The Sea and -Sinbad’s Ship.” After quiet chords for the brass, the Scheherazade -melody is heard in solo violin accompanied by harp arpeggios. The music -later becomes highly dramatic as Sinbad’s ship, represented by a flute -solo, is buffeted about by an angry sea, the latter portrayed by rapid -arpeggio figures. The poignant Scheherazade motive in solo violin -introduces the second movement, “The Tale of the Kalendar.” The tale is -spun in a haunting song for bassoon, dramatically contrasted by a -dynamic rhythmic section for full orchestra. The third movement, “The -Young Prince and the Princess” is a tender love dialogue between violins -and clarinets. After a recall of the Scheherazade melody there appears -the finale: “The Festival at Bagdad; The Sea, The Ship Founders on the -Rock.” A brief recall of the Sinbad theme brings on an electrifying -picture of a festival in Bagdad. The gay proceedings, however, are -interrupted by a grim shipwreck scene, vividly depicted by the exciting -music. This dramatic episode passes, and the suite ends with a final -statement of the Scheherazade theme. - -The _Spanish Caprice_ (_Capriccio espagnol_), for orchestra, op. 34 -(1887) is one of the composer’s rare attempts at exploiting the folk -music of a country other than his own. There are five parts. The first -is a morning song, or “Alborada,” in which two main subjects of Spanish -identity are given by the full orchestra. This is followed by -“Variations.” A Spanish melody is here subjected to five brief -variations. In the third part, the Alborada music returns in a changed -tonality and orchestration. The fourth movement is entitled “Scene and -Gypsy Dance” and consists of five cadenzas. The Capriccio ends with -“_Fandango asturiano_,” in which a dance melody for trombones is -succeeded by a contrasting subject in the woodwinds. A last recall of -the main Alborada theme of the first movement brings the work to its -conclusion. - - - - - Richard Rodgers - - -Richard Rodgers was born in Hammels Station, near Arverne, Long Island, -on June 28, 1902. As a child he began studying the piano and attending -the popular musical theater. He wrote his first songs in 1916, a score -for an amateur musical in 1917, and in 1919 created the music for the -Columbia Varsity Show, the first freshman ever to do so. Meanwhile he -had initiated a collaborative arrangement with the lyricist, Lorenz -Hart, that lasted almost a quarter of a century. Their first song to -reach the Broadway theater was “Any Old Place With You” in _A Lonely -Romeo_ in 1919. Their first Broadway musical was _The Poor Little Ritz -Girl_ in 1920, and their first success came with _The Garrick Gaieties_ -in 1925 where the song, “Manhattan,” was introduced. For the next twenty -years, Rodgers and Hart—frequently with Herbert Fields as -librettist—dominated the musical stage with some of the most original -and freshly conceived musical productions of that period: _Dearest -Enemy_ (1925), _The Girl Friend_ (1926), _Peggy-Ann_ (1926), _A -Connecticut Yankee_ (1927), _On Your Toes_ (1936), _Babes in Arms_ -(1937), _I’d Rather Be Right_ (1937), _I Married an Angel_ (1938), _The -Boys from Syracuse_ (1938), and _Pal Joey_ (1940). From these and other -productions came hundreds of songs some of which have since become -classics in American popular music. The best of these were “Here In My -Arms,” “Blue Room,” “My Heart Stood Still,” “My Romance,” “The Most -Beautiful Girl in the World,” “There’s a Small Hotel,” “Where or When,” -“My Funny Valentine,” “Spring Is Here,” “Falling in Love With Love,” “I -Could Write a Book” and “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.” - -_By Jupiter_, in 1942, was the last of the Rodgers and Hart musicals. -Hart’s physical and moral disintegration made it necessary for Rodgers -to seek out a new collaborator. He found him in Oscar Hammerstein II, -with whom Rodgers embarked on a new and even greater career as composer -for the theater. Their first collaboration was _Oklahoma!_ in 1943, an -unprecedented box-office triumph, and a production that revolutionized -the musical stage by crystallizing the concept and procedures of the -musical play as opposed to the musical comedy. After that Rodgers and -Hammerstein brought to the stage such classics as _Carousel_, _South -Pacific_, and _The King and I_. Other Rodgers and Hammerstein -productions were _Allegro_ (1947), _Me and Juliet_ (1953), _Pipe Dream_ -(1955), _The Flower Drum Song_ (1958) and _The Sound of Music_ (1959). -Among the most famous songs by Rodgers from these productions—besides -those from musical plays discussed below—were “A Fellow Needs a Girl,” -“No Other Love,” “Everybody’s Got a Home But Me,” “All at Once You Love -Her,” “I Enjoy Being a Girl,” “Do, Re, Mi,” “The Sound of Music” and -“Climb Every Mountain.” The collaboration of Rodgers and Hammerstein -ended in 1960 with the death of the lyricist. - -_Oklahoma!_, _Carousel_, _South Pacific_, and _The King and I_ have -become enduring monuments in the American theater. They are continually -revived, have been adapted for motion pictures, and are perpetually -represented at semi-classical concerts and on records. In whatever form -they appear they never fail to excite and inspire audiences. It is in -these productions that Rodgers has reached the highest creative -altitudes of his career, with music of such expressive lyricism, -dramatic impact, consummate technical skill, and pervading charm and -grace that its survival in American music seems assured. Robert Russell -Bennett has made skilful orchestral adaptations of the basic melodic -material from each of these musical plays, and it is most usually these -adaptations that are most frequently performed by pop and semi-classical -orchestras. - -_Carousel_ is the second of the Rodgers and Hammerstein masterworks, -succeeding _Oklahoma!_ by about two years. It is one of the most radiant -ornaments of our musical stage. Oscar Hammerstein II here adapted Ferenc -Molnar’s play, _Liliom_, with changes in setting, time, and some basic -alterations of plot. In the musical version the action takes place in -New England in 1873. Billy Bigelow, a barker in an amusement park, falls -in love and marries Julie Jordan. A charming but irresponsible young -man, Billy decides to get some money in a holdup, when he learns his -wife is pregnant. Caught, Billy eludes arrest by committing suicide. -After a brief stay in Purgatory, Billy is permitted to return to earth -for a single day to achieve redemption, the price for his admission to -Heaven. On earth, he meets his daughter. Through her love, understanding -and forgiveness he achieves his redemption. Thus the musical ends in a -happy glow of love and compassion whereas Molnar’s original play ended -on the tragic note of frustration. - -_Carousel_ opened in New York on April 19, 1945. John Chapman described -it as “one of the finest musical plays I have ever seen, and I shall -remember it always.” It received the Drama Critics Award and eight -Donaldson Awards. Since then it has often been revived besides being -adapted for the screen; in 1958 it was presented at the World’s Fair in -Brussels. - -The heartwarming glow that pervades the play in Hammerstein’s moving -dialogue and lyrics was magically caught in the score, which begins with -an extended waltz sequence for orchestra. In the play this music is -heard under the opening scene which represents an amusement park -dominated by a gay carousel. This waltz music is a self-sufficient -composition that can be, and often is, played independently of the other -excerpts. The other main musical episodes include the love duet of Billy -and Julie, “If I Loved You”; Billy’s eloquent and extended narrative, -“Soliloquy,” when he learns he is about to become a father; the -spiritual “You’ll Never Walk Alone”; the ebullient “June Is Bustin’ Out -All Over”; two vigorous choral episodes, “Blow High, Blow Low” and “This -Was a Real Nice Clambake.” - -_The King and I_, presented on March 29, 1951, was adapted by Oscar -Hammerstein II from Margaret Landon’s novel _Anna and the King of Siam_ -(which had already been made into a successful non-musical motion -picture starring Rex Harrison and Irene Dunne). Anna, played in the -musical by Gertrude Lawrence, is an English schoolmistress come to Siam -to teach Western culture to the royal princes and princesses. Her own -strong will and Western independence comes into sharp conflict with the -king, an Eastern despot enacted by Yul Brynner. But they are nonetheless -drawn to each other, partly through curiosity, partly through -admiration. Naturally, since they are of different social stations and -cultures, a love interest is out of the question, but they are -ineluctably drawn to each other, particularly after Anna has managed to -save a critical political situation in Siam through her ingenuity. The -king dies just before the final curtain; Anna remains on as a teacher of -the children she has come to love. - -Part of the attraction of Rodgers’ music is its subtle Oriental -flavoring. In the music—as in text, settings and costuming—_The King and -I_ is a picture of an “East of frank and unashamed romance,” as Richard -Watts, Jr., said, “seen through the eyes of ... theatrical artists of -rare taste and creative power.” The Oriental element is particularly -pronounced in the orchestral excerpt, “The March of the Royal Siamese -Children,” with its exotic syncopated structure and orchestration. Other -popular excerpts from this score include Anna’s lilting “I Whistle a -Happy Tune”; her poignant ballad “Hello, Young Lovers”; Anna’s duet with -the king, “Shall We Dance?”; her amiable conversation with the children, -“Getting to Know You”; the King’s narrative, “A Puzzlement”; also two -sensitive and atmospheric duets by the two Siamese lovers, Tuptim and -Lun Tha, “We Kiss in the Shadow” and “I Have Dreamed.” - -_Oklahoma!_, the first of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical -plays—which opened on March 31, 1943—made stage history. Its run of -2,248 performances was the longest run of any Broadway musical up to -then; a national company toured for ten years. It was successfully -produced in Europe, Africa, and Australia. But beyond being a box-office -triumph of incomparable magnitude, it was also an artistic event of the -first importance. This was musical comedy no more, but a vital folk play -rich in dramatic content, and authentic in characterization and -background. The play upon which it was based was Lynn Riggs’ folk play, -_Green Grow the Lilacs_, adapted by Oscar Hammerstein II. In making his -adaptation, Hammerstein had to sidestep long accepted formulas and -clichés of the American musical stage to meet the demands of Riggs’ -play. Chorus-girl routines made way for American ballet conceived by -Agnes De Mille. Set comedy routines were replaced by a humor which rose -naturally from text and characters. Each musical incident was basic to -the movement of the dramatic action. Even the plot was unorthodox for -our musical theater. At the turn of the present century in West-Indian -country, Laurey and Curly are in love, but are kept apart by their -respective diffidence and a false sense of hostility. An ugly, lecherous -character, Jud Fry, pursues Laurey. Laurey and Curly finally declare -their love for each other. At their wedding Jud arrives inebriated, -attacks Curly with a knife, and becomes its fatal victim when he -accidentally falls upon the blade during a brawl. A hastily improvised -trial exonerates Curly of murder and permits him and his bride to set -off on their honeymoon for a land that some day will get the name of -Oklahoma. - -The play opens at once with its best musical foot forward, a simple -song, “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’,” which has the personality of -American folk music. It is sung offstage by Curly. After that the -principal musical episodes include the love song of Curly and Laurey, -“People Will Say We’re in Love”; several songs with a strong American -national identity, including “Kansas City,” “The Farmer and the Cowman,” -“The Surrey With the Fringe on Top,” and the title number; and two -highly expressive numbers, “Out of My Dreams” and “Many a New Day.” - -_Slaughter on Tenth Avenue_ is one of Rodgers’ most famous orchestral -compositions, and one of the finest achievements of the school of -symphonic-jazz writing. This music was used for a ballet sequence in the -Rodgers and Hart musical, _On Your Toes_, first produced in 1936. Since -_On Your Toes_ dwelled in the world of ballet, with dancers as principal -characters, ballet episodes played an important part in the unfolding of -the story; these episodes were conceived by George Balanchine. The play -reaches a dramatic climax with a jazz ballet, a satire on gangsters, -entitled _Slaughter on Tenth Avenue_. This is a description of the -pursuit by gangsters of a hoofer and his girl. Caught up in a Tenth -Avenue café, the gangsters murder the girl and are about to kill the -hoofer when the police come to his rescue. Rodgers’ music for the ballet -is an extended and integrated symphonic-jazz composition which has won -its way into the permanent repertory of semi-classical music. It is -constructed from two main melodic ideas. The first is an impudent little -jazz tune, and the second is a rich and luscious jazz melody for -strings. - -_South Pacific_, produced on April 7, 1949, was both commercially and -artistically of the magnitude of _Oklahoma!_ Its Broadway run of 1,925 -performances was only 325 less than that of its epoch-making -predecessor. In many other respects _South Pacific_ outdid _Oklahoma!_: -In the overall box-office grossage; in sale of sheet music and records; -in the capture of prizes (including the Pulitzer Prize for drama, seven -Antoinette Perry and nine Donaldson awards). The book was adapted by -Oscar Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan from _Tales of the South Pacific_, -a series of short stories about American troops in the Pacific during -World War II. In the adaptation two love plots are emphasized. The first -involves the French planter, Emile de Becque, and the American ensign, -Nellie Forbush; the other engages Liat, a Tonkinese girl, and Lieutenant -Cable. The first ends happily, but only after complications brought on -by the discovery on Nellie’s part that Emile was once married to a -Polynesian and is the father of two Eurasian children. The other love -affair has a tragic ending, since Lieutenant Cable dies on a mission. -With Ezio Pinza as De Becque and Mary Martin as Nellie, _South Pacific_ -was “a show of rare enchantment,” as Howard Barnes reported, “novel in -texture and treatment, rich in dramatic substance, and eloquent in -song.” Among its prominent musical numbers are De Becque and Nellie’s -love song, “Some Enchanted Evening”; De Becque’s lament “This Nearly Was -Mine”; Cable’s love song “Younger Than Springtime”; three songs by -Nellie, “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair,” “A Cockeyed -Optimist,” and “I’m in Love with a Wonderful Guy”; two exotic numbers by -the Tonkinese Bloody Mary, “Happy Talk” and “Bali Ha’i”; and a spirited -and humorous choral number by the Marines, “There Is Nothing Like a -Dame.” - -_Victory at Sea_ is a nine-movement suite for symphony orchestra adapted -by Robert Russell Bennett from the extended musical score for a series -of documentary films on naval operations during World War II. These -films were presented over NBC television in 1952 and received both the -Sylvania and the George Foster Peabody Awards. Much of the acclaim -accorded to these remarkable films belonged to Rodgers’ background music -which, as Otis L. Guernsey said, “suggested courage, self-sacrifice and -the indomitable spirit of the free man.” A _New Yorker_ critic described -Rodgers’ music as a “seemingly endless creation, now martial, now -tender, now tuneful, now dissonant ... memorable and tremendously -moving.” - -The first movement, “The Song of the High Seas,” is a picture of ships -menaced by Nazi U-boats on the seas during the early part of World War -II. They finally get involved in battle. “The Pacific Boils Over” -describes the beauty of Hawaii at peace in a melody suggesting Hawaiian -song and dance. War comes, and this idyllic mood is shattered. A broad -melody for strings ending in forceful chords tells about the tragedy of -Pearl Harbor and the grim business of repairing the damage inflicted -upon it by the Japanese. The third movement is one of the most famous in -the suite, often performed independently of the other sections. It is -stirring and dramatic march music of symphonic dimensions entitled -“Guadalcanal March.” This is followed by “D Day,” its principal melody a -broad, strong subject for brass telling of the gradual build-up of men -and materials for the invasion of Fortress Europe. The fifth movement, -“Hard Work and Horseplay” provides the lighter side of war. American -soldiers find relief from grim realities in mischievous escapades and -playtime. “Theme of the Fast Carrier” brings up the picture of a battle -scene and ends with moving funeral music. In “Beneath the Southern -Cross” we get an infectious tango melody which Rodgers later borrowed -for his hit song, “No Other Love,” for the Rodgers and Hammerstein -musical play, _Me and Juliet_. “Mare Nostrum” recalls the harsh -realities of war, first by presenting a serene Mediterranean scene, and -then showing how it is torn and violated by the fierce naval attack on -North Africa, Sicily, Salerno, and Anzio. The suite ends on a note of -triumph with “Victory at Sea.” A hymn of thanksgiving is sounded. Then -we hear reminders of the “Guadalcanal March” and the seductive tango -melody from “Beneath the Southern Cross.” This tango is soon transformed -into a rousing song of joy and triumph with which the suite comes to a -magnificent culmination. - - - - - Sigmund Romberg - - -Sigmund Romberg was born in Szeged, Hungary, on July 29, 1887. His -boyhood and early manhood were spent in Vienna where he studied -engineering and fulfilled his military service with the 19th Hungarian -Infantry stationed in that city. In Vienna, Romberg’s lifelong interest -in and talent for music found a favorable climate. He heard concerts, -haunted the city’s leading music salons, was a devotee of Viennese -operettas at the Theater-an-der-Wien. Vienna’s influence led him to -abandon all thoughts of becoming an engineer. In 1909 he came to the -United States where he led salon orchestras in various restaurants and -published his first popular songs. In 1912 he was engaged as staff -composer for the Shuberts, for whose many and varied Broadway -productions Romberg supplied all the music. Within a three-year period -he wrote the scores for eighteen musicals, one of which was his first -operetta in a European style, _The Blue Paradise_ (1915) for which he -created his first outstanding song hit, “_Auf Wiedersehen_.” Though he -continued writing music for many musical comedies, revues and -extravaganzas—including some starring Al Jolson at the Winter Garden—it -was in the field of the operetta that Romberg achieved significance in -American popular music. His musical roots were so deeply embedded in the -soil of Vienna that only in writing music for operettas in the manner -and procedures of Vienna did he succeed in producing a lyricism that ran -the gamut from sweetness and sentimentality to gaiety, masculine vigor -and charm. His most successful operettas, which are discussed below, -have never lost their capacity to enchant audiences however many times -they are revived. - -Romberg began writing music for motion pictures in 1930 with _Viennese -Nights_. Out of one of his many scores for the screen came the poignant -ballad, “When I Grow Too Old to Dream.” His last huge success on -Broadway was achieved not with an operetta but with an American musical -comedy with American backgrounds, settings and characters—and songs in a -pronounced American idiom. It was _Up in Central Park_ in 1945. His last -musical comedy was _The Girl in Pink Tights_ produced on Broadway -posthumously in 1954. Romberg died in New York City on November 9, 1951. -Three years after his death his screen biography, _Deep in My Heart_, -was released, with José Ferrer playing the part of the composer. - -_Blossom Time_ was first produced on Broadway on September 29, 1921 and -proved so successful that to meet the demand for tickets a second -company was formed to perform it at a nearby theater. There were also -four national companies running simultaneously. This musical was derived -from the successful German operetta, _Das drei Maederlhaus_, adapted by -Dorothy Donnelly. The central character is the beloved Viennese composer -of the early 19th century, Franz Schubert, and the plot is built around -the composer’s supposed frustrated love for Mitzi, who, in turn, falls -in love with Schubert’s best friend. The composer’s anguish in losing -her makes it impossible for him to finish the symphony he was writing -for her—and it remains forever unfinished. This tragic episode, however, -has no basis in biographical fact and is entirely the figment of a -fertile operetta librettist’s imagination. - -Romberg’s most famous songs were all based on Schubert’s own melodies, -and one became a hit of major proportions: “Song of Love” based on the -beautiful main theme from the first movement of the _Unfinished -Symphony_. Other popular selections include “Tell Me Daisy,” “Lonely -Hearts,” “Serenade” and “Three Little Maids”—all possessed of that -charm, grace and _Gemuetlichkeit_ which we always associate with the -city of Vienna and its popular music. - -_The Desert Song_, produced on November 30, 1926, had for its background -the colorful setting of French Morocco. There Margot Bonvalet is in love -with the Governor’s son but is being pursued by the bandit chief, The -Red Shadow. In the end it turns out that the Governor’s son and The Red -Shadow are one and the same person. The principal musical excerpts -include the romantic duet of Margot and The Red Shadow, “Blue Heaven”; -the rapturous love song of The Red Shadow, “One Alone”; and two virile -episodes, “Sabre Song” and “French Marching Song.” - -Unlike most Romberg operettas, _Maytime_, presented on August 16, 1917, -did not have a foreign or exotic setting. The action takes place in -Gramercy Park, New York, between 1840 and 1900. However, the tragic -frustrations of the love affair of Ottilie and Richard belong inevitably -in the make-believe world of the operetta. Ottilie is forced to marry a -distant relative. Many years later, Ottilie’s granddaughter and -Richard’s grandson find each other, fall in love, and fulfil the -happiness denied their grandparents. The most important musical number -in this play is the sweet and sentimental waltz, “Will You Remember?”, -which is repeated several times during the course of the action. Other -numbers include “Jump Jim Crow,” “It’s a Windy Day” and “Dancing Will -Keep You Young.” - -_The New Moon_—which came to Broadway on September 19, 1928—was -described by its authors (Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel, and -Laurence Schwab) as a “romantic musical comedy.” Its hero is a -historical character, Robert Mission, an 18th-century French aristocrat -who has come to New Orleans as a political fugitive. In the operetta he -is a bondservant to Monsieur Beaunoir, with whose daughter, Marianne, he -is in love. When the French police arrive to take him back to Paris for -trial, Marianne boards his ship upon which a mutiny erupts on the high -seas. The victorious bondservants now take possession of a small island -off the coast of Florida where they set up their own government with -Robert as leader, who then takes Marianne as his wife. This opulent -score yields one of Romberg’s most beautiful love songs, “Lover Come -Back to Me,” but it is significant to point out that its main melody was -expropriated by Romberg from a piano piece by Tchaikovsky. Other -delightful musical excerpts from this tuneful operetta include the -tender ballads “Softly as in a Morning Sunrise,” “One Kiss” and “Wanting -You,” and the stirring male chorus, “Stout-Hearted Men.” - -_The Student Prince_, like _Blossom Time_, was based on a successful -German operetta, _Old Heidelberg_, once again adapted for the American -stage by Dorothy Donnelly. Its first performance took place on December -2, 1924. It has become one of the best loved operettas of the American -theater; there is hardly a time when it is not revived somewhere in the -United States. The setting is the romantic German University town of -Heidelberg in 1860. Prince Karl Franz falls in love with Kathie, a -waitress at the local inn. Their romance, however, is doomed to -frustration, since the Prince must renounce her to marry a Princess. -Romberg’s music is a veritable cornucopia of melodic riches, including -as it does the love duet of Kathie and the Prince, “Deep in My Heart,” -the Prince’s love song “Serenade,” and with them, “Golden Days” and a -vibrant male chorus, “Drinking Song.” - - - - - David Rose - - -David Rose was born in London, England, on June 15, 1910. His family -came to the United States in 1914, settling in Chicago where Rose -received his musical training at the Chicago Musical College. After -working for radio and as pianist of the Ted Fiorito Orchestra, Rose came -to Hollywood in 1938 where he became music director of the Mutual -Broadcasting network. During World War II he served as musical director -of, and composer for, _Winged Victory_, the Air Corps production by Moss -Hart. After the war, Rose became outstandingly successful as musical -director for leading radio and television programs (including the first -Fred Astaire television show for which he received an “Emmy” Award), and -as a composer of background music for many motion pictures. He has also -appeared extensively in America and Europe as guest conductor of -symphony orchestras. - -Rose is the composer of several instrumental compositions in a popular -style that have achieved considerable popularity. Indeed, it was with -one of these that he first became famous as a composer. This was the -_Holiday for Strings_, written and published in 1943, a three-part -composition in which the flanking sections make effective use of plucked -strings while the middle part is of lyrical character. _Holiday for -Strings_ received over a dozen different recordings and sold several -million records. Fifteen years later, Rose wrote another charming -composition in a similar vein, _Holiday for Trombones_ in which -virtuosity is contrasted with lyricism. Other instrumental works by Rose -outstanding for either melodic or rhythmic interest are _Big Ben_, -_Dance of the Spanish Onion_, _Escapade_, and _Our Waltz_. - - - - - Gioacchino Rossini - - -Gioacchino Rossini was born in Pesaro, Italy, on February 29, 1792. He -received his musical training at the Liceo Musicale in Bologna. In 1810 -he wrote his first opera, _La Cambiale di matrimonio_, produced in -Venice. Success came in 1812 with his third opera, _La Pietra del -paragone_, given at La Scala in Milan. _Tancredi_ and _L’Italiana in -Algeri_, performed in Venice in 1813, further added to his fame and -helped make him an adulated opera composer at the age of twenty-one. In -1815 Rossini was appointed director of two opera companies in Naples for -which he wrote several successful operas. But his masterwork, which came -during this period, was not written for Naples but for Rome: _The Barber -of Seville_ introduced in the Italian capital in 1816. In 1822 Rossini -visited Vienna where he became the man of the hour. In 1824 he came to -Paris to assume the post of director of the Théâtre des Italiens. Among -the operas written for Paris was _William Tell_, introduced at the Paris -Opéra in 1829. Though Rossini was now at the height of his fame and -creative power—and though he lived another thirty-nine years—he never -wrote another work for the stage. He continued living in Paris, a -dominant figure in its social and cultural life. His home was the -gathering place for the intellectual élite of the city, the scene of -festive entertainments. He died of a heart attack in Paris on November -13, 1868. - -Rossini was the genius of Italian comic opera (_opera buffa_). His -melodies are filled with laughter and gaiety; his harmonies and rhythms -sparkle with wit and the joy of life. He was at his best when he brought -to his writing an infallible instinct for comedy, burlesque, and -mockery. But he was also capable of a lyricism filled with poetry and -infused with heartfelt sentiments. He was, moreover, a master of -orchestral effect—especially in his dramatic use of the extended -_crescendo_—and highly skilled in contrasting his moods through rapid -alternation of fast and slow passages. He was also a daring innovator in -his instrumentation. - -He is a giant in opera, but with his infectious moods and endless fund -of melodies he is also a crowning master in semi-classical music. His -masterwork, _The Barber of Seville_ (_Il Barbiere di Siviglia_) is as -popular with salon orchestras through its merry overture and main -selections as it is in the opera house. _The Barber of Seville_ is based -on two plays by Beaumarchais, _Le Barbier de Séville_ and _Le Mariage de -Figaro_, adapted by Cesare Sterbini. It is a vivacious comedy in which -Count Almaviva, in love with Rosina (ward of Doctor Bartolo who is in -love with her himself) tries to penetrate Bartolo’s household by -assuming various disguises. The Count and Rosina plan to elope, but -Rosina reneges when Bartolo convinces her that the Count is unfaithful -to her. Eventually, Rosina discovers that Bartolo has deceived her. She -marries the Count, and Bartolo finds consolation in the fact that the -Count is willing to renounce Rosina’s dowry in his favor. - -When this work was first performed in Rome on February 20, 1816 it was a -dismal failure. This was largely due to a carefully organized uproar in -the theater by admirers of another famous Italian composer, Paisiello, -who had previously written an opera on the same subject. A sloppy -performance did not help matters either. The furor in the auditorium was -so great that it was impossible at times to hear the singers; and -Rossini was in the end greeted with hisses and catcalls. But the second -performance told a far different story. The singing and staging now went -off much more smoothly, and Rossini’s enemies were no longer present to -do their damage. Consequently the opera was acclaimed. Five years later, -a tour of the opera throughout Italy established its fame and popularity -on a solid and permanent basis. - -The deservedly famous overture is so much in the carefree and ebullient -spirit of the opera as a whole—and so felicitously sets the tone for -what is soon to follow on the stage—that it comes as a shock to discover -that it was not written for this work. Rossini had actually created it -for an earlier opera, and then used it several times more for various -other stage works, tragedies as well as comedies. The overture opens -with a slow introduction in which the violins offer a graceful tune. A -transition of four chords leads to the main body in which strings -doubled by the piccolo offer a spicy little melody. The same infectious -gaiety is to be found in the second theme which is first given by oboe -and clarinet. A dramatic crescendo now leads into the development of -both themes, and the overture ends with a vivacious coda. - -Besides the overture, some of the principal melodies from this opera are -frequently given in various orchestral potpourris and fantasias: Count -Almaviva’s beautiful serenade, “_Ecco ridente in cielo_” and Figaro’s -patter song, “_Largo al factotum_” from the first act; in the second -act, Rosina’s coloratura aria, “_Una voce poco fa_” and Basilio’s -denunciation of slander in “_La Calunnia_”; and in the third act, -Basilio’s unctuous greeting “_Pace e gioia sia con voi_” and Figaro’s -advice to the lovers to get married in haste and silence, “_Zitti, -zitti, piano, piano_.” - -_La Gazza ladra_ (_The Thieving Magpie_), first produced at La Scala on -May 31, 1817, is also a light comedy; libretto by Giovanni Gherardini, -based on a French play. The central character is a servant girl falsely -accused of having stolen a silver spoon; she is exonerated when the -spoon is found in a magpie’s nest just as the girl is about to be -punished at the scaffold. The overture begins with an -attention-arresting roll on the snare drum. This is followed by a brisk, -march-like melody for full orchestra. In the main section, the principal -themes consist of a sensitive little tune for strings and a pert melody -for strings and woodwind. - -_L’Italiana in Algeri_ (_The Italian Lady in Algiers_) is, on the other -hand, a serious opera. It was first produced in Venice on May 22, 1813, -libretto by Angelo Anelli. In Algiers, Lindoro and Isabella are in love, -but their romance is complicated by the fact that Isabella is sought -after by the Mustafa. The lovers manage to effect their escape while the -Mustafa is involved in complicated rites serving as his initiation into -a secret society. The solemn opening of the overture has for its main -thought a beautiful song for oboe. A crescendo then carries the overture -to its principal section in which two lively melodies are heard, the -first for woodwind, and the second for oboe. - -_La Scala di seta_ (_The Silken Ladder_) is an opera buffa which had its -first performance in Venice on May 9, 1812. The libretto by Gaetano -Rossi was based on a French farce involving a young girl who tries -desperately to keep secret from her jealous guardian her marriage to the -man she loves. A brief and electrifying opening for strings in the -overture brings on a sentimental duet for flute and oboe. Two principal -subjects in the main body of the overture include a gay and sprightly -melody for strings, echoed by oboe, and a tender theme for flute and -clarinet accompanied by strings. - -_Semiramide_—introduced in Venice on February 3, 1823—is a serious opera -based on Voltaire with libretto by Gaetano Rossi. Semiramis is the Queen -of Babylon who is driven by her love for Asur to murder her husband. Her -later love life is complicated when she discovers that the object of her -passion, a Scythian, is actually her son. Semiramis is killed by a -dagger which Asur directs at her Scythian son; Semiramis’ son then -murders Asur and assumes the throne. The overture opens dramatically -with a gradual crescendo at the end of which comes a slow and solemn -melody for four horns, soon taken over by woodwind against plucked -strings. A short transition in the woodwind brings on a return of the -opening crescendo measures. We now come to the main part of the overture -in which the first theme is for strings, and the second for the -woodwind. - -The most famous of all Rossini’s overtures, more celebrated even than -that for _The Barber of Seville_, is the one for the tragic opera -_William Tell_ (_Guillaume Tell_). This is perhaps the most popular -opera overture ever written. It is much more than merely the preface to -a stage work but is in itself an elaborate, eloquent tone poem, rich in -dramatic as well as musical interest, and vivid in its pictorial and -programmatic writing. - -_William Tell_, which had its première in Paris on August 3, 1829, is -based on the drama of Friedrich Schiller, the libretto adaptation being -made by Étienne de Jouy and Hippolyte Bis. The hero is, of course, the -Swiss patriot who triumphs over the tyrant Gessler and helps bring about -the liberation of his country. - -In the early measures of the overture we get a picture of sunrise over -the Swiss mountains, its beautiful melody presented by cellos and -basses. A dramatic episode for full orchestra then depicts an Alpine -storm. When it subsides we get a pastoral scene of rare loveliness -evoked by a poignant Swiss melody on the English horn. Trumpet fanfares -then bring on the stirring march music which, in our time and country, -has been borrowed by radio for the theme melody of “The Lone Ranger.” -The overture ends triumphantly in telling of William Tell’s victory over -tyranny and oppression. - -The contemporary British composer, Benjamin Britten, has assembled -various melodies by Rossini into two delightful suites for orchestra. -_Soirées musicales_ (1936) is made up of five compositions by -Rossini—from _William Tell_ and from several pieces from a piano suite -entitled _Péchés de vieillesse_. The five movements are marked; I. -March; II. Canzonetta; III. Tyrolese; IV. Bolero; V. Tarantella. -_Matinées musicales_ (1941) also gets its material from _William Tell_ -and the piano suite. Here the movements are: I. March; II. Nocturne; -III. Waltz; IV. Pantomime; V. Moto Perpetuo. - - - - - Anton Rubinstein - - -Anton Rubinstein was born in Viakhvatinetz, Russia, on November 28, -1829. He studied the piano with Alexandre Villoing after which, in 1839 -he came to Paris with his teacher, deeply impressing Chopin and Liszt -with his performances. Between 1841 and 1843 Rubinstein made a concert -tour of Europe, but his career as a world-famous virtuoso did not begin -until 1854 when his formidable technique and musicianship aroused the -enthusiasm of Western Europe. After that he made many tours of the -world, his reputation as pianist second only to that of Liszt; his first -American appearance took place in 1872-1873 when he gave more than two -hundred concerts. He also distinguished himself as conductor of the -Russian Musical Society, and as director of the St. Petersburg -Conservatory which he helped found in 1862. He was one of the most -highly honored musicians in Russia of his generation. He resigned his -post as director of the Conservatory in 1891, and on November 20, 1894 -he died in St. Petersburg. - -Rubinstein was an extraordinarily prolific composer, his works including -many operas, symphonies, concertos, overtures, tone poems, chamber music -together with a library of music for solo piano. About all that has -survived from his larger works is his Fourth Piano Concerto which is -flooded with Romantic ardor and is often in the recognizable style of -Mendelssohn. Beyond this concerto, only a few of his smaller pieces for -piano are still heard, so delightful in their melodic content and so -charming in mood and atmosphere that they have lost little of their -universal appeal. - -_Kamenoi-Ostrow_, though best known as a composition for orchestra, -originated as a piece for the piano. Actually the name _Kamenoi-Ostrow_ -belongs to a suite of twenty-four compositions for solo piano, op. 10. -But the twenty-second number has become so popular independent of the -suite, and in so many different guises, that its original title (“_Rêve -angelique_”) has virtually been forgotten and it is almost always -referred to now by the name of its suite. Kamenoi-Ostrow is a Russian -town in which the Grand Duchess Helena maintained a summer palace. -Rubinstein was its chamber virtuoso from 1848 on for a few years, and -while there he wrote his piano suite, naming it after the Grand Duchess’ -residence. The solemn melody and its equally affecting countermelody -have an almost religious character, emphasized in orchestral -transcription by a background of tolling bells. Victor Herbert made an -effective orchestral adaptation. - -The _Melody in F_ is one of the most popular piano pieces ever written. -It is found in the first of _Two Melodies_, for solo piano, op. 3, but -is most often heard in orchestral transcription, or adaptations for solo -instrument and piano. The vernal freshness of its spontaneous lyricism -has made it particularly appropriate describing Springtime; indeed, -verses about Spring have been written for this melody. - -The _Romance in E-flat major_ is almost as well known as the _Melody in -F_. This sentimental melody—filled with Russian pathos, yearning and -dark brooding—is the first number in a set of six pieces for solo piano -collectively entitled _Soirées de St. Petersbourg_, op. 44. - - - - - Camille Saint-Saëns - - -Camille Saint-saëns was born in Paris on October 9, 1835. He was -extraordinarily precocious. After some piano instruction from his aunt -he gave a remarkable concert in Paris in his ninth year A comprehensive -period of study followed at the Paris Conservatory where he won several -prizes, though never the Prix de Rome. In 1852 he received a prize for -_Ode à Sainte Cécile_, and in 1853 the première of his first symphony -attracted considerable praise. From 1858 to 1877 he was the organist of -the Madeleine Church in Paris, a position in which he achieved renown as -a performer on the organ. From 1861 to 1865 he was an eminent teacher of -the piano at the École Niedermeyer, and in 1871 he helped organize the -distinguished Société Nationale in Paris devoted to the introduction of -new music by French composers. From 1877 his principal activity was -composition in which, as in all the other areas in which he had been -engaged, he soon became an outstanding figure. He was made Chevalier of -the Legion of Honor in 1868; Officer in 1884; Grand Officer in 1900; and -in 1913 the highest rank in the Legion of Honor, the Grand-Croix. He -became a member of the Institut de France in 1881. Saint-Saëns paid his -first visit to the United States in 1906, and made his first tour of -South America in 1916 when he was eighty-one. He remained active until -the end of his long life, appearing as pianist and conductor in a -Saint-Saëns festival in Greece in 1920, and performing a concert of his -own music in Dieppe a year later. He was vacationing in Algiers when he -died there on December 16, 1921. - -Though Saint-Saëns lived well into the 20th century and was witness to -the radical departures in musical composition taking place all about -him, he remained a conservative to the end of his days. He was, from a -technical point of view, a master. There is no field of musical -composition which he did not cultivate with the most consummate skill -and the best possible taste. He was gifted not merely with a fine -lyrical gift but also at other times with passion, intensity, and a -sardonic wit. He wrote numerous compositions in a light style, but many -of his most serious efforts are readily assimilable at first hearing and -readily fall into the category of semi-classics. - -_The Carnival of Animals_ (_Le Carnaval des animaux_), for two pianos -and orchestra (1886) finds the composer in a gay mood. This is witty, -ironic and at times satiric music. The composer regarded the writing of -this work as a lark, thought so little of the composition that he did -not permit a public performance or a publication during his lifetime. -Nevertheless it is one of the composer’s most infectious compositions, -one that never fails to enchant audiences young and old. It was -described by the composer as “a grand zoological fantasy,” and its -fourteen sections represent pictures of various animals. The suite -begins with a march (“Introduction and Royal March of the Lion,” -“_L’Introduction et marche royale du lion_”). After a brief fanfare, -sprightly march music is heard. We can readily guess who is at the head -of the parade by the lion’s roar simulated by the orchestra. After this -we are given a picture of a hen through the cackle in piano and strings, -and of a cock through a clarinet call (“Hens and Cocks,” “_Poules et -coqs_”). This is followed by music for two unaccompanied pianos intended -to depict “Mules” (“_Hémiones_”). Actually this portion was planned by -the composer as a satire on pianists who insist on playing everything in -a strict rhythm and unchanging dynamics. In the fourth movement, -“Tortoises” (“_Tortues_”), two amusing quotations are interpolated from -Offenbach’s _Orpheus in the Underworld_. A cumbersome melody in a -stately rhythm then introduces us to the “Elephant” (“_L’Eléphant_”). In -this part the composer’s fine feeling for paradox and incongruity -asserts itself in contrasting a ponderous theme with a graceful waltz -tune. In the halting music of the next movement, “Kangaroos” -(“_Kangourous_”), the composer aims his satirical barbs not on these -graceless animals but upon concert audiences who insist on talking -throughout a performance. “Aquarium” consists of a sensitive melody for -flute and violin against piano arpeggio figures. In “Personages With -Long Ears” (“_Personnages à longues oreilles_”) donkeys are represented -by a melody with leaping intervals. The “Cuckoo in the Woods” (“_Le -Coucou au fonds des bois_”) consists of a melody for clarinet. “Aviary” -(“_Volière_”) reproduces the flight and singing of birds. “Pianists” -(“_Pianistes_”), the composer feels, belongs to the animal kingdom; the -attempt by embryo pianists to master his scales is here described -amusingly. “Fossils” (“_Fossiles_”) quotes four popular themes from the -classics: from Rossini’s _The Barber of Seville_, Saint-Saëns’ _Danse -macabre_, and two French folk songs. Satire and wit are replaced by the -most sensitive lyricism and winning sentiment in the thirteenth -movement, a section so famous that it is most often heard apart from the -rest of the suite, and in many different versions and arrangements. This -is the movement of “The Swan” (“_Le Cygne_”), a beautiful melody for the -cello in which the stately movement of the swan in the water is -interpreted. A dance inspired by this music was made world famous by -Anna Pavlova. The suite ends with the return of all the preceding -characters in a section entitled “Finale.” In the present-day concert -hall, it is sometimes the practice to present _The Carnival of Animals_ -with an appropriate superimposed commentary in verse by Ogden Nash -preceding each section. - -_Danse macabre_, tone poem for orchestra, op. 40 (1874) is a musical -interpretation of a poem by Henri Cazalis. The composition opens with a -brief sequence in the harp suggesting that the hour of midnight has -struck. Death tunes his violin and almost at once there begins a -demoniac dance, its abandoned theme first presented by the flute. -Another equally frenetic dance tune is given by Death, the xylophone -simulating the rattle of bones. In the midst of the orgy the solemn -refrain of the “Dies Irae” is sounded. Dawn is announced by the crowing -of a cock. The wild dance dies down and the dancers disappear in the -mist. - -_The Deluge_ (_Le Déluge_), op. 45 (1876), is an orchestral prelude to a -Biblical poem, text by Louis Gillet. The inspiration for this music -comes from a passage in the _Genesis_: “And God repented of having -created the world.” Solemn chords preface a fugal passage built from a -theme in violas. After this a beautiful melody for solo violin unfolds -symbolizing humanity in its original state of purity. - -The _Havanaise_, op. 83 (1887) is a popular composition for violin and -piano which makes effective use of a languorous Spanish melody set -against the habanera rhythm. “Havanaise” is the French term for -“Habanera,” a popular Spanish dance in slow ²/₄ time said to have -originated in Cuba. - -_Henry VIII_, an opera, is remembered for its effective ballet music. -The opera, with libretto by Leonce Detroyat and Armand Sylvestre was -first performed at the Paris Opéra on March 5, 1883. Since its setting -is England during the Tudor Period, the popular ballet music is -restrained, sensitive and graceful. It is heard in the second act during -a festival given by the King of Richmond to honor the Papal Legate. Much -of the material for these dances was acquired by the composer from a -collection of Scottish and Irish tunes and dances provided him by the -wife of one of his librettists. The Ballet Music is made up of five -sections. The first is a restrained Introduction. Then comes “The Entry -of the Clans.” This music, it is amusing to remark, is English rather -than Scottish in style because the composer confused the English Dee -with the Scottish river of the same name and decided to use the English -melody “The Miller of the Dee.” The third movement is a “Scotch Idyll,” -this time a bright Scottish tune in the oboe. The Ballet Music continues -with a “Gypsy Dance” in which a Hungarian-type melody for English horn -is followed by brisker music whose main subject is offered by the -violins. The suite concludes with “Gigue and Finale.” - -The _Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso_, op. 28 (1863) is for violin -and orchestra. The main theme of the Introduction is found in the solo -violin in the second measure, accompanied by the strings. A forceful -chord for full orchestra brings on the Rondo Capriccioso section, whose -main melody is presented by the solo violin. The solo instrument later -on also introduces a contrasting second theme. After some embellishment -of both ideas, the orchestra loudly interpolates a third subject which -is repeated by the solo violin. All this material is amplified, often -with brilliant virtuoso passages in the violin. A climactic point is -reached when the first theme of the Rondo Capriccioso is pronounced by -the orchestra against broken chords in the violin. This composition -concludes with a coda marked by virtuoso passages for the solo -instrument. - -The _Marche heroïque_, for orchestra, op. 34 (1871) was originally -written for two solo pianos but later the same year orchestrated by the -composer himself. The composition is dedicated to one of Saint-Saëns’ -friends, the painter Alexandre Regnault, who served in the French army -and was killed during the Franco-Prussian War. This music has a -seven-bar introduction following which the principal march subject is -given by the woodwind accompanied by plucked strings. In the middle trio -section a contrasting theme is offered by the trombone against an -accompanying figure taken from the earlier march melody. The march music -returns in the closing section, but more vigorously than heretofore. The -composition ends with a powerful coda. - -_Le Rouet d’Omphale_ (_Omphale’s Spinning Wheel_), is an orchestral tone -poem, op. 31 (1871), based on an old legend. Hercules is the slave of -the Lydian queen. He disguises himself as a woman and is put to the task -of spinning. The whirr of the spinning wheel is simulated by the violins -at the beginning of the composition. The abused Hercules is then -represented by a somber subject for the bass. Soon the whirr returns in -an increased tempo to point up Hercules’ return to the business of -spinning. - -The composer’s most famous opera, _Samson and Delilah_, is represented -on semi-classical programs with its colorful, exciting _Bacchanale_. The -opera was first performed in Weimar in 1877, its libretto (by Ferdinand -Lemaire) based on the famous Biblical story. The Bacchanale comes -towards the end of the opera, the second scene of the third act. At the -Temple of Dagon, the Philistines are celebrating their victory over -Samson and the Hebrews with wild revelry in front of a statue of their -god. A part of these festivities consists of a bacchanale to wild music -Semitic in melodic content, orgiastic in tone colors, and barbaric in -rhythms. The most celebrated vocal selection from this opera is -Delilah’s seductive song to Samson, “My Heart at Thy Sweet Voice” (“_Mon -coeur s’ouvre à ta voix_”). - -The _Suite algérienne_, for orchestra, op. 60, is a set of four -“picturesque impressions of a voyage to Algeria,” in the composer’s own -description. The opening movement is a prelude. The sea is here depicted -in a swelling figure while brief snatches of melody suggest some of the -sights of Algiers as seen from aboard ship. “Moorish Rhapsody” -(“_Rapsodie mauresque_”) is made up of three sections. The first and -last are brilliant in sonority and tonal colors, while the middle one is -an Oriental song. “An Evening Dream at Blidah” (“_Rêverie du soir_”) is -a dreamy nocturne picturing a famous Algerian fortress. The most popular -movement of the suite is the last one, a rousing “French Military March” -(“_Marche militaire française_”)—vigorous, at times even majestic, music -representing the composer’s delight and sense of security in coming upon -a French garrison. - - - - - Pablo de Sarasate - - -Pablo de Sarasate was born in Pamplona, Spain, on March 10, 1844. As a -child prodigy violinist he made his debut in Spain when he was six, and -soon thereafter toured the country. In 1859 he completed with honors a -three-year period of violin study at the Paris Conservatory. He was only -fifteen when he initiated a worldwide career as virtuoso which continued -until the end of his life and placed him with the foremost violinists of -his generation. In his concerts he featured prominently his own -arrangements and fantasias of opera arias as well as his original -compositions in all of which he could exhibit his phenomenal technique. -Some of his compositions are now staples in the violin repertory. They -include the _Gypsy Airs_ (_Zigeuenerweisen_), _Caprice Basque_, _Jota -aragonesa_, _Zapatadeo_, and the _Spanish Dances_. - -The _Gypsy Airs_ is a fantasia made up of haunting gypsy tunes and dance -rhythms. The heart of the composition comes midway with a sad gypsy song -which finds contrast in the electrifying dance melodies and rhythms that -follow immediately. - -Sarasate produced four sets of _Spanish Dances_, opp. 21, 22, 23, and -26, all for violin and piano. The identifiable Spanish melodies and -rhythms of folk dances are here exploited most effectively. The most -famous of these is the _Malagueña_, a broad and sensual gypsy melody -followed by a rhythmic section in which the clicking of castanets is -simulated. - - - - - Franz Schubert - - -Franz Peter Schubert was born in Vienna, Austria, on January 31, 1797. -He was extraordinarily precocious in music and was early trained to play -the violin, viola and organ. From 1808 to 1813 he attended the Imperial -Chapel School where he received a thorough musical background while -preparing to be a chorister in the Chapel Choir. He showed such -remarkable and natural gifts for music that one of his teachers, the -renowned Antonio Salieri, did not hesitate to call him a “genius.” When -the breaking of his voice compelled him to leave the school in 1813, -Schubert was encouraged by his father, a schoolmaster, to enter the -field of education. For two years, from 1814 on, Schubert taught in the -school owned and directed by his father. During this period he -demonstrated phenomenal fertility as a composer by producing operas, -symphonies, masses, sonatas, string quartets, piano pieces, and almost -150 songs including his first masterpiece, _The Erlking_ (_Der -Erlkoenig_). After 1817, Schubert devoted himself completely to -composition. He remained singularly productive even though recognition -failed to come. Few of his works were either published or performed—and -those that were heard proved dismal failures. He managed to survive -these difficult years only through the kindness and generosity of his -intimate friends who loved him and were in awe of his genius. Combined -with the frustration in failing to attract public notice with his -music—and the humiliation of living on the bounty of friends—was the -further tragedy of sickness brought on by a venereal disease. A concert -of his works in Vienna on March 26, 1828 seemed to promise a turn in his -fortunes. But it came too late. He died in Vienna on November 19, -1828—still an unrecognized composer. So completely obscure was his -reputation that for many years some of his crowning master works lay -forgotten and neglected in closets of friends and associates, none of -whom seemed to realize that they were in the possession of treasures. - -Schubert was undoubtedly one of the greatest creators of song the world -has known. His almost five hundred art songs (_Lieder_) is an -inexhaustible source of some of the most beautiful, most expressive, -most poetic melodies ever put down on paper. He created beauty as easily -as he breathed. The most inspired musical thoughts came to him so -spontaneously that he was always reaching for quill and paper to get -them down—whether at his home, or at the houses of his friends, in -restaurants, café-houses, and even while walking through the country. -“The striking characteristics of Schubert’s best songs,” wrote Philip -Hale, “are spontaneous, haunting melody, a natural birthright mastery -over modulation, a singular good fortune in finding the one inevitable -phrase for the prevailing sentiment of the poem, and in finding the -fitting descriptive figure for salient detail. His best songs have an -atmosphere which cannot be passed unnoticed, which cannot be -misunderstood.” But far and beyond his natural gift at lyricism was his -genius in translating the slightest nuances and suggestions of a line of -poetry into tones. It is for this very reason that he is often described -as the father of the _Lied_, or art song. - -Because Schubert’s melodies come from the heart and go to the heart they -have been staples in semi-classical literature by way of orchestral -transcription. Thus though they are as lofty and as noble a musical -expression as can be found anywhere, Schubert’s songs have such -universality that they are as popular as they are inspired. These are a -few of the Schubert songs that have profited from instrumental -adaptations: - -“_Am Meer_” (“By the Sea”), poem by Heinrich Heine. This stately melody -seems to catch some of the vastness and mystery of the sea. This is the -twelfth song from the song cycle _Schwanengesang_ (1828). - -“_An die Musik_” (“To Music”), poem by Franz von Schober (1817). The -glowing melody has caught the composer’s wonder and awe at the magic of -music. - -“_Auf dem Wasser zu singen_” (“To Be Sung on the Water”) poem by -Stolberg. This gay, heartfelt tune expresses the composer’s delight in -floating on the water. - -“_Ave Maria_,” based on a poem by Sir Walter Scott (1825). This is a -melody of exalted spiritual character touched with serenity and -radiance. August Wilhelmj’s transcription for violin and piano is a -staple in the violin repertory. - -“_Du bist die Ruh’_” (“You are Peace”), poem by Rueckert. An atmosphere -of serenity is magically created by a melody of wondrous beauty. - -“_Der Erlkoenig_” (“The Erlking”), poem by Goethe (1815). This is one of -Schubert’s most dramatic songs, describing the death of a child at the -hands of the Erlking, symbol of death. - -“_Die Forelle_” (“The Trout”), poem by Schubert (1817). This gay tune -gives a lively picture of a trout leaping happily in and out of the -water. Schubert used this melody for a set of variations in his piano -quintet in A major, op. 114 (1819). - -“_Gretchen am Spinnrade_” (“Marguerite at the Spinning Wheel”), poem by -Goethe (1814). Against an accompaniment suggesting the whirr of the -spinning wheel, comes Marguerite’s haunting song as she thinks of her -loved one. - -“Hark, Hark, the Lark” (“_Horch, Horch, die Lerch_”), poem by -Shakespeare (1826). The melody reflects the light-hearted mood of the -famous Shakespeare verse from _Cymbeline_. - -“_Der Lindenbaum_” (“The Linden Tree”), poem by Mueller is a poignant -poem of unhappy love. It is the fifth song in the cycle _Die -Winterreise_ (1827). - -“_Staendchen_” (“Serenade”), poem by Rellstab. This is probably one of -the most famous love songs ever written. It is the fourth song in the -cycle _Schwanengesang_ (1828). - -“_Der Tod und das Maedchen_” (“Death and the Maiden”), poem by Claudius -(1817). This dramatic song consists of a dialogue between a young girl -and Death, the words of death appearing in a solemn melody while that of -the girl in a breathless entreaty. Schubert used this melody for a set -of variations in his string quartet in D minor (1824). - -Like Beethoven and Mozart Schubert wrote a considerable amount of -popular dance music for solo piano, and also for orchestra: German -Dances, Laendler, and Waltzes. All have a vigorous peasant rhythm and -with melodies reminiscent of Austrian folk music. Schubert’s waltzes are -of particular interest since he was one of the first composers to unite -several different waltz tunes into a single integrated composition. The -Schubert waltzes, each a delight, are found in _Valses sentimentales_, -op. 50 (1825) and _Valses nobles_, op. 77 (1827). Liszt adapted nine of -the more popular of these waltz melodies in _Soirées de Vienne_ for solo -piano. The 20th-century French Impressionist composer, Maurice Ravel, -was inspired by these Schubert waltzes to write in 1910 the _Valses -nobles et sentimentales_ in two versions, for solo piano, and for -orchestra. - -_Marche militaire_ (_Militaermarsch_) is a popular little march in D -major originally for piano four hands, the first of a set of three -marches gathered in op. 41. This is one of Schubert’s most popular -instrumental numbers. Karl Tausig transcribed it for solo piano, and it -has received many other adaptations including several for orchestra, in -which form it is undoubtedly best known. - -_Moment Musical_ is a brief composition for the piano. It is in song -form and of an improvisational character, and is a _genre_ of -instrumental composition created and made famous by Schubert. He wrote -many such pieces, but the one always considered when this form is -designated is No. 3 in F minor, a graceful and lovable melody, the very -essence of Viennese _Gemuetlichkeit_, although it is subtitled “Russian -Air” (_Air Russe_). Fritz Kreisler transcribed it for violin and piano -and it is, to be sure, familiar in orchestral adaptations including one -by Stokowski, as well as versions for cello and piano, string quartet, -clarinet quartet, four pianos, and so forth. - -The incidental music to _Rosamunde_ (1823) includes an often played -overture and another of Schubert’s universally loved instrumental -numbers, the _Ballet Music_. When _Rosamunde_ was introduced in Vienna -on December 20, 1823 it was a failure, but this was due more to the -insipid play of Helmina von Chézy than to Schubert’s music. The overture -heard upon that occasion is not the overture now known as _Rosamunde_. -The latter is one which Schubert had written for an earlier operetta, -_Die Zauberharfe_. A dignified introduction is dominated by a soaring -melody for oboe and clarinet. The tempo changes, and a brisk little -melody is given by the violins; a contrast is offered by a lyric subject -for the woodwind. - -The Entr’acte No. 2 in B-flat major from _Rosamunde_ is one of -Schubert’s most inspired melodies, whose beauty tempted H. L. Mencken -once to point to it as the proof that God existed. Schubert himself was -fond of the melody for he used it twice more, in his String Quartet in A -minor (1824) and for a piano Impromptu in B-flat major (1827). - -There are two musical episodes in _Rosamunde_ designated as _Ballet -Music_. The famous one is the second in G major, a melody so sparkling, -infectious and graceful—and so full of the joy of life—that once again -like the _Moment Musical_ in F minor it embodies the best of what today -we characterize as Viennese. Fritz Kreisler’s transcription for violin -and piano is famous. - - - - - Robert Schumann - - -Robert Schumann was born in Zwickau, Germany, on June 8, 1810. Though he -demonstrated an unusual gift for music from earliest childhood he was -directed by his father to law. While attending the Leipzig Conservatory -in 1828 he studied the piano with Friedrich Wieck. In 1829, in -Heidelberg, where he had come to continue his law study, he completed -the first of his works to get published, the _Abegg Variations_ for -piano. He returned to Leipzig in 1829, having come to the decision to -make music and not law his lifework, and plunged intensively into study. -His ambition was to become a great virtuoso of the piano. In his efforts -to master his technique he so abused his hands that a slight paralysis -set in, putting to rest all hopes of a career as pianist. He now decided -on composition. After an additional period of study with Heinrich Dorn, -he completed his first major work, the _Paganini Etudes_ for piano, and -started work on his first symphony. He became active in the musical life -of Leipzig by helping found and editing the _Neue Zeitschrift fuer -Musik_, which became a powerful medium for fighting for the highest -ideals in music. He also formed a musical society called the -_Davidsbuendler_ made up of idealistic young musicians who attacked -false values and philistinism in music. All the while his creative life -was unfolding richly. He wrote two unqualified masterworks for piano -between 1833 and 1835, the _Carnaval_ and the _Études symphoniques_. In -1840 Schumann married Clara Wieck, daughter of his one-time piano -teacher. Their love affair had been of more than five years’ duration, -but Clara’s father was stubbornly opposed to their marriage and put -every possible obstacle in their way. Schumann finally had to seek the -sanction of the law courts before his marriage could be consummated. He -now entered upon his most productive period as composer, completing four -symphonies, three string quartets, a piano quartet, numerous songs, a -piano concerto among other works. In 1843, he helped found the Leipzig -Conservatory where for a while he taught the piano, and between 1850 and -1853 he was municipal music director for the city of Duesseldorf. After -1853 there took place a startling deterioration of his nervous system, -bringing on melancholia, lapses of memory, and finally insanity. The -last two years of his life were spent in an asylum at Endenich, Germany, -where he died on July 29, 1856. - -Schumann was a giant in German Romantic music. His works abound with the -most captivating lyricism, heartfelt emotion, subtle moods, and an -unrestricted imagination. There is not much in this wonderful literature -that falls naturally within the category of semi-classics—only three -piano pieces familiar in transcriptions, and a song. - -_Abendlied_ (_Evening Song_), a gentle mood picture in the composer’s -most rewarding Romantic vein, comes from _Twelve Four-Hand Pieces for -Younger and Older Children_, op. 85 (1849) where it is the final number. - -“_Die beiden Grenadiere_” (_The Two Grenadiers_) op. 49, no. 1 (1840) is -probably the most familiar of Schumann’s many songs. The poem is by -Heine. The music describes with telling effect the reaction of two -French grenadiers on learning that their Emperor Napoleon has been -captured. The song reaches a powerful climax with a quotation from the -_Marseillaise_. - -The _Traeumerei_ (_Dreaming_) is the seventh number in a set of thirteen -piano pieces collectively entitled _Scenes from Childhood_ -(_Kinderscenen_), op. 15, (1838). Like the _Abendlied_, it is an -atmospheric piece, perhaps one of the most popular compositions by -Schumann. - -_Wild Horseman_ (_Wilder Reiter_) can be found in the _Album for the -Young_ (_Album fuer die Jugend_), op. 68, no. 3 (1848). It was made into -an American popular song in the early 1950’s by Johnny Burke. - - - - - Cyril Scott - - -Cyril Meir Scott was born in Oxton, England, on September 27, 1879. His -musical training took place at Hoch’s Conservatory in Frankfort, -Germany, and privately with Ivan Knorr. He went to live in Liverpool in -1898 where he taught piano and devoted himself to composition. -Performances of several orchestral and chamber-music works at the turn -of the century helped establish his reputation. He also distinguished -himself as a concert pianist with performances throughout Europe and a -tour of America in 1921. Though frequently a composer with _avant-garde_ -tendencies—one of the first English composers to use the most advanced -techniques of modern music—Scott is most famous for his short pieces for -the piano which have been extensively performed in transcription. His -writing is mainly impressionistic, with a subtle feeling for sensitive -atmosphere and moods. The best of these miniatures, each a delicate tone -picture, are: _Danse nègre_ (_Negro Dance_), op. 58, no. 3 (1908); and -_Lotus Land_, op. 47, no. 1 (1905). The latter was transcribed for -violin and piano by Kreisler and for orchestra by Kostelanetz. - - - - - Jean Sibelius - - -Jean Sibelius was born in Tavastehus, Finland, on December 8, 1865. -Though he early revealed a pronounced gift for music he planned a career -in law. After a year at the University of Helsinki he finally decided -upon music. From 1886 to 1889 he attended the Helsinki Conservatory -where one of his teachers was Ferruccio Busoni, after which he studied -in Berlin with Albert Becker and in Vienna with Robert Fuchs and Karl -Goldmark. He was back in his native land in 1891, and one year after -that conducted in Helsinki the première of his first work in a national -style, _Kullervo_. From then on, he continued producing works with a -pronounced national identity with which he became not only one of -Finland’s leading creative figures in music but also its prime musical -spokesman. In 1897 he was given the first government grant ever bestowed -on a musician which enabled him to give up his teaching activities for -composition. He now produced some of his greatest music, including most -of his symphonies. In 1914 he paid his only visit to the United States, -directing a concert of his works in Norfolk, Connecticut. After World -War I, he toured Europe several times. Then from 1924 on he lived in -comparative seclusion at his home in Järvenpää, which attracted admirers -from all parts of the world. Sibelius wrote nothing after 1929, but by -then his place in the world’s music was secure as one of the foremost -symphonists since Brahms. In Finland he assumed the status of a national -hero. He died at his home in Järvenpää on September 20, 1957. - -Some of the compositions by Sibelius enjoying popularity as -semi-classics are in the post-Romantic German style which he had assumed -early in his career; only one or two are in the national idiom for which -he is so famous. - -In the former category belongs a slight, sentimental piece called -_Canzonetta_, for string orchestra, op. 62a (1911). As its name implies -it is a small and simple instrumental song for muted strings, deeply -emotional in feeling, at times with deeply somber colorations. - -_Finlandia_, for symphony orchestra, op. 26 (1900) is one of Sibelius’ -earliest national compositions, and to this day it is the most famous. -Both in and out of Finland this music is as much an eloquent voice for -its country as its national anthem. One can go even further and say that -more people in the world know the melodies of _Finlandia_ than the -Finnish anthem. So stirring are its themes, so identifiably Finnish in -personality and color, that for a long time it was believed Sibelius had -utilized national folk tunes; but the music is entirely Sibelius’. It -opens with a proud exclamation in the brass. After this comes a -sensitive melody for the woodwind, and a prayer-like song for the -strings. The music now enters a dramatic phase with stormy passages. But -there soon arrives the most famous melody in the entire work, a -beautiful supplication sounded first by the woodwind and then by the -strings. A forceful climax ensues with a strong statement which seems to -be speaking in loud and ringing tones of the determination of the people -to stay free. - -Performances of _Finlandia_ played a prominent role in the political -history of Finland. When performed in its first version, in 1899, it was -used to help raise funds for a Press Pension fight against the -suppression of free speech and press by the Russians. Within the next -two years (following a radical revision of the music in 1900) the work -was given under various titles: In France it was first performed as -_Suomi_ and then as _La Patrie_; in Germany, as _Vaterland_. In Finland -the music proved so inflammatory in arousing national ardor that Russia -suppressed its performances in that country, while permitting it to be -played in the Empire so long as the title _Impromptu_ was used. When, in -1905, Russia made far-reaching political concessions to Finland, -Sibelius’ tone poem was once again permitted performances. For the next -twelve years it became the national expression of a people stubbornly -fighting for its independence. Performances kept alive the national fire -to such an extent that it has been said that they did more to promote -the cause of Finland’s freedom than all the propaganda of speeches and -pamphlets. - -When the Soviets invaded Finland in the first stages of World War II, -_Finlandia_ once again acquired political importance. In the free world, -particularly in the United States, the music was used to speak for the -spirit of a people refusing to accept oppression and defeat. - -Another piece of stirring national music that has become a lighter -classic comes out of the _Karelia Suite_ for orchestra, op. 11 (1893), -the _Alla Marcia_ section. This work was written for a historical -pageant presented by the students of Viborg University and consists of -an overture, two melodious sections (_Intermezzo_ and _Ballade_) and the -_Alla marcia_, march music of dramatic surge and sweep, in which -effective use is made of abrupt key changes. - -Sibelius wrote several delightful _Romances_ in the German-Romantic -idiom of his early _Canzonetta_. One of these was originally for solo -piano, in D-flat major, op. 24, no. 9 (1903); another for violin and -piano, F major, op. 78, no. 2 (1915). The former has become popular in -transcriptions for salon orchestra; the latter, for violin and -orchestra, and cello and piano. Perhaps the most famous of Sibelius’ -_Romances_ is that in C major, for string orchestra, Op. 42 (1903). It -begins with an unorthodox opening, unusual in harmonic structure and -varied in inflections, but its principal melody—a soulful song—is in the -traditional idiom of an uninhibited Romanticist. - -The best known of Sibelius’ Romantic compositions, a universal favorite -with salon orchestras, is the _Valse Triste_, for orchestra, op. 44 -(1903). This is a section from the incidental music for _Kuolema_, a -play by Sibelius’ brother-in-law, Arvid Jaernefelt; but it is the only -one from this score to get published. This slow and lugubrious melody, -bathed in sentimentality, is a literal musical interpretation of the -following program, translated by Rosa Newmarch: “It is night. The son -who has been watching by the bedside of his sick mother has fallen -asleep from sheer weariness. Gradually a ruddy light is reflected -through the room; there is a sound of distant music; the glow and the -music steal nearer until the strains of a valse melody float distinctly -to our ears. The sleeping mother awakens, rises from her bed, and, in -her long white garment which takes the semblance of a ball dress, begins -to move slowly and silently to and fro. She waves her hands and beckons -in time to the music, as though she were summoning a crowd of invisible -guests. And now they appear, these strange visionary couples, turning -and gliding to an unearthly valse rhythm. The dying woman mingles with -the dancers, she strives to make them look into her eyes, but the -shadowy guests one and all avoid her glance. Then she seems to sink -exhausted on her couch, and the music breaks off. But presently she -gathers all her strength and invokes the dance once again with more -energetic gestures than before. Back come the shadowy dancers, gyrating -in a wild, mad rhythm. The weird gaiety reaches a climax; there is a -knock at the door, which flies wide open; the mother utters a despairing -cry; the spectral guests vanish; the music dies away. Death stands on -the threshold.” - - - - - Christian Sinding - - -Christian Sinding was born in Kongsberg, Norway, on January 11, 1856. -After attending the Leipzig Conservatory from 1877 to 1881 he settled in -Oslo as a teacher of the piano. His first published composition was a -piano quintet in 1884, and in 1885 he directed a concert of his own -music in Oslo. Though he wrote in large forms, including symphonies, -concertos, suites, tone poems and various chamber-music compositions, he -is best known for his smaller pieces for the piano. In 1890 he received -an annual subsidy from his government to enable him to devote himself -completely to composition. One of Norway’s most significant composers, -he was given a handsome life pension in 1915, and in 1916 an additional -government gift of 30,000 crowns. In 1921-1922 he visited the United -States when he served for one season as a member of the faculty of the -Eastman School of Music. He died in Oslo on December 3, 1941. - -His smaller pieces for the piano include etudes, waltzes, caprices, -intermezzos and various descriptive compositions. It is by one of the -last that he is most often remembered, a favorite of young pianists -throughout the world, and of salon and pop orchestras in instrumental -adaptations. This is the ever-popular _Rustle of Spring_ -(_Fruehlingsrauschen_), probably the most popular piece of music -describing the vernal season. This is the second of _Six Pieces_, for -solo piano, Op. 32 (1896). The rustle can be found in the accompaniment, -against which moves a soft, sentimental song filled with all the magic -of Nature’s rebirth at springtime. In this same suite, a second number -of markedly contrasting nature, has also become familiar—the first -number, played in a vigorous and picaresque style, the _Marche -grotesque_. - - - - - Leone Sinigaglia - - -Leone Sinigaglia was born in Turin, Italy, on August 14, 1868. His -preliminary music study took place at the Liceo Musicale of his native -city and was completed with Mandyczewski in Vienna and Dvořák in Prague. -The latter encouraged him to write music in a national Italian idiom. It -was in this style that he created his earliest significant compositions, -the first being _Danze piemontesi_, introduced in Turin in 1905, -Toscanini conducting. Later works included _Rapsodia piemontese_ for -violin and orchestra; _Piemonte_, for orchestra; a violin concerto; and -various works for chamber music groups, solo instruments and orchestra. -He died in Turin on May 16, 1944. - -His best known and most frequently played composition is a gay, -infectious little concert overture, _Le Baruffe chiozzotte_ (_The -Quarrels of the People of Chiozzo)_, op. 32 (1907). It was inspired by -the Goldoni comedy of the same name which offers an amusing picture of -life in the little town of Chiozzo. There Lucietto and Tita are in love, -quarrel, and become reconciled through the ministrations of the -magistrate. A loud theme for full orchestra provides the overture with a -boisterous beginning. A passing tender thought then comes as contrast. -After some elaboration of these ideas, a delightful folk song is heard -first in the oboe, and then in violins. The tempo now quickens, the mood -becomes restless, and the music grows sprightly. An amusing little -episode now appears in woodwind and violins after which the folk song -and the loud opening theme are recalled. - -_Piemonte_, a suite for orchestra, op. 36 is a charming four-movement -composition in which the folk melodies and dances of Piedmont are -prominently used. The first movement, “Over Woods and Fields,” opens -with a folk tune, which the composer repeats in the finale. Two other -delightful ideas follow: the first in the horn, repeated by the cellos; -the second in muted first violins. In the second movement, “A Rustic -Dance,” the principal Piedmont dance tune is heard in solo violin and -oboe; a second subject occurs after the development of the first in -lower strings and woodwind. The heart of the third movement, “In the -Sacred Mountain,” is a folk song first offered by the horns, accompanied -by cellos and double basses. The suite ends with a picture of a -festival, “Piedmontese Carnival,” its two vigorous ideas heard -respectively in full orchestra, and in trumpet and first violins. - - - - - Bedřich Smetana - - -Bedřich Smetana was born in Leitomischl, Bohemia, on March 2, 1824. -Though he was interested in music from childhood on, he received little -training until his nineteenth year when he came to Prague and studied -with Josef Proksch. For several years after the completion of his music -study he worked as teacher of music for Count Leopold Thun. He soon -became active in the musical life of his country; in 1848 he was a -significant force in the creation of Prague’s first music school. In -1849, Smetana was appointed pianist to Ferdinand I, the former Emperor -of Austria residing in Prague. From 1856 to 1861 Smetana lived in -Gothenburg, Sweden, where he was active as conductor, teacher, and -pianist. After returning to his native land in 1861 he became one of its -dominant musical figures. He served as director of the music school, -conducted a chorus, wrote music criticisms, founded and directed a drama -school, and organized the Society of Artists. He also wrote a succession -of major works in which the cause of Bohemian nationalism was espoused -so vigorously and imaginatively that Smetana has since become recognized -as the father of Bohemian national music. His most significant works are -the folk opera, _The Bartered Bride_, and a cycle of orchestral tone -poems collectively entitled _My Country_ (_Má Vlast_). Smetana was -stricken by deafness in 1874, despite which he continued creating -important works, among them being operas and an autobiographical string -quartet called _From My Life_ (_Aus meinem Leben_). Total deafness was -supplemented by insanity in 1883 which necessitated confinement in an -asylum in Prague where he died on May 12, 1884. - -The rich folk melodies and pulsating folk rhythms of native dance music -overflow in Smetana’s music, providing it with much of its vitality and -popular interest. Smetana’s gift at writing music in the style, idiom, -and techniques of Bohemian folk dances is evident in many of his -compositions, but nowhere more successfully than in his delightful folk -comic opera, _The Bartered Bride_ (_Prodaná nevešta_). This little -opera, first performed in Prague on May 30, 1866, is the foundation on -which Bohemian national music rests securely. It is a gay, lively -picture of life in a small Bohemian village. The principal action -involves the efforts of the village matchmaker to get Marie married to -Wenzel, a dim-witted, stuttering son of the town’s wealthy landowner. -But Marie is in love with Hans who, as it turns out, is also the son of -the same landowner, though by a previous marriage. Through trickery, -Hans manages to win Marie, though for a while matters become complicated -when Marie is led to believe that Hans has deserted her. - -In its first version, _The Bartered Bride_ was presented as a play (by -Karel Sabina) with incidental music by Smetana. Realizing that this work -had operatic possibilities, Smetana amplified and revised his score, and -wrote recitatives for the spoken dialogue. In this new extended form the -opera was heard in Vienna in 1892 and was a sensation; from then on, and -to the present time, it has remained one of the most lovable comic -operas ever written. - -There are three colorful and dynamic folk dances in this opera which -contribute powerfully to the overall national identity, but whose impact -on audiences is by no means lost when heard apart from the stage action. -“The Dance of the Comedians” appears in the third act, when a circus -troupe appears in the village square and entertains villagers with a -spirited dance. The “Furiant”—a fiery type of Bohemian dance with marked -cross rhythms—comes in the second act when villagers enter the local inn -and perform a Corybantic dance. The “Polka,” a favorite Bohemian dance, -comes as an exciting finish to the first act as local residents give -vent to their holiday spirits during a festival in the village square. - -The effervescent overture which precedes the first act is as popular as -the dances. The merry first theme is given by strings and woodwind in -unison against strong chords in brasses and timpani. This subject is -simplified, at times in a fugal style, and is brought to a climax before -a second short subject is stated by the oboe. Still a third charming -folk tune appears, in violins and cellos, before the first main subject -is recalled and developed. The coda, based on this first theme, carries -the overture to a lively conclusion. Gustav Mahler, the eminent music -director of the Vienna Royal Opera which gave this opera its first major -success outside Bohemia, felt this overture was so much in the spirit of -the entire work, and so basic to its overall mood and structure, that he -preferred using it before the second act so that latecomers into the -opera house might not miss it. - -Smetana’s most famous work for orchestra comes from his cycle of six -national tone poems entitled _My Country_ (_Má Vlast_), which he wrote -between 1874 and 1879 in a tonal tribute to his native land. Each of the -tone poems is a picture of a different facet of Bohemian life, -geography, and background. The most famous composition of this set is -_The Moldau_ (_Vltava_), a portrait of the famous Bohemian river. This -is a literal tonal representation of the following descriptive program -interpolated by the composer in his published score: - -“Two springs gush forth in the shade of the Bohemian forest, the one -warm and spouting, the other cold and tranquil. Their waves, gayly -rushing onward over their rocky beds, unite and glisten in the rays of -the morning sun. The forest brook, fast hurrying on, becomes the river -Vltava, which, flowing ever on through Bohemia’s valleys, grows to be a -mighty stream; it flows through thick woods in which the joyous noise of -the hunt and the notes of the hunter’s horn are heard ever nearer and -nearer; it flows through grass-grown pastures and lowlands where a -wedding feast is celebrated with song and dancing. At night the wood and -water nymphs revel in its shining waves, in which many fortresses and -castles are reflected as witnesses of the past glory of knighthood and -the vanished warlike fame of bygone ages. At St. John Rapids the stream -rushes on, winding in and out through the cataracts, and hews out a path -for itself with its foaming waves through the rocky chasm into the broad -river bed in which it flows on in majestic repose toward Prague, -welcomed by time-honored Vysehrad, whereupon it vanishes in the far -distance from the poet’s gaze.” - -The rippling flow of the river Moldau is portrayed by fast figures in -the strings, the background for a broad and sensual folk song -representing the river itself heard in violins and woodwind. Hunting -calls are sounded by the horns, after which a lusty peasant dance erupts -from the full orchestra. Nymphs and naiads disport to the strains of a -brief figure in the woodwind. A transition by the wind brings back the -beautiful Moldau song. A climax is built up, after which the setting -becomes once again serene. The Moldau continues its serene course -towards Prague. - - - - - John Philip Sousa - - -John Philip Sousa, America’s foremost composer of march music, was born -in Washington, D. C., on November 6, 1854. The son of a trombone player -in the United States Marine Band, John Philip early received music -instruction, mainly the violin from John Esputa. When he was about -thirteen, John enlisted in the Marine Corps where he played in its band -for two years. For several years after that he played the violin in and -conducted the orchestras of various theaters; in the summer of 1877 he -played in an orchestra conducted by Jacques Offenbach at the -Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. Between 1880 and 1892 he was the -musical director of the Marine Band. It was during this period that he -wrote his first famous marches. In 1892 he formed a band of his own with -which he toured Europe and America for many years, and with which he -gave more than a thousand concerts. His most popular marches (together -with his best transcriptions for band of national ballads and patriotic -airs) were always the highlights of his concerts. Besides the marches, -Sousa wrote the music for numerous comic operas, the most famous being -_El Capitan_ (1896) and _The Bride Elect_ (1898). In 1918 Sousa and his -band were heard in the Hippodrome extravaganza, _Everything_. He -published his autobiography, _Marching Along_, in 1928, and died in -Reading, Pennsylvania, on March 6, 1932. - -In the closing years of the 19th century, and in the first part of the -20th, America was undergoing expansion in many directions: art, science, -literature, commerce, finance, world affairs. Hand in hand with this -development and growth came an aroused patriotism and an expanding -chauvinism. Sousa’s marches were the voice of this new and intense -national consciousness. - -As Sigmund Spaeth has pointed out, most of Sousa’s famous marches follow -a similar pattern, beginning with “an arresting introduction, then using -a light, skipping rhythm for his first melody, going from that into a -broader tune,” then progressing to the principal march melody. A massive -climax is finally realized with new, vibrant colors being realized in -the main march melody through striking new combinations of instruments. - -The following are some of Sousa’s most popular marches: - -_El Capitan_ (1896) was adapted from a choral passage from the comic -opera of the same name. This music was played aboard Admiral Dewey’s -flagship, _Olympia_, when it steamed down Manila Bay for battle during -the Spanish-American War. And it was again heard, this time performed by -Sousa’s own band, when Dewey was welcomed as a conquering hero in New -York on September 30, 1900. - -_King Cotton_ (1895) was written on the occasion of the engagement of -the Sousa Band at the Cotton States Exposition. _Semper Fideles_ (1888) -was Sousa’s first famous composition in march tempo, and to this day it -is still one of his best known marches, a perennial favorite with -parades of all kinds. Since Sousa sold this march outright for $35.00 he -never capitalized on its immense popularity. - -Sousa’s masterpiece—and probably one of the most famous marches ever -written—was the _Stars and Stripes Forever_, completed on April 26, -1897. In 1897 Sousa was a tourist in Italy when he heard the news that -his friend and manager had died in the United States. Sousa decided to -return home. Aboard the _Teutonic_ a march melody kept haunting him. As -soon as he came home he put the melody down on paper, and it became the -principal subject of “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” This principal -melody achieves an unforgettable climax in the march when it is proudly -thundered by the full orchestra to figurations in the piccolo. - -_The Thunderer_ and _The Washington Post March_ were written in 1889. -The latter was commissioned by the _Washington Post_ for the ceremonies -attending the presentation of prizes in a student essay contest. - -Among Sousa’s other marches are _The Bride Elect_ (1897) from the comic -opera of the same name; _The Fairest of the Fair_ (1908); _Hands Across -the Sea_ (1899); _Invincible Eagle_ (1901); and _Saber and Spurs_ (1915) -dedicated to the United States Cavalry. - -It was long maintained that Sousa was the composer of the famous hymn of -the Artillery branch of the United States armed services, “The Caisson -Song.” Sousa played this march in his own brilliant new band arrangement -at a Liberty Loan Drive at the Hippodrome, in New York, in 1918. For -some time thereafter Sousa was credited as being the composer. But -further research revealed the fact that the words and music had been -written in 1908 by Edmund L. Gruber, then a lieutenant with the 5th -Artillery in the Philippines. - - - - - Oley Speaks - - -Oley Speaks was born in Canal Winchester, Ohio, on June 28, 1874. He -received his musical training, principally in voice, from various -teachers including Armour Galloway and Emma Thursby. He then filled the -post of baritone soloist at churches in Cleveland, Ohio, and New York -City, including the St. Thomas Church in New York from 1901 to 1906. He -also filled numerous engagements in song recitals and performances of -oratorios. He died in New York City on August 27, 1948. - -Speaks was the composer of more than 250 published art songs which have -placed him in a front rank among American song composers. Three have -become outstandingly popular; there is hardly a male singer anywhere who -has not sung such all-time favorites as “Morning,” “On the Road to -Mandalay” and “Sylvia,” each of which is among the most widely -circulated and most frequently heard art songs by an American. -“Morning,” words by Frank L. Stanton, was published in 1910. Where -“Morning” is lyrical, “On the Road to Mandalay” (published in 1907) is -dramatic, a setting of the famous poem by Rudyard Kipling. The -persistent rhythmic background suggesting drum beats, and the effective -key change from verse to chorus, have an inescapable effect on -listeners. “Sylvia,” poem by Clinton Scollard, published in 1914, is in -a sentimental mood, and like “Morning” reveals the composer’s marked -gift for sensitive lyricism. - - - - - Robert Stolz - - -Robert Stolz was born in Graz, Austria, on August 25, 1882. His parents -were musical, his father being a successful conductor and teacher, and -his mother a concert pianist. Robert’s music study took place first with -his father, then with Robert Fuchs in Vienna and Humperdinck in Berlin. -In 1901 he assumed his first post as conductor, at an opera house in -Brunn. When he was twenty-five he was appointed conductor of the -Theater-an-der-Wien in Vienna where he remained twelve years, directing -most of the masterworks in the field of Austrian and German operettas. -His own career as composer of operettas had begun in 1903 with _Schoen -Lorchen_ produced in Salzburg. Since then Stolz has written music for -about sixty operettas, scores for more than eighty films, and a thousand -songs in all. His music is in the light, graceful, ebullient style that -has characterized Viennese operetta music since the time of Johann -Strauss II. His most famous operettas are: _Die lustigen Weiber von -Wien_ (1909), _Die Gluecksmaedel_ (1910), _Die Tanzgraefin_ (1921), -_Peppina_ (1931), _Zwei Herzen in dreiviertel Takt_ (1933), _Fruehling -im Prater_ (1949) and _Karneval in Wien_ (1950). In 1938 Stolz came to -the United States where for several years he worked in Hollywood. After -the end of World War II he returned to Vienna, remaining active as a -composer not only in that city but also in Berlin and London. - -Stolz’ most famous song is “_Im Prater bluehn wieder die Baeume_” (“In -the Prater the Trees Are Again Blooming”), a glowing hymn not only to a -district in Vienna famous for its frolic and amusement but even more so -to the city of Vienna itself. - -A waltz from his operetta, _Two Hearts in Three-Quarter Time_ (_Zwei -Herzen in dreiviertel Takt_) is perhaps one of the most celebrated -pieces in three-quarter time written in Vienna since Lehár, and it is -loved the world over. This operetta originated in 1931 as a German -motion-picture which won accolades around the world for its charm and -freshness, for which Stolz wrote a score that included his famous waltz. -It was then adapted for the stage by Paul Knepler and J. M. Willeminsky -and introduced in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1933. This delightful text -concerns the trials and tribulations of producing an operetta. That -operetta is accepted for production on the condition that a good waltz -melody is written for it, and the composer Toni Hofer gets his -inspiration for that tune from lovely Hedi, the young sister of the -librettist. This waltz, of course, is the title number, which, in its -lilt and buoyancy and Viennese love of life, is in the best tradition of -Viennese popular music. - - - - - Oscar Straus - - -Oscar Straus was no relation to any of the famous Viennese Strausses; -nevertheless in the writing of light, gay music in waltz tempo and -spirited melodies for the operetta stage he was certainly their -spiritual brother. He was born in Vienna on March 6, 1870, and studied -music with private teachers in Vienna and Berlin, including Max Bruch. -In 1901 he settled in Berlin where he became conductor at a famous -cabaret, _Ueberbrettl_, for whose productions of farces he wrote a -number of scores. Soon after that he turned to writing operettas, -becoming world famous with _The Waltz Dream_ in 1907 and _The Chocolate -Soldier_ in 1908, both introduced in Vienna. He wrote about thirty -operettas after that, many heard with outstanding success in the music -centers of the world. The best of these were _Der letzte Walzer_ (1920), -_Die Teresina_ (1921), _Drei Walzer_ (1935), and _Bozena_ (1952). He was -at his best writing waltz melodies but he was also skilful in -interpolating satirical elements into his musical writing through the -exploitation of ragtime, jazz, and the shimmy. Straus lived in Berlin -until 1927, and for a decade after that he made his home in Vienna and -Paris. In 1939 he became a French citizen, and from 1940 to 1948 he -lived in the United States, filling some assignments in Hollywood. He -returned to his native land in 1948, and died at Bad Ischl, Austria, on -January 11, 1954. - -_The Chocolate Soldier_ (_Der tapfere Soldat_) was the operetta -adaptation of Bernard Shaw’s comedy, _Arms and the Man_, by R. Bernauer -and L. Jacobsen. Its première took place in Vienna on November 14, 1908, -with the first American performance taking place a year later at the -Casino Theater in New York. The setting is Serbia in 1885 where the -hero, Lieutenant Bumerli, gains the nickname of “chocolate soldier” -because of a sweet tooth. While escaping from the enemy, he finds refuge -in the bedroom of Nadina, daughter of Colonel Popoff. Nadina becomes the -instrument by means of which the lieutenant is now able to effect his -escape, disguised in the coat of Colonel Popolf. But before the final -curtain Bumerli and Nadina also become lovers. - -The waltz, “My Hero,” (“_Komm, Komm, Held meiner Traeume_”) Nadina’s -waltz of love to the chocolate soldier, is the most celebrated excerpt -from this operetta. Other familiar pages include the lovely first act -duet of Nadina and Bumerli, “Sympathy”; the little orchestral march in -the second act, a satirical take off on military pomp and circumstance; -and Nadina’s “Letter Song” in the third act. - -_A Waltz Dream_ (_Ein Walzertraum_), book by Felix Doermann and Leopold -Jacobsen, was introduced in Vienna on March 2, 1907, and in New York in -April 1908. Lieutenant Niki of the Austrian army is ordered by the -Austrian Emperor to marry Princess Helen, but he falls in love with -Frantzi, a violinist in a girl’s orchestra. This love affair becomes -frustrated when Niki must return to Vienna to become Prince Consort. - -The main musical selection from this operetta is the title number, a -waltz which first appears as a duet between Niki and a fellow officer in -the first act, then recurs throughout the operetta, and finally brings -it to a close. Two sprightly march excerpts, from the second and third -acts respectively, and the duet, “Piccolo, piccolo, tsin, tsin, tsin” -are also popular. - - - - - Eduard Strauss - - -Eduard Strauss, the younger brother of Johann Strauss II, was born in -Vienna on March 15, 1835. He studied music in Vienna with G. Preyer -following which he made his café-house debut in 1862 by conducting his -father’s orchestra at the Dianasaal. He continued to lead his father’s -orchestra at the Volksgarten and Musikverein as well as at various -leading café-houses in Vienna. He also made many tours, including two of -the United States in 1892 and 1901. In 1902 he dissolved the musical -organization which his father had founded three-quarters of a century -earlier and which all that time had dominated the musical life of -Vienna. Besides conducting this orchestra, he also substituted from time -to time for his famous brother, Johann Strauss II, and in 1870 he -succeeded him as conductor of the court balls. Eduard Strauss died in -Vienna on December 28, 1916. - -Eduard wrote over three hundred popular instrumental compositions in the -style of his celebrated brother but without ever equalling his -remarkable creative freshness and originality. But there is a good deal -of pleasurable listening in Eduard’s waltzes and polkas. In the former -category belongs the _Doctrinen_ (_Faith_) Waltzes, op. 79; in the -latter, the gay _Bahn Frei_ (_Fast Track_) Polka, op. 45. In -collaboration with his two brothers, Johann and Josef, Eduard wrote the -_Trifolienwalzer_ and the _Schuetzenquadrille_. - - - - - Johann Strauss I - - -Johann Strauss I was one of the two waltz kings of Vienna bearing that -name. The more famous one, the composer of “The Blue Danube” was the -son. But the father was also one of Vienna’s most popular composers and -café-house conductors. He was born in Vienna on March 14, 1804, and as a -boy he studied both the violin and harmony. His love for music, combined -with the decision of his parents to make him a bookbinder, led him to -run away from home. When he was fifteen he joined Michael Pamer’s -orchestra which played at the Sperl café; another of its members was -Josef Lanner, soon also to become a major figure in Vienna’s musical -life. As Lanner’s star rose, so did Johann Strauss’. First Strauss -played in the Lanner Quartet at the _Goldenen Rebbuhn_ and other cafés; -after that he was a member of the Lanner Orchestra which appeared in -Vienna’s leading cafés. When Lanner’s mounting success made it necessary -for him to create two orchestras, he selected Johann Strauss to conduct -one of them. Then, in 1826, Johann Strauss formed an orchestra of his -own which made its debut at the Bock Café. For the next two decades he -was the idol of Vienna, Lanner’s only rival. By 1830 he had two hundred -musicians under him. His major successes as a café-house conductor came -at the Sperl and the Redoutensaal. But his fame spread far beyond -Vienna. In 1833 he toured all Austria, and in 1834 he appeared in -Berlin. After that he performed in all the major European capitals, -achieving formidable successes in London and Paris. Meanwhile, in 1833, -he had become bandmaster of the first Vienna militia regiment, one of -the highest honors a performer of light music could achieve in Austria. -In 1845 he was appointed conductor of the Viennese court balls. He died -in Vienna on September 25, 1849. - -Like Lanner, Strauss wrote a considerable amount of dance and café-house -music, over 250 compositions. His first composition was the -_Taeuberlwalzer_, named after the café _Zwei Tauben_ where he was then -appearing. After that he wrote waltzes, galops, polkas, quadrilles, -cotillons, contredanses, and marches—which Vienna came to love for their -rhythmic vitality and appealing lyricism. People in Vienna used to say -that the waltzes of the first Johann Strauss were _made_ for dancing -because their rhythmic pulse excited the heart and made feet restless. - -Not much of the father Strauss’ library of music has survived. The -exceptions are the following waltzes: _Caecilien_, _Donaulieder_, the -_Kettenbruecken_, and the _Lorelei Rheinsklaenge_. To the waltz, the -older Johann Strauss brought a symphonic dimension it had heretofore not -known, particularly in his spacious introductions of which the -thirty-bar prelude of the _Lorelei Rheinsklaenge_ is an outstanding -example. He also carried over to the waltz a variety of mood and feeling -and a lightness of touch new for this peasant dance. “This demon of the -ancient Viennese folk spirit,” wrote Richard Wagner after hearing -Strauss perform one of his own waltzes in Vienna, “trembled at the -beginning of a new waltz like a python preparing to spring, and it was -more the ecstasy produced by the music than the drinks among the -enchanted audience that stimulated that magical first violin to almost -dangerous flights.” - -Of his other music the most famous is the _Radetzky March_. Count -Radetzky was an Austrian military hero, victor over the Italians in -1848-1849. In honor of his Italian triumphs and suppression of the -Italian nationalist movement, Strauss wrote the spirited, sharply -accented march in 1848 which almost at once became the musical symbol of -Hapsburg Vienna and Austrian military power. The following programmatic -interpretation of this music by H. E. Jacob is of interest: “Drunk with -triumph, the Generalissimo’s battalions hurl themselves down into -Lombardy. They are close on the heels of the fleeing troops of King -Albert, the King of Sardinia. And then comes a new phase of the march to -accompany the victorious troops. A different sun shines down on this, a -memory of Vienna, a lingering trace of the feel of girls’ arms; scraps -of a dance song with a backward glance at three-quarter time. But on -they go, still forward. There are no more shots, there is laughter. The -trio follows. The ... superdominant ... hoisted as if it were a flag.... -Finally comes the return of the principal theme with the laurels and -gaiety of victory.” - - - - - Johann Strauss II - - -Johann Strauss II, son of the first Johann Strauss, was born in Vienna -on October 25, 1825. Though he showed an unmistakable bent for music -from his childhood on, he was forbidden by his father to study music or -to indulge in any musical activity whatsoever. The young Johann Strauss, -encouraged by his mother, was forced to study the violin surreptitiously -with a member of his father’s orchestra. Only after the father had -deserted his family, to set up another home with his mistress, did young -Johann begin to devote himself completely and openly to music. After -studying the violin with Kohlmann and counterpoint with Joseph -Drechsler, he made his debut as a café-house conductor and composer at -Dommayer’s Casino in Hietzing, near Vienna, on October 15, 1844. The -event was widely publicized and dramatized in Vienna, since the son was -appearing as a rival to his father. For this momentous debut, the son -wrote the first of his waltzes—the _Gunstwerber_ and the -_Sinngedichte_—which aroused immense enthusiasm. He had to repeat the -last-named waltz so many times that the people in the café lost count. -“Ah, these Viennese,” reported the editor of _The Wanderer_. “A new -waltz player, a piece of world history. Good night, Lanner. Good -evening, Father Strauss. Good morning, Son Strauss.” The father had not -attended this performance, but learned of his son’s triumph from one of -his cronies. - -Thus a new waltz king had arisen in Vienna. His reign continued until -the end of the century. For fifty years Johann Strauss II stood alone -and unequalled as the musical idol of Vienna. His performances were the -talk of the town. His own music was on everyone’s lips. After the death -of father Strauss in 1849, he combined members of the older man’s -orchestra with his own, and toured all of Europe with the augmented -ensemble. From 1863 to 1870 he was conductor of the Viennese balls, a -post once held by his father. In 1872 he made sensational appearances in -Boston and New York. All the while he was writing some of the most -famous waltzes ever written, as well as quadrilles and polkas and other -dance pieces. And in 1871, with the première in Vienna of _Indigo_ he -entered upon a new field, that of the operetta, in which once again he -was to become a dominating figure. He was admired not merely by the -masses but also by some of the greatest musicians of his -generation—Brahms, Wagner, Verdi, Hans von Buelow, Offenbach, Goldmark, -Gounod, all of whom expressed their admiration for his music in no -uncertain terms. In 1894, Vienna celebrated the 50th anniversary of his -debut with a week of festive performances; congratulations poured into -Vienna from all parts of the civilized world. He died five years after -that—in Vienna on June 3, 1899—and was buried near Schubert, Beethoven, -and Brahms. - -It is perhaps singularly fitting that Johann Strauss should have died in -1899. A century was coming to an end, and with it an entire epoch. This -is what one court official meant when he said that “Emperor Francis -Joseph reigned until the death of Johann Strauss.” History, with its -cold precision, may accurately record that the reign of Francis Joseph -actually terminated in 1916. But its heyday had passed with the 19th -century. The spirit of old Vienna, imperial Vienna of the Hapsburgs, the -Vienna that had been inspiration for song and story, died with Johann -Strauss. After 1900, Vienna was only a shadow of its former self, and -was made prostrate by World War I. - -If the epoch of “old Vienna” died with Johann Strauss, it was also born -with him. After 1825, the social and intellectual climate in the -imperial city changed perceptibly. The people, always gay, now gave -themselves up to frivolity. For this, political conditions had been -responsible. The autocratic rule of Francis I brought on tyranny, -repression, and an army of spies and informers. As a result, the -Viennese went in for diversions that were safe from a political point of -view: flirtation, gossip, dancing. They were partial to light musical -plays and novels. Thus, an attitude born out of expediency, became, with -the passing of time, an inextricable part of everyday life in Vienna. - -Of the many light-hearted pleasures in which the Viennese indulged none -was dearer to them than dancing. It has been recorded that one out of -every four in Vienna danced regularly. They danced the polka, and the -quadrille; but most of all they danced the waltz. - -Johann Strauss II was the genius of the Viennese waltz. More than -anybody before him or since he lifted the popular dance to such artistic -importance that his greatest waltzes are often performed at symphony -concerts by the world’s greatest orchestras under the foremost -conductors. Inexhaustible was his invention; richly inventive, his -harmonic writing; subtle and varied his gift at orchestration; fresh and -personal his lyricism; aristocratic his structure. To the noted 20th -century German critic, Paul Bekker, the Strauss waltz contained “more -melodies than a symphony of Beethoven, and the aggregate of Straussian -melodies is surely greater than the aggregate of Beethoven’s.” - -Actually the waltz form used by Strauss is basically that of Lanner and -of Strauss’ own father. A slow symphonic introduction opens the waltz. -This is followed by a series of waltz melodies (usually five in number). -A symphonic coda serves both as a kind of summation and as a conclusion. -But here the similarity with the past ends. This form received from the -younger Strauss new dimension, new amplification. His introductions are -sometimes like tone poems. The waltz melodies are incomparably rich in -thought and feeling, varied in mood and style. A new concept of thematic -developments enters waltz writing with Strauss. And his codas, as his -introductions, are symphonic creations built with consummate skill from -previously stated ideas, or fragments of these ideas. No wonder, then, -that the waltzes of Johann Strauss have been described as “symphonies -for dancing.” - -The following are the most popular of the Johann Strauss waltzes: - -_Acceleration_ (_Accelerationen_), op. 234, as the title indicates, -derives its effect from the gradual acceleration in tempo in the main -waltz melody. Strauss had promised to write a waltz for a ball at the -Sofiensaal but failed to deliver his manuscript even at the zero hour. -Reminded of his promise, he sat down at a restaurant table on the night -of the ball and hurriedly wrote off the complete _Acceleration Waltz_ on -the back of a menu card, and soon thereafter conducted the première -performance. - -_Artist’s Life_ (_Kuenstlerleben_), op. 316, opens in a tender mood. A -transition is provided by an alternation of soft and loud passages, -after which the first waltz melody erupts zestfully as a tonal -expression of the lighthearted gaiety of an artist’s life. A similar -mood is projected by the other waltz melodies. - -_The Blue Danube_ (_An der schoenen blauen Donau_), op. 314, is perhaps -the most famous waltz ever written, and one of the greatest. It is now a -familiar tale how Brahms, while autographing a fan of Strauss’ wife, -scribbled a few bars of this waltz and wrote underneath, “alas, not by -Brahms.” Strauss wrote _The Blue Danube_ at the request of John Herbeck, -conductor of the Vienna Men’s Singing Society; thus the original version -of the waltz is for chorus and orchestra, the text being a poem by Karl -Beck in praise of Vienna and the Danube. Strauss wrote this waltz in -1867, and it was introduced on February 15 of the same year at the -Dianasaal by Strauss’ orchestra, supplemented by Herbeck’s singing -society. The audience was so enthusiastic that it stood on the seats and -thundered for numerous repetitions. In the Spring of 1867, Strauss -introduced his waltz to Paris at the International Exposition where it -was a sensation. A tremendous ovation also greeted it when Strauss -performed it for the first time in London, at Covent Garden in 1869. -When Johann Strauss made his American debut, in Boston in 1872, he -conducted _The Blue Danube_ with an orchestra numbering a thousand -instruments and a chorus of a thousand voices! Copies of the music were -soon in demand in far-off cities of Asia and Australia. The publisher, -Spina, was so deluged by orders he had to have a hundred new copper -plates made from which to print over a million copies. - -It is not difficult to see why this waltz is so popular. It is an -eloquent voice of the “charm, elegance, vivacity, and sophistication” of -19th century Vienna—so much so that it is second only to Haydn’s -Austrian National Anthem as the musical symbol of Austria. - -_Emperor Waltz_ (_Kaiserwalz_), op. 437, was written in 1888 to -celebrate the 40th anniversary of the reign of Franz Joseph I. This is -one of Strauss’ most beautiful waltzes. A slow introduction spanning -seventy-four bars that has delicacy and grace, and is of a stately -march-like character, is Viennese to its very marrow. A suggestion of -the main waltz tune then appears quickly but is just as quickly -dismissed by a loud return of the main introductory subject. Trombones -lead to a brief silence. After some preparation, a waltz melody of rare -majesty finally unfolds in the strings. If this wonderful waltz melody -can be said to represent the Emperor himself then the delightful waltz -tunes that follow—some of almost peasant character—can be said to speak -for the joy of the Austrian people in honoring their beloved monarch. An -elaborate coda then comes as the crown to the whole composition. - -_Morning Journals_ (_Morgenblaetter_), op. 279, was written for a -Viennese press club, the Concordia. Offenbach had previously written for -that club a set of waltzes entitled “_Evening Journals_.” Strauss -decided to name his music _Morning Journals_. The Offenbach composition -is today remembered only because it provided the stimulus for Strauss’ -title. But Strauss’ music remains—the four waltzes in his freshest and -most infectious lyric vein, and its introduction highlighted by a melody -of folk song simplicity. - -_Roses from the South_ (_Rosen aus dem Sueden_), op. 388, is a potpourri -of the best waltz tunes (each a delight) from one of the composer’s -lesser operettas, _Spitzentuch der Koenigen_ (_The Queen’s Lace -Handkerchief_). The “south” in the title refers to Spain, the background -of the operetta, but there is nothing Spanish to this unmistakably -Viennese music. - -_Tales from the Vienna Woods_ (_G’schichten aus dem Wiener Wald_), op. -325—performed for the first time by the Strauss orchestra at the _Neue -Welt_ café in 1868—is a bucolic picture of Nature’s beauty in the -forests skirting Vienna. The beauty of Nature is suggested in the -stately introduction with its open fifths and its serene melody for -cello followed by a flute cadenza. All the loveliness of the Vienna -woods is then represented by a waltz melody (originally scored for -zither, but now most often presented by strings), a loveliness that is -carried on with incomparable grace and charm by the ensuing waltz tunes. - -_Vienna Blood_ (_Wiener Blut_), op. 354, like so many other Strauss -waltzes, is a hymn of praise to Strauss’ native cities; but where other -waltzes are light and carefree, this one is more often moody, dreamy, -and at times sensual. After the introduction come four waltz melodies, -the first full of fire and the last one touched with sentimentality. The -second and third waltz tunes are interesting for their rhythmic vitality -and marked syncopations. - -_Voices of Spring_ (_Fruehlingstimmen_), op. 410—dedicated to the -renowned Viennese pianist, Albert Gruenfeld—is (like the _Tales from the -Vienna Woods_) an exuberant picture of the vernal season, the joy and -thrill that the rebirth of Nature always provides to the Viennese. - -_Wine, Woman and Song_ (_Wein, Weib und Gesang_), op. 333, opens with an -eloquent mood picture that is virtually an independent composition, even -though it offers suggestions of later melodies. This is a spacious -ninety-one bar introduction that serves as an eloquent peroration to the -four waltz melodies that follow—each graceful, vivacious, and at times -tender and contemplative. Richard Wagner, upon hearing Anton Seidl -conduct this music, was so moved by it that at one point he seized the -baton from Seidl’s hand and conducted the rest of the piece himself. - -Strauss wrote other dance music besides waltzes. He was equally -successful in bringing his wonderful melodic invention, fine rhythmic -sense, and beautiful instrumentation to the Polka, the native Bohemian -dance in duple quick time and in a lively mood. The best of the Strauss -polkas are: _Annen-Polka_, op. 117; _Electrophor Polka_, op. 297 -dedicated to the students of a Vienna technical school, its effect -derived from its breathless tempo and forceful dynamics; _Explosions -Polka_, op. 43, written when Strauss was only twenty-two and -characterized by sudden brief crescendos; _Pizzicato Polka_, written in -collaboration with the composer’s brother Josef, and, as the name -indicates, an exercise in plucked strings; and the capricious -_Tritsch-Tratsch_ (or _Chit-Chat_) _Polka_, op. 214. - -Of Strauss’ other instrumental compositions, the best known is a lively -excursion in velocity called _Perpetual Motion_, op. 257, which the -composer himself described as a “musical jest.” - -Beyond being Vienna’s waltz king, Johann Strauss II was also one of its -greatest composers of operettas. Indeed, if a vote were to be cast for -the greatest favorite among all Vienna operettas the chances are the -choice would fall on Strauss’ _Die Fledermaus_ (_The Bat_), first -produced in Vienna on April 5, 1874, book by Carl Haffner and Richard -Genée based on a French play by Meilhac and Halévy. This work is not -only a classic of the light theater, but even a staple in the repertory -of the world’s major opera houses. It is a piece of dramatic intrigue -filled with clever, bright and at times risqué humor, as well as irony -and gaiety. The plot, in line with operetta tradition, involves a love -intrigue: between Rosalinda, wife of Baron von Eisenstein, and Alfred. -The Baron is sought by the police for some slight indiscretion, and when -they come to the Baron’s home and find Alfred there, they mistake him -for the Baron and arrest him. Upon discovering he is supposed to be in -jail, the Baron decides to take full advantage of his liberty by -attending a masked ball at Prince Orlovsky’s palace and making advances -there to the lovely women. But one of the masked women with whom he -flirts is his own wife. Eventually, the identity of both is uncovered, -to the embarrassment of the Baron, and this merry escapade ends when the -Baron is compelled to spend his time in jail. - -The overture is a classic, recreating the effervescent mood that -prevails throughout the operetta. It is made up of some of the principal -melodies of the opera: Rosalinda’s lament, “_So muss allein ich -bleiben_” first heard in the woodwind; the chorus, “_O je, o je, wie -ruhrt mich dies_” in the strings; and most important of all, the main -waltz of the operetta and the climax of the second act, also in the -strings. - -Other delightful episodes frequently presented in instrumental versions -include the lovely drinking song, “_Trinke, Liebchen, trinke schnell_”; -the laughing song of the maid, Adele, “_Mein Herr Marquis_”; the -blood-warming czardas of the “Hungarian countess” who is actually -Rosalinda in disguise, “_Klaenge der Heimat_”; the stirring hymn to -champagne, “_Die Majistaet wird anerkannt_”; and the buoyant waltz, “_Du -und du_.” - -_The Gypsy Baron_ (_Die Ziguenerbaron_) is almost as popular as _Die -Fledermaus_. This is an operetta with libretto by Ignaz Schnitzer, -introduced in Vienna on October 24, 1885. Sandór Barinkay returns to his -ancestral home after having left it as a child. He finds it swarming -with gypsies who have made it their home, and he falls in love with one -of them, Saffi. - -The overture is made up of material from the concerted finales, -beginning with the entrance of the gypsies in the first finale; -continuing with Saffi’s celebrated gypsy air, “_So elend und treu_”; and -culminating with the celebrated waltz music of the second act, the -_Schatz_, or _Treasure_, waltzes. - -Other familiar excerpts include Sandór’s exuberant aria with chorus from -the first act “_Ja, das alles auf Ehr_,” probably the most celebrated -vocal excerpt from the entire operetta; and the _Entry March_ -(_Einzugmarsch_) from the third act—for chorus and orchestra in the -operetta, but often given by salon ensembles in an orchestral version. - - - - - Josef Strauss - - -Josef Strauss, like Eduard, is a younger brother of Johann Strauss II, -and son of Johann Strauss I. He was born in Vienna on August 22, 1827. -He was an extremely talented young man not only in music but even as -architect and inventor. Of more serious and sober disposition than -either of his two brothers, he long regarded café-house music -condescendingly, his musical preference being for the classics. His -famous brother, Johann Strauss II, needing someone to help him direct -his orchestra, finally prevailed on Josef to turn to café-house music. -Josef made his debut as café-house conductor and composer simultaneously -on July 23, 1853, his first waltz being _Die Ersten_. After that he -often substituted for brother Johann in directing the latter’s orchestra -in Vienna and on extended tours of Europe and Russia. Josef died in -Vienna on July 21, 1870. - -Josef Strauss wrote almost three hundred dance compositions. Though -certainly less inspired than his brother, Johann, he was also far more -important than Eduard. Josef’s best waltzes have much of the lyrical -invention, and the harmonic and instrumental invention of those by -Johann Strauss II. Perhaps his greatest waltz is the _Dorfschwalben aus -Oesterreich_ (_Swallows from Austria_), op. 164, a nature portrait often -interrupted by the chirping of birds. Here Josef’s outpouring of the -most sensitive lyricism and delicate moods is hardly less wondrous than -that of Johann Strauss II. H. E. Jacob went so far as to say that “since -Schubert’s death there has been no such melody. It is in the realm of -the Impromptus and Moments Musicaux. It breathes the sweet blue from -which the swallows come.” - -Another Josef Strauss classic in three-quarter time is _Sphaerenklaenge_ -(_Music of the Spheres_), op. 285, equally remarkable for its -spontaneous flow of unforgettable waltz tunes. Among Strauss’ other -delightful waltzes are the _Aquarellen_, op. 258; _Delirien_, op. 212; -_Dynamiden_, op. 173; _Marienklaenge_, op. 214. A theme from _Dynamiden_ -waltzes was used by Richard Strauss in his famous opera _Der -Rosenkavalier_. - -In collaboration with his brother, Johann, Josef wrote the famous -_Pizzicato Polka_ and several other pieces including the -_Monstrequadrille_ and _Vaterlandischer March_. With Johann and Eduard -he wrote the _Schuetzenquadrille_ and the _Trifolienwalzer_. - - - - - Sir Arthur Sullivan - - -Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan—musical half of the comic-opera team of -Gilbert and Sullivan—was born in London, England, on May 13, 1842. The -son of a bandmaster, Sullivan was appointed to the Chapel Royal School -in 1854. One year after that his first published composition appeared, -an anthem. In 1856 he was the first recipient of the recently instituted -Mendelssohn Award which entitled him to attend the Royal Academy of -Music where he studied under Sterndale Bennett and Goss. From 1858 to -1861 he attended the Leipzig Conservatory. After returning to London in -1862, he achieved recognition as a serious composer with several -ambitious compositions including the _Irish Symphony_, a cello concerto, -a cantata, and an oratorio. Meanwhile, in 1866, he had become professor -of composition at the Royal Academy, and in 1867 he completed his first -score in a light style, the comic opera _Cox and Box_, libretto by F. C. -Burnand, which enjoyed a successful engagement in London. - -In 1871, a singer introduced Sullivan to W. S. Gilbert, a one-time -attorney who had attracted some interest in London as the writer of -burlesques. An enterprising impresario, John Hollingshead of the Gaiety -Theater, then was responsible for getting Gilbert and Sullivan to work -on their first operetta. This was _Thespis_, produced in London in 1871, -and a failure. It was several years before librettist and composer -worked together again. When they did it was for a new impresario, -Richard D’Oyly Carte, for whom they wrote a one-act comic opera, _Trial -by Jury_, a curtain raiser to a French operetta which Carte was -producing in London on March 25, 1875. _Trial by Jury_—a stinging satire -on court trials revolving around a breach of promise suit—inaugurates -the epoch of Gilbert and Sullivan. D’Oyly Carte now commissioned Gilbert -and Sullivan to create a new full length comic opera for a company he -had recently formed. The new light opera company made a successful bow -with _The Sorcerer_, on November 17, 1877. _Pinafore_, a year later on -May 25, 1878, made Gilbert and Sullivan a vogue and a passion both in -London and in New York. In 1879 Gilbert and Sullivan came to the United -States where on December 31 they introduced a new comic opera, _The -Pirates of Penzance_, that took the country by storm. Upon returning to -London, Gilbert and Sullivan opened a new theater built for them by -D’Oyly Carte—the Savoy—with _Patience_, a tumultuous success on April -25, 1881. After that came _Iolanthe_ (1882), _Princess Ida_ (1884), _The -Mikado_ (1885), the _Yeomen of the Guard_ (1888) and _The Gondoliers_ -(1889). - -Gilbert and Sullivan came to the parting of the ways in 1890, the final -rift precipitated by a silly argument over the cost of a carpet for the -Savoy Theater. But the differences between them had long been deep -rooted. An attempt to revive the partnership was made in 1893 with -_Utopia Limited_, and again with _The Grand Duke_ in 1896. Both comic -operas were failures. - -After 1893, Sullivan wrote a grand opera, _Ivanhoe_, and several -operetta scores to librettists other than Sullivan. None of these were -successful. During the last years of his life he suffered from -deterioration of his health, and was almost always in acute pain. He -died in London on November 22, 1900. Gilbert died eleven years after -that. - -Of Sullivan’s other achievements in the field of music mention must be -made of his importance as a conductor of the concerts of the London -Philharmonic from 1885 to 1887, and of the Leeds Festival from 1880 to -1898. Between 1876 and 1881 he was principal of, and professor of -composition at, the National Training School for Music. In recognition -of his high estate in English music, he was the recipient of many -honors. In 1878 he was made Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, and in -1883 he was knighted by Queen Victoria. - -It is irony fitting for a Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera that the -music on which Sullivan lavished his most fastidious attention and of -which he was most proud has been completely forgotten (except for one or -two minor exceptions). But the music upon which he looked with such -condescension and self apology is that which has made him an immortal—in -the theater if not in the concert world. For where Sullivan was -heavy-handed, pretentious, and often stilted in his oratorios, serious -operas, and orchestral compositions, he was consistently vital, fresh, -personal, and vivacious in his lighter music. In setting Gilbert’s -lyrics to music, Sullivan was always capable of finding the musical _mot -juste_ to catch every nuance of Gilbert’s wit and satire. So neatly, -even inevitably, does the music fit the words that it is often difficult -to think of one without the other. Like Gilbert, Sullivan was a master -of parody and satire; he liked particularly to mock at the pretensions -of grand opera, oratorio, and the sentimental ballad, pretensions of -which he himself was a victim when he endeavored to work in those -fields. Like Gilbert, he had a pen that raced with lightning velocity in -the writing of patter music to patter verses. Sullivan, moreover, had a -reservoir of melodies seemingly inexhaustible—gay tunes, mocking tunes, -and tunes filled with telling sentiment—and he was able to adapt the -fullest resources of his remarkable gift at harmony, rhythm and -orchestration to the manifold demands of the stage. He was no man’s -imitator. Without having recourse to experimentation or unorthodox -styles and techniques, his style and manners were so uniquely his that, -as T. F. Dunhill has said, “his art is always recognizable.... The -Sullivan touch is unmistakable and can be felt instantly.” - -Of the universality of the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas, Isaac -Goldberg wrote: “They [Gilbert and Sullivan] were not the rebels of an -era, yet as surely they were not the apologists. Their light laughter -carried a pleasant danger of its own that, without being the laughter of -a Figaro, helped before the advent of a Shaw to keep the atmosphere -clear. Transition figures they were, in an age of transition, caught -between the personal independence of the artist and the social -imperatives of their station. They did not cross over into the new day, -though they served as a footbridge for others. Darwin gave them ... only -a song for _Princess Ida_, their melodious answer to the revolt of woman -against a perfumed slavery; Swinburne and Wilde ... characters for -_Patience_. They chided personal foibles, and only indirectly social -abuses. They were, after all, moralists not sociologists. It was in -their natures; it was of their position. Yet something vital in them -lives beyond their time. From their era of caste, of smug rectitude, of -sanctimoniousness, they still speak to an age that knows neither corset -nor petticoat, that votes with its women, and finds Freud insufficiently -aphrodisiac. Perhaps it is because they chide individuals and not -institutions that their work, so admirably held in solution by -Sullivan’s music, has lived through the most critical epoch in modern -history since the French Revolution. For, underneath the cataclysmic -changes of history remain the foibles that make us the fit laughter of -the gods.” - -Overtures to and potpourris from the principal Gilbert and Sullivan -comic operas are integral to the repertory of salon and pop orchestras -everywhere. In all cases, the overture is made up of the opera’s main -melodies, and in most cases these overtures were written by others. - -_The Gondoliers_ was the last of the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas -to survive in the permanent repertory. It was produced on December 7, -1889. After the operatic pretension of the _Yeomen of the Guard_ which -had preceded it, _The Gondoliers_ represented a welcome return by the -authors to the world of paradox, absurdity, and confusion. It has aptly -been described as a “farce of errors.” The setting is Venice in the -middle of the 18th century. The Duke and Duchess of Plaza-Toro come to -Venice accompanied by their daughter, Casilda, and a drummer boy, Luiz, -who loves her. In her childhood, Casilda had married the infant heir to -the throne of Barataria. This heir had then been stolen and entrusted to -the care of a gondolier who raised him as one of his two sons. In time -the gondolier himself has forgotten which of his two boys is of royal -blood. To complicate matters even further, the two gondolier boys, Marco -and Giuseppe, are married. Thus it seems impossible to solve the problem -as to who really is the heir to Barataria’s throne and by the same token -Gasilda’s husband. But when this problem is finally unscrambled it turns -out that the heir is neither Marco nor Giuseppe, but none other than -Luiz. - -The following are the principal selections from _The Gondoliers_: -Antonio’s song, “For the Merriest Fellows Are We”; the duet of Marco and -Giuseppe, “We’re Called Gondolieri”; the autobiographical chant of the -Duke of Plaza-Toro, “The Duke of Plaza-Toro”; the duet of Casilda and -Luiz, “There Was a Time”; the song of the Grand Inquisitor, “I Stole the -Prince”; Tessa’s song, “When a Merry Maiden Marries”; the duet of Marco -and Giuseppe, “For Everyone Who Feels Inclined”; Giuseppe’s patter song, -“Rising Early in the Morning”; Marco’s serenade, “Take a Pair of -Sparkling Eyes”; and the song of the Duchess, “On the Day that I was -Wedded.” - -_Iolanthe_, introduced on November 25, 1882, carried Gilbert’s love of -paradox, confusion and absurdity into the fairy kingdom. To Isaac -Goldberg, this comic opera, both as words and as music is “a peer among -its kind. It is surprisingly complete. It is, indeed, of Gilbert and of -Sullivan, all compact. The Gilbertian conflict between reality and -fantasy is mirrored in details great and small—in scene, costume, in -line, in gesture.... It would be difficult to find among the remaining -thirteen comic operas one that reveals the collaborators playing so -neatly into each other’s hands—responding so closely to the conscious -and unconscious demands of the reciprocal personality.” The heroine, -Iolanthe, is a fairy who has married a mortal and thus has been banished -to the bottom of a stream by the Queen of her kingdom. But the Queen -eventually forgives Iolanthe. Upon returning to her fairy kingdom, -Iolanthe discovers she is the mother of a son, Strephon, who is half -fairy and half mortal; and Strephon is in love with the mortal, Phyllis, -who, in turn, is being pursued not only by her guardian, the Lord -Chancellor, but even by the entire House of Peers. When Phyllis finds -Strephon with Iolanthe she suspects him of infidelity, since she has no -idea that Iolanthe is Strephon’s mother. Immediately she begins to -bestow her kindly glances upon two members of the House of Peers. -Summoned for help, Iolanthe reveals that Strephon is, indeed, her son, -and that his father is none other than the Lord Chancellor. By this time -the other fairies of the kingdom have succumbed to the charms and appeal -of the Peers. Iolanthe is saved from a second punishment when the Lord -Chancellor helps change fairy law to read that any fairy _not_ marrying -a mortal is subject to death. - -Leading numbers from _Iolanthe_ include the following: the opening -chorus of the fairies, “Tripping Hither, Tripping Thither”; Strephon’s -song, “Good Morrow, good Mother”; the love duet of Phyllis and Strephon, -“Thou the Tree and I the Flower”; Entrance, chorus, and march of the -Peers, “Loudly Let the Trumpet Bray” followed immediately by the Lord -Chancellor’s monologue, “The Law is the True Embodiment”; the Lord -Chancellor’s personal credo, “When I Went to the Bar”; the song of -Willis, the sentry, “When All Night Long a Chap Remains”; Lord Mount -Arrat’s chauvinistic hymn, “When Britain Really Ruled the Waves”; the -Fairy Queen’s song, “Oh, Foolish Fay”; the Lord Chancellor’s patter song -about a nightmare, “When You’re Lying Awake”; the trio of the Lord -Chancellor, Mount Ararat and Tolloler, “If You Go In”; Strephon’s song, -“Fold Your Flapping Wings”; and the finale, “Soon as We May.” - -_The Mikado_ was a sensation when first performed in London on March 14, -1885; and with many it is still the favorite of all Gilbert and Sullivan -comic operas. By 1900, it had received over one thousand performances in -London and five thousand in the United States. Since then these figures -have multiplied. It has been adapted for motion pictures, and in New -York it has been given in two different jazz versions (_The Hot Mikado_ -and _Swing Mikado_). In 1960 it was presented over television with -Groucho Marx as the Lord High Executioner. - -In its own day much of its appeal was due to its exotic setting of Japan -and strange Japanese characters. Such a novelty for the English stage -was the strong spice that endowed the play with much of its succulent -flavor. Gilbert’s inspiration had been a miniature Japanese village set -up in the Knightsbridge section of London which aroused and stimulated -the interest of the English people in all things Japanese. Gilbert was -one of those who became fascinated by this Oriental exhibit, and his -fascination led him to conceive a comic opera with a Japanese -background. - -But while the Japanese are certainly no longer curiosities in the -theater—have, indeed, become a vogue on Broadway since the end of World -War II—_The Mikado_ has never lost its tremendous popularity. For _The -Mikado_ represents Gilbert and Sullivan at their creative peak. The -whimsical characters, absurd situations, the savage malice of the wit -and satire, and the strange and paradoxical deviations of the plot find -Gilbert at the height of his whimsical imagination and skill; and at -every turn, Sullivan was there with music that captured every subtle -echo of Gilbert’s fancy. - -The thought of having to marry the unattractive Katisha proves so -distasteful to Nanki-Poo, son of the Mikado, that he puts on the -disguise of a wandering minstrel and flees. After coming to the town of -Titipu, he meets and falls in love with Yum-Yum who, in turn, is being -sought after by her own guardian, Ko-Ko, the Lord High Executioner. The -Lord High Executioner faces a major problem. The ruler of Japan has sent -a message to Titipu stating that since no execution has taken place -there for many years the office of Lord High Executioner will be -abolished if somebody is not executed shortly. When Ko-Ko discovers that -Nanki-Poo is about to commit suicide, rather than live without Yum-Yum, -he finds a solution to his own problem. Ko-Ko is willing to allow -Nanki-Poo to marry Yum-Yum and live with her for a month if at the end -of that time he allows himself to be beheaded. The wedding takes place, -but before the beheading can be consummated the Mikado arrives on the -scene with Katisha. Only then is the discovery made in Titipu that -Nanki-Poo is the Mikado’s son and that anyone responsible for his death -must boil in oil. The news that Nanki-Poo is alive saves Ko-Ko from this -terrible fate; but he soon confronts another in the form of Katisha, -whom he must now marry to compensate her for her loss of Nanki-Poo. - -Many of the excerpts from _The Mikado_ are known to anyone who has ever -heard or whistled a tune. These are the most significant: the opening -chorus of the Japanese nobles, “If You Want to Know Who We Are”; -Nanki-Poo’s self-introductory ballad, “A Wandering Minstrel I”; -Pish-Tush’s description of the Mikado’s decree against flirtation, “Our -Great Mikado”; Ko-Ko’s famous patter song, “I’ve Got a Little List”; the -song of Yum-Yum’s companions, “Three Little Maids”; the affecting duet -of Nanki-Poo and Yum-Yum, “Were You Not to Ko-Ko Plighted”; Yum-Yum’s -radiant song, “The Sun Whose Rays”; Ko-Ko’s allegorical song, “Tit -Willow”; the madrigal of Yum-Yum, Pitti Sing, Nanki-Poo and Pish Tush, -“Brightly Dawns Our Wedding Day”; the sprightly trio of Yum-Yum, -Nanki-Poo and Ko-Ko, “Here’s a How-de-do”; the song of the Mikado, “My -Object All Sublime”; the duet of Nanki-Poo and Ko-Ko, “The Flowers That -Bloom in the Spring.” - -_Patience_ in 1881 directed its well aimed satirical pricks and barbs at -the pre-Raphaelite movement in England with its fetish for simplicity -and naturalness; and with equal accuracy at poets and esthetes like -Oscar Wilde and Algernon Swinburne, leaders of an esthetic movement that -encouraged postures, poses, and pretenses. Twenty maidens are turned -into esthetes through their common love for the “fleshly poet” -Bunthorne. Because of this love they hold in disdain their former -sweethearts, the officers of the Heavy Dragoon. Bunthorne, however, is -in love with the simple, unselfish milkmaid Patience, who dotes after -the idyllic poet of heavenly beauty, Grosvenor. Since Patience is -unselfish she cannot hope to win Grosvenor’s love, for to be loved by -one so beautiful is the most selfish thing in the world. She decides to -accept Bunthorne. Now the twenty love-sick maidens fall in love with -Grosvenor and through his influence abandon estheticism for simplicity. -Unaware of this new direction in their loved ones, the Dragoons desert -their uniforms for esthetic garb, substitute their former practical -everyday behavior for extravagant postures and poses. Weary of the -demands made upon him by the doting maids, Grosvenor (with a push from -Bunthorne) becomes commonplace. But, unfortunately for Bunthorne, since -it is no longer selfish to be loved by a commonplace man, Patience -returns to Grosvenor. The maidens, now interested in the commonplace, -can now return to their Dragoons. But poor Bunthorne is left alone with -nothing but a lily in his hand to console him. - -The following are the principal selections from _Patience_: the opening -female chorus, “Twenty Lovesick Maidens We”; Patience’s simple query -about the nature of love, “I Cannot Tell What This Love May Be”; the -chorus of the Dragoons, “The Soldiers of Our Queen” followed immediately -by the Colonel’s patter song, “If You Want a Receipt”; Bunthorne’s -recipe for success in the business of being an esthete, “If You’re -Anxious For to Shine”; Grosvenor’s duet with Patience, “Prithee, Pretty -Maiden”; Jane’s soliloquy, “Silvered is the Raven Hair” with which the -second act opens; Grosvenor’s fable to the lovesick maidens, “The Magnet -and the Churn”; Patience’s ballad, “Love is a Plaintive Song”; and the -gay duet of Bunthorne and Grosvenor, “When I Go Out of Doors.” - -_Pinafore_ was the first of the successful Gilbert and Sullivan comic -operas in which we encounter that strange topsy-turvy world over which -Gilbert and Sullivan ruled; that we confront the accidents, -coincidences, paradoxes, and mishaps that beset its hapless inhabitants. -_Pinafore_ is a devastating satire on the Admiralty in general and -William H. Smith, its First Lord, in particular. But it also makes a -mockery of social position. Ralph Rackstraw, a humble seaman, is in love -with Josephine, daughter of Captain Corcoran, commanding officer of the -_H.M.S. Pinafore_. But the first Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Joseph -Porter, is also in love with her. Since Josephine’s father would never -consent to have his daughter marry one so lowly as Ralph, the lovers -decide to elope. But the plans are overheard by the seaman, Dick -Deadeye, who reports them to the Captain with the result that Ralph is -put in irons. An impasse is thus reached until Little Buttercup, a -“Portsmouth Bumboat woman,” reveals an incident of the distant past. -Entrusted the care of two infants she mixed them up with the result that -the lowly born child, Corcoran, was mistaken for the one of high station -and was thus able to rise to the station of Captain; but the child of -high station believed to have been of lowly origin, Ralph, had been -forced to become a seaman. By order of Sir Joseph, Ralph now becomes the -master of the ship and can claim Josephine as his bride. The proud -Captain, now reduced to a seaman, must content himself with Little -Buttercup. - -_Pinafore_ was a sensation when introduced in London in 1878, enjoying -seven hundred consecutive performances. But it proved even more -sensational in the United States, following its première there at the -Boston Museum on November 25 of the same year. Ninety different -companies presented this comic opera throughout the country in that -first season, with five different companies operating simultaneously in -New York. _Pinafore_ was given by colored groups, children’s groups, and -religious groups. It was widely parodied. Some of its catch phrases -(“What never? No never!” and “For he himself has said it”) entered -American _argot_. - -As a bountiful source of popular melodies, the score of _Pinafore_ is -second only in importance to that of _The Mikado_. Here are the main -ones: the opening chorus of the sailors, “We Sail the Ocean Blue”; -Buttercup’s forthright self-introduction, “I’m Called Little Buttercup”; -Ralph’s madrigal, “The Nightingale,” and ballad, “A Maiden Fair to See”; -the Captain’s colloquy with his crew, “I Am the Captain of the -_Pinafore_”; Josephine’s poignant ballad, “Sorry Her Lot”; Sir Joseph’s -exchange with his sisters, cousins, and aunts, “I am the Monarch of the -Sea,” and his autobiographical, “When I Was a Lad”; the Captain’s sad -reflection, “Fair Moon to Thee I Sing”; the choral episode, “Carefully -on Tip-Toe Stealing” followed by the tongue-in-the-cheek paean to -England and Englishmen, “He Is an Englishman.” - -_The Pirates of Penzance_ was the only Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera -to receive its world première outside England. This took place in New -York at the Fifth Avenue Theater in 1879. (There was a single hastily -prepared performance in Paignton, England, on December 30, 1879 but this -is not regarded as an official première.) The reason why _The Pirates_ -was introduced in New York was due to the presence there of its authors. -Numerous pirated versions of _Pinafore_ were then being given throughout -the United States in about a hundred theaters, and Gilbert and Sullivan -decided to come to America for the dual purpose of exploring the -conditions under which they might protect their copyright and to offer -an authorized version of their opera. In coming to the United States, -they brought with them the manuscript of their new work, _The Pirates of -Penzance_, and arranged to have its première take place in New York. - -_The Pirates of Penzance_ is a blood relative of _Pinafore_. Where -_Pinafore_ made fun of the British Navy, _The Pirates_ concentrates on -the British Army and constabulary. In _Pinafore_ two babies are mixed up -in the cradle for a confusion of their identities; in _The Pirates_ it -is the future professions of babies which are confounded in the cradle. -In _Pinafore_ the secret is divulged by Buttercup, in _The Pirates_ by -Ruth. _Pinafore_ boasts a female chorus of cousins, sisters and aunts -while _The Pirates_ has a female chorus made up of the Major General’s -daughters. - -The hero is young Frederic, apprenticed to a band of pirates by his -nurse Ruth, who mistakes the word “pilot” for “pirate.” Frederic falls -in love with Mabel, one of the many daughters of Major General Stanley -and looks forward eagerly to his freedom from his apprenticeship to the -pirate band, which arrives on his twenty-first birthday. But Frederic -discovers that since he was born on leap year the year of his -freedom—his twenty-first _birthday_—is many, many years off; that by the -calendar he is still only a little boy of five. As a pirate he must join -his confederates in exterminating Mabel’s father and the constables -attending him. But all turns out happily when the pirates actually prove -to be ex-noblemen, and are thus found highly acceptable as husbands for -the daughters of Major General Stanley. The Major General is also in -favor of the union of Mabel and Frederic. - -The following are the leading musical selections: the opening chorus of -the pirates, “Pour, Oh Pour, the Pirate Sherry”; the Pirate king’s hymn -to his profession, “For I am a Pirate King”; the chorus of the Major -General’s daughters, “Climbing Over Rocky Mountain”; Frederic’s -plaintive plea for a lover, “Oh, Is There Not One Maiden Breast”; the -Major General’s autobiographical patter song, “I Am the Very Pattern of -a Modern Major General”; the rousing chorus of the constabulary, “When -the Foeman Bares His Steel”; the tripping trio of Ruth, Fred and the -Pirate King on discovering Fred is only a child of five, “A Paradox, a -Most Ingenious Paradox”; Mabel’s haunting ballad, “Oh, Leave Me Not to -Pine”; the Police Sergeant’s commentary on his profession, “When a -Felon’s Not Engaged in His Employment”; the Pirates’ chorus, “Come -Friends Who Plough the Sea,” a melody expropriated by an American, -Theodore Morse, for the lyric “Hail, Hail the Gang’s All Here”; and the -General’s idyllic ballad, “Sighing Softly To the River.” - -_Ruddigore_, a travesty on melodrama, was first performed on January 22, -1887. Because the Murgatroyd family has persecuted witches, an evil -spirit had fated it to commit a crime a day. Ruthven Murgatroyd tries to -flee from this curse by assuming the identity of simple Robin Oakapple. -He meets and falls in love with Rose who is being sought after by -Ruthven’s foster brother, Richard. Since Ruthven as Robin Oakapple has -the upper hand with Rose, Richard avenges himself by revealing the fact -that his brother is really a member of the Murgatroyd family and like -all of them is the victim of the ancient family curse. Back in his -ancestral home, Ruthven must fulfil his quota of crimes, a job he -bungles so badly that his ancestors suddenly come alive out of the -picture frames on the wall, to condemn him. But after numerous -convolutions of typically Gilbertian logic and reasoning, the curse is -broken and Ruthven can live happily with his beloved Rose. - -From _Ruddigore_ come the following familiar sections: the opening -chorus of the bridesmaids, “Fair Is Rose as the Bright May Day”; -Hannah’s legend, “Sir Rupert Murgatroyd”; Rose’s ballad, “If Somebody -There Chanced to Be”; the extended duet of Robin and Rose, “I Know a -Youth Who Loves a Little Maid”; Richard’s ballad, “I Shipped, D’ye See, -in a Revenue Sloop”; Robin’s song, “My Boy You May Take it From Me”; the -chorus of the bridesmaids, “Hail the Bride of Seventeen Summers” -followed by Rose’s madrigal, “Where the Buds Are Blossoming”; the duet -of Robin and Adam, “I Once Was As Meek as a New Born Lamb”; Rose’s -ballad, “In Bygone Days”; the chorus of the family portraits, “Painted -Emblems of a Race”; Sir Roderic’s patter song, “When the Night Wind -Howls”; and Hannah’s ballad, “There Grew a Little Flower.” - -_The Sorcerer_, the first successful Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera, -was introduced in 1877. Alexis, in love with Aline, wishes to spread -around the blessings of love. For this purpose he enlists the -cooperation of John Wellington Wells, the creator of a love brew. In an -effort to perpetuate Aline’s love for him, Alexis has her drink this -potion, only to discover that his beloved has fallen for the vicar, Dr. -Daly, he being the first man she sees after drinking the draught. Since -Alexis is not the only one to suffer from this now-general epidemic of -loving, a serious effort must be made to offset the effects of this -magic: a human sacrifice. Naturally that sacrifice becomes none other -than John Wellington Wells who is driven to self immolation before -things can once again be set normal. - -The music of _The Sorcerer_ is not so well known as that of the other -famous comic operas, but it does contain several Gilbert and Sullivan -delights. Among them are: the song with which Wells introduces himself -and his black art, “Oh! My Name Is John Wellington Wells,” the first of -the Gilbert and Sullivan patter songs; the vicar’s haunting ballad, -“Time Was When Love and I Were Well Acquainted”; and the romantic duet -of Aline and Alexis, “It Is Not Love.” - -In the _Yeomen of the Guard_, produced on October 3, 1888, the -topsy-turvy world of Gilbert and Sullivan is temporarily sidestepped for -another of operatic pretensions. Of all the Gilbert and Sullivan plays -this one comes closest to resembling an opera. The immediate stimulus -for the writing of the text came to Gilbert from an advertisement in a -railway station depicting a Beefeater. Out of this acorn grew the oak of -Gilbert’s play in which Colonel Charles Fairfax is falsely accused by -his kinsman, Poltwhistle, of sorcery. For this he must be condemned to -death in the Tower of London. Since Fairfax is not married, his fortune -will pass on to his accuser. But Charles thwarts such evil designs by -marrying Elsie Maynard, a strolling player—if only for an hour. Then he -manages to escape from the Tower disguised as a yeoman of the guard. -When the execution is to take place there is no victim. Eventually, a -reprieve enables Charles to live permanently with Elsie. - -The most important selections from the _Yeomen of the Guard_ are: -Phoebe’s song with which the opera opens, “When Maiden Loves”; the -chorus of the yeomen, “In the Autumn of Our Life”; Fairfax’ ballad, “Is -Life a Boon?”; the extended duet of Point and Elsie, “I Have a Song to -Sing, O”; Phoebe’s ballad, “Were I Thy Bride”; Point’s patter song, “Oh, -a Private Buffoon Is a Light-Hearted Loon”; the quartet of Elsie, -Fairfax, Dame Carruthers and Meryll, “Strange Adventure”; the trio of -Fairfax, Elsie and Phoebe, “A Man Who Would Woo a Fair Maid”; the -quartet of Elsie, Fairfax, Phoebe and Point, “When a Wooer Goes -a-Wooing”; and the finale, “Oh, Thoughtless Crew.” - -Besides his music for the comic operas there exists a vast repertory of -serious music by Sullivan. Of this hardly more than two songs have -retained their popularity. One is “The Lost Chord,” lyric by Adelaide -Proctor, written by Sullivan in December 1876 at the deathbed of his -brother, Fred. From Charles Willeby we get an account of how this deeply -moving piece of music came into being: “For nearly three weeks he -watched by his bedside night and day. One night—the end was not very far -off then—while his sick brother had for a time fallen into a peaceful -sleep, and he was sitting as usual by the bedside, he chanced to come -across some verses by Adelaide Proctor with which he had some five years -previously been struck. He had then tried to set them to music, but -without satisfaction to himself. Now in the stillness of the night he -read them over again, and almost as he did so, he conceived their -musical equivalent. A stray sheet of music paper was at hand, and he -began to write. Slowly the music took shape, until, becoming quite -absorbed in it, he determined to finish the song. Even if in the cold -light of day it were to prove worthless, it would at least have helped -to while away the hours of watching. So he worked on at it. As he -progressed, he felt sure this was what he had sought for, and failed to -find on the occasion of his first attempt to set the words. In a short -time it was complete and not long after in the publisher’s hands. Thus -was written ‘The Lost Chord,’ perhaps the most successful song of modern -times.” - -“Onward Christian Soldiers,” words by Sabine Baring-Gould, is the most -celebrated of Sullivan’s more than fifty religious hymns. It is -effective not merely for its religious mood but also for its martial -spirit. “The music,” says Isaac Goldberg, “has the tread of armies in -it, and a broad diatonic stride.” Sullivan wrote it in 1873 upon being -appointed editor of the _Hymnal_, a collection of hymns published by -Novello for the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge and the -Hymnary. - - - - - Franz von Suppé - - -Franz von Suppé was born Francesco Suppé-Demelli in Spalato, Yugoslavia, -on April 18, 1819. He played the flute at eleven, at thirteen started -the study of harmony, and at fifteen completed a Mass. Nevertheless, for -a while he entertained the idea of becoming either a physician or a -teacher of Italian. When he finally decided upon music as a profession -he attended the Vienna Conservatory. After serving an apprenticeship as -conductor of operettas in Pressburg and Baden, he was appointed -principal conductor at Theater-an-der-Wien in Vienna. In 1862 he assumed -a similar post with the Karlstheater, and from 1865 until his death at -the Leopoldstadttheater. While absorbing the influence and traditions of -the opéra-bouffe of Offenbach, he began writing operettas of his own in -a style uniquely his, setting and establishing many of the traditions -and clichés which would henceforth identify the Viennese operetta. He -had an unusual gift for light, caressing tunes, a gay and infectious -spirit, and a direct emotional appeal. His first operetta was _Jung -lustig in alter traurig_ in 1841. Success came with his incidental music -to _Poet and Peasant_ (_Dichter und Bauer_), introduced on August 24, -1846; its overture is still his best known composition and a classic in -the musical literature in a lighter vein. A succession of popular -operettas, over twenty-five in number, made him one of Europe’s most -celebrated composers for the stage. His most famous operettas were: _Das -Maedchen vom Lande_ (1847), _Die schoene Galatea_, or _Beautiful -Galathea_ (1865), _Leichte Cavallerie_, or _Light Cavalry_ (1866), -_Fatinitza_ (1876), _Boccaccio_ (1879), and _Donna Juanita_ (1880). -Suppé died in Vienna on May 21, 1895. - -The overture to _The Beautiful Galathea_ (_Die schoene Galatea_) opens -with brisk music. Horns and woodwind lead into an extended portrayal of -exaltated character by strings. Once again horns and woodwind appear, -this time providing a transition to a caressing melody that soon -develops into a fulsome song. After a theatrical passage, the overture’s -main melody is heard in the strings, with harmonies filled in by the -woodwind; this is a graceful dance tune which, towards the end of the -overture, is repeated with harmonic and tonal amplitude by the full -orchestra. - -The _Light Cavalry_ Overture (_Leichte Cavallerie_) is, as its name -indicates, stirring music of martial character. Horn calls and forceful -chords in full orchestra provide at once the military character of this -music. A vivacious tune for the violins follows this forceful -introduction after which comes the brisk melody for woodwind followed by -the full orchestra that has made this overture so famous; the gallop of -the cavalry is here simulated in a brisk rhythm. The agitation is -dissipated by a sensitive transition in strings and clarinet to a -spacious melody in strings in a sensual Hungarian style. The brisk -military music and the open horning calls then give the overture a -dynamic conclusion. - -_Morning, Noon and Night in Vienna_ (_Ein Morgen, ein Mittag, ein Abend -in Wien_) is one of the composer’s famous concert overtures. A dramatic -introduction—with forceful chords in full orchestra—leads to a beautiful -and fully realized song for solo cello against plucked strings, one of -Suppé’s most inspired flights of melody. The song ended, the dramatic -opening is recalled to serve as a transition to two buoyant and graceful -Viennese tunes in the strings, the second repeated vigorously and -amplified by full orchestra. The overture ends in a robust rather than -lyrical vein. - -The _Pique Dame_ (_Queen of Spades_) Overture begins with a murmuring -passage for strings that grows in volume and changes character before an -expressive melody unfolds in lower strings against an accompanying -figure borrowed from the opening passage. A vigorous interlude of strong -chords and a vigorous pronouncement by the brass lead into the most -famous theme of the composition, a vivacious and jaunty melody for -strings and woodwind. This subject is developed at some length before a -melodic episode is offered by the lower strings as a preface to a soft, -idyllic interlude for the woodwind. The conclusion of the overture is in -a vigorous manner with an energetic restatement of earlier thematic -material. - -Of all the Suppé overtures, whether for the stage or the concert hall, -the most famous undoubtedly is the _Poet and Peasant_ (_Dichter und -Bauer_). After a stately introduction there arrives a gentle song for -the strings. This is succeeded by a more robust theme. The main melody -of the overture is a pulsating melody in ⅜ time. Indicative of the -enormous popularity of this overture in all parts of the world is that -it has been adapted for almost sixty different combinations of -instruments. - - - - - Johan Svendsen - - -Johan Svendsen was born in Oslo, Norway, on September 30, 1840. The son -of a bandmaster, he dabbled in music for many years before receiving -formal instruction. When he was twenty-three he embarked for the first -time on a comprehensive musical education by attending the Leipzig -Conservatory where he was a pupil of Ferdinand David, Reinecke, and -others. After that he toured Europe as a concert violinist and lived for -a while in Paris where he played in theater orchestras. In 1870 he -visited the United States where he married an American woman whom he had -originally met in Paris. Following his return to his native land he was -the conductor of the Christiana Musical Association from 1872 to 1877 -and again from 1880 to 1883. In 1883 he settled in Copenhagen where for -sixteen years he was court conductor, and part of that time conductor at -the Royal Theater as well. As a composer Svendsen distinguished himself -with major works for orchestra in a pronounced Norwegian style, the most -famous being four Norwegian Rhapsodies and the _Carnaval des artistes -norvégiens_, in all of which Norwegian folk melodies are used -extensively. He also produced many works not of a national identity, -among which were symphonies, concertos, chamber-music works, and the -highly popular _Carnival in Paris_, for orchestra. Svendsen died in -Copenhagen on June 14, 1911. - -_The Carnival in Paris_ (_Carnaval à Paris_), for orchestra, op. 9 -(1873) is one of Svendsen’s best-known works, even though it is not in -his characteristic Norwegian style. His early manhood in Paris had been -one of the composer’s happiest experiences in life, and some of that joy -and feeling of excitement is found in this music describing a Mardi Gras -in Paris. The full orchestra enters after a swelling trumpet tone over -drum rolls. There is then heard an exchange among the wind instruments -and a quickening of the tempo to lead into the first main theme, a -delicate subject for flutes and clarinets. This theme is twice repeated -after which the music becomes stormy. Divided violins then bring on the -second theme, which like the first is quiet and gentle. In the -development, in which much is made of the first subject, there are -effective frequent alternations of tempo. A rhapsodic section, with a -subject for divided strings, followed by extended drum rolls and calls -for muted horns, precede the concluding section. - - - - - Deems Taylor - - -Joseph Deems Taylor was born in New York City on December 22, 1885. He -received his academic education in New York, at the Friends School, -Ethical Culture School, and New York University. All the while he -studied music with private teachers. Following his graduation from -college, Taylor appeared in vaudeville, worked for several magazines, -and from 1921 to 1925 was the music critic of the New York _World_. He -first distinguished himself as a composer in 1919 with the orchestral -suite, _Through the Looking Glass_. In 1925 he resigned from the _World_ -to concentrate on composition. In the next half dozen years he completed -two operas, each successfully performed at the Metropolitan Opera: _The -King’s Henchman_ (with libretto by Edna St. Vincent Millay) in 1927, and -_Peter Ibbetson_ in 1931. Since 1927, Taylor has followed several -careers besides that of one of America’s most important serious -composers. He was editor of _Musical America_, music critic for the _New -York American_, master of ceremonies on radio and television, program -annotator, intermission commentator for broadcasts of opera and -orchestral music, and author of several best-selling books on music. A -highly sophisticated composer with a consummate technical skill, -Taylor’s works are not for popular consumption. But he did write one -composition in a popular style, _Circus Day_; and a second of his works, -_Through the Looking Glass_, while intended for symphonic concerts, has -enough wit and charm to fall gracefully into the semi-classical -category. - -_Circus Day_ is a fantasy for orchestra, op. 18 (1925) written on -commission from Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra. When Whiteman and his -orchestra introduced it that year, the work was orchestrated by Ferde -Grofé, but since then Taylor has prepared his own symphonic adaptation. -Subtitled “eight pictures from memory” this fantasy strives “to convey -one’s early impressions of a day at the circus.” The composer has -provided his own program notes for the eight movements. The first, -entitled “Street Parade,” describes the circus parade as it “passes on -down the street.” “The playing of the band grows fainter and dies away -in the distance.” “The Big Tops” tells in musical terms about “peanuts, -popcorn, pink lemonade, bawling side-show barkers.” This is followed by -“Bareback Riders.” “As the ringmaster cracks his whip, the riders -perform the miraculous feats ... that make horseback riders the objects -of such awe and admiration.” The fourth movement is in three parts. The -first is devoted to “The Lion’s Cage.” “The roar of the lions is blood -curdling, but they go through their tricks with no damage to any of us.” -The second speaks about “The Dog and the Monkey Circus.” “Into the ring -dash a whole kennel full of small dogs guised as race horses, ridden by -monkeys dressed as jockeys.” In the third, we get a picture of “The -Waltzing Elephants.” “The great beasts solemnly waltz to a tune that is -a pachydermous version of the theme of the bareback riders.” In the -fifth movement, “Tight-Rope Walker,” the performer “balances his -parasol; he pirouettes and slips and slides as he makes his perilous way -along the taut wire.” “The Jugglers,” in the sixth movement, “juggle -little balls and big ones, knives, dishes, hats, lighted candles....” -Even the orchestra is seized by the contagion and finally juggles its -main theme, keeping three versions of it in the air. In “Clowns,” two of -them “come out to play us a tune.... Finally, after a furious argument, -the entire clown band manages to play the tune through, amid applause.” -The finale, the composer goes on to explain, “might better be called -‘Looking Back.’ For the circus is over, and we are back at home, trying -to tell a slightly inattentive family what we saw and heard. The helpful -orchestra evokes recollections of jugglers, clowns, bareback riders, -tight-rope walkers, trained animals.” - -_Through the Looking Glass_, a suite for orchestra (1919) is a musical -setting of episodes from Lewis Carroll’s delightful tale of the same -name. Taylor’s suite is in four movements, for which he has provided his -own program. The first movement, “Dedication; The Garden of Live -Flowers,” consists of “a simple song theme, briefly developed,” which -leads immediately to the brisk music of “The Garden of Live Flowers.” In -the second movement, “Jabberwocky,” the theme of the frightful beast, -the Jabberwock, “is first announced by the full orchestra. The clarinet -then begins the tale [with] the battle with the monsters recounted in a -short and rather repellant fugue.” The third movement, “Looking Glass -Insects” tells of “the vociferous _diptera_ that made such an impression -on Alice—the Bee-elephant, the Gnat, the Rockinghorse fly, and the -Bread-and-butter fly.” The last movement, “The White Knight” has two -themes. “The first is a sort of instrumental prance, being the knight’s -own conception of himself as a slashing daredevil. The second is bland, -mellifluous, a little sentimental—much more like the knight as he really -was.” - - - - - Peter Ilitch Tchaikovsky - - -Peter Ilitch Tchaikovsky was born in Votkinsk, Russia, on May 7, 1840. -Serious music study began comparatively late, since he prepared for a -career in law and then for three years served as clerk in the Ministry -of Justice. He had, however, revealed unusual sensitivity for music from -earliest childhood, and had received some training on the piano from the -time he was five. Intensive music study, however, did not begin until -1861 when he became a pupil of Nicholas Zaremba, and it was completed at -the St. Petersburg Conservatory. His professional career began in 1865, -the year in which he was appointed professor of harmony at the newly -founded Moscow Conservatory. This was also the year when one of his -compositions was performed for the first time: _Characteristic Dances_, -for orchestra, introduced by Johann Strauss II in Pavlovsk, Russia. -Tchaikovsky’s first symphony was introduced in Moscow in 1868; his first -opera, _The Voivoda_, in Moscow in 1869; and his first masterwork—the -orchestral fantasy _Romeo and Juliet_—in Moscow in 1870. During the next -half dozen years he reached maturity as composer with the completion of -his second and third symphonies, first two string quartets, famous Piano -Concerto No. 1, and the orchestral fantasy, _Francesca da Rimini_. - -In 1877, Tchaikovsky embarked precipitously on a disastrous marriage -with Antonina Miliukova. He did not love her, but was flattered by her -adoration of his music. In all probability he regarded this marriage as -a convenient cloak with which to conceal his sexual aberration which was -already causing some talk in Moscow and of which he was heartily -ashamed. In any event, this marriage proved a nightmare from the -beginning. Always hypersensitive, he now became a victim of mental -torment which led him to try suicide. Failing that, he fled from his -wife to find refuge in his brother’s house where he collapsed -physically. For a year after that he traveled about aimlessly in Europe. - -This strange relationship with his wife was followed by another one, -even more curious and unorthodox, with the woman whom he admired and -loved above all others. She was the wealthy patroness and widow, -Nadezhda von Meck, with whom he maintained a friendship lasting thirteen -years. But during all that time he never once met her personally, their -friendship being developed through an exchange of often tender at times -even passionate letters. She had written him to speak of her admiration -for his music and he had replied in gratitude. Before long, she endowed -him with a generous annual subsidy to allow him full freedom to write -music. From then on, they wrote each other frequently, with Tchaikovsky -often baring his heart and soul. The reason why they never met was that -Mme. von Meck had firmly established that condition for the continuation -of their friendship and her financial generosity. Why this strange -request was made, and why she adhered to it so tenaciously, has never -been adequately explained. She may have been influenced by their -different stations in life, or by her excessive devotion to her -children, or even by a knowledge of the composer’s sexual deviation. - -Now financially independent—and strengthened by the kindness, affection -and sympathy of his patroness—Tchaikovsky entered upon one of his -richest creative periods by producing one masterwork after another: the -fourth and fifth symphonies, the opera, _Eugene Onegin_; the violin -concerto; the _Capriccio italien_, for orchestra; a library of wonderful -songs. Inevitably he now assumed a rank of first importance in Russian -music. In 1884 he was honored by the Czar with the Order of St. -Vladimir, and in 1888 a life pension was conferred upon him by the -Russian government. - -In 1890, while traveling in the Caucasus, Tchaikovsky heard from Mme. -von Meck that she had recently suffered financial reverses and was -compelled to terminate her subsidy. The composer replied that he was no -longer in need of her financial help but that he hoped their friendship -might continue. To this, and to all subsequent letters by Tchaikovsky, -Mme. von Meck remained silent. Upon returning to Moscow, Tchaikovsky -discovered that his patroness was in no financial difficulties -whatsoever, but had used this as an excuse to terminate a relationship -of which she had grown weary. The loss of his dearest friend, and the -specious reason given for the termination of their relationship, was an -overwhelming blow, one largely responsible for the fits of melancholia -into which Tchaikovsky lapsed so frequently from this time on. - -In 1891, Tchaikovsky paid his only visit to the United States where he -helped open Carnegie Hall in New York by directing a performance of his -own _Overture 1812_. After returning to Russia, he became so morbid, and -succumbed so helplessly to fits of despair, that at times he thought he -was losing his mind. In such a mood he wrote his last symphony, the -_Pathétique_, one of the most tragic utterances in all music; there is -good reason to believe that when Tchaikovsky wrote this music he was -creating his own requiem. He died in St. Petersburg on November 6, 1893, -a victim of cholera contracted when he drank a glass of boiled water -during an epidemic. - -The qualities in his major serious works that made Tchaikovsky one of -the best loved and most frequently performed composers in the world are -also the traits that bring his lesser works into the permanent -semi-classical repertory: an endless fund of beautiful melody; an -affecting sentiment that at times lapses into sentimentality; a lack of -inhibitions in voicing his deepest emotions and most personal thoughts. - -The _Andante Cantabile_ is a gentle, melancholy song in three-part form -which comes from one of the composer’s string quartets, in D major, op. -11 (1871). This is the second movement of the quartet, and the reason -why this work as a whole is still occasionally performed. This famous -melody, however, is not original with the composer, but a quotation of a -Russian folk song, “Vanya Sat on the Divan,” which the composer heard a -baker sing in Kamenka, Russia. Tchaikovsky himself adapted this music -for orchestra. In 1941, this melody was adapted into the American -popular song, “On the Isle of May.” - -_Chanson Triste_ is another of the composer’s soft, gentle melodies that -is filled with sentiment. This is the second of twelve children’s pieces -for the piano “of moderate difficulty,” op. 40 (1876-1877). - -_Humoresque_, op. 10, no. 2 (1871)—a “humoresque” being an instrumental -composition in a whimsical vein—finds Tchaikovsky in a less familiar -attitude, that of grotesquerie. This sprightly little tune is almost as -celebrated as the very popular _Humoresque_ of Dvořák; and like that of -Dvořák, it originated as a composition for the piano, a companion to a -_Nocturne_ which it follows. Fritz Kreisler made a fine transcription -for violin and piano, while Stokowski was one of several to adapt it for -orchestra. - -The _Marche Slav_, for orchestra, op. 31 (1876) was intended for a -benefit concert in St. Petersburg for Serbian soldiers wounded in the -war with Turkey. At that performance, the work aroused a “whole storm of -patriotic enthusiasm,” as the composer himself reported. The work opens -with a broad Slavic march melody which Tchaikovsky borrowed from a -Serbian folk song. The middle trio section is made up of two other folk -tunes. The composition ends with a triumphant restatement of the opening -march melody, now speaking for the victory of the Serbs over the Turks. - -The _Melodie_, in E-flat major, op. 42, no. 3 (1878) is a simple and -haunting little song that originated as a piece for violin and piano. It -appears in a set of three such pieces entitled _Souvenir d’un lieu -cher_, of which it is the closing number. This melody was used in 1941 -for the American popular song, “The Things I Love.” - -_The Months_, op. 37b (1876) is a suite for piano out of which come -several compositions exceedingly popular in transcriptions. Each -movement of this suite is devoted to a month of the year. The sixth -movement is _June_, a little barcarolle, or Venetian boat song. The -tenth, for October, is _Autumn Song_, a gentle melody lightly touched by -sadness. The eleventh, for November, is by contrast a lively piece -entitled _Troika en Traneaux_, or _The Troika_. - -“None But the Lonely Heart” is one of Tchaikovsky’s most famous songs, a -melancholy setting of Goethe’s poem. This is the last of a set of six -songs, op. 16 (1872) which is extensively performed in transcriptions of -all sorts. - -The _Nutcracker Suite_, or _Casse-Noisette_, op. 71a (1892) is a suite -for orchestra adapted from a ballet score. The ballet (introduced in St. -Petersburg in 1892) tells about a nutcracker, received as a Christmas -gift by a little girl, which in her dreams becomes a handsome prince. He -leads toys into battle against mice, and conducts the little girl to Jam -Mountain, Arabia, where she is delighted with all kinds of games and -dances. Those accustomed to associate the name of Tchaikovsky with -lugubrious music will find this suite a revelation, for it is filled -with the most enchanting moods, and is consistently light of heart and -spirit. The highly popular suite for orchestra is made up of eight -little movements. “Miniature Overture” is built from two lively tunes. -The main subject of the “March” is a pert melody for clarinet, horn, and -two trumpets; the trio section consists of a vivacious staccato melody -for the woodwind and strings. “The Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy” is a -sensitive melody for the celesta, the “Trepak” is a vigorous, rhythmic -Russian dance, the “Arabian Dance” is an exotic melody for the clarinet, -and the “Chinese Dance” an Oriental subject for flute and piccolo. The -two last movements are the “Dance of the Flutes” in which a sensitive -melody for flutes is contrasted by a more robust section for trumpets, -and the “Waltz of the Flowers,” where the waltz tune in horns and then -in clarinets is followed by two more important ideas, the first in the -strings, and the second in flutes and oboe. - -The _Overture 1812_ is a concert overture for orchestra, op. 49 (1880) -commissioned for the consecration of a temple built as a memorial to -Napoleon’s defeat in Russia in 1812. This overture was intended by the -composer to describe the historic events of Napoleon’s invasion of and -flight from Russia. An introductory section quotes the well-known -Russian hymn, “God Preserve Thy People.” In the main body of the -overture, the Battle of Borodino is dramatically depicted, the two -opposing armies represented by quotations from the _Marseillaise_ and -the Russian national anthem. A climax is reached with a triumphant -restatement of the Russian national anthem. - -The _Polonaise_ is one of two celebrated dance episodes in the opera -_Eugene Onegin_. (The other is the Waltz discussed below.) This -three-act opera is based on a poem by Pushkin, adapted by Konstantin -Shilovsky and the composer himself, and was introduced in Moscow on -March 29, 1879. The setting is St. Petersburg in or about 1815, and its -central theme concerns the frustrated love affair of Eugene Onegin and -Tatiana. The brilliant music of the Polonaise is heard in the first -scene of Act 3. In the palace of Prince Gremin there takes place a -reception during which the guests dance to the vital strains of this -courtly Polish dance, its vigor derived from sharp syncopations and -accents on the half beat. - -_Romance_, in F minor, op. 5 (1868) is a composition for piano written -by the composer when he believed himself in love with the singer, -Désirée Artôt, to whom the piece is dedicated. This music gives voice to -a romantic ardor. - -The _Sérénade mélancolique_ in B-flat minor, op. 26 (1875) is a work for -violin and orchestra. As the title indicates it is a sentimental rather -than romantic effusion. Here a brief subject leads to a soaring -three-part song for the violin. - -_Serenade for Strings_, in C major, op. 48 (1880) is particularly famous -for its second and third movements. The second is a Waltz, perhaps the -most popular of this composer’s many well loved waltzes. This is a -graceful, even elegant, dance movement, the waltz of the Parisian salon -rather than the more vital and earthy dance of Vienna. Such a -light-hearted mood is instantly dispelled by the gloom of the third -movement, an eloquent _Elegy_, in which the sorrow is all the more -poignant because it is so subdued and restrained. - -Solitude, op. 73, no. 6 (1893)—sometimes known as Again as Before—is a -song set to a poem by D. M. Rathaus. This is the last of a set of six -songs. Stokowski made an effective arrangement for orchestra. - -_Song Without Words_ (_Chanson sans paroles_), in F major is the third -of a set of three pieces for the piano collectively entitled _Souvenir -de Hapsal_, op. 2 (1867). This tender melody is far more familiar in -transcriptions than it is in its original version. - -Tchaikovsky wrote three Suites for orchestra. From two of these come -movements which must be counted with the composer’s most popular works. -The Suite No. 1 in D minor, op. 43 (1880) is famous for its fourth -movement, a _Marche Miniature_. The inclusion of this section into the -suite was something of an afterthought with the composer, since it was -interpolated into the work only after it had been published, placed as a -fourth movement between an intermezzo and a scherzo. This march is in -the grotesque, fantastic style of the piano _Humoresque_. The main -subject is heard in the piccolo against plucked-string accompaniment. A -transitory episode in strings and bells leads to a development of this -melody. - -The third movement from this same suite, _Intermezzo_, has two main -melodies: the first appears in first violins, violas, bassoons and -flute; the second, in cellos and bassoon. The coda is based on the first -theme. - -The suite No. 3 in G major, op. 55 (1884) is a four-movement work of -which the second is particularly celebrated. This is a _Valse -mélancolique_ for full orchestra, highly expressive and emotional music -in the composer’s identifiable sentimental style. - -There are several other waltzes by Tchaikovsky familiar to all lovers of -light music. The _Valse sentimentale_, op. 51, no. 6 comes from a set of -six pieces for the piano (1882) where it is the final number. The opera -_Eugene Onegin_ (commented upon above for its Polonaise) is also the -source of a remarkable waltz episode. This music, the essence of -aristocratic style and elegance, appears in the first scene of the -second act. Tatiana’s birthday is celebrated with a festive party during -which the guests dance to its infectious strains. Two other famous -Tchaikovsky waltzes come from his famous ballets—_Sleeping Beauty_ and -_Swan Lake_. In the orchestral suite derived from the score of _Sleeping -Beauty_, the waltz appears as the fourth and concluding movement and -consists of a lilting melody for strings which is carried to an -overpowering climax. The _Swan Lake_ consists of thirty-three numbers, -various combinations of its most popular sections serving as orchestral -suites for concert performance. The suave waltz music serves in the -ballet for a dance of the swans at the lakeside in the second act. - - - - - Ambroise Thomas - - -Ambroise Thomas was born in Metz, France, on August 5, 1811. Between -1828 and 1832 he attended the Paris Conservatory where he won numerous -prizes including the Prix de Rome. After his three-year stay in Rome, -where he wrote some orchestral and chamber music, he returned to Paris -in 1836 and devoted himself to writing operas. The first was _La double -échelle_, produced at the Opéra-Comique in 1837. His first success was -realized in 1843 with _Mina_, and in 1866 the opera by which he is -remembered, _Mignon_, was triumphantly introduced at the Opéra-Comique. -Later operas included _Hamlet_ (1868) and _Françoise de Rimini_ (1882). -In 1851, Thomas was elected member of the French Academy. In 1871 he was -appointed director of the Paris Conservatory, and in 1894 he was the -recipient of the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor. He died in Paris on -February 12, 1896. - -_Mignon_ represents the French lyric theater at its best, with its -graceful melodies, charming moods, and courtly grace of style. Its world -première took place at the Opéra-Comique on November 17, 1866. In less -than a century it was given over two thousand performances by that -company besides becoming a staple in the repertory of opera houses the -world over. The opera is based on Goethe’s novel, _Wilhelm Meister_, -adapted by Michel Carré and Jules Barbier. Mignon is a gypsy girl -purchased by Wilhelm Meister. She falls in love with him and is -heartbroken to discover how he is attracted to the actress, Philine. She -tells the demented Lothario of her sorrow and of her wish that Meister’s -castle be burned to the ground. Lothario then proceeds to set Meister’s -castle aflame. Mignon, caught therein, is saved by Meister and then -gently nursed back to health. Meister now realizes he is in love with -her and her alone. When the demented Lothario regains his sanity we -learn that Mignon is in actuality his daughter and that the castle he -has burned is not Meister’s but his own. - -Parts of this opera are better known than the whole, and through these -parts _Mignon_ remains deservedly popular on semi-classical programs. -The Overture makes extended use of two of the opera’s main melodies. The -first is “_Connais-tu le pays_,” (“_Knowest Thou the Land?_”), Mignon’s -poignant first-act aria in which she recalls her childhood in some -distant land; the melody is given in the wind instruments after a brief -introduction. The second aria is Philine’s polonaise, “_Je suis -Titania_” (“_I am Titania_”) from the second scene of the second act. - -Another delightful orchestral episode from this opera is a suave, -graceful little gavotte heard as entr’acte music just before the rise of -the second-act curtain. - -The _Raymond_ Overture is even more popular than that to _Mignon_. -_Raymond_ was first performed at the Opéra-Comique on June 5, 1851. The -overture opens with a spirited section punctuated with dashing chords. A -serene transition, highlighted by a passage for solo cello, brings on a -light, tuneful air in the violins against sharply accented plucked -strings; a graceful countermelody for the woodwind follows. This -appealing material is repeated at some length with embellishments and -amplifications until a new thought is asserted: a brisk, march-like -melody that slowly gains in sonority and tempo until a climactic point -is reached in which this march melody is forcefully given by the full -orchestra. The strings then offer a sentimental melody by way of -temporary relief. But the overture ends in a dramatic and spirited mood -with a finale statement of the march tune. - - - - - Enrico Toselli - - -Enrico Toselli was born in Florence, Italy, on March 13, 1883. After -studying with Sgambati and Martucci, Toselli toured Italy as a concert -pianist. But he achieved renown not on the concert stage but with the -writing of several romantic songs. One of these is the “_Serenata_,” No. -1, op. 6, through which his name survives. He also wrote some orchestral -music and an operetta, _La Principessa bizzarra_ (1913) whose libretto -was the work of the former Crown Princess Luisa of Saxony whom he -married in 1907 thereby creating an international sensation. Toselli -died in Florence, Italy, on January 15, 1926. - -The “_Serenata_” (“_Rimpianto_”) with Italian words by Alfred Silvestri -and English lyrics by Sigmund Spaeth was published in the United States -in 1923. This romantic, sentimental, Italian melody, as well loved in -this country as in Europe, was for many years used by Gertrude Berg as -the theme music for her radio and television program, _The Goldbergs_. -It was also used as the theme music for an early talking picture, _The -Magic Flame_, in which Ronald Colman and Vilma Banky were starred. - - - - - Sir Paolo Tosti - - -Sir Francesco Paolo Tosti, one of Italy’s best known song composers, was -born in Ortona sul Mare, Abruzzi, Italy, on April 9, 1846. His musical -education took place at the Royal College of San Pietro a Maiella in -Naples. He left Naples in 1869 after serving for a while as teacher of -music. Returning to his native city he now initiated his career as a -composer of songs. Though a few of these early efforts became popular he -failed for a long time to find a publisher. Success first came to him in -Rome at a song recital in which he featured some of his own -compositions. He scored an even greater success as singer-composer in -London in 1875. He now settled permanently in London, serving as a -singing master to the royal family, and as professor of singing at the -Royal Academy of Music. In 1908 he was knighted. In 1913 he returned to -his native land. He died in Rome on December 2, 1916. - -Tosti had a remarkable lyric gift that was Italian to its very core in -the ease, fluidity, and singableness of his melodies. This talent was -combined with an elegant style and a sincere emotion. His best songs are -among the most popular to emerge from Italy. The most famous and the -most moving emotionally is without question “_Addio_” (“Goodbye, -Forever”). Almost as popular and appealing are “_Ideale_” (“My Ideal”), -“_Marechiare_,” “_Mattinata_,” “_Segreto_,” “_La Serenata_,” and -“_Vorrei morire_.” - - - - - Giuseppe Verdi - - -Giuseppe Verdi, the greatest of the Italian opera composers, was born in -Le Roncole, Italy, on October 10, 1813. He demonstrated such -unmistakable gifts for music in his boyhood that his townspeople created -a fund to send him to the Milan Conservatory. In 1832 he appeared in -Milan. Finding he was too old to gain admission to the Conservatory, he -studied composition privately with Vincenzo Lavigna. For several years -Verdi lived in Busseto where he conducted the Philharmonic Society and -wrote his first opera, _Oberto_, produced in Milan in 1839. Now settled -in Milan, he continued writing operas, achieving his first major success -with _Nabucco_ in 1842. During the next eight years he solidified his -position as one of Italy’s best loved opera composers with several -important works among which were _Ernani_ (1844), _Macbeth_ (1847) and -_Luisa Miller_ (1849). A new era began for Verdi in 1851 with -_Rigoletto_, an era in which he became Italy’s greatest master of opera, -and one of the foremost in the world. _Il Trovatore_ and _La Traviata_ -came in 1853, to be followed by _I Vespri Siciliani_ (1855), _Simone -Boccanegra_ (1857), _Un ballo in maschera_ (1859), _La Forza del -destino_ (1862), and _Aida_ (1871). Now a man of considerable wealth (as -well as fame), Verdi bought a farm in Sant’ Agata where he henceforth -spent his summers; after the completion of _Aida_, he lived there most -of the time in comparative seclusion, tending to his crops, gardens, and -live stock. When Cavour initiated the first Italian parliament, Verdi -was elected deputy. But Verdi never liked politics, and soon withdrew -from the political arena; however, in 1874, he accepted the honorary -appointment of Senator from the King. - -As a composer, Verdi remained silent for about fifteen years after -_Aida_. By the time the world became reconciled to the fact that Verdi’s -life work was over, he emerged from this long period of withdrawal to -produce two operas now generally regarded as his crowning achievements: -_Otello_ (1887) and _Falstaff_ (1893). During the last years of his -life, Verdi lived in a Milan hotel. His sight and hearing began to -deteriorate, and just before his death—in Milan on January 27, 1901—he -suffered a paralytic stroke. His death was mourned by the entire nation. -A quarter of a million mourners crowded the streets to watch his bier -pass for its burial in the oratory of the Musicians Home in -Milan—accompanied by the stately music of a chorus from _Nabucco_, -conducted by Toscanini. - -Verdi’s profound knowledge of the theater and his strong dramatic sense, -combined with his virtually incomparable Italian lyricism, made him one -of the greatest composers for the musical theater of all time. But it is -his lyricism—with all its infinite charm and variety—that makes so much -of his writing so popular to so many in such widely scattered areas of -the world. Selections from his most famous operas are favorites even -with many who have never seen them on the stage, because their emotional -appeal is inescapable. - -_Aida_ is an opera filled not only with some of the most wonderful -melodies to be found in Italian opera but also with scenes of pomp, -ceremony, with exotic attractions, and with episodes dynamic with -dramatic interest. This was the opera that brought Verdi’s second -creative period to a rich culmination; and it is unquestionably one of -the composer’s masterworks. He wrote it on a commission from the -Egyptian Khedive for ceremonies commemorating the opening of the Suez -Canal. However, Verdi took so long to complete his opera that it was not -performed in Cairo until about two years after the canal had been -opened, on December 24, 1871. The libretto—by Antonio Ghislanzoni—was -based on a plot by Mariette Bey. Radames, captain of the Egyptian guard, -is in love with Aida, the Ethiopian slave of Amneris. The latter, -daughter of the King of Egypt, is herself in love with Radames. When an -invading Ethiopian force comes to threaten Egypt, Radames becomes the -commander of the army and proves himself a hero. Lavish festivities and -ceremonies celebrate his victorious return, during which the king of -Egypt offers him the hand of Amneris as reward. But Radames is still in -love with Aida. Since Aida is actually the daughter of the Ethiopian -king, she manages to extract from Radames the secret maneuvers of the -Egyptian army, information enabling the Ethiopian army to destroy the -Egyptians. For this treachery, Radames is buried alive; and Aida, still -in love with him, comes within his tomb to die with him. - -The brief overture opens with a tender melody in violins suggesting -Aida. After an effective development we hear a somber and brooding -motive of the Priests of Isis, which soon receives contrapuntal -treatment. The Aida motive is dramatized, brought to a magnificent -climax, then allowed to subside. - -The Ballet Music is famous for its brilliant harmonic and orchestral -colors, exotic melodies, and pulsating rhythms. In Act 2, Scene 1 there -takes place the _Dance of the Moorish Slaves_, an oriental dance -performed before Amneris by the Moorish boys. The _Ballabile_ is another -oriental dance which appears in Act 2, Scene 2, performed by the dancing -girls during the celebration attending the arrival of the triumphant -Egyptian army headed by Radames. In this scene there is also heard the -stirring strains of the _Grand March_. This march begins softly but soon -gathers its strength and erupts with full force as the king, his -attendants, the Priests, the standard bearers, Amneris and her slaves -appear in a brilliant procession. The people raise a cry of praise to -the king and their Gods in “_Gloria all’ Egitto_.” After this comes the -dramatic march music to which the Egyptian troops, with Radames at their -head, enter triumphantly into the square and file proudly before their -king. - -Of the vocal excerpts the most famous is undoubtedly Radames’ ecstatic -song of love to Aida in the first act, first scene, “_Celeste Aida_,” -surely one of the most famous tenor arias in all opera. Two principal -arias for soprano are by Aida. The first is her exultant prayer that -Radames come back victorious from the war, “_Ritorna vincitor_” in Act -1, Scene 1; the other, “_O Patria mia_,” in Act 3, is her poignant -recollection of her beloved homeland in Ethiopia. Amneris’ moving aria -in Act 2, Scene 1, “_Vieni amor mio_” where she thinks about her beloved -Radames, and the concluding scene of the opera in which Radames and Aida -bid the world farewell, “_O terra, addio_” are also famous. - -_La Forza del destino_ (_The Force of Destiny_) has a popular overture. -This opera was first performed in St. Petersburg, Russia on November 10, -1862—libretto by Francesco Piave based on a play by the Duke de Riva. -Leonora, daughter of the Marquis of Calatrava, is in love with Don -Alvaro, a nobleman of Inca origin. When they plan elopement, Leonora’s -father intervenes and is accidentally killed in the ensuing brawl. -Leonora’s brother, Don Carlo, swears to avenge this death by killing Don -Alvaro. On the field of battle, Don Alvaro saves Don Carlo’s life. Not -recognizing Don Alvaro as his sworn enemy, Don Carlo pledges eternal -friendship; but upon discovering Don Alvaro’s true identity, he -challenges him to a duel in which Don Carlo is wounded. Aware that he -has brought doom to two people closest and dearest to his beloved -Leonora, Don Alvaro seeks sanctuary in a monastery where many years -later he is found by Don Carlo. In the sword duel that follows, Don -Alvaro kills Don Carlo, whose last act is to plunge a fatal knife into -his sister’s heart. - -A trumpet blast, creating an ominous air of doom, opens the overture. An -air in a minor key then leads to a gentle song for strings; this is -Leonora’s prayer for help and protection to the Virgin in the second -scene of the second act, “_Madre pietosa_.” A light pastoral tune, -depicting the Italian countryside in the third act, is now heard. -Leonora’s song of prayer is now forcefully repeated by the full -orchestra, after which the overture ends robustly. - -_Rigoletto_, introduced in Venice on March 11, 1851, is based on the -Victor Hugo play, _Le Roi s’amuse_ adapted by Francesco Piave. Rigoletto -is the hunchbacked jester to the Duke of Mantua who jealously guards his -daughter, Gilda, from the world outside their home. Disguised as a -student, the Duke woos Gilda and wins her love. Since the Duke’s -courtiers hate the jester, they conspire to abduct Gilda and bring her -to the ducal court to become the Duke’s mistress. Distraught at this -turn of affairs, the jester vows to kill the Duke and hires a -professional assassin to perform this evil deed. But since his own -sister loves the Duke, the assassin decides to spare him and to kill a -stranger instead. The stranger proves to be none other than Gilda, -disguised as a man for a projected flight to Verona. The body is placed -in a sack for delivery to Rigoletto who, before he can get rid of the -body, discovers that it is that of his beloved daughter. - -The following are the best loved and most widely performed excerpts from -this tuneful opera: the Ballata, “_Questa o quella_” from the first act -in which the Duke flippantly talks of love and his many conquests; the -graceful Minuet to which the courtiers dance during a party at the Ducal -palace in the same act; Gilda’s famous coloratura aria, “_Caro nome_” -from the second act, in which she dreams about the “student” with whom -she has fallen in love; the light and capricious aria of the Duke, “_La -donna è mobile_” from the third act, in which the Duke mockingly -comments on fickle womanhood, and one of the most celebrated tenor arias -in the repertory; the quartet “_Bella figlia dell’ amore_”—as celebrated -an ensemble number as “_La donna è mobile_” is as an aria—in which each -of the four principal characters of the opera (Gilda, Rigoletto, the -Duke, and Maddalena) speaks of his or her inner turmoil, doubts, and -hatreds in the third act. - -_La Traviata_ (_The Lost One_) is Francesco Maria Piave’s adaptation of -Alexandre Dumas’ celebrated romance, _La Dame aux camélias_. Its central -theme is the tragic tale of the courtesan, Violetta, who falls in love -with and is loved by Alfredo Germont. After they live together for a -blissful period, Alfredo’s father is instrumental in breaking up the -affair by convincing Violetta she must give up her lover for his own -good. She does so by feigning she has grown tired of him. Only too late -does Alfredo learn the truth; when he returns to Violetta, she is dying -of tuberculosis. - -The première of _La Traviata_ in Venice on March 6, 1853 was a dismal -failure. The public reacted unfavorably to a play it regarded immoral, -and to the sight of a healthy prima donna seemingly wasting away with -tuberculosis; it also resented the fact that the opera was given in -contemporary dress. At a revival, a year later in Venice, the opera was -performed in costume and settings of an earlier period. Profiting -further from a carefully prepared presentation, the opera now cast a -spell on its audience. From this point on, _La Traviata_ went on to -conquer the opera world to become one of the most popular operas ever -written. - -The orchestral preludes to the first and third act are celebrated. The -Prelude to Act 1 begins softly and slowly with a poignant melody -suggesting Violetta’s fatal sickness; this is followed by a broad, rich -song for the strings describing Violetta’s expression of love for -Alfredo. The Prelude to Act 3 also begins with the sad, slow melody -speaking of Violetta’s illness. The music then becomes expressive and -tender to point up the tragedy of her life; this prelude ends with a -succession of broken phrases as Violetta’s life slowly ebbs away. - -The following are the principal vocal selections from _La Traviata_: the -opening drinking song, or Brindisi (“_Libiamo, libiamo_”); Violetta’s -world-famous aria, “_Ah, fors è lui_” in which she reveals her love for -Alfredo followed immediately by her determination to remain free and -pleasure-loving (“_Sempre libera_”) also in the first act; Alfredo’s -expression of joy that Violetta has come to live with him, “_De’ miei -bollenti spiriti_” and the elder Germont’s recollection of his happy -home in the Provence, “_Di Provenza il mar_” from the second act; -Violetta’s pathetic farewell to the world, “_Addio del passato_,” and -Alfredo’s promise to the dying Violetta to return together to their -happy home near Paris, “_Parigi, o cara_” from the fourth act. - -_Il Trovatore_ (_The Troubadours_) is so full of familiar melodies that, -like a play of Shakespeare, it appears to be replete with “quotations.” -It was first performed in Rome on January 19, 1853. The libretto by -Salvatore Commarno, based on a play by Antonio Garcia Gutiérrez, is -complicated to a point of obscurity, and filled with coincidences and -improbabilities; but this did not prevent Verdi from creating one of his -most melodious scores, an inexhaustible reservoir of unforgettable arias -and ensemble numbers. The story involves Count di Luna in a frustrated -love affair with Leonora; his rival is Manrico, an officer of a rival -army with whom Leonora is in love. The gypsy Azucena convinces Manrico, -her foster son, that Count di Luna had been responsible for the death of -Manrico’s father, and incites him on to avenge that murder. Later in the -play, Azucena and Manrico are captured by Di Luna’s army. To help free -Manrico, Leonora promises to marry the Count. Rather than pay this -price, Leonora takes poison and dies at Manrico’s feet. Manrico is now -sentenced to be executed. After his death, Azucena, half-crazed, reveals -that Manrico is really Count di Luna’s half brother. - -The long list of favorite selections from _Il Trovatore_ includes the -following: Manrico’s beautiful serenade to Leonora in Act 1, Scene 2, -“_Deserto sulla terra_”; Leonora’s poignant recollections of a -mysterious admirer in the second scene, “_Tacea la notte placida_”; the -ever popular _Anvil Chorus_ of the gypsies with which the second act -opens, “_Vedi! le fosche_”; Azucena’s stirring recollection of the time -long past when her mother had been burned as a witch, “_Stride la -vampa_,” and Count di Luna’s expression of love for Leonora, “_Il -balen_” also in the second act; in the third act, Manrico’s dramatic -aria, “_Di quella pira_” and the rousing soldier’s chorus of Manrico’s -troops, “_Squilli, echeggi la tromba guerriera_”; Leonora’s prayer for -her beloved Manrico “_D’amor sull’ ali rosee_” followed immediately by -the world-famous _Miserere_ (“_Ah, che la morte ognora_”), a choral -chant asking pity and salvation from the prisoners, all in the first -scene of the fourth act; and the poignant duet of Manrico and Azucena in -the final scene, a fervent, glowing hope that some day they can return -to their beloved mountain country in peace and love, “_Ai nostri -monti_.” - -While _I Vespri siciliani_, or _Les Vêpres siciliennes_ (_Sicilian -Vespers_) is one of Verdi’s less familiar operas, its overture is one of -his most successful. The opera-libretto by Eugène Scribe and Charles -Duveyrier—was first performed at the Paris Opéra on June 13, 1855. Its -setting is 13th-century Sicily where the peasants rise in revolt against -the occupying French. The overture is constructed from some basic -melodies from the opera. The first _Allegro_ theme speaks of the -massacre of the French garrison. A second melody—a beautiful lyrical -passage _pianissimo_ against tremolos—is taken from the farewell scene -of the hero and the heroine who are about to die. - - - - - Richard Wagner - - -Wilhelm Richard Wagner, genius of the music drama, was born in Leipzig, -Germany, on May 22, 1813. In his academic studies (at the Kreuzschule in -Dresden, the Nikolaischule in Leipzig, and the University of Leipzig) he -was an indifferent, lazy, and irresponsible student. But his intensity -and seriousness of purpose where music was concerned were evident from -the beginning. He studied theory by memorizing a textbook and then by -receiving some formal instruction from Theodor Weinlig. In short order -he completed an overture and a symphony that received performances -between 1832 and 1833; in 1834 he completed his first opera, _Die Feen_, -never performed in his lifetime. In 1834 he was appointed conductor of -the Magdeburg Opera where, two years later, his second opera, _Das -Liebesverbot_, was introduced. Between 1837 and 1838 he conducted opera -in Riga. Involvement in debts caused his dismissal from this post and -compelled him to flee to Paris, where he arrived in 1839. There he lived -for three years in extreme poverty, completing two important operas, -_Rienzi_ in 1840, and _The Flying Dutchman_ in 1841. His first major -successes came with the first of these operas, introduced at the Dresden -Opera on October 20, 1842. This triumph brought Wagner in 1843 an -appointment as Kapellmeister of the Dresden Opera which he held with -considerable esteem for six years. During this period he completed two -more operas: _Tannhaeuser_, introduced in Dresden in 1845, and -_Lohengrin_, first performed in Weimar under Liszt’s direction, in 1850. - -As a member of a radical political organization, the Vaterlandsverein, -Wagner became involved in the revolutionary movements that swept across -Europe in 1848-1849. To avoid arrest, he had to flee from Saxony. He -came to Weimar where he was warmly welcomed by Liszt who from then on -became one of his staunchest champions. After that Wagner set up a -permanent abode in Zurich. He now began to clarify and expound his new -theories on opera. He saw opera as a drama with music, a synthesis of -many arts; he was impatient with the old clichés and formulas to which -opera had so long been enslaved, such as formal ballets, recitatives and -arias, production scenes, and so forth. And he put his theories into -practice with a monumental project embracing four dramas, collectively -entitled _The Nibelung Ring_ (_Der Ring des Nibelungen_) for which, as -had always been his practice, he wrote the text as well as the music; -the four dramas were entitled _The Rhinegold_ (_Das Rheingold_), _The -Valkyries_ (_Die Walkuere_), _Siegfried_, and _The Twilight of the Gods_ -(_Goetterdaemmerung_). It took him a quarter of a century to complete -this epic. But during this period he was able to complete several other -important music dramas, including _Tristan and Isolde_ in 1859 and _The -Mastersingers_ (_Die Meistersinger_) in 1867. - -In 1862, Wagner was pardoned for his radical activities of 1849 and -permitted to return to Saxony. There he found a powerful patron in -Ludwig II, king of Bavaria, under whose auspices premières of Wagner’s -mighty music dramas were given in Munich beginning with _Tristan and -Isolde_ in 1865. In 1876 there came into being one of Wagner’s most -cherished dreams, a festival theater built in Bayreuth, Bavaria, -according to his own specifications, where his music dramas could be -presented in the style and manner Wagner dictated. This festival opened -in August 1876 with the first performance anywhere of the entire _Ring_ -cycle. Since then Bayreuth has been a shrine of Wagnerian music drama to -which music lovers of the world congregate during the summer months. -Wagner’s last music drama was the religious consecrational play, -_Parsifal_, first performed in Bayreuth on July 26, 1882. Wagner died in -Venice on February 13, 1883, and was buried in the garden of his home, -Wahnfried, in Bayreuth. - -Of his turbulent personal life which involved him in numerous and often -complex love affairs, mention need here be made only of his relations -with Cosima, daughter of Liszt, and wife of Hans von Buelow. Wagner and -Cosima fell in love while the latter was still von Buelow’s wife. They -had two illegitimate children before they set up a home of their own at -Lake Lucerne; and one more (Siegfried) before they were married on -August 25, 1870. - -Wagner’s creative career divides itself into two phases. In the first he -was the composer of operas in more or less a traditional style. To the -accepted formulas of operatic writing, however, he brought a new -dimension—immense musical and dramatic power and invention. In the -second phase he was the prophet of a new order in music, the creator of -the music drama. It is from the works of his first phase that salon or -pop orchestras derive selections that have become universal -favorites—sometimes overtures, sometimes excerpts. For these earlier -works abound with such a wonderful fund of melody, emotion, -expressiveness and dramatic interest that they have become popular even -with those operagoers to whose tastes the later Wagner is perhaps too -subtle, complex, elusive, or garrulous. - -From _The Flying Dutchman_ (_Der fliegende Hollaender_) comes a dramatic -overture. This opera—text by the composer based on an old legend adapted -by Heinrich Heine—was first performed at the Dresden Opera on January 2, -1843. “The Flying Dutchman” is a ship on which the Dutchman must sail -until he achieves redemption through the love of a faithful woman. Only -once in every seven years is he permitted to go ashore to find that -love. He finally achieves his redemption through Senta. They both meet -their final doom together in a raging sea which swallows up the ship. - -Turbulent music, intended to describe a storm at sea, opens the -overture. We then hear the theme of the Dutchman in the horns and -bassoons. The stormy music returns and subsides as a motive from Senta’s -beautiful second-act ballad, “_Traft ihr das Schiff_” is presented. This -motive brings up the image of Senta herself. A vigorous sailors’ chorus -is followed by a return of the Senta motive in full orchestra. - -Three selections from _The Flying Dutchman_ are of particular appeal: -Senta’s spinning song, “_Summ und brumm_” and her famous ballad, both -from the second act; and the chorus of the sailors in the third act, a -rousing chantey, “_Steuermann! lass die Wacht_.” - -_Lohengrin_ was Wagner’s last “opera.” After that he confined himself to -music dramas. He completed it in 1848. After its première in Weimar on -August 28, 1850 it became one of the most successful operas in Germany -of that period. The text, by the composer, was adapted from medieval -legends. Lohengrin is a knight of the Holy Grail who becomes Elsa’s -champion against Telramund when Elsa is unjustly accused of having -murdered Gottfried. Lohengrin arrives on a swan and extracts from Elsa -the promise that she must never try to uncover his true identity. After -defeating Telramund, Lohengrin marries Elsa who, provoked by Telramund’s -wife, cannot stifle her curiosity about her husband’s background and -source. He finally must reveal to her that he is a knight of the Holy -Grail. Having made that revelation he must leave her forever. - -The two familiar orchestral preludes, from the first and third acts, are -opposites in mood, texture, and dynamics. The Prelude to Act 1 has -spiritual content, a portrait of a heavenly vision wherein the Holy -Grail is carried by angels. The main theme is heard quietly in the upper -registers of the violins, then repeated by other instruments. This theme -is developed into a _crescendo_ and culminates in an exultant statement -by trumpets and trombones. Now the theme is given in a _decrescendo_, -and the prelude ebbs away _pianissimo_, once again in the strings in the -upper register. - -The Prelude to Act 3 is more robust in character, since it depicts the -joy of Elsa and Lohengrin on the eve of their wedding. A forceful melody -is pronounced by the full orchestra, succeeded by a second strong theme -for the cellos, horns, bassoons in unison; a march-like episode for the -wind instruments follows. - -What is probably the most famous wedding march ever written comes out of -_Lohengrin_. Its strains are heard after the rise of the curtain for Act -3, Scene 1, as a procession enters the bridal chamber. The chorus hymns -a blessing to the marriage couple (“_Treulich gefuert_”). From one side -ladies conduct Elsa, while from the other the King and his men lead -Lohengrin. The two processions then meet midstage and Elsa joins -Lohengrin to be blessed by the King. The two columns of the procession -then refile and march out of the two sides of the stage. - -_The Mastersingers_ (_Die Meistersinger_), while written after Wagner -had set forth on his operatic revolution, is the only one of his music -dramas with a recognizable operatic ritual: big arias, huge production -numbers, even dances. For _The Mastersingers_ is a comedy, the only one -Wagner ever wrote. For purposes of comedy some of the traditions of -opera still prove useful to Wagner, even if fused with techniques, -approaches and esthetics of the music drama. Wagner completed _The -Mastersingers_ in 1867—eight years after _Tristan and Isolde_ and more -than a decade following the first two dramas of the _Ring_ cycle. The -first performance took place in Munich on June 21, 1868. The libretto, -by the composer, was set in Nuremberg in the middle 16th century, and -its plot revolves around a song contest conducted by the Mastersingers, -its winner to receive the hand of lovely Eva, daughter of the -cobbler-philosopher, Hans Sachs. Walther von Stolzing, a knight, and -Beckmesser, a contemptible town clerk, are the main rivals for Eva. At a -magnificent ceremony at the banks of the Pognitz River the contestants -sing their offerings. It is Walther’s eloquent “Prize Song” that emerges -victorious. - -This “Prize Song” (“_Morgenlich leuchtend_”) is one of Wagner’s most -famous melodies, the pivot upon which the entire opera gravitates. It is -first heard in the first scene of the third act, where Walther comes to -tell Hans Sachs of a song come to him in a dream. The song is repeated -in the closing scene of the opera during the actual contest. This “Prize -Song” is used by Wagner symbolically. Its victory over the dull and -stilted creation of Beckmesser represents the triumph of inspiration and -freedom of expression over hackneyed rules and procedures. August -Wilhelmj made a famous transcription of the “Prize Song” for violin and -piano. - -_Rienzi_, an early Wagner opera, is today remembered primarily for its -overture. But in its own day it was extremely popular. Immediately after -its première performance in Dresden on October 20, 1842, _Rienzi_ made -Wagner’s name known throughout all of Germany for the first time, -appearing in the repertory of virtually every major German opera house -at the time. The novel from which the composer derived his libretto is -that of Bulwer-Lytton. The central character, Rienzi, is a Roman ruler -of the 14th century who meets his destruction at the hands of his -enemies who set the Capitol aflame in which Rienzi perishes. Trumpet -calls in the opening measures of the overture lead to a slow section in -which is prominent an affecting melody for strings, Rienzi’s prayer for -the Roman people. In the main section of the overture, the first main -theme is the battle hymn of the first act (in the brass) set against -Rienzi’s prayer-melody. The opening slow section returns and is -succeeded by the stirring music from the first act finale. In the coda, -the battle-hymn music is powerfully projected for the last time. - -_Tannhaeuser_ boasts many popular selections beyond its very famous -overture. The opera was first performed in Dresden on October 19, 1845. -The libretto is by the composer. Tannhaeuser is a minstrel-knight who -has grown weary of the carnal delights on the Hill of Venus and longs -for his own world. By invoking the name of the Virgin Mary, in whom he -places his trust, Tannhaeuser is transported to a valley near the -Wartburg Castle, where he is recognized and welcomed back by Wolfram, a -companion minstrel-knight. Joyously, Tannhaeuser returns with Wolfram to -the Hall of the Minstrels in the Wartburg Castle to find that his -beloved Elisabeth is still in love with him. But only he who can come -out triumphant in a song contest on the subject of love can win -Elisabeth. The song Tannhaeuser presents, glorifying sensual pleasure, -horrifies the audience. Contrite, Tannhaeuser offers to atone for his -sins by joining pilgrims to Rome and seeking absolution from the Pope. -Elisabeth promises to pray for his soul. After several months have -passed, Elisabeth is awaiting the return of the Roman pilgrims, and -Wolfram beseeches heaven to guide Elisabeth and protect her. Suddenly -Tannhaeuser—haggard and decrepit—makes his appearance. He confesses to -Wolfram that his soul will not be redeemed until the staff in the Pope’s -hands sprouts leaves. Only after Elisabeth has died of grief in despair -of ever seeing Tannhaeuser again, do the tidings come from Rome that the -Pope’s staff has, indeed, blossomed with foliage. - -The Overture is built from some of the principal melodies of the opera; -in a sense it traces the main events of the story. The religious chant -of the Pilgrims (in clarinets, bassoons and horns) is heard at once. -This is followed by music suggesting Tannhaeuser’s repentance, a -touching melody for strings. After both these ideas have been discussed -we hear in the strings the voluptuous music of Venusberg, a picture of -the carnal life led by Tannhaeuser with Venus on Venus Hill. The music -is brought to a compelling climax with a loud statement of Tannhaeuser’s -passionate hymn to carnal love with which he so horrified the -minstrel-knights at Wartburg Castle. The chant of the pilgrims, which -had opened the overture, also brings it to conclusion. - -The Prelude to Act 3 is solemn music that bears the title, -“Tannhaeuser’s Pilgrimage.” Two themes are set forth at once, that of -Tannhaeuser’s repentance, and that suggesting Elisabeth’s intercession. -Tannhaeuser’s suffering is then portrayed by a poignant melody for -strings. Suggestions of the Pilgrim’s Chorus and a motive known as -“Heavenly Grace” are then offered. The prelude ends quietly and -sensitively, as Tannhaeuser at long last achieves salvation. - -The sensual, even lascivious, music of the _Bacchanale_ in the opening -scene (recreating the revelry enjoyed by Tannhaeuser and Venus on Venus -Hill) is often performed in conjunction with the Overture, sometimes -independently. Another orchestral episode extremely popular is the -stately _March_ of the second act with which the minstrel-knights of the -Wartburg file into the Castle, followed by the nobles, ladies, and -attendants, as they chant the strains of “_Freudig begruessen wir die -edle Halle_.” - -The most popular vocal excerpt from _Tannhaeuser_ is Wolfram’s “Ode to -the Evening Star” (“_O du mein holder Abendstern_”) in the last act. -This atmospheric music, a hymn to the mystery and beauty of the night, -is Wolfram’s prayer to the evening star that it guide and protect -Elisabeth. Elisabeth’s second-act song of praise to the Hall of Wartburg -Castle in which she speaks of her joy in learning of Tannhaeuser’s -return (“_Dich, teure Halle_”) and her eloquent third-act prayer for -Tannhaeuser’s forgiveness (“_Allmaecht’ge Jungfrau_”) are also -deservedly celebrated for their affecting lyricism. - -Wagner did not write much music not intended for the stage. Of this -meager repertory one or two items deserve attention in the -semi-classical repertory. One is “_Traeume_” (“Dreams”) a song often -heard in transcriptions, particularly for orchestra. This is one of five -poems by Mathilde Wesendonck which Wagner set to music in 1857-1858, and -it appears as the last song of the cycle. This gentle nocturne derives -some of its melody from the famous love-duet of the second act of -_Tristan and Isolde_ (“_O sink hernieder, Nacht der Liebe_”) but the -overall effect of the song is one of gentle revery rather than sensual -love. Wagner himself arranged “_Traeume_” for small orchestra. On -Mathilde Wesendonck’s birthday on December 23, 1857, he conducted -eighteen musicians in a performance of the song under Mathilde’s window. - -The _Kaiser March_ was another of Wagner’s compositions not intended for -the stage. He wrote it in 1871 to celebrate Germany’s victory over -France. A proud, exultant theme is first offered by the full orchestra. -A transition in the brasses and timpani brings on a second theme of -contrasting character in the woodwind. There follows a brief statement -of Martin Luther’s famous chorale, “_Ein feste Burg_.” After dramatic -music depicting the fever of battle, the Luther chorale is repeated -triumphantly by the brasses. The first theme returns loudly in full -orchestra after a fanfare to end the march. - - - - - Emil Waldteufel - - -Emil Waldteufel, waltz-king of France, was born in Strasbourg on -December 9, 1837. His father, a professor of music at the Strasbourg -Conservatory, gave him his first music instruction. After that Emil -attended the Paris Conservatory, but he never completed his course of -study there, leaving the schoolroom to take on a job with a piano -manufacturer. He published his first waltzes at his own expense in 1860, -_Joies et peines_ and _Manola_. The latter so enchanted the Prince of -Wales that he willingly accepted the dedication of Waldteufel’s next -waltz, _Bien aimé_, a fact that played no small part in establishing -Waldteufel’s reputation in England. Waldteufel now decided to sidestep -all other activities to concentrate on the writing of waltz music. In -short order he became the idol of Paris in the same way that Johann -Strauss II was of Vienna. For a period, Waldteufel’s fame throughout -Europe was second only to that of the Viennese waltz king. Waldteufel -made many tours of the European capitals conducting his own -compositions, scoring triumphs in Covent Garden in 1885, and in Berlin -in 1889. In 1865 he became chamber musician to the Empress Eugénie and -director of the court balls. He died in Paris on February 16, 1915. - -Waldteufel published over 250 waltzes. A comparison with Johann Strauss -is perhaps inevitable. The French waltz king never equalled Strauss’ -remarkable melodic invention, original approaches in harmony and -orchestration, and overall inspiration. Most of Waldteufel’s waltzes are -functional pieces, and make far better dance music than concert music. -But a handful of his waltzes are classics, and deservedly so. They are -buoyant and inviting in their spirit, aristocratic in style, spontaneous -in expression. Waldteufel’s most famous waltzes include the following: -_España_, op. 236, which utilizes for its waltz melodies the basic -themes from Chabrier’s rhapsody of the same name; and _The Skaters_ -(_Les Patineurs_), op. 183, in which the main elegant melody has the -lightness of foot and the mobility of motion of facile figure skaters. -Other popular Waldteufel waltzes include the _Acclamations_, op. 223; -_Dolores_, op. 170; _Estudiantina_, op. 191; _Mon rêve_, op. 151; _Les -Sirènes_, op. 154; _Toujours ou jamais_, op. 156; and _Violettes_, op. -148. - - - - - Karl Maria von Weber - - -Karl Maria von Weber was born in Eutin, Oldenburg, Germany, on November -18, 1786. His father, who played the violin in small theaters, was -determined to make his son a musical prodigy, subjecting him from -childhood on to severe discipline, and to intensive study with Karl’s -stepbrother, J. P. Heuschkel and Michael Haydn. Weber made public -appearances as pianist in early boyhood. His first opera was written -when he was only thirteen, and at fourteen his second opera was -performed in Chemnitz, Freiberg, and Vienna. An even more comprehensive -period of study than heretofore followed in Munich with Abbé Vogler. -After that, in 1804, Weber was appointed conductor of the Breslau City -Theater. In 1806 he became Musik Intendant to the Duke of Wuerttemberg, -and in 1807 private secretary and music master to Duke Ludwig in -Stuttgart. From 1813 to 1816 he was the music director of German Opera -in Prague and in 1817 musical director of German Opera in Dresden. It -was in this last post that he created the first of his unqualified -masterworks, the opera _Der Freischuetz_, introduced with phenomenal -success in Berlin on June 18, 1821. It was with this work that German -Romantic opera was born, grounded in Germanic nationalism, filled with -the German love for the legendary and the supernatural, and -characterized by its use of German landscapes and backgrounds. Weber -wrote two more masterworks with which his high station in opera was -solidified: _Euryanthe_, introduced in Vienna on October 25, 1823, and -_Oberon_, first heard in London, on April 12, 1826. In London, attending -the première of the latter opera, Weber succumbed to his last sickness -on June 5, 1826. His body was transferred to Dresden where it was buried -to special ceremonies at which Wagner delivered the eulogy. - -Weber’s monumental contributions to opera in general, and German opera, -in particular, do not fall within the scope of this volume; neither do -the three masterworks with which he gained immortality. In music in a -lighter vein he was most significant for being one of the first to -create waltz music within an extended structure. The most popular of -these compositions was the _Invitation to the Dance_ (_Aufforderung zum -Tanz_), written in 1819 as a “rondo brilliant” in D-flat major, for -piano solo. It has since become celebrated in several orchestral -transcriptions, notably those by Berlioz and Felix Weingartner. This -work is one of the first in music history in which several different -waltz tunes are combined into a single cohesive composition, preceded by -an introduction and concluding with an epilogue. The introduction -consists of a subdued, well-mannered melody, simulating the request to a -lady by a young man for a dance, and the acceptance. Several waltz -melodies follow, to which this couple dance. The epilogue consists of a -return of the introduction, this time with the gentleman thanking the -lady for having danced with him. - -The _Jubilee Overture_ (_Jubel_), op. 59, for orchestra is another of -Weber’s more popular creations, this time in a stirring style. He wrote -it in 1818 on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the ascension to -the throne by the King of Saxony. A slow introduction leads to the main -body of the overture in which the main theme is forcefully stated by the -full orchestra. By contrast there later appears a light-hearted tune, -soon given considerable prominence in the development section. When both -ideas have been repeated, a climax is reached with a statement of the -English anthem, “God Save the King” in the wind instruments accompanied -by the strings. - - - - - Kurt Weill - - -Kurt Weill was born in Dessau, Germany, on March 2, 1900. A -comprehensive musical training took place first with private teachers in -Dessau, then at the Berlin High School of Music, and finally for three -years with Ferruccio Busoni. Weill started out as a composer of -avant-garde music performed at several important German festivals. His -first opera, _The Protagonist_, with a text by Georg Kaiser, was -produced in 1926. From this point on Weill continued writing operas in -which the texts were realistic or satiric, and the music filled with -popular idioms, sometimes even those of jazz. The most important were -_The Royal Palace_ in 1927; _The Three-Penny Opera_, a sensation when -first produced in 1928; _The Czar Has Himself Photographed_, also in -1928; and _The Rise and Fall of Mahagonny_, in 1930, one of whose -numbers, “The Alabamy Song,” was a leading song hit in Germany that -year. With these works Weill became one of the leading exponents of the -cultural movements then sweeping across Germany under the banners of -_Zeitkunst_ (Contemporary Art) and _Gebrauchsmusik_ (Functional Music). -In the fall of 1935, Weill established permanent residence in the United -States, becoming an American citizen in 1943. He soon assumed a position -of first importance in the Broadway theater by virtue of a succession of -outstanding musicals: _Johnny Johnson_ (1936); _Knickerbocker Holiday_ -(1938) in which Walter Huston starred as Peter Stuyvesant and out of -which came one of Weill’s most popular musical numbers, “September -Song”; Moss Hart’s musical about psychoanalysis and the dream life, -_Lady in the Dark_ (1941) in which Gertrude Lawrence was starred; _One -Touch of Venus_ (1943), with Mary Martin; _Street Scene_ (1947), a -trenchant musical play based on Elmer Rice’s realistic drama of New -York; _Love Life_ (1948), book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, its main -musical number being another all-time Weill song favorite, “Green-Up -Time”; and _Lost in the Stars_ (1949), a powerful musical drama adapted -from Alon Paton’s novel, _Cry, the Beloved Country_. Weill died in New -York City on April 3, 1950. - -_The Three-Penny Opera_ (_Die Dreigroschenoper_) is one of the most -important musical productions of the post-World War I era in Europe; and -since its premiere it has lost little of its initial popularity. This -musical play (or opera, if you will) was based on the historic -18th-century ballad opera of John Gay, _The Beggar’s Opera_. The text -was rewritten and modernized by Berthold Brecht, in whose hands the -comic opera became a brilliant, though often bitter, satire of Germany -in the late 1920’s, with penetrating satirical comments on crime and -corruption in this post-war era. Weill’s opera was introduced in Berlin -on August 31, 1928 and scored a sensation with few parallels in -contemporary German theater. Over one hundred theaters gave it four -thousand performances throughout Germany in its initial year. It was -made into a motion-picture by G. W. Pabst (the first of several screen -adaptations). It was introduced in the leading theatrical centers of the -world; the American première—in New York on April 13, 1933—was, however, -a dismal failure. It has since been revived frequently in all parts of -the civilized world. An off-Broadway presentation in 1954—with a new -modernized text by Marc Blitzstein, but with the Weill music -untouched—made history by accumulating a run of more than five years; a -national company was then formed to tour the country in 1960. During -this long Broadway run, the principal musical number, “Moritat” (or -“Mack the Knife”) became an American hit song on two different -occasions. In 1955 it was given over twenty different recordings and was -often represented on the Hit Parade; revived in 1959 by Bobby Darin, it -sold over a million discs. - -Weill’s score is a mixture of opera and musical comedy, of European -stage traditions and American idioms. It opens with a blues and -concludes with a mock chorale, while in between these opposite poles -there can be heard a shimmy, a canon in fox-trot, popular tunes, formal -ballads, light airs, choruses, and ensemble numbers. The style ranges -freely from Tin Pan Alley clichés to atonality, from mock romanticism to -dissonance. Each number was basic to the plot; principal numbers often -became penetrating psychological commentaries on the characters who -presented them. “Moritat” (or “Mack the Knife”) is the main musical -number. But several others are also of outstanding interest including -“Love Song” (“_Liebeslied_”), “The Ballad of Pleasant Living” (“_Ballade -vom angenehmen Leben_”), the Canon-Song, _Barbarasong_, and the Bully’s -Ballad (“_Zuhaelterballade_”). - - - - - Jaromir Weinberger - - -Jaromir Weinberger was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, on January 8, -1896. After completing his music study at the Prague Conservatory, and -privately with Max Reger in Berlin, he came to the United States in -1922, teaching for one season at the Ithaca Conservatory in Ithaca, New -York. Following his return to Europe he held various posts as teacher -and conductor. He achieved international renown as a composer with a -Bohemian folk opera, _Schwanda, der Dudelsackpfeifer_ first performed in -Prague on April 27, 1927, then successfully heard throughout Europe and -in the United States. Weinberger wrote many operas after that, and a -considerable amount of orchestral music. Up to 1937 his home was in -Prague, but since 1939 he has lived in the United States. One of his -most successful works for orchestra was introduced in the United States -soon after his arrival, _Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree_. - -Among the numerous works by Weinberger are two that can be said to have -a more popular appeal than the others. One is in an American idiom and -manner which Weinberger assumed for many of his major works after coming -to this country; the other is in the Bohemian style with which he first -became famous. - -That in the American style and spirit (but technically in a fugue idiom) -is a delightful treatment of the popular American tune by Dan Emmett, -“Dixie.” “Dixie” had originated as a minstrel-show tune, being written -by Emmett as a “walk-around” (or closing number) for a minstrel-show -production at the Bryant Theater in New York in November 1859. It became -an immediate favorite with minstrel troupes throughout the country. -During the Civil War it became the Southland’s favorite battle hymn, -despite the fact that it was the work of a Northerner. The charge at -Gettysburg by General George Pickett was made to the strains of this -music. After the surrender at Appomattox, President Lincoln invited a -band outside the White House to play the tune for him maintaining that -since the North had conquered the Southern army it had also gained its -favorite song as a spoils of war. In 1940 Weinberger wrote the _Prelude -and Fugue on Dixie_ for symphony orchestra. The prelude devotes itself -to a simple statement of the melody, after which comes the lively fugal -treatment of its main theme. The treatment is throughout so skilful and -musical that we never feel any sense of contradiction in the use of a -popular minstrel-show tune within a soundly classical structure and -through soundly classical means. - -Out of the composer’s most famous opera, _Schwanda, der -Dudelsackpfeifer_ (_Schwanda, the Bagpipeplayer_) comes a _Polka and -Fugue_ for orchestra that is undoubtedly the most familiar excerpt from -the opera. The vivacious _Polka_—which has a lusty peasant vitality in -its marked accentuations—comes from Act 2, Scene 2; the fugue (whose -main theme is suggested in the polka) is used in the opera’s closing -scene. Just before the end of the fugue, the polka melody is heard -again, set contrapuntally against the fugue tune in a powerful climax in -which the full orchestra, as well as an organ, is utilized. - - - - - Henri Wieniawski - - -Henri Wieniawski was born in Lublin, Poland, on July 10, 1835. When he -was eight he entered the Paris Conservatory, from which he was graduated -three years later with first prize in violin-playing, the first time -this institution conferred such an honor on one so young. Sensational -appearances as child prodigy followed throughout Europe. After an -additional period of study at the Paris Conservatory between 1849 and -1850, he initiated his career as a mature performer, and as one of the -world’s foremost violinists, with performances in Europe and Russia. In -1872 he toured the United States with the pianist, Anton Rubinstein. -Meanwhile, in 1859, he was appointed solo violinist to the Czar of -Russia, and from 1862 to 1867 he was professor of the violin at the St. -Petersburg Conservatory. In 1874 he succeeded Vieuxtemps as professor of -the violin at the Brussels Conservatory where he remained fourteen -years. He suffered a heart attack while performing in Berlin in 1878, -and died in Moscow on March 31, 1880. - -Wieniawski produced a rich repertory of music for the violin which is -still performed extensively. This includes the famous Concerto in D -minor and many smaller compositions. Among the latter can be found -pieces which have become favorites with salon orchestra in -transcription. These, like other major works by the composer, are -characterized by broad and expressive melodies and brilliant technical -effects. - -The _Kujawiak_, in A minor, op. 3 is a brilliant rhythmic number—a -spirited mazurka which derives its name from the fact that it has come -out of the Kuawy district of Poland. The _Légende_, op. 17, on the other -hand, is outstanding for its sentimental lyricism. This piece is an -eloquent song, originally for violin and orchestra, that seems to be -telling a romantic tale. The _Polonaise brillante_, in D major, op. 4, -like the _Kujawiak_, is a successful attempt to incorporate within a -concert work the characteristics of a popular Polish dance. This -composition is appealing for its sharp accentuations on the half beat, -syncopations, and brilliant passage work. The _Souvenirs of Moscow_ -(_Souvenirs de Moscou_), op. 6, is a fantasia on famous Russian airs, -the most important of which is “The Red Sarafin.” - - - - - Ralph Vaughan Williams - - -Ralph Vaughan Williams was born in Down Ampney, England, on October 12, -1872. After attending the Royal College of Music, he studied composition -privately with Max Bruch in Berlin. In 1901 he was appointed organist of -the St. Barnabas Church in London. For the next few years he devoted -himself mainly to church music. His interest in the English folk songs -of the Tudor period, first stimulated in 1904, proved for him a decisive -turning point. Besides dedicating himself henceforth to intensive -research in English folk music (much of which he helped to revive from -neglect and obscurity through his editions and adaptations) he found a -new direction as composer: in the writing of music with a national -identity, music absorbing the melodic, harmonic and modal techniques—at -times even the actual material—of these old songs and dances. This new -trend first became evident in 1907 with his _Norfolk Rhapsodies_. After -an additional period of study with Maurice Ravel in Paris, Vaughan -Williams embarked upon the writing of his first major works which -included the famous _Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis_, _London -Symphony_, and the opera _Hugh the Drover_. Subsequent works in all -fields of composition placed him with the masters of 20th-century music. -These compositions included symphonies, operas, concertos, fantasias, -choral and chamber music. For more than thirty years, Vaughan Williams -taught composition at the Royal College of Music in London; from 1920 to -1928 he was the conductor of the Bach Choir, also in that city. He paid -two visits to the United States, the first time in 1922 to direct some -of his works at a music festival in Connecticut, and the second time a -decade later to lecture at Bryn Mawr College. He received the Order of -Merit in 1935 and the Albert medal of the Royal Society of Arts in 1955. -He died in London on August 26, 1958. - -Only a meagre number of Vaughan Williams’ compositions have popular -appeal. One of these is the _Fantasia on Greensleeves_, for orchestra. -“Greensleeves” is an old English folk song dating from the early 16th -century, and mentioned in Shakespeare’s _The Merry Wives of_ _Windsor_. -In the 17th century it became the party song of the Cavaliers. Americans -know it best through a popular-song adaptation in 1957. Vaughan -Williams’ delightful fantasia appears as an orchestral interlude in his -opera _Sir John in Love_ (1929), based on _The Merry Wives of Windsor_. -A brief episode for flute leads to “Greensleeves,” which is harmonized -opulently for strings. Two brief variations follow. Then the opening -flute episode is recalled as is the folk song itself—the main melody in -lower strings with embellishments in the upper ones. - -_The March of the Kitchen Utensils_ is an amusing little episode for -orchestra, part of the incidental music prepared by the composer for a -production of Aristophanes’ _The Wasps_ in Cambridge in 1909. This march -opens with a humorous little theme for the wind instruments in the -impish style of Prokofiev. The theme is taken over by the strings. The -middle section is much more in the identifiable national style of -Vaughan Williams with a melody that resembles an old English folk dance. - - - - - Jacques Wolfe - - -Jacques Wolfe, composer of songs in the style of Negro Spirituals -familiar in the repertory of most American baritones, was born in -Botoshan, Rumania on April 29, 1896. He was trained as a pianist at the -Institute of Musical Art. While serving in the army during World War I, -a member of the 50th Infantry Band, he was stationed in North Carolina -where he first came into contact with Negro folk songs. This made such a -profound impression on him that he devoted himself to research in this -field. After the war he made many appearances on the concert stage both -as a solo performer and as an accompanist. For several years he was also -a teacher of music at New York City high schools. - -Wolfe’s two best known songs in the style of Negro folk songs appeared -in 1928. One is “De Glory Road,” words by Clement Wood, a work of such -extraordinary fervor and dramatic character that it has proved a -sure-fire number with concert baritones throughout the country, and -notably with Lawrence Tibbett with whom it was a particular favorite. -The other was “Short’nin’ Bread,” to Wolfe’s own words. The latter in -all probability is not original with Wolfe but an adaptation of one of -the melodies he discovered in North Carolina. Several Negro composers -have been credited with being its composer; one of them was Reese d’Pres -who is said to have written the melody in or about 1905. - -Among Wolfe’s other familiar songs are “God’s World,” “Goin’ to Hebb’n” -and “Hallelujah Rhythm.” - - - - - Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari - - -Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari was born in Venice, Italy, on January 12, 1876. -Originally planning to make art his career he went to Rome, but while -there became so fascinated by opera that then and there he decided to -become a musician. He completed his musical training in Munich in 1895 -with Josef Rheinberger. In 1899 he returned to his native city where his -first major work—an oratorio, _La Sulamite_—was successfully performed. -His first opera, _Cenerentola_ (_Cinderella_) was introduced in Venice -in 1900. His first comic opera (or opera buffa) came to Munich in 1903: -_Le Donne Curiose_. He achieved world renown with still another comic -opera, _The Secret of Suzanne_, first performed in Munich in 1909. This -distinguished achievement was followed by an equally significant -achievement in a serious vein, the grand opera, _The Jewels of the -Madonna_, first heard in Berlin in 1911. One year later Wolf-Ferrari -paid his first visit to the United States to attend in Chicago the -American première of _The Jewels of the Madonna_. He wrote many operas -after that, both in a comic and serious style, but his fame still rests -securely on _The Secret of Suzanne_ and _The Jewels of the Madonna_. -From 1902 to 1912 he was director of the Benedetto Marcello Conservatory -in Venice. He died in that city on January 21, 1948. - -From _The Jewels of the Madonna_ (_I Gioielli della Madonna_) have come -several familiar orchestral episodes. This tragedy—libretto by the -composer with verses by Carlo Zangarini and Enrico Golisciani—was -successfully introduced in Berlin on December 23, 1911. Rafaele, leader -of the Camorrists, and Gennaro, a blacksmith, are rivals for the love of -Maliela. After Rafaele appears to have won Maliela’s love, Gennaro wins -her away from his rival by stealing for her the jewels decorating the -image of the Madonna. Maliela confesses to Rafaele and other Camorrists -about this theft, then rushes off into a raging sea to meet her death. -After Gennaro has returned the jewels to the Madonna, he plunges a -dagger into his own breast. - -Two melodious intermezzos for orchestra are often played by salon and -pop orchestras. The first comes between the first and second acts and is -in a languorous mood. The second, heard between the second and third -acts, opens with a light subject and continues with a broadly lyrical -episode. A third popular orchestral excerpt from this opera is the -dramatic “Dance of the Camorristi” during a revel in the Camorristi -hideout in the opening of the third act. - -As an opera _The Secret of Suzanne_ (_Il Segreto di Susanna_) is a -trifle. The libretto by Enrico Golisciani concerns a terrible secret -harbored by the heroine, Suzanne: she is addicted to smoking. Since her -husband finds cigarette butts in their house he suspects her of -entertaining a lover during his absence. Spying on her through the -window, one day, he learns about his wife’s secret to his infinite -relief, and does not hesitate to join her in a smoke. Light, breezy, -infectious, and unpretentious, this little opera has been a favorite -with operagoers everywhere since its world première in Munich on -December 4, 1909. - -The overture is as gay and as capricious as this merry tale. It begins -vivaciously with the main theme in first violins and the woodwind. After -this idea has been elaborated upon, a second melody is heard in the -flute and clarinet accompanied by strings. The two melodies are soon -merged contrapuntally, with the first theme heard in woodwinds and -trumpet and the second in the strings. - - - - - Sebastián Yradier - - -Sebastián Yradier was born in Sauciego, Álava, Spain on January 20, -1809. Little is known of his career beyond the fact that his music -instruction took place with private teachers; that in 1851 he was -appointed singing master to the Empress Eugénie in Paris; and that for a -period he lived in Cuba. He died in Vitoria, Spain, on December 6, 1865. -He was a successful composer of Spanish songs. The most famous is “_La -Paloma_,” which is in the habanera rhythm, its melody in the sensual, -sinuous style of a flamenco song. “_El Arreglito_,” also a habanera, was -borrowed by Bizet for his opera _Carmen_ where it re-emerges as the -world-famous “Habanera”; Bizet made only minor changes in the melody -while retaining Yradier’s tonality and accompaniment. A third popular -Yradier song, in a style similar to “_La Paloma_,” is “_Ay Chiquita!_” - - - - - Carl Zeller - - -Carl Zeller was born in St. Peter-in-der-Au, Austria on July 19, 1842. -Music, the study of which he had pursued since boyhood with private -teachers, was an avocation. He earned his living as an official in the -Ministry of Education in Austria. Nevertheless, he managed to write many -operettas, two of which were among the most successful written in -Austria during his time. Among his first works for the stage were -_Joconde_ (1876), _Die Carbonari_ (1880), and _Der Vagabund_ (1886). His -first major success came with _Der Vogelhaendler_ in 1886, still a great -favorite on the Continent. The second of his operetta classics, _Der -Obersteiger_, was introduced in 1894. A later successful, though less -well known, operetta, _Der Kellermeister_, was produced posthumously in -1901. Zeller died in Baden near Vienna on August 17, 1898. - -_Der Obersteiger_ (_The Master Miner_)—book by M. West and L. -Held—received its première in Vienna on January 5, 1894. The setting is -a salt-mining district of Austria in or about 1840. Martin instigates a -strike among the miners, for which he is deprived of his job. To support -himself he organizes a band of musicians from among the miners and tours -the country. Eventually Martin returns to his mining town where he -finally manages to regain his job and to win Nelly, with whom he has -always been in love. The most popular song in the operetta is Martin’s -air with chorus, “_Wo sie war, die Muellerin_,” and its most delightful -waltz is “_Trauet nie dem blossen schein_.” - -_Der Vogelhaendler_ (_The Bird-Seller_), once again with a book by M. -West and L. Held, was first heard in Vienna on January 10, 1891; but in -1933 it was presented in a new version in Munich adapted by Quedenfelt, -Brugmann and Bauckner. In the Rhine Palatinate in the 18th century, -Adam, a wandering bird-seller, is in love with Christel, but she refuses -to consider marriage unless he gets a permanent job. He gets that job on -the estate of the Elector Palatine at which point Christel is all too -willing to give up a projected marriage with Count Stanislaus for the -sake of her beloved Adam. The lovable melodies from this operetta—in the -best traditions of Suppé and Johann Strauss II—have made it a favorite -not only in Germany and Austria, but also throughout the rest of Europe, -in North and South America, and in South Africa. Among the musical -highlights of this operetta are the waltz “_Schau mir nur recht ins -Gesicht_”; the “Nightingale Song” (“_Wie mein Ahn’l zwanzig Jahr_”); the -pert march tune “_Kaempfe nie mit Frau’n_”; and Christel’s sprightly -air, “_Ich bin die Christel von der Post_.” - - - - - Karl Michael Ziehrer - - -Karl Michael Ziehrer, beloved Viennese composer of waltzes and -operettas, was born in Vienna on May 2, 1843. He was completely -self-taught in music. In 1863 he formed a café-house orchestra with -which he toured Austria and Germany, often featuring his own dance -pieces and marches. He later expanded this orchestra into an ensemble -numbering fifty players with which he gave a series of successful -concerts of semi-classical music in Vienna. In 1907 he became music -director of the court balls. After World War I he suffered extreme -poverty, his personal fortune having been lost with the collapse of the -Hapsburg monarchy. He died in want and obscurity in Vienna on November -14, 1922. - -Ziehrer wrote more than five hundred popular pieces for orchestra, -including numerous marches and waltzes. His waltzes were particularly -favored, many of these in the style of Johann Strauss II. Some are still -extensively played. Probably the most famous of all his waltzes is -Wiener Maedchen (“Vienna Maidens”), which must rank with Lehár’s “Merry -Widow Waltz” as one of the most popular such dances produced in Vienna -since the time of Johann Strauss II. Its first melody sounds like a -Schubert Laendler, with the peasant vigor of its rhythm and its robust -tune; but the main subject is a soaring waltz in the finest traditions -of Viennese café-house music. The following are other famous Ziehrer -waltzes: “_Alt Wien_” (“Old Vienna”), “_Faschingskinder_” (“Carnival -Children”), and “_Wiener Buerger_” (“Viennese Citizens”), all three of -which come closest among his works in assuming the structural outlines -and the melodic identity of the Johann Strauss waltz classics. Also -popular are the “_Donauwalzer_” (“Waltzes from the Danube”) and -“_Evatochter_” (“Daughter of Eve”). - -Ziehrer’s most famous operetta is _Die Landestreicher_ (_The -Vagabonds_)—book by L. Krenn and C. Lindau, first performed in Vienna on -July 26, 1899. In upper Bavaria two tramps—Fliederbusch and his wife -Bertha—manage to live by their wits. Disguised respectively as Prince -Gilka and a dancer they visit a famous resort hotel and are involved in -numerous adventures. By managing to retrieve a supposedly valuable lost -necklace for the Prince they finally win his favor and enter his -service. Of particular interest is the captivating waltz at the end of -the first act, “_Sei gepriesen, du lauschige Nacht_.” - -From several of Ziehrer’s other operettas there come other delightful -waltzes, notably “_Samt und Seide_” from _Der Fremdenfuehrer_ (1902) and -“_Hereinspaziert_” from _Der Schatzmeister_ (1904). - - - - - An Alphabetical Listing of the Lighter Classics in Music - - - “_Abendlied_” (Schumann) - _Abendsterne_ (Lanner) - _Acceleration Waltzes_ (Johann Strauss II) - _Acclamations_ (Waldteufel) - “_Ach, ich hab’ sie ja nur die Schulter gekuesst_” (Milloecker), see - _The Beggar Student_ - _Adagio pathétique_ (Godard) - “_Addio_” (Tosti) - “_Addio all madre_” (Mascagni), see _Cavalleria Rusticana_ - “_Addio del passato_” (Verdi), see _La Traviata_ - “_Addio fiorito asil_” (Puccini), see _Madama Butterfly_ - _Adoration_ (Borowski) - _L’Africaine_: Selections (Meyerbeer) - _Agnus Dei_ (Bizet) - “_Ah! che la morte ognora_,” or “_Miserere_” (Verdi), see _Il - Trovatore_ - “_Ah, fors è lui_” (Verdi), see _La Traviata_ - “_Ah Sweet Mystery of Life_” (Herbert), see _Naughty Marietta_ - _Aida_: Overture, Ballet Music, and Selections (Verdi) - “_Ai nostri monti_” (Verdi) see _Il Trovatore_ - _Air_, or _Air on the G String_ (Bach) - _Al fresco_ (Herbert) - “_Allia marcia_” (Sibelius), see _Karelia Suite_ - “_Allmaecht’ge Jungfrau_,” or “Elisabeth’s Prayer” (Wagner), see - _Tannhaeuser_ - Alley Tunes (Guion) - “Almost Like Being in Love” (Loewe), see _Brigadoon_ - _Alsatian Scenes_ (Massenet) - “_Als Bueblein klein_” (Nicolai), see _The Merry Wives of Windsor_ - _Alt Wien_ (Godowsky) - _Alt Wien_ (Ziehrer) - _Amelia_ (Lumbye) - _American Fantasia_ (Herbert) - _American Salute_: “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” (Gould) - _American Suite_ (Cadman) - _American Symphonette No. 2_ (Gould) - “_Am Meer_” (Schubert) - _An American in Paris_ (Gershwin) - _Andalucia_ (Lecuona) - _Andaluza_ (Granados), see _Spanish Dances_ - _Andante cantabile_ (Tchaikovsky) - _Andante religioso_ (Halvorsen) - _Andantino_ (Kreisler) - _An der schoenen blauen Donau_ (Johann Strauss II), see _The Blue - Danube_ - “_An die Musik_” (Schubert) - “The Angelus” (Herbert) - _Anitra’s Dance_ (Grieg), see _Peer Gynt Suite_, No. 1 - _Annen-Polka_ (Johann Strauss II) - _Anvil Chorus_ (Verdi), see “_Vedi, le fosche notturne spoglie_,” _Il - Trovatore_ - _Apache Dance_ (Offenbach) - “_Après un rêve_” (Fauré) - _Aquarellen_ (Josef Strauss) - _Arabian Dance_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Nutcracker Suite_ - _Arkansas Traveler_ (Guion) - _L’Arlésienne_, Suite Nos. 1 and 2 (Bizet) - “_El Arreglito_” (Yradier) - _Artist’s Life_ (Johann Strauss II) - _Ascot Gavotte_ (Loewe), see _My Fair Lady_ - _Ase’s Death_ (Grieg), see _Peer Gynt Suite_, No. 1 - _As You Like It_: Dances (German) - “At Dawning” (Cadman) - “_A te questo rosario_” (Ponchielli), see _La Gioconda_ - _Aubade provençale_ (Kreisler) - “_Auf dem Wasser zu singen_” (Schubert) - _Aufforderung zum Tanz_ (Weber), see _Invitation to the Dance_ - “_Auf Fluegeln des Gesanges_” (Mendelssohn), see “On Wings of Song” - “_Au mont Venus_” (Offenbach), see _La Belle Hélène_ - Austrian National Anthem (Haydn), see “_Gott erhalte Franz den - Kaiser_” - _Autumn Song_ (Tchaikovsky), see _The Months_ - “_Ave Maria_” (Gounod) - “_Ave Maria_” (Schubert) - “_Ay Chiquita_” (Yradier) - - _Babes in Toyland_: Selections (Herbert) - Bacchanale, from _The Queen of Sheba_ (Karl Goldmark) - Bacchanale, from _Samson and Delilah_ (Saint-Saëns) - Bacchanale, from _Tannhaeuser_ (Wagner) - _Bahn-Frei Polka_ (Eduard Strauss) - “Bali H’ai” (Rodgers), see _South Pacific_ - _Ballabile_ (Verdi), see _Aida_ - “_Ballade vom angenehmen Leben_” (Weill), see “The Ballad of Pleasant - Living,” _The Three-Penny Opera_ - “Ballad of Herne the Hunter” (Nicolai), see _The Merry Wives of - Windsor_ - “The Ballad of Pleasant Living” (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - _Ballatella_, or “Bird Song” (Leoncavallo), see “_Stridono lassu_” - _Pagliacci_ - _Ballet Égyptien_ (Luigini) - Ballet Music from _Rosamunde_ (Schubert) - _Ballet Suite_ (Gluck-Mottl), see Gluck - _The Banjo_ (Gottschalk) - _Barbara-Song_ (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - _The Barber of Seville_: Overture and Selections (Rossini) - _Barcarolle_ from _The Tales of Hoffmann_ (Offenbach) - _Bartered Bride_: Overture and Selections (Smetana) - _Le Baruffe Chiozzotte_, Overture (Sinigaglia) - _The Bat_ (Johann Strauss II), see _Die Fledermaus_ - _Bavarian Dances_ (Elgar) - “Beautiful Dreamer” (Foster) - _Beautiful Galathea_, Overture (Suppé) - “_Die beiden Grenadiere_” (Schumann) - _The Beggar Student_: Selections (Milloecker) - “_Bella figlia dell’ amore_,” Quartet (Verdi), see _Rigoletto_ - _La Belle Hélène_: Selections (Offenbach) - _Berceuse_ from _Jocelyn_ (Godard) - _Berceuse_ (Järnefelt) - “Bess, You Is My Woman Now” (Gershwin), see _Porgy and Bess_ - _Der Bettelstudent_ (Milloecker), see _The Beggar Student_ - _Big Ben_ (Rose) - “Bill” (Kern), see _Show Boat_ - _Bird Song_, “_Stridono lassu_” (Leoncavallo), see _Pagliacci_ - “_Bist du’s, lachendes Glueck_” (Lehár), see _The Count of Luxembourg_ - _Black, Brown and Beige_ (Ellington) - _The Black Domino_: Overture (Auber) - “Blow High, Blow Low” (Rodgers), see _Carousel_ - _The Blue Danube_ (Johann Strauss II) - “Blue Heaven” (Romberg), see _The Desert Song_ - _Blue Tango_ (Anderson) - _La Bohème_: Selections (Puccini) - _The Bohemian Girl_: Selections (Balfe) - _Bolero_ (Moszkowski) - _Bolero_ (Ravel) - _Boris Godunov_: Polonaise (Mussorgsky) - _Bridal Procession_ (Rimsky-Korsakov), see _Le Coq d’or_ - _Brigadoon_: Selections (Loewe) - _Brigg Fair_ (Grainger) - “Brightly Dawns Our Wedding Day” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - _Brindisi_ (Verdi), see “_Libiamo, Libiamo_,” _La Traviata_ - _Bugler’s Holiday_ (Anderson) - “The Bully’s Ballad” (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - - _Caecilien_ (Johann Strauss II) - _Cakewalk_ (Gottschalk-Kay), see Gottschalk - _Caliph of Bagdad_: Overture (Boieldieu) - “_La Calunnia_” (Rossini), see _The Barber of Seville_ - “Camptown Races” (Foster) - _The Canary_ (Mozart), see _German Dances_ - Can-Can (Offenbach), see _La Belle Hélène_, _Orpheus in the - Underworld_ - “Canon Song” (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - “Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man” (Kern), see _Show Boat_ - “_Cantique Noël_” (Adam) - “_Canto Siboney_” (Lecuona) - _Canzonetta_ (Sibelius) - _Capriccio espagnol_ (Rimsky-Korsakov), see _Spanish Caprice_ - _Caprice Basque_ (Sarasate) - _Caprice Viennois_ (Kreisler) - “Card Song” (Bizet), see _Carmen_ - “Carefully on Tip-Toe Stealing” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - _Carmen_: Preludes and Selections (Bizet) - _Carnaval à Paris_ (Svendsen), see _Carnival in Paris_ - _Carnival of Animals_ (Saint-Saëns) - _Carnival Overture_ (Glazunov) - “_Caro nome_” (Verdi), see _Rigoletto_ - _Carousel_: Selections (Rodgers) - _Carousel Waltz_ (Rodgers), see _Carousel_ - _Casse-noisette_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Nutcracker Suite_ - “_Casta diva_” (Bellini), see _Norma_ - _Catalonia_ (Albéniz) - _Catfish Row_ (Gershwin), see _Porgy and Bess_ - _Cavalleria Rusticana_: Selections (Mascagni) - _Caucasian Sketches_ (Ippolitov-Ivanov) - _Cavatina_ (Raff) - “_Celeste Aida_” (Verdi), see _Aida_ - _Central Park_ (Goldman) - _Champagne Galop_ (Lumbye) - _Chanson bohème_ (Bizet), see _Carmen_ - _Chanson Louis XIII et Pavane_ (Kreisler) - _Chanson sans paroles_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Song Without Words_ - _Chanson triste_ (Tchaikovsky) - “_Che gelida manina_” (Puccini), see _La Bohème_ - _Children’s Corner_ (Debussy) - _Children’s Dance_ (German), see _As You Like It_ - _Children’s Games_ (Bizet) - _Children’s March_ (Goldman) - _Children’s March_ (Grainger) - _Children’s Symphony_ (McDonald) - _Chimes of Normandy_: Selections (Planquette) - _The Chocolate Soldier_: Selections (Straus) - “Chorus of Swords” (Gounod), see _Faust_ - _Christmas Festival_ (Anderson) - _Le Cid_: Ballet Music (Massenet) - “Cider Song” (Planquette), see _The Chimes of Normandy_ - “_Cielo e mar_” (Ponchielli), see _La Gioconda_ - _Circus Day_ (Taylor) - _Clair de lune_ (Debussy) - “Climbing Over Rocky Mountain” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of Penzance_ - _Les Cloches de Corneville_ (Planquette), see _The Chimes of Normandy_ - _Clog Dance_ (Lortzing), see _Czar and Carpenter_ - _Cockaigne Overture_ (Elgar) - “Cockeyed Optimist” (Rodgers), see _South Pacific_ - _Colas Breugnon_: Overture (Kabalevsky) - _The Comedians_ (Kabalevsky) - _Comedy Overture on Negro Themes_ (Gilbert) - “Come Friends Who Plough the Sea” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of - Penzance_ - “Come, Sweet Death” (Bach) - “_La Comparasa_” (Lecuona) - “Come to Me, Bend to Me” (Loewe), see _Brigadoon_ - _Concert Polka_ (Lumbye) - Concerto in F (Gershwin) - “_Connais-tu le pays?_” (Thomas) see _Mignon_ - _Les Contes d’Hoffmann_ (Offenbach), see _Tales of Hoffmann_ - _Contredanses_ (Beethoven) - _Contretaenze_ (Mozart), see _Country Dances_ - _Conversation Piece_: Selections (Coward) - _Coppélia_: Suite (Delibes) - _Le Coq d’or_: _Bridal Procession_, _Hymn to the Sun_ - (Rimsky-Korsakov) - _La Coquette_ (Borowski) - _Córdoba_ (Albéniz) - _Cornish Rhapsody_ (Bath) - _Coronation March_ (Meyerbeer), see _Le Prophète_ - _El Corpus en Seville_ (Albéniz), see _Fête-Dieu à Seville_ - _Cottilon_ (Benjamin) - _Countess Maritza_: Selections (Kálmán) - _The Count of Luxembourg:_ Selections (Lehár) - _Country Dance_ (German), see _Henry VIII_ - _Country Dances_ (Mozart) - _Country Gardens_ (Grainger) - _Cowboy Rhapsody_ (Gould) - “Cradle Song” (Brahms) - _The Crown Jewels_: Overture (Auber) - _Cuban Overture_ (Gershwin) - _Le Cygne_ (Saint-Saëns), see _The Swan_, _Carnival of Animals_ - _Czar and Carpenter_: Selections (Lortzing) - _Czardas_ (Delibes), see _Coppélia_ - _Die Czardasfuerstin_ (Kálmán), see _The Gypsy Princess_ - _Czar und Zimmermann_ (Lortzing), see _Czar and Carpenter_ - - _Dagger Dance_ (Herbert) - “_Da geh’ ich zu Maxim_” (Lehár), see _The Merry Widow_ - _La Dame blanche_: Overture (Boieldieu) - _Damnation of Faust_: Selections (Berlioz) - “_D’amor sull’ ali rosee_” (Verdi), see _Il Trovatore_ - _Dance in Place Congo_ (Gilbert) - _Dance of the Blessed Spirits_ (Gluck) - _Dance of the Buffoons_ (Rimsky-Korsakov) - _Dance of the Camorristi_ (Wolf-Ferrari), see _The Jewels of the - Madonna_ - _Dance of the Chinese Girls_ (Glière), see _The Red Poppy_ - _Dance of the Comedians_ (Smetana), see _The Bartered Bride_ - _Dance of the Flutes_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Nutcracker Suite_ - _Dance of the Moorish Slaves_ (Verdi), see _Aida_ - _Dance of the Rose Girls_ (Khatchaturian), see _Gayane_ - _Dance of the Spanish Onion_ (Rose) - _Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Nutcracker Suite_ - _Dance of the Sylphs_ (Berlioz), see _Damnation of Faust_ - _Dance of the Tumblers_ (Rimsky-Korsakov), see _Dance of the Buffoons_ - _Dance of the Waves_ (Catalani), see _The Loreley_ - _Dance of the Wheat_ (Ginastera), see Dances from _Estancia_ - _Dancers of Mardi Gras_ (Cadman) - Dances from _Estancia_: _Dance of the Wheat_ (Ginastera) - “Dancing Will Keep You Young” (Romberg), see _Maytime_ - _Danse macabre_ (Saint-Saëns) - _Danse nègre_ (Scott) - _Danza della ore_ (Ponchielli), see _Dance of the Hours_, _La - Gioconda_ - _Daughter of the Regiment_: Overture (Donizetti) - “Dawn of Love” (Friml), see _The Firefly_ - “Death and the Maiden” (Schubert), see “_Der Tod und das Maedchen_” - “Deep in My Heart” (Romberg), see _The Student Prince_ - “De Glory Road” (Wolfe) - “_Dein ist mein ganzes Herz_” (Lehár), see _The Land of Smiles_ - _Delirien_ (Josef Strauss) - _The Deluge_ (Saint-Saëns) - “_De’ miei bollenti spiriti_” (Verdi), see _Rigoletto_ - “_Deserto sulla terra_” (Verdi), see _Il Trovatore_ - _The Desert Song_: Selections (Romberg) - _Deutsche Taenze_ (Beethoven), see _German Dances_ - _Deutsche Taenze_ (Mozart) see _German Dances_ - _Les Diamants de la couronne_ (Auber), see _The Crown Jewels_ - _Dichter und Bauer_, _Overture_ (Suppé), see _Poet and Peasant_ - “_Dich teurer Halle_” (Wagner), see _Tannhaeuser_ - “_Di Provenza il mar_” (Verdi), see _La Traviata_ - “_Di quella pira_” (Verdi), see _Il Trovatore_ - “_Dis moi Venus_” (Offenbach), see _La Belle Hélène_ - _Divertissement_ (Ibert) - _Doctrinen_ (Eduard Strauss) - _Dolly_ (Fauré) - _Dolores_ (Waldteufel) - _Le Domino noir_ (Auber), see _The Black Domino_ - _Donaulieder_ (Johann Strauss I) - “Donkey Serenade” (Friml) - _Donna Diana_: Overture (Rezniček) - “_La donne è mobile_” (Verdi) see _Rigoletto_ - _Donnerwetter_ (Mozart), see _Country Dances_ - _Don Pasquale_: Overture (Donizetti) - _Dorfschwalben aus Oesterreich_ (Josef Strauss) - _Dream Pantomime_ (Humperdinck), see _Hansel and Gretel_ - _Dream Pictures_ (Lumbye) - _Die Dreigroschenoper_ (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - “Drinking Song” (Romberg), see _The Student Prince_ - “_Du bist die Ruh_” (Schubert) - “The Duke of Plaza-Toro” (Sullivan), see _The Gondoliers_ - “_Du and Du_” (Johann Strauss II), see _Die Fledermaus_ - _Dynamiden_ (Josef Strauss) - - “_Ecco ridente in cielo_” (Rossini), see _The Barber of Seville_ - _Eight Russian Folk Songs_ (Liadov) - _Ein Morgen, ein Mittag, ein Abend in Wien_ (Suppé), see _Morning, - Noon and Night in Vienna_ - _Einzugmarsch_ (Johann Strauss II), see _The Gypsy Baron_ - _El Capitan_ (Sousa) - _Electrophor-Polka_ (Johann Strauss II) - _Élégie_ (Massenet), see _Les Érynnies_ - _Elegy_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Serenade for Strings_ - _L’Elisir d’amore_: Selections (Donizetti) - “Elisabeth’s Prayer” (Wagner), see “_Allmacht’ge Jungfrau_,” - _Tannhaeuser_ - “_E lucevan le stelle_” (Puccini), see _Tosca_ - _Embassy Waltz_ (Loewe), see _My Fair Lady_ - _Emperor Waltz_ (Johann Strauss II) - _En bateau_ (Debussy), see _Petite suite_ - “The End of a Perfect Day” (Bond) - “Entry March” (Johann Strauss II), see _The Gypsy Baron_ - “_Der Erlkoenig_” (Schubert) - _Les Érynnies_ (Massenet) - _Escapade_ (Rose) - _España_ (Chabrier) - _España_ (Waldteufel) - “_Estrellita_” (Ponce) - _Estudianta_ (Waldteufel) - Etudes (Chopin), see also _Revolutionary Etude_ - _Evatochter_ (Ziehrer) - _Evening in the Tivoli_ (Lumbye) - “_Evening Song_” (Schumann), see “_Abendlied_” - _Explosions Polka_ (Johann Strauss II) - - _Facsimile_: Suite (Bernstein) - _The Fair at Sorochinsk_: Hopak (Mussorgsky) - “Fair Is the Rose as the Bright May Day” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - “Fair Moon to Thee I Sing” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - _Family Album_ (Gould) - _Fancy Free_: Suite (Bernstein) - _Fantasia and Fugue on Oh, Susanna_ (Caillet) - _Fantasia on Greensleeves_ (Vaughan Williams) - Fantaisie-Impromptu in C-sharp minor (Chopin) - “The Farmer and the Cowman” (Rodgers), see _Oklahoma!_ - _Faschingskinder_ (Ziehrer) - _Faust_: Selections (Gounod) - _Fête-Dieu à Seville_ (Albéniz) - _Fiddle Faddle_ (Anderson) - _La Fileuse_ (Raff) - _La Fille aux cheveux de lin_ (Debussy), see _The Girl With the Flaxen - Hair_ - _La Fille de Mme. Angot_: Selections (Lecocq) - _Fingal’s Cave_, or _Hebrides_, Overture (Mendelssohn) - _Finlandia_ (Sibelius) - _The Firefly_: Selections (Friml) - _Die Fledermaus_: Overture, Selections (Johann Strauss II) - _Der fliegende Hollaender_ (Wagner), see _The Flying Dutchman_ - _Flight of the Bumble Bee_ (Rimsky-Korsakov) - “Flower Song” (Bizet), see _Carmen_ - “The Flowers that Bloom in the Spring” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - _The Flying Dutchman_: Overture, Selections (Wagner) - “Fold Your Flapping Wings” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - “_Die Forelle_” (Schubert) - “For I am a Pirate King” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of Penzance_ - “For Everyone Who Feels Inclined” (Sullivan), see _The Gondoliers_ - “For He is an Englishman” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - “For the Merriest Fellows are We” (Sullivan), see _The Gondoliers_ - _Fortune Teller_: Selections (Herbert) - _La Forza del destino_: Overture (Verdi) - _Four Centuries_ (Coates) - _Fra Diavolo_: Selections (Auber) - _Frasquita Serenade_ (Herbert) - “French Marching Song” (Romberg), see _The Desert Song_ - _French Military March_ (Saint-Saëns), see _Suite algérienne_ - “_Freudig begruessen_” (Wagner), see _Tannhaeuser_ - _Friedrich-Karl March_ (Kéler-Béla) - “From the Land of the Sky-Blue Water” (Cadman) - _From the Middle Ages_ (Glazunov) - _Fruehlingsrauschen_ (Sinding), see _Rustle of Spring_ - _Fruehlingsstimmen_ (Johann Strauss II), see _Voices of Spring_ - _Funeral March_ (Chopin) - _Furiant_ (Smetana) see _The Bartered Bride_ - - _La Gaieté parisienne_ (Offenbach-Rosenthal), see Offenbach - Galops (Offenbach), see _La Grand Duchesse de Gerolstein_ - _Gavotte_ (Gossec) - _Gavotte_ (Thomas), see _Mignon_ - _Gayane_: Suite (Khatchaturian) - _La Gazza ladra_: Overture (Rossini) - _German Dances_ (Beethoven) - _German Dances_ (Haydn) - _German Dances_ (Mozart) - _German Dances_ (Schubert) - “Get Me to the Church on Time” (Loewe), see _My Fair Lady_ - “Getting to Know You” (Rodgers), see _The King and I_ - “Giannina Mia” (Friml), see _The Firefly_ - _Gingerbread Waltz_ (Humperdinck), see _Hansel and Gretel_ - _La Gioconda_: Selections (Ponchielli) - “The Girl at Maxim’s” (Lehár), see _The Merry Widow_ - _The Girl With the Flaxen Hair_ (Debussy) - _Giroflé-Girofla_: Selections (Lecocq) - _Giselle_: Suite (Adam) - _La Gitana_ (Kreisler) - _Gitanerias_ (Lecuona) - “_Gloire au grand Dieu vengeur_” (Meyerbeer), see _Les Huguenots_ - “_Gloria all’ Egitto_” (Verdi), see _Aida_ - “The Glow-Worm” (Lincke) - “_Gluewuermchen_” (Lincke), see “The Glow-Worm” - “God’s World” (Wolfe) - “Goin’ to Heaven” (Wolfe) - _Gold and Silver Waltzes_ (Lehár) - _Golliwogg’s Cakewalk_ (Debussy), see _Children’s Corner_ - _The Gondoliers_: Selections (Sullivan) - “Goodbye, Forever” (Tosti), see “_Addio_” - “Good Morning, Good Mother” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - Gopak, from _The Fair at Sorochinsk_ (Mussorgsky), see Hopak - “_Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser_,” Austrian national anthem (Haydn) - _Grafin Mariza_ (Kálmán), see _Countess Maritza_ - _Der Graf von Luxemburg_ (Lehár), see _The Count of Luxembourg_ - _Grand Canyon Suite_ (Grofé) - Grand March, from _Aida_ (Verdi) - _La Grand Pâque Russe_ (Rimsky-Korsakov), see _Russian Easter - Overture_ - _Greensleeves_ (Vaughan Williams), see _Fantasia on Greensleeves_ - “_Gretchen am Spinnrade_” (Schubert) - _G’schichten aus dem Wiener Wald_ (Johann Strauss II), see _Tales from - the Vienna Woods_ - _Guadalcanal March_ (Rodgers), see _Victory at Sea_ - _Guillaume Tell_ (Rossini), see _William Tell_ - _Guitarre_ (Moszkowski) - _Gypsy Airs_ (Sarasate) - _Gypsy Baron_: Selections (Johann Strauss II) - _Gypsy Love_: Selections (Lehár) - “Gypsy Love Song” (Herbert), see _The Fortune Teller_ - _Gypsy Princess_: Selections (Kálmán) - _Gypsy Rondo_ (Haydn) - - Habanera (Bizet), see _Carmen_ - “_Hab ein blaues Himmelbett_” (Lehár), see _Frasquita Serenade_ - “Hail the Bride of Seventeen Summers” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - _Handel in the Strand_ (Grainger) - “Hallelujah Chorus” from _Messiah_ (Handel) - _Hansel and Gretel_: Overture and Selections (Humperdinck) - “Happy Talk” (Rodgers), see _South Pacific_ - “Hark, Hark, the Lark” (Schubert) - _Harlequin Serenade_ (Drigo), see _Serenade_ - _Harlequin Serenade_ (Leoncavallo), see “_O, Columbina!_”, _Pagliacci_ - _Harmonica Player_ (Guion), see _Alley Tunes_ - _Harmonious Blacksmith_ (Handel) - _Havanaise_ (Saint-Saëns) - “The Heart Bowed Down” (Balfe), see _The Bohemian Girl_ - “Heather on the Hill” (Loewe), see _Brigadoon_ - _Hebrew Melody_ (Achron) - _Hebrides Overture_, (Mendelssohn), see _Fingal’s Cave_ - _Hejre Kati_ (Hubay), see _Hungarian Czardas Scenes_ - “Hello, Young Lovers” (Rodgers), see _The King and I_ - _Henry VIII_: Dances (German) - _Henry VIII_: Ballet Music (Saint-Saëns) - “_Hereinspaziert_” from _Der Schatzmeister_ (Ziehrer) - “Here’s a How-de-do” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - _Heroic Polonaise_ (Chopin) - _Hesperus_ (Lumbye) - _Hindu Chant_ (Rimsky-Korsakov) - _His Lullaby_ (Bond) - _Hoffballtanz_ (Lanner) - _Hoffnungssterne_ (Kéler-Béla) - _Holberg Suite_ (Grieg) - _Holiday for Strings_ (Rose) - _Holiday for Trombones_ (Rose) - _Holiday Suite_ (Gould) - _Holzschutanz_ (Lortzing), see _Clog Dance_, _Czar and Carpenter_ - “Home on the Range” (Guion) - Hopak, from _The Fair at Sorochinsk_ (Mussorgsky) - _Hora staccato_ (Dinicu) - “_Horch, horche die Lerche_” (Schubert), see “Hark, Hark, the Lark” - _Horse and Buggy_ (Anderson) - _Hudson River Suite_ (Grofé) - _Les Huguenots_: Overture, Selections (Meyerbeer) - _Humoresque_ (Dvořák) - _Humoresque_ (Tchaikovsky) - _Hungarian Comedy Overture_ (Kéler-Béla) - _Hungarian Czardas Scenes_ (Hubay) - _Hungarian Dances_ (Brahms) - _Hungarian Rhapsody_ (Hubay), see _Hungarian Czardas Scenes_ - _Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2_ (Liszt) - _Hurrah-Sturm_ (Kéler-Béla) - “Hymn to the Sun” (Rimsky-Korsakov), see _Le Coq d’or_ - - “I Am the Captain of the Pinafore” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - “I Am the Monarch of the Sea” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - “I Am Titania” (Thomas), see “_Je suis Titania_,” _Mignon_ - “I Am the Very Pattern of a Modern Major General” (Sullivan), see - _Pirates of Penzance_ - “I Cannot Tell What This Love May Be” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “_Ich bin die Christel von der Post_” (Zeller), see _Der - Vogelhaendler_ - “_Ich bin ein Zigeuenerkind_” (Lehár), see _Gypsy Love_ - “_Ich hab’ kein Geld_” (Milloecker), see _The Beggar Student_ - “_Ich knuepfte manche zarte Bande_” (Milloecker), see _The Beggar - Student_ - “_Ich setz den Fall_” (Milloecker), see _The Beggar Student_ - “I Could Have Danced All Night” (Loewe), see _My Fair Lady_ - “_Ideale_” (Tosti) - “I Dream’d I Dwelt in Marble Halls” (Balfe), see _The Bohemian Girl_ - “If I Loved You” (Rodgers), see _Carousel_ - “If Somebody There Chanced to Be” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - “If You Go In” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - “If You’re Anxious For to Shine” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “If You Want a Receipt” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “If You Want to Know Who We Are” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - “I Got Plenty of Nuttin’” (Gershwin), see _Porgy and Bess_ - “I Have a Song to Sing, O” (Sullivan) see _Yeomen of the Guard_ - “I Have Dreamed” (Rodgers), see _The King and I_ - “I Know a Youth Who Loves a Little Maid” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - “_Il balen_” (Verdi), see _Il Trovatore_ - “I’ll Follow My Secret Heart” (Coward), see _Conversation Piece_ - “I Love You” (Wright and Forrest), see _Song of Norway_, Grieg - “I Love You, Porgy,” (Gershwin), see _Porgy and Bess_ - “I Love You, Truly” (Coward), see _Bitter Sweet_ - “I’m Called Little Buttercup” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - “I’m Falling in Love With Someone” (Herbert), see _Naughty Marietta_ - “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair” (Rodgers), see _South - Pacific_ - “I’m in Love with a Wonderful Guy” (Rodgers), see _South Pacific_ - “_Im Prater bluehn wieder die Baeume_” (Stolz) - _Impressions of Italy_ (Charpentier) - _In a Chinese Garden_ (Ketelby) - _In a Monastery Garden_ (Ketelby) - _In a Persian Garden_ (Ketelby) - _In Autumn_ (Grieg) - “In Bygone Days” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - _Indian Lament_ (Dvořák) - “Indian Love Call” (Friml), see _Rose Marie_ - _Indian Sketches_ (Gilbert) - _Indian Summer_ (Herbert) - _In Spring_ (Karl Goldmark) - _Intermezzo_, from _Cavalleria Rusticana_ (Mascagni) - _Intermezzo_, from _Goyescas_ (Granados) - _Intermezzo_, from _Pagliacci_ (Leoncavallo) - _Intermezzo_, from _The Violin Maker_ (Hubay) - _Intermezzo_ (Tchaikovsky), see Suite for Orchestra, No. 1 - _Intermezzos_ from _The Jewels of the Madonna_ (Wolf-Ferrari) - _Interplay_ (Gould) - “In the Autumn of Our Life” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen of the Guard_ - _In the Hall of the Mountain King_ (Grieg), see _Peer Gynt Suite_, No. - 1 - _In the South_ (Elgar) - _In the Steppes of Central Asia_ (Borodin) - _Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso_ (Saint-Saëns) - _Invitation to the Dance_ (Weber) - _Iolanthe_: Selections (Sullivan) - “I Once Was as Meek as a New Born Lamb” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - _Irish Rhapsody_ (Herbert) - _Irish Suite_ (Anderson) - _Irish Tune from County Derry_: “Londonderry Air” (Grainger) - “I Shipped, D’ye See, in a Revenue Sloop” (Sullivan) see _Ruddigore_ - “Isle of Dreams” (Herbert) see _The Red Mill_ - “Is Love a Boon?” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen of the Guard_ - “I Stole the Princess” (Sullivan), see _The Gondoliers_ - “It Ain’t Necessarily So” (Gershwin), see _Porgy and Bess_ - _L’Italiana in Algeri_: Overture (Rossini) - “Italian Street Song” (Herbert), see _Naughty Marietta_ - “It is Not Love” (Sullivan), see _The Sorcerer_ - “It’s a Windy Day on the Battery” (Romberg), see _Maytime_ - “I’ve Done My Work” (Bond) - “I’ve Got a Little List” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face” (Loewe), see _My Fair Lady_ - “I Whistle a Happy Tune” (Rodgers), see _The King and I_ - - “_Ja, das alles auf Ehr_” (Johann Strauss II), see _Gypsy Baron_ - _Jamaican Rumba_ (Benjamin) - _Jazz Legato_ (Anderson) - _Jazz Pizzicato_ (Anderson) - “Jeanie With the Light Brown Hair” (Foster) - _Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring_ (Bach) - “_Je suis Titania_” (Thomas), see _Mignon_ - _Jeux d’enfants_ (Bizet), see _Children’s Games_ - “Jewel Song” (Gounod), see _Faust_ - _Jewels of the Madonna_: Intermezzo, Dance of the Camorristi - (Wolf-Ferrari) - _Jewels from Cartier_ (Alter) - _Jota aragonesa_ (Glinka) - _Jota aragonesa_ (Sarasate) - _Joyeuse marche_ (Chabrier) - _Jubilee_ (Chadwick) - _Jubilee Overture_ (Weber) - “Jump Jim Crow” (Romberg), see _Maytime_ - _June_ (Tchaikovsky), see _The Months_ - “June Is Bustin’ Out All Over” (Rodgers), see _Carousel_ - “Just a Wearyin’ for You” (Bond) - - “_Kaempfe nie mit Frauen_” (Zeller), see _Der Vogelhaendler_ - _Kaiser March_ (Wagner) - _Kaiserwaltz_ (Johann Strauss II), see _Emperor Waltz_ - _Kamarinskaya_ (Glinka) - _Kamenoi-Ostrow_ (Rubinstein) - _Der Kanarienvogel_ (Mozart), see _German Dances_ - “Kansas City” (Rodgers), see _Oklahoma!_ - _Karelia Suite_ (Sibelius) - _Katharine Menuetten_ (Haydn), see _Minutes_ - _King Frederick VII Homage March_ (Lumbye) - _La Kermesse_ (Gounod), see _Faust_ - _Kettenbruecken_ (Johann Strauss I) - _Khovantschina_: Dances of Persian Slaves, Prelude to Act 1, and - Entr’acte (Mussorgsky) - _The King and I_: Selections (Rodgers) - _King Cotton_ (Sousa) - “Kiss Me Again” (Herbert), see _Mlle. Modiste_ - _Kiss Me Kate_: Selections (Porter) - “_Klaenge der Heimat_” (Johann Strauss II), see _Die Fledermaus_ - _Eine kleine Nachtmusik_ (Mozart) - _Knightsbridge March_ (Coates), see _London Suite_ - “Knowest Thou the Land” (Thomas), see “_Connais-tu le pays?_”, - _Mignon_ - “_Komm, komm, Held meiner Traeume_” (Straus), see “My Hero,” _The - Chocolate Soldier_ - _Komm suesser Tod_ (Bach), see _Come, Sweet Death_ - _Kommt ein Vogel_, Variations (Ochs) - - _Das Land des Laechelns_ (Lehár), see _The Land of Smiles_ - _The Land of Smiles_: Selections (Lehár) - _Die Landestreicher_: Selections (Ziehrer) - _Laendler_ (Schubert) - _Largo_, from the _New World Symphony_ (Dvořák) - _Largo_, from _Xerxes_ (Handel) - “Largo al factotum” (Rossini), see _The Barber of Seville_ - _Latin-American Symphonette_ (Gould) - “Laughing Song” (Johann Strauss II), see “_Mein Herr, Marquis,_” _Die - Fledermaus_ - “The Law is the True Embodiment” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - “_Lebe wohl, mein flandrisch’ Maedchen_” (Lortzing), see _Czar and - Carpenter_ - _Légende_ (Wieniawski) - _Leichte Cavallerie_ Overture (Suppé), see _Light Cavalry_ - _Der Leiermann_ (Mozart), see _German Dances_ - _Les Préludes_ (Liszt) - “Letter Song” (Straus), see _The Chocolate Soldier_ - “_Libiamo, libiamo_,” or “_Brindisi_” (Verdi), see _La Traviata_ - “_Lieber Freund, man greift nicht_” (Lehár), see _Count of Luxembourg_ - _Liebesfreud_ (Kreisler) - _Liebesleid_ (Kreisler) - “_Liebeslied_” (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - _Liebestraum_ (Liszt) - _A Life for the Tsar_: Overture, Mazurka and Waltz (Glinka) - “Life’s Garden” (Bond) - _Light Cavalry Overture_ (Suppé) - “_Der Lindenbaum_” (Schubert) - _Lohengrin_: Prelude to Acts 1 and 3, Wedding March (Wagner) - _London Suite_ (Coates) - “Londonderry Air (Grainger),” see _Irish Tune from County Derry_ - “Lonely Hearts” (Romberg), see _Blossom Time_ - “The Lord’s Prayer” (Malotte) - _Lorelei Rheinsklaenge_ (Johann Strauss I) - “The Lost Chord” (Sullivan) - _Lotus Land_ (Scott) - “Loudly Let the Trumpet Bray” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - _Love for Three Oranges_: March (Prokofiev) - “Love is a Firefly” (Friml), see _The Firefly_ - “Love is a Plaintive Song” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “Lover Come Back to Me” (Romberg), see _The New Moon_ - “Love Song” (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - _Lucia di Lammermoor_: Selections (Donizetti) - _Lullaby_ (Khatchaturian), see _Gayane_ - _Die lustige Witwe_ (Lehár), see _The Merry Widow_ - _Lyric Suite_ (Grieg) - - “Mack the Knife” (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - _Madama Butterfly_: Selections (Puccini) - “_Madre pietosa_” (Verdi), see _La Forza del destino_ - “Mad Scene” (Donizetti), see _Lucia di Lammermoor_ - “_Maedel klein, Maedel fein_” (Lehár), see _The Count of Luxembourg_ - “The Magnet and the Churn” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “A Maiden Fair to See” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - “_Die Majistaet wird anerkannt_” (Johann Strauss II), see _Die - Fledermaus_ - _Malambo_ (Ginastera), see Dances from _Estancia_ - _Malagueña_ (Lecuona) - _Malagueña_, from _Boabdil_ (Moszkowski) - _Malagueña_ (Sarasate) - _Manhattan Masquerade_ (Alter) - _Manhattan Moonlight_ (Alter) - _Manhattan Serenade_ (Alter) - Manon: Gavotte, Minuet (Massenet) - “A Man Who Would Woo a Fair Maid” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen of the - Guard_ - “Many a New Day” (Rodgers), see _Oklahoma!_ - March, from _Tannhaeuser_ (Wagner) - _March of the Gladiators_ (Fučík) - _March of the Little Fauns_ (Pierné) - _March of the Little Lead Soldiers_ (Pierné) - _March of the Royal Siamese Children_ (Rodgers), see _The King and I_ - _March of the Smugglers_ (Bizet), see _Carmen_ - March of the Toys (Herbert), see _Babes in Toyland_ - _Marche miniature_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Suite for Orchestra, No. 1_ - _Marche Slav_ (Tchaikovsky) - “_Marechiare_” (Tosti) - _Marienklaenge_ (Josef Strauss) - _Mark Twain: A Portrait for Orchestra_ (Kern) - _Masaniello_ (Auber), see _The Mute of Portici_ - _Masquerade_ (Khatchaturian) - “Massa’s in De Cold, Cold Ground” (Foster) - _The Mastersingers_: “Prize Song” (Wagner) - _Matinées musicales_ (Rossini-Britten), see Rossini - “_Mattinata_” (Tosti) - _Maytime_: Selections (Romberg) - _Mazurka_ (Delibes), see _Coppélia_ - _Mazurka_ (Glinka), see _A Life for the Tsar_ - Mazurkas (Chopin) - _Meditation_, from _Thaïs_ (Massenet) - “_Mein Herr, Marquis_” (Johann Strauss II), see _Die Fledermaus_ - _Die Meistersinger_ (Wagner), see _The Mastersingers_ - _Mélodie_ (Tchaikovsky) - _Melody in F_ (Rubinstein) - _Menuet à l’antique_ (Paderewski), see _Minuet_ - _Merrie England_: Selections (German) - _Merrymaker’s Dance_ (German), see _Nell Gwynn_ - _The Merry Widow_: Selections (Lehár) - _The Merry Widow Waltz_: “_S’fuersten Geigen_” (Lehár), see _The Merry - Widow_ - _The Merry Wives of Windsor_: Overture, Selections (Nicolai) - _Mexican Rhapsody_ (McBride) - “_Mi chiamano Mimi_” (Puccini), see _La Bohème_ - _Midsommarvaka_ (Alfvén), see _Midsummer Vigil_ - _A Midsummer Night’s Dream_, Suite (Mendelssohn) - _Midsummer Vigil_ (Alfvén) - “Mighty Lak’ a Rose” (Nevin) - _Mignon_: Overture, Selections (Thomas) - _The Mikado_: Selections (Sullivan) - _Military Polonaise_ (Chopin) - _Miniature Overture_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Nutcracker Suite_ - _Minstrel Show_ (Gould) - _Minuet in G_ (Beethoven) - _Minuet_ (Boccherini) - _Minuet_ (Bolzoni) - _Minuet_ (Kreisler) - _Minuet_, from _Don Giovanni_ (Mozart) - _Minuet_, from _The Tales of Hoffmann_ (Offenbach) - _Minuet_ (Paderewski) - _Minuet_, from _Rigoletto_ (Verdi) - _Minuet of the Will’o-the-Wisp_ (Berlioz), see _The Damnation of - Faust_ - Minuets (Haydn) - Minuets (Mozart) - _Minute Waltz_ (Chopin) - _Mlle. Modiste_: Selections (Herbert) - _Mireille_: Overture (Gounod) - “_Miserere_” (Verdi), see “_Ah, che la morte ognora_,” _Il Trovatore_ - _Mississippi Suite_ (Grofé) - _The Moldau_, or _Vltava_ (Smetana) - _Molly on the Shore_ (Grainger) - “_Mon coeur s’ouvre à ta voix_” (Saint-Saëns), see _Samson and - Delilah_ - _Mon rêve_ (Waldteufel) - _The Months_ (Tchaikovsky) - “Moonbeams” (Herbert), see _The Red Mill_ - _Moonlight Sonata_ (Beethoven) - _Moorish Rhapsody_ (Humperdinck) - _Morgenblaetter_ (Johann Strauss II), see _Morning Journals_ - “_Morgenlich leuchtend_” (Wagner), see “Prize Song,” _The - Mastersingers_ - “Moritat” (Weill), see _The Three-Penny Opera_ - _Morning_ (Grieg), see _Peer Gynt_, Suite No. 1 - “Morning” (Speaks) - _Morning Journals_ (Johann Strauss II) - _Morning, Noon, and Night in Vienna_ (Suppé) - _Morris Dance_ (German), see _Henry VIII_ - _La Muette de Portici_ (Auber), see _The Mute of Portici_ - _Musetta’s Waltz_ (Puccini), see _La Bohème_ - _The Music Box_ (Liadov) - _Music of the Spheres_ (Josef Strauss), see _Sphaerenklaenge_ - _The Mute of Portici_: Overture (Auber) - “My Boy You May Take it From Me” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - _My Fair Lady_: Selections (Loewe) - “My Heart at Your Sweet Voice” (Saint-Saëns), see _Samson and Delilah_ - “My Hero” (Straus), see _The Chocolate Soldier_ - “My Ideal” (Tosti), see “_Ideale_” - “My Man’s Gone Now” (Gershwin), see _Porgy and Bess_ - “My Object All Sublime” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - “My Old Kentucky Home” (Foster) - - _Naïla Waltz_ (Delibes) - _Narcissus_, from _Water Scenes_ (Nevin) - _Naughty Marietta_: Selections (Herbert) - _Navarra_ (Albéniz) - “’Neath the Southern Moon” (Herbert), see _Naughty Marietta_ - _Negro Heaven_ (Cesana) - _Negro Rhapsody_ (Rubin Goldmark) - _Nell Gwynn_: Dances (German) - _New Moon_: Selections (Romberg) - “The Nightingale” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “The Nightingale Song” (Zeller), see “_Wie mein Ahn’l zwanzig Jahr_,” - _Der Vogelhaendler_ - _Nocturne_ (Borodin) - _Nocturne in E-flat_ (Chopin) - _Nocturne_ (Mendelssohn), see _A Midsummer Night’s Dream_, Suite - “_Noël_,” or “_Cantique de Noël_” (Adam) - “None But the Lonely Heart” (Tchaikovsky) - “_Non la sospiri la nostra casetta_” (Puccini), see _Tosca_ - _Norma_: Overture, “_Casta Diva_” (Bellini) - _North American Square Dances_ (Benjamin) - _Norwegian Dances_ (Grieg) - _Norwegian Rhapsody_ (Lalo) - _Nutcracker Suite_, or _Casse-noisette_ (Tchaikovsky) - - “_O beau pays de la Touraine_” (Meyerbeer), see _Les Huguenots_ - “_Obéissons quand leur voix appelle_” (Massenet), see _Manon_ - _Der Obersteiger_: Selections (Zeller) - “_O, Columbina!_,” Harlequin’s Serenade (Leoncavallo), _Pagliacci_ - “Ode to the Evening Star” (Wagner), see “_O du, mein holder - Abendstern_,” _Tannhaeuser_ - _Of Thee I Sing_ (Gershwin) - “Oh Foolish Fay” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - “Oh, Is There Not One Maiden Breast?” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of - Penzance_ - “Oh a Private Buffoon is a Light-Hearted Loon” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen - of the Guard_ - “Oh, Leave Me Not to Pine” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of Penzance_ - “Oh My Name is John Wellington Wells” (Sullivan), see _The Sorcerer_ - “Oh, Susanna!” (Foster) - “Oh, Thoughtless Crew” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen of the Guard_ - “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’” (Rodgers), see _Oklahoma!_ - _Oklahoma!_: Selections (Rodgers) - “Ol’ Black Joe” (Foster) - “Old Folks at Home,” or “Swanee River” (Foster) - _The Old Refrain_ (Kreisler) - “Ol’ Man River” (Kern), see _Show Boat_ - “_O Lola Bianca_” (Mascagni), see _Cavalleria Rusticana_ - “_O Mimi, tu più_” (Puccini), see _La Bohème_ - _Omphale’s Spinning Wheel_ (Saint-Saëns), see _Le Rouet d’Omphale_ - “One Kiss” (Romberg), see _The New Moon_ - “Only a Rose” (Friml), see _The Vagabond King_ - “Only Make Believe” (Kern), see _Show Boat_ - “On the Day that I Was Wedded” (Sullivan), see _The Gondoliers_ - _On the Campus_ (Goldman) - _On the Farm_ (Goldman) - _On the Mall_ (Goldman) - “On the Road to Mandalay” (Speaks) - “On the Street Where You Live” (Loewe), see _My Fair Lady_ - _On the Trail_ (Grofé), see _Grand Canyon Suite_ - “Onward Christian Soldiers” (Sullivan) - “On Wings of Song” (Mendelssohn) - “_O Patria mia_” (Verdi), see _Aida_ - “_O Paradiso!_” (Meyerbeer), see _L’Africaine_ - _The Organgrinder_ (Mozart), see _German Dances_ - _Orientale_ (Cui) - _Orphée aux enfers_ (Offenbach), see _Orpheus in the Underworld_ - _Orpheus in the Underworld_: Selections (Offenbach) - “_O Sancta justa_” (Lortzing), see _Czar and Carpenter_ - “_O soave fanciulla_” (Puccini), see _La Bohème_ - “_O terra addio_” (Verdi), see _Aida_ - “Our Great Mikado” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - “Out of My Dreams” (Rodgers), see _Oklahoma!_ - _Ouverture solennelle_ (Glazunov) - _Overture 1812_ (Tchaikovsky) - - “_Pace e gioia sia con voi_” (Rossini), see _The Barber of Seville_ - _Pagliacci_: Selections (Leoncavallo) - “Painted Emblems of a Race” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - “_La Paloma_” (Yradier) - _Pan-Americana_ (Herbert) - “A Paradox, a Most Ingenious Paradox” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of - Penzance_ - “_Parigi, o cara_” (Verdi), see _La Traviata_ - _Passacaglia on Green Bushes_ (Grainger) - _Pastoral Dance_ (German), see _Henry VIII_ - _Patience_: Selections (Sullivan) - _Les Patineurs_ (Waldteufel), see _The Skaters_ - _La Patrie_ (Bizet) - _Pavane_ (Fauré) - _Pavane_ (German), see _Romeo and Juliet_ - _Pavane_ (Gould), see _American Symphonette No. 2_ - _Pavane pour une Infante défunte_ (Ravel) - _Peer Gynt_, Suites Nos. 1 and 2 (Grieg) - “People Will Say We’re in Love” (Rodgers), see _Oklahoma!_ - _Perpetual Motion_ (Johann Strauss II) - “_Pescator, affond a l’esca_” (Ponchielli), see _La Gioconda_ - _Die Pesther_ (Lanner) - _Peter and the Wolf_ (Prokofiev) - _Petite suite_ (Debussy) - _Phèdre Overture_ (Massenet) - “_Piccolo, piccolo, tsin, tsin, tsin_” (Straus), see _A Waltz Dream_ - _Picturesque Scenes_ (Massenet) - _Piemonte_ (Sinigaglia) - _Pinafore_: Selections (Sullivan) - _Pique Dame Overture_ (Suppé) - _Pirates of Penzance_: Selections (Sullivan) - _Pizzicato Polka_ (Johann Strauss II) - “_Plaisir d’amour_” (Martini) - “Play Gypsies, Dance Gypsies” (Kálmán), see _Countess Maritza_ - _Plink, Plank, Plunk_ (Anderson) - “_Plus blanche que la blanche hermine_” (Meyerbeer) see _Les - Huguenots_ - _Poet and Peasant Overture_ (Suppé) - _Polichinelle_ (Kreisler) - _Polka_ (Smetana), see _The Bartered Bride_ - _Polka and Fugue_, from _Schwanda_ (Weinberger) - _Polonaise_, from Boris Godunov (Mussorgsky) - _Polonaise_, from Eugene Onegin (Tchaikovsky) - _Polonaises_ (Chopin) - _Polonaise brilliante_ (Wieniawski) - _Polovtsian Dances_, from _Prince Igor_ (Borodin) - _Pomp and Circumstance_ (Elgar) - _Pop Goes the Weasel_ (Caillet) - _Porgy and Bess_: Selections (Gershwin) - _Portrait of a Frontier Town_ (Gillis) - _Poupée valsante_ (Poldini) - “Pour, Oh, Pour the Pirate Sherry” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of - Penzance_ - _Praeludium_ (Järnefelt) - _Praeludium and Allegro_ (Kreisler) - _Praise Be to God_ (Bach) - _La Précieuse_ (Kreisler) - _Prelude in E major_ (Bach) - _Prelude in A major_ (Chopin) - _Prelude and Fugue on Dixie_ (Weinberger) - _Prelude and Waltz_ (Addinsell) - Preludes (Chopin) - Preludes (Gershwin) - Preludes (Rachmaninoff) - “Prithee, Pretty Maiden” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “Prize Song” from _The Mastersingers_ (Wagner) - _Le Prophète_: Coronation March, Prelude to Act 3 (Meyerbeer) - _Punchinello_ (Herbert) - “A Puzzlement” (Rodgers), see _The King and I_ - - “_Quando m’en vo’ soletto_,” Musetta’s Waltz (Puccini), see _La - Bohème_ - Quartet, from _Rigoletto_ (Verdi), see “_Bella figlia dell’ amore_” - _Queen of Spades Overture_ (Suppé), see _Pique Dame Overture_ - “_Questa o quella_” (Verdi), see _Rigoletto_ - - _Radetzky March_ (Johann Strauss I) - _Railway Galop_ (Lumbye) - _Raindrop Etude_ (Chopin) - _Rakóczy March_ (Berlioz), see _The Damnation of Faust_ - _Raymond Overture_ (Thomas) - _Raymonda_: Suite (Glazunov) - “_Recondita armonia_” (Puccini), see _Tosca_ - _The Red Mill_: Selections (Herbert) - _The Red Poppy_: Selections (Glière) - _Rêve angelique_ (Rubinstein), see _Kamenoi-Ostrow_ - _Rêverie_ (Debussy) - _Revolutionary Etude_ (Chopin) - _Rhapsody in Blue_ (Gershwin) - _Rienzi_: Overture (Wagner) - _Rigoletto_: Selections (Verdi) - “_Rimpianto_” (Toselli), see “_Serenata_” - “Rising Early in the Morning” (Sullivan), see _Gondoliers_ - “_Ritorna vincitor_” (Verdi), see _Aida_ - _Ritual Fire Dance_ (Falla) - _Le Roi l’a dit_: Overture (Delibes) - _Romance_ (Drdla) - Romances (Beethoven) - _Romance in E-flat_ (Rubinstein) - _Romance in F minor_ (Tchaikovsky) - Romances (Sibelius) - _Die Romantiker_ (Lanner) - _Romeo and Juliet_: Waltz (Gounod) - _Rondalla aragonesa_ (Granados), see _Spanish Dances_ - _Rondino_ (Kreisler) - “The Rosary” (Nevin) - _Rosamunde_: Overture, Ballet Music (Schubert) - _Rose Marie_: Selections (Friml) - _Rosen aus dem Sueden_ (Johann Strauss II), see _Roses from the South_ - “Roses are in Bloom” (Bond) - _Roses from the South_ (Johann Strauss II) - _Le Rouet d’Omphale_ (Saint-Saëns) - _Ruddigore_: Selections (Sullivan) - _Rumanian Rhapsodies_, Nos. 1 and 2 (Enesco) - _Rumba_ (McDonald) - _Ruslan and Ludmilla_: Overture (Glinka) - _Russian Easter Overture_ (Rimsky-Korsakov) - _Russian Sailors’ Dance_ (Glière), see _The Red Poppy_ - _Rustle of Spring_ (Sinding) - _Rustic Dance_ (German), see _As You Like It_ - _Rustic March_ (Grieg), see _Lyric Suite_ - _Rustic Wedding Symphony_ (Karl Goldmark) - _Ruy Blas Overture_ (Mendelssohn) - - _Saber Dance_ (Khatchaturian), see _Gayane_ - “Saber Song” (Romberg), see _Desert Song_ - “Sailors’ Chorus” (Wagner), see “_Steuermann! lass die Wacht_,” _The - Flying Dutchman_ - _Sakuntala Overture_ (Karl Goldmark) - _Salut d’amour_ (Elgar) - _Samson and Delilah_: Selections (Saint-Saëns) - “_Samt und seide_” from _Der Fremdenfuehrer_ (Ziehrer) - _Saraband_ (Anderson) - _Sari_: Selections (Kálmán) - _La Scala di Seta_: Overture (Rossini) - _Scarf Dance_ (Chaminade) - _Scenario_ (Kern) - _Scènes alsaciennes_ (Massenet), see _Alsatian Scenes_ - _Scènes de ballet_ (Glazunov) - _Scènes pittoresques_ (Massenet), see _Picturesque Scenes_ - “_Schafe koennen sicher weiden_” (Bach), see _The Wise Virgins_ - _Schatz_, Waltzes (Johann Strauss II), see _Gypsy Baron_ - “_Schau mir nur recht ins Gesicht_” (Zeller), see _Der Vogelhaendler_ - _Scheherazade_ (Rimsky-Korsakov) - _Scherzo_ (Kreisler) - _Scherzo_ (Mendelssohn), see _A Midsummer Night’s Dream_, Suite - _Die Schlittenfahrt_ (Mozart), see _German Dances_ - _Die Schoenbrunner_ (Lanner) - _Die schoene Galatea_ (Suppé), see _The Beautiful Galathea_ - _Schoen Rosmarin_ (Kreisler) - _School of Dancing_ (Boccherini-Françaix), see Boccherini - _Scuola di Ballo_ (Boccherini-Françaix), see _School of Dancing_, - Boccherini - “_Scuoti quella fronda di ciliegio_” (Puccini), see _Madama Butterfly_ - _The Seasons_: Suite (Glazunov) - _Second Rhapsody_ (Gershwin) - _Secrets of Suzanne_: Overture (Wolf-Ferrari) - “_Segreto_” (Tosti) - “_Seguidille_” (Bizet), see _Carmen_ - “_Sei gepreissen, du lauschige Nacht_” (Ziehrer), see _Die - Landestreicher_ - “_Sei nicht bos, es kann nicht sein_” (Zeller), see _Der Obersteiger_ - _Semiramide_: Overture (Rossini) - _Semper fideles_ (Sousa) - “_Sempre libera_” (Verdi), see _La Traviata_ - _Serenade_ (Drigo) - _Serenade in A_ (Drdla) - _Serenade_ (Romberg), see _Blossom Time_, _The Student Prince_ - _Serenade_ (Schubert), see _Staendchen_ - _Sérénade espagnole_ (Chaminade) - _Serenade for Strings_ (Tchaikovsky) - _Sérénade mélancolique_ (Tchaikovsky) - _Serenata_, “_Rimpianot_” (Toselli) - _La Serenata_ (Tosti) - _Sevillañas_ (Albéniz) - Sextet from Lucia di Lammermoor (Donizetti), see “_Chi mi frena_” - “_S’fuersten Geigen, Lippen schweigen_” (Lehár), see _The Merry Widow_ - “Shall We Dance?” (Rodgers), see _The King and I_ - _Shepherd’s Dance_ (German), see _Henry VIII_ - _Shepherd’s Hey_ (Grainger) - _Shepherd’s Madrigal_ (Kreisler) - “Shepherd’s Song” (Offenbach), see _La Belle Hélène_ - “Short’nin’ Bread” (Wolfe) - _Show Boat_: Selections (Kern) - “_Siboney_,” or “_Canto Siboney_” (Lecuona) - _Siciliano_ (Bach) - _Sicilienne_ (Fauré) - _Sicilienne et Rigaudon_ (Kreisler) - _Side Street in Gotham_ (Alter) - “Sighing Softly to the River” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of Penzance_ - _Si j’etais roi_ (Adam), see _If I Were King_ - “Silvered is the Raven Hair” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “_Si può_” (Leoncavallo), see _Pagliacci_ - _Les Sirènes_ (Waldteufel) - “Sir Rupert Murgatroyd” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - _The Skaters_ (Waldteufel) - _Slaughter on Tenth Avenue_ (Rodgers) - _Slavonic Dances_ (Dvořák) - _Slavonic Fantasia_ (Kreisler) - _Sleigh Bells_ (Anderson) - _The Sleighride_ (Mozart), see _German Dances_ - “_So elend und treu_” (Johann Strauss II), see _Gypsy Baron_ - “Softly as in a Morning Sunrise” (Romberg), see _The New Moon_ - _Soirées de Vienne_ (Schubert-Liszt), see Schubert - _Soirées musicales_ (Rossini-Britten), see Rossini - “So in Love” (Porter), see _Kiss Me Kate_ - “Soldiers’ Chorus” (Gounod), see _Faust_ - “Soldiers’ Chorus” (Verdi), see “_Squilli, echeggi la tromba - guerriera_,” _Il Trovatore_ - _Solitude_ (Tchaikovsky) - “Solveig’s Song” (Grieg), see _Peer Gynt_, Suite No. 2 - “Some Enchanted Evening” (Rodgers), see _South Pacific_ - _Song of India_ (Rimsky-Korsakov), see _Hindu Chant_ - “Song of Love” (Romberg), see _Blossom Time_ - _Song of Norway_ (Wright and Forrest), see Grieg - “Song of the Vagabond” (Friml), see _The Vagabond King_ - _Song Without Words, Chanson sans paroles_ (Tchaikovsky) - “Songs My Mother Taught Me” (Dvořák) - “_Sonst spielt ich mit Zepter_” (Lortzing), see _Czar and Carpenter_ - “Soon as We May” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - _Sophie_ (Lumbye) - “Sorry Her Lot” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - _South Pacific_: Selections (Rodgers) - _Southern Nights_ (Guion) - _Souvenir_ (Drdla) - _Souvenirs of Moscow_ (Wieniawski) - _Spanish Caprice_ (Rimsky-Korsakov) - _Spanish Dance No. 1_ (Falla) - _Spanish Dances_ (Granados) - _Spanish Dances_ (Moszkowski) - _Spanish Dances_ (Sarasate) - _Sphaerenklaenge_ (Josef Strauss) - _Spinning Song_ (Mendelssohn) - _Spring Song_ (Mendelssohn) - “_Squilli, echeggi la tromba guerriera_,” or “Soldiers’ Chorus” - (Verdi), see _Il Trovatore_ - “_Staendchen_” (Schubert) - _Stars and Stripes Forever_ (Sousa) - _Stephen Foster Suite_ (Dubensky) - “_Steuermann! lass die Wacht_” (Wagner), see _The Flying Dutchman_ - “Stout-Hearted Men” (Romberg), see _The New Moon_ - “Strange Adventure” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen of the Guard_ - “Strange Music” (Wright and Forrest), see _Song of Norway_, Grieg - “_Stride la vampa_” (Verdi), see _Il Trovatore_ - “_Stridono lassu_,” “Bird Song” (Leoncavallo), see _Pagliacci_ - “Strike Up the Band” (Gershwin) - _Student Prince_: Selections (Romberg) - _Stuff in G_ (McBride) - “_Suicidio!_” (Ponchielli), see _La Gioconda_ - _Suite algérienne_ (Saint-Saëns) - Suite for Orchestra, Nos. 1 and 3 (Tchaikovsky) - _Suite of Serenades_ (Herbert) - _Suite pastorale_ (Chabrier) - _Suite romantique_ (Herbert) - “_Summ und brumm_” (Wagner), see _The Flying Dutchman_ - _Summer Day_ (Prokofiev) - “Summertime” (Gershwin), see _Porgy and Bess_ - “The Sun Whose Rays” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - “The Surrey With the Fringe on Top” (Rodgers), see _Oklahoma!_ - _Swallows from Austria_ (Josef Strauss), see _Dorfschwalben aus - Oesterreich_ - _The Swan_ (Saint-Saëns) - “Swanee River,” or “Old Folks at Home” (Foster) - _Swing Sextet_ (Cesana) - _Swing Stuff_ (McBride) - _Les Sylphides_ (Chopin-Rosenthal), see Chopin - _Sylvia_: Suite (Delibes) - “Sylvia” (Speaks) - “Sympathy” (Friml), see _The Firefly_ - “Sympathy” (Straus), see _The Chocolate Soldier_ - _Symphonic Picture_ (Gershwin-Bennett), see _Porgy and Bess_, Gershwin - _Symphony in D_, “Dodgers” (Bennett) - _Symphony No. 5½_ (Gillis) - _Syncopated Clock_ (Anderson) - - “_Tacea la notte placide_” (Verdi), see _Il Trovatore_ - “Take a Pair of Sparkling Eyes” (Sullivan), see _Gondoliers_ - _Tales from the Vienna Woods_ (Johann Strauss II) - _Tales of Hoffmann_: Barcarolle, Minuet, and Waltz (Offenbach) - _Tambourin Chinois_ (Kreisler) - _Tango in D major_ (Albéniz) - _Tannhaeuser_: Overture, Selections (Wagner) - _Tannhaeuser’s Pilgrimage_ (Wagner), see Prelude to Act 3, - _Tannhaeuser_ - _Te Deum_ (Puccini), see _Tosca_ - “Tell Me Daisy” (Romberg), see _Blossom Time_ - _Tempo di minuetto_ (Kreisler) - _Thaïs: Meditations_ (Massenet) - “Then You’ll Remember Me” (Balfe), see _The Bohemian Girl_ - “There Grew a Little Flower” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - “There Is Nothing Like a Dame” (Rodgers), see _South Pacific_ - “There’s a Boat That’s Leavin’ Soon for New York” (Gershwin), see - _Porgy and Bess_ - “There Was a Time” (Sullivan), see _Gondoliers_ - “Thine Alone” (Herbert) - “Thine Is My Heart Alone” (Lehár), see _The Land of Smiles_ - “This is a Real Nice Clambake” (Rodgers), see _Carousel_ - “Thou the Tree, and I the Flower” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - _The Three Bears_ (Coates) - _The Three Elizabeths_ (Coates) - “Three Little Maids” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - _The Three-Penny Opera_: Selections (Weill) - _The Thunderer_ (Sousa) - _The Thunderstorm_ (Mozart), see _Country Dances_ - “This Nearly Was Mine” (Rodgers), see _Carousel_ - “Time Was When Love and I Were Acquainted” (Sullivan), see _Sorcerer_ - “Tit Willow” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - _To a Water Lily_ (MacDowell) - _To a Wild Rose_ (MacDowell) - “_Der Tod und das Maedchen_” (Schubert) - _Torch Dance No. 1_ (Meyerbeer) - _Toujours ou jamais_ (Waldteufel) - “_Traeume_” (Wagner) - “_Traft ihr Das Schiff_” (Wagner), see _The Flying Dutchman_ - “_Trauet nie dem Blossen schein_” (Zeller), see _Der Obersteiger_ - _La Traviata_: Prelude to Acts 1 and 3, Selections (Verdi) - _Trepak_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Nutcracker Suite_ - “The Trout” (Schubert), see “_Die Forelle_” - _Triumphant Entry of the Boyars_ (Halvorsen) - _Troïka_, or _Troïka en Traneaux_ (Tchaikovsky), see _The Months_ - _Il Trovatore_: Selections (Verdi) - _The Trumpeter’s Holiday_ (Anderson) - “The Two Grenadiers” (Schumann), see “_Die beiden Grenadiere_” - _Through the Looking Glass_ (Taylor) - “_Treulich gefuert_” (Wagner), see _Lohengrin_ - _Tubby the Tuba_ (Kleinsinger) - _Turkey in the Straw_ (Guion) - _Turkish March_ (Beethoven) - _Turkish March_ (Mozart) - “Tu, tu piccolo idio” (Puccini), see _Madama Butterfly_ - “Twenty Lovesick Maidens We” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - _Two Elegiac Melodies_ (Grieg) - “Two Hearts in Three-Quarters Time” (Stolz) - _Two Northern Melodies_ (Grieg) - _The Typewriter_ (Anderson) - - “_Un bel di_” (Puccini), see _Madama Butterfly_ - “_Una furtiva lagrima_” (Donizetti), see _L’Elisir d’amore_ - “_Una voce poco fa_” (Rossini), see _The Barber of Seville_ - “_Un nenn’ mein Lieb’ dich_” (Lehár), see _Gypsy Love_ - - _The Vagabond King_: Selections (Friml) - _Valse bluette_ (Drigo) - _Valse de concert_, Nos. 1 and 2 (Glazunov) - _Valse de la poupée_ (Delibes), see _Coppélia_ - _Valse mélancolique_ (Tchaikovsky), see Suite for Orchestra, No. 3 - _Valses nobles_ (Schubert) - _Valses sentimentales_ (Schubert) - _Valse triste_ (Sibelius) - _Valsette_ (Borowski) - _Variations on I Got Rhythm_ (Gershwin) - _Variations on Kommt ein Vogel_ (Ochs) - _Variations on a Theme by Jerome Kern_ (Kern-Bennett), see Kern - “_Vedi! le fosche_” or “Anvil Chorus” (Verdi), see _Il Trovatore_ - _I Vespri siciliani_, or _Les Vêpres siciliennes_: Overture (Verdi) - “_Vesti la giubba_” (Leoncavallo), see _Pagliacci_ - _Victory at Sea_ (Rodgers) - “_Viene la sera_” (Puccini), see _Madama Butterfly_ - “_Vieni amor mio_” (Verdi), see _Aida_ - _Vienna Blood_ (Johann Strauss II) - “_Vilia_” (Lehár), see _The Merry Widow_ - _Violetta_ (Waldteufel) - “_Vissi d’arte_” (Puccini), see _Tosca_ - _Vltava_ (Smetana), see _The Moldau_ - _Vocalise_ (Rachmaninoff) - _Der Vogelhaendler_: Selections (Zeller) - _Voices of Spring_ (Johann Strauss II) - “_Voi lo sapete_” (Mascagni), see _Cavalleria Rusticana_ - “_Vorrei morire_” (Tosti) - - _Walpurgis Night_, Ballet Music (Gounod), see _Faust_ - _Waltz in A-flat_ (Brahms) - _Waltz in C-sharp minor_ (Chopin) - _Waltz_ (Glinka), see _A Life for the Tsar_ - _Waltz_ (Offenbach), see _Tales of Hoffmann_ - _Waltz_, from _Eugene Onegin_ (Tchaikovsky) - _Waltz_, from _Serenade for Strings_ (Tchaikovsky) - _Waltz_, from _Sleeping Beauty_ (Tchaikovsky) - _Waltz_, from _Swan Lake_ (Tchaikovsky) - Waltzes (Chopin) - Waltzes (Schubert) - _Waltz of the Flowers_, from _Loreley_ (Catalani) - _Waltz of the Flowers_ (Tchaikovsky), see _Nutcracker Suite_ - _A Waltz Dream_: Selections (Straus) - “_Waltz Huguette_” (Friml), see _The Vagabond King_ - _Ein Walzertraum_ (Straus), see _A Waltz Dream_ - _The Waltzing Cat_ (Anderson) - “Wanting You” (Romberg), see _The New Moon_ - “A Wandering Minstrel I” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - _War March of the Priests_ (Mendelssohn) - _Warsaw Concerto_ (Addinsell) - _Washington Post_ (Sousa) - _Water Music_ (Handel) - _Water Scenes_ (Nevin) - _Waves of the Balaton_ (Hubay), see _Hungarian Czardas Scenes_ - _Waves of the Danube_ (Ivanovici) - _Wedding March_ (Mendelssohn), see _A Midsummer Night’s Dream_, Suite - _Wedding March_ (Wagner), see _Lohengrin_ - _Wein, Weib, Gesang_ (Johann Strauss II), see _Wine, Women, and Song_ - “_Im weissen Roessl_” (Benatzky), see _The White Horse Inn_ - “We Kiss in the Shadow” (Rodgers), see _The King and I_ - _Welsh Rhapsody_ (German) - _Die Werber_ (Lanner) - “We’re Called Gondolieri” (Sullivan), see _The Gondoliers_ - “Were I Thy Bride” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen of the Guard_ - “Were Thine That Special Face” (Porter), see _Kiss Me Kate_ - “Were You Not to Ko-Ko Plighted” (Sullivan), see _The Mikado_ - “We Sail the Ocean Blue” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - “What God Hath Done Is Rightly Done” (Bach), see _The Wise Virgins_ - “When a Felon’s Not Engaged in his Employment” (Sullivan), see - _Pirates of Penzance_ - “When All Night Long a Chap Remains” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - “When a Maiden Loves” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen of the Guard_ - “When a Merry Maiden Marries” (Sullivan), see _The Gondoliers_ - “When a Wooer Goes a-Wooing” (Sullivan), see _Yeomen of the Guard_ - “When Britain Really Ruled the Waves” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - “When I Go Out of Doors” (Sullivan), see _Patience_ - “When I Was a Lad” (Sullivan), see _Pinafore_ - “When I Went to the Bar” (Sullivan), see _Iolanthe_ - “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” (Gould), see _The American Salute_ - “When the Foeman Bares His Steel” (Sullivan), see _Pirates of - Penzance_ - “When the Night Wind Howls” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - “Where the Buds are Blossoming” (Sullivan), see _Ruddigore_ - _The White Horse Inn_: Selections (Stolz) - “_Wiegenlied_” (Brahms), see “Cradle Song” - “_Wie mein Ahn’l zwanzig Jahr_,” the “Nightingale Song” (Zeller), see - _Der Vogelhaendler_ - _Wiener Buerger_ (Ziehrer) - _Wiener Maedchen_ (Ziehrer) - _Wild Horsemen_ (Schumann) - _William Tell_: Overture (Rossini) - _Wine, Women and Song_ (Johann Strauss II) - “Wintergreen for President” (Gershwin), see _Of Thee I Sing_ - _The Wise Virgins_ (Bach-Walton), see Bach - “With a Little Bit of Luck” (Loewe), see _My Fair Lady_ - “A Woman is a Sometime Thing” (Gershwin), see _Porgy and Bess_ - _Woodland Dance_ (German), see _As You Like It_ - _Woodland Fancies_ (Herbert) - “_Wunderbar_” (Porter), see _Kiss Me Kate_ - “Why Do I Love You?” (Kern), see _Show Boat_ - - _Yankee Doodle Went to Town_ (Gould) - _Yeomen of the Guard_: Selections (Sullivan) - “You’ll Never Walk Alone” (Rodgers), see _Carousel_ - “Younger than Springtime” (Rodgers), see _South Pacific_ - _Youthful Suite_ (Grainger) - - _Zampa_: Overture (Hérold) - _Zapatadeo_ (Sarasate) - _Zar und Zimmermann_ (Lortzing), see _Czar and Carpenter_ - “_Zigeuener_” (Coward), see _Bitter Sweet_ - _Zigeunerbaron_ (Johann Strauss II), see _Gypsy Baron_ - _Zigeuenerliebe_ (Lehár), see _Gypsy Love_ - _Die Zirkusprinzessin_ (Kálmán), see _The Circus Princess_ - “_Zitti, Zitti, piano, piano_” (Rossini), see _The Barber of Seville_ - “_Zorike, kehre zurueck_” (Lehár), see _Gypsy Love_ - “_Zuhaelterballade_” (Weill), see “The Bully’s Ballad,” _The - Three-Penny Opera_ - “_Zwei Herzen in drei-viertel Takt_” (Stolz), see _Two Hearts in - Three-Quarter Time_ - - -Ewen’s -LIGHTER CLASSICS -IN MUSIC - - by DAVID EWEN - -In one brilliant volume, David Ewen offers a classic in musical -literature. Here are the treasured semi-classical works of two -continents—enduring, always alive—analyzed by a famed authority, -acclaimed as “music’s interpreter to the American people.” A must for -the music lover THE LIGHTER CLASSICS IN MUSIC is the first reference -book of its kind in any language. - -Here is the music of Victor Herbert, Eric Coates, Jacques Offenbach, -Johann Strauss and Franz Lehár. This is the music of the salon, -café-house, pop concert, and operetta theatre. - -THE LIGHTER CLASSICS IN MUSIC is also the story of the spontaneity and -creative invention of popular contemporary composers; Duke Ellington -(“Black, Brown, and Beige”), Morton Gould (“Yankee Doodle Went To -Town”), George Gershwin. These favorites are universally loved; their -long life-span is assured. - -There is still a third story—a story of the genius of classical masters -who have produced works whose popular interest and subtle freshness -compels an immediate emotional impact. Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn, Brahms, -Chopin, Schubert—all have brought forth wonderlands of sound to delight -the senses. - -The author needs no introduction to music afficionados. MUSIC FOR -MILLIONS went through six printings in as many years. A revised, -up-dated edition, EWEN’S MUSICAL MASTERWORKS, was soon demanded and -brought about. On the whimsical side, illustrator A. Birnbaum and Mr. -Ewen put their heads together and came up with LISTEN TO THE MOCKING -WORDS, a medley of anecdotes about music and musicians. - -Now Mr. Ewen turns a brilliant musical literacy and easy, non-pompous -style exclusively to the lighter classics. Here are the lives of 187 -composers; over 1000 perceptive analyses of musical masterpieces in the -lighter style prefaced by biographical sketches. 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