THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR RAYMOND WALTERS nLZOO . 8. B 5^6 WZ3 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 with funding from Princeton Theological Seminary Library https://archive.org/details/bethlehembachcho00walt_2 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR A HISTORY AND A CRITICAL COMPENDIUM I JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH From an engraving by F. A. Andorff after the portrait by C. fager THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR A HISTORY AND A CRITICAL COMPENDIUM BY RAYMOND WALTERS DEAN OF SWARTHMORE COLLEGE Silver Anniversary Edition BOSTON AND NEW YORK HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY I^iber£(ibe Cambritge 1923 COPYRIGHT, 1918 AND 1923, BY RAYMOND WALTERS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Published April 1923 CAMBRIDGE • MASSACHUSETTS PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION “ It is to be said at the outset that this book is not the work of a musical critic, but of an editor and annalist.” By permission of my fellow-alumnus of Lehigh University, Dr. M. A. DeWolfe Howe, this state¬ ment is borrowed from his historical sketch of the Boston Symphony Orchestra^ an admirable book to which the present volume owes much in other respects than this prefatory quotation. This is an account of a choir that has gained distinction in American musical life. The ex¬ ceptional historical background the Choir has had — with all that this means in inspiration and stimulus—is outlined. But there has been no ■minimizing of the early and present difficulties in maintaining the Bach Festivals. These singers of Bethlehem are not set apart by reason of talent or tradition or fortune. They are plain American citizens who have followed a leader in doing a work supremely worth while. Their success should be an encouragement to community V PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION choruses in other parts of the country because they have succeeded by qualities that all may emu¬ late— devotion and concentration. Their recipe has been that which Bach himself gave when asked how he had brought his art to such per¬ fection : “ I have had to work hard ; any one who will work equally hard will be able to do as much.’’ For the preparation of the lists in the appen¬ dices of this book credit is due to Mrs. George W. Halliwell, Membership Secretary of the Bach Choir. Raymond Walters CONTENTS The Silver Anniversary of the Bach Choir . xiii I. From Pioneer Days to the Era of Steel . . 3 II. The Beginnings of Bach Singing in Bethlehem 36 III. The Bach Festivals, 1900-1905 .... 49 IV. The Festivals at Lehigh University . . . 90 V. The Bethlehem Bach Choir in New York and Philadelphia. 169 VI. Dr. J. Fred Wolle, Conductor of the Bach Choir.208 VII. Mr. Charles M. Schwab and the Bach Choir . 225 VIII. The Executive Committee of the Choir . . 240 IX. A Community Enterprise. 257 X. A Musical Force.272 Appendix A. The Singers of the Choir .... 283 B. The Works rendered and the Soloists .311 C. The Moravian Trombone Choir . . 325 D. The Orchestra. 327 E. Officers and Committees . . . .332 Index.335 ILLUSTRATIONS Johann Sebastian Bach, 1685-1750 {photogravure) Frontispiece From an engraving by F. A. Andorff after the portrait by by C. Jager Facsimile of the 1811 Bethlehem Score of Haydn’s “Creation”.18 Photograph by Conradi The Moravian Church, Bethlehem. View from Cedar Square and Christmas Decorations in Chancel.22 Photographs by H. B. Eggert The Bethlehem Bach Choir of 1903 at the Mora¬ vian Church.68 Photograph by Flickinger The Moravian Seminary and College for Women. Colonial Hall and College Hall and the Chapel, Rehearsal Home of the Bach Choir .... 94 Photographs by Conradi Packer Memorial Church, Lehigh University, Home of the Bach Festivals.104 Photograph by the Albertype Company The Bach Choir OF 1914 AT Lehigh University . . 112 Photograph by Flickinger Singing the B Minor Mass at the 1917 Bach Fes¬ tival .124 Photograph by the Philadelphia Evening Ledger IX ILLUSTRATIONS Members of the Bach Choir at the New York Resi¬ dence OF Mr. Schwab, January 26, 1918, preceding THE Concert with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.180 Photograph by Charles F. Allen Festival Views at Lehigh — The Moravian Trom¬ bone Choir and Visitors Listening to Trombone Chorales.184 Photographs by the Broncho Studio and Musical America The Bach Choir of 1922 on the Lehigh University Campus.204 Photograph by A. C. Bliss Dr. J. Fred Wolle, Founder and Conductor of the Bach Choir.208 Photograph by Flickinger Mr. Charles M. Schwab, President of the Bach Choir.226 Photograph by Pirie MacDonald Dr. Henry S. Drinker, Former President . . . 246 Photograph by McCaa Mr. Albert N. Cleaver, Treasurer .... 246 Photograph by Pirie MacDonald Mr. Warren A. Wilbur, Executive Committee . . 248 Photograph by McCaa Mr. T. Edgar Shields, Organist and Executive Com¬ mittee .248 Photograph by McCaa Mrs. R. P. Linderman, Executive Committee . . 248 Photograph by the Phillips Studio Mr. George R. Booth, Vice-President .... 248 Photograph by Flickinger Mr. F. G. Hoch, Executive Committee .... 250 Photograph by McCaa X ILLUSTRATIONS Mr. Henry S. Snyder, Executive Committee . . 250 Photograph by Gessford Mr. M. J. Shimer, Executive Committee . . . 250 Photograph by McCaa Dr. William L. Estes, Sr., Executive Committee . 250 Photograph by Flickinger Mrs. Quincy Bent, Executive Committee . . . 252 Photograph by the Phillips Studio Mr. a. C. Huff, Executive Committee .... 252 Photograph by Flickinger Mr. Raymond Walters, Executive Committee . .252 Photograph by McCaa Dr. N. M. Emery, Executive Committee . . . 252 Photograph by McCaa THE SILVER ANNIVERSARY OF THE BACH CHOIR HE year 1923 marks the twenty-fifth anni- -■“ versary of the present organization of the Bach Choir. Along with the formal celebration of this anniversary by the singers, the trustees, the citizens of Bethlehem, and outside friends of the Choir, to be held in April, there will be an observance also by all of these persons of the six¬ tieth birthday anniversary of the man who dreamed of the stately pleasure-dome of Bach’s choral production and who has built the dome at Bethlehem, — ‘‘a miracle of rare device.” It may seem that, compared with the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston and the Oratorio Society of New York, the Bach Choir’s twenty- five years make it a young organization. Actually, however, the Choir goes back to the Bethlehem Choral Union of which Dr. Wolle became leader in 1884, and then,in direct line of descent, to the Philharmonic Society, which existed for seventy- five years, and to the still earlier Collegium Xlll THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Musicum, founded in Bethlehem in 1744. This lineage is traced in detail in Chapter I of this book. The present anniversary is noteworthy because it marks the persistence for a quarter of a century of a contemporary group in a great and arduous musical enterprise. Traditions are fine and they are stimulating. But the fact that the Moravian forefathers, in a simpler day, led America in first renditions of Haydn’s and Mozart’s music does not make it appreciably easier for the singers of this generation, with modern distractions, to give time and energy to the study and singing of the compositions of Johann Sebastian Bach. Mr. Richard Aldrich and Mr. William J. Henderson have drawn attention to the decline of the choral society in the large centers of population. Now Bethlehem is not a large city, but its social and amusement diversions are not small. And so, upon this silver anniversary, the individual members of the Bach Choir merit the praise they are receiving. However, having honesty and humor, they do not relish being represented as saintly persons of xiv THE SILVER ANNIVERSARY a naive, Oberammergau type. They are men and women of all sorts and conditions of bread¬ winning vocations, — steel workers, engineers, clerical workers, professional men, stenographers, salesmen, students, teachers, and clergymen — a cross-section of an old and typical American city and valley. But, although they are not pious in a denom¬ inational sense nor artistic in a professional sense these members of the Bach Choir do, in their singing, manifest deep religious feeling and high artistic powers. ‘‘I hail you as fellow artists,” said Madame Sembrich. “I have heard many choruses in many lands but unqualifiedly I say that your singing exceeds them all.” And, a year or two ago, a visiting musician on the campus at Lehigh during the Festival intermission de¬ clared: “No chorus of grand opera stars could sing the ‘B Minor Mass’ as impressively as the Bach Choir does under Wolle. The grand opera stars would be thinking of how they were shin¬ ing. These singers, forgetful of self, sing out of worshipping hearts to the glory of God.” This silver anniversary would seem to justify XV THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR fresh comment upon the artistic and social and religious significance of the Bach Choir. It would be idle to deny that the natural beauty and the historic association of the Festi¬ val background enhance immeasurably the artis¬ tic impression upon the pilgrims to Bethlehem. This, as with the charm and spell of an ancient university or a mediaeval castle, is a circumstance to be thankful for, not deprecated. With allur¬ ing commercial attractions barked out on all sides artistic performance, like a good woman, should be as attractive as possible. But, if the ‘‘picturesque” and “quaint” were all, lovers of music would not be returning to Bethlehem again and again. They return because the Festival is art and it is religion. Later chapters of this book discuss how from a group of singers who are not artists individually Dr. Wolle draws results that are artistic. One choir member declared: “There are few of us I’d walk across the street to hear sing a solo. But, when we sing together, Ld travel a thousand miles to listen.” The explanation lies in the truth of what the xvi THE SILVER ANNIVERSARY late William James, America’s foremost psychol¬ ogist, maintained, that ‘‘the deficiencies of any one faculty can be compensated by the efforts of the rest. You can be an artist without visual images, a mass of erudition with a bad elemen¬ tary memory. In almost any subject your passion for the subject will save you. If you only care enough for a result, you will almost certainly attain it.” A practical psychologist in the realm of music, Dr. Wolle confirms this declaration as applied to the chorus singer: “You can be a true artist without an exceptional voice, or with¬ out a good ear for music, or without sight-read¬ ing ability. Training and devotion to great choral music will almost certainly enable you to attain the heights of artistic power.” And so the singer of moderate native ability, by joining with other singers in performing noble choral compositions, may experience the elation of artistry. That is what the Bethlehem amateurs have done. They have pressed on, year after year, over the long hard road to mastery. They have been led by a conductor whose methods of approach, of variety, of analysis measure by measure, have xvii THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR made difficult work as easy perhaps as it can be made. Above all, the Bach singers are embued with the spirit of Bach and they present this spirit with such sincerity as to communicate their joy in it to their hearers. And thus the Bach Festival is at once an artistic event and a reli¬ gious service. Surely this doctrine and this example at Bethle¬ hem— typical steel city — have significance in the problems of our industrial age in which artistic expression must be fostered, in which religious feeling must be stirred—or the people perish. On this two-fold anniversary the good wishes of all who have at heart choral activity in the United States go to the musical pilot who this year reaches Port Sixty. Or, to change the figure, they salute the Happy Warrior, Who, not content that former worth stand fast, Looks forward, persevering to the last. From well to better, daily self-surpast. It has been Dr. Wolle’s capacity, in Cecil’s phrase, “ to toil terribly,” that has enabled him to know Bach as few musicians in the world know the master of masters. It was his iron ad- XVlll THE SILVER ANNIVERSARY herence to high aim that won the early Bethle¬ hem singers to attempt the “ B Minor Mass/’ It has been his leadership —dominating, suppli¬ cating, understanding, joyous, and utterly inspir¬ ing— that has brought his successive choruses up to the heights. Dr. Wolle and the Bach Choir have achieved by making the most of their opportunities right at home. And the artistic and spiritual message of this great conductor and his great chorus would seem to be this: That all ground is holy ground if we but see the burning bush. THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR I FROM PIONEER DAYS TO THE ERA OF STEEL N May 26 and 27, 1922, the Bach Choir gave the seventeenth Bach Festival in Packer Memorial Church, Lehigh University, Bethlehem. It is almost startling to consider that exactly one hundred and eighty years before, there took place in this community in eastern Pennsylvania, now world-renowned for its Beth¬ lehem steel plant, a Singstunde^ or service of song, which combined music and devotion as do the present Bach Festivals. Out of the yellow, hand-written pages of the “ Bethlehem Diary ” for June, 1742, treasured in the archives of the Moravian Church, there rises, as one reads the lines and between them, a visu¬ alization of the community’s forefathers assembled for this musical service — the ancestors in spirit. 3 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR if not in blood, of the Bach singers of to-day. Il¬ lustrative of the manner of men and women they were, are the gilt-framed portraits that surmount the bookshelves of the archives—paintings of clean-shaven, earnest-eyed brethren and of prim, devout sisters wearing the inevitable Schneppel- Hauhen, close-fitting caps against which Moravian femininity in 1815 waged successful rebellion. These portraits help to humanize the ‘‘ Diary ” ac¬ count of that notable Singstunde of 1742. There were eighty present to join in the singing under Count Zinzendorf, their gallant, fervent leader. They had just formed the first organization of the little settlement, and it was characteristic of them to have a service of praise and prayer and to sing both praise and prayer. ‘‘Singstunde’" is a word that dots the leaves of the “Bethlehem Diary.” A unique page in American musical history is furnished in annals that begin with this Sing¬ stunde of 1742 and come down to the Bach Festi¬ vals of to-day. In point of time and in measure of achievement, Bethlehem has had a remarkable record in music. It was a portent that the very name of the 4 FROM PIONEER DAYS community should be due to music. When, on Christmas Eve of the year preceding the 1742 Singstunde, Count Zinzendorf and his company assembled with the settlers in the first-built log house, the Count led in singing the Epiphany hymn w^hich includes the words: — “Not Jerusalem, Rather Bethlehem, Gave us that which Maketh life rich,— Not Jerusalem.” As Bishop Levering, the historian and transla¬ tor of the hymn, expressed it, these lines “came to the minds of the settlers, and by general con¬ sent the name of the ancient town of David was adopted.** The pioneers were descendants of the Unitas Fratrum of Moravia and Bohemia, a sect which maintains thehonor of having published, in 1505, the first hymn-book among Protestant churches. In the liturgy of the Moravian Church music had an important place. There was always insistence upon high standards in the Collegiu??! MusicuniyOV musical guild, of the Brethren in the Old World and in the New. 5 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR The early Puritans of New England restricted music to psalmody, abhorring instruments of ac¬ companiment. Different was the attitude of the Moravians of Pennsylvania. The ‘‘Church Me¬ morials of the earliest years in Bethlehem indi¬ cate steady use of the musical instruments that had been brought to America by members of the First Sea Congregation in 1742. On Christmas Day, 1743, the instruments, “ played for the first time in the house of God,” included the violin, viola da braccio, viola da gamba, flutes, and French horns. The “ Memorials ” of 1746 tell also how, at the burial of John Tschoop, first Indian convert of the Moravians, the “ remains were conveyed to the graveyard amid the strains of solemn music.” Further facts about early employment of mu¬ sical instruments are furnished in the “Bethlehem Diary.” The first spinet arrived from London on January 25, 1744. The “Diary” for that date, freely translated, reads: “The choir sang a little. . . . This evening a wagon came from [New] Brunswick with the spinet which Brother Nolden [Knolton] had sent the congregation from Lon¬ don. We rejoiced over it and made preparations 6 FROM PIONEER DAYS immediately to put it in order; and although very dilapidated we could use it the next day in the congregation to the praise of the Lamb/' In 1746 the spinet gave place to a small organ (Or- gel Positiv) brought from Philadelphia and set up by J. G. Klemm, a Moravian organ-builder. A large organ was installed when the present “ Old Chapel" was erected in 1751. Trombones were brought to Bethlehem from Europe in 1754. They were thereafter used at the sunrise Easter service in the cemetery, a service first held in April, 1744. In all the years since, in the sad¬ ness of death and in the joy of festal days, the trombone choir has had a peculiar place in Mo¬ ravian life. The passing away of members of the congregation and the hours of ‘‘ love feasts" and Holy Communion are announced by the playing of trombones. Tradition has it that such music once saved the town and its inhabitants. From their forest hiding-places Indians who had planned an attack one night in 1755 heard chorales played by the trombone choir and stole away, declaring that the Great Spirit surely guarded the white settlers. 7 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR One curious form of early church music in Bethlehem was polyglot singing, a practice fol¬ lowed among the Brethren in Europe. The ‘‘Diary,’’ dated September 14,1745, records that, at a love feast, the tune of “In Dulce Jubilo” was sung in thirteen languages, to the accom¬ paniment of wind and string instruments. These included languages of Europe familiar to the wor¬ shipers and various Indian dialects contributed by redskin converts. Such a service formed a striking token of the missionary spirit of a people whose activity in spreading the Gospel has, from earliest days to the present, been exceptional. It was, as has been said, characteristic of the Moravians to sing their praise and prayer. Like¬ wise it was characteristic that they taught singing to the Indians from the Shekomeko and other missions who were housed in cottages on the hill¬ side below the town. From these cottages — the “Tents of Peace” they were called—the Brethren above could hear the “songs of Zion,” chanted in the Mohican tongue at the morning and even¬ ing missionary services. The first formal musical organization was the 8 FROM PIONEER DAYS Bethlehem Collegium Musicum, a small body of “both vocalists and instrumentalists” who began their work, according to Bishop Levering, on December 13, 1744. Singers and players were drilled by the Reverend J. C. Pyrlaeus, a “scholar, musician, Indian linguist and missionary.” When Pyrlaeus was transferred to Gnadenhuetten the instruction was given by J. E. Westmann, “who devoted one hour each evening to the task.” The record of a meeting of the Collegium Musicum on January 14, 1748, shows that there were then fourteen members in the orchestra. Testimony is forthcoming from a high source as to the pro¬ ficiency of this orchestra in succeeding years. Benjamin Franklin, who is accounted in Arm¬ strong’s “ Record of the Opera ” as being one of the earliest amateur musicians of Philadelphia, told in his “Autobiography” of a visit to Bethlehem in 1756 when he “ was entertained with good music, the organ being accompanied with violins, haut¬ boys, flutes, clarinets, etc.” “Heard very fine music in the church,” was his comment in a letter to his wife. It is not wise, of course, to put too much stress 9 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR upon this praise from Franklin, to idealize the stonemasons, carpenters, farmers, and others who played and sang, as being musical artists. But there is certainly no exaggeration in crediting the real amateur spirit to men who, on the way to the harvest fields, along with their sickles and scythes, carried flutes, French horns, and cymbals. To the early Moravians music was a heritage and a bond; and their love for it was intensified by the loneli¬ ness of the forest-girt settlement that made prac¬ tice of this art a solace and a recreation. The attitude of the Moravians, and in particu¬ lar of their clergy, was in contrast with the hos¬ tility to music of other sects and sections. “ The Puritans prohibited instrumental music from pub¬ lic and private worship,'’ Dr. F. L. Ritter re¬ corded in his “Music in America." As Mr. Philip H. Goepp has made plain in “Annals of Music in Philadelphia," the Friends were, in the mat¬ ter of music, most unfriendly. “ The stolid Dutch burghers, even when well-to-do, cared little for ^concourse of sweet sounds,'" wrote Mr. H. E. Krehbiel concerning early New York, in “Notes on the Cultivation of Choral Music." Now, lo FROM PIONEER DAYS among the Moravians in Bethlehem music as a recreation and an art held the cordial sanction of the Church. Bishops and others of the clergy had desks with the laymen in the concert room. It is hardly to be questioned that this approval from the spiritual and material leaders of the church community was a factor in developing Bethlehem to the musical stature it early attained. Significant of the importance the Moravians attached to music was the prominence it had in programmes when distinguished visitors were present. The entertainment for Governor Ham¬ ilton on July 13, 1752, included selections in the church on the organ and on wind and stringed instruments, and also orchestral music during luncheon. ^‘The Choir rendered some fine music,’’ it is recorded in the ‘‘Diary” of 1782, at a service on the evening of July 25, when, “quite unexpect¬ edly and very quietly. His Excellency, General Washington, arrived here, accompanied by two aides-de-camp, but without escort.” General Washington heard organ selections and was ten¬ dered a serenade by the trombone choir. Martha THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Washington, on her way to Virginia in June, 1779, attended an evening service in Bethlehem and enjoyed the music of choir and orchestra. In an account of his travels in North America, 1780—82, Marquis de Chastellux, who came to America with the French under Rochambeau, referred to the organ-playing of Jacob Van Vleck at Bethlehem. The Marquis told how Van Vleck, who was Superintendent of the Brethren's House, performing on the instrument in that house, played “ some voluntaries in which he introduced a great deal of harmony and progressions of bass.” Van Vleck was not only an organist, but a composer. Other early composers of Bethlehem were George Neisser, the first schoolmaster and diarist, who wrote verses and set them to music, and C. F. Oerter, who arranged cantatas. Every effort was made to cultivate musical talent among the children. There was usually no charge for the instruction given the girls of the community at the Boarding-School and the Sister’s House, and to the boys at the Single Brethren’s House. It is recorded that, on November i, 1756, at 12 FROM PIONEER DAYS an assemblage of one hundred and ninety-nine boys and girls for examination in spelling, read¬ ing, and arithmetic, there was a programme of vocal and instrumental music by the classes under the direction of John Andrew Albrecht, the prin¬ cipal teacher of music. When the boys’ school was transferred to Nazareth Hall, at Nazareth, in June, 1759, an orchestra of boys under Al¬ brecht played at the head of the procession that marched toward the Nazareth road. Bethlehem then became the seat of the Mo¬ ravian Boarding-School for girls, — the first such school in America, — from which developed the Moravian Seminary and College for Women, where the Bach Choir now holds its fall and winter rehearsals. How music, both for devotion and pleasure, played its part in the life of the pupils in the Boarding-School of the earliest period is revealed in letters and diaries. Two letters of exceptional interest in this respect have recently been brought to light. Written by a girl of twelve years in the School at Bethlehem to her brother who was at¬ tending an academy in Connecticut, they were 13 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR printed in former New England publications which gave editorial introductions to them. The first letter, dated August i6, 1787, appeared in the New Haven Gazette and Connecticut Magazine,’’ from which it was copied in the “American Magazine” (edited by Noah Web¬ ster), and was translated into German in the “ Philadelphia Correspondenz ” : — There are about thirty little girls of my age. Here I am taught music both vocal and instrumental. I play the guitar twice a day; am taught the spinet and forte- piano, and sometimes I play the organ. The young correspondent outlined her studies and instruction in “ needlework, tambour, draw¬ ing, music, etc., till three, when school is out.” In telling her brother of the church services of the Moravians she wrote : — They sing enchantingly, in which they are joined with the bass-viols, violins and an organ. To call the people into the chapel four French horns are blown, with which you would be delighted.... After we are in bed, one of the ladies, with her guitar and voice, sere¬ nades us to sleep. The Moravian Christmas celebration of 1787 was described in a second letter (manifestly writ- H FROM PIONEER DAYS ten by this same girl) printed in the August, 1787, number of the “American Magazine,” and copied in the “ New Haven Gazette and the Connecticut Magazine ” : — We began with music. There were four violins, two flutes, and two horns, with the organ; which altogether sounded delightfully. The children sang one German and eight English verses.. .. Many of the neighboring inhabitants came to visit us and behold this scene of joy, a representation of the Nativity. We entertained them with music. A “Journal of Daily Events” was kept by some of the younger girls of the School. This is an entry in 1788 : — July 10. — Mr. Grube being from home, we had no singing school. During the hour Sister Sulamith enter¬ tained us sweetly with her guitar. The new spinet ar¬ rived from Philadelphia and misses from the first and second rooms went to Mr. Huebner’s to hear It. One of the girls began as follows her account of “ a day set apart in the Brethren’s Church for the religious improvement of children”: — August 17. — Early in the morning we were awakened by the sound of the guitar, accompanied by the voices of our tutoresses singing congratulatory hymns on the dawn of this festive day. At six the trombones from 15 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR the balcony of the Brethren’s House proclaimed our festival. At seven we assembled in the hall for morn¬ ing prayer. The records for 1792 show a charge of “^7 ioj*. for repairing and tuning the seven pianos and clavi¬ chords in the Boarding-School.” An invoice of music imported from Holland in this same year included, as the ‘‘History of the Moravian Semi¬ nary ” lists it— 7 sonatas by Haydn, pour le clavecin. 14 variations by Vanhal, pour le clavecin. 6 sonatas by Hoffmeister, pour le clavecin. Concerto by Hoffmeister, pour le clavecin. Concerto a quatre mains, by Giordani. Haydn’s sonatas a quatre mains. The Bethlehem records for this period illustrate what Mr. Krehbiel once set forth in his “Musical Comment” in the “New York Tribune”: — If America had been settled by barbarians our first music would have been barbarous. But the first settlers were not barbarians and consequently music came to every part of the country in precisely the same state as that which prevailed in the foreign communities from which the various sections were populated. The Brethren in Bethlehem kept in touch with musical progress abroad, obtaining new in- 16 FROM PIONEER DAYS struments as they were introduced there and like¬ wise new scores. All of the instruments used in European orches¬ tras of the period were included in an orchestra in Bethlehem in 1789, of which the membership was as follows : First violins, the Reverend Im¬ manuel Nitschman (leader), and the Reverend Jacob Van Vleck; second violins, Abraham Lev¬ ering and Matthias Witke; viola, Frederick Beck; violoncellos, David Weinland and Joseph Till; flutes, Samuel Bader and Joseph Oerter; oboes, James Hall and George Frederick Beckel; trum¬ pets, Tobias Boeckel and David Weinland; French horns, William Lempke and T. Boeckel. A bassoon was brought to Bethlehem in 1800 by John Frederick Bourquin, and in 1806 a new contra-bass was purchased at a cost of sixty-eight dollars, a large sum for those days. The first copies to reach America of Haydn’s quartets and symphonies were those brought to Bethlehem by the Reverend Mr. Nitschman. The “ Creation ” and the ‘‘ Seasons ” had in Beth¬ lehem their first renditions in this country. According to the late Rufus A. Grider, who 17 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR had the story from the Reverend Peter Ricksecker, a missionary, the Moravians in Bethlehem came into indirect touch with Haydn himself. This was through John Antes, a local wheelwright. Antes, after experiences as a missionary in Egypt, returned to Europe, and in Vienna was said to have met the great composer and to have played under him there. Grider’s “Historical Notes,” printed in 1873 and based, in part, upon records since lost, relate that “in 1795 a select party, con¬ sisting of the Reverend John Frederick FrueaufF, first violin ; George Frederick Beckel, second vio¬ lin ; John George Weiss, viola, and David Wein- land, ’cello, constituted an organization for per¬ forming Joseph Haydn’s quartets, then quite new.” The score of the “ Creation,” which reached the community in 1810, was rendered in the fol¬ lowing year. Fifteen orchestra players accom¬ panied the singers. Of outstanding musical ability among these players were David Moritz Michael, the leader, and John Ricksecker, first clarinet. The original of the Bethlehem “Creation” score, made by John Frederick Peters, is preserved 18 FACSIMILE OF THE l8ll BETHLEHEM SCORE OF HAYDN’S “ CREATION ” FROM PIONEER DAYS in the organ library of the Moravian Church, along with other scores of the same period—all models of neatness and accuracy. Mr. Louis C. Elson, in his‘‘ History of Ameri¬ can Music,” cites the Bethlehem rendition of the “Creation” and the earlier New York pre¬ sentations of HandeFs “ Messiah ” “ as possibly the earliest oratorio performances on American soil.” While selections from the “Creation” were included in the programme of a concert in St. Augustine’s Church, Philadelphia, in June, 181 o, it appears to be certain that the 1811 production in Bethlehem was the first in America on any¬ thing like a full scale. Mr. Philip H. Goepp, of Philadelphia, who mentioned the St. Augustine Church concert in “Annals of Music in Phila¬ delphia,” in a letter to the present writer ascribes credit to the Moravians of Bethlehem and de¬ clares that their performance “ was clearly the model for the subsequent production by the Mu¬ sical Fund Society in 1822, when Jedediah and Timothy Weiss and a third player came down from Bethlehem to play the trombones.” The Moravian rendition preceded by several years the 19 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR singing of a part of the ‘‘Creation” in King’s Chape], Boston, at the so-called “ Peace Jubilee ” in 1815, marking the close of the War of 1812. In “Annals of Music in Philadelphia,” Mr. Goepp held that, “in the eighteenth century, when Philadelphia easily surpassed New York in musical culture, the highest musical activity in the country existed in Bethlehem.” To which he has added, in the personal letter referred to, that Bethlehem, aside from the Haydn renditions, “ has other similar boasts that she has been slow in making, notably that of the production of Mozart’s symphonies within a few years of their composition. Think of a symphony orchestra in the 1790’s!” The personnel of this orchestra has already been given. Facts about the Mozart productions were brought out by Dr. Albert G. Rau, Dean of the Moravian College and Theo¬ logical Seminary and organist of the Moravian Church, in a talk before the Pennsylvania Society of Colonial Dames in Philadelphia in March, 1917: “Some of the early chamber music of Mozart and earlier symphonies were performed in the Brethren’s House at Bethlehem under the 20 FROM PIONEER DAYS direction of Immanuel Nitschman before 1790. Manuscript copies of six trios for strings and of three symphonies, preserved in the music archives of the Moravian Church are dated prior to 1785.” Later programmes that should be referred to in connection with Bethlehem’s early prominence in music are the first American productions of Haydn’s Seasons.” The Bethlehem Philhar¬ monic Society sang‘‘Spring” and “Summer ” in the community concert hall in 1834 and “Win¬ ter” and “Autumn” in 1835. It is possible that other performances of the “Seasons” may have been given earlier elsewhere, but all that the pres¬ ent writer has been able to discover are those of the old Musical Institute in New York City in September, 1846, and of the Handel and Haydn Society in Boston in May, 1874. Other premier Bethlehem productions of less notable compo¬ sitions were those given by the Bethlehem Phil¬ harmonic Society of Dr. Loewe’s oratorio, the “Seven Sleepers,” in 1833, and of Neukomm’s oratorio, “ David,” written for the Birmingham, England, Festival of 1834 and performed in Beth¬ lehem shortly after. 21 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR It is worth noting that the Moravian Church in Bethlehem, the home a century later of the early Bach Festivals, was, at the time of its erec¬ tion, one of the largest buildings in the country. At its consecration in May, 1806, more than two thousand persons assembled within its walls. The building of this church has significance in a musical way because it led to what was not customary before — choral music by mixed voices. In the Old Chapel there had been separate choirs of women and of men, who occupied galleries seventy feet apart. This was in accordance with the early economic division of the community into units as to sex. The gallery of the new church accommodated both choirs, and after 1806 wo¬ men and men sang there together. A comparison as to such conditions in New England at about the same time (1815) is afforded by a passage in the ‘‘ History of the Handel and Haydn Society’’: — Great opposition was made when it was proposed to have the melody sung by women, on the ground that men had a prescriptive right to lead, and that women were forbidden to take the first part in song or any other religious service. Solo singing by women was unheard 22 Photograph by H. B. Eggert VIEW FROM CEDAR SQUARE Photograph by H. B. Eggert CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS IN CHANCEL THE MORAVIAN CHURCH, BETHLEHEM FROM PIONEER DAYS of in churches, and did not become common in public until after it had been allowed in the concerts of the Handel and Haydn Society. First-hand evidence of the devotion to music among the Moravians a century ago was presented in the records of the concerts from 1807 to 1819, formerly kept in the Moravian Church archives — the book-lined, portrait-adorned ‘‘Kleine Saal,'' where rehearsals were held for a time. These original accounts of the treasurer of the orchestra are now unhappily not to be found, although copied excerpts are in Dr. Rau’s possession. It appears that, from 1807 to 1819, a total of two hundred and forty-one concerts were given. The largest number was thirty-six, in 1809, with ten as the smallest in 1816. There were twenty- eight in 1808, and twenty-four each in 1810, 1811, and 1813. That finances were no source of worry in those simpler days of a century ago is shown by these treasurers’ accounts. There were neither tickets nor admission charges. At a benefit concert in 1807 a collection of $ 19. i 5 was received, and this was considered a goodly sum. Near the door of 23 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR the concert hall was a green box upon which were the words, ‘‘For the Support of Music.” The largest receipts in any one year were $42.86 for the thirty-six concerts of 1809. The average for the concerts in thirteen years was $1.25. This was enough to pay for the copying of music and for instruments, new strings, and candles. In fact, so different an age from our own was it that, when the Collegium Musicum was reorganized as the Philharmonic Society in 1820, there was a bal¬ ance in the treasury —small, but a balance, never¬ theless— to be turned over to the new society. During the period of the Collegium Musicum, music of a lighter character was popular. Seren¬ ades by groups of young men were frequent, tak¬ ing rise in the early practice (first mention of it dates back to April, 1744) of singing hymns outside the buildings of the settlement each Satur¬ day evening. Members of the congregation were serenaded on their birthdays, and visitors were similarly honored. In the case of General Wash¬ ington, as has been shown, and other distinguished guests who tarried at the Sun Inn, the trombon¬ ists played selections as a mark of exceptional 24 FROM PIONEER DAYS respect. On summer evenings instrumental con¬ certs were often given from the balustrade of the Brethren’s House. “Harmony music” was writ¬ ten for these renditions by David Moritz Michael, an accomplished performer on violin, French horn, clarinet, and other instruments. It was Michael who composed the “ Boatride ” about i8i I, and then arranged for an actual ride up the Lehigh River in which the musicians played while seated in a large flat-bottomed boat propelled by four men, with long poles. The citizens of the town walked along the river-bank enjoying the strains of music as they came across the water. This boatride remained a holiday event on Whit-Monday afternoon for many years. A humorous story that reveals the attitude of the Moravian clergy of this period toward mu¬ sic of other than a religious nature was included in Grider’s “ Historical Notes.” On the evening before an important service a young clergyman heard the instrumental performers amusing them¬ selves in their lodging with music of a lively character. While dining next day, he asked one of the performers: — 25 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR “ Do you use the same instruments in church to play sacred music which you used last night?'’ ‘‘Yes, we use the same." Turning to an elderly clergyman, the young man asked: “What do you think. Brother, is it proper to do so?" To which the elder responded: — “Will you use the same mouth to preach with to-day which you now use in eating sausage?" Great as was the ardor of the Moravians for music, they came to know art's sad satiety. Fol¬ lowing that succession of two hundred and forty- one concerts in thirteen years, there was a lull about 1819. But instead of the anticipated de¬ mise, the Collegium Musicum, veteran of three quarters of a century, underwent a Faust-like transformation and stood forth with a new body and a new name. The reorganization of the Collegium Musicum into the Philharmonic Society took place in 18 20. This joint body of singers and players “bound themselves to pay twenty-five cents entrance fee, a yearly contribution of fifty cents and a fine of twelve and a half cents for non-attendance." An 26 FROM PIONEER DAYS active figure in the society was Bishop HuefFel, who ‘‘was a very superior performer” upon the violoncello and the piano. The orchestral prac¬ tising after 1822 was held in the present Mora¬ vian Preparatory School building. In 1827 the Old Chapel, remodeled for mu¬ sical and school functions, became the concert hall. There for many a season (the Philharmonic Society maintained life for nearly seventy years) programmes of high standard were presented. In 1821 there were eighteen Philharmonic concerts; in 1822, twenty-one; in 1823, eighteen; and in 1824, eight. The second Bethlehem performance of Haydn’s “Creation” took place on May 18, 1823, with seventy in the chorus and orchestra. The Ger¬ man text was sung. The treasurer’s accounts gave the receipts as $107.18, more than twice the expenses. Reference has already been made to the Phil¬ harmonic Society’s production of “ Spring ” and “Summer” in 1834 and “Winter” and “Au¬ tumn” in 1835. There was a third presentation of the “Creation” on May 20, 1839, a pro- 27 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR gramme of which is in the possession of Mr. Augustus H. Leibert. The participants then num¬ bered one hundred and twenty-five, under the direction of the late C. F. Beckel. ‘‘ Dwight’s Journal of Music” for June 29, 1855, contained an account of a production of the ‘‘ Creation ” at ‘‘ the Bethlehem Boarding-School, the second time this oratorio of Haydn had been performed by the pupils.” Popular with Bethlehem audiences were Loewe’s ‘‘Seven Sleepers,” sung, as has been said, in 1833, and repeated the next year; and the 1836 rendition of Schiller’s “Lay of the Bell,” with music by Romberg. In the early forties William T. Roepper, later Professor of Mineralogy and Geology in Lehigh University, became conductor of the Philhar¬ monic, and he served for thirteen years. Follow¬ ing a period in which attendance at the concerts dwindled, T. Windelkilde, a violinist, was made conductor in 1858. Two performances of the “Seven Sleepers” were given in 1863. In 1864 and 1865 there were three concerts of classical music. Among the soloists in the sixties was 28 FROM PIONEER DAYS Madame C. Dressier, who had earlier attained some note as a soprano at various courts of Europe. The record has now come down to within the recollection of the older citizens of Bethlehem. Professor William K. Graber, who for more than a half-century has been organist of the Church of the Holy Infancy, and is a member of the faculty of the Moravian Seminary and College for Women, was chosen conductor of the Philhar¬ monic Society in 1869. Within a few years he brought the membership up to sixty-two singers and an orchestra of twenty-six. Among the young Philharmonic members in those days was Dr. Henry S. Drinker, President of the Bethlehem Bach Choir, then a student in Lehigh University, of which he is now President. Concerts were given in the hall of what is now the Moravian Pre¬ paratory School, occasionally by the Philhar¬ monic Orchestra alone, but more regularly by the combined vocal and instrumental forces of the society. Professor Graber, who was the Phil¬ harmonic conductor for twenty years and leader also of the old Liederkranz, gives the following as the more important of the many compositions 29 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR represented in the miscellaneous programmes of this period: “Mass in C/* Beethoven; the “Seasons” and the “Creation,” Haydn; “Hymn of Praise,” Mendelssohn; “Stabat Mater,” Ros¬ sini; the “Last Judgment,’’Spohr; “Crusaders,” Gade; the “Seven Sleepers,” Loewe; “Paradise and the Peri,” Schumann; “Nod,” Saint-Saens. In the early eighties the chorus of the Phil¬ harmonic Society dwindled away and was dis¬ continued, the orchestra maintaining organiza¬ tion for some years later. To fill this gap in the town’s musical activities, Dr. J. Fred Wolle, then a young man of nineteen, organized the Bethle¬ hem Choral Union in 1882. Inasmuch as it was with the Choral Union that Dr. Wolle made the beginning of his Bach movement, a separate chapter will be devoted to the ten years of the Union’s existence. Detailed attention will, of course, be given to the organization that ulti¬ mately replaced the Choral Union and of which this book is an exposition — the Bethlehem Bach Choir. There are several organizations of the recent past and of the present whose sincerity of pur- 30 FROM PIONEER DAYS pose and devotion to genuine standards insures them a place in Bethlehem’s musical history. In the years from 1906 to 1911, when Dr. Wolle was in California, the mantle of leadership fell upon his former pupil, Mr. T. Edgar Shields. Mr. Shields founded the Oratorio Society of the Bethlehems in 1907. For five years the musical force of the community was kept active and alert through this body of one hundred and twenty- five singers. The oratorios rendered included Haydn’s “Creation,” Handel’s “Judas Macca- baeus,” Gounod’s “Redemption,” and Mendels¬ sohn’s “St. Paul.” In addition to the immediate artistic profit of such work was the immeasurable value of these singers, consecutively trained, to the Bach movement. When Dr. Wolle began reorganization upon his return from the Pacific Coast, Mr. Shields and his singers, with gener¬ ous spirit, voluntarily merged their society in the Bach Choir, of which Mr. Shields became and continues organist. Another organization of praiseworthy stand¬ ards was the former Bethlehem Choral Society, started as a church chorus in 1898 by Mr. David 31 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR G. Samuels, organist of Christ Reformed Church. In 1907 the original body of eighty was enlarged to one hundred and twenty-five voices, and Men¬ delssohn’s ‘‘ Elijah ” was given the following year. Owing to the ill-health at that time of the con¬ ductor, the society was discontinued. Mr. Sam¬ uels is now head of the Bethlehem School of Music, a thorough and thriving institution. Present-day musical societies include the Bee¬ thoven Maennerchor, founded in 1890, which is under the leadership of Mr. Hans Roemer, of the musical faculty of the Moravian Seminary and College for Women ; and the Bass Clef Club, begun in 1911 with Mr. I. H. Bartholomew as director, and now conducted by Mr. Shields. The part Mr. Charles M. Schwab has played in making the present Bach Festivals possible will be described in a later chapter. The same kind of generous support has been extended by the steel-master to the Lehigh Valley Symphony Orchestra, an organization of which Mr. Schwab and Mr. Warren A. Wilbur are the guarantors. Under Mr. Andrew M. Weingartner, an orches¬ tra of amateurs was started in 1905, and a con- 32 FROM PIONEER DAYS cert was given in the Moravian Preparatory School Hall. With Mr. Schwab’s backing a fund was raised by a group of guarantors, citizens of the neighboring cities of Allentown and Easton and Bethlehem, and arrangements were made to give two concerts in each locality. In recent years Allentown has developed its own symphony orchestra and Easton has made a beginning. The Lehigh Valley Symphony Orchestra is, therefore, now an organization of the city of Bethlehem. Under its president. Dr. Albert G. Rau, Dean of the Moravian College, an able musical scholar, and Conductor Weingartner, the orchestra has labored earnestly and intelligently, so that for thirteen seasons programmes have been played worthy of the best Bethlehem traditions. Thanks to the generosity of Messrs. Schwab and Wilbur, the soloists for the symphony concerts have in¬ cluded these artists : Mine. Schumann-Heink, Mme. Sembrich, Mme. Alda, Mme. Homer, Mme. Gluck, Mme. Samaroff, Fritz Kreisler, Zimbalist, Josef Hoffman, Mischa Elman, Er¬ nest Schelling, and Alessandro Bonci. Mr. Schwab takes pride in a distinctive 33 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR feature of his great plant in Bethlehem, the Bethlehem Steel Company Band. It is pertinent here to recall that band music in Bethlehem ex¬ tends back for more than a century. In the same year 1809, in which David Moritz Michael or¬ ganized a military band for the annual Whit- Monday boatride, the Columbian Band was formed. The Moravians who constituted it thus fulfilled their service under the military laws of the State, which then required all males between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years to exer¬ cise in military tactics twice a year, or pay a fine. From twelve members the Columbian Band grew to twice that many, and later included some of the prominent citizens of Bethlehem. They fur¬ nished military music at battalion parades of the Ninety-seventh Regiment of Pennsylvania Mili¬ tia. There was a Bethlehem Brass Band from 1839 to 1843 parade music of which was good, according to Mr. Richard W. Leibert, a citizen of eighty-six years), and a similar organ¬ ization, the Bethlehem Cornet Band (Beckefs Band), from 1861 on. The old Fairview Band, led by Mr. Edward Groman, and the Bethlehem 34 FROM PIONEER DAYS Band (descendant of the Cornet Band) were later developments of local talent. Local players likewise make up Mr. Schwab’s Bethlehem Steel Company Band of to-day — all of them employees in the steel works. There are about one hundred members under Mr. Wein- gartner, director, equipped by Mr. Schwab with the finest instruments obtainable. For the re¬ hearsals of the players and for their comfort the steel-master has furnished a practice hall and clubhouse in Bethlehem. Since its organization in September, 1910, the Bethlehem Steel Com¬ pany Band has made concert trips each season to Pennsylvania cities. The band played, for ex¬ ample, at a great patriotic mass meeting in Har¬ risburg in the spring of 1917, when Ambassador Gerard spoke. It marched at the head of the Liberty Loan Parade in New York City in Octo¬ ber, 1917. An annual event is the concert given by the band in Central Park, New York, in August. II THE BEGINNINGS OF BACH SINGING IN BETHLEHEM OR a Study of the social process as exem- pliiied in a single civic group, Bethlehem’s musical history, as it has been outlined in the preceding chapter, would afford interesting mate¬ rial. A sociologist of the environmental school could cite geographical factors: the immediate isolation of the Moravian pioneers which made music a recreation and solace, and the relative nearness to seaports which made possible connec¬ tion with musical activities abroad. A sociologist following LeBon could ascribe Bethlehem’s mu¬ sic to the common psychical heredity or “soul” of a social group which to this day maintains some¬ thing of the early communistic aspect. The socio¬ logical viewpoint expressed in Bagehot’s words, “ The greatest minds of an age ... set the tone which others take,” could find abundant instances in the line of Bethlehem’s musical leaders from Count Zinzendorf down to Dr. J. Fred Wolle. 36 BEGINNINGS IN BETHLEHEM To attempt a sociological study would be out¬ side the scope of the present work. But an ac¬ count of the development of Bach singing in Bethlehem can hardly ignore two of the factors just indicated. From its earliest days, as has been shown, mu¬ sical aptitude was a heritage of the Moravian con¬ gregation— a common psychical heritage, the LeBon sociology would term it. Moreover, the music of the hymnology handed down to the Beth¬ lehem Brethren was precisely that upon which Bach, writing for his Lutheran church choirs in Leipsic, had built his chorales and other com¬ positions. It was with a sense of old acquaintance that the Bethlehem organist. Dr. Wolle, studying in Munich as a youth, first heard Bach sung on a large scale. A miraculous leap it seemed back to the Moravian Church at home. The inspiration Dr. Wolle then felt to spread the tidings of Bach explains the beginning of Bach singing in Bethlehem. It began in entire accordance with Tarde’s dictum that “forces always arise from one person, from a single cen¬ ter.” The process followed the definition of 37 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR William James, ‘‘ Initiatives on the part of in¬ ventors, great or small, and imitation by the rest of us — these are the sole factors active in human progress/’ Without this individual initiative the Bach Choir and the Bach Festivals of to-day would almost certainly never have existed. Likewise, without imitation by others, — intelligent, de¬ voted, and generous co-workers,—the Choir and the Festivals would certainly not have persisted. A sketch of Dr. Wolle’s boyhood and youth is given in a later chapter. It is pertinent here to refer to his earliest effort along choral lines, the organization of a chorus of girls. He directed two performances by them of a cantata, “The Flower Queen,” on September 4 and 25, 1882. “We hope that Mr. Wolle will be encouraged to bring out something more elaborate,” said the “ Bethlehem Times ” in its report of the success of this chorus. The youthful conductor was so encouraged. The Philharmonic Society, dating from 1820, continued in existence, but only as an orchestra. So, to fill the gap in the vocal activities of the town, Dr. Wolle organ¬ ized the Bethlehem Choral Union. 38 BEGINNINGS IN BETHLEHEM An account of the Choral Union’s first con¬ cert in public in Moravian day school hall last evening,” appeared in the “ Bethlehem Times ” of March 28, 1883. The singers gave “ He that Hath a Pleasant Face” (J. S. Hatton), “ Cradle Song” (Henry Smart), and ‘‘Humpty Dumpty,” a glee (A. J. Caldicott), which constituted the first part of the programme. Then came parts one and two of Haydn’s ‘‘ Creation,” which had not been heard in Beth¬ lehem for many years. The “Times” report said: — The choristers were frequently applauded at the conclusion of some attractive air or melodious chorus, particularly among the latter being the one commenc¬ ing “ The heavens are telling the glory of God.” J. Frederick Wolle, the musical director of the Choral Union, wielded the baton with precision and tact. When Dr. Wolle went to Munich in 1884, his father’s cousin, the late Theodore F. Wolle, then organist of the Moravian Church, took over the Choral Union, and under him its work continued during the year and a half the con¬ ductor was abroad. 39 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Of the twenty-one concerts that the Choral Union gave during the ten years of its existence, many were devoted to Handel, Haydn, Men¬ delssohn, and others. The one of vital interest for this record was the singing, on June 5, 1888, of Bach’s ‘‘St. John Passion” music, the pre¬ mier complete rendition in America. Dr. Wolle had come back from Germany enthusiastic about the choral work of Bach. His own enthusiasm gradually permeated the Choral Union so that the hundred and fifteen singers followed him in his enterprise of rendering the “St. John Passion” for the first time in this country. That it was the first time a letter from Carl Zerrahn, of Boston, attested. Mr. Zerrahn, then conductor of the Boston Handel and Haydn Society, wrote Dr. Wolle that his society had given only a few fragments of the work and had no claim to prior rendition. The “Bethlehem Times” account (June 6, 1888) includes these paragraphs: — The choral outbursts, which are a striking feature of the “ Passion,” were probably the most difficult parts, but were rendered with the same perfection and 40 BEGINNINGS IN BETHLEHEM brilliant effect which marked the more elaborate cho¬ ruses and the gloriously expressive chorales which punctuated the “ Passion.” As usual, the work of the chorus was very superior and showed a keen apprecia¬ tion of the solemn majesty of the work as well as great musical skill. The orchestra did its duty quite satis¬ factorily, even though weak in numbers, and the piano parts were taken care of by Mrs. Wilson. In short, the whole work of the Choral Union, under Professor Wolle's admirable leadership, was of that very high standard which has always marked its work and given it a more than local reputation as a first-class musical organization. The solo parts were admirably sung by Miss Mar¬ garet A. Nevins, of Catasauqua, the soprano; Mrs. W. L. Estes, the contralto; Wm. Hamilton, the tenor; and C. T. Bender and W. P. Thomas, the basso parts; and the organ accompaniments were handled by Professor Wolle. The difficulties which Dr. Wolle had in maintaining interest in the Choral Union are suggested in an article in the ** Times ” of No¬ vember 15, 1890, in which a member of the staff wrote of the Choral Union director : — I asked him about the Bach music the other day, and he warmed up as enthusiastically as a horticultur¬ ist over a new chrysanthemum. “ In becoming sub¬ scribers to the Choral Union,” he said, “ the public 41 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR need not fear but that in every way the ‘Passion* music is worthy of their support. While, undoubtedly to many minds the name of Bach carries with it the idea of dryness and abstruseness, Bach’s biographer, Spitta, says in a few words enough to dispel such an impression. Here it is: “‘St. Matthew Passion,” as a whole, is, in a remarkable degree, a popular work. . . . With all its profundity, breadth, and wealth, and in spite of all the art lavished upon it, it never belies the lucidity and simplicity which are its mainstay. . . . The contrast which it presents to the gloomy “ St. John Passion” (which the Choral Union produced two years ago) is a marked one. It surpasses that in many respects.’ ” The present status of the Choral Union and the “ Passion ” music is rather precarious. I believe Pro¬ fessor Wolle’s enthusiasm, if nothing else, will carry both of them through. It was not until April, 1892, that the “St. Matthew Passion '* was accomplished. The Choral Union was augmented for the occasion by choir boys of the chapel of Lehigh Univer¬ sity and by members of the singing classes of the Moravian schools. There was a “ double orchestra,’* which included a number of Lehigh students. “ The soloists were Miss Margaret A. Nevins, soprano, Catasauqua; Mrs. W. L. Estes, con- 42 BEGINNINGS IN BETHLEHEM tralto. South Bethlehem; and Messrs. William H. Rieger, tenor; Perry Averill, baritone; and Carl E. Martin, bass. New York.’’ The organist was the late Samuel P. Warren, of Grace Church, New York City, under whom Dr. Wolle had studied. ‘‘Why, I had no idea you were so thoroughly trained,” Mr. Warren told the singers at their final rehearsal, as re¬ ported in the “ Times.” The report of the rendition in the former “ South Bethlehem Star ” said: — Particularly in the chorales, ten of which beautify the composition, were the power and perfection of the chorus heard with the finest effect — a result probably due in great measure to the fact that the Moravian hymn tunes, with which the singers are familiar, par¬ take largely of the full harmony, slow movement, and rhythmic division which characterize the chorales. The admirable training of the voices and the skill of the conductor were seen to advantage also in the double choruses. And then Dr. Wolle proposed to his singers of the Choral Union that they undertake Bach’s greatest work, the “ Mass in B Minor.” They looked it over and their ardor wilted. 43 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR The “ Mass*' was colossally hard. They wanted to sing easier things. Their conductor was ada¬ mant; it was to be the “B Minor Mass** or nothing. It was nothing, as far as the Choral Union was concerned. The Union quietly passed out of existence. In 1892-93 there was a Beth¬ lehem Oratorio Society. Then, for five years, there was no organized chorus in Bethlehem. Dr. Wolle meanwhile trained his Moravian Church Choir (he was or¬ ganist of the Moravian Church, 1885-1905, and of Lehigh University, 1887-1905), so that, on December 18, 1894, the church singers, assisted by others, gave parts of Bach's “ Christmas Ora¬ torio." This sagging of the community's musical mo¬ rale was remedied through initiatives on the part of inventors, to repeat Professor James's phrase, — the inventors being a group of ladies headed by the late Ruth Porter Doster, wife of General W. E. Doster. They had organized a club to sing and to study, and they asked Dr. Wolle to lead and instruct them. His refusal to direct any chorus in Bethlehem that would not give Bach 44 BEGINNINGS IN BETHLEHEM served as a challenge. Mrs. Doster, assisted by some of the other ladies, canvassed the singers of Bethlehem and vicinity in the fall of 1898. They won converts to the project of attempting the “ B Minor Mass,” so that, with the choir of the Moravian Church as a nucleus, a chorus of about eighty singers was organized on Decem¬ ber 5 of that year. Although in a larger sense Dr. Wolle was the founder of the Bach Choir, he and others have always paid tribute to Mrs. Doster as being the immediate organizer and as an invaluable factor in the early Festivals. She was a musician of un¬ common ability. The daughter of General Josiah Porter, of New York, she spent six years in mu¬ sical study in Germany and four in Switzerland. Her training was under leading masters and she became a brilliant pianist. She was a diligent and sound student of Bach's music. Mrs. Doster headed the Executive Committee which made the arrangements for the first Bach Festival in 1900. The others on this committee were Miss Lucy A. Brickenstein, Miss Evelyn Chandler (now Mrs. Ralph R. Hillman), Mr. 45 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Milton J. Shimer, and Mr. Ralph R. Hillman. In the formal organization of the Bach Choir on April 2, 1900, after the first Festival, the fol¬ lowing were elected as officers and they served up to the discontinuance of the Choir in 1905: President, Mr. Ralph R. Hillman, now of Buf¬ falo, New York, who while a student at Lehigh had sung in Dr. Wolle’s University Choir; Vice- President, Dr. William S. Franklin, for many years Professor of Physics at Lehigh; Treasurer, Mr. Milton J. Shimer, a leading member of the old Choral Union; Secretary, Mrs. Doster; Re¬ cording Secretary, Mr. Howard J. Wiegner; Li¬ brarian, Mr. Clinton F. Zerweck. The Mem¬ bership Committee comprised Miss Brickenstein, Miss Chandler, Miss Martha H. Wunderling, Miss Helen E. Shields, Mr. E. H. Wilhelm, Mr. F. A. Sterling, and Mr. S. A. Sten Hammar. Dr. William Frederic Bade, then a member of the Faculty of the Moravian College and Theolog¬ ical Seminary, was Chairman of the Programme Committee. Recruits were called for in a public letter which Dr. Wolle printed in the ‘‘Bethlehem Times 46 BEGINNINGS IN BETHLEHEM on September 22, 1899, in which he appealed for a membership “ absolutely representative of the musical resources of this community/’ The time limit for the admission of new members was fixed as October 2. Dr. Wolle wrote: — This early closing of the list is necessitated by the nature of the self-imposed task. The “ Mass,” owing to its huge proportions, its well nigh insuperable diffi¬ culties, and the almost inaccessible height of artistic plan, makes unusual demands and will yield to noth¬ ing short of complete surrender of the singers’ time, industry and patience. The question whether in any sense of the word it pays to devote one’s self so thor¬ oughly to the performance of a work beset with obsta¬ cles can best be answered by those members of the chorus who, since last December, have braved the dif¬ ficulties, and who, with keen artistic insight, doubtless ere this have had revealed to them unsuspected beauties in unlooked for places in this veritable masterpiece of unspeakable power and imperishable glory. Throughout the fall and winter of 1899 the early months of 1900, the Choir forces laid further siege to the mountainous “Mass in B Minor.” Their leader had now developed a method of attack that proved effective and which has come to be regarded since as a valuable con¬ tribution to the art of choral teaching. This was 47 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Dr. Wolle’s scheme, in studying a new chorus, of starting the singers at the end of the chorus instead of at the beginning, and similarly at the close instead of at the opening of each main pas¬ sage of the chorus. The method and its results are described in Chapter vi of this book. But more important than method was the en¬ thusiasm Dr. Wolle was able to stir and to main¬ tain in his forces. It was spirit that won the first campaign as it has won at each Festival since. With the conquering of technical difficulties the singers found mastery of the heights all and more than their leader had promised. And then, after fourteen months of preparation. Dr. Wolle decided that the Choir was ready. The date fixed for the production was Tuesday, March 27, 1900; the place, the Moravian Church. Ill THE BACH FESTIVALS I900-I905 I T was a happy circumstance that the organiza¬ tion of the Bach Choir came when it did, be¬ cause time was afforded to make the first of the Bethlehem Bach Festivals an anniversary occasion. Johann Sebastian Bach died in 1750. The old Bach Society, founded a hundred years after his death, in 1900 finished its half-century task of publishing a complete edition of the works of the master. On January 27, 1900, the New Bach Society was organized with headquarters at Leip- sic. This event and the significance of the year as the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of Bach's death were marked by Bach festivals in Germany and in England. Bethlehem had the honor, not only of giving the ‘‘ Mass in B Minor its first complete American rendition, but, in so doing, of leading this country in the productions of Bach music that marked this anniversary. The Oratorio Society of New York followed in April 49 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR with the “ Mass/' which was also given by The Cecilia Society of Boston in December, 1901, by the Choral Society of Philadelphia in April, 1902, and at the Cincinnati May Festival in May, 1902. THE FIRST BACH FESTIVAL, 1 9OO The first Bethlehem rendition of the ‘‘ B Minor Mass " took place in the Moravian Church on Tuesday, March 27, 1900, the “ Kyrie " and the ‘‘Gloria " at 4 p.m. and the “ Credo," the “Sanc- tus," the “Benedictus," and the “Agnus Dei" at 8 P.M. Each service was announced by the playing of the Moravian Trombone Choir from the belfry of the church. There were eighty sing¬ ers in the chorus, and thirty players in the ama¬ teur orchestra which furnished the accompani¬ ment. The soloists were Miss Katherin Hilke, of New York, and Miss Lucy A. Brickenstein, of Bethlehem, sopranos; Mrs. W. L. Estes, of South Bethlehem, contralto; Mr. Nicholas Douty, of Philadelphia, tenor; Mr. Arthur Beresford, of Boston, bass. The performance was conducted by Dr. Wolle from the organ bench. Dr. Wolle played the organ accompaniment at times. 50 THE FIRST BACH FESTIVAL Although there were a number of prominent music-lovers of New York and Philadelphia in the congregation, no important critics were in attendance. An unbiased opinion as to the merit of the rendition was that of Mr. F. H. Comstock, Treasurer of the Oratorio Society of New York, who declared: “ The Choir was letter perfect and Professor Wolle has done wonderfully well.’’ Similarly interesting was the comment of Mr. Beresford, the bass soloist, in a paper he read before The Cecilia Society of Boston, printed in the “Boston Evening Transcript” of November 23, 1901 : — There is no exaggeration in saying that seldom has any chorus shown such splendid enthusiasm and wih lingness to work as did these people, handicapped as they undoubtedly were. The loyal tenacity with which they stuck to their self-imposed task was beyond praise. The singers in every part devoted three evenings each week to the study of the work, and in addition to this many of the better musicians and people of leisure formed classes, meeting at various houses during the day and going over the more difficult passages together. Such whole-hearted devotion was bound to be fruitful of results and it undoubtedly accounted for something which I noticed during the performance and which greatly surprised me at the time. That was that quite a SI THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR large number in the chorus appeared to be wholly in¬ dependent of their copies and were evidently singing the difficult music from memory. This familiarity with the work rendered it comparatively easy for the con¬ ductor, as he was always sure of their keen attention, and it further made them as a body flexible to his sig¬ nals for expression. The chorus, however, were not the only people who had worked hard and faithfully to make the occasion a success. The greater part of the orchestra consisted of amateur talent, and while they were not nearly so suc¬ cessful in the aggregate as the singers, they yet deserved praise for much fine work under the depressing condi¬ tions of inadequate space and unfavorable positions, necessitated by the limitations of the small choir gallery which chorus and orchestra occupied. Although before and immediately after the first rendition of the “Mass’’ no considerable outside attention was given to it, the news of the achieve¬ ment spread during the year following. By the time of the 1901 Festival, the American music public had heard a good deal about the Bethle¬ hem Choir, its initial success and its proposed larger undertaking in a three-days Festival. THE SECOND BACH FESTIVAL, I9OI In the detached retrospect made possible by the passing of years, the outstanding impression 52 THE SECOND BACH FESTIVAL produced by re-reading the newspaper and maga¬ zine accounts of the second Bach Festival is one of sheer amazement at its success. This, for example, is an extract from the re¬ view of Mr. H. E. Krehbiel in the “New York Tribune’* of May 24, 1901: — Mr. Wolle’s singers accomplished miracles to-day. There were moments when the dramatic climaxes were reached when they struck like a thunderbolt, and al¬ ways they kept the critical listeners in a maze by the promptness of their attack, their easy mastery of the music and the wonderful cleanness with which they pre¬ sented the web and woof of the choral fabric. ... It is doubtful whether any previous performance in America was comparable with it — certainly none that I have heard. In his report in the “New York Times,” of which he was then music critic, Mr. William J. Henderson wrote on May 25 : — Such choral singing is indeed rare, and to hear it is a privilege. Bach never wrote anything more glorious than the “Sanctus** of this mass, and if he could have heard it sung as it was to-night it would have brought tears of joy to his eyes. It was a performance in which the sublimity of the music was perfectly disclosed. It is impossible to say more than that. 53 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Tributes like these were the judgments passed upon the offerings to which Dr. Wolle and his Choir had devoted many months of study and practice. It was a success that more than com¬ pensated the conductor for his years of Bach hope deferred. The programme of this second Festival was made up of a grouping of the works already ren¬ dered in Bethlehem under Dr. Wolle in 1892, in 1894, and in 1900, a series that presented as well a unified religious idea — the sacred narratives of the manger and the cross and the human appeal to a risen Redeemer. The programme was: — "Thursday^ May 23. The “Christmas Oratorio**; Parts I, II, and III at 4 p.m.; Parts IV, V and VI at 8 P.M. Friday^ May 24. The “ Passion, according to St. Matthew*’; Part I at 4 p.m.; Part II at 8 p.m. Saturday^ May 25. The “Mass in B Minor”; the “ Kyrie ” and the “Gloria” at 4 p.m.; the “ Credo” to the end at 8 p.m. Parts of the “ Christmas Oratorio had been sung, as has been told, in 1894 by Dr. Wolle*s Moravian Church Choir and friends. Other choruses had given various parts of it; the Han- 54 THE SECOND BACH FESTIVAL del and Haydn Society of Boston, the Cincin¬ nati Festival Choir under Theodore Thomas, and the Musical Art Society in New York under Frank Damrosch. This performance at the 1901 Bethlehem Festival was the first complete American production. The historical importance thereby attached to it was recognized by Mr. Henderson and Mr. Krehbiel in their detailed discussion of the traits of “a novelty a century and a half old.’’ It may be said here, parenthetically, that the work of both of these gentlemen in reporting the second Bach Festival attracted attention at the time as representative of their best journalistic powers. The literary as well as the musical value of their reports makes interesting the long quotations that follow. Mr. Krehbiel, in the ‘‘Tribune” of May 23, presented a sketch of the character and genesis of the “ Oratorio ” that “ better than any other of the master’s great choral works . . . discloses the amiable side of his genius.” There is nothing in it of the dramatic power which marks the Passion music, and little to suggest the 55 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR amazing contrapuntal skill which makes the “ B Minor Mass’’ an artistic structure comparable with the Ca¬ thedral at Cologne; but it is full of ingratiating glimpses into the ingenuous fancy of the old master—warm and fecund, though informed with the naivete of a child. It is full of Christmas happiness, the happiness of children contemplating the Holy Child and the tributes of angelic hosts and Eastern kings. In struc¬ ture it is like the “Passions.” It was laid out on the lines of the old mysteries, and it preserves, in one number, at least, a relic of the dramatic mummery which filled the churches in mediaeval times. And this number helps to accentuate its pastoral simplicity. Mr. Krehbiers telegraphed account of the first day’s sessions of the Festival from which the foregoing extract is taken, began: — Bethlehem, Penn., May 23. This little town, using the adjective as a term of endearment, is to-day enjoy¬ ing a unique experience, which, in the course of time, is bound to give it also a unique distinction. A century ago travelers came here by the score to study the quaint institutions of the Moravian settlement, whose reli¬ gious zeal, combined with industry and thrift, had already made the place famous. In many respects the old order has changed, giving place to the new, and to-day visitors are here by the hundred to attend a three days’ festival of Bach’s music. They are a seri¬ ous-minded folk, these visitors, and find as much cause for wonderment as did their predecessors of a century ago, and rightly. 56 THE SECOND BACH FESTIVAL The Bach Festival is as great an anomaly to-day as were the Moravian institutions of primitive times, and to be appreciated ought to be approached in a similar spirit of reverence. That spirit, however, could scarcely be wanting even in the most casual observer. The town has taken a holiday. Sauntering up and down the shaded streets are scores of men and women carrying vocal scores of Bach’s music, and, the weather being warm, the social attitude of the community unconven¬ tional, and the purpose of the multitude one, singers and visitors are all in festal garb and festal mood. The Second Festival of the Bach Choir has begun, and begun auspiciously. From a severely critical point of view the doings of the day were not momentous; but the severely critical point of view is not that which prevails. The feeling is rather one of admiration for the spirit which could prompt such an undertaking, and of delight in the harmonious cooperation of the elements concerned. The people heard the “Christmas Oratorio” to-day, and heard it under circumstances which made the occasion more than a mere concert of unfamiliar music. They were summoned into the old church by a choir of trombones playing a famous old German chorale in the belfry. It was an unconven¬ tional summons, but a lovely one, and its fitness came with particular force to those who could recognize in it the music of a gladsome Christmas hymn that Luther wrote for the edification of his own children. In the performance itself there were other reminders of the functions which gave rise to the music. The audience was a congregation in thought, feeling, and 57 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR conduct. It not only listened to the glad musical tid¬ ings, but participated in their proclamations. All the hymns interspersed in the oratorio were sung by the people, who rose to their feet for each occasion. I had seen the experiment tried years before at a perform¬ ance of Bach’s “ St. Matthew’s Passion ” in Boston, but what was a failure then was a triumphant success here. There the chorales were musical compositions which had to be laboriously read at sight by those who essayed to sing. Here, so far as the tunes were con¬ cerned, they were as household words to the over¬ whelming majority of the listeners, and the refreshment which they brought was as great as the artistic enjoy¬ ment was keen. The forces, a choir of something above a hundred voices and an orchestra of half the number, occupied the organ gallery in the rear of the church, and follow¬ ing the example of Bach, Mr. J. Fred Wolle conducted and also played the accompaniments to the recited narrative on a pianoforte. This distribution of the forces, the fact that the work was given in its integrity, and the serious spirit in which the work was given and received (the approval of the audience being manifested in its active participation in the hymns instead of ap¬ plause) stamped the affair with a character absolutely unique in the history of choral festivals in America. Mr. Henderson, whose report appeared in the New York Times’’ and the old “ Philadelphia Times” of May 24, declared: — 58 THE SECOND BACH FESTIVAL There are passages in the “ Christmas Oratorio ’’ which tax the sustaining power of the most skilled body of singers, but these Moravian choristers dis¬ posed of them with an equanimity and a successful treat¬ ment of long and involved ornamental phrases, seldom equalled and certainly not excelled. This, it must be said, is the result of long and arduous rehearsal. To¬ day witnessed the fruits of Mr. Wolle’s careful culti¬ vation of his forces. They did the work for which he had prepared them and they did it well. . . . The audience was most attentive, and the effect of the performance in the quaint old church, with the western sun streaming through the windows, and the faint echoes of the town murmuring a pedal point, was all that the most devoted lover of Bach could wish. The atmosphere of a service was excellently preserved, and only the hot weather prevented one from fancying himself not far from the Thomas Church of Leipsic. To-morrow, when the music is less unfamiliar, there will be wider opportunity to study the precise value of the festival. But there need be no hesitation in saying now, that it is a remarkable achievement for Bethlehem. The performance occupied just four hours, two each session, but the effect was not at all tiresome. As at Bay¬ reuth, the interval for dinner refreshed the spirit as well as the body. The scenes around the church and in the streets also reminded one of the shrine of Wagnerism. People came and went bareheaded and stood in social groups to hear the trombones in the belfry play the choral summons to the performance. To-night it seemed as if half the young people of the town must have as- 59 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR sembled around the church to hear the music without charge. The singing of the chorales by the audience was fairly successful. The ‘‘St. Matthew Passion/' sung on the sec¬ ond day of the Festival, did not engage attention by virtue of novelty as did the first day's offering. But this “greatest of the three Passions which survive of the five Bach wrote," furnished the Bethlehem singers a more gracious opportunity than the “ Christmas Oratorio." The way in which they carried it through is shown in the tone of all of the criticisms. Mr. Henry Gordon Thunder, the Philadelphia conductor, writing in the “Philadelphia North American," compared the rendition with that of the preceding day: — The work itself is greater, more sublime, and, as said above, the performance also reached a higher plane of perfection. The magnificent chorus still carried off the first honors easily for its enthusiastic conductor, T. Fred Wolle. The difficult and most expressive initial number, “Come, ye daughters," for double chorus, boy choir, organ and orchestra, was truly grand. The antiphonal effect of the two choirs on opposite sides of the church, while the boys sang the chorale in unison, was one of 6o THE SECOND BACH FESTIVAL the most thrilling performances of choral work that can be imagined. Mr. Harvey M. Watts, now of the “Philadel¬ phia Public Ledger*’ staff, then with the “Phila¬ delphia Press,” wrote: — Mr. Wolle, by the extraordinary drill which he has given the choir, and the choir, by the more extraordi¬ nary patience which it has shown in becoming letter and note perfect in the music, have completely overcome all difficulties so far as the local forces go and meet all the emergencies of range and pitch and theme and dynamics, but to solve them. In his review in “The Musician,” Mr. Fred¬ eric S. Law said: — Mr. Wolle’s choir pursued their way unfalteringly, keeping on the same high plane throughout. The short choruses, the so-called Turbae, representing the popu¬ lace, especially the bloodthirsty cry of “ Barabbas ! ” were delivered with a dramatic fervor and clearly cut outline which left nothing to be desired. Then there was Mr. Henderson’s comment in the “New York Times”: — Three days of Bach madness would be impossible in New York or Philadelphia. Here it seems natural. There does not seem to be any reason why one should not drop into Bethlehem any day and hear perform¬ ances of Bach going on in the Moravian Church, with 6l THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR the white-gowned women singing out their hearts, the oboes and flutes pipingtheir restful measures, the strings weaving their endless web of polyphony, the organ dron¬ ing its ground bass, and Mr. Wolle conducting with streaming brow and quivering hands. The lovely natu¬ ralness of it all speaks volumes for the soundness of the musical taste in Bethlehem. Those who have come to this festival will go away refreshed and strengthened in their musical faith, and there is no reason why the Bach performances here should not become an annual feature. The performance of the “ St. Matthew Passion ” to¬ day was a notable achievement. It had moments of real greatness, and these, of course, were in the work of the ensemble. Mr. Wolle, who appears to be a pupil of the Rheinberger school of Bach interpretation, be¬ lieves in letting the music make its own effect, except in closing cadences, to which he invariably applies a ritardando. This becomes monotonous in the course of a long performance. The different ideas of the solo¬ ists in regard to the employment of the appoggiatura are confusing, and it would add much to the general effect of Bach performances if a tradition were estab¬ lished in regard to this matter. A careful study of the harmonic basis would provide satisfactory grounds for decisions as to its use. In to-day’s performance one soloist used the appoggiatura constantly and two others not at all. Mr. KrehbiePs ‘‘Tribune” account contained the words already quoted about the manner in which “Mr. Wolle’s singers accomplished mir- 62 THE SECOND BACH FESTIVAL acles to-day/’ It contained also queries as to some of Dr. Wolle’s readings, — the tempo, the “broad ritardando” and “treating every appoggiatura in the instrumental parts as an acciaccatura.” A discussion of the historical background of the “B Minor Mass” as presented by Mr. Hen¬ derson in his report on the 1915 Bach Festival at Lehigh University, is quoted later in this volume. His special dispatch to the “New York Times” and the “Philadelphia Times,” upon the rendi¬ tion of the Mass at the second Festival began : — Bethlehem, May 25. The Bach Festival came to an end to-night in the Moravian Church with the second complete performance here of the “B Minor Mass.” The first was given on March 27,1900, when the soloists were Miss Katherin Hilke, soprano; Mrs. W. L. Estes, contralto; Nicholas Douty, tenor; and Arthur Beres- ford, bass. Miss Lucy Brickenstein, of Bethlehem, sang the secondary soprano parts. She and Messrs. Douty and Beresford sang again to-night. The new soloists were Miss Sara Anderson, soprano, and Miss Gertrude May Stein, contralto. The thunderstorms of last night were followed by a steady downpour of cold rain which has lasted all day and driven away the discomforting weather conditions of yesterday. Inside the church it has been comfortable. But the storm has deprived the festival of its attractive outdoor features. The streets have been deserted and THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR the picturesque externals of the two previous days have been lacking. Nevertheless the interpretation of the ‘‘Mass” this afternoon and this evening brought the festival to an imposing climax. A paragraph about the musical traditions of the Moravians closed as follows: — They have found here an organist and conductor to whom Bach is the very milk of human existence, and who studies his works as his father did before him. Mr. Wolle, the moving spirit of this remarkable fes¬ tival, is a son of the Lehigh Valley, and though he completed his musical education abroad, he laid the foundations of it here upon the Bach chorale and the Moravian hymn. For him to-night furnished a Herculean task and crowned a notable triumph. He is an exhausted but happy man. He has not spent his strength in vain, and those who have watched his work have realized that he is a powerful and important musical force. His scholar¬ ship is solid, his technical knowledge full, his skill as a leader admirable, and his magnetism unquestionable. With all these conditions the performance of the great “Mass” could not fail to be impressive. The tonal quality of the chorus had more fault to-day than it has had heretofore, and the singers made their first serious error when the basses missed the entrance beat in the “ Gratias Agimus.” But these defects were forgotten in the splendor of the ensemble. Anything more inspiring than the delivery of the “Cum Sancto Spiritu,” it would be impossible to conceive. It was 64 THE SECOND BACH FESTIVAL magnificent in the vital throbbing of its beat, in the growth of its tone from beginning to end, and in the breadth of its style. It brought the afternoon session to a moving end. ‘‘The excellence of the performances has spiked the guns of criticism/' wrote Mr. Kreh- biel in the “New York Tribune." In the letter Mr. Krehbiel sent as special correspondent of the “Musical Times," of London, England, which appeared in that journal on July i, 1901, be closed : — In every respect the festival was a most memorable and delightful affair. Bethlehem became, for the nonce, a Bach Bayreuth. The town is one of idyllic beauty, and it was filled with enthusiasts. The meetings took place in the church to which the listeners, including a large number of musicians from far-away places, were summoned by the music of the trombone choir. Two concerts were given each day, the works being divided so that they could be heard in their integrity without weariness; and the chorales were sung by the congre¬ gation as well as the choir. The choir was letter-perfect in the music (so perfect, indeed, that for a time Mr. Wolle seriously thought of having the “Mass” sung without book), and the participation of the congrega¬ tion in the chorales stimulated the interest marvelously. This device, which I had seen attempted in the perform¬ ance of the “ Passion ” long years before, in Boston, but 65 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR without success, was entirely successful in Bethlehem, where so many of the beautiful old Lutheran hymns were familiar as household words to a large element of the community. The enterprise was conducted with modesty and decorum, and its artistic significance was set down by the visiting critics from New York and Philadelphia in words of enthusiastic praise. Nothing finer has ever been done to develop a Bach cult in America. Another account of the Festival that went abroad was that of Professor A. A. Stanley, Di¬ rector of the University of Michigan School of Music, in the August issue of the Zeitschrift der Internationalen Musikgesellschaft.’* Extracts follow: — Rhythmic clearness, promptness of attack, — in spite of one or two minor lapses, — and purity of intonation characterized the chorus work throughout the whole series of performances. Of Mr. Wolle’s conception of the music it is suffi¬ cient to say that none but a fine musician and an earnest student of Bach could have so thoroughly mastered his style. Some of the visiting musicians did not approve of the tempi unreservedly, but as this depends so largely on individual taste, on temperament, and the conditions attending performance little stress should be laid on this criticism, as it applied to but one or two numbers and in the judgment of the writer he displayed unusual dis¬ cretion in this respect. 66 THE THIRD BACH FESTIVAL For the completeness of the record, the full list of soloists is added : — Sopranos: Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss, Mrs. Marie Zimmerman, Miss Sara Anderson, Miss Lucy A. Brickenstein. Contralto: Miss Gertrude May Stein. Tenors: Mr. Evan Williams, Mr. Ellison van Hoose, Mr. Nicholas Douty. Basses: Mr. Joseph S. Baernstein, Mr. Henri G. Scott, Mr. Arthur Beresford. THE THIRD BACH FESTIVAL, I9O3 The one hundredth anniversary of the corner¬ stone laying of the Moravian Church, coming approximately at the time of the third Bach Festival, served to stress the religious significance of the programme then presented. It was a pro¬ gramme ‘‘beautifully artistic in its arrangement of the music as an embodiment of faith.*’ The six days of combined devotion and music were as follows: — Monday^ May ii, 8 p.m. “Sleepers wake, for night is flying’*; “ Magnificat.” 'Tuesdayy May la, 4 p.m. “Christmas Oratorio,” Parts I, II, and III. Tuesday, May 12, 8 p.m. “Christmas Oratorio,” Parts IV, V, and VI. 67 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR JVednesdayy May 13,8 p.m. Second “ Brandenburg Concerto Grosso/’ “ Strike, oh, strike, long-looked-for hour”; cantata for alto voice. “I with my cross-staff gladly wander”; cantata for bass voice. Thursday, May 14, 4 p.m. The “Passion of our Lord, according to St. Matthew,” Part I. Thursday, May 14, 8 p.m. The “ Passion of our Lord, according to St. Matthew,” Part II. Friday, May 15, 8 p.m. “The Heavens laugh, the Earth itself rejoices, and budding nature bursts in song”; the Easter cantata. “ God goeth up with shout¬ ing ” ; the Ascension cantata. Saturday, May 16, 2 p.m. The “ Mass in B Minor,” “Kyrie” and “ Gloria.” Saturday, May 16, 6 p.m. The “ Mass in B Minor,” beginning with the “ Credo.” The soloists were: — Monday, Sopranos, Miss Effie Stewart, Miss Lucy A. Brickenstein; alto. Miss Marguerite Hall; tenor, Mr. John Young; bass, Mr. Herbert Witherspoon. Tuesday, Sopranos, Miss Effie Stewart, Miss Lucy A. Brickenstein ; alto. Miss Marguerite Hall; tenor, Mr. Nicholas Douty ; bass, Mr. Herbert Witherspoon. Wednesday, Alto, Miss Marguerite Hall; bass, Mr. Julian Walker. Thursday, Soprano, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss; alto, Mrs. Gertrude May Stein; tenor, Mr. Nicholas Douty; basses, Mr. Julian Walker, Mr. Herbert Witherspoon. Friday, Soprano, Miss Rebecca MacKenzie; alto, 68 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR OF 1903 AT THE MORAVIAN CHURCH THE THIRD BACH FESTIVAL Mrs. W. L. Estes; tenor, Mr. Theodore Van Yorx; bass, Mr. Julian Walker. Saturday, Soprano, Mrs. Marie Zimmerman; alto, Mrs. Gertrude May Stein; tenor, Mr. Theodore Van Yorx; bass, Mr. Julian Walker. There was some difference in opinion as to the degree in which the renditions maintained the devotional spirit of the Festival thought. Writing in the ‘‘New York Sun,’' of which he had become Music Editor, Mr. Henderson charged, in his account of the “ Christmas Ora¬ torio,” that there was a lack of this spirit: — In its stead there was a restless eagerness, a certain anxiety to accomplish things. The feeling was strictly that of people giving a performance before an audience in the hope of earning praise, not that of a choir lead¬ ing a congregation in the functions of worship. Mr. Richard Aldrich, who was hearing the Bethlehem Choir at this Festival for the first time, thus expressed his impression of the “ St. Matthew Passion” in the “New York Times” of May 15: — The reverence and religious decorum, the intimacy of the whole effect, the feeling of personal participation on the part of the congregation, were the most striking features of it. 69 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Mr. Aldrich closed this telegraphic report to the “ New York Times,” which appeared also in the “ Philadelphia Public Ledger,” as follows: — The singing of the chorus to-night showed it at its best. It knew the work thoroughly, and it showed more finish, more shading and potent expressiveness and more beauty of tone than in some of the previous sessions. The incisive quality and the volume of tone were more in evidence, as has heretofore been the case, than some of the subtler qualities of fine choral sing¬ ing, delicacy of shading, nice adjustment of dynamic values and beauty of quality. Yet there were times when there was deep impressiveness gained through these very qualities, as in the opening chorus of lamentation, with the chorale melody sounding above and through it, and the final chorus of the first part was treated with a lofty eloquence of tenderness. There was not only clear¬ ness in the utterance of the many voiced polyphony, but there was a realization of the exquisite sense of color that guided the old master in his work. . . . Sharpness of outline, clearness and precision were there sometimes like the snap of a whip. Such effects as those of the “thunder and lightning” chorus were of course not allowed to fail; but, alas! Mr. Wolle’s unalterable principle of retarding the movement for every close was not suspended. Out of the objections by the critics to retarded cadences and other points of interpretation arose a controversy to which fuel was added by com- 70 THE THIRD BACH FESTIVAL ments upon the singing at which some of the singers and their friends took offense. This con¬ troversy will here receive a report as brief and impartial as possible. In their accounts of the 1901 programme, Mr. Krehbiel, of the ‘‘Tribune,” and Mr. Hen¬ derson, then of the “Times,” had remonstrated mildly at Dr. Wolle’s frequent use of “a broad ritardando,” in the former’s words, and also ques¬ tioned “the tempi of certain choral passages,” as Mr. Henderson expressed it. At the third Festi¬ val they entered strong protests. Mr. Henderson wrote in the “Sun” of May 24, 1903: — Mr. Wolle’s chief offense was the use of the musical device known as the ritardando on every cadence. . . . In one place in the performance of the “St. Matthew Passion” he began a ritardando eleven measures before the end of the section. In the first thirty minutes of the performance he made twenty-six ritardandi. Mr. Wolle says this is the right way to perform the music of Bach. Some other persons do not agree with him. In Bethlehem people do not know that any one except Mr. Wolle is acquainted with the music of Bach. They have never heard the great authorities on the subject. Mr. Wolle, they say, has devoted his entire life to the 71 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR study of this music. How, then, can any one else dare to criticize him unfavorably ? In his articles in the “Tribune,"’ Mr. Kreh- biel went into a discussion, among other objec¬ tions, of what he termed “Mr. Wolle’s infatua¬ tion for interrupting the flow of music at every half cadence,” and quoted Moritz Hauptmann, President of the Bachgesellschaft: “ In the case of old music it is the rule to slow up a little be¬ fore the last chord, but only at the final close, the end of the piece. Retardations at other closes occurring in the progress of the piece are intol¬ erable to me. . . . Crescendo and diminuendo are good and beautiful, but only where they belong.” A paragraph from Mr. Aldrich’s article in the “New York Times,” of May i6, said: — It is the old, familiar festival town spirit, and it has amused some of the experienced ones not a little to see Bethlehem following in line with, say, Worcester and Cincinnati, and attempting to excommunicate all who animadvert candidly, even if in kindly spirit, on its work. The most appreciative and amiable fare no bet¬ ter than the rest, so they have only intimated that all was not quite as it should be. Yet with all the admira¬ tion that the Bach Choir can command, there must be a pointing out of things that are not as they should be. 72 THE THIRD BACH FESTIVAL The criticisms of which the foregoing extracts are fairly typical and a dispatch of Mr. Hender¬ son in which he said, for example, that “ the basses at times growled like beasts,'’ aroused feel¬ ings in Bethlehem that received expression in articles in the local newspapers. A defender not local was the “ Outlook,” which deprecated edi¬ torially the accounts of ‘‘certain New York critics” which were termed “censorious and patronizing by turns . . . altogether valueless as interpretations of the festival. . . . Musically, the most praiseworthy work was done by the local singers and players; and in proportion as the visiting professional soloists caught the spirit of these amateurs they contributed to the real effec¬ tiveness of the festival.” As far as the Bethlehem forces are concerned, they now apparently wish the episode relegated to the Wordsworthian category of “ old, unhappy, far-ofF things And battles long ago.” And the critics who, at the invitation of Mr. Schwab, have resumed attendance at the Festi¬ vals being held at Lehigh, now apparently have 73 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR also resumed something of their earlier friendli¬ ness to the Festival enterprise. The viewpoints of other writers are interest¬ ing. Mr. Frederick R. Burton, in special corre¬ spondence to the “ Boston Evening Transcript,’" May 16, 1903, said: — The chorus has been the tower of strength. At first the apprehension due to the magnitude of the event and the appalling presence of men in the audience who are generously supposed to know everything, led to a nervous rendering of the music. That is to say, lights and shades were forgotten in a strenuous endeavor to get the notes out on time. It was for the most part splendid shouting, but it was splendid at that and often most exhilarating and impressive. Before the week was old there was manifest much better control on the part of the singers and conductor alike, and sentiment as well as determination was manifested in the voices. The solo singers have been very uneven. . . . Although I have avoided detailed criticism it is no more than fair to mention those solo singers who have made worthy contributions to the week’s work. Con¬ spicuous among them are the tenors, Nicholas Douty and Theodore Van Yorx, both of whom not only are well equipped vocally for the exacting tasks that Bach imposes on tenors, but mentally endowed also to meet the demands of the interpretation. Mr. Douty, in ad¬ dition to the parts for which he was engaged, substi¬ tuted for William H. Rieger in the Passion at a day’s 74 THE THIRD BACH FESTIVAL notice. It is said that the part was wholly new to him, but he sang it like a veteran, excellently. Other artists who will be remembered gratefully are the basses, Ju¬ lian Walker and Herbert Witherspoon; the contraltos, Gertrude May Stein and Marguerite Hall, and the so¬ prano, Mrs. Hissem DeMoss. Mr. H. Brooks Day, Fellow American Guild of Organists, contributed a report to the ‘‘ Church Standard,*' in which he said of the “ St. Matthew Passion " rendition : “ The chorus seemed almost faultless. The singers have absorbed this music ” ; and of Dr. Wolle, this : — Without his enthusiasm and ability this festival and the others in the past would not have been. To some who may read the papers it may seem as if things were not as they should be; but to good musicians, some of us who have given much time to music, have heard and played “ much Bach,'* have been across seas and over lands in quest of the divine art, to such — to those who “know music*’ and its difficulties — can Mr. Wolle look for thanks, for the reason that he has gone down into the inexhaustible gold-mine of Bach’s works, and shown some of them to the world — and this is more than any other conductor in America can say. It is easy to find fault; but to the conductor of this festival only praise is due. Its effect as an educator and an im¬ pulse to art will be very considerable. 75 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Miss Mary M. Howard, Music Editor of the “Buffalo Express,’' wrote: — It would be hard to find anywhere a chorus that can sing music of equal difficulty with such generally flaw¬ less intonation, such rhythmic certainty, surer attacks, and, above all, with more reverential appreciation of the sentiment and spirit of text and music. The endur¬ ance of the voices is wonderful. At the end of the week they seemed as fresh and true as at the beginning. Some of the chorales were given with most lovely shading and some of the choruses, such as Glory to God in the Highest, from the Christmas Oratorio, stand out as a thrilling and splendid achievement in choral singing. THE FOURTH BACH FESTIVAL, DECEMBER, 1904 Of interest as a definition of Dr. Wolle's aim in the Bach Cycle of 1904-05 is the official an¬ nouncement made early in October, 1904. Dr. Wolle stated: — There will be a cycle of J. S. Bach’s works, in de¬ sign not unlike the three Bach festivals held here in 1900—01 and 1903. The cycle will comprise nine days of music, afternoon and evening, but instead of con¬ tinuing through nine consecutive days, as on the former occasions, they will be divided into three festivals of three days each. The attempt this year is to bring the works under consideration to a hearing, as nearly as possible, to the 76 THE FOURTH BACH FESTIVAL day for which they were originally written. With this in view the works contemplated for production natu¬ rally group themselves into three grand divisions, re¬ ferring, as they do, to the prophecy and birth, passion and death, and resurrection and ascension of the Lord. Thus the scheme divides Itself into a Christmas, a Lenten, and an Easter section. The Christmas Festival will be given in the Moravian Church, December 28, 29, and 30. The second and third divisions of the cycle will follow, the former in the early and the latter in the late spring, 1905. The choir which numbered one hundred and ten singers at the third Festival had now grown CO a membership of one hundred and twenty-four. The orchestra included about sixty amateurs. The programme of the Christmas Festival, given Wednesday, December 28, Thursday, De¬ cember 29, and Friday, December 30, was as follows: — Wednesday^ 4 p.m. 1 . The cantata, “How brightly shines the morning star.” II. “ Magnificat.” Wednesday^ 8 p.m. Parts I and II of the “Christmas Oratorio.” "Thursday, 4 p.m. I. The cantata, “O Jesus Christ, Light of my Life.” II. “The Lord is a Sun and Shield.” Thursday, 8 p.m. Parts III and IV of the “ Christmas Oratorio.” 77 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Friday^ 4 p.m. I. Suite in B Minor for orchestra. II. Motet for unaccompanied double chorus, “ Sing ye to the Lord a new-made song.” III. Second Branden¬ burg Concerto for orchestra. Friday, 8 p.m. Parts V and VI of the “Christmas Oratorio.” The soloists were : — Sopranos, Mrs. Marie K. Zimmerman, Miss Lucy A. Brickenstein, and Master John Eckroth; contralto. Miss Marguerite Hall; tenors, Mr. Nicholas Douty and Mr. Edward P. Johnson; basses, Mr. Julian Walker and Mr. Howard J. Wiegner. A report which embodied the spirit of this Christmas Festival was that which appeared in the “ Outlook” of January 7, 1905. It began as follows: — No other community in the United States, probably, could celebrate the Nativity as Bethlehem, Pennsyl¬ vania, celebrated it last week. On Wednesday, Thurs¬ day, and Friday Bach’s cheerful and moving “Christ¬ mas Oratorio,” interspersed with other compositions by Bach, including the stirring five-part “ Magnificat” and the wonderful unaccompanied eight-part motet “ Sing ye to the Lord,” was given in the Moravian Church. The chorus consisted of the Bach Choir, a musical in¬ stitution of which the whole country has reason to be proud, composed of voices from Bethlehem and neigh¬ boring towns. The orchestra consisted mainly of ama¬ teur players. The soloists, with two or three exceptions, 78 THE FOURTH BACH FESTIVAL were professional singers. The conductor was Dr. J. Fred Wolle, whose intimacy with the works of Bach, whose genius for leadership, and whose unspoiled enthusiasm made this festival possible. The occasion was genuinely a celebration rather than a performance. Technical excellence there was, especially in the spirited singing of the chorus, every member of which sang with heart as well as voice. The immensely difficult choral works of Bach, so far from discouraging these singers, have awakened in them an ambition that has increased with every year since the Bach Choir was organized. More than that, they have created in Bethlehem a mu¬ sical spirit without which technical excellence is as a tinkling cymbal. It is doubtful whether anywhere else in America the emotional quality of Bach's music is interpreted as it is in this Pennsylvania town. Occupying the entire front of the church at the Festival were Christmas decorations called, in the Bethlehem vernacular, a ‘‘ putz." The putz is primarily a representation of the Nativity scene. In private households there are often elab¬ orate arrangements of mountains, lakes, streams, bridges, villages, and anachronistic railroads along with the group of Wise Men at the manger. Out- of-town attendants at the fourth Festival found it interesting, between sessions, to join in the local practice of visiting putzes. The writer of “ The 79 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Spectator'’ department in the “Outlook” — in this instance Dr. Lyman Abbott—was one of these visitors, and he gave a sketch in the Janu¬ ary 14 issue that contained paragraphs about the Bach Festival: — It was strictly a festival, a celebration. Yet though this Bach Festival, like those which have preceded it, owed its existence to conditions which were created by Moravian traditions, it was by no means exclusively Moravian. The other celebrations — the putz and the love-feasts— had been church celebrations ; this festival was a community celebration. The Bach Choir, which is a permanent chorus of some six score voices, has among its members people of various denominations. Hecktown and Shimersville join with Nazareth and Bethlehem in producing this fine musical institution. There are members who travel fifteen or twenty miles every day there is a rehearsal. The old Moravian Church has become the center of a community that has a genuine enthusiasm for this old but living Protestant church music. Dr. Abbott closed his article with the hope that “some day all the musical people of America will learn to prize this Bach Choir as many of them do already.” Musical importance was attached to the after¬ noon performance of December 29 because two 80 THE FIFTH BACH FESTIVAL cantatas never before heard in America were then given. The first was the setting of a choral melody to the words of Johann Hermann's hymn, “O Jesus Christ, Light of my Life," and the second, “The Lord is a Sun and Shield." THE FIFTH BACH FESTIVAL, APRIL, I905 The programme and the soloists at the fifth Festival, the second festival of the Bach Cycle, held Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, April i 2, I 3, and 14, 1905, were : — Wednesday y 4 p.m. I. “Jesus sleeps, what hope re- maineth ? II. “ The solemn moment is impending." Soprano, Miss Lucy A. Brickenstein ; contralto, Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey; tenor, Mr. Nicholas Douty; bass, Mr. Julian Walker. Wednesday y 8 p.m. I. “ I with my cross-staff gladly wander." II. “ Strike, O strike, long-looked-for hour." III. “There is naught of soundness within my body." Soprano, Mrs. John Leibert; contralto, Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey; tenor, Mr. Nicholas Douty; bass, Mr. Julian Walker. Thursday^ 4 p.m. “ Passion" music, according to St. John. Part I. Sopranos, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss and Miss Lucy A. Brickenstein ; contralto, Mrs. Ger¬ trude Stein-Bailey; tenors, Mr. Nicholas Douty, the Reverend S. U. Mitman, and Mr. Elmer J. Bender; basses, Mr. Julian Walker and Mr. J. Samuel Wolle. 81 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR T^hursdayy 8 p.m. “ Passion’* music, according to St. John, Part II. Soprano, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss ; contralto, Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey; tenor, Mr. Nicholas Douty; basses, Mr. Julian Walker and Mr. Howard J. Wiegner. Fridayy 4 p.m. I. “ He who relies on God’s com¬ passion.” II. “My spirit was in heaviness.” Soprano, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss ; contralto, Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey; tenor, Mr. Nicholas Douty; bass, Mr. Julian Walker. Friday y% p.m. Tombeau, “ Ode of Mourning.” So¬ prano, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss ; contralto, Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey ; tenor, Mr. Nicholas Douty; bass, Mr. Julian Walker. Mrs. Nina Pugh Smith, music critic of the Cincinnati Times-Star,” in writing of the first day’s sessions, said of the Choir: — A fine tonal body is the chorus, which, numbering probably one hundred and fifteen, produces a volume of sound of almost twice as many singers. The four voice parts are so nicely balanced that the Bach music, which requires less a tremendous volume of sound than distinctness of the voices, is admirably rendered and with a devotion and sincerity that discounts criticism. Mr. Wolle is a superb choral leader, judicious and firm, but able to evoke such splendors of sound from the material at hand as caused even the blase New Yorkers to approve. On Wednesday cantatas, more or less familiar, were 82 THE FIFTH BACH FESTIVAL sung at both sessions. In the afternoon the peculiarly spiritual inspiration of the festival, as well as the effec¬ tiveness of the choir, was displayed in that beautiful cantata,“Thesolemn moment is impending,*' conclud¬ ing with an a cappella chorus, sung in faintest pianis¬ simo, with ethereal effect. Of the choral work in the ‘‘ St. John Passion,’' Mrs. Smith wrote; — These choruses are superb examples of ensemble work where individuality is merged in the combination of many. The old Moravian idea again; no wonder they sing the music so well, with spirit and harmony, and sometimes with dramatic savor. In the choral numbers the tempos were startling and radically rapid, but through this means considerably en¬ hanced the effective character of the text. The chorus, “ Crucify, Crucify,** was sung as a veritable outburst of mob passion, and “We have a law** in the same dra¬ matic manner. The chorales were admirable in their depth and sincerity. Although not perfectly sung, the two choruses for which the solo bass sings in obligato form, were curiously impressive. Mr. Aldrich’s account of more than a column in the “New York Times” of April i6, con¬ tained these paragraphs: — There have been many changes in the personnel of the Moravian choir since the festival two years ago; but the flame of enthusiasm has been kept alive by the 83 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR dominating personality of Dr. Wolle whose labors find their chief end in cultivating the music of Bach. The de¬ votion with which his choristers follow him has scarcely its parallel, certainly not in the choral activities of larger cities, where one night a week is a large and meritori¬ ous sacrifice on the part of the chorus-singing amateur. Rehearsals for this Lenten festival began immediately after the Christmas performances and were held at first two, then three times a week, and for the last month they have been held every night. The result of this thoroughness of preparation is to be heard in the perfect familiarity of every singer with all the difficulties of the music and the confidence with which the contrapuntal maze of Bach’s choral style is threaded. It may be that there is not quite the aggres¬ sive energy that there was, especially on the part of the basses; they thrilled the listeners at the last festival by the power, rhythmic incisiveness, and precision of at¬ tack with which they hurled forth elaborate figurated passages. On the other hand, the tonal quality is some¬ what improved, and the effect of buoyancy, vigor, and vitality in all the chorus singing. There is a good deal to be wished for in the orchestra. It is more largely than ever made up of local players; but while this fact makes possible more thorough rehearsal and more prac¬ tice with the chorus, it also implies a limitation in tech¬ nical ability to cope with the peculiar and often very great difficulties of the score. All the zeal and honest endeavor in the world cannot pass over these limita¬ tions. There was much in the performance of the passion 84 THE SIXTH BACH FESTIVAL music that was fine, and much that gave full voice to the profound beauties of that work. . . . We have in the “Johannes Passionthe frequent use of the chorales, harmonized with all Bach’s won¬ derful richness, boldness, and vigorous part writing. These, after the Bethlehem custom, the congregation was requested to join in singing, and, to a considerable extent, did join in. The performance of the chorus, as has been indicated, was on the whole admirable. That of the orchestra was less so, and in the second part, in the evening session, a failure to accept its cue almost brought disaster at one moment. The solo singers were Mrs. Hissem DeMoss, Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Mr. Nicholas Douty, and Mr. Julian Walker, and some smaller parts were taken by some singers of the chorus. Mr. Douty had the long and arduous task of declaiming the Evangelist’s narrative, and did it well. It is not always easy to find the mean between a com¬ monplace, matter-of-fact tone and an excess of senti¬ ment, but Mr. Douty erred, if at all, on the right side. THE SIXTH BACH FESTIVAL, JUNE, I905 The last of the Bach Festivals to be held in the Moravian Church was the Easter and Ascen¬ sion Festival of the Bach Cycle on Thursday, Fri¬ day, and Saturday, June i, 2, and 3, 1905. A special telegram to the “ Philadelphia Pub¬ lic Ledger” told succinctly the story of the first day’s sessions: — 85 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Bethlehem, June i. For the third time this year the trombones this afternoon announced from their ele¬ vated station in the beautiful old dome of the Moravian Church in this city the opening of another festival of the 1905 Bach Cycle, which is being carried out so enthusiastically by Dr. J. Fred Wolle and his devoted singers that augmented crowds of visitors from all parts of the country have gathered to honor the efforts of the most celebrated choir of singers possibly in America. The cantata, “The Heavens laugh, the Earth itself rejoices,” written for Easter Day in 1715, was sung this afternoon, followed by the cantata, “ Bide with us,” written for Easter Monday of 1736 to accompany the Gospel lesson that narrates the story of the walk to Emmaus. The least interesting movement in the work, a free fantasia, as accompaniment to a chorale melody sung by the sopranos, was made charmingly effective by the clean and delicate manner in which the singers enunciated their simple lines. There is no doubt that Dr. Wolle has taught his sopranos how to sing. The evening session brought forward again two can¬ tatas, “Thou guide of Israel, hearken,” and “ God goeth up with shouting.” Through the work, with the excep¬ tion of the tenor aria, “ His face my shepherd long is hiding,” most artistically sung by Nicholas Douty, Bach strictly maintains the conception that pastoral music must be in triple time. The other cantata of the evening, “ God goeth up with shouting,” was written for Ascension Day. The soloists of the day were Mrs. John Leibert and Miss 86 THE SIXTH BACH FESTIVAL Lucy Brickenstein, sopranos; Mrs. Harriet Foster,con¬ tralto ; Nicholas Douty, tenor; Julian Walker and Howard Wiegner, bass. Of these, Mrs. Foster was new to Bethlehem audiences, but made a most favorable im¬ pression with her singing of the aria, ‘‘ My spirit him descries,*' and she will be heard with pleasure again to¬ morrow. Of the others, little need be said, for they -have thoroughly acquired the peculiar Bethlehem spirit, though the comment of last Easter on the magnificent work of Mrs. Leibert was amply vindicated by her per¬ formance to-day. If Dr. Wolle's choir has done one thing and no other, it has found and developed within its own limits a genuine Bach singer in this artist. The chorus and orchestra were all that could be desired. The ‘‘Public Ledger'’ report of the second day commented favorably upon the work of the amateur orchestra in the performance of the Third Brandenburg Concerto. It continued: — The evening concert brought forward three cantatas. The first, “ Now hath salvation and strength,** consists of a double chorus only, in eight parts, without solos, and begins without introduction. It is interesting and massive, but leaves the hearer the feeling of incomplete¬ ness. The other two cantatas, “ Sleepers, wake,’* and “ A Stronghold sure our God remains,** are known not only to Bethlehem audiences, but to Bach singers throughout the country. The soloists of the afternoon were Miss Marguerite Hall, contralto; John Young, tenor; Julian Walker, bass, and to these in the even- 87 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR ing were added Mrs. Corinne Rider-Kelsey, soprano. Of these Mrs. Kelsey and Mr. Young are new and valuable to the Bethlehem group of soloists. Mrs. Kel¬ sey did her best work in the two duets with bass in the cantata “ Sleepers, wake.” Miss Hall repeated her suc¬ cesses of the previous festivals. After two days' hearing and even before the repeti¬ tion of the great “ Mass in B Minor,” which is on the score for to-morrow, some clear opinion of the changes in the chorus can be expressed. The toning down of the voices, noticed at the Easter Festival, has continued, and Dr. Wolle has succeeded in teaching his singers the trick of using mezzavoce in order to rub out the faults of forcing and stridency. The tenors perhaps are weaker than at Easter, but far more melodious and satisfying. The basses, always the strong point of the choir, this time seem a little uncertain and wavering, many of their entrances being of a doubtful intonation. Probably the best piece of work the choir did during these two days was its thoroughly suave and delightfully modulated rendering of the Pastoral Chorus that opens the can¬ tata, “Thou guide of Israel.” Anything much better than this in the way of chorus singing can hardly be looked for. To quote the “Public Ledger’s” account again: — Bethlehem, June 3. This afternoon and evening the Bach Cycle of 1905 was brought to a close with a mag¬ nificent performance of the “ Mass in B Minor.” The soloists, Mrs. Stein, Mrs. DeMoss, Mr. Douty and 88 THE SIXTH BACH FESTIVAL Mr. Walker, repeated their former successes, and the chorus exhibited again its magnificent enthusiasm and energy, and justified its five years of effort devoted to the mass. Since the Bach Festival of March 27, 1900, Dr. Wolle has led his choir in the “Mass in B Minor*' four times, the “ Christmas Oratorio’* three times, the “ St. Matthew Passion ** twice, the “ St. John Passion** once, and many cantatas have been added. Besides these, the orchestra has performed the second and third Brandenburg Concertos and the Suite in B minor. The first series of Festivals came to an end and the Bach Choir was disbanded upon the departure of Dr. Wolle from Bethlehem in September, 1905. He left to become head of the Depart¬ ment of Music in the University of California, a newly created chair. On Monday evening, Sep¬ tember 11, of that year, Dr. Wolle gave an organ recital “to the Bach Choir and its friends." The recital took place in Packer Memorial Church, Lehigh University. The parting between con¬ ductor and singers was thus in the church where, a half dozen years later, they were to resume giving Festivals of the music of their beloved Bach. IV THE FESTIVALS AT LEHIGH UNIVERSITY HE resumption of the Bach Festivals at Lehigh University was due to Mr. Charles M. Schwab. While on a business trip to San Fran¬ cisco, the steel-master went to Berkeley for one of Dr. Wolle’s choral productions in the Greek Theater of the University of California. He had a chat with Dr. Wolle in which he assured him of his hearty support if he should decide to go back to the East. Now Bach, transplanted, had not flourished as in the soil of a community with musical traditions and resources like those of Bethlehem. Mr. Schwab’s offer of cooperation, therefore, was a vital factor in causing Dr. Wolle to return. % The measure of this cooperation proved to be wisely generous. Mr. Schwab bears one half of the deficits of the present festivals. No one has characterized this better than Mr. Fullerton L. Waldo, in a “Public Ledger” article in which 90 AT LEHIGH UNIVERSITY he referred to Mr. Schwab as a “ doer of big things in a big way, the man who stands back of the deficit each time without destroying local initiative by footing the whole bill.’* Public and musical spirit at their best were represented by the group of citizens who, upon the initiative of Mr. and Mrs. Albert N. Cleaver, reorganized the Bach Choir in October, 1911, and who, despite financial stress, have maintained the Festivals and are determined to continue to maintain them. Other chapters of this book present brief sketches of these citizens and of Dr. Wolle and of Mr. Schwab. Lehigh University welcomed the new move¬ ment, and when the Bethlehem Bach Choir, with a membership of more than twice the maxi¬ mum of the earlier years, began preparation for the Seventh Bach Festival, it was with both a Festival home and a rehearsal home, proffered re¬ spectively by the University and by the Moravian Seminary and College for Women. Aside from the financial advantage of using without charge the University church, organ, and other facilities, the Bach Choir has the profit 9 ^ THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR of what Mr. M. A. DeWolfe Howe termed, in the ‘‘Boston Evening Transcript,” “a perfect setting for such a Festival.” Visitors enthusiasti¬ cally comment upon the impressiveness of the ivy-clad stone edifice and the beautiful Lehigh campus. Mr. Clarence Lucas, in his “ Musical Courier” account of the 1914 Festival, declared that None of the splendid concert halls of Europe can vie with the Packer Memorial Church on the Penn¬ sylvania hillside as a temple for the muse of Bach. There, with the open windows framed in green and the breezes fresh from the mountains, we leave the dust and noises of the city far behind us and are transplanted into a slower-going and poetic world which seems more in accord with the age in which Bach lived. The scene when the Festival attendants gather under the campus trees to hear the Trombone Choir was pictured thus by Mr. Julius Hartt, in the “ Hartford Daily Times ” : — And now, as 4 o’clock on Friday afternoon draws near, the while long needles of sunlight pierce the can- opying green of gently swaying and venerable trees, the pilgrims gather in reverent and expectant groups about the church. . . . Presently from high up in the ivy-draped church tower is heard the trombone choir. 92 AT LEHIGH UNIVERSITY — the choir descended from other like choirs long since silent which, from the older Moravian church tower were wont to announce important events in the ancient Moravian community. The trombone voices float out on the springtime air in a sublime Bach chorale; a chorale perennial with grave and lofty beauty — ‘^From highest heaven to earth I come.” The service of the University authorities in details which to neglect would mar the pleasure of Festival attendants was referred to by Mr. Henderson in the “New York Sun” report of May 31, 1916 : — The arrangements were all admirably planned. Ac¬ cess to the entrance for carriages and automobiles was amply and perfectly policed. Lehigh students per¬ formed the duties of ushers efficiently and the concerts began promptly. An instance where President Drinker, during the 1916 Festival, acted in a situation that was at once amusing and serious was related by Dr. Lyman Abbott in the “Outlook”: — At the same time that Bach’s Festival was being given in the Church “Washburn’s Mighty Midway Show” was scheduled to be given for the benefit of a local so¬ ciety, and it had pitched its tents just outside the col¬ lege grounds. The beating of its big drum, the blare of its mechanical orchestra, and the blast of its calliope 93 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR would have mingled with the Bach choruses and made the solos inaudible. Dr. Drinker arranged a meeting of town authorities, representatives of the local society, managers of the show, and a committee of the Bach Festival, and as the result of the friendly conference the show stopped all its out-of-door music while the Festival was in progress, both afternoon and evening. This incident was cited by Dr. Abbott as il¬ lustrating ‘‘ the good-will which characterizes American democracy.” Like that of Lehigh is the spirit and service of the Moravian Seminary and College for Women. For the major portion of the year the chapel of the Seminary is the home of the Bach Choir. By courtesy of President John H. Clewell and the Seminary and College Board of Trustees, re¬ hearsals are held here, except those immediately preceding the spring Festivals and the New York mid-winter trips, when Packer Memorial Church is used. The Seminary Chapel is a small audito¬ rium that abounds in historic suggestion. Here is preserved the old spinet which was played for General Washington in the visit to Bethlehem referred to in Chapter I. On the south wall of the chapel is Schuessele’s painting, ‘‘ Zeisberger 94 Photograph by Conradi COLONIAL HALL AND COLLEGE HALL Photograph by Conradi THE CHAPEL, REHEARSAL HOME OF THE BACH CHOIR THE MORAVIAN SEMINARY AND COLLEGE FOR WOMEN AT LEHIGH UNIVERSITY preaching to the Indians/’ depicting the mission¬ ary zeal of the Moravians. To summon before the Bach singers of to-day the high traditions of Bethlehem’s past no surroundings could be more potent. Moreover, in the Seminary’s hospitality to the Choir and in the lending each year of that or¬ ganization of ancient and impressive lineage, the Trombone Choir, there is emphatic evidence of the continued interest of the Moravian Congre¬ gation in the Bach movement. Happily this historical sketch of the Bach Choir need not be the work of a single narrator. While he could avoid an account damp with rosewater,” no one person could produce any¬ thing as representative, as disinterested and as full of interest as a compendium of newspaper and magazine reviews from the many pens that have reported the Festivals. It is more than a fortu¬ nate circumstance that the present narrative is enriched by quotations from some of the ablest music critics in the United States. That they have given to the Bethlehem Festivals much at¬ tention, thought, and space establishes the im- 95 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR portance of the enterprise aside from approval or censure — and approval, be it said, has predomi¬ nated. THE SEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL, I912 The six preceding Bach Festivals in the Mo¬ ravian Church ranged from one to six days. In the reestablishment of the Choir it was decided to limit the Festivals to two days in late May or early June, with sessions on Friday at 4 p.m. and 8 P.M. and on Saturday at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. These days and hours have proved to be satisfac¬ tory. The first day’s programme varies. Virtu¬ ally fixed for the second day is the perennial Mass in B Minor.” “ It is well that this should be so,” Mr. Richard Aldrich has written in the ^‘New York Times,” ‘Tor the proportions and difficulties of the great work are such as to put it beyond the reach of any but the most extraor¬ dinary exertions of most choruses. The Bach Choir has made history with it.” The seventh Bach Festival, held on Friday and Saturday, May 31 and June i, 1912, in¬ cluded the “ Mass,” chorales, and the following 96 THE SEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL cantatas: “It is enough*’; “Christian, stand with sword in hand ” ; “ Soul, array thyself with gladness” ; and “Strike, oh, strike, long looked- for hour.” The fullest critical account of this Festival was that in the “ Philadelphia Public Ledger,” writ¬ ten by Mr. Fullerton L. Waldo, the music edi¬ tor of the paper. Quotations from Mr. Waldo’s article of June 3, 1912, follow: — The first of the cantatas — Bach wrote no less than 190 — was “It is enough”; the second, sung on Fri¬ day afternoon, was “ Christian, stand with sword in hand,” and, finally, there were chorales. In its share, the seated chorus, singing without accompaniment, electrified the audience with a chant of the most ethe¬ real and delicate pianissimo, so exquisite and pure that, upon many requests. Dr. Wolle began the evening performance with the repetition of the verse. . . . The crowning and closing work of the Festival was the great “ Mass in B Minor,” sung in Latin, and given in two portions on Saturday afternoon. The first part comprised the “Kyrie” and the “Gloria,” the second consisted of the “Credo,” “Sanctus,” “ Bene- dictus,” and “Agnus Dei,” the work being given with¬ out cuts. Each portion required slightly less than an hour and a half for the delivery. After the usual pre¬ lude from the belfry, the trombones stationed near the organ played the simple melody of a hymn and the 97 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR echoes had not died away when the choir, with a thrill - ing sforzando, struck the first words of the noble in¬ vocation, “ Kyrie Eleison! ” The succeeding phrase, “ Christe Eleison,” was given to the firm assurance of the soprano and alto soloists in conjunction, and the choral climax followed. The brasses — idle, of course, in Friday’s cantatas — now found their voices, as trumpets and drums, rein¬ forcing the strings, announced the beginning of the “ Gloria.” Again and again the pealing trumpets de¬ signedly spoke with all their might, a tremendous in¬ terpolation being theirs when the chorus sang the words “Sancto Spiritu” at the close of the “Gloria.” In the opening phrases of the “ Credo,” the last syllables of the “ Dona nobis pacem,” at the close of all, the trump¬ ets fairly shouted. Bach was not writing for a short auditory range — if these notes woke the echoes in the green-clad surrounding hills it was part of his design to make a joyful noise unto the Lord, even if to those who sat near the sound was well-nigh overwhelming. The “ Gloria ” was filled with sharply accentuated contrasts, elicited by those wonderfully appealing hands and versatile fingers of Dr. Wolle. When the contraltos entered in “Qui tollis peccata,” with the plea for mercy, it became a great wail of anguish, as the voices, out- welling and again receding, besought the intercession of the Lamb of God. The oboe, at all times beauti¬ fully handled, sang the obligato for the alto aria that followed; the French horn, with liquid sonority, ac¬ companied the bass in its succession. The final chorus, “Cum Sancto Spiritu,” was a mighty and inspiring 98 THE SEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL climax in which the technical difficulties were multi¬ plied. The ‘‘Credo** opened with an annunciation of be¬ lief that carried conviction. The congregation by this time was one in its worshipful sense with those who sang. After the beautiful duet of alto and soprano the choir again achieved, in the words of the “ Incarna- tus,** the same remarkable pianissimo effect that had been so impressive in the first of the cantatas. With the words, “ He suffered and was buried,** the sound died away to the merest whisper, only to soar upward magnificently with the words, “ He rose again,** with a buoyant jubilation like lines of fire leaping and running along the hilltops. Again the trumpets rejoiced toward the conclusion and again Mr. Croxton*s resonant voice was heard with the mellow obligato of the oboe in its support. His voice is particularly fortunate with the unctuous and mouth-filling Latin syllables which gave the whole work from first to last a dignity the English text would not have attained. Another of the profoundly impressive contrasts that are the life of Dr. Wolle’s interpretation came in the change from “the resurrection of the dead,’* to “the life of the world to come,” where the word “mortuo- rum” was uttered with funereal gravity, and the fol¬ lowing phrase was instinct with hope and rejoicing. The choir fairly sprang upon the “ Sanctus,” where the word alternated with the soft and low-breathed “Dominus” in dramatic fashion. Mr. Douty had his most conspicuous chance of the day, an opportunity that was well improved, in the “ Benedictus.** 99 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Perhaps the most beautiful feature of the entire Fes¬ tival was Mrs. Bailey’s singing of the “Agnus Dei,” with the strings and especially the concertmeister’s vio¬ lin upholding the voice. The audience was transfixed by as perfect a performance of this touching appeal of human impotence to Divine power as one could hope to hear. . . . The final chorus “Dona nobis pacem,” with the re¬ iterated appeal of the trumpets, brought to a close the great “ B Minor Mass” and the Seventh Festival. Although it was contained in a review in the “New York Times” three years later, this is a fitting place to quote the comment of Mr. Rich¬ ard Aldrich upon the accompaniment by mem¬ bers of the Philadelphia Orchestra, who first joined the Bethlehem Bach singers at this 1912 Festival: — Another very important gain in the performances has been made in the fact that the orchestra is now recruited from the excellent players of the Philadelphia Orches¬ tra. The great exactions of Bach’s orchestral parts are far more adequately met than they used to be by the zealous but not always very skillful instrumentalists that formerly made up the bulk of the forces at Dr. Wolle’s disposal. The “ Musical America ” review of Mr. Arthur Judson, now manager of the Philadelphia Or- 100 THE SEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL chestra, dwelt upon the reverent attitude that marked the surroundings at Lehigh: — The writer has attended many festivals in America and noted scenes of enthusiasm, ovations to artists, the spirit of festivity, but nowhere has he observed the same unity of feeling in the placing of the works of a master before the appreciation of the individual artists. Of the Choir’s performance in the “ Mass,” Mr. Judson said: — The “Gratias agimus’’ chorus, though again taken a trifle too slowly, was one of the most beautifully sung choruses of the entire work. In spite of the slow tempo, the long phrases were well sustained and the balance of tone between the various parts was good. There were some exquisite pianissimos. . . . The “ Qui tollis” chorus vied with the preceding chorus in the fineness of its conception and tonal bal¬ ance. Indeed, it was in these more intimate choruses that the choral body did its finest work. Mr. W. H. Humiston, now assistant conductor of the Philharmonic Society of New York, wrote in “Musical America”: — Even those who find fault with certain details of Mr. Wolle’s interpretations (and there is room for differ¬ ence of opinion) must admit that he is the one man who has the energy to overcome the inevitable inertia, the one man who possesses the enthusiasm necessary to conquer the difficulties in the way of such festivals. loi THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR The festival idea, of course, has its root in the mu¬ sical ritual of the old Moravian Church, but without J. Fred Wolle it would never have emerged from the ground and blossomed into such wonderful fruition as the festivals of 1900, 1901, 1903, 1904-05, and the present one. The musical world is to be congratulated on the return of Mr. Wolle to Bethlehem, for Califor¬ nia, progressive as it is, is not the place for any exclusive propaganda. Mr. Wolle*s heart is in the Bach work and can exert a much wider influence in that way than in any other. And the Bethlehem Bach Festivals can be much more far-reaching in influence than any professor¬ ship in any university in the land. An exceptional circumstance connected with obtaining the score of the first cantata of the Fes¬ tival, “ It is enough,” was related by the present writer in an article in the Musical Courier ” of June 5 : — As the orchestral scores of this and the three other cantatas are not in print. Dr. Wolle sent to Leipsic to have copies made from manuscript for use by the Phila¬ delphia Orchestra. The scores for the three other cantatas arrived safely. That of “It is enough’* was forwarded on the Titanic. When the fate of the great vessel and the little package for Bethlehem became known to the Bach followers, they were in a quandary. Luckily a copy of this particular orchestral score was located in New York and copies of it were made in time for the Festival. 102 THE EIGHTH^ BACH FESTIVAL THE EIGHTH BACH FESTIVAL, I9I3 Fourteen States and Canada and Mexico as well were represented in the congregations that heard the eighth Bach Festival on May 30 and 31. ‘‘At these services,’’ the “Outlook” said in its comment of June 14, “teachers and pupils of music, musical critics, and plain music-lovers gather. ... It is a pilgrimage worth many times over the making.” The programme of the first day was the “ St. Matthew Passion” with the “B Minor Mass” on the second day. The soloists were: soprano. Miss Grace Kerns; contraltos, Mrs. Florence Mulford Hunt and Mrs. Margaret Adsit Barrell; tenor, Mr. Nicholas Douty; basses, Mr. Edmund A. Jahn and Mr. Horatio Connell. As in 1912, the most comprehensive and rep¬ resentative review of the Festival was that in the “Philadelphia Public Ledger” by Mr. Waldo. Several paragraphs are given: — More than five thousand persons heard the music of the two days, and to the making of this Pennsylvania Oberammergau the whole of the country and even for¬ eign lands contributed. These audiences or congrega- 103 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR tions are not like the generality of such assemblages. They went into the lofty nave and transept of Packer Memorial Chapel in the spirit of worship, and applause was, of course, eliminated. Within a pew's length in whatever direction one would almost surely find one or more of the high priesthood of music, and the remainder were reverent laity. Many as they listened held in hand the vocal score and followed every mutation of solo contralto or commentatory oboe or whatever the mu¬ sical argument of the moment might be. . . . Merely to illustrate the diversity of the gathering, a cursory survey of the roster of applicants for seats is suggestive. There came in force pupils and teachers of the New England Conservatory of Music, at Boston; the Conservatory of Ypsilanti, Michigan; Madame Bowman’s School in Montreal; the Comstock Music School, of New York; Miss Lankenau’s School; Madame Froelich’s Music School at Harrisburg, and forty-four other similar institutions and conservatories. Professor Hall, Dr. Gibson, and Professor W. Kugler came from Boston. There was a delegation from the Cincinnati Orchestra Association. Vermont, Massa¬ chusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, Ohio, Indi¬ ana, Michigan, Illinois, and North Dakota were the States represented, as well as the District of Columbia. Besides the cities mentioned there were guests from Buffalo, Troy, Brooklyn, Elmira, Saratoga, Akron, In¬ dianapolis, Chicago, Washington, Wilmington, Tren¬ ton, Baltimore, Cambridge, Jersey City, Elizabeth, and Plainfield. 104 Photograph by the Albertypc Company PACKFR MEMORIAL CHURCH, LEHIGH UNIVERSITY, HOME OF THE BEFHLEHEM BACH FESTIVALS % THE EIGHTH BACH FESTIVAL Philadelphia, providing most of the orchestra and two of the soloists, sent hundreds of distinguished members of its musical fraternity and aristocracy of culture. The large proportion of trained musicians made the chorales, in which the standing audience joined, thrillingly effec¬ tive. No ordinary congregation can be expected at sight to compass the difficult intervals of Bach’s majestic polyphony. A few minutes before each of the four sessions, trom¬ bone players, including the seldom-heard soprano trom¬ bone, ascended the lofty belfry of the church and woke the echoes of the hills with chorales in slow and solemn measure, making pronounced use of the slide in quaint accord with amateur Moravian tradition. For this pre¬ liminary invocation is a labor of love and not of pro¬ fessional duty with those who engage in it. As the last notes melted into silence—or, perhaps, the wondering birds took up the strain — the greensward was emptied of its reverential groups and the dim interior of the church was filled, leaving a cluster of later comers craning and on tiptoe at the open door. From the first notes of the St. Matthew Passion ” to the prayer for peace at the end of the glorious “Mass” an atmosphere was created in benedictional offsetting against the hectic fever and stress of modern life, the serfhood of stale custom, the domination of whatsoever things are crass and gross and material. . . . Miss Kerns, of girlish presence, sang with a certain inspired abandon and freedom and ingratiating fresh¬ ness of tone quality that earned at once and retained for her throughout the explicit admiration of her hearers. 105 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Mrs. Hunt and Mrs. Barrell have voices of the au¬ thentic contralto mellowness with unctuousness, in for¬ tunate alliance with the faculty of divination of the sense and sentiment of the text. Nicholas Douty's positive genius as an exponent of oratorio has been manifested so often that the thought of his participation is almost inseparable from the idea of a Bach Festival. His sing¬ ing of ‘‘ My God, my God, why hast Thou,*' was an inspiration. Mr. Douty delivered all his lines with that familiar lyric ease and flowing spontaneity which are the special delightful characteristics of his method, and though at the fag-end of a particularly arduous season, his voice sustained the heavy burden of the magnificent declamatory narration with no perceptible impairment of its buoyant resiliency and sufficing volume. . . . Mr. Connell was a figure of epic dignity and gravity befitting the solemn import of the measures freighted with the words of the Redeemer, and the tone quality was pure and sweet and effortlessly pronounced. . . . The Choir itself offered a revelation of what instructed and unwavering devotion can accomplish. It seems at all points to present an impregnable front to adverse criticism, even if one were inclined to be captious. One could not ask for anything more or better. The cres¬ cendos, swelling in volume from the faintest shadow of a tone to a full-blooded, pulsing richness of sound that filled the edifice to overflowing, were created by virtue of the fact that every singer gave “ the last full measure of devotion ” to every note, not merely as a note but as part of a chord. In the gorgeous climaxes when, as Handel would have said, ‘‘the heavens opened," body io6 THE NINTH BACH FESTIVAL and soul and mind were enlisted in the corporate serv¬ ice with an enkindling fervor that communicated a like exaltation of spirit to the listener. The ‘‘Musical Courier’’ report said: — The local members of the Choir did much work that was really admirable and none that was not above the average of many of the leading choirs in America. The Bach Choir of London has given many performances that were inferior in every way to the work of the Beth¬ lehem chorus. The Oratorio Society of New York as it used to be before Louis Koemmenich awoke it from its lethargy could not have competed in any way with the Bach Choir J. Frederick Wolle directs. THE NINTH BACH FESTIVAL, I914 The ninth Bach Festival, held on Friday and Saturday, May 29 and 30, 1914, stands out be¬ cause of a unique presentation of the “ B Minor Mass.” The Choir sang the entire “Mass,” solos as well as choruses. It was a “feature” with no smell of the circus; a novelty with reverence and earnestness in it. Now for a large body of amateurs to essay parts that professional soloists find extremely difficult, in addition to their own regular numbers, meant tremendous demands upon their musicianship. THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR courage, and endurance. To this task the singers addressed themselves with faith in their con¬ ductor and the assurance bred of honest prepa¬ ration. The outcome was, as Mr. Waldo phrased it in the ‘‘Philadelphia Public Ledger,” “an interest¬ ing experiment and a successful one.” But Mr. Waldo’s further words were doubtless accu¬ rate: — From the point of view of the audience, probably the relief afforded by the solo voice from the tension of the sublimities of the choruses is very welcome; and though the altos sang the “Agnus Dei” wonderfully well, the pleading intercession of a single voice (as, for example, that of Mrs. Bailey in 1912) is even more surely heart-searching in its appeal. The comment of Mr. H. F. Peyser, in “ Mu¬ sical America,” contained praise for many num¬ bers admirably done by the chorus — notably the duet “Christe Eleison,” given by the first and second so¬ prano sections with suave, lovely tone and deeply emo¬ tional effect; the enchanting soprano aria, “ Laudamus Te ” ; the bass aria, “ Quoniam Tu solus sanctus ” ; the duet for soprano and contralto, “ Et in Unum Deum,” and “ Agnus Dei ” for contralto. 108 THE NINTH BACH FESTIVAL Mr. Peyser made this qualification :- The extra burden imposed cannot but fatigue these singers so as ultimately to impair the freshness and spontaneity of their efforts in what is their rightful task. Moreover, the necessary element of contrast is missed, and there are several numbers in the ‘‘Mass'’ — the celestial “Agnus Dei,” for example — which seem to demand solo utterance imperatively, however well an aggregation of singers may cope with them. Likewise Mr. Clarence Lucas,in the “Musical Courier ”: — The direct emotional appeal of the individual voice is lost as soon as the part is sung or played by several performers. Nevertheless, the choral performances of the solos on Saturday were full of musical interest. They were excellently rendered, and showed how well and patiently the conductor must have worked, even with his willing choristers, before such results could have been possible. Mr. Peyser's “ Musical America’’ account of the first day’s programme of this Festival has in¬ terest : — Richard Wagner once spoke of the Bach motets as “streams of rhythmic melody mingled with the waves of an ocean of harmony.” This description admirably fits the “Sing ye to the Lord,” which opened the pro¬ ceedings on Friday afternoon—a thrilling work, but 109 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR of no small difficulties, requiring of its executants ex¬ ceptional pliancy and flexibility of voice. On the whole, Dr. Wolle’s singers acquitted themselves commendably of their exacting task. . . . Nicholas Douty, the tenor, was heard in the air, “ So be thou still,” which he sang with all of that rare skill, intelligence and artistry that have long since stamped him as one of the foremost singers of Bach to be heard in this country to-day. Three chorales, “ Sing, Pray,” ‘‘ Within our inmost being,” and Beyond all earthly ken,” followed, after which Horatio Connell sang ‘‘ Slumber on, O weary spirit,” one of the most moving and surpassingly lovely arias in the whole range of the Bach cantatas. The eminent American basso was in his best form, his tone of round, noble quality, his thorough acquaintance with the essential style of this music, his beautiful phrasing and musicianly understanding serv¬ ing to make his delivery of the number one of the most notable moments of the first concert. In the evening, Mr. Douty again delighted his hear¬ ers by his singing of the florid but dramatic In billows the rivers of Belial flowing,” while Mr. Connell like¬ wise scored heavily in the exultant Triumph now is mine.” The orchestra was more fortunate with the in¬ troduction to the cantata, “The Heavens laugh,” and the delicious “ Pastoral Symphony” from the “ Christ¬ mas Oratorio ” than it had been with the Concerto in the afternoon. The climax of the concert was reached with the su¬ perb “Magnificat,” in which the chorus quite covered itself with glory. What teeming vitality, what virility, no THE NINTH BACH FESTIVAL what enduring freshness in this music! In the vocal parts one observes a dramatic truth of declamation, a coordination of text and music comparable to Wagner. So well was it performed that one fairly longed to hear it over again when it was concluded. The soprano solos were adequately handled by Mrs. Helen Hunsicker, while in the contralto portions Maude Sproule revealed a voice of pleasing quality. There was, however, less distinction in the work of these singers than of such routined artists as Messrs. Douty and Connell who, in this masterpiece duplicated their other successes. Mr. Douty was particularly successful in the ‘‘ De- posuit potentes,*’ Mr. Connell in the glorious ‘‘Quia fecit.’* Lucy Brickenstein, the second soprano, created a pleasant impression with her “Et exultavit.” Praise must likewise be accorded T. Edgar Shields for his highly efficient work at the organ throughout the festival. Extracts from the review of this Festival by Mr. Philip H. Goepp in the “ Philadelphia Even¬ ing Telegram ” of May 30 follow : — The pilgrim hurrying to the Festival sacred to Bach, which began yesterday in the Packer Memorial Church of Lehigh University at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was guided by the sounds of the ancient trombones that heralded the session high in the belfry in the traditional manner. In every way the sacred character of the Fes¬ tival was preserved—in the sequence of the musical numbers as in a service; in the omission from the pro- 111 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR gramme-book of all but the best of the vocal pieces, while the congregational hymns were printed in full, words and music. The listener, at the first sounds of this famous choir, might have felt a momentary disappointment. The truth is that the quality is less vocal than spiritual. It is peculiarly a choir of worship. The opening number, a motet for double chorus. Sing ye to the Lord a new-made song,” was a feat of original interpretation. There is a magic charm in this maze of many melodic parts, seemingly independent, yet adorning and supporting each other, and all without a note of instrumental accompaniment. Then suddenly one part stands out like a flashing ray through the sweet murmur of other voices. Indeed, one of the special feats of Dr. Wolle*s training is the special sepa¬ rate expression of a single part against the concerting chorus. For the training is, of course, the secret of this wonderful achievement. For a long time yesterday, in the midst of the motet. Dr. Wolle omitted all visible signs of direction, while the complex maneuvres of at least eight separate vocal parts held their perfect array and, moreover, rang out anon a fervent accent here, or moved through a long swell of increasing volume. After the motet, an excellent orchestra, drawn mainly from our own Philadelphia organization, played a con¬ certo of Bach, familiar to the audiences of the sym¬ phony concert. It was surprising how great was the volume of merely two basses. The concerto was like a ‘‘fanfare” for the festival, which now continued with a tenor aria, “ So be thou I 12 THE BACH CHOIR OF 1914 AT LEHIGH UNIVERSITY THE NINTH BACH FESTIVAL still/* sung by Nicholas Douty. It is hard to imagine one of these festivals without the aid of this gifted singer, whose native fervor joined to a thorough-going art, peculiarly expresses the spirit of Bach*s sacred mu¬ sic. There is no applause at these festivals. One almost felt the storm of silent approval, especially after Mr. Douty’s singing of “ Bide, ye angels, bide with me,** the most lovely and altogether contenting of the arias. . . . Then into the midst of the programme broke the chorus of the congregation on some ancient hymns, set by Bach in unusual harmonies, splendidly rendered by the choir, and supported by the orchestra and organ. Into these hymns Dr. Wolle threw all of his ardor and here he achieved some of his most impres¬ sive climaxes. Before the end of the first session Horatio Connell sang an aria, ‘‘ Slumber on,** one of the most beautiful of all the numbers. The session ended with a famous chorus “World, farewell,** that began with the softest accents and seemed the very essence of devotion. The striking event of the evening was the render¬ ing of the “Magnificat** that seems to stand midway between the smaller cantatas and the oratorios. To tell of all the vocal numbers would be a repetition of the earlier praise, though it is but just to mention the splendid singing of Miss Sproule, and the excellent performance of Lucy Brickenstein, as well as Mrs. Hunsicker, in a trio of women*s voices. The crowning wonder of all is still the chorus — or is it the training needed to produce a rendering extraordinarily vivid in fervor, through a gamut of infinite shading. II3 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR THE TENTH BACH FESTIVAL, I915 The first day’s programme of the tenth Festi¬ val, May 28, 1915, had special interest because it presented the work with which Dr. Wolle be¬ gan his expounding of Bach twenty-seven years before. The rendition of the ‘‘ Passion accord¬ ing to St. John” by the old Bethlehem Choral Union in 1888 was the first in America. It has been infrequently given in this country since. ‘‘There were concert-goers of great experience in Friday’s audience — say, rather congregation,” wrote Mr. Richard Aldrich in the “New York Times,” “to whom it was a new thing.” Of the 1915 presentation Mr. Aldrich said that it was “ of a kind to make a deep impres¬ sion on the listeners.” He praised the admirable singing of the chorus; Its enthusiasm, its thorough preparation, Its complete knowledge of the music — music which offers great difficulties and re¬ quires a special familiarity with its style. These qualities have always characterized the singing of Dr. Wolle’s Bach Choir. It can now be said that the material of the chorus, the average quality of the voices, the beauty of its tone, the balance of its parts, are much superior to what they were in years gone by. . .. THE TENTH BACH FESTIVAL By its performance of the great “B Minor Mass*' Dr. Wolle’s Choir has made history for itself; it has presented it many times ; and on one notable occasion, a dozen years ago, was said to be ready to go through it from beginning to end without notes. As is Dr. Wolle’s invariable and commendable cus¬ tom, each of these works was given without an omis¬ sion, and each in two sessions, one in the afternoon and the other in the evening. He might well write up over the portals of his auditorium the motto that stands over another famous auditorium: ‘‘Res Severa Verum Gaudium.’' In a two-thousand-word account in the “ New York Sun,’’ Mr. William J. Henderson com¬ mented, in opening: — The interest in the festival was sufficiently large and widespread to attract hearers from seventeen States. New York City was represented by David and Clara Mannes, Mrs. Frank Damrosch and Miss Damrosch, Mrs. Annie Nathan Meyer, Dr. Lyman Abbott and Miss Abbott and others. Packer Memorial Church, the chapel of Lehigh University, was filled to its ca¬ pacity of twelve hundred, and the attitude of the audi¬ ences betokened a deep interest in the music and its presentation. It is a privilege to quote paragraphs from Mr. Henderson’s article giving a helpful historical background: — THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR We are bound to recollect that the ecclesiastical works of Bach are the highest musical expression of the Prot¬ estant faith, just precisely as those of Palestrina are the most beautiful embodiment of the belief of Catholicism. Palestrina wrote his “Marcelline Mass” some years after Luther’s highest activity had been reached, that activity which laid the foundations for the work of Bach. Roman church music had been marching along its slow path of development ever since Pope Julian had founded his Schola Cantorum in the beginning of the fourth century. Protestant music began with the Lutheran hymns, and their children, the Bach chorales, are determining factors in the character of these Passion compositions. A tenor voice narrates the story, the other solo voices entering to sing the utterances of the actors in the drama or to deliver those arias in which the composer embodies the thoughts and emotions of the Christian soul contemplating the history before it. The chorus represents the people concerned in the drama. But the chorale is the great proclamation of the Protestant Church itself and for this reason becomes the congre¬ gational portion of the service. The congregation, or audience, at the Bethlehem festivals, rises and sings the chorales, just as their predecessors did in Coethen, Weimar, or Leipsic. Naturally there are no chorales in the “B Minor Mass,” and here arises the question why Bach, a Protes¬ tant to the core, composed this work. He was living in the domain of the Duke of Saxony, who was a Roman Catholic, as were many other Germans. The great THE TENTH BACH FESTIVAL master wrote five masses, of which only the ‘‘ B Minor” is of the first rank among his creations. But just as he utilized materials from his Protestant cantatas in mak¬ ing these lesser masses, so did he preserve in the “ B Minor” work the style of his mighty choruses in the “Passions.” The result is something utterly unlike any Roman music, something publishing the spirit of the Reformation in such a manner that the work has been well christened the Protestant mass. These were the two masterpieces selected for the tenth Bach Festival and their performance had merits of a high order as well as shortcomings perhaps ines¬ capable. The chief difficulty in presenting such works to-day is to get soloists who can sing them. The nar¬ rator’s part in the “St. John,” as in the “St. Matthew Passion” is cruelly difficult. Mr. Douty on the whole deserved credit, though he would have deserved more had he been less eager to squeeze sentiment out of every phrase. . . . The Bethlehem Choir, which is now twice as large as it was in the beginning, contains good material and it has been well rehearsed. The members of this chorus love their duties and study all winter with enthusiasm. Some of their singing, as in the great opening chorus of the “St. John Passion,” “ Lord, our Redeemer,” was superb in its splendor of tone, in the clarity of its treat¬ ment of the polyphony, in its variety of accent and color and in its firmness of texture. Other choral num¬ bers, “If this Man were not an evildoer,” the fugato, “We have a law” and “We salute thee,” were also admirably delivered. The “ Mass ” naturally went well; THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR it is the battle-horse of the Bethlehem Chorus. The members of the Philadelphia Orchestra played excel¬ lently. . . . Of the place and significance of music festivals in this country something may be said hereafter. At pres¬ ent it is necessary only to note that in great commu¬ nities, which enjoy a continual outpour of music, the festival must resolve itself into a series of concerts of music of one master by the musical forces, as in the instances of the Beethoven and Brahms Festivals given by the Symphony Society of New York. In other cities or towns festivals of various composers are given. Many of these so-called festivals have little real value, since they display no coherent artistic plan. Because of its concentration of aim and its sincerity of spirit the Bethlehem Festival occupies a most im¬ portant place in the musical activities of the United States. A like opinion was expressed by Mr. Henry T. Finck in the ‘‘New York Evening Post” of May 31, where he said that “among the many music festivals given in this country every year none is more notable than the Bach Festival at Bethlehem.” Mr. Finck declared that Dr. Wolle “has trained a choir which for euphony, pre¬ cision, and dramatic eloquence equals the famous Toronto choir of Dr. Voght.” Other paragraphs from the “Evening Post” criticism follow: — 118 THE TENTH BACH FESTIVAL If applause were allowed in a church (the perform¬ ance was given in the Packer Memorial Church of Lehigh University) the singers would doubtless have been amply rewarded for their sincere and often most praiseworthy efforts to cope with their ungrateful tasks — ungrateful, that is, from the technical point of view only, for most of the airs assigned to the singers are of great beauty. . . . The “Second Brandenburg Concerto” . . . was fol¬ lowed by the chorus “World, farewell,” in which Dr. Wolle secured from his singers a most exquisite pian¬ issimo— the highest test of choral proficiency. There are no expression marks in Bach’s music, this impor¬ tant matter being left to the conductor. Dr. Wolle showed good judgment and taste in this matter, steer¬ ing a safe middle course between those who interpret Bach mechanically and those who over-sentimentalize. There were some wonderful floating sound effects in the Golgotha section, and nothing could have been more sublime and thrilling than the performance of the splendidly dramatic “ Crucify ” which forms the climax of the whole work. To hear this, and the “Away with Him,” would alone have been worth a trip to Bethlehem. “ Bach expected the impossible from his sing¬ ers and Mr. Wolle got it from them,” wrote Dr. Lyman Abbott of the Festival in the “ Outlook” of June 9. Mr. Waldo, in the “ Philadelphia Public Ledger” of May 31, 1915, asked:— 119 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Did ever the same number of bass singers — and one might as well say tenors, or altos, or sopranos, for that matter—lift such a volume of sound with all their souls and voices as these singers of Bethlehem at their leader's behest? Not less astonishing and thrilling was the pianissimo at the other end of the pneumatic and dynamic gamut; the singing with lips closed was as the sound of a vast iEolian harp ‘‘as the breezes blow through a tree " and it was hard to believe the sound was choral and not instrumental. In the “ Philadelphia Press’" of May 29, Mr. E. V. Chamberlin reported : — Comment among the enthusiasts who have been in attendance on this Festival reveals a pretty general im¬ pression that in some respects it was the most success¬ ful in point of artistic achievement in the history of choral music in America. The review of the Festival presented by Mr. Julius Hartt in the “Hartford Daily Times” included the following: — The Bach Choir concerns itself little with elocutional musical artifices. These singers have learned that the technicalities of chorus delivery are but art skeletons. The bones do not rattle. The Choir has been wonder¬ fully trained in all the mechanical details of chorus singing. Rhythmic and dynamic nuancing have been carried to a point of extraordinary efficiency. But the great and distinctive thing about it is that this superb 120 THE ELEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL mechanical efficiency has become entirely tributary to and swallowed up in spiritual and artistic comprehen¬ sion. . . . Nothing more beautiful, nothing more uplifting has been accomplished in the history of musical art in America than the 1915 Bach Festival of the Bach Choir of Bethlehem. THE ELEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL, I916 ^‘Bethlehem’s Unique Music Festival — Best Choir in the United States sings Bach.” These words were a part of the headlines above two columns of correspondence regard¬ ing the 1916 Bach Festival in the “New York Evening Post ” of May 29, written by Mr. Henry T. Finck. Paragraphs from Mr. Finck’s account follow: — New York has long been the best place on this globe to hear famous opera singers. Thanks to the havoc created in Europe by the war, it has now also become the world’s musical metropolis, so far as orchestral con¬ certs and recitals by famous soloists are concerned. But in one thing New York does not lead. To hear a thrill¬ ing performance of the choral works of the greatest of all composers—Johann Sebastian Bach — we have to go west ninety miles from New York to the city of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, which has made a specialty of the works of Bach, as Bayreuth has of the operas I2I THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR and music dramas of Wagner. Music festivals there are aplenty throughout the country every spring and summer, but what is heard in them is equaled or sur¬ passed in the metropolis. Bethlehem alone offers what cannot be — or, at any rate, is not — duplicated else¬ where. Mr. Finck, after an outline of the 1916 pro¬ gramme, which included the “ Christmas Ora¬ torio’’ and the “Mass in B Minor” on May 26 and 27, went on: — Bach was intensely human — miles from the stiff, dry pedagogue some persons consider him, to his and their own detriment. What could be more human than the “Ah! my Saviour, I entreat Thee,” in Part IV? It is an air for soprano, with one of those pleasing echo effects that were frequently heard in popular music of Bach’s day. As a rule his music reflects the spirit of the text admirably, sometimes as realistically as in the songs of Schubert and Liszt; but in this case the dear old master (and we love him the more for it) had such a pretty tune and such clever effects in his head that he forgot all about the ecclesiastic text and created a so¬ prano solo, with quaint oboe obbligato and echo effects, which would constitute a prime attraction at a popular Sunday afternoon concert. The same is true of the lovely cradle song, “ Slumber, beloved.” These are samples of a dozen numbers that might be dwelt on in detail if space permitted. Hugo Wolf used to say that Brahms did not know how to exult. 122 THE ELEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL He could not have said that of Bach, who is the master of masters in the expression of jubilant sentiment, as exemplified in several numbers of this oratorio, notably the openingchorusof Part III, ‘‘ Hear,KingofAngels.’’ What splendid rhythmic vigor there is in “ Glory be to God Almighty,” what a wealth of harmony and me¬ lody in the choral and solo parts ! In these things, too, Bach is the master of masters. In listening to this music one realizes why Beethoven exclaimed: Not Bach [brook] should be his name, but Ocean.” The depth of this music is to be measured by miles, yet when it is sung as the Bethlehem Choir sings it, under Dr. Wolle, it is easy to look down into its depths and marvel at its wealth of ideas, intricate part writing, and subtly varied details. It is no wonder that so many of the hearers at Bethlehem read their scores while listening to the music. It is an added joy to follow with the eyes the marvelous linear texture and patterning of this music, with its un¬ equaled part writing for the voices as well as the instru¬ ments. Dr. Wolle is not one of those of whom it has been said by a British writer that they set a Bach chorus go¬ ing ‘Mike a lot of noisy machinery in a factory.” He resorts, on the contrary, to the most delicate and varied shading. In doing so he has to use his own judgment. Bach put few expression marks into his music, but we know from Quantz and other contemporaries of his that he used expression as freely as we do. Some of the pianissimo effects which Dr. Wolle gets are thrilling; to sing pianissimo is one of the hardest feats of a chorus to perform. 123 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Yet it is still more difficult to sing the intricate choruses of the great “Mass'* as they were sung on Saturday. The climax at the end of the first “ Kyrie " seemed the limit of human achievement, yet the singers rose to even greater heights of sublimity in the final choruses of the “ Mass,” which produced an over¬ whelming effect on the hearers. These alone, had noth¬ ing else been sung, would have made the trip to Beth¬ lehem worth while. The Choir does not sing for money. It is made up of local amateurs who sing for sheer love of music as embodied in Bach. Wagner said that the choral numbers in Beethoven's Ninth Symphony could be mastered only under the stimulus of enthusiasm. How' great must be the enthusiasm of these sing¬ ers thus to master the choruses of the Bach “ Mass,” which are still more difficult than Beethoven's ! How could the sopranos, in particular, stand the strains of those high notes, two afternoons and evenings in suc¬ cession, one wonders; but they did it nobly, and all sang the ornamental passages with a virtuosity equal to that of the best soloists. The artists heard in the solo parts were Marie Stod- dart, Lucy A. Brickenstein, Maude Sproule, Reed Miller, Charles T. Tittmann (whose fine bass voice is the envy of many), Grace Kerns, Christine Miller, Nicholas Douty, and Arthur Herschmann. Concern¬ ing most of them pleasant words might be written, but soloists, good and indifferent, and orchestras are heard in New York every day, whereas Dr. Wolle’s Bethlehem chorus is unique and incomparable in its field. 124 SINGING THE B MINOR MASS AT THE igiy BACH FESTIVAL THE ELEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL Mr. Henderson’s “New York Sun” account, on Monday, May 29, began thus: — The annual Festival of Bach music at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, occupied Friday and Saturday, coming to a deeply impressive conclusion in the early evening of the second day. The sessions of the first day were held at 4 and 8 p.m., but because the last trains out of Beth¬ lehem for everywhere except Wilkes-Barre and Buffalo leave earlier than 8.15 p.m., it has been found conveni¬ ent to hold the Saturday sessions at 2 and 5 p.m. This gives time for an interval of an hour between the two; and in that period visitors walk about the beautiful campus of Lehigh University or climb to its higher levels and gaze at the lovely landscape stretching miles away to the slopes of the Blue Mountains. After several paragraphs about the earlier Fes¬ tivals, Mr. Henderson continued: — The presentation of the “ Christmas Oratorio ” at a May Festival is not in the least out of season. Two substantial reasons may be offered for this. In the first place, the birth, death, and resurrection of Christ are the foundations of the Christian Church, and their celebration can never be out of season. Secondly, in the art of Bach the glorification and adoration of Jesus are supreme subjects. His vocal compositions for church use are his greatest creations, and among them those which reach the sublimest heights are the “ Pas¬ sion according to St. Matthew,” and the “B Minor Mass.” Next to these must be ranked the “ Passion 125 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR according to St. John ** (given at last year’s Bethlehem Festival) the‘‘ Magnificat,” the‘‘Christmas Oratorio,” and some of the singularly eloquent and characteristic cantatas, such as “God goeth up with shouting,” “I with my cross-staff,” “Strike, oh, strike,” and “ Sleep¬ ers, wake.” The “ Mass” is Bach’s most triumphant proclama¬ tion of his faith. It is an old story among music-lovers that it is a mass only in form. It does set the text of the Catholic ritual, but then it sings it to the clarion accents of the Lutheran reformation. It is the over¬ whelming challenge of the Protestant church militant. The “Passions” and the “Christmas Oratorio” are the chants of the church adoring. They are the perfect flower of the soul’s service. They are Bach’s deepest and tenderest canticles of the Christian’s ineffable love for his Lord, and they voice also his rejoicing in the knowledge of salvation. The “Christmas Oratorio,” to be sure, was not orig¬ inally given in one day. Bach wrote it in 1734 in six parts, one of which was heard on each of the six days of the Christmas Festival in the Thomas Church in Leipsic. The first three parts were given successively on December 25, 26, and 27. The others were sung on the Feast of the Circumcision, the Sunday after the New Year, and the Epiphany. On Friday last the three parts were sung in the afternoon and the others in the evening. The audience occupied every seat in the church. Many were turned away. There were musicians, singers, conductors and music-lovers from various sec¬ tions of the country. 126 THE ELEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL It is not at all pleasant to have to record that, if any of these visitors were present for the first time, they must have been disappointed. In the first place, the whole interpretation of the ‘‘Oratorioseemed to be under a spell of heaviness, and that, too, despite the fact that Dr. J. Fred Wolle, conductor of the Festivals since their beginning, was wise enough to push all the solo airs along at a good pace. The orchestra was selected from Philadelphia’s excel¬ lent organization, but the performance was lamentably prolific in technical slips, particularly in the difficult trumpet parts. The soloists were Marie Stoddart, so¬ prano, Maude Sproule, alto; Reed Miller, tenor, and Charles Tittmann, bass. Lucy A. Brickenstein, leading soprano of the Choir from its foundation, sang the echo part in the surpassingly beautiful “ Ah ! my Saviour, I entreat Thee,” in which the exclamations of the soprano are repeated by a voice outside. Miss Brickenstein was as steady as a rock. Mr. Miller sang his recitatives with intelligence and good voice. He showed that he understood the Bach style. . . . Dr. Wolle was commended last spring for his greater respect for the style of Bach and for his relaxation of his rule that all closing cadences should slacken their rate of movement almost to the stopping point. He was thanked for making less of a bugbear of the appog- giatura, a technical affair with which Bach camps are internally disturbed, but about which the general reader need not concern himself. But this year the distinguished Bach interpreter treated his audience to some extraordinary readings of 127 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR the chorales, which, as musical students know, are the harmonized hymn tunes scattered through the work. Surely Bach never conceived such highly developed crescendi and diminuendi, such large and sudden con¬ trasts of tone, such extreme application of purely super¬ ficial effects of chorus singing. To one Bach lover, at any rate, the singing of the chorales sounded like ex¬ hibitions of the Bethlehem Chorus rather than of the true spirit of Bach. Mr. H. T. Parker, writing in the ‘‘Boston Evening Transcript,” said: — The “ Christmas Oratorio” was good to hear not merely as a curiosity, not merely for the learned in Bach and in spi:e of sundry shortcomings in performance. The representatives of the Philadelphia Orchestra did not distinguish themselves in either “Mass” or “Ora¬ torio.” The trumpets were not up to their usually flaming and exacting parts; the horns lacked richness ; the violins transparency and unity ; the whole orchestra surety and elasticity. The solo singers were negligible — happily negligible in that they did not stand in the way of the music; the chorus left something to be de¬ sired in the body of tenor tone, for example, and in an occasional heaviness of accent and sluggishness of ascent and descent; while the conductor curiously dolled with ornament and sentimentalized in mood those sturdy, square-cut, and straightforward hymn-tunes that Bach harmonized into chorales. Yet there were compensating virtues. Mr. Wolle shuns the slow and dragging pace even in the longest 128 THE ELEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL drawn of Bach’s airs ; he keeps the singing of his choir rhythmically alive ; he is finely apt in some of his tran¬ sitions and imaginative in his shadings; he can propel his singers upward in thrilling flights of song (as in the ‘‘Gloria” of the “Mass”) or hold them as thrillingly in sustained and moving mass of tone (as in the super¬ human progressions of the “ Sanctus ”) or make a chorus of rejoicing leap as it were into the voices that sing and the ears that hear. Moreover, he knows and feels better than some of his solo singers the suffused and haunting sweetness that exhales out of not a few of Bach’s airs in the “ Christmas Oratorio” even when they seem most of the passing fashion of the composer’s time. Mr. Waldo’s May 29 article in the “Phila¬ delphia Public Ledger,” gave an explanation as to the orchestral playing. The Philadelphia Orches¬ tra had concerts at home at the same time and “ many performers who appeared at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia were sorely needed in Packer Memorial Church at Bethlehem and their places were filled by inferior performers.” Dr. Waldo has repeatedly urged, in his reviews, addi¬ tional joint rehearsals of the choir and orchestral Were not the expense apparently prohibitive, it would be highly desirable to hold more than a single eleventh-hour rehearsal of the combined forces. The THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR choir works together for most of the year round, and it knows the score backward and forward, waking or sleeping. To expect the ideal cooperation with one re¬ hearsal is to expect the impossible. Mr. Aldrich in the “New York Times,'’ had this to say: — The “Christmas Oratorio" is not altogether easy listening for modern ears, especially in such long stretches, because of the great number of solo airs and recitatives and of the duets it contains; and though many of them are of much sweetness and beauty, some seem dry and very long, and their difficulties, seldom triumphantly mastered, put a strain upon the singers that is communicated to the listeners. Nor can it be said that that performance was up to the recent standard of the Bach Choir. The tenor quality of the choir lacked beauty; the sopranos were sometimes shrill. Many of the choruses were superbly sung, with energy, with varied nuance, and not without that precision that is in¬ dispensable to the proper effect of Bach’s style. Others were sung not so well; notably the opening chorus. There were here and later in the performance, sluggish attacks, a lack of clearness and elasticity that were in¬ jurious. Many must have dissented from Mr. Wolle's way of treating some of the chorales. A critic who did not dissent was Mr. Peyser, whose “Musical America” article maintained that 130 THE ELEVENTH BACH FESTIVAL With Dr. Wolle’s interpretation of these chorales there need be no quarrel because of the seemingly ar¬ bitrary introduction of dynamic shadings. The under¬ lying sentiment of the text supplied ample warrant for what he did along these lines, and the result was not at all incompatible with the spirit of the music. The performance of the “ Mass ” last Saturday was the finest it has been the writer’s happy privilege to hear on any of his Bethlehem visits. . . . ‘‘Colossal,” “ stupendous,” “ magnificent,” — only such expressions as these come to mind in pondering over such displays of high choral art. The greatest ecclesiastical work ever composed was sung last Saturday as it, in all likelihood, never has been in this country before. And the greatest choral moments of the Festival were the “ Incarnatus,” “Crucifixus,” “Et Resurrexit,” “Confiteor,” and “ Sanctus,” in the last named of which the zephyr-like deploying triplets of the soprano and contralto parts caress the stanch bass melody like angelic wings. . . . The first day’s soloists were Marie Stoddart, Maude Sproule, Lucy Brickenstein, Reed Miller and Charles Tittmann. . . . Mr. Miller accomplished the finest solo singing of the day. . . . A substitution in the solo ranks was necessitated by the illness of Caroline Hudson-Alexander. Her place was taken by Grace Kerns who had not sung the “ Mass” in years and who shouldered the task on short notice. The reviewer has no wish and indeed no ex¬ pectation of ever hearing the soprano part sung more ravishingly or with keener intelligence and more consum¬ mate finish. It was such singing as would have justified THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR applause in a church. So, too, was that of Christine Miller, great vocalist, great artist. . . . There were moist eyes in the audience when Miss Miller touched the afternoon’s summit of beauty with the glorified “Agnus Dei.” The tenor part was carried by the always depend¬ able Nicholas Douty, who earned his customary laurels as an authoritative exponent of the Bach manner. To Arthur Herschmann were allotted the two bass arias and he delivered them broadly and with understanding. The review of Mr. W. B. Murray, Jr., in the “ Brooklyn Eagle’' contained praise for the con¬ tralto soloist,— Christine Miller, who alone met the tremendous de¬ mands satisfactorily. The beauty of her voice and the finish of her art are an old story to New York audi¬ ences, but it seemed that she never sang more beauti¬ fully and with more consummate mastery of the art of song than in the delivery of the “Agnus Dei.” Indi¬ vidually, it was the high-water mark of the festival.. . . Interest, however, rested largely in the Choir. ... As in most amateur organizations, there were unequal values, the tenor division lacking in tone quality. Yet one forgets such niceties in the perfection of the en¬ semble, in attack, unanimity of utterance, handling of crescendo and diminuendo and variations of tempo. All the involved counterpoint of the “ Mass ” was han¬ dled with success of execution and beauty of expression. To Dr. Wolle, the director, too much praise cannot be given. 132 THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL Mr. Harold P. Quicksall, in the ‘‘ Philadel¬ phia North American,” said of the chorales in the “ Christmas Oratorio ” : — When the chorus had finished singing, without ac¬ companiment, the first chorale of Part I in the most finished fashion, the listener could not help but see that even the lift of an eyebrow or the bending of a finger on the part of Dr. Wolle concealed secrets of the art of choral training which only a conductor could fathom. Of the personnel of the attendance at the 1916 Festival, the “Christian Science Monitor” re¬ ported this: — Among those who enjoyed the hospitality of Presi¬ dent Drinker of Lehigh University and Mrs. Drinker were Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt, Mrs. Nicholas Long- worth, Mrs. Richard Derby, Lyman Abbott, Dr. Rich¬ ard C. Cabot. Others present were Leopold Stokow¬ ski, Frank van der Stiicken, Oswald Garrison Villard, Charles M. Schwab, Dr. W. W. Keen, Kitty Cheat¬ ham, Henry T. Finck, W. J. Henderson, Richard Aldrich, Edward J. Dodge, President of the Harvard Alumni chorus. THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL, I917 The twelfth Bach Festival was held on June I and 2, 1917, some six weeks after the United 133 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR States declared war upon Germany. In its edi¬ torial comment the “ New York World” said: — Bethlehem’s Bach Festival takes place as usual with¬ out a twitter of opposition. The example of sanity is recommended to the musical pulse patriots who were prepared to make an issue of Wagner at the Metro¬ politan. The war aspect occasioned the following clos¬ ing lines of the critical review of the Festi¬ val by Mr. Pitts Sanborn in the “New York Globe”: — It would, indeed, be a national calamity if war should be permitted to interrupt even for one year these noble and solemn festivals which harmonize in every way with the loftiest ideals and aspirations of humanity and which so far as this country is concerned are unique. . . . The Bach Festivals at Bethlehem are important not only to art in America but to our humanity. At the present moment they provide an overwhelming re¬ minder of the sublimity and the sublime humility which a German whom Prussia had not corrupted could ex¬ press in tone. The simple fact that a German two cen¬ turies ago could be Johann Sebastian Bach is as terrific a single indictment as any one can bring against the Prussian system and all its works. The “Outlook” editorial discussion of the work of the Bach Choir had this conclusion: — 134 THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL This annual Festival is something that not even the world war ought to be allowed to interfere with. There are some things which, even for the great Allied cause, we are not yet called upon to sacrifice, and this is one of them. The geographical range of the attendance at the 1917 Festival, the importance of the pro¬ gramme for its premier American renditions of cantatas, and criticism of the chorus and solo singing were covered in special correspondence in the “Christian Science Monitor,’’ of June 9: — From twenty-seven States the pilgrims came to the Bach Festival at Bethlehem, June i and 2. At the two sessions of the first day seven cantatas and a motet, all said to be new to America, were sung, and at the two performances on the second day the sublime “ Mass in B Minor,” a feature of every Festival, was presented. The impression left on the minds of trained musicians is that this Festival has excelled all those that pre¬ ceded. . . . In varying degree, yet in each case acceptably, the soloists entered into the spirit of the music and the tradition of the Festivals, and there was no conspicu¬ ous defalcation on the part of any. Yet the music of the Choir itself seemed to tower above the participa¬ tion of the individual auxiliaries, and the delight of the second day’s performance was in its emphasis on the chorus as a whole instead of upon the executant vir- 135 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR tuosi severally. Most of the cantatas after the opening chorus turned the argument over to the soloists, with the orchestra, but in the “ Mass the choir came grandly into its own, and the glorious polyphony was, except for brief episodes, sustained. An innovation in the seating arrangement of the players brought the wood-wind instruments into the foreground, to throw into salient relief the oboe obbli¬ gatos on which Bach so tellingly relies, and the softer voices of the flutes. At first the violins, between the wood-wind and the Choir, did not proclaim their pres¬ ence with sufficient energy, and this was a dynamic ad¬ justment that even a few minutes of rehearsal with the Choir would have gone far to rectify. The male singers, instead of being perched forlornly on a ‘‘top shelf’* at the extreme rear, were placed in a broad zone betwixt the soprano and the alto divisions. Thus one felt at all times the virile sufficiency of tenors and basses, instead of the feminine preponderance that obtains in far too many mixed choruses. In the first cantata the first of the thrilling and often fairly blood-curdling sforzandos, for which the Choir is noted, nearly lifted the roof at the word “ namely,” and the supreme effect was only reached because of the artful recession and repression of the rest of it. Dr. Wolle is past-master of musical coloratura, and, loving to take a choice morsel of Bach upon the tongue, even as the preacher of old loved to “ sweeten his mouth with a piece of Calvin,” he has often been accused of prolonging the holds and retarding the phrase-endings unduly. The four-square, hard bitten metronomists of 136 THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL the choir loft may lodge a valid objection, but the gleam of the inner and the outer light surely illumines for Dr. Wolle’s listeners what would otherwise stay hid in tenebral recesses under the hand of the martinet. All the Bach Choir sings is done with rapture and zest, and as it sings one is likely to find himself murmuring to his own mind, “ He maketh his angels spirits and his ministers a flame of fire.*' Sing to the Lord,” the opening chorus of the fourth cantata, with its immensities of trumpet and drum, was typical of the tremendous moments. At such times Dr. Wolle, lifting on high his clenched fists, seemed to in¬ vite fire from heaven to descend upon altars invisible. H is face was a-gleam with inspiration. His hands, for he uses no baton, are the most expressive and eloquent feature of a lithe, spare figure which takes little heed of itself on the way to its exaltation. Though this irrepressibly vital personality dominated the choir and the players and the intent listeners, at the times when the chorales came and the whole gathering rose and sang, one felt again that the communal aspira¬ tion was the best and the greatest part of the music that was made. In a word, the music of Bach is the last thing to choose for egotist or self-lover with the itch to shine. It must increase and the performer must decrease. Every one of the singers in the Bach Choir has learned self-suppression as certainly as self-expres¬ sion. Their music goes humming with them through the roaring foundries of the smoke-palled steel town. The reverberation of the “ Mass ” is the undercurrent of the testing laboratories of the university. The rehearsals 137 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR break down barriers of caste as effectually as a railway train in India. If one would find the ideal of commu¬ nity singing, let him repair to the leafy lap of the hills of Bethlehem. Perhaps the climax in the ‘‘Mass” came with the “Sanctus.” Here the famous Choir was at its very best, and the flexible undulation of the voices in fleet, unerring progress through Bach’s sublime exactions was a feat of execution as stirring as the immense diapason of the men’s voices, underpinned by the pedal point of the organ, which came booming into the ensemble, ever and anon, like the voice of the sea roused by storm. The “New York Evening Post” of June 4 devoted more than two columns to the Festival. Extracts follow: — Usually one of the larger Bach works, like the “ St. Matthew” or “St. John Passion” or the “Christmas Oratorio,” precedes the “ Mass ”; but this year Dr. Wolle chose for the first day of the Festival a group of those marvelous church cantatas, which, in the opin¬ ion of many Bach connoisseurs, are even more inspired and stupendous than those larger works. It is well known that there were originally about three hundred of these cantatas, and that some two hundred have been preserved and printed. The folio volumes of the Bach Society in which these are gath¬ ered constitute the biggest musical treasure house in existence. During Bach’s twenty-seven years of activity 138 THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL as cantor at Leipzig he composed these works at the average rate of ten a year — yet no one thanked him or had the faintest idea of his immortal achievement — indeed, he was actually and frequently censured for neglect of duty, because, forsooth, he did not give more of his time to his choir. If Bach could have attended one of Dr. Wolle’s Bethlehem performances, he would have been in the seventh heaven of delight. He himself never heard any of his works done one quarter as well. His forces were shamefully and ludicrously inadequate. As late as 1730 he was obliged to complain that whereas he needed thirty-six singers and twenty players for the rendering of his cantatas and other church works, he had only seventeen good singers and eight players! Contrast this with Dr. Wolle’s two hundred admirably trained singers, assisted by the famous Philadelphia Orchestra, and you will realize the good fortune of those who are able to attend a Bethlehem Bach Festi¬ val. . . . The first cantata sung on Friday afternoon. No. 45, is fairly well known. It opens with a lengthy chorus built almost entirely on a short motive — only five notes. “ Es ist dir Gesagt” — here the English trans¬ lation is an improvement, for ‘Mt is said unto thee’* is hardly an important enough phrase for such inces¬ sant repetition — it reminds one of the old master- singer’s songs, which always began, ‘Hn the fifteenth chapter of Matthew ’tis recorded, etc.” But Bach was not always thinking of textual details — he often made the mood of the whole the governing factor, although 139 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR the other procedure was not at all uncommon, as we shall see later. The motet was sung next, unaccompanied, and was indeed a tour de force for Dr. Wolle’s chorus. The shading was exquisite. The “ Evening Post ’’ review, after a careful analysis of each of the cantatas sung, closed: — The performance of these works was in thorough accord with the traditions established by Dr. Wolle. The choruses were well sung, the accompaniment well played (by men from the Philadelphia Orchestra), and T. Edgar Shields was a splendid support at the organ. Nicholas Douty, that sterling musician, who happens to be a tenor, was not in the best voice, but his sure¬ footed musicianship and artistic interpretation never failed. Miss Marie Stoddart sang the soprano solos. Miss Marie Morrissey the alto, and Charles T. Titt- man the bass — all doing well— Mr. Tittman showing a marked improvement over his last year’s perform¬ ance. They had difficult tasks to perform, and should not be caviled at because the chorus was the real “star” — if there could be said to be a star at a per¬ formance of Bach cantatas. Mr. Pitts Sanborn in a column account in the •'‘New York Globe,” began by saying that the Bethlehem Bach Festivals “are coming to be recognized as a national institution.” Certain paragraphs follow: — 140 THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL I have never been present at one of the festivals in the old Moravian Church. There the atmosphere must have approached as nearly as anything in the New World can that of Bach’s own Thomaskirche in Leip¬ zig. The brighter, airy church on the university cam¬ pus offers in compensation for its relative newness su¬ perior comfort and greater seating accommodation. And it is a church, not a concert room. Remove the churchly surroundings from a performance of the religious music of Bach and you remove something which is essential to their full effect on the listener. Then, at Bethlehem the Moravian trombone choir, an institution of that sect, playing chorales from the spire of the university church as the people gather for each concert, prepares the mood as nothing else could for Bach. It would be useless to attempt to go through the Fri¬ day programme and pick out for praise the manifold beauties of the works offered. One might dwell on the brilliant opening of “Watch ye. Pray ye,” on the almost startling modernity of the recitative and air for bass which close the same work ; on the profound and cour¬ ageous joyousness that breathes a particular charm throughout “ When will God recall my spirit P ” But to do so would be to pass by other beauties no less worthy of remark. The choir sang with the enthusiasm Dr. Wolle never fails to inspire in his singers and with the constant vitality of expression which is one of its major merits. Members of the Philadelphia Orchestra and T. Edgar Shields, organist, provided an accompaniment which often deserved the heartiest praise. Nicholas Douty, THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR the veteran, and, if you like, Gibraltar Rock of these Festivals, brought his long schooling in the letter and the spirit of Bach to the tenor solos. Charles T. Titt- man in the bass solos disclosed a voice of beautiful quality, exceptionally well trained, and sang for the most part with security and admirable expression and finish. Miss Marie Stoddart did creditably in the so¬ prano solos. . . . When one has taken account of every flaw in the exe¬ cution, the fact remains that the impression left by the festival as a whole is mighty and uplifting. Dr. Wolle and his Choir, and the generous men and women who stand behind them, are engaged in a work that has no peer in kind and few in importance among the many admirable artistic enterprises in our broad land. Mr. Peyser, in ‘‘Musical America,’’ called at¬ tention, in discussing the first day’s programme to the fact that, excepting the motet, — which the Musical Art Society gave at its Christmas concert in New York last winter, none of these works appears to have hitherto received American perform¬ ances. That this is the case must be ascribed solely to the inability of American choral organizations to nego¬ tiate Bach successfully or to the unwillingness of con¬ ductors to face the vast difficulties they impose. . . . Pages in the cantatas simply held the listener spell¬ bound in the magnificence, the splendor, the sturdy vigor and plangency of their exposition. Others cut to the quick by the keenness of their poignant accent. And then in the Mass the celestial radiance of the 142 THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL “ Sanctus,” the awful catastrophic “ Crucifixus,” the heaven-soaring “Et resurrexit ” — what cold critical terms shall be invoiced to describe the effect of these? There was this reference by Mr. Lucas in the ^‘Musical Courier'’ to the popular response to the appeal of Bach as sung at Lehigh: — The crowds that flock to Bethlehem every year are the eloquent comments on the attractions of the Bach Festival. Paeans of praise would be worthless if the public did not attend the concerts. The crowds at the twelfth Bach Festival were greater than ever. Are words worth anything in the presence of this fact ? ** Bach in War-Time ” was the title of an article by the Reverend W. E. Brooks in the “ Christian Work,” from which these extracts are taken: — The most amazing contrast of all was that while the world was on fire, in the very city whose name is linked more closely to the war than that of any other in the land, we should have gathered to listen to the great Christian facts, set to the lofty music that only they could inspire, by the “master of masters,” a German of another and a better German day. . . . The Friday programmes included seven cantatas and a motet, all sung for the first time in America. One wondered as one listened to them if Dr. Wolle had not thought of the war in his choice of them, and sought to cheer our hearts with the great Christian cheer with which Bach’s faith filled his music. . . . H3 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR The impotence of words is realized when a man tries to describe the climacteric effect of one of these great chorales coming at the end of a cantata, the three hun¬ dred voices weaving the harmony of the parts, the strings and the brasses of the great orchestra mingling with the organ's notes, all in a vast and compelling volume of sound, so sweet, so ecstatic, so exultant, that one is sure that until he hears “ the harpers harping with their harps” for him it will never be surpassed. It is Christian ecstasy at its best. . . . Bethlehem has been called the American Bayreuth. It is most exceedingly not that. Bayreuth is the shrine of Nietzsche set to music, of sword motifs and fire motifs, of Valkyries who ride terribly, and Rhine maid¬ ens who guard the treasure that gives world power to him who holds it. When we are done with swords and fire now we want no more of them, and we pray for the coming of the day when the Rhine-gold may be sunk in the depths of the sea, where none may ever dream of holding it or its power again. But Bethlehem stands for other things. It is the shrine of Christianity set to music, of a God at once all powerful and all merciful, of His Son crucified once, but risen forever, and to be domi¬ nant in life. We want no Bayreuth in America any more than we want the things for which Bayreuth stands. But wedo want the things ofwhich Bachsang. And those of us who heard that great choir sing under Dr. Wolle's dynamic leadership believe that Bethlehem will in¬ creasingly become a shrine for America, not only musi¬ cally, though that is much, but for the higher things whose hand-maidens the great arts have ever been. 144 THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL Mr. George B. Nevin, the composer, writing in ‘‘ Music News,’’ Chicago, was moved to ask : — While the thoughts of the world are centered on the mighty struggle which now engages about a score of nations, the awful carnage, the suffering beyond de¬ scription, the destruction of the ancient and the beau¬ tiful, the waste and desolation, the years and years of future effort to rebuild what has so ruthlessly been torn down; can it be that we are privileged to drop down in quaint Bethlehem where for a time the world seemed to be in harmony with the Infinite, or was it a dream ? In the “Holy Cross Magazine” for August, 1917, Father Harvey Officer, O.H.C., had an article on the “Bach Festival at Bethlehem,” from which brief extracts are taken : — Year by year an increasing number of music-lovers journeys to Bethlehem to worship at the shrine of Bach. The concerts are given in the Packer Memorial Chapel of Lehigh University. The building stands in the midst of a beautiful campus, surrounded by green lawns which slope rather steeply to a considerable height beyond. Half an hour before each concert the visitor finds the audience assembled in groups under the trees, waiting to hear the famous Moravian Trombone Choir. It announces each session of the Festival by playing chorales from the topmost stage of the Chapel tower, at the same time declaring unmistakably the religious 14s THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR tone of the entire occasion. For here there is no chance for personal display, no applause given to favorite sing¬ ers, nothing of the atmosphere of opera-house or con- cert-hall where music is so often degraded and belittled. We take our seats at last knowing that we are in a veritable temple of art, wherein we shall catch a vision of eternal truth : — “No face, only the sight Of a sweepy garment, vast and white. With a hem that I could recognize.’* . . . There is a certain number of musically educated peo¬ ple, however, who in their early training have experi¬ enced a distant acquaintance with Bach and have been thereby repelled. Perhaps it was an enthusiastic music- teacher who sat them down, shortly after five-finger exercises and scales had been attacked, to a thing called a “fugue’* out of this same J. S. Bach’s “Well- Tempered Clavichord.” The unpleasant memory still lingers. . . . Therefore, if my words about the fugue should be read by such an one, he will probably remain uncon¬ vinced of the existence of beauty in Bach. He is per¬ fectly sure that the mathematical exercise, called a fugue, cannot be beautiful. My answer to such a view would be, of course: — go to Bethlehem next June, and hear the Bach Choir. . . . It is this devotion to the cause of musical art, this steady pursuit of the highest ideal, which has made the Bach Choir at Bethlehem possible. No money can buy spiritual possessions such as these, nor can our great cities offer anything in exchange for them. 146 THE TWELFTH BACH FESTIVAL It is doubtful whether any writer has expressed as cogently as Mr. Waldo the spirit of the Beth¬ lehem Bach singers. His short ‘‘ Philadelphia Public Ledger” article of June 5, 1917, is so representative of this spirit that it is quoted here¬ with in its entirety: — It was a remarkable performance of nine works of Bach — eight of them probably for the first time in America — that took pilgrims of music from twenty- seven States to the green hills of Bethlehem on Friday and Saturday of last week. So beautiful and so inspir¬ ing was this memorable production that any one who was present is inclined to seek for reasons deeper than any superficial circumstance for the thrilling reaction of the music upon an intent and sophisticated audience. The result far transcended anything that singers can achieve whose purpose is merely fashionable and deco¬ rative. The Bach Choir under Dr. Wolle while it sings is a group of hypnotized fanatics who are willing to sing their lives away, their voices raw, their very souls out of their bodies for the sake of the music that they love better than meal-times or sleep or social engage¬ ments. In a few hours one heard the fruition of nearly a year of travail on the part of all concerned. When the work of preparation is fully under way the weekly rehearsals are superseded by drill twice or thrice or at last six times a week, till each singer knows the score by heart, and the music pursues every waking hour of employment and follows the night-time into dreamland. 147 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR As Mr. Walters has said, a Bach Festival means the labor of many devoted to a common ideal end. It means Charles M. Schwab ready to tip the horn of plenty in the direction of the guarantee fund. It means President Drinker, of Lehigh University, with the out- hung latch-string of every form of solicitous hospital¬ ity, especially the provision of the temple of the suc¬ cessive services, unprofaned by that incessant applause of personal tribute, acknowledged by bows, which is thought necessary even in the performance of sacred music in other places. Presumably such acknowledg¬ ment is in behalf of the Almighty, who in such unin¬ spired work is misrepresented. The more important part of the work of the Bach Choir is off the scene. It is the rehearsal that enters the lives of several hundred homes, with blessed and far-reaching influence. “The music in my heart I bore long after it was heard no more,’’ is the thought, whether expressed or not, of those to whom Bach is only the other name for a kind of passionate religion with its own disciples and ministrants set apart for the office of spreading a gospel to a world that knows not the spirit nor the letter of the greatest music born of the mind of man. To Dr. Wolle and those with him a debt is owed that is greater than the mere patronage at two days of performance can discharge; for to sing Bach is to live Bach, and there shines over Bethlehem with its grimy murky mills, whence so many of its singers come, the lustrous and resplendent star of an idealism not to be quenched without a grievous loss to all America. 148 THE THIRTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL THE THIRTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL Often, during the two war years. Dr. \VolIe said to friends close to him that he would halt the Festivals and not play a note himself if he felt that either diverted in even slight degree from national or individual devotion to the Allied cause. As to the fact that the music was the music of an eighteenth century German Dr. Wolle had no concern, his theme having always been the universality of Bach. Happily, as the “New York World’’ editorially pointed out, none of “the musical pulse patriots” ever raised this issue; the day-and-night manufacture of shells and ships and guns at Bethlehem and the thirty-four service stars in the Bach Choir flag would have been their answer if they had raised the issue. How the brooding queries of Dr. Wolle and associates were shared and met by thoughtful outsiders was illustrated in two articles. Mr. Ernest H. Abbott, in editorial correspondence in “ The Outlook” said of Bach: “ There is more reason than ever why America should cherish 149 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR and foster the works of this great man, for he expresses in tones the ideals of order and liberty and beauty which the people who speak the lan¬ guage he spoke are now assailing. It is therefore most fitting that while America is at war with Germany there should remain alive the current festival of Bach’s music at Bethlehem.” Mr. Abbott continued: — Such a festival in war times is among the war essen¬ tials. It is to the people at home what rest billets are to the soldiers at the front. Just as we have to dig the iron out of the earth before we can make our guns, so we have got to draw from somewhere spiritual strength by which to maintain our energy and resolution. It is not merely relaxation and entertainment that we need, but re-creation; and there is no power more re-creative than that of music, and no music more re-creative than that of Bach. The second illustration was supplied in a let¬ ter by Annie Nathan Meyer in the ‘‘New York Evening Post” of May 29, 1918. “I confess” wrote Mrs. Meyer, “ when my husband an¬ nounced his intention to attend this year some doubts crossed my mind — was unnecessary travel and the extra expense quite patriotic?” Her answer after attending was “to testify to fhe THE THIRTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL courage, faith, and wisdom of those who have borne the burden of producing again in this year of stress the annual Bach Festival at Bethle¬ hem.” Outside, on the peaceful campus, all seemed “ remote from the world’s agony.” But once within the church, all pricks of conscience ceased, for the programme was chosen with a tact that amounted to genius. From the rising of the great audi¬ ence to sing the “ Star-Spangled Banner ” as it never was sung before ... to the last great chorale, the war, and all it means to the spiritual growth of the nation, was in the foreground. The opening cantata was “My Spirit Was in Heaviness.” Who did not read an ad¬ ditional significance into the words: — Fast my bitter tears are flowing. Find I none to comfort me. Waves and storms are o’er me going. All this dark and troubled sea o’er my fainting spirit Rolleth, mine affliction none consoleth. Floods of sorrows close me ’round. Where can light and help be found ? Who did not feel the solace in the answer rolled mag¬ nificently out by the basso: — Behold! spirit, I am with thee, I am thy faithful friend that watcheth In the night, when evil is abroad. The hour is coming soon when All the conflicts o’er, thou Shalt a sweet reward secure. Who did not share the comfort of the solemn man¬ date:— THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR The weight of every cross and care We make but greater by despair. Think not when high thy trouble swelleth That thou by God forsaken art. The future all thy woe shall end. Relief and comfort God will send. It was no little thing to have heard such a message ex¬ pressed in terms of the most divine music rendered beau¬ tifully and in utter sincerity in the house of God. It is certain that no one departed from the Bach Fes¬ tival of 1918 without being a better patriot, without feeling that the war and all it stands for is more worth while than ever, more firmly resolved to do one’s part with the best that is in one, whole-heartedly, whether large or small, distinguished or insignificant. Doubtless all through this vast land of ours there are others ques¬ tioning the wisdom of patriotism in continuing to pro¬ duce the beautiful things of life, in cruel doubt whether every aesthetic joy must not be sacrificed in order to win the war. To such I would like to say a word of encour¬ agement: In so far as it may, without sacrifice of man power actually needed at the front, or of workers whose output is essential to the great industrial carrying-on, I should say that whatever is created at this time of true artistic beauty is of infinite preciousness in preserving the soul of the nation. The singing of the national anthem by the Choir at the opening of the Festival was com¬ mented upon by practically all of the music crit- 152 THE THIRTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL ics in their reports. Mr. Pitts Sanborn, in the “New York Evening Globe’’ wrote: — “The Star-Spangled Banner'' was sung in the church before each session on Friday and on the green between the sessions on Saturday, this time to the accompani¬ ment of the Moravian trombone choir. The American flag, the Union Jack, and the Tricolor of France hung above the chancel in the church and with a peculiar ap¬ propriateness, for the great Bach has belonged for two centuries to the whole world except that part of it which battles on the side of darkness. The “New York Times” report told of “the singing of the ‘Star-Spangled Banner' with a thrilling emotional quality as of folksong, its familiar measures punctuated by dramatic pauses and by high notes prolonged.” Mr. Odell Hauser, of Philadelphia, declared in “The Press” that Dr. Wolle, in directing Choir and congregation in the familiar words, “ made them sing the way he wanted them to. Somehow he sent a wave to the spirit over the mass and the people were thinking of the words they were singing and what they meant.” The “New York Tribune'’ reported the at¬ tendance of Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt, Sr., Mrs. Nicholas Longworth, Joseph Stransky, director 153 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, and Mrs.Stransky, and added that ‘‘ Mr. Schwab’s ac¬ tivities as director of the Emergency Fleet Cor¬ poration prevented him from attending the festival.” The Springfield Republican ” account ot a column and a half closed with the declaration that ‘‘ the whole performance was pervaded with a reverence, a seriousness, and a devotion to the wishes of the composer, as interpreted through the special knowledge of Dr. Wolle, that re¬ sulted in a presentation of the marvelous work than which it would be hard to imagine any¬ thing better.” Mr. W. B. Murray, whose careful account covered nearly two columns in the ‘‘ Brooklyn Eagle,” wrote that ‘‘ Certainly, so far as spirit and devotion are concerned (and these are the two necessary qualities in the singing of Bach) the Choir is incomparable.” THE FOURTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL Just as the program of 1918 reflected the sorrow and supplication of a people at war, so 154 THE FOURTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL the first-day cantatas of 1919 were announced by Dr. Wolle as presenting the two-fold aspect of a peace celebration and a memorial festival. As an “In Memoriam for those who gave their lives in France Dr. Wolle selected the cantata “O Teach Me, Lord, My Days to Number.” The peace theme was represented in the open¬ ing cantata “The Lord is My Shepherd,” and other cantatas in which peace and gratitude are emphasized. As Dr. William N. Schwarze pointed out in the “Bethlehem Times,” “even the trombone announcements brought the con¬ trast of the times. ... For the solemn, jubilant strains of the chorales swept up the slopes that not long since had re-echoed to the calls of the bugle.” (The Lehigh campus was a military camp of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps during a part of the preceding year.) Of the opening cantata, Mr. Herbert F. Pey¬ ser wrote in “Musical America”: — “The Lord is My Shepherd” represented a “first time” for the Choir. The Bach singers had never pre¬ sented it and records of other performances in America — if any — are difficult to locate. The opening chorus establishes the ineffably serene and tranquil mood of the 155 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR words. A murmurous tracery of muted string and deli¬ cate flute and oboe phrases and figures buoy up a vocal counterpoint for which the chorale “Allein Gott in der Hoh sei Ehr” furnishes the cantus firmus. A marvelous bass recitative “And Though I Wander” contains in its somber accompaniment darksome harmonies and transitions that would excite wonder even in Wagner. The supreme moment of the first day's music was the initial chorus of the “Bide With Us” at the opening of the Friday evening session. Here Bach voiced one of the tenderest canticles ever elicited by a perfect assurance of faith, one of the sweetest songs of adoration sprung from the depths of a supremely spiritualized nature. Here, too, the Choir, which after the dull beginning to which I referred above, quickly improved, sang with an ideal¬ ized beauty of tone and shading simply incomparable, most especially in the first chorus, which has a tender¬ ness, and a romantic color besides, that hint almost of Schubert. Entirely admirable, likewise, was its work in the tender, grave and deep “Thou Guide of Israel” and “O Light Everlasting.” The solo cantata was the con¬ tralto “Strike, Oh, Strike” historic no less for its use of chimes than for its melodic loveliness. Of peculiar interest, since some critics have been hostile to it, was the comment in “ The American Organist’' of Mr. Rollo F. Maitland, a distinguished church organist, upon the hum¬ ming of the Choir: — The chorale “Come, O Death” at the close of this 156 THE FIFTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL cantata was hummed by the chorus. While this proce¬ dure might be open to question, especially if the words were not in the hands of the congregation, the manner in which this was done was beyond criticism. Such beautiful shading, delicate nuances, the bringing out of individual parts, and fine tone quality and balance are very seldom heard. The chorale was sung unaccom¬ panied and the chorus ended right on the key. The invariable second-day offering, the ‘‘ B Minor Mass’" was “gloriously given,” as Mr. Robert E. Shafer reported in the “ Bethlehem Globe,” and Mr. Fullerton Waldo, in the “Philadelphia Public Ledger” wrote that “it will go down as the finest that this great choir has yet given.” Mr. Waldo, in his account in “The Outlook” dwelt upon one solo, “the in¬ effably exquisite and touching ‘Agnus Dei," and Merle Alcock this year sang it — as a hearer re¬ marked— with the enamored care and the per¬ ceptive feeling one finds in the work of the best of the Florentine painters.” THE FIFTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL To the generous interest of Mrs. R. P. Lin- dcrman, the Bach Festival and her fellow-citi¬ zens of Bethlehem were indebted in 1920 (and 157 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR have been similarly indebted each year since) for an annual gift of $1,500 to bear the expense of a rehearsal in Packer Memorial Church of Choir and Orchestra. Mr. Waldo, of the “Pub¬ lic Ledger,” had more than once commented upon the hazards of a Festival without an op¬ portunity for the Bethlehem singers and the Philadelphia players to go over their work to¬ gether. The rehearsal, held Thursday evening, pre¬ ceding the Festival of Friday and Saturday, May 28 and 29, 1920, was open to the local public at the nominal admission charge of 25 cents and three cents war tax. The response, when the tickets were placed on sale in Bethlehem, Allen¬ town and Easton, was amazing. All tickets van¬ ished in less than four hours. For many home folks in the rehearsal audience this was their first formal hearing of the Bach Choir; it was indeed a revelation and a joy to such. The artistic profit of the rehearsal was clear in the first-day sessions of the Festival. There was, in the opening cantata, as the correspondent of “ The Christian Science Monitor” expressed it. THE FIFTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL “a complete working agreement between sing¬ ers and instruments.” “ This year these singers advanced their ban¬ ners still higher on the steep slopes of choral artistry,” wrote Mr. Julius Hartt, in the Hart¬ ford, Connecticut “ Daily Times.” “What Bach felt more than a century and a half ago when he committed these immortal works to paper, hun¬ dreds of men and women of to-day felt through the intermediary offices of the Bach Choir. . . . A spirit very like the spirit that used to hover over Oberammergau at the season of the Passion play is to be felt at Bethlehem during the Bach Festival days. More than ever it was felt this year.” Mr. William B. Murray, critic of the “Brook¬ lyn Eagle,” wrote more than two columns upon what he termed “ America’s unique musical event.” Praising the festivals at Cincinnati and Worcester and the productions of Litchfield, Conn., and Pittsfield, Mass., Mr. Murray de¬ clared that they do not approach in significance Bethlehem’s achievement. In Bethlehem once a year devotion is paid to the 159 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR shrine and memory of the greatest tone poet of all times. In Bethlehem once a year a chorus of townsfolk, drawn from all walks and conditions of life, raises harmonious praise to God by an accurate and inspiring rendition of music's most involved contrapuntal weavings. And to Bethlehem once a year come pilgrims from all parts of the country for the single purpose of hearing that music, which by its very nature repels the efforts of lesser en¬ thusiasms and the ambitions of those to whom music may be less, even by a jot, than a complete and all-sac¬ rificing devotion. . . . It would be for us an act of ingratitude if we should let this moment pass without speaking a word in favor of certain of the soloists. Mr. Tittmann, who has made tremendous strides in recent years both in the enlarging of his tonal range and in the embellishment of his vocal equipment, was altogether worthy of his task. His de¬ livery of the recitatives can call for nothing but un¬ qualified praise. And as we write we hold no memory of the festival in higher esteem than Mrs. Alcock’s singing - of the ‘‘Agnus Dei.” Mildred Faas and Nicholas Douty, for these many years Dr. Wolle’s battlehorse, were evi¬ dently more devoted to Bach than to the technical de¬ vices of the modern singing art. There were moments when Mrs. Faas was altogether delightful. Florence Hinkle needs no new encomium at this time. However, after all, it seems almost sacrilegious even to mention singers in connection with a Bach festival. The chorus is the thing that matters. i6o THE SIXTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL THE SIXTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL Every seat for all four sessions of the 1921 Bach Festival, May 26 and 27, was engaged in advance and many persons had to be denied admission to Packer Church. Some of these came early and heard the numbers of the public rehearsal on Thursday evening; others came late and listened outside the church. It may be said, parentheti¬ cally, that each year there is a concourse on the campus slope of hearers who, in the afternoon sun¬ shine and under the stars in the evening, enjoy the Festival, — a welcomed and reverent secondary congregation. ‘‘The afternoon performance, after the trom¬ bones played from the church tower, opened so quietly that the audience was scarcely aware of it,’' reported the correspondent of the “New York Times,” “and the placid, pastoral quality of the first cantata (“The Sages of Sheba”) made the sharp dynamic contrasts of the full chorus that came later still more emphatic. From the start there was a greater degree of security than has previously been the case. When the audience 161 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR joined in the singing the effect was inspiring/’ Mr. Samuel L. Laciar, music critic of the ‘‘ Phil¬ adelphia Evening Ledger,” reported that “the Bach Choir again vindicated its right to be known as the leading organization of the country, if not of the world, in the interpretation and perform¬ ance of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, the greatest musical genius of all time.” In his Sat¬ urday column “The Critic Talks to Music Lov¬ ers,” Mr. Laciar referred to the increasing attend¬ ance in recent years of students of Bach and to the consequent “atmosphere of criticism (by no means used in its adverse sense) of the music performed and of the manner of performance, but especially of appraisal of the music itself and comparison with other works of the same master.” While this attitude necessarily makes for a loss on the devotional side, it is by no means an unmixed evil, for the educational side — a very important feature of the Bach festivals — gains by it. For every Bach enthusiast, if not expert, who attended the festivals ten years ago, there are to-day probably fifty. And this increase in in¬ terest and knowledge in the music of Sebastian Bach can have only a beneficial effect upon American music. It must be a cause of great pleasure and pride to Dr. Wolle and his devoted band of adherents to realize what 162 THE SIXTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL they are doing for the music of their country through these festivals. Schumann spoke many words of sound advice to the young musician, but none more full of meaning than when he advised every one to “ make Bach your daily bread.'' And Dr. Wolle is an excellent pro¬ vider of this finest of musical subsistence. Mr. Charles D. Isaacson devoted his depart¬ ment ‘‘Our Family Music" in the “New York Globe" for June 2 to his impressions of his little journey to Bethlehem: — Always as I walk through the quaint streets of Bethle¬ hem or jaunt past the fiercely impressive factories of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation, glowing in the reflection of their own red fires, I am thinking how strangely beau¬ tiful it is that Bach of Leipsic should be resurrected in Pennsylvania in a factory town by members of a com¬ munity chorus, dedicated throughout the year to the study of the first master works of modern music. Writing in “The Weekly Review," Mr. Her¬ bert F. Peyser expressed his feeling that, “on the whole, the Friday performances lacked verve and intensity. The ‘D Major Suite’ fared ill at Dr. Wolle’s hands. He hurried the tempi and robbed the overture and the beloved ‘Air’ of breadth, accent and incisiveness. Things were better in the evening. But, except for Merle Alcock, the soloists left much to be desired." 163 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR But, after all, the star of the Mass is the chorus. And this year its singing of the prodigious ensembles attained such grandeur that at the close of the “Cum Sancto Spiritu” the audience cast aside all bonds of precedent and applauded as heartily as though the church had been a concert hall. Thus for the first time in the festival history Packer Memorial Church resounded with the clapping of hands. But the spontaneity of this applause saved it from all trace of irreverence. This applause was so shocking to the Festival tradition that Mr. Oscar Thompson began his ‘"Musical America'’ review with this incident as his “lead," and all of the critics included some reference to it. To make much of it here would be a distortion of values and unfair to the persons who blundered. THE SEVENTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL “There are a great many of us, I think," wrote Mr. Charles S. Ascher in “The Nation," “who feel that musically there is nothing to do but trudge life's dreary way to next Decoration Day. The seventeenth Bach Festival at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, is over, and there will not be an¬ other until May, 1923." Mr. Ascher, in the course of his 1200 words review, said: — 164 THE SEVENTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL The choice of the “St. Matthew Passion Music” for the first day's program this year showed particularly clearly how little the material in the Choir differs from that in the community choruses which brighten our fair land with Silver Threads Among the Gold and March¬ ing Through Georgia in many various cities — including New York, N.Y. Dr. Wolle permitted members of the chorus to sing the minor parts in the “Passion”: the results ranged from a very fair Pontius Pilate to an im¬ possible Peter. And yet, the publicity agent's “chorus of soloists” (how terrible if there ever should be such a monstrosity!) could not have made so fine a thing of the unbelievable stillness of the “Crucifixus” or the splen¬ dor of the “Sanctus” in the “Mass.” For every singer at Bethlehem has that quality which Dr. Wolle has said is the only one he demands: enthusiasm. It is the conse¬ quent fine patience which alone makes possible the su¬ perb result. It will be seen that this theory of commu¬ nity singing differs from the more widely practiced one of getting the folks together on something they all know; the difference in result should cause others interested in community singing to study Dr. Wolle's methods partic¬ ularly. The “St. Matthew Passion," which is sung throughout the country perhaps more generally than any other work of Bach, was placed on the first-day programme by Dr. Wolle in response to many requests. It was given in Bethlehem in 1903 (when Mr. Nicholas Douty sang the role 165 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR of the Evangelist at one day’s notice) and again in 1913. Mr. Douty, it can hardly be overempha¬ sized, has contributed his scholarly knowledge of Bach and his infinite zest in his work as a tenor soloist at every Bach Festival. Of this third Bethlehem presentation of the ‘‘St. Matthew Passion,” Mr. W. Scott Gold- thwaite, special correspondent of “The Musical Digest,” wrote that it “received a very broad and majestic reading at the hands of Dr. Wolle.” In the opening chorus, “Come Ye Daughters,” he in¬ augurated a new custom, that of having the chorale theme for soprani di upiene taken by a chorus of school children. This was extremely effective; the light and buoyant quality common to children’s voices formed a strong contrast to the heavier adult tones, thus bringing out the theme clearly. The chorus itself sang with great breadth and dignity, making an effect which we have never heard equaled at any performance of the work. In the “New York Evening Sun” account, written by Miss Mary Opdycke, the comment was made that “ it was good to see that the eleven minor characters could be entrusted to members of the chorus.” Miss Opdycke reserved her praise, however, for the second-day offering, the “B Minor Mass.” THE SEVENTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL So thoroughly has the Bethlehem chorus become im¬ bued with the music that the “Mass” rose high above the “Passion” as far as purity of technique and unity of purpose are concerned. Knowing the actual notes with approximate perfection, the chorus yields a pliable med¬ ium to the directions of its conductor, which in their turn extract a maximum of expression from the text. Mr. Winthrop P. Tryon, in ‘‘The Christian Science Monitor,” apparently lamenting Dr. Wolle’s “eccentricities,” referred nevertheless to the fashion in which his interpretation of the “ Mass” made it “ grow in interest and impressive¬ ness with every turn of the page.” The religious import of the Festival was em¬ phasized by the reviewers. Mr. Walter Heaton, in the “Reading Herald-Telegram,” maintained that to the conductor of this Choir “the world of religious music owes more than is possible to pay.” Dr. George W. Sandt, Editor-in-Chief of “The Lutheran,” wrote that “this Festival . . . calls us back to the profounder mystical element in our holy religion,” The reviewer in “The Moravian” termed it “a great religious service.” Mr. John Oldmixon Lambdin referred to it, in the “Baltimore Sun,” as .“an act of worship 167 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR rather than an exhibition of musical prowess and facility.” And Mr. Fullerton Waldo, always an interpreter of the sacred consecration of the Bach Choir, wrote in the ‘‘ Philadelphia Public Ledger”: “Never has the atmosphere been more devout, responsive and sympathetic. The pilgrims knew why they were there, and they got what they came for.” THE EIGHTEENTH BACH FESTIVAL The eighteenth Bach Festival will be held at Lehigh University on May 25, 26, 1923. The programme will be “The Lord’s Passion Accord¬ ing to St. John” on the first day and the “Mass in B Minor” on the second day. The soloists are announced: Sopranos, Mildred Faasand Emily Stokes Hagar; contraltos, Mabelle Addison and Mabel Beddoe; tenors, Nicholas Douty and Fred Patton; bass, Charles Trowbridge Tittmann. The Bach Choir will sing at Ocean Grove, N.J., on August II, 1923, in the auditorium there which seats ten thousand persons. The concert will be under the auspices of the Ocean Grove Association. 168 V THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR IN NEW YORK PON invitation of the Philharmonic Society of New York, the Bethlehem Bach Choir sang in Carnegie Hall, New York City, on Janu¬ ary 20, 1917, and January 26, 1918, in con¬ nection with Philharmonic concerts. The 1917 appearance was to take part in the celebration of the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of the Philharmonic Society. The offering for this evening of the Society’s Festival Week was a Bach-Beethoven pro¬ gramme. Because of the success of the sing¬ ing the Bethlehem Chorus was invited to join the Orchestra in a Bach-Wagner concert a year later. Both appearances were made possible by the generosity of Mr. Charles M. Schwab, who paid the expenses of the Choir’s journey to New York. The decision to sing in New York in the first instance and then to sing again was not made THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR lightly. No small risk was involved. The Beth¬ lehem singers are not professionals. They come from quiet walks of life; they range from sixteen years to eighty. For them to stand on the stage of a strange auditorium before a critical audience in the music center of the country is a different matter from occupying familiar chairs on the chancel platform in Packer Memorial Church, their Festival home. The Choir, the Conductor, and the Executive Committee, be it said, did not and do not share the feeling that the Bach Festivals are an Ober- ammergau Passion Play which to present else¬ where would savor of profanation. Their attitude, more fully expressed in the final chapter of this book, is that Bach’s choral music ought to be spread and made popular. It was with the mis¬ sionary zeal, therefore, that would bear witness also at Rome that the Bethlehem Choir has sung Bach in New York. While these singers have not had professional experience, they are cultivated and capable ama¬ teurs who rise to exacting occasions. They sang in New York in sincere and humble spirit, and 170 IN NEW YORK they did well. Incidentally their success in a met¬ ropolitan concert hall furnished evidence that the choral work of Bach does not depend for effectiveness upon picturesque externals such as the Bethlehem background supplies for the Fes¬ tivals. The measure of the Choir’s success is shown in the reviews of its programmes. The “New York Herald” report of January 21, 1917, written by Miss Clara T. Nichols, was as follows: — Although last night’s popular concert was the fourth given by the Philharmonic Society in its jubilee week, Carnegie Hall was entirely sold out and standing room was at a premium. Josef Stransky’s choice of programme was fortu¬ nate. From an historical viewpoint the performance of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony was especially significant in the jubilee celebration, for it was given as the open¬ ing number of the first concert of the Society Decem¬ ber 7, 1842. The feature of the programme was the singing of the Bach Choir, of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Through the courtesy of Charles M. Schwab its coming to New York was made possible. Mr. Schwab is the Choir’s chief patron. In the chorale, “ How brightly shines the morning star,” the singing was little short of marvelous. Dr. Fred Wolle, its Director, brought out^ exquisite THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR tone effects and of great sheerness and delicacy. The ‘‘ Gloria,” and the three movements from the Credo” of the “B Minor Mass” were impressively sung. Dr. Wolle achieved marked success in bringing out the tenderness of the “ Et incarnatus” and the poign¬ ancy of the ‘^Crucifixus.” The appeal was greater be¬ cause of his sincerity and simplicity. The Choir sang the “ Resurrexit ” with intensity and fervor. The great volume of tone was marvelously controlled. Dr. Wolle conducted “World, farewell” without score. He used no baton. The tone of the Choir was exceptional in its warmth and beauty. Nothing finer than the singing of these three hundred and twenty-five fresh young voices has been heard this season. At the conclusion the audience recalled the Director many times with cries of “ Bravo ! ” Mr. Henry T. Finck’s account, in the “Even¬ ing Post,” of January 22, 1917, included these paragraphs: — To Mr. Schwab’s generosity those who enjoy the best in music owe one of the most enjoyable hours of the season. The Bach Choir, under its devoted con¬ ductor, Dr. J. Fred Wolle, sang four chorales as set by the great Leipzig cantor, and, with the Philharmonic Orchestra, four numbers from the great “ Mass in B Minor”: “Gloria in excelsis,” “ Et incarnatus est,” “ Crucifixus,” and “ Et resurrexit.” The first of the chorales, “ World, farewell,” was sung in that exquisite pianissimo, so difficult to get even from a professional 172 IN NEW YORK choir, which is one of the specialties of Dr. Wolle. The tone quality was of the loveliest, rivaling in beauty that of the Orchestra. One may differ with Dr. Wolle as to details of shading and interpretation, but one cannot fail to be impressed, nay, thrilled by the verve of his Choir's singing and the expressive climaxes attained. The Bethlehem singers are amateurs all, men and women of all walks of life and degrees of prosperity; but they sing for the love of music, alone, and thus they speak to the heart in a way professionals seldom do. To hear them at their very best one has to go to the Bethlehem church where their annual performances are given. At the same time, it is safe to say that, while Saturday's performance was not flawless, it was by far the best Bach singing ever heard in New York. The ‘‘Globe’’ comment, January 22, 1917, by Mr. Pitts Sanborn, read thus: — An important feature of the Philharmonic Festival programmes of the last few days was the pilgrimage to New York for the purpose of participation in the Sat¬ urday night concert by the Bach Choir of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. This famous organization and its con¬ ductor, Dr. J. Fred Wolle, gave to the programme four chorales and a selection from the “ B Minor Mass." The performance was open to reproach in sev¬ eral ways, which need not be dwelt on in detail, but it had a spirit and a dramatic force that aroused the au¬ dience to stormy applause. The review in the “World” of January 21, 173 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR 1917, praised the singing, concluding as fol¬ lows : — Conducting Bach is evidently a labor of love with Dr. Wolle. He uses no baton, but has most expres¬ sive hands and gestures. The Chorus is absolutely un¬ der his control, and, in conducting the unaccompanied chorales, he hardly moves his arms, standing perfectly rigid and conveying his wishes only by slight move¬ ment of the fingers. Notwithstanding the fact that the Chorus is made up almost entirely of untrained voices, the quality of tone produced was excellent, the male chorus being especially fine. There was extremely hearty applause after each number, and after the overwhelming climax of the final chorale Dr. Wolle and his choristers were accorded an ovation. The “Sun’s’’ report said that “the music was all of very deep interest and it was superbly sung.” The “ American ” declared, “ It is safe to state, that such stalwart and colorful singing has rarely been equaled and never surpassed in this city.” In the “ Times ” review these paragraphs ap¬ peared : — The Chorus is a large body of zealous and eager singers who have been made thoroughly familiar with Bach’s music, and sing it with fluency, solidity, and 174 IN NEW YORK confidence. They have been trained to a supple and accurate obedience to the conductor’s beat, and there were many plastic and finely moulded effects of phras¬ ing and dynamics in their performance. But the sing¬ ers’ zeal and eagerness were not equaled last night by the quality of their voices, which was not of the finest, the tenors in particular showing a lack of vibrancy. There were also some passages in which the intona¬ tion was not perfect, and some in which the attack was not so positive as might have been expected. . . . Some matters in which doubts may have arisen in the minds of many listeners were referable to the con¬ ducting rather than to the capacities of the singers themselves. Although Dr. Wolle directs his attention exclusively to the music of Bach, he has some singular notions as to the performance of it. One of them is an extreme sentimentalizing of the chorales by singing them in the softest pianissimo, with the occasional erratic and inex¬ plicable lifting into prominence of one voice or another; a pianissimo that went so far at the end of the first chorale as to be reduced to a wordless humming. Another of Dr. Wolle’s mannerisms is to take every cadence with a marked and sluggish ritardando. Such a modification of tempo is in place when it has a special significance; but its incessant repetition as a part of the cadence formula becomes singularly monotonous and subversive of the spirit of the music. These things were blemishes on the performance. Yet the accuracy with which the Chorus followed Dr. Wolle’s require¬ ments of them could only be imputed to it for merit. 175 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR There was great enthusiasm over the singing of the Chorus, which was largely deserved, and which might properly have been shared by the Orchestra, which gave an excellent performance of the difficult instru¬ mental portion of the mass. Dr. Wolle was recalled repeatedly and made to bow his acknowledgments. The ‘‘ Tribune ’’ criticism contained strong disapproval of the conductor's interpretation: — The technical efficiency of the Choir invited admir¬ ation at least, though the reading of the conductor. Dr. Wolle, challenged anything but admiration. The ‘‘Musical Courier" said: — The work done was remarkable in many respects. The volume of tone in a fortissimo was magnificent and of inspiring solidity; on the other hand the most delicate effects were achieved. “ Musical America's " report of the Philhar¬ monic anniversary celebration said: — The audience Saturday night was treated to choral singing the like of which has not been heard in this city since the last visit of Dr. Vogt's Mendelssohn Choir from Toronto. Would that we were perma¬ nently favored with an organization of such qualities. The “Music News" of Chicago had an ar^ tide by the present writer, of which the open¬ ing and closing paragraphs are here quoted: — 176 IN NEW YORK If, like Peter Grimm in the play, Johann Sebastian Bach had strolled into Carnegie Hall, New York, last Saturday evening he would have halted in amazement at the sight and sound of three hundred singers and an orchestra of sixty rendering his beloved “ Mass in B Minor/’ The cantor of St. Thomas’s wrote his oratorios and cantatas, upon which time has set the seal of supreme art, to supply the Sunday and festival service of the four churches in Leipzig whose choirs he trained. All four choirs hardly totaled more than fifty-five singers, and the orchestral accompaniment was never above twenty pieces. And these singers and players were in¬ competent and indifferent. Now, after nearly two centuries, in the metropolis of a new world, the shade of Bach could have heard his music sung by a choir equipped to do it justice by years of study and drill and devotion under a con¬ ductor who has made Bach his lifework. In its sin¬ cerity of purpose, in its beauty and its artistry, the Carnegie Hall rendition would have thrilled the soul of the creator of these heavenly harmonies. The three hundred singers who gave it were the Bethlehem Bach Choir, recently termed by Henry T. Finck ‘‘the best choir in the United States.” The orchestra was the Philharmonic Society of New York. Their joint Bach-Beethoven programme was the cli¬ max of the Philharmonic Society’s celebration of the seventy-fifth anniversary of its founding. . . . When the last tremendous notes of the finale chorale, “ Glory now to Thee be given,” had been drawn from 177 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR singers and orchestra by the batonless hands of Dr. Wolle, the applause from the audience was even more tremendous. Eight times the hearers compelled the conductor to return to acknowledge their plaudits. Dr. Wolle waved aside the personal aspect of the tribute with a sweep of his arm that credited the entire success to singers and players. This applause, it may be said, was something new to the Bach Choir, whose spring festivals in Packer Memorial Church, Lehigh University, are virtually religious ceremonies. Finer even than the artistic tri¬ umph of the Bach singers was their achievement in preserving in their Carnegie Hall rendition the sin¬ cerity, the religious atmosphere of their Bethlehem festivals. THE 1918 NEW YORK CONCERT Musical and religious aspects having been em¬ phasized in all other instances, it is perhaps not out of place, in reporting the 1918 New York appearance of the Choir, to tell first about the human interest side of the trip. Its scope was sum¬ marized in an item in the ‘‘New York Evening Post ’’ commenting upon the itinerary, mimeo¬ graphed copies of which were distributed in ad¬ vance to each of the singers and to the players of the Lehigh Valley orchestra, who made the trip 178 THE 1918 NEW YORK CONCERT also as guests of Mr. Schwab. This item read in part: — The train left Bethlehem on Saturday morning at 7.45, and arrived on the New York side of the river at 10.43. Thence special Fifth Avenue auto buses were taken to the Great Northern Hotel (which is near Carnegie Hall). Lunch was provided at 11.15. At 1.30 the buses took all the singers for a visit to Mr. Schwab’s residence, where an organ recital by Archer Gibson was provided. At 4.15 dinner in the hotel. At 5.25 everybody walked to Carnegie Hall for a rehearsal with the Philharmonic. At 6.30 return to hotel to rest. Performance in Carnegie Hall began at 8.30; at 10.20 the buses returned to the hotel, and an hour later left for the train, which arrived at Bethlehem at 2.15, when special trolley cars were waiting to take every one to his or her home. The prescribing of movements to the minute, followed successfully in 1917, again had the effect, not of cramping, but of liberating. The members of the party knew precisely where to go and when, and they followed the schedule without hurrying or worrying. To say that the schedule was carried through on time and with entire smoothness is to give no idea of the spirit of the occasion. The fulfillment of a function highly creditable to the city of Beth- 179 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR lehem/’ and “not a junket or holiday excursion/* was the designation of the Bach Executive Com¬ mittee in an advance letter addressed to local em¬ ployers of the singers, asking that they be granted a free day for this trip. Both statements were true. But the importance of the mission and the earnestness of the singers in regard to it did not make this a joyless pilgrim¬ age. The Choir has its due quota of maidens and youths. From the beginning of the trip at 7:45 A.M. Saturday until its ending about 3 a.m. Sun¬ day, they manifested no underrating of what Stevenson defined as “the duty of being happy.’' And this spirit was as infectious in the conduct of the party during the day as it was in the Choir’s singing in the evening, when youthful buoyancy and freshness were characteristic. The apex of the day’s pleasure was the recep¬ tion by Mr. and Mrs. Schwab in their River¬ side Drive home in the afternoon. Mr. Schwab greeted each member with a cordial word and a handshake as the party filed in. Then Dr. Drinker, speaking from the great stairway of the music-room, expressed, as President of the Choir, 180 MEMBERS OF THE BACH CHOIR AT THE NEW YORK RESIDENCE OF MR. SCI PHILHARMCl Photograph by Charles F. Allen AB, JANUARY 26, IQ 18 , PRECEDING THE CONCERT WITH THE NEW YORK j: ORCHESTRA THE 1918 NEW YORK CONCERT the appreciation of the singers for the gener¬ ous hospitality that made this day possible. Mr. Schwab, in his happy response, maintained that he was the one indebted. The programme that followed included organ selections by Mr. Archer Gibson and vocal numbers by Mrs. Merle Alcock and by Mrs. Alcock and her husband, Mr. Bechtel Alcock. Then everybody promenaded about the beautiful house, viewing the paintings and tapes¬ tries and having the best of times. And before they left Miss Sarah E. Spinner presented Mrs. Schwab with a fancy-work piece of her own making which the hostess greatly prizes. After the concert that night there was another joyous gathering, when Mr. Schwab came to the Great Northern Hotel and told the singers how well they had done and congratulated Dr. Wolle and all of them. The opening of the “ 1214th Concert of the Philharmonic Society of New York,’’ which the Carnegie Hall Programme” further termed “ Grand Gala Concert with the Co-operation of the Bethlehem Bach Choir,” had two points that differed from the opening of the 1917 con- i8i THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR cert. The first was the rendition of the ‘‘ Star- Spangled Banner/* As one of the New York newspapers reported, ^‘At a signal from Con¬ ductor Wolle the Choir, the Orchestra, and practically the entire audience sang the national anthem, fully three thousand taking part.** It was stirring beyond telling. *‘Then, through a great hush,** as Musical America’* expressed it, ** there penetrated faintly and very sweetly the strains of a chorale, played by far-off trombonists.** These were the thirteen players of the Trombone Choir of the Bethle¬ hem Moravian Church. To New York had come, for the first time, the present representa¬ tives of an organization that has had an intimate part in Bethlehem’s religious and musical life since 1744. They gave, with beautiful effect, the Moravian chorale, ‘‘Son of God, to Thee I cry,** as a prelude to the Bach Choir*s singing of the chorus, “Kyrie,** from the “B Minor Mass.** The complete programme of the Philhar¬ monic Society and the Bach Choir was as fol¬ lows : — 182 THE 1918 NEW YORK CONCERT THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Dr. J. Fred Wolle, Conductor BACH 1. ‘‘Kyrie Eleison,” from the “B Minor Mass.” 2. Two chorales, from the Tombeau: “Ode of Mourning.” a. “ Thou Bliss of Earliest Innocence.” b. “Wake, My Heart.” 3. “ Cum SanctoSpiritu in Gloria Dei Patris, Amen,” from the “ B Minor Mass.” 4. Chorus and Chorale, from “ When Will God Re¬ call My Spirit ? ” 5. “ Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth ” from the “ B Minor Mass.” THE PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY OF NEW YORK Dr. Josef Stransky, Conductor WAGNER 6. Excerpts from “ Parsifal.” a. “Good Friday Spell.” b. “ March of the Knights of the Holy Grail.” c. “ Prelude and Glorification.” Of the Bach Choir’s share in this programme “Musical America” said: — Dr. Wolle and the Chorus — a true People’s Chorus — fully earned the rapturous applause bestowed upon them by the audience. The beauty of the spirit is in such singing, and the great departed master whose name this choir bears would have rejoiced and been THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR glad to hear such sincere, devout utterances of his mu¬ sic. Of the latter surely nothing need, nothing can, be said. One does not praise a flower for the surpassing color or fragrance of its petals; one does not praise a mountain because it is sublime. America should be grateful that there is a Bach Choir; we in New York should be grateful that it vis¬ ited us. The latter part of the report of the “ New York Evening Post'’ read as follows: — The singing of the chorales was a cappella, and was a revelation to those who never before heard this chorus, particularly of wonderful pianissimo effects, as in the first one from the “Ode of Mourning,” “Thou Bliss of Earliest Innocence.” The Chorus from the Cantata was a triumph both for Bach and the choir. What a perfect tonal picture the orchestral accompaniment is! The orchestra really bears the burden of this number, and the oboe and English horn players, Messrs. De Angelis, Kirchner, and Marchetti, deserve a special mention for their playing of their difficult parts. The orchestration of this must be a surprise to those not familiar with Bach's cantatas — it is homophonic, and full of color. The reiterated sixteenth notes on the flute add much to the color effect, and the effect is al¬ most as “modern” as Debussy. Dr. Wolle conducted with the authority of long familiarity, and the orchestra responded to him as if he conducted them as constantly as he does the chorus. The introduction to the “ Cum Sancto Spiritu ” was the instrumental postlude to the 184 Photograph by the Broncho Studio THE MORAVIAN TROMBONE CHOIR Photograph by Musical America VISITORS LISTENING TO TROMBONE CHORALES FESTIVAL VIEWS AT LEHIGH THE 1918 NEW YORK CONCERT preceding aria, with its enormously difficult horn solo. To say that Mr. Reiter played it, is to say that it is played with absolute perfection. The Wagner numbers, concluding the programme, contained selections from “ Parsifal’* — the ‘‘Good Fri¬ day Spell,” the “ March of the Knights of the Holy Grail,” with the “Prelude and Glorification.” The “ March of tne Knights” is not often heard — it is im¬ pressive, as is all the Parsifal ceremonial. Mr. Stransky conducted the Wagner numbers not only with that sense of dramatic values which is one of his specialties, but with a profound appreciation of the religious sig¬ nificance. The placing together in the same programme of the religious music of Bach and the mystic sacred music of “ Parsifal ” was a stroke of genius. In a review which stated that the large audi¬ ence exhibited “ all the flutter of excitement at¬ tending a gala night at the opera,” the “New York Globe” concluded: — Dr. Wolle conducted as if he had a special SOS message for each of the 275 singers and each of the 275 responded nobly. The effects were really beautiful and greatly impressive. Indeed, such generalship and discipline as the leader and the choir displayed should not be reserved for sesthetic endeavor alone, but should be mobilized for the present practical crisis. The ordinary, home-made, plain-clothes, go-as-you- please amateur chorus is not what many people would consider exciting. But the Bach Choir of Bethlehem is 185 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR exciting and thrilling. Its annual appearance in New York is a red-letter day in the city’s crowded musical calendar. The “New York Herald” account said that “ Carnegie Hall was filled with an enthusiastic audience which found both the orchestra and the choir living up to their best traditions. . . . The spirit of these earnest young singers lent itself admirably to the music. . . . Dr. Wolle compels admiration for his well-disciplined chorus. It responds to his slightest nod.” In a half-column account the “New York Sun” described the visit to New York of the Bethlehem singers and, concerning the concert, said: “ Each number given received the whole¬ hearted approval of the audience. . . • The sing¬ ing of the Choir showed its admirable training and was highly impressive.” “ The visiting singers again created a very deep impression,” reported the “New York Evening Mail.” “ Won high approval from the audience,” was the comment of the “New York Morning Telegraph.” The “Brooklyn Citizen” said that “ fine tonal effects were achieved, the spirit of i86 AMBULANCE SOLDIERS' CONCERT the chorus was admirable and the orchestral ac¬ companiments sympathetic and delightful." Terming this “a concert of prime importance," the ‘‘New York American"said: “There was real exaltation in ‘ Kyrie Eleison'; impressive in a marked degree was the ‘ Gloria'; and the har¬ monic vitality and noble resonance of ‘ Holy, Holy, Holy' were revealed with superb spirit and potency." The “Musical Courier" review closed: — A good instance of Dr. Wolle's complete mastery over his great choral force was given in the whisper¬ like pianissimo at the close of the chorale which ends this composition. It was hard to believe that so large a body of singers could be made to produce such finely graded tones.. . . These visits of the Bethlehem forces to New York now have come to be a recognized feature of the metro¬ politan musical season. It affords a chance for music lovers to hear some of the greatest works of choral lit¬ erature presented in a manner which can be attained by no other body of singers. Surely one may look forward to the visit being made a permanent annual feature. CONCERT FOR AMBULANCE SOLDIERS The programme they gave in New York was repeated by the Bethlehem Bach singers under 187 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Dr. Wolle on Sunday afternoon, February lo, before two thousand soldiers of the United States Army Ambulance Service stationed at Allentown, Pennsylvania. The invitation came from Lieu¬ tenant-Colonel C. P. Franklin. Expenses inci¬ dent to the trip were borne by Mr. Schwab, in honor of the Ambulance Service. Additions to the programme were the sing¬ ing, in opening, of‘‘God Save the King*’ and the “Marseillaise Hymn,” following the “Star- Spangled Banner.” The khaki-clad audience in Recreation Hall at the camp was made up of square-shouldered young Americans, most of them college men, from every state in the Union and every terri¬ tory and island possession. Their reaction to the music of Bach was an interesting study. As the magnificent choruses of the “B Minor Mass” and the beautiful chorales were sung by the Choir, the multitude of upturned soldierly faces was a screen upon which were registered the great emotions, the spiritual content of this sub¬ lime music. And then, as each number was concluded, the light that never was on land i88 THE 1920 NEW YORK CONCERT or sea changed in these faces to a boyish glow and they clapped and cheered as they do when their crack ‘‘Usaac’’ basketball team wins a game. THE 1920 NEW YORK CONCERT A Festival of Music, conceived and carried through on a scale of “bigness” and brilliance calculated to attract and thrill, was held in New York City Tuesday, April 6 to Sunday, April 11, 1920, inclusive. It was given in the 71st Regi¬ ment Armory, which had for this festival a seat¬ ing capacity of 6000 and a stage accommodating 1500 singers. The programme was as follows: — Tuesday, 8:15 p.m. — Mendelssohn's “Elijah." Wednesday, 8:15 p.m. — Rachmaninoff Programme. Friday, 8:15 p.m. — “The Pilgrim's Progress," by Ed¬ gar Stillman Kelley. Saturday, 2:30 p.m. — Bach — Beethoven — Brahms. Saturday, 8:15 p.m. — “The Damnation of Faust," by Berlioz. Sunday, 3 p.m. — Farewell Programme, ending with last movement from the “Farewell" Symphony, by Haydn. Mr. Walter Damrosch was conductor of the Festival. The soloists included many of the fore- 189 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR most artists in the world. Mr. Damrosch led the New York Oratorio Society, augmented by the People’s Choral Union and various affiliated groups of singers of Brooklyn and New Jersey suburbs, in the oratorios of Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday evenings. Sergei Rachma¬ ninoff was to have conducted his own choral com¬ positions on Wednesday evening, but illness re¬ stricted his participation to the playing of a concerto. On Saturday afternoon there was a Bach-Bee- thoven-Brahms programme. The New York Symphony Orchestra played Beethoven’sFifth Symphony.” Jascha Heifetz and Pablo Casals gave Brahms’s Double Concerto. The Bach sec¬ tion of the programme was supplied by the Bach Choir which came from Bethlehem, as in pre¬ vious years, at the expense of Mr. Schwab. The performance of the Bach Choir that afternoon was described in “Musical America” as follows: Conductor and singers received one of the greatest ovations of the week from the largest audience since the festival began. Their offerings were the opening chorus 190 THE 1920 NEW YORK CONCERT of the cantata “Bide With Us” — one of the features of last year’s festival; an accompanied choral from the same work; the a capella chorals “Wake, My Heart,” “O, Joy to Know,” “Glory Now to Thee Be Given” and “World Farewell”; and the “Cum Sancto Spiritu” from the B Minor Mass. There is no resisting the spell of those master singers. They have not their equal in this part of the country — or probably in any other part of it — and decry as one may this or that mannered ele¬ ment of Dr. Wolle’s procedure the Bach'Choir is an abid¬ ing wonder and its singing falls athwart the ear like a benison even in the acoustically vicious armory. Such virtuosity, allied with beauty and fervor, as was set forth in the number from the “Mass” awakens in the music lover of New York a feeling of helpless envy and the keen pain of the unattainable. Registering his disapproval of ^‘some of Dr. Wolle’s disrespectful treatment of Bach,” Mr. Richard Aldrich reported in the “New York Times ” that “ The Bethlehem Bach Choir added a highly dignified and praiseworthy feature to the festival.” Mr. Henry T. Finck, in “The Evening Post,” defended Dr. Wolle for the “disrespectful treat¬ ment” of having the Choir hum one of the chorales: “It reveals the surprising variety of tonal coloring; it calls attention to the human 191 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR side of Bach. Special thanks are due Dr. Wolle for revealing this human side. Bach would have been the first to applaud the bouche fermee effect on Saturday.” And as to the general work of the Choir, Mr. Finck said it sang ‘‘with superlative art and tremendous 'enthusiasm — enthusiasm which found its echo in the applause of the large audience.” Dr. Lyman Abbott, in ‘‘The Outlook,” rated “the Bach choruses and chorales rendered by this Choir, under the sympathetic leadership of its conductor, as a fitting climax to a really great musical festival.” Dr. Abbott suggested that an effort be made to have the Choir give the “Pas¬ sion Music” of Bach in St. John’s Cathedral. It should be added that the Moravian Trom¬ bone Choir played chorales announcing the programme of the Bach Choir from the turrets of the Armory, as attendants passed beneath into the great auditorium. Among the treasured memories of the Bach singers will always be the events of this crowded day, April lo, 1920. Despite the strike, the Le¬ high Valley Railroad delivered the Choir in New 192 THE 1921 NEW YORK CONCERT York in time for the morning rehearsal with the New York Symphony Orchestra, and despite the strike the singers were returned to Bethlehem that night “better late than later.” Then there were the luncheon and dinner at the Hotel Van¬ derbilt, with talks by President Drinker and Dr. Wolle, and the joyous congratulations of Mr. Schwab. And finally, as the guests of Mr. Schwab, the singers attended the Hippodrome and saw “Happy Days” and joined Dane Clau¬ dius and Lilian Scarlet, guitar players, in old-time songs as the words were flashed upon the stage screen “Welcome, Bach Choir and Charles M. Schwab.” THE 1921 NEW YORK CONCERT The second Festival of Music was held in the Manhattan Opera House, New York, in early April, 1921, the Oratorio Society of New York again being joined by neighbor choruses and as¬ sisted by a large group of eminent soloists. Of special interest, from the angle of the present narrative, was the singing by the Oratorio Society, under Mr. Walter Damrosch, of Bach’s “St. 193 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Matthew Passion.” This work had been sung for the first time in America on March 13, 1884, by the early Oratorio Society under the direc¬ tion of Mr. Damrosch’s father, Dr. Leopold Damrosch. Once more as guests of Mr. Schwab, the Bach Choir took part in this 1921 festival, along with the Oratorio Society. “The New York Times” of April 3, 1921, said: It was a Bach and Wagner programme in which Walter Damrosch had asked his musical guests to assist yester¬ day afternoon, and to which they imparted an over¬ whelming volume and vigor of tone wholly appropriate to the music sung. The choir was heard by a large audi¬ ence in Bach's chorales, '‘How Shall I Fitly Meet Thee? ” “This Proud Heart Within Us Swelling," “O Mighty King, Eternal Is Thy Glory,” and “Lord Jesus, Thy Dear Angel Send.” Dr. Wolle's singers gave also two choruses from Bach's B minor mass, ‘‘Qui Tollis Peccata Mundi,” and “Confiteor Unum Baptisma,” while with the Oratorio forces they joined in a grand finale with the “Tannhau- ser” pilgrims' march and “Awake” from “The Master Singers.” Mr. William J. Henderson wrote in the “New York Herald”: Dr. Wolle conducted his famous choir in four chorales 194 THE 1921 NEW YORK CONCERT and two numbers from the B minor mass, namely the “Qui Tollis Peccata’’ and “ Confiteor Unum Baptismal* Mr. Damrosch's contributions to the Bach portion of the programme were the G string air and the familiar gavotte in E. The Bethlehem choristers have sung bet¬ ter. They were sadly at odds as to the pitch in some of the chorales and even in parts of the numbers from the mass. But their delivery had spirit in the Mass music. About their manner of singing chorales there will always be differences of opinion, but Dr. Wolle stands bravely by his own faith. Mr. Pitts Sanborn and Mr. Henry T. Finck were warm in their praise. Mr. Sanborn said in the‘‘New York Globe’’ that “the magnificently spirited singing of the Bach Choir was greatly enjoyed by the large audience.” Mr. Finck’s “Evening Post” account dwelt upon the chorus “Confiteor Unum Baptisma”: This chorus is a miracle of inspiration and polyphonic elaboration, a veritable Gothic cathedral in tones. It is inconceivably difficult, and probably no other choir in this country could master it thoroughly. To Dr. Wolle and his enthusiastic choir it seemed as easy as a Mendels¬ sohn part song. It struck the audience like a thunder¬ bolt; nay, rather, it was like a foretaste of heaven, like hearing an angelic choir under Bach’s own direction. Ten minutes like these sufficed to make one forget all the boredom of a season’s musical work. The audience was as deeply moved as I; seldom have I witnessed so 195 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR spontaneous a demonstration of enthusiasm as that which followed this chorus. The “New York World” reported that the choruses were given “with all the coloring, tonal gradations and dynamic effects that are the choir’s vocal treasures.” “Musical Courier” termed it “superb singing.” “Musical America” said “the singing of the Bethlehem choristers preserved their best traditions.” The headquarters of the Bach Choir on this trip was the Hotel Pennsylvania. At a dinner there in the evening, Madame Marcella Sem- brich was present with Mr. and Mrs. Schwab. Called upon to speak, she said: “I have heard many choruses in many lands, but unqualifiedly I say that your singing exceeds them all. I hail you as fellow artists.” The entertainment extended to the Choir by Mr. Schwab was attendance at the Metropolitan Opera House where the bill of the evening was “Zaza” with Geraldine Farrar in the title role. THE 1921 PHILADELPHIA CONCERT For several years various Philadelphia interests had tried to bring the Bach Choir to Philadel- 196 THE 1921 PHILADELPHIA CONCERT phia. The accomplishment of this aim remained for Mr. Edward W. Bok, President of the Acad¬ emy of Music Corporation. Mr. Bok was the guest of Mr. Schwab at the Festival of Music of April, 1921, when the Bach Choir sang in the Manhattan Opera House, New York. His cam¬ paign of persuasion began in the box there with Mr. Schwab, Dr. Drinker, Mr. and Mrs. Cleaver, and, after the concert, with Dr. Wolle. It culminated the following August when, the Executive Committee approving, the Choir members unanimously voted yes at their picnic at Central Park. Mr. Bok’s appeal lay, not in any financial at¬ traction, because the Choir receives no compen¬ sation for any Festival or concert, but simply in the plea to Bethlehem to share the blessing of Bach’s choral music with Philadelphia. He added his feeling that, as the Philadelphia Orchestra players had come to Bethlehem for ten Festivals, the Choir members might now justly reciprocate. Mr. George E. Nitsche, Recorder of the Uni¬ versity of Pennsylvania, was Secretary of the Committee on the Philadelphia Recital of the 197 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Bach Choir, the recital being given under the auspices of the Christian Association of the Uni¬ versity of Pennsylvania at the invitation of the Academy of Music Corporation. The Academy of Music has a seating capacity of three thousand. There were many more than twice that number of applicants for tickets for this concert, given on Saturday afternoon, Nov¬ ember 6, 1921. The ‘‘Public Ledger” account of it, written by Mr. Fullerton Waldo, was in part as follows: — The public expectation was in no way disappointed. The choir and its leader lived up to the tradition set amid the green hills of the Lehigh Valley at “Pennsylvania's Oberammergau.” With the support of about three- quarters of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Dr. Thaddeus Rich, concert master, they gave portions of the Bach Mass in B Minor, with Chorales, in a way to confirm their long-established reputation, win new laurels and make converts for a style of choral singing which to the uninitiated seems merely forbidding and austere. . . . The first part of the Mass performed was the “Gloria in Excelsis Deo,” preluded by two passages sung with closed lips, pianissimo, by the chorus. The soloists were Mildred Faas, soprano, and Nicholas Douty, tenor, both of this city, and both veterans of the annual festivals at Bethlehem. They gave the second number — the duet, “Domine Deus” — with most skillful flute obligato 198 THE 1921 PHILADELPHIA CONCERT and muted strings. The two singers performed in rever¬ ent accord with the spirit and tradition of the music, and in perfect sympathy and synchrony with each other. This was directly followed by the deep and rich con¬ tralto initiation of the “Qui Tollis Peccata,'* that was like a prayer. . . . The greatest choral feature of the afternoon (was) the mighty ‘‘Sanctus,'* with its telling blows of the basses, and exquisite, hovering voices of sopranos and contral¬ tos in response. It brought the thrills repeatedly. . . . The choir and its inspired and magnetic leader had not merely to sing Bach, but to create an atmosphere; and they rose to the occasion and delivered their mes¬ sage in a memorable way. In the audience were many professionally concerned in choral music who did not fail to note with approval the exemplary devotion of the singers, the precision of arduous practice, the technical ease with which colossal difficulties of the score were surmounted. Philadelphia is indebted to Dr. Wolle and the choir for coming here; the hope is that they will pay an annual visit. The one complaint of Mr. Linton Martin, in the North American,” was as to the lengthy orchestral numbers which audiences here can hear at the regular orchestral concerts.” The work of the Bach Choir Mr. Martin termed “a revelation of the possibilities of perfect choral singing.” 199 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR The “Gloria in Excelsis Deo” at once demonstrated the absolute surety of attack, precision, and dynamic shading of the singers under Dr. Wolle. . . . The pro¬ gram reached its mighty climax and conclusion in three chorales that were sung in a manner little short of thrill¬ ing. The chorales were the solemn “World, Farewell,” “Oh Joy, to Know that Thou My Friend,” and the “Glory now to Thee be Given.” Superb as had been the earlier evidences of the capabilities of the choir, it reached heights of impressiveness in those three monu¬ mental excerpts that had the force of a tonal tidal wave. The music critic of The Record ” wrote that ‘‘the difficulties of the Bach forms are so easily mastered by these singers that the expert¬ ness of it all is never apparent to the auditors. . . . The chorus was heard to much better advantage than is ever possible in Packer Memorial Church in Bethlehem, the acoustics of the Academy being far superior to those of the Bethlehem Church.’' The “Inquirer’s” critic declared that “the approximate perfection to which the Bach Choir has attained is due to Mr. Wolle’s genius for leadership, . . . and the qualities for which he and his chorus are distinguished were again con¬ spicuously and admirably displayed.” 200 THE 1921 PHILADELPHIA CONCERT The “Evening Bulletin’’ reported that the passages sung pianissimo, with “ muted ” lips, pro¬ duced “ an effect that was truly entrancing. The ‘ Sanctus ’ came later with thrilling power of tonal splendor; but most beautiful and im¬ pressive of all was the singing of the three cho¬ rales, in which the chorus, unaccompanied, gave an exhibition of its amazing facility in precision, balance, and modulation of tone, and a perfec¬ tion of detail that only such years of devoted effort as these singers give to their work can accomplish.” Mr. Samuel L. Lacier, music critic of the “ Evening Public Ledger,” with his sense for such values, stressed “ the atmosphere of devotional service which was sustained from the first note to the last, an atmosphere not difficult to obtain in a church but very difficult to acquire and main¬ tain in a concert hall. The members were evi¬ dently singing, not for the glorification of them¬ selves, nor for that of art, but for the purpose of interpreting the true devotional spirit which in¬ spired originally this greatest of all religious works. This atmosphere communicated itself to 201 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR the huge audience, which, though it evidently admired the marvelous singing which it heard, appreciated the higher art of the interpretation.” Following the recital the members of the Choir were taken in sight-seeing cars to Inde¬ pendence Hall, where they saw the Liberty Bell. They then walked across Independence Square to the building of the Curtis Publishing Company. There, as guests of Mr. Cyrus H. K. Curtis, they had a dinner. ‘‘At your hands to-day,” said Mr. Curtis to the singers, “ I suffered exquisite torture, and I enjoyed it, for I enjoy that kind of torture. I have not been so thrilled by music for fifty years. Fifty years ago there was a big music festival in Boston. I was then thrilled with that wonderful music and through all these years I have been wondering if I would ever again experience the same sensation. To-day I had this pleasure again, and I must say that I never heard anything that delighted me as did your music this afternoon.” Mr. Bok said: “Well, you did it; you did it, and it was wonderful. From the bottom of my heart I thank you. ... You must come back so 202 THE 1922 PHILADELPHIA CONCERT more people of Philadelphia can hear you. This is not good-bye. It is just au revoir for one year.’’ As for the Bach singers, beyond their enjoy¬ ment of the pleasures of the trip was the thought expressed by one of them — ‘‘Bobby” — who wrote in his column in the “ Bethlehem Times ”: “ We always return from a rehearsal or an achieve¬ ment like last Saturday’s feeling what a power music of the right kind can be for lifting the human soul nearer to the eternal realities.” THE 1922 PHILADELPHIA CONCERT The second visit of the Bach Choir to Phila¬ delphia, on Saturday, November 4, 1922, was under the auspices of the Philadelphia Forum, of which Mr. Bok is President. Attendance was therefore limited to members of the Forum. The impression made upon this audience was reported in the “North American” by Mr. Lin¬ ton Martin as follows: — Adjectives are vain and futile in conveying an ade¬ quate impression of the Bach Choir’s rendition of the mighty excerpts from the “B Minor Mass” that were heard yesterday. The perfect balance of tone between the various groups, the absolute precision of attack and 203 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR flexibility, the delicacy of shading throughout the en¬ tire dynamic range — all of these qualities have long been familiar, and have been amply discussed. What gives this great choral body its distinctive place is its deep feeling for the music of Bach, an attitude that has its origin in spiritual sympathy, and not in mere technical proficiency. Even away from its accustomed setting of the graystone church at Bethlehem, this spirit makes it¬ self felt by the audience, and creates a mood that is unique in present-day choral performances. The ‘^‘B Minor Mass” has been sung by the choir twelve times in the last twenty-two years, but each per¬ formance seems as fresh as the first. There was the qual¬ ity of real ecstacy in the singing of the Gloria yesterday, and the Kyrie was thrilling in its fervent power. But for sustained exaltation, the four chorales, contrasting with each other, but as perfectly balanced as the movements of a symphony, were unique in their musical beauty. In every way the performance was memorable. Mr. Fullerton Waldo, of the Public Ledger,’’ was frankly disappointed in the concert, feeling that ‘‘ players and singers alike in the first half hour were too frigidly on their good behavior.” In his report in the “ Christian Science Moni¬ tor,” Mr. Waldo said that: — the participants seemed self-conscious, on their good be¬ havior, and more concerned with the formal correctness of technique than with passionate feeling such as is in evi¬ dence from the first measures, when the music is sung 204 • t THE BACH CHOIR OF 1 922 ON Photograph by A. C. Bliss :E LEHIGH UNIVERSITY CAMPUS THE 1922 PHILADELPHIA CONCERT in the choir’s own hill-crested home. Even Dr. Wolle seemed comparatively subdued, and did not give evidence of the transports of emotion that possess him when he leads in Packer Memorial Church of Lehigh University. One great desideratum was an organ capable of supply¬ ing the underpinning which Mr. Shields so impressively provides at Bethlehem. The singers gave proof of their loving fealty to Bach, their devotion to Dr. Wolle’s precept, their understand¬ ing of the art of singing in chorus without the encroach¬ ment of one division of vocalists upon its associates., Throughout this book there has been a con¬ scientious effort to quote unfavorable as well as favorable comment. There is a special relish in citing the views about the Bach Choir and about the music of Bach expressed by the unsigned re¬ viewer of the “Inquirer”: — This chorus is by no means such an extraordinary or¬ ganization as the public has been led to believe. It has been carefully trained to do certain things which it has learned to do very well, but the tone which it produces, while ample in volume, is not especially fine in quality. It follows the guidance of the conductor with intelli¬ gence and precision, attacks with promptitude and con¬ fidence and sings with the expression which he requires. But... it is not better balanced than is usual with sim¬ ilar organizations. As for the clearness of enunciation, for which it has been so much belauded, that was not in evidence yesterday afternoon. 205 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR The ‘‘ Inquirer ’’ reviewer, granting that “ it is a good chorus whose work is done with a cred¬ itable and conscientious care,” said that in the Miserere ” ‘‘ its interpretation of this austere and colorless music was deeply impressive.” Then came this pronouncement upon Bach’s “Mass in B Minor”: — Too much of it sounds like exercises in counterpoint to be anything else than tiresome, and the instrumental interludes with which it is so copiously interlarded, rather detract from than enhance the general effect. Neither in melodic beauty nor in emotional fervor nor in religious solemnity is it likely to impress the disinter¬ ested auditor who feels free to form opinions of his own as being particularly distinguished. It is serious enough in all conscience, but only intermittently does it breathe the spirit of an ardent and worshipful devotion. The music critic of “The Record” thought otherwise: — The character of the music was held throughout, re¬ strained, dignified, finished and exquisite in tonal tex¬ ture. . . . Dr. Wolle never, even for a second, forgets the spiritual quality of the music, never sacrifices quality of tone to quantity, never departs from an artistic ideal¬ ism. The lovely autumnal weather of November 6 helped to make the journey of the Choir a pleas- 206 STATE EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION ant one. The trip was managed by Mr. J. Mark Frey. (The earlier trips of the Choir to New York and Philadelphia were managed by Mr. Ray¬ mond Walters.) Following dinner in the Curtis Building as guests of Mr. Curtis (who said, ‘‘The people of Philadelphia like you folks”), many of the singers attended theater and concert performances. The special train to Bethlehem left Reading Terminal at 11:15 o’clock. STATE EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION CONCERT As a compliment to the Pennsylvania State Educational Association, which met in Bethle¬ hem December 27—29, 1922, the Bach Choir, under Dr. Wolle, gave a concert before the mem¬ bers of the Association in the Liberty High School on the evening of December 27. The programme was the same as that given at Phila¬ delphia in November. VI DR. J. FRED WOLLE, CONDUCTOR OF THE BACH CHOIR B ETHLEHEM’S musical present is linked with its past in the founder and conductor of the Bach Choir. Dr. J. Fred Wolle is a great- great-grandson, on his mother’s side, of Matthias Weiss (1709—95), a native of Miihlhausen, Swit¬ zerland, who, reaching Bethlehem in 1743 with the “ Second Sea Congregation,” became one of the early musicians of the community. Dr. Wolle’s great-grandfather, John George Weiss, born in 1758, served, in the years following the Revolutionary War, as organist of the church, as a violinist of the Collegium Musicum, and as a teacher of music in the Boys’ School. His grand¬ father, Jedediah Weiss (1796-1873), was an out¬ standing personality in Bethlehem’s music for more than a half-century in his several capacities as bass soloist of the church, a member of the trombone choir, and a performer on the violin and the bassoon. The grandfather for whom Dr. 208 Photograph by Flickinger DR. J. FRED WOLLE Founder and Conductor of the Bach Choir DR. J. FRED WOLLE Wolle was named — John Frederick Wolle —- figured in the musical activities of Bethlehem in the first half of the past century as a violoncellist and a double-bass player. Theodore F. Wolle, a cousin of Dr. Wolle’s father, was organist of the church, a violinist, and a leading spirit in the Philharmonic Society in the seventies. That musical talent is, in general, a mental in¬ heritance was established by Sir Francis Galton in his study of the genealogies of Bach, Mozart, and others. Dr. Wolle’s family tree, extending back to Poland and Switzerland, fulfills the gen¬ eralization of Sir Francis in the number of both the Wolle and Weiss branches who were musi¬ cians. There is, however, one curious hiatus. Neither Francis Wolle nor Elizabeth Weiss Wolle, the father and the mother of Dr. Wolle, had musical talent. Because of family traditions and the surroundings in Bethlehem they, of course, had musical interests. Francis Wolle (1817-93) made botany his avocation and his books on Fresh Water Algas,** “ Diatoms,’* and “ Desmids” of the United States won him international note as a naturalist. Of in- 209 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR terest also was his invention of the first machine for making paper bags, patented in the United States and Europe in 1852. A clergyman of the Moravian Church, he served for twenty years as Principal of the Moravian Seminary. It was in the Seminary that John Frederick, youngest of three sons and five daughters, was born on April 4, 1863. The future conductor of the Bethlehem Bach Choir there spent his boyhood in an exceptional musical atmosphere. When he was about seven years old, Fred, as he has always been called, was taught to play the piano by his sister Helen (now Mrs. Charles L. Doolittle), a skilled pianist and organist, who was an instructor in the Seminary for some years. Another of his early teachers was Miss Caroline Brown, a resident in the Sisters’ House. Among the incidents of boyhood days was the ‘‘ church service ” conducted in the Seminary basement by Fred and his friend Paul, now the Reverend Dr. Paul de Schweinitz, Secretary of Missions of the Moravian Church. Fred would play an old melodeon, imitating the prelude im¬ provisations of his second cousin, Theodore Wolle, .210 DR. J. FRED WOLLE who was then organist of the Moravian Church. Paul preached and Fred played at many a service of this character. The same ancient melodeon was Fred’s instrument a few years later in a ju¬ venile orchestra. An organ had been installed in the Seminary Chapel by the Reverend Mr. Wolle, the Prin¬ cipal, in 1869. Without any special instruction Fred learned to play it, improvising by the hour. His proficiency as a mere boy qualified him to be a substitute for his sister Helen as organist at the Seminary opening service; and later he regu¬ larly played at this service each morning at 8.10 o’clock. Then he would go to the Moravian Parochial School and serve as organist at the chapel service there. As a student Fred was, his classmates testify, of good powers. Although he declares that his brain is ‘‘emphatically unmathematical,” he doubtless had more ability in this direction than he admits, inasmuch as he was called upon for one year after his graduation in 1879 to teach algebra, arithmetic, and geometry to the higher classes of the Parochial School (now the Mora- 21 I THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR vian Preparatory School). From his father Fred acquired an interest in natural science; and the study of spiders, whose habits his father taught him to observe, continues to be his diversion and hobby. The problem of Fred’s life-work greatly per¬ plexed the Reverend Mr. Wolle, who had no great regard for music as a career for his son. When the choice of college or apprenticeship in the drug-store of the late Simon Rau was pre¬ sented to him, young Wolle decided upon the drug-store simply because he felt that this would give him more time to devote to his beloved organ. It was while employed in Rau’s drug-store that he became organist of Trinity Episcopal Church. His first formal organ lessons were taken while he held this position, his teacher during the fall of 1883 and the spring of 1884 being Dr. David Wood, the blind organist of Philadelphia. In June, 1884, when he was twenty-one years old, young Wolle accomplished an end for which he had been working, saving,skimping. He went 212 DR. J. FRED WOLLE to Germany to study under Josef Rheinberger. Arriving in Munich in July, he coached under teachers of the Royal Conservatory of Music, of which Rheinberger was Director, and in August he passed examinations qualifying him to become one of the four organ pupils Rheinberger accepted each year. In all of this work his church expe¬ rience in Bethlehem stood him in good stead. As a trombone and viola player he had become familiar with the old clefs. His practice in im¬ provising — an art always cultivated by Moravian organists — enabled him to win Rheinberger’s approval. He made rapid progress, therefore, in the study of the organ and of counterpoint. Thorough musicianship — this was the lesson Dr. Wolle learned from Rheinberger. But there was a fundamental difference in temperament and viewpoint between a teacher who regarded the organ as strictly an ecclesiastical instrument to be played without emotion and a pupil whose whole thought was, and is, that the organ—and all music — should express human feeling. It was as an organist that Dr. Wolle began, and in this field he has continued, winning high rec- 213 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR ognition. For 20 years he was organist of the Mo¬ ravian Church in Bethlehem and for 18 years, from 1887 to 1905, he was organist of Lehigh University. He played in Packer Memorial Church each Sunday morning of the collegiate year, and also at daily morning prayers. Hundreds of Lehigh men, from all parts of the country, thus came to know Dr. Wolle and his work. Other connections in recent years were with Salem Lutheran Church, Trinity Episcopal Church, and the First Presbyterian Church, Allentown. Dr. Wolle — the degree of Doctor of Music was conferred upon him by the Moravian Col¬ lege and Theological Seminary in 1904 and by the University of Pennsylvania in 1919 — was one of the founders of the American Guild of Organists. He gave organ concerts at the World’s Fair in Chicago in 1893 Louis Exposition in 1904. His programme of Bach music at the latter concert attracted attention and won strong commendation. In his earlier years Dr. Wolle wrote a number of hymn tunes, songs, small pieces for piano and organ, chorus and orchestral selections, and also 214 DR. J. FRED WOLLE made transcriptions for organ of Wagner excerpts and of Bach compositions written for a two- manual clavichord. The work upon which Dr. Wolle’s reputation is based — his founding and conducting of the Bethlehem Bach Choir — is related in detail in other chapters of the present book. It is suffi¬ cient for this immediate sketch to repeat that, from 1882 to 1892, he conducted the Bethle¬ hem Choral Union; from 1900 to 1905, the Bethlehem Bach Choir in six festivals held in the Moravian Church; and from 1912 to date, the reorganized Bethlehem Bach Choir in yearly festivals at Lehigh University. During the years from 1905 to 19ii. Dr. Wolle was head of the Music Department of the University of California. He conducted a chorus of about three hundred students of the University in such works as Handel’s ‘‘ Messiah,” Rheinberger’s “ Christoforus,” and Liszt’s “ Thir¬ teenth Psalm.” The Symphony Orchestra organ¬ ized by Dr. Wolle gave spring and autumn con¬ certs in the Greek Theater. In addition they furnished the orchestral setting for dramatic 215 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR productions like ‘‘Midsummer Night’s Dream/’ “Eumenides,” and “Antigone,” the last-named with Margaret Anglin in the play. Dr. Wolle’s devotion to Bach led to the organization of a Bach Choir composed of about one hundred and twenty-five citizens of Berkeley and Univers¬ ity students who, in 1909 and 1910, sang the “Mass in B Minor” and the “St. Matthew Passion” in the Greek Theater. At the second of these Bach festivals a chorus of five hundred school-children took part in the singing of the chorales. A paragraph or two now as to how Dr. Wolle came to devote himself to Bach. His acquaint¬ ance with Bach was not made until he was in his twenty-first year. This was when, as a pupil of Wood, he heard the blind master play the great preludes and fugues. The enchantment be¬ gan there. It continued when, under Rheinber- ger in Munich, he devoted himself solely to Rheinberger’s own compositions and to Bach. To the young American Bach singing in Ger¬ many seemed like a leap back to the Moravian Church in Bethlehem. The services of the con- 216 DR. J. FRED WOLLE gregation at home had included from the earliest days the old hymns upon which Bach built his chorales, cantatas, and oratorios. Bach’s marvel¬ ous treatment and elaboration of these familiar melodies captivated him. One fine spring day in 1885 he heard a large chorus sing the “ St. John Passion’’ in the Odeon in Munich, assisted by soloists of the Royal Opera Company. Then and there he felt an inspiration to devote him¬ self to interpreting the music of this supreme master. It was a summons. To it, for more than thirty years, he has been obedient. Dr. Wolle has studied, played, directed, and preached Bach. As Edward FitzGerald, “twin brother in the spirit,” translated Omar Khayyam, Dr. Wolle has made Bach’s choral work mean something more than a name in America to-day. It seems fitting to include here some account of how this conductor instructs his singers, and something also about his interpretation of Bach. A valuable system, sound in its psychology, has been worked out and applied by Dr. Wolle in teaching Bach. It is based upon the idea that if you start at the beginning of a chorus you 217 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR present to the singers so formidable a task mat they tend to grow discouraged at the prospect. Moreover, if, in proceeding from the opening of a beautiful chorus, you make a mistake in the middle of it, a stop to correct the mistake means destroying the atmosphere, the mood. Instead of this Dr. Wolle follows a practice of beginning at the end of a piece. “The last line on page io6; the last line on page io6,’' he will announce, with his invariable incisive repetition of the direction. So the Choir has its initial attempt at some massive chorus, teeming with difficulties, in the last three or four meas¬ ures. “ That's fine, very good! ’’ the Conductor beams when these have been mastered. “ We shall now start four measures forward, first line, page 106; first line, page 106.” And the singers attack the new measures, go¬ ing on to the close, which now seems to them familiar, an old friend. Thus they learn the en¬ tire chorus in a manner that minimizes discour¬ agement and defeat and that preserves the mood, the spirit of the composition. Always they reach 218 DR. J. FRED WOLLE the end, the satisfying close, triumphantly. This is why it is no figure of speech to say that the Bethlehem singers know their music forward and backward. They learned it backward. Mr. Fullerton L. Waldo, music critic of the ‘‘ Philadelphia Public Ledger,” after watching him, from a point of vantage on the Choir plat¬ form, wrote as follows about Dr. Wolle’s con¬ ducting in a Festival: — It would be hard to imagine Dr. Wolle conducting with a “stick.” For he could not then crook the little finger of the left hand that way or pull the curved and quivering digits toward himself, hauling the very soul of the choral forces after them. To watch him in action from the choir side is a revelation. In such a climax as the “Superbos mente” in the “Magnificat” his face is a map of fighting emotions, his eyes support the ancient Baconian superstition of actual “ ejaculations,” his whole being vibrates. . . . When to such intensely self-forgetful enthusiasm is added a profound searching of the scriptures of Bach, it is a leadership men and women are bound to follow with all their might, if they have an interest in life superior to the material phases. Each singer makes it his or her business to give the last atom of breath, of mentality, of nervous energy to the performance; and with this blazing zeal on the part of conductor and con¬ ducted, is there room for wonder that a light shines 219 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR upon the green hllis of Bethlehem, and that pilgrims are led thither as by the starry sign in the heavens that guided the world to another Bethlehem centuries ago ? It is Dr. Wolle's conviction that, although Bach's work was written and printed without ex¬ pression marks, it should not therefore be given without expression. Here was a master who, despite an outwardly uneventful and rather commonplace life, with petty troubles and even squabbles, was all the while having an inner life of immense richness and range. Here was an imagination running the gamut of human emotions, with touches of the transcendent and divine. Bach had a sense of the dramatic as keen as that other man of quiet outward life, Shakespeare. Bach’s music is highly pictorial, with striking contrasts. For example, there is the contrast in the ‘‘ B Minor Mass,” between the choruses “Crucifixus” and Et resurrexit.” The words, “ In sepultus est,” go down to the lowest tones of bass, tenor, alto, and soprano. There is no accompaniment — which emphasizes the depression. The music dies away. A moment’s pause. Then, from the 220 DR. J. FRED WOLLE lowest notes, Bach starts “Et resurrexit” with a burst of exultant sound and ascending passages. Trumpets, drums, and the full orchestra join in music that is a perfect embodiment of life and jubilation. Dr. Wolle aims to vivify in the reading of Bach. When there is scorn in the words of an oratorio passage, this conductor makes his singers fling scorn into the music. When the thought is of tenderness and peace, the rendition breathes these. And when the Choir sings the contrasted choruses of the “ Mass,’’ the manifest intent of Bach is expressed in a way that profoundly stirs Festival attendants year after year. The conductor of the Bethlehem Bach Choir experiments. At the 1915 Festival, he had the entire Choir sing all of the solos as well as the choruses. At the New York Philharmonic anni¬ versary concert in 1917, the hymn which Luther wrote for his children (possibly, as one account has it, as a cradle song) was hummed by the Choir. Dr. Wolle, to sum up, believes in and prac¬ tices a modern interpretation of Bach. This at- 221 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR titude has been assailed in criticism reminiscent of that which, Mr. Howe relates, was showered in the early eighties upon Georg Henschel for his “ un-Haydnesque’’ manner of conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Haydn's sym¬ phonies and “ the tempi at which, especially for the first year, he took familiar pieces of classic music." Mr. Henschel had vigorous defenders, including Mr. Higginson. Dr. Wolle has vigor¬ ous defenders also. Mr. Finck, for example, in the “New York Evening Post" of June 4, 1917, referred thus to the Bach Choir's work at the Philharmonic Society's jubilee concert of Janu¬ ary 20 : — It was the most finished and thrilling Bach singing ever heard in New York; but a prominent critic, who labors under the old, exploded notion that Bach was a dry, old fogey, whose works must be performed with dismal, mechanical solemnity, and without a trace of human feeling, fell foul of Dr. Wolle, because of his highly nuanced readings of these excerpts. As a matter of fact. Dr. Wolle did not do anything for which Bach himself would not have applauded him cordially. A mountain of evidence has accumulated in recent years, proving that Bach yearned for “modern** variety of shading and expression in his music. Indeed, the most thorough and enlightened of all the Bach 222 DR. J. FRED WOLLE scholars, Schweitzer, in summing up the evidence, goes so far as to say that no other composer “makes such play as he with light and shade.” “ It would be a great mistake,” he further remarks, “ to think that Bach wished for no more nuances than he has usually marked. Proof to the contrary may be had in the movements which he has liberally sprinkled with forte, piano, and pianissimo.” He made many expression marks in his scores for his personal use, and left much besides to verbal directions. How far Bach was from being the rigid, desiccated old pedant some would have him, is strikingly indi¬ cated by his attitude toward bells. Purists cross them¬ selves whenever they hear a set of chimes in an organ like that which adorns Mr. Schwab’s residence in New York. Now, how about Bach himself? Would he, too, have scorned such a “ cheap ” device ? We know what he actually did do. When he came in temporary possession of the organ at St. Blasius, he found much to repair and improve, and he asked for the addition of a Glockenspiel, or peal of bells, to be acted on by pedals, an invention of his own. It is of the utmost importance to emphasize such facts. It is necessary to call attention frequently to the humanity of Bach, to his emotionalism and geni¬ ality, in order to rouse the public to a realization of the fact that much of his music, now unknown or little known, could be done in a way that would make as stirring an appeal to modern audiences as the works of Chopin, Liszt, and Wagner. Dr. Wolle does this at Bethlehem. 223 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR The late Theodore Thomas, in 1901, wrote of Dr. Wolle : ‘‘ The only man in America who was able to give a Bach Festival, and that of three days.’’ To which may be moderately added: The one man in this country who inspires and leads a Choir devoted to Bach — an important force in choral music in America to-day. VII MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB AND THE BACH CHOIR W HEN Mr. Charles M. Schwab entered the breakfast room of his Riverside Drive home, in New York, on Christmas morning, 1916, his first glance fell upon a pile of three hundred small white cards surrounded by red roses near his plate at the table. He turned to Mrs. Schwab, who had come into the room, and read aloud a letter placed upon the three hundred cards. This was the letter : — Bethlehem, Pa., Christmas ^ 1916. Dear Mr. Schwab: — As a committee represent¬ ing the members of the Bach Choir, we have been en¬ trusted by them with the pleasant duty of transmitting to you this unanimous tribute of their esteem, and of their deep and hearty appreciation of all you have done in support of the Choir, and for the encourage¬ ment of the study of classic music in the Bethlehems. Sincerely, Joseph W. Richards, George R. Booth, Henry S. Drinker, 225 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Each of the three hundred cards of greeting, decorated with a picture of poinsettias and indi¬ vidually signed, was inscribed as follows : — Bethlehem, Pa., Christmasy 1916. Mr. Charles M. Schwab: — My Dear Sir : — As a member of the Bach Choir I wish to express my personal appreciation of what you have done and are doing for the Choir and your great interest in its success. May I also wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Yours very truly, These greetings from his singer friends in Bethlehem delighted Mr. Schwab. He wrote to them as follows: — To the members of the Bethlehem Bach Choir: Your beautiful Christmas and New Year greetings have touched me deeply. Both for your kindly thought and the pains you have taken to express it I thank you most heartily. Our relationship has been a pleas¬ ant one. It has been an honor to assist the cause of good music as represented in the Bach Choir. I hope to see you all in New York with the Phil¬ harmonic Society on January 20. With sincere New Year’s greetings to the Bach Choir and to each of you personally, I am, Faithfully, Charles M. Schwab. 226 Copyright by Pirie MacDonald MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB President of the Bach Choir ■'A> •: MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB The visit of the singers to New York, referred to by Mr. Schwab, took place on January 20, 1917. Then, as has been related, the Bach Choir took part in a Bach-Beethoven programme with the New York Philharmonic Society in Car¬ negie Hall, in connection with the Society’s celebration of the seventy-fifth anniversary. The idea of inviting the Bethlehem Choir to join in the Philharmonic anniversary programme occurred to Mr. Oswald Garrison Villard, Pres¬ ident of the Philharmonic Society, when, in company with Mr. Henry T. Finck, Music Ed¬ itor of the “NewYork Evening Post,” he heard the Bach Festival at Lehigh in May, 1916. Mr. Villard spoke to Mr. Schwab about his thought as they stood together under the campus trees listening to the chorales of the Moravian Trombone Choir as the music floated down from the great stone tower of the University Church. Mr. Schwab liked the idea. He vol¬ unteered to bear all expenses of taking the sing¬ ers to New York for the suggested rendition. Later a formal invitation was presented from President Villard and Conductor Stransky of the 227 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Philharmonic Society, to President Drinker and Conductor Wolle of the Bach Choir. When the question of the trip was placed before the mem¬ bers of the Choir the vote to accept the invita¬ tion was unanimous. Immediately after voting, the Choir passed a resolution thanking Mr. Schwab, and this formal action was conveyed to him. The vote was likewise unanimous and a simi¬ lar resolution of thanks was passed in November, 1917, when an invitation was received to repeat the appearance of the Philharmonic Society in New York, Mr. Schwab again assuming the ex¬ penses of traveling and entertainment. It was a joyful company that thronged Mr. Schwab’s Riverside Drive residence on the after¬ noon of the second New York concert, January 26, 1918. The steel-master was host and him¬ self showed the Choir members through his great house. In his talk to them in the music- room, after Mr. Archer Gibson had played on the organ, Mr. Schwab expressed once more his interest and pride in the Bach Choir. His interest and pride are concretely repre- 228 MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB sented in the carrying of a large part of the financial burden of the Bach Festivals. Of the inevitable deficit Mr. Schwab has, from the first year of the revival, borne half. Without this help and the encouragement he gave before and after Dr. Wolle’s return East in 1911, the Festivals might not have been resumed. Certainly without his share and the assurance of further aid, if neces¬ sary, the Festivals of these war years would have tQ be intermitted. Of this cooperation in the Bach movement the ‘‘Outlook’’ editorially said: — In giving it financial backing Mr. Charles M. Schwab is performing as distinctive a service as that which Major Higginson has performed in his support of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Another interesting comment was that of Mr. Henry T. Finck in the “New York Even¬ ing Post,” May 29, 1916, in which he referred to Mr. Schwab as the man who, — starting with the lowest wages paid by Andrew Car¬ negie, rose in a short time to being the highest-paid employee the world has ever seen, with a salary of a million dollars a year. Now that he is his own boss, he plays with millions as boys do with marbles, one 229 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR trifling item in his bill of expenses this year being some thirty million dollars for improvements and extensions of the steel works, which extend for a distance of four miles along the Lehigh River. Fortunately, Mr. Schwab is, like several other wealthy Americans, intensely in¬ terested not only in music, but in good music—aye, the best of all, the music of Bach; and it is due largely to his generous interest that Dr. J. Fred Wolle, the famous organist and choirmaster, has been able to make his native town of Bethlehem known throughout the musical world as the home of Bach’s art. There is method in Mr. Schwab’s limitation of liability to one half of the Festival deficit in normal times. “ I would cheerfully pay every cent of the expenses, and consider it an honor,” he has declared, ‘‘but that would never do. People would promptly lose interest in the Fes¬ tivals if they did n’t feel an obligation to help, too.” This is in accordance with Mr. Schwab’s theory in his relation to all movements in Beth¬ lehem that it is for the community’s good for him to give with citizens, rather than to them. An application of this principle was exhibited in the popular campaign to raise a fund toward the new bridge that is to connect the South, East, and West Sides of Bethlehem. After the 230 MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB citizens had secured their share of the sum sought, the Bethlehem Steel Company matched this amount, and Mr. Schwab added his personal check for fifty thousand dollars. The same prin¬ ciple was observed in the Liberty Loan, the Red Cross, the Y.M.C.A., the Knights of Columbus, and the Chamber of Commerce campaigns, in all of which Bethlehem made outstanding records. During this last-named campaign, when more than twenty-one hundred three-year member¬ ships were obtained for the Greater Bethlehem Association, Mr. Schwab said, referring to the election of Mr. Archibald Johnston, Vice-Presi¬ dent of the Bethlehem Steel Company, as the first Mayor of the consolidated City of Beth¬ lehem:— The thought Is furthest from my mind that the so- called steel interests shall in any way be dictators in our community. We are happy to be plain citizens, lending our efforts to the advancement of Bethlehem. It is pertinent, in a book on the Bethlehem Bach Choir, to touch upon these matters because they relate ultimately to the community aspect of the Choir — one of its most important aspects. 231 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR It is not impertinent, in view of Mr. Schwab’s connection with the Choir, to consider, as illu¬ minative of his Bach interest, the general atti¬ tude of Mr. Schwab toward music. The steel-master’s patronage of musical ac¬ tivity is no millionaire’s fad. Since boyhood music has been an integral part of his life, and to-day as he listens or plays — or pays — he is giving expression to native tastes long and per¬ sistently cultivated. The Schwab family was mu¬ sically inclined. His aunts were choir singers. His grandfather led a church choir. His sister, now Sister Cecilia of St. Joseph Mother House, Greensburg, Pennsylvania, is director of music there, and has a reputation as a pianist of un¬ common ability. The boy Charles began his study of music at the age of nine. Old friends of the family tell about his playing a reed organ when he was so small that some one would have to assist him in using the pedals. As a youth of seventeen, while attending St. Francis College in Loretto, he studied music under Father Bowen, chaplain of the college, and an able musician. Mr. Schwab’s earliest and strongest love is for 232 MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB the organ. It dates back to his boyhood days when he played for his grandfather, who was the leader of a church choir at Williamsburg, Pennsylvania. The steel-master tells an amusing story of how, when he was about ten years old, he incurred the displeasure of this grandfather, a stern man. While he was playing during a service the boy's nose began to itch. The itching became most tantalizing, but he kept his hands dutifully upon the organ keys. Relief came with a rest passage in the music. So vigorously did the boy then rub his itching nose that the other boys in the congre¬ gation noticed it and laughed out loud; where¬ upon his grandfather cuffed the young organist soundly over the head. As Mr. Schwab related this, sitting on the bench of his great organ in his New York home, he rubbed his nose remi¬ niscently— and then his head. Asked about the current stories that it was his organ playing or, as some versions have it, his singing, that first attracted Mr. Carnegie’s atten¬ tion to him, Mr. Schwab said there is no basis of truth in such accounts. It is a fact, however, that his handling of the violin, in which he had some 233 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR skill, greatly pleased his first employer in the Braddock works, Captain W. R. Jones, of whom the chairman of the Bethlehem Steel Corpora¬ tion has said, ‘‘ he knew more about steel than any other man in America/’ Captain Jones and other early associates took huge delight in Mr. Schwab’s organ performances. One of these was, after ren¬ dering classic numbers, to entertain his friends by playing the ‘‘ Fisher’s Hornpipe,” with the right hand and ‘‘Yankee Doodle” with the left, at the same time singing “Home, Sweet Home.” Mr. Schwab still plays the organ occasionally. His is a magnificent instrument probably not sur¬ passed in the country. When he put up his River¬ side Drive residence, the steel magnate arranged for an organ, instructing the iEolian Company and Mr. Archer Gibson, his organist, to spare no expense in searching the world for anything that would add musical value. There are really many organs instead of one, located in different parts of the house, so that the sounds come from vary¬ ing distances. In its chimes, its harp, and other instrumental features and the echo effect, the instrument is remarkable. Mr. Schwab testifies 234 MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB that he finds nothing so soothing, so refreshing- after the strain of business, as to sit with Mrs. Schwab listening to this organ as played by Mr. Gibson’s master hands. In the great organ hall—a beautiful and acoustically perfect hall — appear from time to time many of the foremost artists of the world to sing and play for Mr. and Mrs. Schwab and their guests. The great steel man’s patronage has in it no suggestion of patronizing. Mr. Schwab is generous with both his purse and personality. The artists who go to his home almost invaria¬ bly become something more than acquaintances. Among musicians and music critics in the me¬ tropolis, Mr. Schwab’s friendships are numerous and cordial. One of the considerations, in fact, that led prominent New York critics to resume reporting the Bach Festivals was their personal regard for Mr. Schwab. When the steel-master likes a performance, either in the making of steel or in the making of music, he beams all over, and the performer in the mill or hall receives the Schwab smile and the Schwab vocabulary of praise, which is Rooseveltian in vigor. 235 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Mr. Schwab’s power of oral expression, by the way, is noteworthy. According to some reports, his public talks in his early business career were rather halting. To-day he has developed into a speaker of forceful and felicitous utterance. This Mr. Schwab himself denies. Once, at a Bach Choir rehearsal in the University Church, he was called upon by President Drinker to address the singers. ‘‘ Until Dr. Drinker told me I had to talk, I sat back there enchanted with the mu¬ sic,” the chairman of the Bethlehem Steel Cor¬ poration began, ‘‘but really I did n’t enjoy that last chorus — after he broke the news. I am no after-singing or after-dinner speaker. I’m like the fellow who, following an experience like this, said he now understood why, in the picture of Daniel in the lion’s den, the victim looked so contented. Daniel knew he would n’t be called on for an after-dinner speech.” Mr. Schwab’s secret seems to be that of Peter Pan. He is still a big boy in his curiosity, his en¬ thusiasm, his unaffected delight in people and things. His are forward-looking thoughts. His programme of what the Bethlehem Steel 236 MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB Corporation is to become no one knows definitely. Recent events would indicate that he looks for¬ ward to the completion of the picture he painted before the country’s greatest financiers and busi¬ ness men at the famous dinner given in his honor in 1899, when he outlined the possibilities of organization in making America lead the world in the new steel era. Under President Eugene G. Grace, Bethlehem Steel has recently acquired the Lackawanna Steel Company of Buffalo, the Midvale Steel and Ordnance Company at Phila¬ delphia, together with the Cambria Steel Com¬ pany, with plants at Coatesville, Johnstown and Wilmington, iron ore properties in Michigan and Minnesota and coal properties in Pennsyl¬ vania. Mr. Grace said: — The Board of Directors of Bethlehem Steel Corpora¬ tion has authorized these additional acquisitions in pur¬ suance of its policy of building up a complete line of steel products which it has followed ever since Mr. Schwab and his associates became interested in Bethlehem. Commenting on the economies in operation which these mergers have already made possible, Mr. Schwab declared, at a banquet of New York bankers in January, 1923, that he believes the 237 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR grouping of every steel company in the country under one head would be a good thing economi¬ cally, although “for many reasons’’ he was not advocating it. “ The greatest economy that can come to this country is doing business and bank¬ ing on the largest scale possible. . . . The out¬ look for industry has never been so good as at present.” Mr. Schwab refers to himself these days as having retired from business. He has not retired from music. When Dr. Drinker, having reached what Mark Twain called Port Seventy, resigned as President of Lehigh University he resigned also as President of the Bach Choir. Mr. Schwab then said yes to the unanimous urging of the Bach singers, executive committee and conductor and became President of the Choir. It was the utterly inevitable thing. Mr. Schwab still typifies the youthful spirit of America even though he proclaims he is sixty-one and retired. Is it fanciful to say that his passion¬ ate love of music has been one source of the perennial zest for life and the optimism of this great American? Or are music and the joy of 238 MR. CHARLES M. SCHWAB living not cause and effect but both common manifestations of his rare personality? Whatever the explanation, the fact is this, that Charles M. Schwab has personally exemplified the richness of a life in which industry and art dwell together. VIII THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE CHOIR I N a letter sent to guarantors several years ago by the Executive Committee of the Beth¬ lehem Bach Choir the following aim was ex- The Bach Festivals are the culmination of endeavor on the part of a band of men and women who believe they have found, in the noble settings of sacred texts by the master Bach, the very acme of perfection in re¬ ligious art. These they would interpret, assured that in singing these inspiring strains — repeating them year after year, until poem and song become as household words — they are bringing into many lives rare mo¬ ments of rest and uplift. Public and musical spirit at their best have been exhibited by the citizens whose services as members of the Executive Committee as man¬ agers and as guarantors have furnished a business management for carrying out this aim. A sketch that presumes to give an account of the development of a successful amateur choral society would fall short if it omitted to show how 240 THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE the craft in question, after sailing past the Scylla of musical difficulties, escaped the Charybdis of financial disaster. To give the business procedure of the Bach Festivals may help others engaged in similar enterprises elsewhere or guide others who would begin similar enterprises. As the chapter on “The Beginnings of Bach Singing in Bethlehem” disclosed. Dr. Wolle had loyal helpers in the early years of the Choir, 1900—05. The handling of finances as Treasurer was taken care of by Mr. Milton J. Shimer, whose activities from Choral Union days to the present constitute a record of value in Bethlehem’s mu¬ sical history. Tribute should here be paid to the officers of the earlier period : President Ralph R. Hillman of Buffalo, New York, and his wife, Mrs. Evelyn Chandler Hillman, who continue energetic Choir supporters; Miss Lucy A. Brick- enstein of Washington, D.C., who is with the Choir for every festival and of whom the “ Church Standard” once said that “she is dependable as soloist or in the chorus. . . . Without such de¬ voted women the Bach Festivals at Bethlehem would not be possible”; Dr. W. S. Franklin, the 241 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR first Vice-President of the Choir; Mr. Clinton F. Zerweck, now of the teaching staff of the Newark Academy, the former energetic and cap¬ able Librarian. Other names of the earlier work¬ ers are, to repeat, Mr. Howard J. Wiegner, the Recording Secretary, and additional members of committees : Miss Martha H. Wunderling, Miss Helen E. Shields, Mr. E. H. Wilhelm, Mr. F. A. Sterling, Mr. S. A. Sten Hammar, and Dr. William Frederic Bade. To the memory of Mrs. Ruth Porter Doster, whose work in organizing the first Bach Choir has been related, no tribute too glowing can be paid. While he was assisted by the co-workers just named. Dr. Wolle was substantially the business manager as well as the conductor of the earlier Festivals. Relief from the strain of business de¬ tails was provided in the organization developed by the citizens who became the Executive Com¬ mittee when the Bach Choir and the Festivals were resumed upon the return of Dr. Wolle from California. The first formal meeting of the citizens inter¬ ested took place on the evening of October 19, 242 THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 1911, in the parlors of the Moravian Seminary. There were present Dr. Wolle, Mr. Albert N. Cleaver, Dr. W. L. Estes, Dr. W. P. Walker, Dr. J. H. Clewell, Mr. George R. Booth, Mr. M. J. Shimer, Mr. A. C. Huff, Dr. H. M. Ull- mann, Mr. T. Edgar Shields, Mr. Frank G. Hoch, Mrs. A. N. Cleaver, and Mrs. William H. Chandler. A permanent organization was formed under the name of the Bach Choir, and President Henry S. Drinker, of Lehigh University, was elected President. Messrs. Cleaver and Shimer and Dr. Estes were appointed a committee to draft a con¬ stitution and by-laws and to formulate a general plan of organization. At a meeting on Novem¬ ber 18, these additional officers were elected: Vice-President, Mr. George R. Booth; Secre¬ tary, Mr. Frank G. Hoch; Treasurer, Mr. Al¬ bert N. Cleaver. Although it is by no means held up as a model, the constitution of the Bach Choir, adopted at this second meeting, possesses interest as a simple and workable scheme. Membership in the Bach Choir Society was made to consist of the original 243 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR incorporators, the active members of the Choir, all persons who are guarantors in any sum of ten dollars or more, and representatives of the Indus¬ trial Commission of Bethlehem and the Com¬ mercial League of South Bethlehem. The officers are a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, and a Treasurer, who hold office for one year. The Treasurer keeps accounts of all re¬ ceipts and disbursements and pays bills only with the approval of the Executive Committee. Management is vested in a Board of Managers, which consists of thirty-five members elected by the guarantors and the Choir. The Board ap¬ points the Conductor and handles the business of the Society. The detail work is done by the Executive Committee, which consists of fifteen members ‘‘ whose duty it shall be to direct and control the affairs of the Society.’’ The Executive Commit¬ tee members are chosen from the Board of Mana¬ gers and are divided into three classes serving for one year, two years, and three years, respectively. There are various sub-committees of the Board of Managers: choir membership, festival tickets, 244 THE EXECUTIVE COxVIMITTEE entertainment of festival attendants, programme, church arrangements and publicity. The chair¬ man of the choir membership committee is Sec¬ retary of the Chorus. In the constitution adopted at the second meet¬ ing, the objects of the Choir were given as “the study and performance of the choral and other music of John Sebastian Bach or other com¬ posers.'’ In the by-laws the further purpose was stated of endeavoring to “ establish in other cities and towns in the country auxiliary Bach Choir societies" in order to spread understanding and appreciation of the work of Bach. Conditions have not thus far appeared favorable to under¬ take this secondary object. The financial statements of the 1900—05 pe¬ riod show that the proceeds of the Festivals ap¬ proximately met the expenses, with small deficits made up by guarantors. The larger deficits of the present Festivals are due to engaging profes¬ sional orchestra players, providing a salary for the conductor and other expenses. In meeting these deficits music lovers of Bethlehem and cer¬ tain Eastern cities have become guarantors. The 245 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR amounts guaranteed range from ten dollars up to Mr. Schwab’s half of the entire deficit. The proportions of the guarantees called for follow¬ ing the Lehigh Festivals since 1912, have ranged from forty-one per cent to eighty per cent. Guarantors pay for their tickets for the Festival, their one privilege in this respect being an ad¬ vance choice of seats. In the past few years, with a demand exceeding the supply, this privilege has been a very desirable one. The price of Festi¬ val tickets is from one dollar to two dollars for each session, or four dollars to eight dollars for course tickets. Admission to rehearsals of the several weeks preceding the Festival is free, and many persons take advantage of this. A ‘‘ Who’s Who ” list of the officers and members of the Executive Committee of the Bach Choir may be of interest. President Schwab’s relations with the Choir have been outlined in the preceding chapter. The Treasurer of the Bach Choir is Mr. Albert N. Cleaver. Mr. Cleaver is a citizen of Bethlehem who has had charge of large mining and manufac¬ turing interests for many years. He is a Trustee 246 Photograph by McCaa Photograph by Pirie MacDonald DR. HENRY S. DRINKER, Former President MR. ALBERT N. CLEAVER, Treasurer THE EXECUTIVE COxMMITTEE of Lehigh University (a member of the Trustees’ Executive Committee) and is Secretary of the Board of Trustees of St. Luke’s Hospital. A prominent churchman in the Protestant Episco¬ pal Church, Mr. Cleaver has an important influ¬ ence in the Diocese of Bethlehem and in civic and charitable movements locally. Mr. and Mrs. Cleaver were the initiators and leaders in the re¬ vival of the Bach Festivals, and their work in season and out of season has been a factor in the Choir’s success beyond computation. Henry Sturgis Drinker, E.M., LL.D., former President of the Bach Choir, was President of Lehigh University from 1905 to 1920. Support of the Bach Festivals was one of the broader ac¬ tivities in which Lehigh participated during his administration — forestry, conservation of natural resources, the Summer Military Training Camps, and other movements of national scope. Of Le¬ high’s Bach connection the ‘‘ Outlook ” said: “ In providing a home for this Festival the President and Trustees of Lehigh University are perform¬ ing a service as distinctly educational as anything else the University does.” Dr. Drinker’s personal 247 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR connection with Bethlehem music dates back to his student years at Lehigh, 1867—71, when he was a bass in the old Philharmonic Society. The energy, the attention to detail, and the enthusi¬ asm that are characteristic of him have been ap¬ plied in full measure to the profit of the Bach Festivals. The Choir's Executive Committee includes a third Trustee of Lehigh University, — the Chair¬ man of the Trustees' Executive Committee, — Mr. Warren A. Wilbur. Mr. Wilbur is Chair¬ man of the Board of Directors of the E. P. Wilbur Trust Company of Bethlehem. His financial ability has been recognized in positions of honor to which he has been elected by various bankers' associations. Aside from his connection with the industrial and business development of Bethlehem, Mr. Wilbur has been a guiding force in the community's civic advance and patriotic activity. Typical of this last point was his war work as Chairman of the Bethlehem District of the Pennsylvania Public Safety Committee. The Vice-President of the Bach Choir is Mr. George Rodney Booth, Ph.B., a graduate of 248 Photograph by McCaa MR. WARREN A. WILBUR Photograph by McCaa MR. T. EDGAR SHIELDS, Organist Photograph by the Phillips Studio .MRS. R. P. LINDERMAN Photograph by Filcki.Tgcr MR. GEORGE R. BOOTH, ViCE-PresiDENr MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Lehigh University, a well-known attorney at law practicing at the Northampton County Bar. For some years he was Borough Solicitor of Bethlehem. Mr. Booth is a singer in the Choir. Mr. Milton J. Shimer is a member of the Ex¬ ecutive Committee who has been connected with Bethlehem music, as has been indicated, since the early eighties. Mr. Shimer was for forty years head of William Shimer, Son & Co., man¬ ufacturers of hardware and iron toys. He is now President of the Lattig-Shimer Company, manu¬ facturers of furniture and movable school desks. Beginning with the second Bach Festival in 1901, Mr. T. Edgar Shields has been organist of the Bach Choir. From the revival of the Festivals in 1911, Mr. Shields has been a mem¬ ber of the Choir Executive Committee with charge of programme and other arrangements. His service in this twofold capacity has been in accordance with the ability and idealism that have made him a conspicuous force in the com¬ munity’s musical life. Mr. Shields is organist and choirmaster of the Pro-Cathedral of the Church of the Nativity and organist of Lehigh 249 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR University. He is a Professor in the Music De¬ partment of the Moravian Seminary and College for Women. Dr. William L. Estes, Sr., Emeritus Surgeon- in-Chief of St. Luke’s Hospital, a member of the Bach Executive Committee from its formation, has been an ardent supporter of mu¬ sical enterprise in Bethlehem since the early eighties. His wife, the late Jeanne Wynne Estes, was contralto soloist in the production of the ^‘St. John Passion” in 1888, the ‘‘St. Mat¬ thew Passion” in 1892, the “Christmas Ora¬ torio” in 1894, and at the Bach Festivals of 1900, 1901, and 1903. She was a gifted singer and a thorough musician. Her influence was of decisive importance in the formative years of Bach singing in Bethlehem. Mr. Henry S. Snyder was elected to the Ex¬ ecutive Committee in 1913. Mr. Snyder has demonstrated his lively interest in the Bach Choir in many ways. He is a Vice-President of the Bethlehem Steel Company. Mr. Frank G. Hoch, who has been the effi¬ cient Secretary of the Executive Committee since 250 Photograph by McCaa MR. F. G. HOCH Photograph by Gessford MR. HENRY S. SNYDER Photograph by McCaa Photograph by Flickicgcr MR. M. J. SHIMER DR. WILLIAM L. ESTES, SR. MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE its formation, was treasurer of the former Ora¬ torio Society of the Bethlehems, For years secre¬ tary of Mr. Warren A. Wilbur, he is now Trea¬ surer and General Manager of the Industrial Limestone Company, Bethlehem, and Secretary and Treasurer of the Globe Publishing Company. Mr. A. C. Huff, the Executive Committee member having charge of the sale of Festival tickets, is proprietor of the A. C. Huff Music Store. He was formerly President of the Beth¬ lehem Industrial Commission and a member of the Bethlehem Borough Council. Long a devoted supporter of the Bach cause, Mrs. R. P. Linderman was elected as a member of the Executive Committee to succeed Professor Joseph W. Richards, who died in the fall of 1921. Mrs. Linderman is a daughter of the late Robert H. Sayre, railroad man and capitalist, a pioneer in the Lehigh Valley. She has traveled all over the world, but she has kept her home and parish and civic duties in close touch. Typi¬ cal of her sense of values and of her generosity is her yearly gift of $1500 for a final rehearsal of the Bach Choir and the Philadelphia Orches- 251 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR tra on the evening before each festival, whereby the artistic standard has been raised and hundreds of local citizens have been enabled to hear the choir at a nominal charge. The newest member of the Executive Com¬ mittee is Mrs. Quincy Bent, elected in 1922 after the death of Dr. J. H. Clewell. Mrs. Bent was Miss Deborah Brock, a mem.ber of the old Brock family of Philadelphia and Lebanon. She is the wife of Mr. Quincy Bent, Vice-President of the Bethlehem Steel Company. She has been interested and active in the work of the Episcopal Church and in civic and artistic enterprises. Natt M. Emery, M.A., Litt.D., Vice-Pres¬ ident of Lehigh University, is a member of the Executive Committee whose service in the Uni¬ versity’s arrangements for the annual festivals has been a factor in their success. Raymond Walters, M.A., is a member of the Executive Committee. The^e should be mention here of the service as Membership Secretary of the Choir of Mrs. George W. Halliwell. Her capable and persist¬ ent work and unbounded enthusiasm are in wor- 252 Photograph by the Phillips Studio MRS. QUINCY BENT Photograph by Flickinger MR. A. C. HUFF MR. Photograph by McCaa RAYMOND WALTERS Photograph by McCaa DR. N. M. EMERY MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE thy succession to the precedent es ablished by the first Secretary, Mrs. Doster. The complete list of guarantors of the various Bach Festivals from 1900 to 1923 follows: — Mrs. M. Louise Adsit, Buffalo; Mrs. Susan F. Al¬ bright, Buffalo; Mr. Rudolph Altschul, Coplay; Mrs. William N. Appel, Lancaster; Mr. Thomas B. Atherton, Wilkes-Barre; Mr. Charles P. Ayers, Easton; Mr. James M. Beck, New York; Mrs. J. Claude Bedford, Phila¬ delphia; Mrs. Marian Mason Bell, Mr. Quincy Bent, Mrs. Quincy Bent, Bethlehem; the Reverend Charles E. Betticher, Mrs. Charles E. Betticher, Baltimore; Mrs. Arthur Biddle, Philadelphia; Miss E. S. Bixler, Easton; Mrs. E. S. Bixler (Representing Newton, N.J. Musical Club); Mrs. W. S. Blight, Jr., Philadelphia; Mr. Edgar H. Boles, New York City; Mr. George R. Booth, Bethle¬ hem; Miss A. J. Borden, Dr. John W. S. Brady, Boston; Mr. John F. Braun, Philadelphia; Mrs. Andrew W. Bray, Bethlehem; Mrs. Annie Swayze Breck, Miss Lucy Brickenstein, Washington; Mrs. Stanley Bright, Read¬ ing; Miss Anna 1. Brodhead, East Mauch Chunk; the late Mr. J. Davis Brodhead; Mr. James Crosby Brown, Philadelphia; Mrs. Edward Buckley, Philadelphia; Miss Katharine Buckley, Philadelphia; Miss Mary S. Buck- ley, Philadelphia; Miss Louise S. Bunce, Hartford, Conn.; Mr. Timothy Burns, Buffalo; Mrs. Harold W. Byron, Mercersberg; Mrs. J. C. Byron, Hagerstown; Dr. Richard C. Cabot, Boston; Mrs. W. H. Chandler, Bethlehem; Mrs. Susan T. Clark, Hartford; Mr. A. N. Cleaver, Bethlehem; Mrs. A. N. Cleaver, Bethlehem; Mrs. Elizabeth K. Cleaver, Bethlehem; the late Rever¬ end J. H. Clewell; Mrs. Helen R. Coleman, New York; Mrs. J. H. Coney, Princeton, N.J.; Mrs. Fred¬ erick Conlin, Plainfield, N.J.; Mrs. G. G. Con vers, 253 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Bethlehem; Mrs. Eleanor B. Cooke, Mrs. Morris Lle¬ wellyn Cooke, Philadelphia; Mrs. Walter Cope, Philadel¬ phia; Mr. David E. Crozier, Mrs. David E. Crozier, Philadelphia; the late Mrs. Mary Packer Cummings; Mr. H. Edward Cumpson, Buffalo; Mrs. R. H. Dana, New York; the Reverend Paul de Schweinitz, Bethle¬ hem; Dr. Francis J. Dever, Bethlehem; Miss Alice C. D’Olier, Burlington, N.J.; Mr. C. Miner Dodson, Beth¬ lehem; Mrs. Martha S. Dodson, Bethlehem; the late Mr. Charles M. Dodson; Mr. A. C. Dodson, Bethlehem; Dr. H. S. Drinker, Bethlehem; Mr. Martin G. Dumler, Cincinnati; Mrs. Constance S. Du Pont, Wilmington; the Reverend H. E. A. Durell, Atlantic City; Mr. Lewis Emery, Bradford; Mr. Natt M. Emery, Bethlehem; Mrs. Mary C. Emlen, Philadelphia; Dr. W. L. Estes, Bethlehem; Dr. W. L. Estes, Jr., Bethlehem; Miss Helen Fleisher; Professor W. S. Franklin, Bethlehem; Mrs. Hollis French, Boston; Mrs. E. W. Geiss, Bethle¬ hem; Mr. Philip H. Goepp, Philadelphia; Deaconess H. R. Goodwin, Washington; Mr. A. C. Goodyear, Buffalo; Mrs. E. W. Gould; Mr. E. G. Grace, Bethlehem; Mr. A. C. Graham, Bethlehem; Mrs. Georgia C. Graham, Beth¬ lehem; Mr. J. M. Gross, Mr. Justus Grun, New Rochelle, N.Y.; Mrs. E. H. Gummere, Bethlehem; the late Mr. R. M. Gummere; Mr. Arnold Hague, Washington; Miss Eleanor Hague, New York; Mr. Earl C. Hammond, Ogontz; Mrs. William Warren Harper, Philadelphia; Mrs. John McArthur Harris, Germantown; Mr. F. C. Hartshorne, Phoenixville; Mrs. Flora R. Harvey, Phila¬ delphia; Mr. James F. Henninger, Allentown; Mr. H. F. Hermes, Mr. Gustav Heubach, Hastings-on-Hudson, N. Y.; Mr. R. R. Hillman, Buffalo; Mr. A. C. Huff, Bethlehem; Mrs. Alvin Hunsicker, Weehawken, N.J.; Mrs. Seth Bliss Hunt, New York City; Mrs. Susan Bai¬ ley Ireland, Atlantic City; Mrs. Henry S. Jeanes, Phila¬ delphia; Mr. I. L. Jennings, Cleveland; Mrs. Guy R. Johnson, Bethlehem; Mrs. Mary Alford Johnson, Mrs. 254 THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Lewis E. Johnson, Bethlehem; Mr. Archibald Johnston, Bethlehem; Mrs. M. D. H. Kendall, Washington; Miss Clara A. Knapp, Bethlehem; Mrs. R. S. Knapp, Easton; Mr. Edward S. Knisely, Bethlehem; Mrs. W. A. La- throp, Kingston; Miss Amy Clement Leavitt, Washing¬ ton; Lehigh’University, Bethlehem; Mr. J. George Leh¬ man, Bethlehem; Mr. O. W. Lerch, Allentown; Mr. August Lewis, New York; Mr. R. A. Lewis, Bethlehem; Mrs. R. P. Linderman, Bethlehem; Mrs. Henry H. Lip- pincott, Riverton, N.J.; Miss Mabel Elizabeth Loeser, Mr. William M. Lybrand, New York City; Dr. E. S. Mantz, Bethlehem; Miss E. Gwen Martin, Philadel¬ phia; Miss Jane Graham Mason, Philadelphia; Dr. W. D. McKim, Washington; Mr. M. Hawley McLanahan, Philadelphia; Dr. Charlotte F. McLean, Mr. R. E. McMath, Mrs. Helena E. Meigs, Pottstown; Mrs. George Merch, West Orange, N.J.; Mr. H. C. Meserole, Brooklyn, N.Y.; Dr. Alfred Meyer, New York; Mrs. John B. Miles, Philadelphia; Mrs. Edward C. Moore, Cambridge, Mass.; the Moravian Seminary and College for Women, Bethlehem; Mrs. Bertha Hay don Morris, Mr. Edmon Morris, Mrs. J. G. Morris, Haverford; Mus¬ ical Coterie, Wayne; Mr. Frank J. Myers, Bethlehem; the late Mrs. Caroline H. Myers; Mr. George M. New¬ comer, New York; Miss Helen Nicolay, Washington; Professor Charles G. Osgood, Princeton; Mrs. Alvin A. Parker, Strafford; Mr. George Foster Peabody, Saratoga Springs; Miss Sarah L. Perry, Trenton; Mr. Armistead Peter, 3d., Mrs. Armistead Peter, 3d., Mrs. J. Madison Porter, Easton; Mr. J. Madison Porter, Easton; Mr. Howard C. Potts, Philadelphia; Mrs. Wm. M. Potts, Wyebrooke; Mrs. Edwin A. Quier, Reading; Mr. G. Reginald Radford, Bethlehem; Mrs. J. S. F. Randolph, Morristown; Mr. John Rice, Easton; Professor J. W. Richards (in memoriam. Dr. Florence H. Richards, Philadelphia); Miss Ida J. Riegel, Riegelsville; Mrs. Emma L. Roedter, Cincinnati; Mrs. Richard Ross- 255 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR massler, Ardmore; Mrs. W. S. Russell, Carlisle; the Reverend John Nevin Sayre, SufFern; Miss Clara B. Sayre, Bethlehem; Mr. Wilfred H. Schuff, Philadelphia; Mr. Charles M. Schwab, Bethlehem; Mr. E. A. Seeger, New York; Mrs. Frank A. Seiberling, Akron; Miss Maude G. Sewall, Washington; Mr. R. A. Shimer, Rieg- elsville; Mr. M. J. Shimer, Bethlehem; Mr. Henry S. Snyder, Bethlehem; Miss C. S. Spachman, New York; Mrs. Amelia K. Stegmaier, Mr. Lewis B. Stillwell, New York; Dr. Joseph Stokes, Moorestown; Mr. F. C. Stout, Bethlehem; Mr. William N. Tobias, Bethlehem; Gen. Frank M. Trexler, Allentown; Miss Evalyn Quick Ty- sun, Altantic City; Mr. H. M. Ullmann, Bethlehem; Mr. Frank H. Ville, Bethlehem; Mr. Raymond Walters, Swarthmore; Miss Mabel C. Washburn, Hartford, Conn.; Mrs. Maurice Wertheim, Cus Cob, Conn.; the Reverend Stanley R. West, Pottstown; Mrs. S. Burns Weston, Haverford; Mr. James Platt White, Buffalo; the late Mrs. E. P. Wilbur; Mr. Eldredge P. Wilbur, Bethlehem; Mr. W. A. Wilbur, Bethlehem; Mr. H. A. J. Wilkins, New York; Mr. Ira Jewell Williams, Phila¬ delphia; Mrs. Mary H. J. Williams, Philadelphia; Mrs. Charles Wilson, Rosemont; Mr. Wyle T. Wilson, Phila¬ delphia; Mrs. James D. Winsor, Haverford; Miss Ellen Winsor, Haverford; Mr. I. S. Wolf; and Mrs. Margaret C. Yarnelle, Easton. IX A COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE F or more than one hundred years — from its founding in 1741 to 1845 — Bethlehem was an exclusive church settlement. In the early communistic Economy members were grouped by trades and occupations. The men, quartered in the Brethren’s House, worked as farmers, ma- sons, carpenters, tinsmiths, millers; the women, domiciled in the Sisters’ House, occupied them¬ selves in cooking, spinning, weaving, knitting, and embroidering. No member of the Economy in its earliest years received wages or any share of the profits of their agricultural and manufacturing opera¬ tions. In return for their toil they “ merely got their subsistence from the common store.” The profit of all labor went to the furtherance of the church’s evangelistic work among the Indians and other inhabitants of the section. All of the sisters and brethren took some part 257 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR in music, whether simply by ‘‘a joyful noise unto the Lord’’ in their numerous Singstunden and regular services, or by playing upon instruments that would have seemed to some sects to be the Devil’s own invention. With the Moravians mu¬ sic was an institution of the church, and it had, as has been shown, complete sanction as a rec¬ reation. These people lived, as truly as the Puri¬ tans, ever in their Great Taskmaster’s eye; but they believed there was no sin in music — if it was good music. With this as their attitude the Moravians gave performances, as was related in chapter i, that made the community a musical leader in America of the eighteenth century. Love of music and skill in its rendition have continued to be characteristic of their descend¬ ants and, in general, of the city where Mr. Schwab has enthroned steel as king. It should be said that, of Bethlehem’s population to-day, only about five per cent are Moravians. In its beginning, when the membership was about eighty, the Bach Choir was composed largely of singers of the Moravian Church. Moravians continue to be well represented in the choir to- 258 A COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE day, although in actual numbers several other religious denominations exceed them. The homes of eighty per cent of the singers are in Bethle¬ hem, with the remainder in adjacent towns and cities. It is typically a community chorus. To this it may be added, in repetition, that Dr. Wolle is a native of Bethlehem. So likewise is Mr. Shields, organist of the Choir. Citizens of Bethlehem — most of them for many years — are the men named in the preceding chapter whose service as members of the Executive Com¬ mittee makes the Festivals a fact. Local institu¬ tions of learning furnish the Festival home and the rehearsal home of the Choir: Lehigh Uni¬ versity and the Moravian Seminary and College for Women. The chorale announcements of each session of the Festivals are played by the Mora¬ vian Trombone Choir, an entirely local group of musicians. The one element of the Festivals not local is the orchestra, which has been made up, since the revival of the Festivals at Lehigh in 1912, of members of the Philadelphia Or¬ chestra. From divers sources there have issued com- 259 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR ments upon the community aspect of the Bethle¬ hem Festivals. ‘Hf one would find the ideal of community singing, let him repair to the leafy lap of the hills of Bethlehem,’' declared a corre¬ spondent of the “ Christian Science Monitor.” Mr. Thomas Tapper, writing in the “Musical Record and Review,” cited the Bach Choir to illustrate his point that “ Music, to be an actual force in a community, must dwell there.” The New Bedford, Massachusetts, “ Sunday Standard,” in a local study of “ the development of a com¬ munity music movement,” instanced the Bethle¬ hem enterprise and declared that the extent to which “ the Choir and the festivals are a com¬ munity affair ... is inspiring as to the possibili¬ ties of such a movement.” Mr. H. F. Peyser, in “ Musical America,” maintained that “ these ardent choristers of Bethlehem ” represent the consummation of a community expression: — Here are townspeople able to compass the richest potentialities of community effort — welded as they are, into close fraternity in the service of music, unified in spirit and in concentration of purpose, aided to the ends of artistic virtuosity by a transmuting love, and finding utterance not in the crude products of rudi- 260 A COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE mentary simplicity but in the loftiest outgivings of cul¬ tural evolution. Musically speaking, the community of Bethlehem has effectually found the kingdom of heaven within itself. In presenting its extension-work propaganda for the development of musical culture through¬ out the State, the University of Wisconsin re¬ ferred to the Bethlehem Bach Festivals as an example of the educational value of communal endeavor in music: At probably no other place in the world is the difficult music of Bach studied with such devotion as in this Pennsylvania Ober- ammergau.'’ These typical comments indicate wide recog¬ nition of the Bethlehem Festivals as a significant community enterprise, aside from their artistic importance. The University of Wisconsin’s ref¬ erence suggests a vital outcome — the educational value of Bach study for the singers as evidenced in the discipline and in the musical feeling that result. Now, the discipline, of the Bach Choir is dif¬ ferent in kind from that of a company of soldiers or even of a professional orchestra. Before re- 261 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR hearsals and after, and during the brief inter¬ missions between choruses, the singers relax into laughter and chatting — yea, gossip. Dr. Wolle himself contributes many an atrocious pun. His talks to the Choir have a delightfully cheery tone — a kind of vocal handclasp for every one. When later his words of reproof leap forth, lapsing sing¬ ers know the utterly impersonal intent and they are not offended. Similarly, because no element of friendship could extort it, his praise for work well done is intoxicating. While there is an absence of military discipline, no crack regiment on review could be more sharply at attention when the arms of their Con¬ ductor are poised. Every eye is centered upon the mobile face and the loquacious fingers of a leader who needs no baton. The attack of the Bach Choir is a wonderful thing. In the response to Dr. Wolle’s every demand for shading, it is as though the singers on the ten-step chancel plat¬ form in Packer Memorial Church were a ten- manual human organ, every one of the two hundred and fifty human keys yielding to the touch of this organist-conductor. The Bethlehem 262 A COMxMUNITY ENTERPRISE Choir sings Bach surpassingly well because, when they begin, this one thing they do. The development of musical feeling has been named as a second element in the educational effect of the Choir’s work. An application is here supplied of the principle Matthew Arnold sug¬ gested of carrying in the memory great lines and passages from the masters to apply as touchstones in measuring poetry. With the melodies of Bach upon their lips and in their hearts, the members of the Bethlehem Choir lose appetite for musical mediocrity. Nor is this benefit confined to the singers. ‘‘ All of us throughout the churches and through¬ out the community,” said the Reverend A. D. Thaeler, D.D., pastor of the Bethlehem Mora¬ vian Church, in an address, ‘Teel the effect of this Bach work, not only in the Festivals as artistic successes, but in the reflex we are getting in our homes as the result of the Choir’s singing.” As one of the appendices of this book shows, a total of about seven hundred persons have for varying periods sung with the Bach Choir. The present membership includes some veterans of the 263 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR earliest days. A large percentage of the present Choir have taken part in all of the Festivals since the revival in 1912. The stability and tradition of the Chorus are, of course, furnished by this con¬ tinuing majority. But, purely as a musical propo¬ sition, Dr. Wolle welcomes persons who say frankly that they may be with the Choir a year or two only. It is the admixture of fresh and flexible though inexperienced singers with rou¬ tined, dependable voices that gives to the Choir’s singing the buoyancy of youth and the repose of maturity. From the community aspect there is value in having many citizens, as Bethlehem has, who have profited by the drill and the elevating influ¬ ence of Bach singing. Such former choir mem¬ bers may be likened to the athletic alumni of a college who retain enthusiasm for sports and judg¬ ment as to athletic standards because they once played on varsity teams. It is interesting to conjecture as to the per¬ formance of all seven hundred past and present Bach Choir members. There would be precedent, of course, for large choruses, ranging from the 264 A COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE ten thousand singers of P. S. Gilmore at the Peace Jubilees in Boston in 1869 and 1872 to the one thousand singers of the Philadelphia Orchestra Chorus who in 1916 gave the Mahler Symphony. For the rendering of Bach out of doors or in a huge auditorium the combined past and present Bethlehem choirs would assuredly be worth go¬ ing a long way to hear. But the law of diminish¬ ing returns, so definitely applicable in the enlarg¬ ing of choruses, might readily disappoint hopes as to the result. At any rate. Dr. Wolle is con¬ tent with a chorus of the present size, two hundred and fifty singers, and with the present fluctuations. Exemplifying, as it does, what a community choral society may become, the Bach Choir has importance in maintaining real standards in choral singing in this country. It shares influence, along with other amateur societies of similar spirit, in restraining community effort from the “Silver threads among the gold’’ sort of thing. “ The bible of these organizations [community choruses] ought to be the Bach chorales,” de¬ clared Mr. Albert Spalding, the violinist, in a 265 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR “ Musical America interview in which he lauded the work of the Bethlehem Choir. How this bible might be studied by church choirs, Sunday-Schools, oratorio societies, com¬ munity choruses, and how the message of these chorales might be delivered to multitudes to their profit has been indicated in the chapter on the Bach Choir, ‘‘A Musical Force.” Consideration is here confined to the broad aspects of singing by a community chorus. Requests have been received for specific sug¬ gestions based upon Bach Festival experience that would be helpful to those who in other parts of the country “ are struggling with the prob¬ lems of community music.” These points seem to be pertinent. Whatever the form of a community musical endeavor, there should be obtained somehow an as¬ sured financial basis. It is this assurance that en¬ ables Conductor and Choir in Bethlehem to do their work without worrying about the inevit¬ able money deficit of the Festivals. Bethlehem is exceptionally fortunate in having a group of citizens like Mr. Schwab and his associate guar- 266 A COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE antors. But in measure every community has men and women of means who could assure against loss a home chorus organized to sing good music. Without a guarantee fund financial shoals are almost certain to be encountered. The attraction of novelty will carry through a season or two, but the development of a permanent public taste for good music is a matter of skill and zeal and time. The conductor and the chorus can supply skill and zeal; but time means pages from a check-book. Until the era when the signing of checks for community music is done by the city treasurer — and this seems a long way off—re¬ course must be had to private donors. For the stimulation of such there may be re¬ called the fine rule formulated and applied by the pioneer patron of music in America, Mr. Henry L. Higginson, who said about Boston Symphony Orchestra concerts: ‘‘Never mind the balance-sheet! Charge the deficit, if there be any, to profit and forget the loss, for it does not really exist.” Likewise the words of Mr. Charles M. Schwab: “To further the cause of 267 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR music and to enable as many as possible to enjoy its pleasures and benefits is a duty incumbent upon all good citizens/’ The conductor must be a musician of vision, per- sistence, and infectious enthusiasm. He must be able to picture to his singers a lofty but realiz¬ able goal; he must be able with patience to abide their blunders and deficiencies; he must be able to inspire them to the utmost measure of study, of drill, of feeling. Unless he can, hoping all things, enduring all things, sink himself in the work, the conductor will hardly build a great community chorus. There are leaders who can. To secure such an one should be a primary con¬ sideration of those who would promote com¬ munity music; second only to obtaining guar¬ antors to pay him and to take care of other expenses. Then, when he is engaged, the conductor should be given complete power within his sphere. A composition cannot be interpreted through legislation. For results the conductor must be an autocrat — a war-time President. Singers with trained voices are not necessary to 268 A COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE make a good chorus. When the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston was in its infancy, “ the one necessary qualification,’’ the “History” of the Society states, “ was the possession of a good voice; and this, considering that very few read¬ ers at sight were available, was all that could be asked.” This is more than the Bethlehem Bach Choir now asks. Dr. Wolle declares that he is delighted to have Choir members with only fair voices, or even poor voices, — if they possess earnestness and spirit. “ There are no require¬ ments as to sight-singing ability. Judging from experience, I do not believe that one person in ten thousand can read music at sight. There are no requirements as to ear. In my entire career, I recall only one impossible ear.” These points of Bethlehem experience have proved encouraging to inquirers who lamented that their towns lack persons of experience in singing. One great value of community endeavor in music lies in developing latent powers, with the joy and uplift that expression gives to those who sing. That the results to those who listen may be likewise joyful and uplifting, that aver- 269 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR age singers may accomplish an important work, is attested by the Bethlehem Bach Festivals. There is datiger in over-organizing a chorus^ in having by-laws, dues, fines, and a multiplicity of committees. The least possible government in these respects has proved the best in Bethlehem. A membership secretary who will keep after singers and somehow make them attend is a pearl of great price. Limitation to one composer is not^ in general^ a policy to be advised. The Bethlehem Choir’s suc¬ cess has come, it is true, by restriction to the study and performance of Bach’s music. This has been due to an ambition to make familiar the choral work of a supreme master, work that has been practically neglected in this country. But unless there is as good a reason in other cases, variety in programme sources would seem more favorable to maintaining the interest of most ama¬ teur singers and their audiences. There is, to sum up, no insurmountable obstacle to other community choruses equaling what the Bach Choir has acccomplished. The qualities called for are not genius nor exceptional beauty of voice, 270 A COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE but fair musical intelligence and ardor that en¬ dures. The reward is, as Bach singers will testify, that the work adds inches to their spiritual stature, and they know the joy that comes with artistic achievement. X A MUSICAL FORCE W HILE there are risks as to fact and taste in setting forth priority in the performance of musical work, priority is interesting when the performance is significant of the period and is not what the biologists call a ‘‘sport” or chance specimen. Thus Bethlehem's achievements in its early American productions of Haydn's “ Crea¬ tion '' and “ Seasons'' and of Mozart's symphonies are important because they were typical of a com¬ munity that had, in the eighteenth century, what Mr. Philip H. Goepp described as “the highest musical activity in the country.'' Similarly the first complete American renditions in Beth¬ lehem of the “St. John Passion” in 1888 and of the “Mass in B Minor” in 1900 are notable because they reflected local conditions and forces capable of producing a permanent Bach organi¬ zation. It should be said at once that, contrary to ap- 272 A MUSICAL FORCE parently general misimpression, the earliest Bach productions in the United States were not in Bethlehem. The honor for these belongs, as far as available records reveal, to the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston. On May 13, 1871, this Society gave selections from the “St. Mat¬ thew Passion,” which was sung in its entirety on April II, 1879. The Handel and Haydn pro¬ grammes for 1881, 1882, 1887, and 1888 show Bach selections. In the first concert the Oratorio Society of New York ever gave, that of December 3,1873, the programme included a Bach chorale, “ To God in whom I trust.” Under Dr. Leopold Damrosch, the Conductor, the Oratorio Society sang on March 18, 1880, for the first time in America, the “ St. Matthew Passion.” This ora¬ torio was repeated on March 13, 1884. The priority of these occasional Bach rendi¬ tions in Boston and New York of course does not alter the historical leadership of Bethlehem, in its old Choral Union and the present Bach Choir, as the first definite force in the country devoted to Bach’s music. The achievement of the Bethlehem Bach 273 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Choir, which has been widely recognized in the most friendly and generous manner, lies, not in early occupancy of the field of Bach, but in ear¬ nest and persistent tilling of that field so that fruit has been brought forth to a goodly degree of perfection. Mr. William J. Henderson touched the heart of the matter when he commented, in an account of the Bethlehem Festival, upon “its concentration of aim and its sincerity of spirit.’' For the evolution of the Bach Choir as an artistic power, earlier chapters of this book, quot¬ ing critical and other judgments, furnish evidence. The testimony is that the Choir has high artistic rank. This is not the testimony merely of those who have been captured by the beauty and in¬ terest of the Festival setting at Lehigh; nor of those who have been influenced by the religious spirit of the singing; nor of those whom Steven¬ son called “ easy to please, who love and who give pleasure.” It is the testimony of music critics of eminence, not addicted to flattery, who spice their praise with blame. It is moderate, there¬ fore, to say that a notable artistic position has 274 A MUSICAL FORCE been gained by an organization that has won, for example, the encomium of Mr. Finck as ‘‘the best choir in the United States,” and whose annual Festival is designated by Mr. Henderson as occu¬ pying “a most important place in the musical activities of the United States.” Samuel Butler put it down in one of his “ Note- Books” that “ Bach is esteemed a more profound musician than Handel in virtue of his frequent and more involved complexity of construction.” In the same group of notes, the author of “The Way of All Flesh” asseverated of Bach: “It is imputed to him for righteousness that he goes over the heads of the general public and appeals mainly to musicians.” To correct the all-too-general misapprehen¬ sion illustrated in these words is a part of the educational and missionary effort of the Bethle¬ hem Bach Choir. It is by no means knocking down a man of straw to deal with the criticism implied in Butler’s phrase about Bach’s “ involved complexity of construction”; this attitude has been if anything more common in America than with the British public. 275 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR Massive and complex though Bach's composi¬ tions are, they have nevertheless a fundamental simplicity, an appeal that the unlearned in music feel as well as cultivated listeners. Dr. Wolle is insistent upon this point. “ Bach's themes are as simple as folk-songs. Any boy on the street can whistle them. Now in places the music ofBach is indeed wonderfully ornate, running off in lit¬ tle embellishments, with all of the parts active and independent. If you prune off these runs, these secondary notes, as you could the leaves and twigs of a tree, you will find the tree-trunk and branches of a harmony — based upon a na¬ tural foundation. This innate simplicity is the reason Bach's music takes hold of people." Dr. Wolle might have added the qualification he doubtless implied — when Bach's music is well sung. There is danger that singers may be cap¬ tivated by the embellishments of Bach and revel in prideful execution of them: with unhappy re¬ sults. These things are but the setting for a pre¬ cious stone. They are like a queen's robe of ex¬ quisite lace. The robe must be so draped as not to overwhelm but to enhance the beauty and 276 A MUSICAL FORCE stateliness and simplicity of the sovereign — which is the theme. That the music of Bach does ‘‘ not go over the heads of the masses/’ but “ takes them rather by the hand/’ the appeal of the Festivals at Le¬ high certainly supplies evidence. Professional musicians are always numerous in the audiences, but the large proportion each year are persons who represent "‘the masses” in the sense at least of being unlearned in music. Surely, also, the firmness of the hold Bach’s music has upon the affections of the singers themselves is evidence that ‘‘average folk”—as the members of the Choir proclaim themselves to be — can and do enjoy Bach. If, then, “ the general public ” does not appre¬ ciate Bach, it is mainly because his choral works are infrequently presented. “ The singing soci¬ eties are notoriously and confirmedly shy of Bach’s choral music,” wrote Mr. H. T. Parker in a “Boston Evening Transcript” article on the 1916 Festival at Lehigh. To overcome this shy¬ ness, to popularize Bach so that his work will be sung as Haydn, Handel, and Mendelssohn are THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR sung, is an avowed mission of the Bethlehem Choir. Dr. Wolle and his associates hope to do more than prove by performance how altogether lovely are the choral works of Bach; they hope that the Festivals may introduce Bach to some who will stir other choruses to sing Bach too. Far from claiming a mortgage on this master, the Bethlehem devotees want to share their great musical and spiritual possession. They rejoice that there are now co-workers in spreading Bach’s living message, as represented in American cho¬ ruses that have recently produced the ‘‘St. Mat¬ thew Passion”: the Philadelphia Orchestra Chorus under Dr. Leopold Stokowski, in 1917; a Boston choir under Mr. Eugene Schmidt, the Oratorio Society of New York under Dr. Walter Damrosch, and the Cincinnati May Festival Chorus under Mr. Eugen Ysaye, in the spring of 1918. To give complete productions of the heavier parts of the oratorios may, indeed, be beyond the capacity of small and inexperienced singing societies. It should be remembered, however, that large numbers are not essential; Bach him- 278 A MUSICAL FORCE self rarely had more than seventeen in his choirs of the St. Thomas Church at Leipsic. Cultivated voices are not a requisite; few of the Bethlehem Chorus are trained singers in the professional sense. Without attempting to devote an entire fes¬ tival to Bach, singing societies might well in¬ clude a Bach chorus as one number of a miscel¬ laneous concert just as, in organ music, it is almost jokingly proverbial that no well-regulated recital programme is complete without its Bach fugue. A broader and ideal field for Bach’s vocal composition is among church choirs. Handel and Mendelssohn and many another wrote works that are religious in character and that lend them¬ selves to singing in a church. But Bach wrote expressly yir the church. Any choir — no matter how poor or how good — might with profit to singers and their hearers present the chorales of Bach. Let them take up first a simple, appealing chorale such as ‘‘How brightly shines the morning star,” or, “ Sleepers, wake, the night is flying.” Another fine chorale, not difficult but of great possibilities, as the Bethle- 2/9 THE BETHLEHEM BACH CHOIR hem Choir’s singing of it in New York in 1917 showed, is ‘‘ World, farewell, thy ways are dreary.” For chorales to be used as anthems or to be sung by Sunday-Schools at the great church festivals, choirmasters will find a wealth of selections within the ‘‘ Christmas Oratorio,” the ‘‘St. Mat¬ thew Passion” and the “St. John Passion.” The purpose of the Bethlehem Bach Choir is, to repeat, twofold. The Choir sings the works of Bach as a musical and spiritual enterprise. It aims also to spread abroad in the land such an appreciation of Bach as will cause many others to drink deep of the waters that Beethoven de¬ clared should be called not Bach but Ocean, THE END APPENDIX APPENDIX A THE SINGERS OF THE CHOIR. The personnel of the Choir in 1923 is given, followed by an alphabetical list of all members of the Choir in past years, with voice and years of service. THE BACH CHOIR PERSONNEL 1923 FIRST SOPRANOS Barron, Mrs. Robert Bean, Ruth M. Benson, Laura Boehm, Mrs. Elizabeth O. Boyer, Ruth Brader, Helen Brickenstein, Lucy A. Buckman, Mrs. E. S. Bush, Mrs. Mae K. Butz, Mrs. Willis S. Cozzens, Grace Detterer, M. Pauline Dyer, Dorothy Eberhart, Mrs. A. C. Eckert, Mrs. A. S. Evans, Eleanor Evans, Gladys Famous, Mrs. George Fuerstenow, S. Anna Geisinger, Lilly J. Hackinson, Agnes Heckman, Aliriam Hoke, Mrs. D. Huth, Helen G. James, Bertha E. Kisthardt, Laura F. Knapp, Mary Knowles, Martha S. Kocher, Anna Kreidler, Mrs. M. S., Laudenslager, Remedia Leibert, Florence Leith, Elizabeth Lerch, Lillian Lerch, Margaret Lichtenwalner, Mrs. B. A. Marcks, Verna Milchsack, Mildred E. Miller, Mrs. Harry Mitchell, Hester V. Morgan, Geneva Peterson, Pauline Reimer, Mrs. R. Reinhard, Hanna Riegel, Esther E. Roth, Mary E. Rusling, Mrs. Robert Sawyer, Mrs. B. C. Shoemaker, Charlotte Sleath, Mildred Stauffer, Loverah Strauss, Esther Unangst, Elda Vannatta, Mona D. Wagner, Mae A. Weaver, Harriet Wunderly, Claire C. Young, Melba Ziegler, An*ia I. 283 APPENDIX SECOND SOPRANOS Anmerman, Mrs. Carl L. Barnes, Elizabeth Bascom, Mrs. H. F. Baughman, Mrs. H. C. Baughman, Jane Bieber, Beulah Brunner, Henrietta K. Bush, Elizabeth A. Carroll, Mary Clark, Ruth H. Clewell, Marian Deatrick, Anna Louise De Long, Lucy C. Desch, Lillian Dimmich, Pearl Fatzinger, Mrs. C. J. Foreman, Anna B. Faust, Elsie A. Frankenfield, Rella V. Gallagher, Mary G. Gebhard, M. Arline Giles, Lillian B. Haas, Lillian M. Heine, Mrs. L. C. Heisler, A. Rachel FIRST Ache, Mrs. Warren G. Amole, Mrs. M. Edith Boyer, Marian E. Bucher, Elizabeth Carroll, Clara Christine, Ella E. Convers, Katherine Cooley, Mrs. A. S. Crow, Emma Dietrich, Sarah P. W. Doebele, Helen B. Gocher, Mary Groman, Mrs. W. C. Heintzelman, Kathryn Hess, Clara Hess, Mary L. Hesse, Marie Hillman, Mrs. R. R. Hummel, Mrs. William Hess, Katie E. Huttel, Mary Kern, Mrs. H. E. Laros, Nellie Laub, Dorothy Leibert, Margaret N. Martenis, Anna 1. Michel, Pauline Moll, Mrs. W. J. Moyer, Miriam W. Pangrass, Mrs. A. E. Reed, Mrs. Robert F. Reichard, Daisy Ruch, Mabel Ruch, Margaretta Schmalzle, Rose Schwartz, Sara A. Schields, Mrs. T. W. Schuler, Mrs. Beulah Stettler, Mrs. Harry A. Strohl, Mrs. Adam W. Thornton, Mrs. M. E. Trumbauer, Dorothy Wehr, Mary Young, Mrs. E. W. ALTOS Judd, Mary Klotz, Edith Lerch, Anna MacNutt, Mrs. Barry Meixell, Lillian Mitchell, Mrs. E. R. Mohan, Mrs. H. L. Moyer, Azalia Person, Hattie Pfeiffer, Hattie Pflueger, Mary C. Roth, Carrie M. Scholl, Rhoda Schields, Mrs. T. Edgar Stauffer, Edna M. Stuber, Beatrice Weir, Ethel P. Young, Etta E. 284 APPENDIX SECOND ALTOS Bernd, Beulah Laub, Margery K. Bernd, Mary Meffan, Elizabeth Birk, Mrs. Frank P. Metzger, Elizabeth Boyd, Mrs. William A. Minner, Irene Boyer, Cora , Neff, Esther Collitt, Mrs. Clyde Neff, Hilda, Edwards, Mrs. Joseph Neuhart, Mrs. J. D. Felker, Mrs. A. E. Ogburn, Mrs. J. H. Fisher, Mrs. H. L. Ohl, Mrs. A. C. Gross, Mrs. Joseph Rebstock, Beatrice Guth, Mrs. Bessie Reed, Mae Haas, Mrs. N. P. Reinhard, Annie M. Halliwell, Mrs. George W. Rush, Ruth Hardenbergh, Gene Schlegel, Mrs. Jacob Harrer, Fannie Schwab, Elizabeth Hartman, Mrs. E. S. Starner, Helen Henninger, Mrs. Birdie Taylor, Bessie Hertwig, Mrs. Helen Taylor, Mrs. N. R. Horlacher, Mrs. Raymond Kunsman, Harriet Voight, Marie FIRST TENORS Beil, Clarence Michel, Charles B. Bennyhoff, Luther Ott, Charles D. Cooley, Arthur S. Pickup, Arthur ■ Grube, Warren Quier, Walter Hafleigh, Charles G. Robinson, James Hagey, Charles R. Sharer, Amno Hess, Herbert H. Smith, W. A. Kelchner, W. H. Trunbore, R. W. Lubenguth, H. F. Vannatta, H. T. Lichty, E. S. Wallace, E. E. Mellinger, A. Charles Zwoyer, H. R. SECOND TENORS Ambrose, Michael Michler, W. Henry Baker, Jos. Miller, William Balson, Gerald Mitchell, W. T. Frey, J. Mark Neuman, Ernest Grim, H. G. Rachuevich, Steven Harte, John Scholly, Royden Heilman, E. H. Smith, G. Preston Horlacher, R. E. Yeager, E. S. Lee, Harcourt Yeager, Truman S. 285 APPENDIX FIRST BASSES Bachman, Estes J. Quier, Kenneth Clark, W. C. Romig, Daniel Evans, William Sanders, Frank W. Fry, Ralph Schlegel, Jacob Heintzelman, George Schoenley, Ray C. Hottle, David Schwab, Robert N. Klein, Arthur W. Swoyer, William Laub, Allen V. Test, Louis Lerch, 0 . W. Trushel, Willard MacFate, Robert P. Wiegner, Howard J. Neff, W. F. Wittmer, Carl Pharo, Carl Zerweck, Clinton F. SECOND BASSES Benfer, Russell Kocher, J. D. Birk, Frank P. Miller, Harry Buecheler, H. P. Nicholas, R. G. Crow, H. I. Nonnemacher, C. Earl Deppen, Samuel G. Peters, Arthur Dietrich, William A. Reed, Robert F. Elya, H. D. Romig, J. F. W. Frankenfield, W. 0 . Seyfert, Stanley S. Gottschall, Edwin Shields, Theo. W. Hartman, E. S. Stocker, Claude Heckart, Robert Taylor, Norris R. Hieter, Claude White, John R. Hittinger, R. S. Yeide, Harry Abbott, C. G. (First Tenor), 1914, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’20. Ache, Mrs. Harry (First Alto), 1913. Ache, Mrs. Warren (First Alto), 1917, ’18, ’22, ’23. {See Blanche Kichline.) Acker, Isabel (First Soprano), 1912. Ackerman, Sadie (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13. Adams, Helen A. (Second Alto), 1920. Akins, Gertrude (First Alto), 1903. Albright, Mary (Second Alto), 1914, ’21. Aldrich, Harriet (First Alto), 1919, ’20. Allison, Marjorie (First Soprano), 1905a. Ambrose, Michael (Second Tenor), 1917, T8, ’22, ’23.) Ammerman, Mrs. C. S. (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Amole, Mrs. M. Edith (First Alto), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Amrhein, Irving (First Bass), 1912. Anderson, A. M. (First Bass), 1919. Andrews, Marlin O. (First Bass), 1913. Arner, Mary A. (First Soprano), 1901, ’03. 286 APPENDIX Bachman, Mrs. B. R. (First Alto), 1915. Bachman, Dagmar (Second Alto), 1916, ’17. Bachman, Estes (First Bass), 1921, ’22, ’23. Bachman, Goldie (First Alto), 1913, ’16. Bachman, Howard F. (First Bass), 1914, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18. Bade, W. F. (Second Bass), 1900, ’01. Badman, Wesley (Second Tenor), 1919. Baer, Florence (First Soprano), 1919, ’20. Eahnsen, M. L. (First Alto), 1916, ’17, T8, T9. Bailey, H. C. (First Tenor), 1901, ’03. Bailey, Isabel (First Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Bailey, Lena (First Soprano), 1900, ’01. (See Mrs. Joseph Barrell.) Baker, G. M. (First Tenor), 1904. Baker, Joseph (Second Tenor), 1923. Balson, Gerald (Second Tenor^ 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Barnes, Elida (Second Soprano), 1913. Barnes, Elizabeth (Second Soprano), 1915, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Barrell, Mrs. Joseph (First Soprano), 1903. (See Lena Bailey.) Barres, Ruth (First Soprano), 1913. Barron, Mrs. Robert (First Soprano), 1922, ’23. Barry, Margaret (Second Alto), 1917, T8. Barthold, Grace (Second Soprano), 1914, ’15, T6. Barthold, Laura (Second Soprano), 1914, ’15, ’16. Bartley, Bertha A. (First Soprano), 1915. Barton, Anabel (First Soprano), 1912. Barton, Edith M. (First Alto), 1912. Barton, Russell (First Tenor), 1912. Bascom, Mrs. H. F. (Second Soprano), 1921, *22, ’23. Baughman, Mrs. H. C. (Second Soprano), 1912, T3, T8, T9, ’20, *21, ’22, T3. Baughman, Jane C. (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Baum, P. Dorothy (First Soprano), 1912, ’13. Bean, H. D. (First Tenor), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6. Bean, Ruth M. (First Soprano), 1923. Bechtel, Mrs. Joseph (Second Soprano), 1917, T8, ’19. Beckel, Clarence E. (Second Tenor), 1903. Becker, Harry (First Bass), 1903. Becker, Ruth (Second Soprano), 1918. Beckhoefer, F. S. (First Tenor), 1912. Beckhoefer, Frank (Second Bass), 1913. ^ Beener, Mrs. Frank (First Alto), 1912. Behringer, William H. (First Tenor), 1917, T8, T9, To, ’21, ’22, ’23, Beidler, William H. (Second Tenor), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, T9. Beil, Clarence (First Tenor), 1923. Beitel, Anna (First Soprano), 1916, ’17, T8. Bell, Samuel (First Bass), 1917. Belling, Caroline (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, T3, ’14, Ts, T6, ’17. Bender, Elmer J. (Second Tenor), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. 287 APPENDIX Bender, Mrs. H. F. (First Alto), 1912, ^13, ^14, ’15. Benfer, Russell (Second Bass), 1923. Bennyhoff, Luther (First Tenor), 1923. ' Benson, Laura (First Soprano), 1923 Berger, William (Second Bass), 1923. Bergstresser, Clemmie (Second Soprano), 1917, ’18. Bernd, Beulah (Second Alto), 1923. Bernd, Mary (Second Alto), 1923. Bidwell, C. E. (Second Bass), 1919. Bieber, Beulah (Second Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, *23. Biehn, Edna (First Soprano), 1915. Bird, Robert M. (First Bass), 1901, ’03, ’05b. Birk, Franklin P. (Second Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, T5, *16, ’17, ’23, Birk, Mrs. Franklin P. (Second Alto), 1923. Bitting, G. F. (First Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21. Bleyler, Carrie (Second Soprano), 1913, ’14, ’15. Blum, Edith J. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20. (See Mrs. G. A. Petrulias.) Bobst, Mrs. W. J. (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, ’17. Bodder, Wilford (Second Bass), 1905a, ’05b. Bodine, Alfred V. (First Bass), 1912, ’13, ’15. Boehm, Mrs. Elizabeth (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Bookhultz, J. H. (First Bass), 1919, ’20. Boone, Florence E. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13. (See Mrs. W. J. Woodring.) Booth, George R. (First Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Booth, Mrs. George R. (First Alto), 1916, T7, T8, T9, To, ’21, ’22. Bower, Frank (First Tenor), 1903, ’04, ’osa, ’05b. Bowker, Mrs. Alice (First Soprano), 1913, ’17. Bowler, William (Second Bass), 1919. Boyd, Mrs. William A. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, T2, ’23. Boyer, Cora (First Alto), 1912, T8, ’21, ’22, ’23. Boyer, Culah (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, T6. Boyer, Elsie (First Soprano), 1917, T8, ’19. Boyer, Katharine (First Soprano), 1917. Boyer, Marion E. (First Alto), 1915, T6, ’17, T8, T9, Tl, ’22, ’23. Boyer, Ruth (First Soprano), 1920, ’22, ’23. Brader, Helen (First Soprano), 1922, ’23. Braucher, W. E. (Second Bass), 1914. Brendle, Herman (Second Bass), 1917. Brickenstein, Lucy (First Soprano), 1900, ’oi, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, *12, *13, ’14, ’15, T6, T7, T8, T9, To, Ti, T2, ’23. Brierly, Marian (Second Soprano), 1919, To. Briggs, William (Second Bass), 1919. Brobst, Beulah (First Alto), 1920. Brobst, Harold (Second Bass), 1919, To. Brockman, C. Joseph (Second Tenor), 1915, *16, *17, *18. Brodhead, Leonie (First Soprano), 1913. Brown, A. N. (First Tenor), 1903. 288 APPENDIX Brown, Blanche (Second Soprano), 1913. Brown, Charles W. (Second Bass), 1905a, ’05b. Brown, Grace H. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13. Brown, Irvin A. (Second Bass), 1913. Brugler, Mrs. F. R. (Second Soprano), 1919. Brunner, Eugenia (First Alto), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15. Brunner, Gertrude (Second Alto), 1901. Brunner, Henrietta (Second Soprano), 1913, ’15, ’16, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Bucher, Elizabeth (First Alto), 1923. Buckman, Mrs. Edw. S. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Buecheler, H. P. (Second Bass), 1923. Burdick, William F. (Second Bass), 1921, ’22. Bush, Elizabeth A. (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Bush, Mrs. MaeK. (First Soprano), 1915, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Buss, Albert C. (First Tenor), 1912, ’13, ’14, T5, ’16, ’17, ’23. Buss, Florence V. (First Alto), 1921. Butler, William R. (Second Bass), 1921, ’22, ’23. Butz, Mrs. C. A. (Second Soprano), 1915. Butz, Mrs. Willis (First Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Caffrey, E. J. (First Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04. Canam, Florence (First Soprano^ 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8. Canam, Helen (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, ’16. Canam, Isabel H. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17. Carroll, Clara (First Alto), 1918, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Carroll, Mary (Second Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Cassell, Martha (First Soprano), 1912, ’13. Catanach, Royden (First Tenor), 1912. Cawley, Leola (First Soprano), 1914, ’iS> ’16, ’17. Chandler, Evelyn (First Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03. {See Mrs. R. R. Hillman.) Chaplin, Francis E. (Second Soprano), 1919. Chaplin, Helen (First Soprano), 1912. Chaplin, Lucy (First Alto), 1919. Christian, T. W. (First Bass), 1916, ’17. Christine, Ella E. (First Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21,’22, ’23- Chubb, Mrs. Ralph (Second Alto), 1917. Clark, F. Earl (First Tenor), 1914, ’15. (Boy Choir, 1903.) Clark, Ida Marie (First Soprano), 1920, ’21. Clark, Philip (First Bass), 1922, ’23. Clark, Ruth M. (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Clark, S. Naomi (First Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22. Cleaver, Mrs. A. N. (First Alto^ 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, TS, T6, ’17. Cleaver, W. G. (Second Bass), 1915, ’16. Clemens, A. W. (Second Bass), 1905a, ’05b. Clewell, Addie (First Alto), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Clewell, Clarence (First Bass), 1900. 289 APPENDIX Clewell, Marion (Second Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Clewell, Ray (Second Tenor), 1905a, ’05b. Clift, Mrs. Carrie (First Alto), 1914, ’17, ’18. Clymer, Wayne (Second Bass), 1919. Colby, Mary Lee (First Alto), 1920, ’21. Coleman, Gilbert P. (Second Bass), 1903. Collins, H. R. (First Tenor), 1905a. Collins, Laurence E. (Second Tenor), 1915. Collitt, Mrs. Clyde (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Conlin, F. W. (First Bass), 1904. Conover, Garrett B. (First Bass), 1922. Conrad, Herbert (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Convers, Katherine (Second Alto), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Cooley, Arthur S. (First Tenor), 1915, T6, ’17, ’i8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Cooley, Mrs. A. S. (First Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Cope, Mrs. A. L. (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’12. Cope, Charles (Second Bass), 1919. Cope, Charles H. (First Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, T5, T6, ’17. Cope, Dorothy M. (Second Alto), 1920, ’21. Cope, Mabel (First Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Cope, Robert (Second Bass), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20. Corcoran, Marion (Second Alto), 1917. Correll, John O. (First Tenor), 1903. Cox, Edith (Second Soprano), 1905a, ’05b. Cozzens, Grace (First Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Cranmer, Mrs. R. S. (Second Alto), 1917, T8. Crist, George J. (First Bass), 1900. Cristol, Gertrude (First Soprano), 1919. Crow, Emma (First Alto), 1921, ’22, ’23. Crow, H. 1 . (Second Bass), 1918, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Daily, Edward (First Tenor), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Daily, Helen (First Alto), 1919. Danner, Muriel (First Alto), 1922. Deatrick, Anna L. (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Dech, Emily (First Alto), 1904. Dech, Lotta E. (First Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04. Deiber, Hazel (Second Alto), 1919. Deibert, Helen A. (First Soprano), 1917, T8, ’19. DeLong, Anna (First Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21. DeLong, Lucy (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, 21, ’22, 23.^ DeMichelis, Spartaco (First Tenor), 1919. Deppen, Samuel G. (Socond Bass), 1921, ’22, ’23. Desch, Lillian (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Desh, Katherine (Second Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, T5, ’16, ’17, T8, T9, ’20. Deshler, Mrs. Martin (First Soprano), 1921. Detterer, Mrs. Caroline (First Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. 290 APPENDIX Detterer, M. Pauline (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Diefenderfer, Addie (First Alto), 1901, ’03. Diefenderfer, Alfred J. (First Tenor), 1901, ’03. Diefenderfer, Eva (Second Soprano), 1920, ’21. Diefenderfer, John M. (Second Tenor), 1901, ’03. Diehm, Harry (First Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21. Dietrich, Naomi E. (Second Soprano), 1920. Dietrich, Sarah (First Alto), 1921, ’22, ’23. Dietrich, S. W. (First Soprano), 1916, ’17. Dietrich, William A. (Second Bass), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Dimmich, Pearl (Second Soprano), 1922, ’23. Dippery, J. V. (First Tenor), 1915, ’17, T8. Dise, Eva (Second Alto), 1919. Doak, Flora (Second Soprano), 1903. Doebele, Helen B. (Second Alto), 1917, T8, T9, ’21, ’22, ’23. Doster, Mrs. W. E. (Second Alto), 1900, ’01, ’05b. Doubs, R. M. (Second Tenor), 1914, ’15. Dow, Edna E. (First Soprano), 1912. Dowson, Herbert (First Bass), 1921. Drinker, Ernesta (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14. Drumbore, G. (First Soprano), 1912. Dyer, Dorothy (First Soprano), 1923. Eberhard, Mrs. Arthur (First Soprano), 1922, ’23. Eberman, R. V. K. (First Tenor), 1912, ’13, ’14. Eckensberger, M. R. (First Tenor), 1912, T3. Eckert, Mrs. Albert S. (First Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Eden, Sylvia A. (Second Alto), 1915, T6. Edmondson, Mrs. W. G. (Second Soprano), 1921. Edwards, Rhoda (Second Soprano), 1915. Edwards, Mrs. Thomas J. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Egge, Estelle (Second Alto), 1919. Egge, Jeanne (First Alto), 1919, ’20. Eggert, Louise (First Alto), 1912. Elya, H. Donald (Second Bass), 1922, ’23. Erb, Russel (Second Bass), 1917, T8. Erdle, Louis J. (First Tenor), 1919, ’21, ’22. Erdman, M. K. (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Eros, Elizabeth (First Alto), 1917, T8. Erwin, Ethel (First Alto), 1912, ’17. Erwin, F. H. (First Tenor), 1900, ’13, ’15, T6, ’17, T8. Erwin, Lydia (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Erwin, Margaret (First Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Erwin, Minnie (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01. Estes, Anna (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, T8. Estes, Marcia (Second Soprano), 1912, T3, ’14, ’15, T6. Estes, William L. (First Bass), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, T2, ’13, ’14, T5, T6, ’17. 291 APPENDIX Estes, Mrs. William L. (Second Alto), 1903. Evans, Eleanor (First Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Evans, Gladys (First Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Evans, Katharine (First Soprano), 1912, ’14, ’15, ’17, ’18, ’19. Evans, Sarah (First Alto), 1903. Evans, William (First Bass), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Everhart, W. A. (Second Bass), 1919, ’20. Eversole, Mrs. Olive (First Alto), 1920. Fahl, Miss S. R. (Second Soprano), 1917. Famous, Mrs. Geo. (First Soprano), 1923. Farabaugh, C. L. (First Bass), 1914. Farquhar, J. Fred (Second Bass), 1901, ’03. Farquhar, Miriam (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Farquhar, Sara (Second Alto), 1900, ’15, ’16. Fatzinger, Mrs. C. J. (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. {See Helen T. Stuber.) Felker, Mrs. A. E. (Second Alto), 1922, ’23. Fenstermacher, Adele (First Alto), 1920, ’21. Finnic, Mrs. N. H. (First Soprano), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Fisher, Mrs. H. L. (Second Alto), 1923. Fisher, L. (First Tenor), 1904. Flemming, F. (Second Soprano), 1916. Fluck, Ruth (First Alto), 1912, ’13, ’14. Foltz, Mrs. Arthur (First Soprano), 1917. (See Alice Groman.) Foreman, Anna B. (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23.. Forker, Mrs. Walter (First Alto), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Foust, Mrs. Ellwood G. (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Fowle, C. W. (Second Bass), 1915, T6, T7, T8. Fowle, Mrs. Claire J. (First Soprano), 1915, ’16, ’17, ’18. Frampton, J. A. (First Bass), 1917. Francke, Arthur E. (Second Bass), 1905a, ’05b. Frankenfield, Rella (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Frankenfield, William O. (Second Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Frankland, Mary (First Soprano), 1903. Franklin, W. S. (Second Tenor), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, TS, ’16. Frey, J. Mark (Second Tenor), 1917, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Frey, Margaret (Second Alto), 1916. Fritchman, Miss C. (First Soprano), 1912. Fry, Frank M. (Second Bass), 1901. Fry, Ralph W. (First Bass), 1922, ’23. Fuenfstueck, John H. (First Bass), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Fuenfstueck, Mary (First Alto), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Fuerstenow, Matilda (First Soprano), 1904, ’05a, ’13. Fuerstenow, S. Anna (First Soprano), 1914, ’15, ’16, T7, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Fulmer, Elizabeth M. (First Alto), 1917, ’19, ’20, ’21. Fulmer, Mrs. Joseph (Second Alto), 1904. 292 APPENDIX Gallagher, Mary G. (Second Soprano), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Gangaware, I. W. (Second Tenor), 1921. Garvin, Harry (Second Bass), 1917. Gebhard, M. Arline (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Geisenderfer, Minnie (First Soprano), 1900. Geissinger, Allah (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6. Geissinger, Lilly J. (First Soprano), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’osb, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, T7, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Giles, Lillian (Second Soprano), 1922, ’23. Glunt, Mrs. William (First Soprano), 1912. Gocher, Mary (First Alto), 1923. Gozzard, Anna (First Soprano), 1917, ’18. Graham, Mrs. A. C. (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, ’16. Graham, Katharine (Second Soprano), 1913. Gray, Mrs. Edward F. (Second Alto), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, *15, T6, ’17. Gray, Helen (Second Alto), 1912, T3, ’14, ’15. Green, E. Jessie (Second Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Gregory, H. Loften (Second Tenor), 1920. Grieves, Mrs. H. M. (First Soprano), 1922. Grim, Florence (Second Alto), 1900. Grim, Herbert G. (Second Tenor), 192-1, ’22, ’23. Groman, Alice (First Soprano), 1915. (See Mrs. Arthur Foltz.) Groman, Harold E. (First Bass), 1912, ’13. (Boy Choir 1903.) Groman, Mrs. William C. (First Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Gronberg, Clarence (First Bass), 1919. Grosh, A. S. (Second Tenor), 1900, ’03. Grosh, E. Samuel (Second Tenor), 1903. Gross, Mrs. Joseph (Second Alto), 1919, ’21, ’22, ’23. Gross, W. H. (First Bass), 1919. Grube, Amy (First Alto), 1917. Grube, Pearl (Second Soprano), 1917. Grube, Warren (First Tenor), 1923. Grunert, Gertrude (First Soprano), 1916. Gruver, Laura (First Soprano), 1917. Guth, Mrs. Bessie W. (Second Alto), 1922, ’23. Gwyn, Mrs. L. (First Alto), 1922- Gwyn, L. (Second Tenor), 1922.. Haas, Beatrice A. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21.. Haas, Lillian M. (Second Soprano), 1922, ’23. Haas, Mrs. N. P. (Second Alto), 1921, ’22, ’23. Hackinson, Agnes (First Soprano), 1923. Hafleigh, Charles G. (First Tenor), 1915, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Hafner, Gertrude (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01. Hagey, Charles R. (First Tenor), 1915, T6, T7, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Hales, Mrs. C. A. (Second Soprano), 1921. Hales, C. A. (First Bass), 1921. Hall, Robert W. (First Tenor), 1905a, ’05b. 293 APPENDIX Halliwell, George W. (First Bass), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’osb. Halliwell, Mrs. George W. (Second Alto), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. (See Elizabeth Taylor.) Halliwell, R. Davis (Second Bass), 1917, ’19. Hamilton, Constance (First Alto), 1917, ’18. Hamilton, Mrs. J. T. (First Alto), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20. Hamm, Frank G. (Second Bass), 1917. Hammer, S. A. Sten (First Bass), 1900, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Hammes, Anna (First Soprano), 1917. Hann, Edna S. (Second Alto), 1920, ’21, ’22. Hann, Mrs. H. P. (First Alto), 1920, ’21, ’22. Hann, H. P. (Second Tenor), 1920. Hardenbergh, Eugenia (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ^22, ’23. Harrar, Fanny M. (Second Alto), 1921, ’22, ’23. Harris, Frank B. (First Alto), 1915, T6. Hart, Lucy (Second Soprano), 1914. Harte, John (Second Tenor), 1923. Hartman, Edwin S. (Second Bass), 1913, ’14, ’22, ’23. Hartman, Mrs. Edwin S. (Second Alto), 1913, T4, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Hartz, Mrs. Emma Y. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21. Hartzell, P. J. (First Bass), 1912, ’13. Harwi, Estelle E. (First Alto), 1913, ’15, T6, T7, T8, ’19, ’20. (See Mrs. Robert Richards.) Haytock, Elizabeth (Second Soprano), 1921. Heath, Edwin J. (Second Tenor), 1903. Heckert, R. A. (Second Bass), 1922, ’23. Heckman, Miriam (First Soprano), 1916, ’17, *21, ’22, *23. Heilman, Edward (Second Tenor), 1921, ’22, ’23. Heine, Mrs. Laurence (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, *15, ’16, ’17, T8. Heine, Mrs. Lawrence C. (Second Soprano), 1919, ’22, ’23. Heine, Robert (Second Bass), 1905a. Heintzelman, Kathryne (First Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Heintzelman, George (First Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Heisler, J. R. (Second Tenor), 1916, ’17, T8. Heisler, Rachel (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Heitshu, S. P. (Second Bass), 1901, ’17, T8. Heller, Annie L. (Second Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a. Heller, Elizabeth (Second Soprano), 1901. Helmecke, M. Gertrud (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20. Hemmerly, L. H. (First Bass), 1912. Hemsath, Fred (First Bass), 1917. Hemsath, Ruth (Second Soprano), 1917. Henninger, Mrs. Birdie (Second Alto), 1919, *20, ’21, ’22, *23. Henry, Harriet (First Soprano), 1915, T8, T9, ’21. Henry, Helen (First Soprano), 1915, T6, ’17, T8, T9, ’21. Henry, Lilly (Second Alto), I90sb. Herbst, Estella (Second Soprano), 1912. Hertwig, Mrs. Harry (First Alto), 1917, T8, ’21, ’22, ’23. Hess, Clara (First Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23 ' 294 APPENDIX Hess, Herbert H. (First Tenor), 1915, T6, ’17, T8, T9, To, ’21, ’22, ’23. Hess, Mrs. Herbert H. (Second Soprano), 1916, ’17, T8. Hess, Katie E. (Second Soprano), 1913, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’ 23 - Hess, Mrs. Laura L. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6. Hess, Mrs. Lillian B. (First Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15. Hess, Mary L. (First Alto), 1917, T8, ’19, ’23. Hesse, Marie H. (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, T4, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, T9, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Hieter, Claude (Second Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Hillman, R. R. (Second Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’12, T3, ’14, T5, T6, ’17, T8, To, Ti. Hillman, Mrs. R. R. (First Alto), 1904, T5a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, To, Ti, ’22, ’23. {See Evelyn Chandler.) Hittinger, R. S. (Second Bass), 1923. Hoch, Clara E. (First Soprano^ 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15. Hoch, Frank G. (Second Bass), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13. Hoch, Helena M. (First Alto), 1900, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12. Hoke, Mrs. D. (First Soprano), 1923. Holton, Charles R. (First Bass^ 1917, T8, ’19, To. Hooper, Ernest E. (First Tenor), 1912, ’13. Horlacher, Mrs. R. E. (Second Alto), 1922, ’23. Horlacher, R. E. (Second Tenor), 1922, ’23. Horne, Frances (Second Soprano), 1917. Horne, Viola (Second Soprano), 1915, T6, ’17. Host, Harry (Second Bass), 1920. Hottle, David (First Bass), 1923. Huber, Marion C. (Second Alto), 1921, ’22. Huebner, Robert (First Bass), 1901. Huessy, Anna (First Soprano), 1914, ’15, T8, ’19. Huessy, Henrietta (First Soprano), 1914, ’15, T8. Huff, Mrs. A. C. (Second Alto), 1913. Hughes, Mrs. Percy (First Alto), 1915, ’17. Hummel, Ernestine (First Alto), 1921, ’22. Hummel, Iva (Second Alto), 1917, T8, ’19, To, Ti. Hummel, Mrs. William (First Alto), 1919, ’20, Ti, ’22, ’23. Hunt, George A. (Second Tenor), 1916. Hutchins, Mrs. H. W. 1921. Huth, Helen G. (First Soprano), 1912, ’17, T8, ’19, To, Ti, ’22, ’23. Huttel, Mary E. (Second Soprano), 1917, T8, ’19, To, Ti, ’22, ’23. Jacobs, Nellie M. (Second Alto), 1912, ’13, ’14, To, Ti, T2. Jacobson, Susie (First Soprano), 1912. Jacoby, Lloyd (First Bass), 1915, T6. Jacoby, Mabel M. (First Alto), 1912, ’13. Jacoby, Marion (Second Soprano), 1904. Jacoby, Russel H. (Second Bass), 1913. Jacoby, Ruth (First Soprano), 1912. Jacoby, T. L. (Second Tenor), 1916, ’17. 29s APPENDIX James, Bertha E. (First Soprano), 1920, *21, *22, *23. James, Howard (First Bass), 1913. James, W. T. (First Bass), 1917. Jarman, Helen P. (Second Alto), 1917, ’18, ’19, *20, ’21. Jaxheimer, C. E. (First Soprano), 1912, ’16. Jayne, Eda A. (Second Soprano), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, *22. Jenkins, W. A. (First Bass), 1920, ’21. Jeter, E. V. (Second Tenor), 1917. Johns, Nettie (Second Soprano), 1903. Johnson, Ruth (First Alto), 1921. Johnston, Helen (Second Alto), 1904, ’05a. Johnston, Jean (First Alto), 1912. Johnston, Joseph (First Bass), 1913, T4, ’15, ’16, ’17, *18, ’19, ’20, ’21. Johnston, Martie (Second Alto), 1904, ’05a. Johnstone, M. C. (Second Alto), 1916. Jones, Annie (First Alto), 1901. Jones, Mrs. E. C. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21. Jones, E. E. (First Tenor), 1922. Jones, Grace (First Alto), 1912. Jones, Mrs. H. R. (First Alto), 1920. Jones, H. R. (First Bass), 1920. Jones, Lavinia (Second Alto), 1916. Jones, Lloyd B. (First Bass), 1920. Jones, William D. (Second Bass), 1900, ’01, *03. Judd, Mary (First Alto), 1922, ’23. Keenly, LeRoy E. (Second Tenor), 1916, ’17, T8, ’21, *22. Keenly, Marcus J. (First Tenor), 1921, ’22. Keinard, Elizabeth (Second Alto), 1913. Kelchner, William (First Tenor), 1914, ’15, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Kelly, Harry J. (First Tenor), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23 Kelly, Paul F. (Second Bass), 1919. Kelso, Marguerite (Second Soprano), 1913. Kemmerer, Mildred (First Alto), 1914, ’17, ’18, *20, ’21. Kemper, H. E. (First Bass), 1914, ’15. Kemper, Laura N. (First Soprano), 1914. Kepner, Elsie (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Kern, Anna M. (First Alto), 1920. Kern, Edgar A. (First Tenor), 1915. Kern, Mrs. H. E. (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Kern, H. E. (First Bass), 1920. Kichline, Asher (Second Bass), 1914. Kichline, Blanche (First Alto), 1913, ’14. {See Mrs. Warren Ache.) Kichline, Grace (First Soprano), 1913, T6. Kichline, John E. (First Tenor), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, ’18, T9, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Kilpatrick, F. H. (First Tenor), 1912, ’13, ’14. Kilpatrick, Mrs. F. H. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14. Kilpatrick, R. A. (First Bass), 1912. 296 APPENDIX Kingsley, Mrs. Rose (Second Alto), 1915, ’16. Kisthardt, Laura F. (First Soprano), 1919, ’20^ '21, ’22, ’23. Kistler, Helen M. (Second Alto), 1916, ’17, ’18. Kitchel, Harriet T. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ^17. Kitchel, Margaret S. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17. Kleckner, F. V. (First Tenor), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’05b. Kleckner, Robert G. (First Bass), 1920. Kleckner, Paul L. (Second Bass), 1913. Klein, Arthur W. (First Bass), 1914, ’15, ’16, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Klein, Mrs. Arthur W. (First Soprano), 1914. Kline, Arlan (First Tenor), 1919. Kline, Charlotte (Second Soprano), 1912. Kline, H. C. (Second Tenor), 1917, T8, T9. Kline, John (First Bass), 1923. Klotz, Edith (First Alto), 1923. Knapp, Mrs. Clara A. (First Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, Ts, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20. Knapp, Mary D. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Knappenberger, Florence (First Soprano), 1915. Knappenberger, M. (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15. Knauss, Charles C. (First Tenor), 1900, ’05b. Kneisler, Martha (Second Alto), 1915, T6, ’17. Knight, Albert (Second Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03. Knowles, Martha (First Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Knox, John F. (First Bass), 1920, ’21. Koch, A. J. (First Soprano), 1912. Koch, Roland (First Tenor), 1917. Kocher, Anna (First Soprano), 1923. Kocher, J. Dan (Second Bass), 1921, ’22, ’23. Kocher, E. (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20. Koehler, Albert (First Bass), 1919. Koehler, Anna (Second Alto), 1921. Koehler, E. L. (First Bass), 1919, ’20. Koehler, Eltreda (First Soprano), 1919. Koehler, Fred A. (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20. Kramlich, Florence M. (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20. Krause, Elsie (Second Soprano), 1919. Krause, Laura (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Kreidler, Harold W. (Second Bass), 1912. Kreidler, Mrs. M. S. (First Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23 {See Mary K. Landis.) Kreidler, M. S. (Second Bass), 1920, ’21, ’22. Kreisler, Emma (Second Soprano), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Kresge, Ellen P. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17. Kresge, Marion (First Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22. Kresge, W. H. (Second Bass), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Kriebel, Mary M. (Second Alto), 1921, ’22. Kuder, Mary J. (Second Soprano), 1917, T9. 297 APPENDIX Kummery, Helen (Second Alto), 1920. Kunkle, J. B. (First Bass), 1919, ’20. Kunsman, Harriet (Second Alto), 1923. Kurtz, J. W. (Second Tenor), 1914, T5. Kurtz, Maude E. (First Soprano), 1921. LaBarre, L. E. (First Bass), 1919. Laciar, B, E. (Second Bass), 1901. Laciar, Mrs. H. J, (First Soprano), 1901. Landis, Ada Mae (Second Soprano), 1913. Landis, Mary K. (First Soprano), 1914, ’15, T6, T7, T8, ’19. {See Mrs. M. S. Kreidler.) Langan, Eugene (First Bass), 1921. Lanshe, Betty (First Alto), 1920. Lantz, Edward (Second Bass), 1919. Lapsley, Catharine (First Alto), 1913, ’15. Laros, Nellie (Second Soprano), 1917, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, *23. La Ross, Hilda (Second Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Latta, Lucille (First Soprano), 1912. Laub, Allen V. (First Bass), 1915, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’22, ’23, Laub, Mrs. Allen V. (First Soprano), 1916. {See Grace Reiter.) Laub, Dorothy (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Laub, Margery K. (Second Alto), 1921, ’22, ’23. Laubach, E. L. (First Tenor), 1912, ’13. Laubach, E. P. (First Tenor), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, T2, ’13, T4, ’15, T6. Laudenberger, Evelyn (First Soprano), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Laudenslager, Remedia (First Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Laury, W. Harold (First Tenor), 1912, T3, ’14, ’17. Lawall, Helen (Second Soprano), 1901, ’03. Lawrence, Marie (First Soprano), 1921. Lee, Harcourt (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Lees, Joseph (Second Bass), 1914, ’15. LeFevre, Chas. E. (First Tenor), 1920. Lehman, J. George (Second Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04. Lehr, Lola B. (Second Soprano), 1916. Leibenguth, Harry (First Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Leibert, Florence A. (First Soprano), 1914, ’15, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Leibert, Mrs. John (First Soprano), 1900. Leibert, Mrs. Joseph, Jr. (Second Alto), 1901. Leibert, Margaret N. (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Leidich, A. LeRoy (Second Bass), 1913. Leidich, Daisy (First Alto), 1915, T6. Leith, Elizabeth (First Soprano), 1923. Lennox, Gertrude (First Soprano), 1912, ’14, ’15. Lennox, Grace (First Soprano), 1915. Lennox, Helen (First Alto), 1912. Lerch, Anna (First Alto), 1917, T8, ’19, ’20, ’23. Lerch, Bertha M. (Second Soprano), 1912. Lerch, Florence (Second Alto), 1919. 298 APPENDIX Lerch, Lillian (First Alto), 1916, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’23. Lerch, Louise (First Soprano), 1919. Lerch, Louise I. (First Alto), 1915, ’16, ’17, ’18. Lerch, Margaret L. (First Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Lerch, O. W. (First Bass), 1922, ’23. Lerch, R. W. (Second Tenor), 1922. Levering, Gertrude (First Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, *12, *13, ’14 (Mrs. R. J. Spencer), 1917. Levering, Marion (First Alto), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Levine, S. J. (First Tenor), 1919, ’20. Lewis, J. Sidney (Second Tenor), 1915, ’16, ’17. Lichtenwalner, Mrs. B, A. (First Soprano), 1923. Lichty, Earl (First Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Lilly, Adele (Second Alto^ 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Lilly, Florence (First Soprano), 1914, Ts, ’16, (Mrs. W. J. Lynn), 1917. Lilly, Katharine (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Linderman, Evelyn (Second Soprano), 1914, ’15. Linderman, Lucy (Second Soprano), 1912, ’14, ’15. Linderman, Robert P. (Second Tenor), 1921. Litch, Sara (First Soprano), 1900. Litsinger, Mrs. Walter (Second Soprano), 1922. Little, R. A. (Second Tenor), 1920, ’21. Lobach, Olive (First Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03. Lochman, Mrs. C. N. (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’14. Lochman, Lucie (First Alto), 1912. Long, A. H. (First Bass), 1920. Loux, Harrison V. (First Tenor), 1900, ’01, ’03. Luch, Myron J. (Second Tenor), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’17, ’19, ’20. Luch, Mrs. M. J. (First Soprano), 1913. Luckenbach, A. (First Alto), 1912. Luckenbach, Elizabeth (Second Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Luckenbach, Jane (Second Alto), 1901. Luckenbach, L. J. (First Bass), 1912, ’13. Luckhart, I. D. (First Soprano), 1917. Ludwig, Forrest (Second Bass), 1917, ’18. Lynn, Eva (Second Soprano), 1904. Lynn, Helen (First Alto), 1917. Lynn, Mrs. William (First Soprano), 1921. Lynn, William H. (First Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17. MacFate, Robert (First Bass), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Mack, Clarence C. (Second Bass), 1919. Mack, Elmer (First Bass), 1904, ’osa, ’05b. Mack, Josephine (Second Soprano), 1919. MacNutt, Barry (First Bass), 1912, ’15. MacNutt, Mrs. Barry (First Alto), 1912, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, *20, ’21, *22, ’23. Madsen, Albert A. (Second Bass), 1901. MaGuire, Charles H. (First Tenor), 1912. 299 APPENDIX Marcks, Majorie M. (First Alto), 1916, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ^21. Marcks, Verna (First Soprano), 1923. Marshall, A. P. (First Tenor), 1903, ’04, ’osa, ’osb. Marstellar, Edith E. (Second Alto), 1912, T3, ’14, ’17, ’18, ’19. Marstellar, Estella B. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, T4, ’17, T8. Marstellar, Estelle B. (Second Soprano), 1919. Martenis, Anna (First Soprano), 1912, ’17, ’18. Martenis, Anna 1 . (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Martin, C. E. (First Bass), 1904, ’05a, ’osb. Martin, Wallace (First Bass), 1903, ’04, ’osa, ’osb. Mauser, Elsie (First Soprano), 1914, ’iS, ’16, ’17. Maynes, Katharine D. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’i’8, ’19’20. McCall, Donald G. (First Bass), 1913. McCance, Edward G. (First Bass), 1921. McClellan, B. J. (First Tenor), 1903. McCloskey, Margaret M. (Second Soprano), 1919. McDaniel, Madeline P. (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20. McFate, J. Earle (Second Bass), 1917, ’18, ’19. McIntyre, Rose (Second Soprano), 1917. McKallip, Marrie (First Soprano), 1903. McRae, Mrs. W. D. (Second Alto), 1903. Mease, Fred (Second Bass), 1905a. Meffan, Elizabeth A. (Second Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’21, ’22, ’23. Meglathery, E. H. (First Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’12. Meinecke, A. L. (First Bass), 1912. Meinert, Herbert S. (Second Bass), 1921. Meinert, Richard (Second Tenor), 1901, ’03. Meixsell, Lillian (First Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Mellinger, A. Chas. (First Tenor), 1922. Mentzell, Mrs. John (Second Alto), 1923. Mentzell, George A. (Second Tenor), 1901. Metzgar, C. H. (First Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17. Metzgar, Edgar (First Tenor), 1903, ’04. Metzgar, Mrs. George F. (First Soprano), 1900. Metzgar, Mrs. Malcolm (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Metzger, A. N. (Second Bass), 1920. Metzger, Elizabeth (Second Alto), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Meyers, Faye (First Soprano), 1912. Meyers, William (Second Bass), 1912, ’13. Michael, Chas. B. (First Tenor), 1923. Michel, Pauline (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Michler, W. Henry (Second Tenor), 1921, ’22, ’23. Miksch, Harriet G. (Second Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’IS, ’16, ’17. Milchsack, Mildred E. (First Soprano), 1912, ’17, ’18, ’21, ’22, ’23. Milchsack, Pauline A. (First Alto), 1912, ’17. Miller, Clara (First Soprano), 1914. Miller, E. Williamson (Second Tenor), 1900, ’01. Miller, H. B. (Second Bass), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. 300 APPENDIX Miller, H. P. (Second Bass), 1915. Miller, Mrs. Harry (First Soprano), 1923. Miller, Helen (Second Soprano), 1920, ’21. Miller, Leola C, (First Alto), 1920, ’21. Miller, Mrs. N. Lloyd (First Soprano), 1917, ’18, ’21. Miller, N. Lloyd (First Tenor), 1915, ’16, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21. Miller, P. T. (Second Tenor), 1916. Miller, Winifred M. (First Soprano), 1919. Mills, O. E. (First Tenor), 1916, ’17. Minner, Irene (Second Alto), 1922, ’23. Mitchell, Mrs. E. R. (First Alto), 1922, ’23. Mitchell, Hester V. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, T7, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, *23. Mitchell, Mildred (Second Soprano), 1916, ’17, T8, ’19. Mitchell, Thomas (Second Tenor), 1900. Mitchell, Walter T. (Second Tenor), 1921, ’22, ’23. Mitman, Alice (First Soprano), 1912. Mitman, Grace Elizabeth (Second Soprano), 1917. Mitman, Grace Esther (Second Soprano), 1917, T8. Mitman, Helen (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8. Mitman, S. U. (First Tenor), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6. Mohan, Mrs. H. L. (First Alto), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Moll, Mrs. W. J. (First Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Moore, L. D. (Second Tenor), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Morgan, Charlotte (First Soprano), 1900, ’01. Morgan, Earl L. (Second Bass), 1905a. Morgan, Geneva (First Soprano), 1922, ’23. Morgan, Geneva (Second Soprano), 1913, ’14. Morris, John T. (Second Bass), 1913, ’15. Mosebach, F. A. (First Tenor^ 1912, ’13. Moser, Maude, (First Alto), 1914. Moyer, Azalia A. (First Alto), 1921, ’22, ’23. Moyer, Miriam W. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Moyer, R. S. (First Bass), 1917, T8, ’19, ’20. Mueller, Sigmund (First Bass), 1912. Murphy, Mrs. C. L. (First Soprano), 1912. {See Florence Shields.) Musselman, Alvin, Jr. (Second Tenor), 1919. Musselman, Edna 1 . (Second Alto), 1919, ’20. Myers, Emily (First Alto), 1900. Myers, Helen (Second Alto), 1901. Naef, Dorothy (First Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21. Naef, Millie (Second Alto), 1921. Nagle, Edna (Second Soprano), 1915. Nagle, Geo. E. (First Bass), 1919. Neff, Emily M. (Second Soprano), 1922, ’23. Neff, Esther (Second Alto), 1922, ’23. Neff, Hilda E. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. 301 APPENDIX Neff,'W. F. (First Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Neisser, Mary L. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17. Neuman, Lillie (First Soprano), 1901. Neuschaefer, Edith (Second Alto), 1915. Newhard, Mabel (First Soprano), 1904. Newhard, Nelson J. (Second Tenor), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13. Newhart, Mrs. J. D. (Second Alto), 1922, ’23. Newlin, J. M. (First Bass), 1920. Newman, Ernest (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’23. Nicholas, Agnes (Second Alto), 1900, ’01. Nicholas, R. G. (Second Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Nolan, Anna E. (First Alto), 1917, ’18, ’19. Nolf, Nellie A. (First Alto), 1912. Noll, Frances (First Alto), 1913. Nonamaker, H. (First Soprano), 1912. Nonnemacher, C, Earl (First Bass), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Norton, Mrs. D. J. (First Soprano), 1912, T3, ’14. Nowell, W. G. (First Bass), 1920. Nuss, Bertha (First Soprano), 1913. Oberholtzer, M. G. (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22. Oberrender, Mrs. George (First Alto), 1913. Odenwelder, Hester (Second Soprano), 1921. Ogburn, Mrs. J. H. (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, ’18, ’19, *20, ’21 ’22, ’23. Ohl, Mrs. A. C. (Second Alto), 1923. Okeson, Mrs. W. R. (Second Alto), 1919. Onmacht, Mrs. H. L. (First Soprano), 1920. Ott, Charles (Second Tenor), 1921, ’22, ’23. Ott, Marion (Second Alto), 1921. Pangrass, Mrs. A. E. (Second Soprano), 1922, ’23. Peck, E. J. (First Bass), 1901. Penniman, Caroline (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13. Perrin, M. C. (Second Alto), 1912. Person, Hattie (First Alto), 1914, ’15, *16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22 *23. Peters, Arthur (Second Bass), 1923. Peters, William (First Tenor), 1920. Peterson, Pauline (First Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Petrulias, Mrs. G. A. (Second Alto), 1922. {See Edith J. Blum.) Peysert, Letitia (Second Soprano), 1914. Pfeiffer, Hattie (First Alto), 1923. Pfeiffer, Marion (First Alto), 1920, ’21. Pflueger, Mary C. (First Alto), 1912,’13, ’15,’16, ’17, T8,’i9, ’20, ’21,’22, ’23 Pharo, Karl (Second Bass), 1913, ’14, Ts, T6, T7, T8, ’23. Pickslay, W. W. (Second Bass), 1916. Pickup, Arthur (First Tenor), 1921, ’22, ’23. Pinney, Mrs. J. P. (Second Soprano), 1919. Platt, J. E. (First Bass), 1912. 302 APPENDIX Pollard, H. K. (First Tenor), 1903. Potter, James (First Bass), 1914, ’15. Prince, Florence (Second Alto), 1904. Prince, Melinda (Second Alto^ 1901. Quier, Kenneth (First Bass), 1919, ’23. Quier, Walter (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’23 Randall, D. J. (Second Tenor), 1922. Randall, Paul T. (First Tenor), 1916, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22. Rashuevich, Steve (Second Tenor), 1922, ’23. Rau, Albert G. (Second Tenor), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Rau, Harry (First Bass), 1919, ’21. Raudenbush, Mildred (First Soprano), 1919, ’20. Rea, Mrs. J. T. (First Alto), 1919. Rea, J. T. (Second Tenor), 1920, ’22. Read, Katharine (First Soprano), 1917, ’l8, ’19. Rebstock, Beatrice (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Reed, Mae (Second Alto), 1922, ’23. Reed, Mrs. R. F. (Second Soprano), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Reed, R. F. (Second Bass), 1921, ’22, ’23. Reeder, Hilah K. W. (First Alto), 1915, ’16. Regestein, E. A. (Second Tenor), 1903. Reichard, Daisy M. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Reichel, Mary (First Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, 05a. Reiner, Annie E. (First Alto), 1905a, ’05b, ’12, ’13. Reinhard, Annie M. (Second Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Reinhard, Hannah (First Soprano), 1922, ’23. Reinke, Theodore (First Bass), 1900, ’01. Reinke, W. Bertrand (Second Bass), 1903, ’04. Reisner, Pauline M. (First Soprano), 1917. Reiter, Grace (First Soprano), 1915. (See Mrs. Allen Laub, 1916.) Reiter, Mrs. H. R. (First Alto), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’21. I Remely, Viola (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15. Reynolds, E. M. (First Soprano), 1916. Reynolds, Miriam (First Alto), 1916. Rice, Adele (Second Alto), 1912. Rice, Mrs. Fred J. (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20. Rice, George M. (First Bass), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Rice, Mary Ann (First Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Rich, E. L. (First Bass), 1904. Richard, Mrs. Robert (First Alto), 1922. (See Estelle Harwi.) Richards, Alfred (Second Tenor), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Richards, Joseph W. (First Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’is, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21. 303 APPENDIX Richards, Mrs. William (Second Soprano), 1921. Richey, Margaret (First Alto), 1916, ’17, ’18. Riegel, Esther E. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Riegel, Mrs. George W., Jr. (Second Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03. Riegel, Ida J. (Second Alto), 1901, ’03. Riegel, Laura (Second Alto), 1901, ’03. Riemer, Mrs. R. (First Soprano), 1923. Rindlaub, Willard (First Bass), 1922. Rittenhouse, William M. (Second Tenor), 1915, ’16, ’17, ’18. Ritter, Alice (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17. Ritter, Annie (Second Alto), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Ritter, Miss F. (First Soprano^ 1914. Ritter, Mrs. H. B. (First Soprano), 1914. Ritter, Mary A. (Second Soprano), 1921. Roberts, Mrs. Mary (Second Soprano), 1919. Roberts, Percy (Second Tenor), 1917. Robinson, Evelyn (Second Soprano), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Robinson, James (First Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Roeder, S. G. (Second Tenor), 1917. Roemer, E. D. (Second Alto), 1916. Roest, Dorothy (First Soprano), 1917. Roest, Frances (First Alto), 1913. Rogers, J. H. (First Tenor), 1912. Rogers, Mrs. Lena B. (Second Alto), 1913. Rohs, H. M. (First Bass), 1912, T3, ’14, ’15, T6, T7, ’18. Rohs, H. W. (First Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22. Rohs, William (First Tenor), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T9, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23- Romig, Daniel S. (First Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Romig, Elizabeth (First Alto), 1915, T6, T7, T8. Romig, J. F. W. (Second Bass), 1923. Romig, Samuel (First Bass), 1919, To. Rominger, C. H. (Second Tenor), 1903, ’05a, ’05b, ’14, T6, T7. Rominger, Mrs. C. H. (Second Soprano), 1913, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17. {See M. J, Steyers.) Ross, Edith (Second Soprano), 1912. Ross, R. J. (First Bass), 1917. Roth, B. G. (First Tenor), 1901. Roth, Mary E. (First Soprano), 1920, Ti, ’22, ’23. Royer, Charles (Second Bass), 1903. Royer, Mae (Second Soprano), 1919, To, Ti. Ruch, Mabel M. (Second Soprano), 1919, To, Ti, ’22, ’23. Ruch, Margaretta M. (Second Soprano), 1915, T6, ’17, T8, 19, To, Tl, ’22, ’23. Rush, Ruth (Second Alto), 1919, To, Ti, ’22, ’23. Rusling, Mrs. Robert (First Soprano), 1920, Ti, ’22, ’23. Ruth, Charles N. (First Bass), 1912, ’13. 304 APPENDIX Ruth, Leslie (First Tenor), 1912, ’14. Ryglewicz, Edward (First Bass), 1916. Sager, Mildred (Second Alto), 1915, ’17. Salmon, Clarence P. (First Tenor), 1921, ’22. Samuels, D. G. (Second Tenor), 1900, ’01, ’05b. Sanders, F. W. (First Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Schaeffer, Harry (Second Bass), 1919. Schaeffer, Hilda M. (First Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22. Schall, Gertrude (Second Alto), 1901. Schantz, F. E. (First Soprano), 1916. Schatz, William C. (Second Bass), 1920. Scheirer, Charles (Second Bass), 1920. Scheirer, James E. (Second Bass), 1913, ’14, ’15, ’l6, ’20. Scheirer, May (Second Soprano), 1920. Schipke, Margaret (Second Alto^ 1913, ’14. Schlegel, Jacob (Second Bass), 1912, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Schlegel, Mrs. Jacob (Second Alto), 1921, ’22, ’23. Schmalzl, Rose (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Schmedle, Arnold (Second Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’18, ’21. Schmehl, Elda (Second Alto), 1905a, ’05b. Schmid, Hazel 1 . (Second Alto), 1916, ’17, ’18. Schmoyer, H. (Second Tenor), 1914, ’15, ’16, ’17. Schnabel, Lewis E. (First Bass), 1917, ’21. Schneck, Florence (First Soprano), 1912. Schneebeli, Mrs, G. A. (Second Alto), 1901. Schoenly, Harr}^ M. (First Tenor), 1919, ’20. Schoenly, Ray E. (First Bass), 1921, ’22, ’23. Scholl, Emma (First Alto), 1912. Scholl, Rhoda (First AltoL 1922, ’23. Scholly, Roydon (Second Tenor), 1923. Schrader, E. (First Soprano), 1912. Schremple, W. A. (First Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, *15, ’16, ’17. Schuler, Mrs. Beulah (Second Soprano), 1922, ’23. Schuler, Myrtle (First Soprano), 1921. Schupp, Fred (First Bass), 1905a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’19. Schupp, Granville (Second Tenor), 1905a, ’05b. Schupp, John L. (First Tenor), 1917, ’20, ’21. Schwab, Elizabeth (Second Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’21, ’22, ’23. Schwab, Laura (First Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Schwab, Robert M. (First Bass), 1916, ’17, ’22, ’23. Schwartz, Sara A. (Second Soprano), 1901, ’04, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’19 ’22, ’23. Schwarze, C. T. (First Bass), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Schwarze, W. N. (Second Bass), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. deSchweinitz, Dorothy (Second Alto), 1913. Schweitzer, H. S. (First Bass), 1900, ’01. Schweitzer, Mrs. H. S. (First Alto), 1900, ’01. 305 APPENDIX Schweyer, John 0 . (Second Tenor), 1922. Seifert, Idella (First Alto), 1905b, ’12, ’14. Seip, Mary Barnes (Second Alto), 1900. Seiple, Mrs. S. B. (Second Alto), 1921. Sellers, E. H. (Second Tenor), 1914. Settle, Florence (Second Soprano), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Sevart, Mrs. Florence (First Soprano), 1917. Seyfert, Stanley S. (Second Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22,’23. Shanor, Ethel (Second Alto), 1914, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21. Shanor, William (First Bass), 1917. Sharadin, Pearl (First Soprano), 1920, ’21. Sharer, Amno F. (First Tenor), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, *22, ’23. Sheeran, Mary E. (Second Soprano), 1917, ’18. Shelly, Freeman M. (Second Bass), 1920, ’21. Shelly, Verda (Second Soprano), 1919. Sheppard, Jas. H. (First Bass), 1912, ’13. Sherwood, S. Elmyra (Second Alto), 1900, ’01. Shields, Florence (First Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. {See Mrs. C. L. Murphy, 1912.) Shields, Gertrude (First Alto), 1905a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14. Shields, Helen E. (First Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’14, ’15, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Shields, Mrs. T. E. (First Alto), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’ 23 - Shields, Theo. W. (Second Bass), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Shields, Mrs. Theo. W. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17. Shimer, Katharine (Second Soprano), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. ' Shimer, M. J. (First Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Shoemaker, Charlotte (First Soprano), 1923. Siebecker, Carl E. (First Bass), 1913. Siegfried, Olyve (Second Soprano^ 1921. Sigafoos, J. H. (Second Bass), 1901. Silfies, Mrs. Lulu (First Soprano), 1912, ’13. Sleath, Mrs. Herbert (Second Alto), 1919. Sleath, Mildred (First Soprano), 1923. Sleider, E. H. (First Bass), 1914. Sletor, F. A. (First Tenor), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Sloyer, Ernest T. (First Tenor), 1912. Smith, Annie (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01. Smith, D. A. (Second Soprano), 1914, ’15. Smith, G. A. (First Tenor), 1913. Smith, Sara L. (First Alto), 1921. Smith, W. A. (First Tenor), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Snyder, Evelyn (First Soprano), 1912, ’13. Snyder, Myrtle F. (First Soprano), 1920. Soderland, Gustaf (First Tenor), 1905a, ’05b. Speck, Beatrice L. (Second Alto), i'9i9. APPENDIX Speck, Frances (First Alto), 1919. Spencer, Mrs. R. L. (First Alto), 1919, ’22. Spinner, Sarah E. (Second Alto), 1914, ’15, *16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20. Sprague, Mrs. L. A. (First Soprano), 1921. Spurrier, W. B. (Second Bass), 1919, ’21, ’22. Staats, R. W. (First Bass), 1915. Staeger, Anna (First Soprano), 1912. Starner, Helen M. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Stauffer, Edna M. (First Alto), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Stauffer, Loverah (First Soprano), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Steely, Anna E. (Second Alto), 1919. Stein, Annie E. (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, *04, ’05a, ’05b. Sterling, F. A. (Second Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03. Sterling, Mrs. Gilbert (Second Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’12. Sterner, Warren E. (First Tenor), 1916, ’17, T8, T9. Stettler, Mrs. Harry A. (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22, ’23. Steyers, Mary J. (Second Soprano), 1905a, ’05b, ’12. (See Mrs. C. H. Rom- inger.) Steyers, William E. (First Tenor), 1913, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17. Stocker, Mrs. Mary T. (Second Alto), 1915, T6, T7. Stocker, Claude A. (Second Bass), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Stokes, J. E. (First Tenor), 1922. Straub, Homer (Second Bass), 1901, ’14. Straub, Mabel (First Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03. Strauss, Elizabeth (First Soprano), 1923. Strauss, Mary (First Alto), 1917. Strauss, Rose (First Alto), 1913, ’14, T5, T6, T7. Strickland, Mrs. R. M. (First Alto), 1920, ’21, ’22. Strohl, Mrs. Adam W. (Second Soprano), 1920, ’22, *23. Stuart, Cecille (Second Alto), 1914, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, T9. Stuart, Nellie (Second Alto), 1914. Stubblebine, Gladys (Second Alto), 1917. Stuber, Beatrice (First Alto), 1915, T6, ’17, T8, T9, ’21, ’22, ’23. Stuber, Helen T. (Second Soprano), 1914, T7, T8, ’19, ’20. (See Mrs. C. J. Fatzinger.) Suemper, Emil (First Tenor), 1900, ’01. Sullivan, L. N. (First Bass), 1900, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Swindells, Nellie (First Soprano), 1904, ’osa, ’05b. Swope, Bruce (Second Bass), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Swoyer, William (First Bass), 1923. Tacy, William (First Tenor), 1904, ’05a, ’05b. Tallon, Bertha H. (Second Soprano), 1912, T3, *14, T5, T6. Tallon, Henrietta (Second Soprano), i90Sa, ’05b. Taylor, Albert J. (Second Bass), 1913, ’14, ’15, T6, T7, T8, T9, ’20, ’21. Taylor, Bessie C. (Second Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Taylor, Elizabeth (Second Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’osb. (See Mrs. Geo. W. Halliwell.) Taylor, Mary S. (First Soprano), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13. 307 APPENDIX Taylor, Norris R. (Second Bass), 1913, ’14, Ts, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, *22, Taylor, Mrs. Norris R. (Second Alto), 1923. Teeple, P. M. (First Bass), 1914, ’15. Tencate, Florence (Second Soprano), 1912, T3. Test, Louis (First Bass), 1923. Thaeler, Abram (First Bass), 1917, ’18. Thaeler, Louise S. (First Alto), 1915, ’16, T7, *22. Thomas, Bernard (First Alto), 1920, ’21. Thomas, Hannah (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, ’17. Thomas, Philip (Second Bass), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16. Thomas, Phyllis (Second Alto), 1913, ’14. Thornton, L. S. (Second Bass), 1915. Thornton, Marion (First Soprano), 1915. Thornton, Mrs. M. (Second Soprano), 1922, ’23. Tinges, H. B. (Second Bass), 1912. Tobias, Carroll (First Bass), 1917, T8. Toohy, J. M. (Second Tenor), 1914. Traeger, Charles H. (Second Tenor), 1900, ’01, *03. Trembath, W. T. (Second Tenor), 1900, ’01. Trexler, Frances (First Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. , Trumbauer, Dorothy (Second Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23''. Trumbauer, Edith (Second Soprano), 1920. Trumbauer, H. E. (First Soprano), 1914. Trumbore, Florence (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, T6, T7, T8, ’19, *20, ’21. Trumbore, Mrs. L. F. (Second Soprano), 1901. Trumbore, R. W. (First Tenor), 1921, ’22, ’23. Trushel, W. C. (First Bass), 1922, ’23. Turner, Eleanor (Second Soprano), 1915, ’16, ^17. Turner, Marion (Second Soprano), 1915, ’16, ’17. Uhler, Flora C. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, *16, *17. Uhler, Florence (First Alto), 1914, ’15, ’16, ’17. Uhler, Miriam K. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17. Ullman, Katharine (First Soprano), 1914. Unangst, Elda (First Soprano), 1923. Van Billiard, Ruth (First Alto), 1922, ’23. Van Dyke, Ella R. (Second Alto), 1912, ’13, *14, *15. Van Horn, M. Nola (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, *17, ’18. Van Horne, Rollin C. (First Tenor), 1921. Vannatta, H. T. (First Tenor), 1922, ’23. Vannatta, Mona D. (First Soprano), 1922, ’23. Van Vleck, T. M. (Second Bass), 1912. Vaughan, Arleyne (Second Soprano), 1921, ’22J Vernachi, D. Guida (First Tenor), 1917. Voigt, Marie (Second Alto), 1923. 308 Waelchli, India (First Alto), 1903. APPENDIX Wagner, Evelyn (Second Alto), 1917, *21. Wagner, Mae (First Alto), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. \ Waidner, Edna (Second Soprano), 1914. Wakely, Robert (Second Bass), 1916, ’17. Wallace, Edwin E. (First Tenor), 1917, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, *23. Wallen, Mrs. F. A. (First Soprano), 1923. Walter, Charlotte (First Soprano), 1913, ’15. Walters, Harold R. (Second Bass), 1917, T8, ’19. Walters, Leonard (First Tenor), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’17. ^ Walton, Hilda (First Alto), 1915, ’17. Ward, Arthur V. (Second Bass), 1921. Ward, William (First Bass), 1921. Warlow, Mary (First Alto), 1903, ’04, ’053. , Wasser, Mary (Second Soprano), 1917. Weaver, C. B. (Second Bass), 1912, ’17, ’21. Weaver, Cora M. (Second Alto), 1912. Weaver, Elizabeth (First Alto), 1917, T8, ’19, *20, ’21. Weaver, Harriet (First Soprano), 1917, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, *22, *23. Weaver, Helen (First Soprano), 1920, ’21. Weaver, R. W. (Second Bass), 1912. Weber, Mrs. Minnie Haines (First Alto), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, ’21, *22. Wehr, Mary E. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, *20, *21, *22, ’23. Wehr, Warren (Second Bass), 1917, ’18. Weida, Albert (Second Tenor), 1905a, ’05b. Weikel, Chas. H. H. (First Bass), 1919. Weir, Ethel P. (First Alto), 1921, ’22, ’23. Weishampel, Mrs. J. A. (Second Soprano), 1921. Weiss, E. H. E. (First Soprano), 1912. Weiss, Elizabeth (First Alto), 1913. Weiss, Minnie (Second Alto), 1901. Welsch, Marion (First Soprano), 1920, *21. Werst, Mildred (Second Soprano), 1917. Wesco, Minnie (First Soprano), 1900. Wettereau, C. H. (First Bass), 1914, ’16, *17. White, John R. (Second Bass), 1923. Whiteside, Harold (First Bass), 1913. _ Whitman, C. H. (First Bass), 1901, ’03, ’04, *05a, *05b. Whitmore, B. L. (Second Bass), 1912. Widman, Mayme (Second Soprano), 1912. Wiegand, Burton (Second Bass), 1917, ’18. Wiegand, Mrs. Burton (Second Alto), 1917, *18. Wiegner, Howard J. (First Bass), 1900, ’01, *03, *04, *053, *osb, *14, *15, *l6, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, *22, ’23. Wiegner, Mrs. H. J. (First Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, *05b. Wiesenburg, Rose (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15. Wilde, Ralph E. (First Bass), 1921. Wilhelm, Edw. H. (First Tenor), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’12, *13, *14. Wilhelm, Fred H. (Second Tenor), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’osa, *05b, *12, *13. APPENDIX Williams, Blanche (Second Alto), 1919. Williams, Margaret (Second Soprano), 1901, ’03. Wilson, Alvin T. (Second Tenor), 1920, ’21. Wilson, Bessie G. (First Soprano^ 1901, ’03, ’04, ’osa, ’05b, Wilson, Mrs. Emma (First Alto), 1913. Wilson, Etta (First Soprano), 1900. Wilson, Mrs. Winter L. (Second Soprano), 1913, ’14. Wilt, Bertha A. R. (First Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, *16. Wilt, Warren (Second Bass), 1914, ’15. Winn, E. J. (Second Bass), 1905a, ’05b. Withey, Charles H. (First Tenor), 1913, ’14. Wolfe, Maude (First Soprano), 1920. Wolfe, Ruth (Second Soprano), 1920. Wolle, Agnes L. (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, *14, TS, T6, ’17. Wolle, Gretchen (Second Alto), 1913, ’14, ’15, T6, T7, T8. Wolle, J. Samuel (Second Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, T2, T3, T5. Woodring, F. A. (Second Soprano), 1914. Woodring, Mrs. W. J. (First Soprano), 1914, T6, ’17. {See Florence E. Boone.) Worwood, W. B. (First Bass), 1921, ^22. Wunderling, Carrie H. (Second Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13- Wunderling, Martha H. (Second Soprano), 1900, ’oi, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12. Wunderly, Claire C. (First Soprano), 1917, ’23. Wurreschka, Mrs. B. (Second Alto), 1920. Yates, W. F. S. (First Tenor), 1916, ’17. Yeager, Edward S. (Second Tenor), 1913, T4, ’15, ’16, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Yeager, Truman S. (Second Tenor), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Yeide, Harry E. (Second Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’23. Yerkes, Viola (First Soprano), 1900. {See Mrs. H. J. Wiegner.) Yohe, Sara (First Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03. Yost, Helen (First Soprano), 1913. Young, Etta (First Alto), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Young, Mrs. E. W. (Second Soprano), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Young, Helen A. (Second Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04. Young, Melba (First Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Young, Olga M. (Second Soprano), 1912, ’13. Yu, C. S. (First Bass), 1920, ’21. Zerweck, Clinton F. (First Bass), 1900, ’oi, *03, *04, *053, ’05b, ’12, *13, ’14, T5, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Ziegenfuss, Miriam I. (First Soprano), 1912, *13. Ziegler, Helen (First Soprano), 1916. Zimmerman, Grace B. (Second Alto), 1920, ’21. Zimmerman, W. A. (First Tenor), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, *12, Zwoyer, Harry (First Tenor), 1921, ’22, ’23. 310 APPENDIX B THE WORKS RENDERED AND THE SOLOISTS The following list contains all the choral works of Bach sung by the Bethlehem Choir from 1900 to 1922, with the dates and places of rendition, and the names of the soloists. IN MORAVIAN CHURCH, BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA First Bach Festival, March 27, 1900: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Kathrin Hilke, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Mrs. W. L. Estes, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Arthur Beresford, Bass. Second Bach Festival, May 23, 24, 25, 1901: May 23 “Christmas Oratorio.” Soloists, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Master Earl Heimpel, Soprano. Gertrude May Stein, Contralto. Evan Williams, Tenor. Joseph S. Baernstein, Bass. May 24, “The Passion of Our Lord according to St. Matthew.” Soloists, Mrs. Marie Zimmerman, Soprano. Gertrude May Stein, Contralto. Ellison Van Hoose, Tenor. Henri G. Scott, Bass. Ericsson Bushnell, Bass. May 25, “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Sara Anderson, Soprano. Gertrude May Stein, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Arthur Beresford, Bass. Third Bach Festival, May ii, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 1903; Monday evening. May 11: “Sleepers, wake! for night Is flying”; “Magnificat.” Soloists, Effie Stewart, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. APPENDIX Marguerite Hall, Alto. John Young, Tenor. Herbert Witherspoon, Bass. Tuesday afternoon and evening. May 12: “Christmas Oratorio.” Soloists, Effie Stewart, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Marguerite Hall, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Herbert Witherspoon, Bass. Wednesday evening, May 13: Second Brandenburg Concerto Grosso; “Strike, oh, strike, long-looked-for hour” (Alto voice); “I with my cross-staff gladly wander” (Bass voice). Soloists, Marguerite Hall, Alta Julian Walker, Bass. Thursday afternoon and evening. May 14; “The Passion of Our Lord according to St. Matthew.” Soloists, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude May Stein, Contralto. Julian Walker, Bass. Herbert Witherspoon, Bass. Friday evening. May 15: “The Heavens laugh, the Earth itself rejoices”; “God goeth up with shouting.” Soloists, Rebecca MacKenzie, Soprano. Mrs. W. L. Estes, Alto. Theodore Van Yorx, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening. May 16: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Mrs. Marie Zimmerman, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude May Stein, Alto. Theodore Van Yorx, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. The Bach Cycle: December, 1904, April, 1905, and June, 1905: Christmas (Fourth) Festival, December 28, 29, 30, 1904; Wednesday afternoon, December 28: “How brightly shines the Morning Star”; “Magnificat.” Soloists, Mrs. Marie K. Zimmerman, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Marguerite Hall, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Wednesday evening: “Christmas Oratorio,” Parts I and H. Soloists, Master John Eckroth, Soprano. Marguerite Hall, Contralto. 312 APPENDIX Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Thursday afternoon, December 29: “O Jesus Christ, light of my life”; “The Lord is a sun and shield.” Soloists, Mrs. Marie K. Zimmerman, Soprano. Marguerite Hall, Contralto Julian Walker, Bass. Thursday evening: “Christmas Oratorio,” Parts III and IV. Soloists, Mrs. Marie K. Zimmerman, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Marguerite Hall, Contralto. Edward P. Johnson, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Friday afternoon, December 30; “Suite in B Minor”; “ Sing ye to the Lord a new-made song.” Second Brandenburg Concerto. Friday evening: “Christmas Oratorio,” Parts V and VI. Soloists, Mrs. Marie K. Zimmerman, Soprano. Marguerite Hall, Contralto. Edward P. Johnson, Tenor. Howard J. Wiegner, Bass. Julian Walker, Bass. Lenten (Fifth) Bach Festival, April 12, 13, 14, 1905: Wednesday afternoon, April 12: “Jesus sleeps, what hope remaineth?” “The Solemn Moment is Impending.” Soloists, Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Wednesday evening: “I with my cross-staff gladly wander”; “Strike, oh, strike, long-looked-for hour”i “There is nought of soundness within my body.” Soloists, Mrs. John Leibert, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Thursday afternoon and evening, April 13: “The Passion of Our Lord according to St. John.” Soloists, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. The Rev. S. U. Mitman, D.D., Tenor. APPENDIX Elmer J. Bender, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Howard J. Wiegner, Bass. J. Samuel Wolle, Bass. Friday afternoon, April 14: “He who relies on God’s compassion”; “My spirit was in heaviness.” Soloists, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss, Soprano, Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Friday evening: “Jesu, Priceless treasure”; Tombeau: “Ode of Mourning.” Soloists, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Easter and Ascension (Sixth) Bach Festival, June i, 2, 3 Thursday afternoon, June i: “The Heavens laugh, the Earth itself rejoices”; “Bide with us, for eve is drawing onward.” Soloists, Mrs. John Leibert, Soprano. Mrs. Harriet Foster, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Howard J. Wiegner, Bass. Thursday evening: “Thou Guide of Israel”; “God goeth up with shouting.” Soloists, Mrs. John Leibert, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Mrs. Harriet Foster, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Friday afternoon, June 2: Third Brandenburg Concerto; “O Light Everlasting”; “Suite in D.” Soloists, Marguerite Hall, Contralto. John Young, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Friday evening: “Now hath salvation and strength”; “Sleepers, wake! for night is flying”; “A stronghold sure our God remains.” Soloists, Mrs. Corinne Rider-Kelsey, Soprano. Marguerite Hall, Contralto. 314 . 1905 APPENDIX John Young, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening, June 3: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Mrs. Marie Hissem DeMoss, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Julian Walker, Bass. IN PACKER MEMORIAL CHURCH, LEHIGH UNIVERSI’rY BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA Seventh Bach Festival, May 31, June i, 1912: Friday afternoon. May 31; - “It is enough”; “Christian, stand with sword in hand”; Chorales. Friday evening: “Soul, array thyself with gladness”; “Strike, oh, strike, long-looked-for hour”; Chorales. Saturday afternoon and evening, June i; “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Frank Croxton, Bass. ^Eighth Bach Festival, May 30, 31, 1913: Friday afternoon and evening. May 30: “The Passion of Our Lord according to St. Matthew”; Part I — afternoon at four o’clock. Part II — evening at eight o’clock. Soloists, Grace Kerns, Soprano. Mrs. Florence Mulford Hunt, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Horatio Connell, Bass. Edmund A. Jahn, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening. May 31: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Grace Kerns, Soprano. Mrs. Margaret Adsit Barrell, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Horatio Connell, Bass. Ninth Bach Festival, May 29, 30, 1914: Friday afternoon. May 29: “Sing ye to the Lord a new-made song”; 315 APPENDIX Second Brandenburg Concerto; Solos and Chorales. Friday evening: “In billows the rivers of Belial flowing”; “The Heavens laugh, the Earth itself rejoices”; “Triumph now is mine”; “Pastoral Symphony”; “Bide, ye angels, bide with me”; “Magnificat.” Soloists, Mrs. Helen Boice-Hunsicker, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Maude Sproule, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Horatio Connell, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening. May 30: • “Mass in B Minor.” In this, the seventh rendition of the “Mass” by the Bach Choir, the solos, for the first time, were sung by all the members of the Chorus. Tenth Bach Festival, May 28, 29, 1915: Friday afternoon. May 28: “The Passion of Our Lord according to St. John,” Part I; Second Brandenburg Concerto, Second Movement; “Strike, oh, strike, long-looked-for hour”; Chorales. Friday evening; “The Passion of Our Lord according to St. John,” Part II. Soloists, Mrs. Marie Zimmerman, Soprano. Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano. Mrs. Florence Mulford Hunt, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. William Steyers, Tenor. John E. Kichllne, Tenor. Louis Kreidler, Bass. Frederick Schupp, Bass. Howard J. Wiegner, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening. May 29: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Mrs. Mary Hissem DeMoss, Soprano. Mrs. Gertrude Stein-Bailey, Contralto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Henri Scott, Bass. Eleventh Bach Festival, May 26, 27, 1916; Friday afternoon and evening, May 26: “Christmas Oratorio.” Soloists, Marie Stoddart, Soprano. 316 APPENDIX Lucy A. Brickenstein, Soprano, Maude Sproule, Alto. Reed Miller, Tenor. Charles T. Tittmann, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening, May 27: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Grace Kerns, Soprano. Christine Miller, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Arthur Herschmann, Bass. Twelfth Bach Festival, June i, 2, 1917: Friday afternoon, June i: “To thee He hath shown, man, the right way' “The spirit also helpeth us”; “From depths of woe I call on Thee”; “Watch ye, pray ye.” Soloists, Marie Stoddart, Soprano. Marie Morrissey, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Charles T. Tittmann, Bass. Friday evening: “Give the hungry man thy bread”; “Let songs of rejoicing be raised”; “When will God recall my spirit”; “Sing to the Lord a glad new song.” Soloists, Marie Stoddart, Soprano. Marie Morrissey, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Charles T. Tittmann, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening, June 2: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Mildred Faas, Soprano. Grace Harden, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Louis Kreidler, Bass. Thirteenth Bach Festival, May 24, 25, 1918: Friday afternoon. May 24: “My Spirit was in heaviness”; “World, farewell”; “Actus Tragicus: God’s time is the best”*, “Now shall the grace”; “O joy, to know that Thou.” Friday evening: Tombeau: “Ode of mourning”; “Magnificat”; “Glory now to Thee be given”; APPENDIX Soloists, Mildred Faas, Soprano. Emma Roberts, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Charles Trowbridge Tittmann, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening. May 25: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Mae Hotz, Soprano. Grace Harden, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Charles Trowbridge Tittmann, Bass. Fourteenth Bach Festival, June 6, 7, 1919: Friday afternoon, June 6: “The Lord is my Shepherd”; “I with my cross-staff gladly wander”; “O teach me. Lord, my days to number”; “The Lord is a sun and shield.” Friday evening: “Bide with us, for eve is drawing onward”; “Strike, oh, strike, long-looked-for hour”; “Thou Guide of Israel”; “O Light everlasting.” Soloists, Mildred Faas, Soprano. Emma Roberts, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Charles Trowbridge Tittmann, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening, June 7: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Florence Hinkle, Soprano. Merle Alcock, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Charles Trowbridge Tittmann, Bass. Fifteenth Bach Festival, May 28, 29, 1920: Friday afternoon. May 28: “There is nought of soundness”; “Suite in B Minor”; “How brightly shines yon star of morn.” Friday evening: “Sing ye to the Lord a new-made song”; Second Brandenburg Concerto; “Sleepers, wake!” Soloists, Mildred Faas, Soprano. Reed Miller, Tenor. Charles Trowbridge Tittmann, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening. May 29: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Florence Hinkle, Soprano. 318 APPENDIX Merle Alcock, Alto.,, Nicholas Dcuty, Tenor. Robert S. Maitland, Bass. Sixteenth Bach Festival, May 27, 28, 1921; Friday afternoon, May 27: “The Sages of Sheba”; “Suite in D, No. 3”; “The Ascension Oratorio.” Soloists, Mildred Faas, Soprano. Merle Alcock, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Charles Trowbridge Tittmann, Bass, Saturday afternoon and evening: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Mildred Faas, Soprano. Merle Alcock, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Charles Trowbridge Tittmann, Bass, Seventeenth Bach Festival, May 26, 27, 1922: Friday afternoon. May 26: “The Passion of Our Lord according to St. Matthew,” Part I. Soloists, Alildred Faas, Soprano. First maid: Mary E. Wehr, Soprano. Second maid: Katie E. Hess, Soprano. Pilate’s wife: Geneva Morgan. Mabel Beddoe, Alto. First false witness: Frances Trexler, Alto. Nicholas Douty, Tenor. Second false witness: Walter T. Mitchell, Fred. Patton, Baritone. Charles Trowbridge Tittmann, Bass. Judas: William Evans, Bass. Peter: Dan Kocher, Bass. High priest: H. Donald Elya, Bass. First priest: Harry B. Miller, Bass. Second priest: Theo. W. Shields, Bass. Pilate: Howard J. Wiegner, Bass. Saturday afternoon and evening: “Mass in B Minor.” Soloists, Emily Stokes Hagar, Soprano. Merle Alcock, Alto. Lambert Murphy, Tenor. Henri Scott, Bass. Eighteenth Bach Festival, May 25, 26, 1923: Friday afternoon. May 25: .“The Passion of Our Lord according to St. John,” Part I. 319 APPENDIX Second Brandenburg Concerto, Second Movement; Chorales. Friday evening: “The Passion of Our Lord according to St. John,” Part II. Saturday afternoon and evening, May 26: “Mass in B Minor.” IN CARNEGIE HALL, NEW YORK CITY FIRST CONCERT WITH THE PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY OF NEW YORK, JANUARY 20, 1917 Chorale for the Christmas Festival: “From highest heaven to earth I come.” Chorale for the Feast of the Annunciation: “How brightly shines the morning star.” Choruses from the “Mass in B Minor”; “Gloria in excelsis Deo”; “Et incarnatus”; “Crucifixus”; “Et Resurrexit.” Chorale for the Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity: “World, farewell.” Chorale for the Twenty-seventh Sunday after Trinity: “Glory now to Thee be given.” SECOND CONCERT WITH THE PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY OF NEW YORK, JANUARY 26, 1918 “Kyrie Eleison,” from the “B Minor Mass.” Two chorales, from the Tombeau: “Ode of mourning.” a. “Thou bliss of earliest innocence.” b. “Wake, my heart.” “Cum Sancto Spiritu in Gloria Dei Patris, Amen,” from the “B Minor Mass.” Chorus and chorale, from “When will God recall my spirit?” “Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth,” from the “B Minor Mass.” AT CAMP CRANE, UNITED STATES ARMY AMBULANCE SERVICE, ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA, FEBRUARY 10, 1918 Carnegie Hall Programme of January 26 repeated. IN 71ST REGIMENT ARMORY, NEW YORK CITY AT FIRST FESTIVAL OF MUSIC, ORATORIO SOCIETY OF NEW YORK, APRIL 10, 1920 Two choruses from the cantata “Bide with Us.” Four chorales, sung unaccompanied: “Wake, my heart, the night of dread.” 320 APPENDIX *‘0 joy, to know that Thou, my Friend.” “Glory now to Thee be given.” “World, farewell, thy joys are dreary.” “Cum Sancto Spiritu in Gloria Dei Patris, Amen,” from the “B Minor Mass.” IN MANHATTAN OPERA HOUSE, NEW YORK CITY AT SECOND FESTIVAL OF MUSIC, ORATORIO SOCIETY OF NEW YORK, APRIL 2, 1921 Four chorales, sung unaccompanied: “How shall I fitly meet Thee?” “This proud heart within us swelling.” “Lord Jesus, Thy dear Angel send,” Two choruses from the “B Minor Mass”: “0 Mighty King, eternal is Thy glory.” “Qui tollis peccata mundi.” “Confiteor unum baptisma.” IN ACADEMY OF MUSIC, PHILADELPHIA UPON INVITATION OF ACADEMY OF MUSIC CORPORATION NOVEMBER 5, 1921 Chorus: “Gloria in Excelsis Deo.” Duet: “Dominus Deus” Mildred Faas, soprano; Nicholas Douty, tenor. Chorus: “Qui tollis peccata mundi.” Chorus: “Cum Sancto Spiritu in Gloria Dei Patris, Amen.” “Suite in C”: Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Dr. WoUe. Chorus: “Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus.” Solo: “Benedictus,” Mr. Douty. Chorus: “Hosanna in Excelsis.” The Second Brandenburg Concerto, the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Dr. Wolle. Three chorales: “World, farewell.” “O joy, to know that Thou, my Friend.” “Glory now to Thee be given.” IN ACADEMY OF MUSIC, PHILADELPHIA UPON INVITATION OF THE PHILADELPHIA FORUM NOVEMBER 4, 1922 “Mass in B Minor,” Part 1 . Kyrie Gloria Four chorales, sung unaccompanied: “0 joy, to know that Thou, my Friend.” 321 APPENDIX “Wake my soul, the night of dread.” “Whate’er may vex or grieve thee.” “Glory now to Thee be given.” Chorus from “Mass in B Minor”: “Cum Sancto Spiritu in Gloria Dei Patris, Amen.” Soloists: Emily Stokes Hagar, soprano. Mabelle Addison, contralto. Nicholas Douty, tenor. Organist: T. Edgar Shields. The Philadelphia Orchestra. The Moravian Trombone Choir. IN LIBERTY HIGH SCHOOL, BETHLEHEM, PA. BEFORE PENNSYLVANIA STATE EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION DECEMBER 27, 1922. Philadelphia programme of November 4 repeated. SOLOISTS Addison, Mabel (Alto), Philadelphia concert, 1922. Alcock, Merle (Alto), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22. Anderson, Sara (Soprano), 1901. Baernstein, Joseph (Bass), 1901. Bailey, Mrs. Gertrude Stein (Contralto), 1905a, ’05b, ’l2, ’16. Barrell, Mrs. Margaret Adsit (Contralto), 1913. Beddoe, Mabel (Alto), 1921. Bender, Elmer J. (Tenor), 1905a. Beresford, Arthur (Bass), 1901. Boyce-Hunsicker, Mrs. Helen (Soprano), 1914. Brickenstein, Lucy A. (Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’osb, *14, ’15, ’16. Bushnell, Ericsson (Bass), 1901. Connell, Horatio (Bass), 1913, T4. Croxton, Frank (Bass), 1912. DeMoss, Mrs. Mary Hissem (Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, T5. Douty, Nicholas (Tenor), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, T2, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22. (Also Philadelphia concerts, 1921, 1922, Liberty High School, 1922. Eckroth, Master John (Soprano), 1904. Elya, H. Donald (Bass), 1922. Estes, Mrs. W. L. (Contralto), 1900, ’03. Evans, William (Bass), 1922. 322 APPENDIX Faas, Mildred (Soprano), 1917, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, *22. (Also Philadelphia concert, 1921.) Foster, Harriet (Contralto), 1905b. Hagar, Emily Stokes (Soprano), Philadelphia concert, 1922. Hall, Marguerite (Contralto), 1903, ’04, ’05b. Harden, Grace (Alto), 1917, ’18. Heimpel, Master Earl (Soprano), 1901. Herschmann, Arthur (Bass), 1916. Hess, Katie E. (Soprano), 1922. Hilke, Kathrin (Soprano), 1900. Hinkle, Florence (Soprano), 1920. Hotz, Mae (Soprano), 1918. Hunt, Mrs. Florence Mulford (Contralto), 1913, ’15. Jahn, Edmund A. (Bass), 1913. Johnson, Edward P. (Tenor), 1904. Kerns, Grace (Soprano), 1913, ’16. Kichline, John E. (Tenor), 1915. Kocher, Dan (Bass), 1922. Kreidler, Louis (Bass), 1915, ’17. Leibert, Mrs. John (Soprano), 1905a, ’05b. Mackenzie, Rebecca (Soprano), 1903. Maitland, Robert S. (Bass), 1920. Miller, Christine (Contralto), 1916. Miller, Harry B. (Bass), 1922. Miller, Reed (Tenor), 1916, ’20. Mitchell, Walter T. (Tenor), 1922. Mitman, S. U. (Tenor), 1905a. Morgan, Geneva (Soprano), 1922. Morrissey, Marie (Alto), 1917. Patton, Fred. (Baritone), 1922. Rider-Kelsey, Mrs. Corinne (Soprano), 1905b. Roberts, Emma (Alto), 1918, ’19. Schupp, Fred (Bass), 1915. Scott, Henri G. (Bass), 1901, ’15. Shields, Theo. W, (Bass), 1922. Sproule, Maude (Contralto), 1914, ’16. Stein, Gertrude May (Contralto), 1901, ’03. {See Mrs. Gertrude S. Bailey.) Stewart, Effie (Soprano), 1913. Steyers, William (Tenor), 1915. Stoddart, Marie (Soprano), 1916, ’17. 323 APPENDIX Tittmann, Charles Trowbridge (Bass), 1916, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, *22. Trexler, Frances (Alto), 1922. Van Hoose, Ellison (Tenor), 1901. Van Yorx, Theodore (Tenor), 1903. Walker, Julian (Bass), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. Wehr, Mary E. (Soprano), 1922. Wiegner, Howard (Bass), 1904, ’05a, ’05b, *15, ’22. Williams, Evan (Tenor), 1901. Witherspoon, Herbert (Bass), 1903, *04, ^05a, ’05b. Wolle, J. Samuel (Bass), 1905a. Young, John (Tenor), 1903, ’05b. Zimmerman, Mrs. Marie K. (Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’15. APPENDIX C THE MORAVIAN TROMBONE CHOIR. The follow- ing members of the Trombone Choir of the Moravian Church have served in announcing the sessions of the Festivals. MORAVIAN TROMBONE CHOIR, 1923 SOPRANOS Bruch, Earl W. Cressman, Grant J. Bishop, Earl M. Miller, Harold E. ALTOS Cressman, Paul Sigley, Spurgeon G. Miller, William G. TENORS Meichel, Merritt G. Schmickley, Carl B. Myers, Richmond E. Sigley, George E. (Leader) BASSES Beckel, Charles F. Mease, Frederick R. Gerlach, Lewis J. Miller, Harry J. Haupert, Raymond F. Barber, Paul W. (Tenor), 1901. Beckel, Charles F. (Bass), 1900, *01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ’12, ’13, *14, ’15, T6, ’17, ’18, T9, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Bishop, M. Earl (Soprano), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Bodder, Raymond (Bass), 1912, ’14, T5, T6, ’17. Bruch, Earl W. (Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, T9, To, Tl, ’22, ’23. Buss, Alvin W. (Tenor), 1900, ’01. Chapman, Richard (Tenor), 1901, ’03. Cressman, Grant J. (Soprano), 1922, ’23. Cressman, Paul (Alto), 1922, ’23. Gapp, Samuel B. (Tenor), 1922. George, Charles M. (Alto), 1900, ’01. Gerlach, Lewis J. (Bass), 1922, ’23.* Groman, Edward (Soprano), 1903, ’04, ’05a, ’05b. 325 APPENDIX Haupert, Raymond B. (Bass), 1920, ’21, ’22, ’23. Horn, Walter (Soprano), 1900, ’01. Kemper, Charles (Soprano), 1915. Kemper, Hugh (Soprano), 1916, ’17, ’18, ’19, *20, *21.' Lehman, J. George (Tenor), 1900, ’01, *03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, ^12, ^13, *14, *15, T6, T7, T8, ’19. Leibert, Augustus H. (Alto), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’05a, ’05b, *12, ’13, *14, ’15, T6, ’17, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21. Leibert, Joseph M. (Soprano), 1912, T3, T4, ’15, ’16, ’17. Maynes, Ruskin (Tenor, Bass), 1914, ’15, ’16, ’17, T8, ’19. Mease, Frederick R. (Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Meichel, Merritt G. (Tenor), 1923. Miller, Frank P. (Tenor), 1917, T8, ’19, ’20, ’22, *23. Miller, Harold E. (Soprano), 1922, ’23. Miller, Harry J. (Bass), 1919, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Miller, William G. (Alto), 1914, ’15, T6, T7, T8, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Mitman, Erwin (Tenor), 1904, ’osa, ’05b. Myers, Frank J. (Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’osa, ’05b. Myers, Richmond E. (Tenor), 1918, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Neisser, Charles H. (Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’osa, ’osb. Oerter, Edmund L. (Soprano), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’oSa, ’osb. Rau, Robert (Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’osa, ’osb. Rauch, Ambrose (Soprano), 1900, ’01, ’03. Rice, Owen R. (Tenor), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22. Ross, E. E. (Bass), I90sb. Schmickly, Carl B. (Tenor), 1923. Shields, Theodore (Bass), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’osa, ’osb. Sigley, George E. (Tenor), 1903, ’04, ’osa, ’osb, ’12, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21, ’22, ’23. Sigley, Russell (Soprano), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’is, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19. Sigley, Spurgeon G. (Alto), 1912, ’13, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21. Thaeler, Abram S. (Soprano), 1913, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20, ’21. Wolle, J. Samuel (Bass), 1900, ’01, ’03, ’04, ’osa, ’osb. APPENDIX D THE ORCHESTRA. Players of the Philadelphia Orches¬ tra have furnished the accompaniment at all of the Bach Festivals at Lehigh. The members of the orchestra at the 1922 Festival are here named. Then follows a list of players, largely amateurs, who took part in the Festivals held in the Moravian Church, 1900 to 1905. PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA PLAYERS First Violins Emil F. Schmidt H. Aleinikoff Alfred Lorenz H. Chazin Louis Angeloty H. Weinberg L. Ferrara J. Molloy Second Violins David Dubinsky Paul Fillsack J. Brodo A. Gorodetzky Violas M. Bornstein H. Schmidt A. Lipkin M. Epstein P. Bansbach L. Epstein G. Loeben ’Cellos M. Kaplan N. Frey J. Osborn W. Schmidt P. Schmidt Basses Carl Kneisel F. Watson A. Torello S. Elkind Flutes ■ L. Boehse W. Luck W. M. Kincaid R. Forster 327 J. Briglia L. Di Gorgio APPENDIX Ohoes and English Horns P. Mathieu John Lotz M. Lachmuth E. Serpentini Clarinets L. Cailliet P. Alemann Bassoons F. Del Negro H. Marshall French Horn O. Henneberg Trumpets E. S. Williams B. Shreibman B. Comfort - Tymfani E. Kresse Achenbach, Fred (Second Violin), 1901. Addimando, Mr. (Oboe and Oboi d’Amore), 1904. Arbogast, Porter B. (First Violin), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Baab, William (Flute), 1901, ’04, ’05. Badolett, R. (Flute), 1903. Barlleb, Joseph (Second Violin), 1903. Barnes, A. P. (First Violin), 1905. Barone, C. (Flute), 1905. Bechtel, Harold (First Violin), 1901, ’03. Bertram, Adolph (Oboes and Oboi d’Amore), 1903. Bodamer, R. (Trumpet), 1905. Buchman, E. L. (Violoncello), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Caum, S. L. (Second Violin), 1904, ’05. » Christine, Fred (Double Bass), 1904, ’05. Clauder, George E. (Violoncello), 1901, ’03. Cohen, N. (Double Bass), 1903. Converse, Margaret (Second Violin), 1903. Donkel, William (Second Violin), 1905. Doucet, Alfred (Oboe and Oboi d’Amore), 1903, ’04, ’05. Dutschke, C. H. A. (French Horn), 1903, ’04. Eichlein, Edwin (Viola), 1904. Eichler, Henry (Trumpet), 1901, ’04, ’05. Eichlin, Herbert H. (First Violin), 1904, ’05. APPENDIX Erdman, M. O. (Second Violin), 1903, *04, *05. Ezerman, D. H. (Violoncello), 1904, ’05. Fahrbach, Harry (First Violin), 1901, ’03. Fasshauer, John (Double Bass), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Fehling, H. (Viola), 1904, ’05. Feurstein, Wm. (Flute), 1904, ’05. Flack, Adam (Bassoon), 1901. Grosh, Arthur (Violoncello), 1901, *03, ’04, ’05. ’ Grosh, Herman (Viola), 1903, ’04, *05. Grossweiler, Udo (Violoncello), 1903. Handke, P. (Trumpet), 1903. Hangen, Edgar (Violoncello), 1901, *03. Hangen, Florence (Violoncello), 1901, ’03. Hansen, Oscar (Flute), 1901, ’03. Hart, Orville (Violoncello), 1901. Hartman, William F. (Viola), 1901, ’03, *04, ’05. Hartzell, Jacob H. (Second Violin), 1901, ’03, ’05, Hartzell, John (Second Violin), 1904, ’05. Hay, Blanche (Second Violin), 1905. Helleberg, H. (Bassoon), 1903. Hennig, Rudolph (Violoncello), 1901, *03. Heydorn, August (Trumpet), 1901, ’03. Hildebrandt, Christian (Viola), 1901; (Bassoon), 1903, *05. Hillyer, Harry (First Violin), 1904. Hoffman, E. B. (Second Violin), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Homer, A. (French Horn), 1905. Hoppes, R. (Trumpet), 1901, ’04, ’05. Hunsberger, Charles (Harp), 1905. Jones, Barry (Second Violin), 1901. ‘ Kahn, Albert (Second Violin), 1904, ’05. Kahn, Isaac M. (Second Violin), 1901, ’05. Kaum, Stephen (Violoncello), 1905. Kern, Harry E. (Double Bass), 1901. Koch, Henry (French Horn), 1901, ’03. Koehler, A. (Trumpet), 1904. Kreiger, Marcel (First Violin), 5901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Krug, August (Viola), 1903. Kruger, E. (Bassoon), I90sb. Larchmuth, Max (English Horn and Oboe), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Lotz, C. (Double Bass), 1903. Lotz, John (English Horn), 1905. APPENDIX Mac Comsey, B. A. (Viola), 1901, ’03. Mackey, S. (Double Bass), 1903. Mathews, Caroline Myers (First Violin), 1901, *03. Metzgar, Edgar (First Violin), 1901, ’03. Miller, Frank P. (Second Violin), 1903, ’04, ’05. Miller, John (Second Violin), 1901. Moll, Lloyd (Second Violin), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Murphy, Charlton (First Violin), 1901, ’04. Olpp, Robert J. (Viola), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Pettinos, George F. (First Violin), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Pretz, Godfrey (Flute), 1901, ’03. Rau, Dr. Albert G. (Kettle Drum), 1905. Riddle, Celesti (Second Violin), 1903, (First Violin), 1904, ’05. Ritzke, Arthur (Clarionette), 1901. Roseberry, Charles (Second Violin), 1901. Rossi, M. (Flute), 1903. Sauder, Adolph (English Horn and Oboe), 1901, *03, *04, ’05. Schaibel, John (Viola), 1901, ’05. Schalsha, Fred W. (First Violin), 1901, *03. Schoner, Carl (Viola), 1903. School, L. C. (Oboe), 1901. Schubert, E. L. (Second Violin), 1901, *05. Schubert, L. E. (Double Bass), 1901. Schwindt, Louis W. (Second Violin), 1902, ’04. (Viola), 1905. Sefing, C. H. (Double Bass), 1901, ’04, ’05. Seip, Carrie (Second Violin), 1904, ’05. Sielke, Leo (First Violin), 1905. Smith, Arthur (Second Violin), 1901. Stobbe, Martin (Flute), 1901. Stobbe, William R. (Kettle Drum), 1901, *03, ’04, ^05. Thiede, Gustave (Double Bass), 1901. Thompson, Marion Shimer (First Violin), 1903, ’04, ’05. Trepte, Arthur (Oboe and Oboi d’Amore), 1901. Verdier, Andre (First Violin), 1901. Waelchili, Fannie (Second Violin), 1903. Wagner, Frederick (Trumpet), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Wagner, J. H. (Second Violin), 1901. Waldo, Miss (Viola), 1904. Waldo, Leonard (Violoncello), 1904, ’05. Weingartner, A. M. (Second Violin), 1901, ’03, ’04, *05. 330 APPENDIX Weisenborn, Henry (Clarinet), 1901. Wells, William (Violoncello), 1905. Werkheiser, W. H. (Viola), 1901, ’03, ’04, ’05. Wilson, Thomas B. (Viola), 1901. Wittich, Otto (First Violin), 1901, ’03. Wood, Raymond (First Violin), 1904, ’05. APPENDIX E OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES. Lists are here given of the Choir’s officers, members of the executive committee and other committees of the Bach Festivals, i900-’23. Conductor: — J. Fred Wolle, 1900-1923. President: — R. R. Hillman, i900-’os. Henry S. Drinker, I9ii-’2i. Charles M. Schwab, i92i-’23. Vice-President: — W. S. Franklin, I900-’o5. George R. Booth, i9ii-’23. Corresponding Secretary: — Mrs. W. E. Doster, i90O-’05. Frank G. Hoch, i9ii-’23. Recording Secretary: — Howard J. Wiegner, i900-’os. Frank G. Hoch, i9ii-’23. Treasurer: — M. J. Shimer, i900-’05. A. N. Cleaver, 1911-23. Librarian: — Clinton F. Zerweck, i900-’03. W. A. Zimmerman, i904-’05. Executive Committee: — Mrs. Quincy Bent, i922-’23. George R. Booth, i9ii-’23. A. N. Cleaver, i9ii-’23. J. H. Clewell, i9ii-’22. Henry S. Drinker, I9ii-’2i. Natt M. Emery, i9i7-’23. William L. Estes, 1911-23. Frank G. Hoch, 1911-23. A. C. Huff, i9i3-’23. Mrs. R. P. Linderman, i922-’23. Joseph W. Richards, 1917-21. Charles M. Schwab, i9i2-’23. T. Edgar Shields, 1911-23. M. J. Shimer, i9ii-’23. H. S. Snyder, 1913-23. 332 APPENDIX Raymond Walters, i9i7-’23. Warren A. Wilbur, i9ii-’23. Membership Committee Chairman: — Lucy A. Brickenstein, i900-’os. A. G. Levering, I9ii-’i2. Mrs. George W. Halliwell, i9i3-’23. Publicity Committee Chairman: — M. J. Shimer, i900-’03. Howard J. Wiegner, i904-’o5. Raymond Walters, 1911-21. Robert E. Shafer, i92i-’23. Circularizing Committee Chairman: — Marie H. Hesse, i9ii-’23. Programme Committee Chairman: — W. F. Bade, I900-’oi. Clinton F. Zerweck, i903-’04. W. A. Zimmerman, 1905. T. Edgar Shields, 1911-23. Reception Committee Chairman: — F. A. Sterling, i900-’oi. J. George Lehman, i903-’o5. Entertainment Committee Chairman: — Clinton F. Zerweck, i900-’oi. Mrs. E. F. Gray, 1903-’!3. A. C. Huff, 1914-17. Mrs. A. N. Cleaver, i9i8-’20. Herman J. Schneller, i92i-’23. Ticket Committee Chairman: — M. J. Shimer, i9ii-’23. Chapel Arrangements Committee Chairman T. Edgar Shields, i9ii-’23. INDEX INDEX Abbott, Ernest H., quoted, 149, 150. Abbott, Dr. Lyman, his account of the 1904 Festival, 78-80; relates an episode of the 1916 Festival, 93, 94; his report on the 1915 Fes¬ tival, 119; 133; quoted, 192; 115, 133- Albrecht, John Andrew, 13. Alcock, Merle, 160, 163. Aldrich, Richard, quoted on 1903 Festival, 69-71; on 1916 Festival, 130; on 1917 N.Y. concert, 174, I7S; 72 , 83, 84, 8s, 96, 114, 191. “American Magazine,” quoted, 14, IS- “American Organist,” quoted, 156, IS7- Ascher, Charles S., quoted, 164, 165. Bach, Johann Sebastian, his death, 49; his human quality, 122; “Mas¬ ter of Masters,” 123; “A German whom Prussia had not corrupted,” i34;“BachinWar-Time,” 143,144; his universality, 149; interpreta¬ tion of, 220-23; his fundamental simplicity, 276; appreciation of, spread by the Choir, 280; 177. Bach Choir, First Festival (1900), 50-52; Second (1901), 52-67; Third (1903), 67-76; Fourth (1904), 76- 81; Fifth (April, 1905), 81-85; Sixth (June, 1905), 85-89; dis¬ banded, 89; reorganized, 90, 91; Seventh Festival (1912), 96-102; Eighth (1913), 103-107; Ninth (1914), 107-13; Tenth (1915), 114- 21; Eleventh (1916), 121-33; Twelfth (1917), 133-48; Thir¬ teenth (1918), 149-54; Fourteenth (1919), 154-57; Fifteenth (1920), 157-60; Sixteenth (1921), 161-64; Seventeenth (1922), 164-67; Eight¬ eenth (1923), 168; New York con¬ certs: (1917X 169-78; (1918), 178- 87; (1920), 189-93; (1921), 193-96; Philadelphia concerts: (1921), 196- 203; (1922), 203-07; discipline of, 261, 262; lists of singers of, 283-31°; list of works rendered, 311 ff.', list of amateur players at, 328jf. Bach festivals in Germany and in England, 49. Bade, Dr. William Frederic, 46, 242. Bagehot, Walter, quoted, 36. Bailey, Gertrude May Stein, 63, 67, 68, 75, 81, 82, 85, 88, 100, 108. “Baltimore Sun,” quoted, 167, 168. Bartholomew, 1 . H., 32. Bayreuth, comparison of Bethlehem with, 59, 65, 121, 145. Beckel, C. F., 28. Beethoven, Ludwig von, “Mass In C,” 30. Beethoven Maennerchor of Bethle¬ hem, 32. Bent, Deborah (Brock), 252. Bent, Quincy, 252. Beresford, Arthur, 50; quoted, 51; 63. Bethlehem Choral Society, 31. Bethlehem Choral Union, 30; organ¬ ization, 38; gave “Creation,” 1883, 39; “St. John Passion,” 1888, 40, 41; “St. Matthew Passion,” 1892, 42, 43; attempted “B Minor Mass,” 1892, 44; organization dis¬ continued, 44; 114, 235. “Bethlehem Diary,” 3; Singstunde of 1742, 4; first spinet arrived, 1774, 6; love feast of 1745, 8; service at¬ tended by General Washington, ii; by Lady Washington, 12. “Bethlehem Globe,” quoted, 157. Bethlehem Moravian Church, looth anniversary of cornerstone-laying, 1903, 67. 337 INDEX Bethlehem Philharmonic Society, renditions of Haydn’s “Seasons,” 1834, 1835, of Loewe’s “Seven Sleepers,” 1833, 21; of Neukomm’s “David,” 1834, 21; organized 1820, 24; finances, 26; concerts, 1821- 1839, 27; oratorios sung after 1S69, 30; discontinued in late eighties, 30; 38. Bethlehem School of Music, 32. Bethlehem Steel Company Band, 34, 35, 100, 237. “Bethlehem Times,” quoted, 155, 203. Bok, Edward W., quoted, 202; 197, 203. Booth, George R., 243, 248, 249. “Boston Evening Transcript,” quo¬ ted, 74, 92, 128, 277. Boston Handel and Haydn Society, “History” quoted, 22. Brickenstein, Lucy A., 45, 46, 50, 63, 68, 78, 81, 87, III, 1 13, 124, 127, 131, 203, 241. “Brooklyn Citizen,” quoted, 186, 187. “Brooklyn Eagle,” quoted, 132, 154, 159, 160. Brooks, Rev. W. E., quoted, 143, 144. “Buffalo Express,” quoted, 76. Burton, Frederick R., quoted, 74. Butler, Samuel, quoted, 275. Casals, Pablo, 190. Cecilia Society of Boston, 50, 51. Chamberlin, E. V., quoted, 120. Choral Society of Philadelphia, 50. “Christian Science Monitor,” quoted, 133, 135, 159, 167, 204, 205, 260. “Christian Work,” quoted, 143, 144. Christmas celebration at Bethlehem, 14 , 15 , 79* “Christmas Oratorio,” character and genesis of, 55, 56; difficulties, 59; 60, 89, 122, 12^30, 280. “Church Memorials,” 6. “Church Standard,” quoted, 75, 241. Cincinnati May Festival, 50, 55, 278. “Cincinnati Times-Star,” quoted, 82, 83. Claudius, Dane, 193. Cleaver, Albert N., service in reor¬ ganizing the Bach Choir, 91; sketch of, 246, 247; 197, 243. Cleaver, Mrs. Albert N., initiative in reorganizing the Bach Choir, 91; 205, 215. Clewell, Dr. John H., 94, 243, 252. Collegium Musicum, first formal musical group, 1744, 5, 9; concerts, 1807-1819, 23; reorganized as Philharmonic Society, 1820, 24, 26, 208. Community aspect of the Bethlehem Bach Choir, 80, 148, 170, 173, 183, 260, 261, 264, 269, 270. Comstock, F. H., quoted, 51. Connell, Horatio, 103, no, in. Curtis, Cyrus H. K., quoted, 202, 207. Damrosch, Leopold, 194. Damrosch, Walter, 189, 190, 193, 195- Day, H. Brooks, quoted, 75. Discipline of the Bach Choir, 261, 262. Doster, Mrs. W. E., 44, 45, 46, 242, 253- Douty, Nicholas, tenor at every Bethlehem Bach Festival to date, so; 63, 68, 74, 78, 85-88, 99, 103, 106, no, in, 113, 117, 124, 132, 141, 160, 165, 166. Drinker, Henry S., President of Le¬ high University and of the Bach Choir, 29, 93, 94, 133, 148, 180, 193, 197, 225, 236, 243; resigns presidency of Choir, 237; sketch of, 247, 248. “Dwight’s Journal of Music,” quoted, 28. Elson, Louis C., his “History of American Music” quoted, 19. Emery, N. M., 252. Estes, W. L., 243, 250. INDEX Estes, Mrs. W. L., 42, 50, 63, 69, 250. Executive Committee of Bethlehem Bach Choir, 170, 180, 240 ft. Faas, Mildred, 160. Finances of Bethlehem Bach Choir, 2^-5, 246, 266, 267. Finck, Henry T., on importance of the Bethlehem Festivals, 118: cor¬ respondence on the 1916 Festival, 121-24; 133; on the 1917 Festival, 138-40; on the human quality of Bach, 122; on the 1917 N.Y. con¬ cert, 172,173; defense of Dr. Wolle’s readings, 191, 192, 222, 223; on the 1921 N.Y. concert, 195; on C. M. Schwab, 229, 230; 227, 237. Franklin, Benjamin, “Autobi¬ ography” and letter references to Bethlehem music, 9. Franklin, Dr. W. S., 46, 241. Frey, J. Mark, 207. Goepp, Philip H., “Annals of Music in Philadelphia” quoted, 10, 19, 20; letter quoted, 20; report of 1915 Festival, 111-13; 272. Goldthwaite, W. S., quoted, 166. Gounod, Charles Francois, “Re¬ demption,” 31. Graber, Professor William K., 29. Grace, Eugene G., 237. Grider, Rufus A., his “Historical Notes” quoted, 17, 18, 25. Groman, Edward, 34. Guarantors of the Bach Festivals, 253-56. Halliwell, Mrs. George W., 252. Handel, Georg Friedrich, “Judas Maccabaeus,” 31. Handel and Haydn Society of Boston, 55, 269, 273. ^ “Hartford Daily Times,” quoted, 92, 120, 121, 159. Hartt, Julius, quoted, 92, 159; 120, I 2 I. Hauptmann, Moritz, 72. Hauser, Odell, quoted, 153. Haydn, Joseph, “Creation” and “Seasons” had first American ren¬ ditions in Bethlehem, 17, 19; Beth¬ lehem Moravians in direct touch with, 18; second rendition of “Creation,” 1823, 27; sung at Boarding School, 28; “Seasons,” 27, 30; sung by Oratorio Society of the Bethlehems, 31; sung by Beth¬ lehem Choral Union, 39, 234. Heaton, Walter, quoted, 167. Henderson, William J., praise of 1901 Bethlehem Festival, 53; notable journalistic reports, 55; account of the “Christmas Oratorio” rendi¬ tion in 1901, 58-60; of the 1901 “St. Matthew Passion,” 61, 62; of the 1901 “B Minor Mass,” 63, 64; adverse criticism, 69, 71-73; re¬ port of the 1915 Festival, 115, 116; sketch of “B Minor Mass,” 116, 117; on importance of the Bethle¬ hem Festivals, 118; on the 1916 Festival, 93, 125, 126; on the N.Y. 1921 concert, 194, 195; 133, 274. Henschel, Georg, 222. Higginson, Henry L., quoted, 267; 222. Hillman, Evelyn Chandler, 45, 46, 241. Hillman, Ralph R., 46, 241. Hinkle, Florence, 160. Hoch, Frank G., 205, 213. “Holy Cross Magazine,” quoted, 145, 146. Howard, Mary M., quoted, 76. Howe, M. A. DeWolfe, quoted, 92, 222. Huff, A. C., 251. Humiston, W. W., quoted, loi, 102. Indians at Bethlehem, burial of Tschoop, 6; withheld attack, 7; joined in polyglot singing, 8; learned to sing, 8. Isaacson, Charles D., quoted, 163. James, William, quoted, 38, 44. Judson, Arthur, quoted, 100, lOI. 339 INDEX Krehbiel, H. E., his “Notes on the Cultivation of Choral Music,” quoted, lo; “Musical Comment” in “N.Y. Tribune” quoted, i6; praise of 1901 Festival, 53; notable journalistic reports, 55; sketch of “Christmas Oratorio,” 55, 56; comment on Moravians, 56; 1901 review, 56-58; 62; report in Lon¬ don “Musical Times,” 65, 66; re¬ monstrates upon Dr. Wolle’s read¬ ings, 71; further criticism, 72, 176. Laciar, Samuel L., quoted, 162, 163, 201. Lambdin, John 0 ., quoted, 167, 168. Law, Frederic S., quoted, 61. LeBon, Gustav, quoted, 36, 37. Lehigh University, 3, 42, 43, 90; wel¬ comes reorganized Bach Choir, 91; scenes on campus, 92; service of university authorities in Festival details, 93; loi, m, 125, 133, 137, 145, 178, 214, 259, 274. Lehigh Valley Symphony Orches¬ tra, 32, 33. Leibert, Augustus H., 28. Leibert, Margaret Nevins, 42, 81, 86. Leibert, Richard W., 34. Levering, Bishop J. Mortimer, trans¬ lation of hymn quoted, 5; “His¬ tory of Bethlehem” quoted, 9; record of Martha Washington’s visit cited, 12; quoted, 219. Linderman, Mrs. R. P., 157, 158, 251, 252. Loewe, Johann Carl Gottfried, “Seven Sleepers,” 21, 28, 30, Longworth, Alice (Roosevelt), 153. Lucas, Clarence, quoted as to ideal surroundings of Bach Festivals, 92; on the 1913 P'estival, 107; on the 1914 Festival, 92, 109; on the 1917 Festival, 143, “Lutheran, The,” quoted, 167. “Magnificat,” 126, 149. Martin, Linton, quoted, 199, 200, 203, 204. “Mass in B Minor,” 43, 44; difficul¬ ties of, 47; fixed as second-day pro¬ gramme, 96; renditions of, 97-101, 107-109, 115; historical back¬ ground sketched by Mr. Hender¬ son, 116-18; 49, 50, 63, 88, 89, 105, 115, 122, 124, 125, 129, 131, 135, 136, 138, 142, 157, 167, 172, 177, 182, 183, 188, 198, 199, 203, 206, 220, 221, 272. Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Jakob Lud¬ wig Felix, “Hymn of Praise,” 30; “St. Paul,” 31; “Elijah,” 40. Meyer, Annie N. quoted, 150-52. Michael, David Moritz, 18, 25, 34* Miller, Christine, 124, 132. “Moravian, The,” 167. Moravian Church archives, 3, 4, 19, 21, 23. Moravian College and Theological Seminary, 214. Moravian Congregation in Bethle¬ hem, old chapel, 22; used as con¬ cert hall, 27; present church con¬ secrated, 1806, 22; early commu¬ nistic organization, 257. Moravian love for music, 10, 258. Moravian Preparatory School, 27, 29, 33, 211. ^ Moravian Seminary and College for Women, early musical instruction, 12; first boarding-school in Amer¬ ica, 13; letters of girl pupil quoted, 12-15; “Journal” quoted, 15; “History of Moravian Seminary” quoted, 16; “Creation” given 1855, 28; proffers rehearsal home for reorganized Bach Choir, 91; advantages of Seminary environ¬ ment, 94, 95; 173, 174, 211, 216, 221. Moravian Trombone Choir, trom¬ bones brought to Bethlehem, 1754, 7; serenade of General Washing¬ ton, 11; list of members, 275; 50, 57, 141,145,163,221. Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, his com¬ positions given in Bethlehem be¬ fore 1790, 20, 21, 234. 340 INDEX Murray, W. B., Jr., quoted, 132,154, 159, 160. “Musical America,” quoted, 100, lOi, 108-16, 131, 132, 142, 155, 156, 164, 182, 183, iqo, 191, 260, 266. “Musical Courier,” quoted, 92, 102, 107, 109, 143, 147, 187, 196. “Musical Digest,” quoted, 166. Musical instruments in Bethlehem, earliest use, 6; first spinet, 6; organs, 7; trombones, 7; Franklin’s list of instruments at Bethlehem, 9; played on way to harvest fields, 10; programmes of 1752 and 1782, ii; orchestral instruments used Christ¬ mas, 1787, 15; guitars and trom¬ bones, 1788, 15; pianos and clavi¬ chords, 1792, 16; orchestral instru¬ ments, 1789, 17; orchestra, 1795, 18; bands in Bethlehem, 34, 35. “Musical News,” quoted, 145, 176- 78. ^ “Musical Record and Review,” quoted, 260. “Musician, The,” quoted, 61. “Nation, The,” quoted, 164. Nazareth Hall, 13. Neisser, George, 12. Nevin, George B., quoted, 145. “New Bedford, Mass., Sunday Stand¬ ard,” quoted, 260. “New Haven Gazette and the Con¬ necticut Magazine,” quoted, 14, 51. New York, Festival of Music in (1920), 189-^3; (1921), 193-96. “New York American,” quoted, 174, 187. “New York Evening Mail,” quoted, 186. “New York Evening Post,” quoted, 118, 119, 121-24, 138-40, 150-52, 172, 178, 179, 184, 185, 191, 192, 195. “New York Globe,” quoted, 134, 140-42, 153, 163, 173, 185. “New York Herald,” quoted, 171, . 172, 186, 194, 195. New York Oratorio Society, 190, 193, 194, 273- “New York Sun,” quoted, 69, 70, 71-73, 93, 115-18, 166, 174, 186. New York Symphony Orchestra, 190, 193. “New York Telegraph,” quoted, 186. “New York Times,” quoted, 69-72, 83-85, 96, 100, 114, 153, 161, 162, 174-76, 194. “New York Tribune,” quoted, 16, 53, 55-58, 62, 71, 72, 153, 154, 176. “New York World,” quoted, 134, 149, 174, 196. Nichols, Clara T., quoted, 171. Nitsche, George E., 197. Nitschman, Rev. Immanuel, 17, 21. Officer, Father Harvey, quoted, 145, 146. Officers and Committees of the Beth¬ lehem Bach Choir, 332, 333. Opdycke, Mary, quoted, 166, 167. Organization of Bach Choir, 243, 244, 270. “Outlook,” the, quoted, 73, 93, 94, 119, 149, 150, 157, 192; report of 1904 Christmas Festival, 78, 79; on the importance of the Bethlehem Festivals, 135; on Mr. Schwab’s support, 229; on Lehigh Univer¬ sity’s service, 247. Packer Memorial Church, “temple for the muse of Bach,” 92; 141,145, 158, 161. Parker, H. T., report of the 1916 Festival, 128; quoted, 277. Pennsylvania State Educational As¬ sociation, 209. Peyser, Herbert F., his account of the 1914 Bach Festival, 108, 109- ii; of the 1916 Festival, 131, 132; of the 1917 Festival, 142; on the 1919 Festival, 155, 156; on the 1920 Festival, 163; on community as¬ pects, 260. Philadelphia, recital by Bach Choir 341 INDEX at, in 1921, 196-203; in 1922, 203- 206. Philadelphia Academy of Music, 198. “Philadelphia Bulletin,” quoted, 201. Philadelphia Forum, 203. “Philadelphia Inquirer,” quoted, 200, 205, 206. “Philadelphia North American,” quoted, 60, 199, 200, 203, 204. Philadelphia Orchestra, personnel, 327, 328; 100, 112, 118, 128, 129, 139, 141, 197, 198, 259, 278. “Philadelphia Press,” quoted, 61, 120, 153. “Philadelphia Public Ledger,” quoted, 85-89, 90, 91, 97-100, 103, 107, 108, 119, 120, 129, 130, 147, 148, 157, 158, 162, 168, 198, 199, 201, 204, 219. “Philadelphia Record,” quoted, 200, 206. Philharmonic Society of New York, joint concerts with Bethlehem Bach Choir (1917), 169/.; (1918), 178/.; 227, 228. Puritans, contrast with Moravians, 6, 10, 258. Pyrlaeus, Rev. J. C., 9. Quicksall, Harold P., quoted, 133. Rachmaninoff, Sergei, 190. Range of attendance at Bethlehem Bach Festival, 103, 104, 115, 133, 13s, 143, 145. Rau, Dr. Albert G., quoted, 20, 21; 23, 33 - “Reading Herald-Telegram,” quot¬ ed, 167. Rheinberger, Josef, 62, 213, 216. Rich, Thaddeus, 198. Richards, Dr. J. W., 225, 251. Ritter, Dr. F. L., his “Music in America” quoted, 10. Roemer, Hans, 32. Roepper, William T., 28. Romberg, “Lay of the Bell,” 28. Roosevelt, Edith C., 153. Rossini, Gioachino Antonio, “Stabat Mater,” 30. “St. John Passion,” 42, 83, 89, 114, 117, 126, 217, 272, 280. “St. Matthew Passion,” 42, 58, 60, 62, 89, 117, 125, 165, 166, 273, 278, 280. Saint-Saens, Camille, “Noel,” 30. Samuels, David G., 31, 32. Sanborn, Pitts, review of the 1917 Festival, 134, 140-42; quoted, 153; report on the 1917 N.Y. concert, 173; on the 1921 N.Y. concert, 195. Sandt, George W., quoted, 167. Sayre, Robert H., 251. Scarlet, Lilian, 193. Schumann, Robert, “Paradise and the Peri,” 30. Schwab, Charles M., and the Choir, 225; greetings to from singers, and his reply, 226; pays expenses of trips to New York, 227, 228; his support of Bach Festivals, 229; comment of the “Outlook” and H. T. Finck on, 229, 230; his principle of giving with citizens, 230; his life-long love of music, 232, ^33» 238; on the merger of steel companies, 237, 238; President of the Choir, 238; 32, 33, 34, 35, 90, 91, 148, 154, 169, 170, 180, 181, 190, 193, 194, 196, 197. Schwarze, William N., quoted, 155. Sembrich, Marcella, 196. Shafer, Robert E., quoted, 157. Shields, T. Edgar, founded Oratorio Society of the Bethlehems, 1907, 31; conductor of Bass Clef Club, 32; praise of his organ accompani¬ ment at Bach Festivals, III, 141, 205; sketch of, 249; 243, 259. Shimer, Milton J., 46, 241, 243, 249 - Smith, Nina Pugh, quoted, 82, 83. Snyder, Henry S., 250. Sociological aspects of Bethlehem’s musical history, 36-38. 342 INDEX Soloists of the Bach Festivals, 322 -24. Spalding, Albert, quoted, 265, 266. Spitta, Julius August Philipp, biog¬ rapher of Bach, 42. Spohr, Louis, “Last Judgment,” 30 - “Springfield Republican,” quoted, 154. Stanley, A. A., quoted, 66. “Star-Spangled Banner, The,” 152, 153 - Stokowski, Leopold, 133, 278. Stransky, Dr. Josef, 153, 171, 183, 185, 227. Sun Inn, 24. Tapper, Thomas, quoted, 260. Tarde, Gabriel, quoted, 37. Thaeler, Rev. A. D., quoted, 263. Thomas, Theodore, tribute to Dr. Wolle, 224; 55. Thompson, Oscar, quoted, 164. Thunder, Henry Gordon, quoted, 60. Tittmann, Charles Trowbridge, 124, 127, 131, 142, 160. Toronto Choir, 118. Tryon, Winthrop P., quoted, 167. Unitas Fratrum, first hymn-book (1505), 5 - United States Army Ambulance Concert, 187-89, 320. University of California, 89, 90. University of Pennsylvania, Chris¬ tian Association of, 198. Van Vleck, Jacob, 12. Villard, Oswald Garrison, 133, 227. Voght, Dr., 118. Waldo, Fullerton L., quoted as to Mr. Schwab’s help, 90, 91; his re¬ port on the 1912 Festival, 97-100; on the 1913 Festival, 103-07; com¬ ment on solos sung by chorus at 1914 Festival, 108; on the 1915 Festival, 119, 120; on the 1916 Fes¬ tival, 129; urges more rehearsals with orchestra, 129, 130; on the spirit of the Bach Choir, 147, 148; on the 1919 Festival, 157; on Dr. Wolle’s conducting, 219; 158, 168, 198, 199, 204, 205. Walker, Julian P., 78, 81, 82, 85, 87, 89. Walters, Raymond, quoted, 176-78; 21, 102, 148, 207, 252. Warren, Samuel P., 43. Washington, General, entertained with music in Bethlehem (1782), II, 24. Washington, Martha, attended serv¬ ice in Bethlehem (1779), 12. Watts, Harvey M., quoted, 61. “Weekly Review,” quoted, 163. Weingartner, Andrew M., 32, 33, Weiss, Jedediah, 18, 19, 208. Weiss, John G., 208. Westmann, J. E., 9. Wiegner, Howard J., 46, 78, 82, 87, 242. Wilbur, Warren A., guarantor of Lehigh Valley Symphony Orches¬ tra, 32, 33. Wolle, Rev. Francis, 209, 210. Wolle, J. Fred, conductor of the Choir, his system of instructing a chorus, 47, 48, 217, 218; and the World War, 149; criticized, 163, 222; defended by Finck, 191, 192, 222, 223; ancestry, 208, 209; boy¬ hood, 210; youth, 211, 212; studies in Munich under Rheinberger, 213; conducts Bethlehem Choral Union (1882-92), 215; head of Depart¬ ment of Music, Univ. of Cal. (1905 -ii), 215; first acquaintance with Bach, 216; thirty years’ devotion to study and teaching of Bach, 217; his method of conducting de¬ scribed by W’aldo, 219; his in¬ terpretation of Bach, 220-22; tribute of Theodore Thomas to, 224; mentioned, 30, 36, 37, 38, 43, 47,48, SO, 58, 64, 71, 72, 75, 76, 79, 86, 90, 98, 102, 112, 118, 119, 343 INDEX 123,127,131,136,141,144,148, 149, 153, 154, 15s, 162, 163, 165, 166, 167, 172, 174, 175, 178, 185, 193, 199, 200, 205, 262, 264, 269, 276, 278. Wood, Dr. David, 212, 216. Works rendered by Bethlehem Bach Choir, list of, 311-22. World War, the, and the Choir, 149^. Zerweck, Clinton F., 46, 242. Zinzendorf, Count Nicholas Louis, 4 , S, 36. DATE DUE 1 1 DEMCO 38-297 |